Nouakchott, Mauritania
The U.S. is sending Army experts and defense contractors to Mauritania to help train local officials to combat terrorism. International think tanks have said the West African nation harbors al Qaida cells, and at least one of Osama bin Laden’s top lieutenants came from there. A $100 million U.S. program for Mauritania and other West Saharan countries will concentrate on improving border controls with Algeria, a hotbed of Islamic extremism. It will also aim to beef up security around the state mining company, which has lost hundreds of boxes of explosives to theft.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Easy listening: the best audiobooksThe Week Recommends Swap hefty hardbacks for hands-free reading this summer
-
Sharenting: does covering children's faces on social media protect them?In The Spotlight Privacy trend has 'trickled down' from celebrity parents but it may not protect your kids
-
Syria's returning refugeesThe Explainer Thousands of Syrian refugees are going back to their homeland but conditions there remain extremely challenging
