Global Disorder, Horn of Africa Turmoil. Can Europe Keep Up?
In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by Heiko Nitzschke, Germany’s special envoy for the Horn of Africa, to discuss whether and how Europe needs to adapt its approach towards the Horn of Africa. While Europe used to act in relative sync with the U.S. in Africa, this is increasingly less the case. Meanwhile, numerous other powers, mostly from the Middle East, are pursuing their own objectives. Amid all this, how does Europe avoid going it alone in the Horn of Africa region? And, amid these shifts, is Europe rethinking longstanding policy ideas around development, multilateralism and mediation?This episode is produced in partnership with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung.For more, check out our Horn of Africa page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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The El Fasher Atrocities
In this episode of The Horn, Alan speaks with Julia Steers, investigations editor at Lighthouse Reports, about the large-scale atrocities that took place in Darfur’s El Fasher after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured the city from Sudan’s army last month. They retrace how the RSF’s seizure of El Fasher unfolded after months of siege and discuss what investigators have uncovered about the mass killings and widespread abuses that followed. They examine the scale and brutality of the attacks on civilians – many of them documented by the RSF themselves – and the ethnic pattern of the killings. They also explore the RSF’s motivations for the apparent coordinated and systematic mass killing, and how the group has responded to the reporting on these atrocities.For more, check out Lighthouse Reports’ publication “The Killing Fields of Al Fashir”, co-published with Sky News and Sudan War Monitor, our Hold Your Fire! episode “What Does the RSF’s Seizure of El Fasher Mean for Sudan’s War?” and our Sudan country page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Mediators’ Brave New World
In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by Timur Söylemez, former ambassador and former head of the mediation unit at Türkiye’s foreign ministry, to discuss the evolving landscape of conflict mediation and Ankara’s approach in the Horn of Africa and beyond. They unpack the headwinds facing mediators today amid proliferating conflicts, shrinking space for comprehensive peace deals and rising scepticism toward multilateral bodies. They explore how Türkiye chooses where to engage, how its approach differs from that of the U.S., EU and Gulf states, and favouring results over process. They also examine Türkiye’s efforts in the Horn, including its mediation between Somalia and Ethiopia, and its exploration of peace talks on Sudan, as well as how Ankara cooperates with other mediators from the U.S., Europe and the Gulf.This episode is produced in partnership with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung.For more, check out our Türkiye and Horn of Africa pages. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Bonus Episode: What Does the RSF’s Seizure of El Fasher Mean for Sudan’s War?
Today we're bringing you a bonus episode on the fall of El Fasher in Sudan from Crisis Group's Global Podcast Hold Your Fire!.In this update episode of Hold Your Fire!, Richard speaks with Crisis Group’s Sudan expert Shewit Woldemichael and Horn director Alan Boswell about the paramilitary RSF capturing North Dafur’s capital El Fasher, the reports of horrific violence in the city and the implications for the trajectory of Sudan’s war. They discuss how the RSF managed to take control of the city after a siege of more than a year and the situation in El Fasher now amid a worsening humanitarian crisis and reports of mass killings of civilians. They discuss the de facto partition of Sudan with the RSF now controlling most of western Sudan and the army holding the capital Khartoum and the east. They also explore whether the capture of El Fasher may derail U.S.-led efforts to broker a ceasefire.For more, check out our recent episode Can a U.S.-Arab Roadmap Stop Sudan’s War? And our Sudan country page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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The Trial of South Sudan’s Vice President Riek Machar
In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by Edmund Yakani, executive director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization, to discuss the trial of South Sudan’s first vice president and former rebel leader Riek Machar. They trace Machar’s rise and how he became a central, polarising figure in South Sudanese politics. They unpack the charges against Machar over his alleged role in a March 2025 attack on an army base in Nasir. They discuss the timing of the proceedings as South Sudanese elite jockey over the eventual succession of President Salva Kiir amid mounting speculation over his health. They also explore what to expect from the trial, what its outcome could mean for the risk of deepening violence and for the 2018 peace deal, and whether there remains a viable path to dialogue among South Sudan’s elites to ease tensions.For more, check out our Analyst’s Notebook “Criminal Charges against South Sudan’s Vice President Threaten New Twist in Conflict”, our recent episode “As South Sudan Quakes, an Heir Apparent Rises”, and our briefing “Succession Fever Deepens South Sudan’s Malaise”. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Horn of Africa is in turmoil. From revolution in Sudan to civil war in Ethiopia, from Somalia’s political stalemate and the regional spread of jihadism to troubled East African democracies, the region’s pace and scale of change are difficult to keep up with. The Horn, a podcast series from the International Crisis Group, helps make sense of it all. Host Alan Boswell and guests dive deep behind the headlines as they analyse events, debate diplomacy and discuss avenues toward peace. Hosted by Alan Boswell and produced by Maeve Frances Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.