A Thread 👇🏿

A Thread 👇🏿

African states being destabilised by the UAE From supporting secessionist movements and proxy militias, to using its financial leverage to make African states wage war on each other, the UAE is increasingly viewed as the most disruptive force across the continent. This carousel explores 10 African states being destabilised by the UAE.

Sudan The UAE backs the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a militia that launched a war on Sudan in April 2023. The Arab supremacist militia perpetrated atrocities across Sudan, including massacres that the UN describes as genocidal in the Darfur region of western Sudan, alongside ethnic cleansing campaigns in central Sudan’s Al-Jazira state.

South Sudan With South Sudan being used as a supply corridor for the RSF, Juba has been dragged into the UAE’s war on its northern neighbour. RSF fighters have often retreated to South Sudan, where they have had deadly clashes with the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO).

Libya The UAE supports Khalifa Haftar’s Libyan Arab Armed Forces (LAAF) in its war on the internationally-recognised Libyan government. Alongside perpetrating war crimes in Libya, LAAF-controlled territories have acted as a conduit to supply the RSF-perpertrated genocide in neighbouring Sudan.

Chad Increasingly financially reliant on the UAE, President Mahamat Deby allows Chadian territory to be a transit point for Emirati arms supplies to the RSF which targets the non-Arab Zaghawa tribe in Sudan. This triggers internal backlash given that the Zaghawa form the backbone of Chad’s security elite, with the RSF killing dozens of soldiers in repeated attacks on Chad’s army.

Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is financially reliant on the UAE, which has dragged Ethiopia into the war on Sudan. Ethiopia hosts an RSF training camp, with attacks on Sudan being launched from its territory, thereby bringing further instability to a state already facing several insurgencies.

Somalia The UAE undermines Somali sovereignty through regional fragmentation. Alongside building a military base for Israel and the US in secessionist Somaliland, the semi-autonomous Puntland region has been used to transfer weapons to the RSF.

Algeria On 10 September 2026, Algeria severed ties with the UAE citing "provocative and hostile acts," amid concerns about the spread of the UAE’s war on Sudan. In addition, state-aligned Algerian media has accused the UAE of supporting a Kabylie separatist movement that Algiers designated as a terrorist organisation.

Niger On 30 August 2026, Nigerien authorities foiled a coup attempt that was partly blamed on the UAE. This led Algeria to deploy fighter jets to Niger, shortly before the former cut off ties with the UAE.

Mali Despite presenting itself as counter-terrorism ally in the Sahel, the UAE reportedly paid a $50 million ransom fee to free hostages seized by militants linked to Al-Qaeda in late 2025. According to the UN, this money funded the group’s advances, including an attack on Mali’s capital Bamako that killed the country’s defence minister.

DR Congo The UAE is accused of being a leading recipient of gold smuggled out of Africa, much of which comes from parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo controlled by rebel militias. An investigation by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime suggests that Emirati money indirectly funds non-state armed groups engaged in humanitarian abuses.

What is the solution? Despite their destabilisation of Africa, the UAE maintains a “strategic partnership” with the African Union Commission, and holds observer status at the African Union (AU). This is why, during a session of the AU’s Pan-African parliament, Somali Senator Abdi Ismail Samatar said: “We should sanction them, take them out of the [AU], and not invite them to our forums”.