INTERNACIONAL
Russian mercenaries replace Western forces as ISIS surges across Africa’s Sahel region
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Analysts claim the withdrawal of U.S. and European troops from countries in Africa’s Sahel, and their replacement by Russian mercenaries, has led to a spike in jihadist-driven terrorism.
The Sahel is a belt of countries running roughly west to east across the continent just below the Sahara Desert. A total of 3,885 deaths — about 51% of all terrorism-related fatalities globally in 2024 — occurred in the Sahel, according to the Global Terrorism Index.
In at least three Sahel states — Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso — military juntas that came to power in coups, notably Niger and Mali, have expelled Western military forces. The U.S. was asked, after 11 years in the country, to halt anti-terror drone operations from two bases in Niger last year. In Mali, French forces were ejected in 2022 after battling Islamist terror groups for nine years.
Governments have turned to the Kremlin’s private mercenary army, the Africa Corps — formerly known as the Wagner Group — for protection. But the Russians are reportedly more interested in extracting minerals than helping stop the spread of jihadism.
IS TRUMP CONSIDERING BOLD AFRICA PLAY TO PUSH BACK ON CHINA, RUSSIA AND ISLAMIC TERRORISTS?
Supporters of Niger’s National Concil of Sefeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) hold a Russia (R) and a Chinese (L) flag as they gather at Place de la Concertation in Niamey on Aug. 20, 2023. (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)
Ordinary people often bear the brunt of jihadist attacks in the Sahel. Last month, Islamist gunmen on motorbikes reportedly killed 22 people in an attack on Tillaberi village in western Niger. Fifteen of the dead were families attending a naming ceremony for a child, reports said. In northern Mali in January, Russian mercenaries allegedly joined government forces in executing 10 civilians, including a 2-year-old boy.
In the Sahel, «groups affiliated with the Islamic State and al-Qaeda are continuing their territorial and strategic advance,» the Observer Research Foundation reported in August, «taking advantage of governance gaps and weak security forces to push into littoral West African states such as Benin and Togo.»
«The situation in the Sahel, particularly in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, has rapidly deteriorated since the U.S. and French have withdrawn from the countries following the coups,» Bill Roggio, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies,(FDD) told Fox News Digital.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi shake hands during a family photo opportunity during the Russia Africa Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, Friday, July 28, 2023. (Alexei Danichev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Roggio, also editor of the FDD’s Long War Journal, added, «The reality is that the situation was bad before the U.S. and French left the region, but the drawdown of U.S. and French forces has exacerbated the jihadist advances.»
«Both al Qaeda’s branch in the region, JNIM, (al Qaeda-linked Jama’a Nusrat Al-Islam wa al-Muslimin) and the Islamic State have made gains and control significant enclaves in the countries … The juntas in these three countries wanted the West out, and have turned to Russia to provide security via Wagner, which is now ironically called the Africa Corps.»
US–RUSSIA FLASHPOINT LOOMS OVER PUTIN’S PLANS FOR AFRICAN NAVAL BASE
A Boko Haram flag flutters from an abandoned command post in Gamboru deserted after Chadian troops chased jihadists from the border town on February 4, 2015. (Stephane Yas/AFP via Getty Images)
«The Russian forces have little incentive to improve security and focus on securing mineral resources for profit,» Roggio added. «This further fuels the jihadist insurgencies, which prey on civilians caught between the jihadists and weak-to-nonexistent governments in some cases. There is little the U.S. can do at the moment, as these governments are anti-West and do not want a return of U.S. and French forces. And I am not sure either country has the political will or desire to return.»
Dr. Frans Cronje, a political and economic analyst, said in an interview with Fox News Digital that during the run-up to the 2023 coup in Niger, a sophisticated political and media campaign sought to turn public opinion against Western influence, often using anti-colonial themes popular in Western political culture.
Russia’s Wagner group mercenaries in Mali, Africa. (East2West)
Cronje continued, «French and U.S. stabilization efforts were tarred as imperialist interference and worse. That was on top of the fact that French and U.S. troops were already under severe strain in combating a jihadist insurgency that threatened the civilian population. You could make the case that even without the coup, the Western position was untenable, short of committing ever greater volumes of arms and munitions to a war very far away from Paris and Washington.»
Cronje agreed with Roggio in his assessment of the Kremlin’s position: «Russia’s forces have now filled the gap left by the French and Americans, but Russia’s objective is securing resource supply chains — not civilians.»
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Wagner mercenaries in Mali, December 2023. (East2West)
He concluded, «It is difficult to say if this situation could have been avoided. The only way to do it would have been to run political and media operations to build popular support for Western actors, then install a pro-Western administration and, beyond that, vastly increase Western military resources, including troops, deployed in Niger. All a bridge too far for Western actors — and, in many respects, understandably so.»
A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital, «The United States has engaged with Sahelian countries using a pragmatic approach that focuses on advancing our foreign policy priorities. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Will Stevens’ recent visits to the region reinforced the U.S. government’s work with host country officials to advance U.S. commercial opportunities and to engage on strategic counterterrorism priorities to mitigate threats to U.S. personnel and interests.»
isis,russia,africa,conflicts,terrorism
INTERNACIONAL
Russian attack on Kharkiv wipes out young family, leaving pregnant mother as sole survivor
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
A Russian drone strike Tuesday night in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region wiped out a young family, killing a father and his three small children, leaving a pregnant mother as the sole survivor.
Oleg Synegubov, the governor of the Kharkiv region, said on Telegram that the attack on the town of Bohodukhiv claimed the lives of 34-year-old Grigory and his three children — 2-year-old twin boys, Ivan and Vladyslav, and their 1-year-old sister Myroslava.
The family had just evacuated from Zolochiv, a front-line town about 25 miles from the Russian border, in an effort to escape persistent shelling.
They were spending their first night in their new home when the strike occurred, Synegubov said.
‘ONLY TRUMP CAN STOP RUSSIA’: MILLIONS FACE FREEZING WINTER, UKRAINE ENERGY EXECUTIVE WARNS
The aftermath of a drone attack in the city of Bohodukhiv in the Kharkiv region that killed four people, including three children, in Bohodukhiv, Ukraine, on Feb. 11, 2026. (Carlo Bravo/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Olga, the children’s 35-year-old mother who is 35 weeks pregnant, survived with injuries and minor burns and was later discharged from the hospital after receiving medical care.
«The Russian army once again targeted an ordinary residential building in the middle of the night,» said Synegubov. «Another terrorist act of the state fighting against the civilian population – against small children, pregnant women, elderly people.»
The Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office said preliminary data indicates that a «Geran-2» drone was used in the attack.
RUSSIAN MILITARY INTELLIGENCE OFFICIAL SHOT IN MOSCOW: REPORT
A resident touches a Russian-Iranian Shahed-136 (Geran-2) kamikaze drone installed in front of Saint Michael’s Cathedral as part of an exhibition displaying destroyed Russian military vehicles and weapons, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Nov. 26, 2025. (Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters)
The Geran-2 is the Russian designation for an Iranian-designed Shahed-136, a one-way attack drone that detonates on impact and has been widely used by Moscow to strike Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
KENYA DEMANDS ANSWERS FROM RUSSIA OVER RECRUITMENT OF CITIZENS TO FIGHT IN UKRAINE WAR
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday in a post on X that Russian forces carried out additional strikes across border and frontline regions, including launching 470 attack drones at Kherson in a single day.
Damaged buildings and debris are seen after a drone attack in the city of Bohodukhiv in the Kharkiv region on Feb. 11, 2026. (Carlo Bravo/Anadolu via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
«Gas supply restoration is ongoing in the Donetsk region – also following a Russian strike. There were strikes on infrastructure in the Dnipro region, in the Synelnykove district,» he wrote. «Some consumers are currently without electricity in Zaporizhzhia after ‘shahed’ strikes – restoration work is underway.»
Zelenskyy said he directed military and community leaders to develop additional measures to strengthen protection for critical infrastructure.
ukraine,russia,drones
INTERNACIONAL
Un fallo de 49 años marca uno de los castigos más severos en la historia reciente de Panamá
Las recientes decisiones judiciales en Panamá reflejan un endurecimiento punitivo, una mayor presión social contra el crimen violento y una estrategia clara del Ministerio Público de Panamá para buscar sanciones más severas en casos de alto impacto.
La condena más reciente, de 49 años de prisión, marca uno de los castigos más altos impuestos en el país en los últimos años y reabre el debate sobre los límites de la pena máxima, la función disuasiva del sistema penal y la aplicación del concepto de pena líquida.
En este caso, un ciudadano de 25 años fue sentenciado como autor de homicidio doloso agravado y tentativa de homicidio, tras un ataque armado ocurrido en mayo de 2023 en Santa Ana, que dejó un joven muerto y dos menores heridos.
El tribunal impuso una pena líquida de 49 años, es decir, una condena que debe cumplirse íntegramente, sin posibilidad de reducción por beneficios penitenciarios, trabajo, estudio o redenciones anticipadas, salvo las excepciones estrictamente reguladas por ley. En el Código Penal panameño, este tipo de sanción busca asegurar un cumplimiento real y efectivo de la condena.
La legislación nacional establece que la pena máxima en Panamá es de 50 años de prisión, incluso cuando se acumulen varios delitos graves. Esto significa que, aunque una persona sea condenada por múltiples homicidios u otros crímenes graves, el límite legal impide superar ese tope.
En la práctica, una condena de 49 años equivale casi a una cadena perpetua encubierta, especialmente para personas jóvenes, y representa el máximo reproche penal permitido por el sistema jurídico actual.
El hecho que motivó esta condena ocurrió en un entorno urbano concurrido, cuando el sentenciado disparó sin mediar palabras contra las víctimas. La Fiscalía logró probar dolo directo, uso de arma de fuego y la existencia de circunstancias agravantes.
Además de la pena principal, se impuso una inhabilitación para ejercer funciones públicas por 10 años una vez cumplida la condena, reforzando el componente de responsabilidad social y jurídica.
Otra sentencia relevante fue la impuesta a un hombre condenado a 16 años de prisión por robo agravado, tras un asalto violento ocurrido en mayo de 2023. Durante el ataque, la víctima fue golpeada con un arma de fuego, lo que le provocó fracturas en la mandíbula.
La Fiscalía Metropolitana sustentó el caso con pruebas periciales, testimoniales y materiales, logrando demostrar la comisión del delito y la responsabilidad penal del acusado, quien también recibió una pena accesoria de inhabilitación.
En paralelo, la Sección de Homicidio y Femicidio de Herrera obtuvo una victoria procesal en segunda instancia, luego de que el Tribunal Superior de Apelaciones reformara una condena inicial de 21 años por homicidio agravado y la elevara a 30 años de prisión como cómplice primario.
El caso estuvo vinculado a un asesinato ocurrido en una gallera en Pesé, donde el acusado participó activamente en la logística y huida, utilizando un vehículo adquirido previamente en La Chorrera.
El tribunal consideró que la sentencia original no aplicó correctamente los criterios del artículo 79 del Código Penal, que regula la individualización de la pena.
Al reexaminar las circunstancias agravantes y la participación del imputado, concluyó que su conducta fue necesaria y determinante para la ejecución del crimen, lo que justificaba una sanción más severa. Este fallo refuerza la tendencia de los tribunales superiores a corregir decisiones consideradas indulgentes.
También se registró una condena de 10 años de prisión por posesión ilícita de armas de fuego, tras un acuerdo validado ante un juez de garantías. Durante un allanamiento en Pedregal, se incautaron pistolas, un fusil, proveedores y municiones sin permisos legales, todos certificados como funcionales por el Instituto de Medicina Legal y Ciencias Forenses.
Además de la pena principal, se impuso una multa económica, reforzando el enfoque preventivo frente al tráfico y tenencia ilegal de armas.
En conjunto, estas decisiones muestran una política criminal orientada a elevar el costo penal del delito, especialmente en casos de violencia, homicidio y uso de armas.
La imposición de penas cercanas al máximo legal, la aplicación de penas líquidas y la revisión en apelación de sentencias consideradas leves apuntan a fortalecer la confianza ciudadana en la justicia, aunque también plantean interrogantes sobre la capacidad del sistema penitenciario para manejar condenas tan extensas.
Otra de las condenas recientes fue impuesta en la provincia de Colón: un hombre de 26 años recibió 35 años de prisión, luego de que la Sección Especializada en Homicidio y Femicidio de la Fiscalía Regional de Colón y Guna Yala demostrara ante el Tribunal de Juicio su responsabilidad por homicidio doloso agravado y tentativa de homicidio.
Durante el juicio oral, el Ministerio Público sustentó su teoría del caso con la práctica de pruebas y los alegatos de clausura, lo que derivó en un veredicto condenatorio.
El tribunal también ordenó como pena accesoria la prohibición de portar armas de fuego por el mismo periodo de la sanción principal, una vez concluida la pena. El caso se relaciona con un hecho ocurrido la noche del 3 de noviembre de 2022 en Altos de Santa Cruz, corregimiento de Guásimo, distrito de Donoso, cuando el sentenciado atacó con un arma punzocortante a dos hombres, causando la muerte de uno y dejando al otro como víctima de tentativa de homicidio.
En paralelo al endurecimiento de las condenas impuestas por los tribunales, la Asamblea Nacional abrió en octubre del año pasado el debate sobre la posibilidad de incorporar la cadena perpetua al sistema penal panameño.
Con votación unánime, la Comisión de Gobierno, Justicia y Asuntos Constitucionales aprobó el prohijamiento de un proyecto de ley presentado por la diputada Walkiria Coba, que busca modificar el Código Penal para ampliar el rango de las penas y permitir sanciones de por vida en casos de delitos de extrema gravedad.
La iniciativa plantea reformar el artículo 52 para que la pena de prisión pueda extenderse hasta cadena perpetua y crear el artículo 132-C, aplicable a homicidios con ejecución atroz, uso de fuego, asfixia, extracción de órganos vitales o crímenes múltiples.
atentados en honduras 2013,crime,crime, law and justice,policía
INTERNACIONAL
GOP lawmaker shocked after anti-ICE sheriff was stumped by ‘fifth-grade civics’ question
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
North Carolina Republican state Rep. Allen Chesser said he was taken by surprise when a Democratic sheriff who has long opposed cooperating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could not answer a basic question about how the government works.
A North Carolina House Oversight Committee hearing spurred on by the recent killing of a young Ukrainian woman, Iryna Zarutska, in Charlotte, took an unexpected turn when Chesser asked Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden, «What branch of government do you operate under?»
McFadden, who is the top law enforcement officer in the county where Zarutska was killed, simply answered, «Mecklenburg County,» prompting Chesser to repeat, «What branch of government do you operate under, sheriff?»
The sheriff answered, «The Constitution of the United States,» to which Chesser responded, «That is what establishes the branches of government; I’m asking what branch you fall under.»
After McFadden answered, «Mecklenburg County» again, Chesser remarked, «This is not where I was anticipating getting stuck. Um, are you aware of how many branches of government there are?» The sheriff quickly shot back, «No.»
CHARLOTTE LIGHT-RAIL STABBING MURDER SPURS LANDMARK CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM FROM NORTH CAROLINA REPUBLICANS
Left: The skyline of the City of Charlotte, North Carolina, which sits in Mecklenburg County. Right: Sheriff Garry McFadden. (Andrea Evangelo-Giamou / EyeEm via Getty Images; The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office/Facebook)
After a long pause, Chesser continued, «For the sake of debate, let’s say there are three branches of government: legislative, executive, judicial. Of those three, which do you fall under?»
The sheriff answered, «I believe I fall under the last one … judicial.»
«You are incorrect, sir. You fall under the executive,» said Chesser.
After that, Chesser continued to press McFadden about how he reconciles his responsibility as an officer under the executive branch to enforce the law with his opposition to cooperation with ICE. Chesser asked McFadden how he reconciled his responsibility with a previous statement in which the sheriff said, «We do not have a role in enforcement whatsoever, we do not have to follow the rules and the laws that are governed by our lawmakers in Raleigh.»
The sheriff said that Chesser was taking his quote out of context, saying it was strictly in reference to immigration enforcement.
Though declining to offer more context on the statement, McFadden affirmed his office is now abiding by state law requiring cooperation with ICE, saying, «We follow the law, when the law is produced, we follow the law.»
HOUSE DEM EXPLODES ON TOP TRUMP IMMIGRATION OFFICIAL, SAYS HE ‘BETTER HOPE’ FOR PARDON FROM PRESIDENT
Iryna Zarutska curls up in fear as a man looms over her during a disturbing attack on a Charlotte, N.C., light rail train. (NewsNation via Charlotte Area Transit System)
In an interview with Fox News Digital the day after the hearing, Chesser, who is an Army veteran and former police officer, said that, «Obviously, those weren’t the cache of questions that I was thinking we were going to get him on.»
«I had several statements that he had made to the media and to the local press and in different interviews that kind of conflicted with some of the testimony that he provided yesterday about following the law. We made it to [only] one of those statements because we got held up on what I thought was baseline, just kind of setting a baseline of how we were to establish that his role is to enforce the law,» he explained, adding, «I was not expecting to have to get into a fifth-grade civics lesson with a duly elected sheriff.»
He said that McFadden has «decided to make himself kind of a centerpiece in the refusal to enforce immigration law here in North Carolina,» adding, «It’s not so much the refusal to enforce immigration law, but it’s the refusal to enforce state law that says he must cooperate with ICE and ICE detainers when people are in custody in his facilities.»
WHO IS IRYNA ZARUTSKA, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE KILLED IN CHARLOTTE TRAIN ATTACK?
Ukrainian Iryna Zarutska came to the U.S. to escape war but was stabbed to death in Charlotte. (Evgeniya Rush/GoFundMe)
«Last summer, we had the unfortunate death of a young Ukrainian national that had sought refuge in our country and in our state,» Chesser went on. «I think that all North Carolinians, and all people who find themselves in North Carolina, should be able to count on one thing when it comes to public safety, and that is whether or not you are safe and whether or not the law will be enforced is not dependent on what county you find yourself in.»
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
«North Carolina is a safe state for all the people who choose to come here, and that is the point of the Oversight Committee [hearing] that we were having was, making sure that the law is equally applied and fairly applied across all imaginary lines in our state,» he said.
The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
democratic party,immigration,enforcement,north carolina,charlotte raleigh piedmont,police and law enforcement,migrant crime
Durante el receso legislativo, Milei dictó casi tantos DNU como todas las leyes promulgadas a lo largo de 2025
Russian attack on Kharkiv wipes out young family, leaving pregnant mother as sole survivor
Dos empresas del puerto de Bahía Blanca denunciaron bloqueos, intimidaciones y agresiones físicas por parte de sindicalistas
ANSES: cuándo cobro en febrero 2026 si mi DNI termina en 5
Murió la exdiputada y exesposa de Jorge Capitanich, Sandra Mendoza
La nueva oferta que Boca Juniors le hizo a Estudiantes de La Plata por Edwuin Cetré
El sector industrial advierte que la apertura económica exige eliminar las distorsiones internas
Mirtha Legrand se quebró desconsolada al hablar de la renuncia de Jimena Monteverde a su mesaza
Central Córdoba vs. Unión: formaciones, hora y dónde ver por tv
Acuartelamiento policial en Santa Fe: reclamo salarial y temor a un conflicto nacional de seguridad
POLITICA1 día agoAcuartelamiento policial en Santa Fe: reclamo salarial y temor a un conflicto nacional de seguridad
- POLITICA1 día ago
La advertencia de ATE a los gobernadores que apoyan la reforma laboral: “Firmarán su sentencia de muerte”
- ECONOMIA1 día ago
Cuánto le cuesta a la clase media llenar el changuito y cómo varían los precios de los alimentos entre provincias
