Militant Africa: How 2012 Proved to Be a Year of Rebellion
A look at groups that threaten Africa’s peaceful future.
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Militant Africa - Armed militant groups operating on the continent of Africa are certainly not a new phenomenon. But 2012 brought a resurgence of these groups and their deadly impact on the peace and security of the countries they call home. — Naeesa Aziz (Photo: AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
Photo By Photo: AP Photo/Jerome Delay
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Democratic Republic of Congo: M23 - Although Congo is no stranger to armed rebel groups, the country’s M23 rebels emerged in 2012 as the most well-equipped and deadly armed group to hit the scene. The M23 rebels are composed of soldiers from a defunct rebel army made up of fighters from the Tutsi ethnic group that was targeted in Rwanda’s 1994 genocide. (Photo: AP Photo/Stephen Wandera,File Photo)
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Nigeria: Boko Haram - Nigerian militant group Boko Haram garnered international attention since 2009 when it launched a violent attack on several police stations and government buildings killing nearly 700 people. The name Boko Haram means “western education is sin” in the Hausa language, and the Islamic group seeks to establish sharia law throughout Nigeria. (Photo: REUTERS/Stringer)
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Sudan - Sudan has been accused by Israel and other nations of serving as a hub for a weapons supply route that runs from Iran to Palestine. Reports say it supplies militant groups in Gaza and other places in the Middle East. (Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)
Photo By Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah
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Somalia - Although al-Shabab has spread its influence around east Africa, the Islamist group hails from Somalia and has established formal ties with al-Qaeda. Al-Shabab means "the youth" in Arabic, and the group sprung out of the radical youth wing of Somalia's former Union of Islamic Courts in 2006. (Photo: REUTERS/Stuart Price/AU-UN IST PHOTO/Handout)
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