Protests in the Democratic Republic of Congo
On Tuesday, protests against the government’s plans to amend the constitution took place in several cities across the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo). The nationwide mobilisation was called by the opposition coalition, the Coalition for Article 64 (C64), who had already protested against the plan several times in previous months. In the capital city of Kinshasa, the demonstration was initially peaceful before clashes broke out between protesters and pro-government groups. The opposition accused members of the militia Force du Progrès, widely regarded as close to the government, of using violence against the protesters. Police deployed tear gas and fired warning shots; several people were injured and at least ten arrested. Demonstrations also took place in Lubumbashi and Uvira, where the local authorities had banned the protests. Security forces broke up the demonstrations and the opposition reported that several people were arrested.
The protests stem from a bill passed by the Senate in June, which establishes a legal framework for constitutional referendums for the first time, and grants the president the power to call such a referendum (Press Review, week 25/2026). Critics, including the C64, fear that a new constitution could circumvent the current limit on presidential terms, thereby allowing Félix Tshisekedi to run for another term. In late August, the coalition also rejected Tshisekedi’s approach to preparing a National Dialogue.
In light of the ongoing conflict in the East of the country and the political tensions, Tshisekedi had announced a National Dialogue around three weeks ago. On Sunday, he established a provisional organising committee by decree to prepare the dialogue. This committee is tasked with clarifying the organisational, financial, technical, logistical and security framework of the dialogue, as well as drawing up proposals for the establishment of a preparatory commission. The committee reports directly to the president, who appoints the coordinators and their deputies, the members as well as the eleven experts of the technical secretariat. The latter, in turn, reports to the president’s chief of staff. The dialogue is expected to last three months in total, with consultations initially taking place in the 26 provinces before nationwide talks follow in Kinshasa. The composition, participation criteria, concrete timetable and thematic focus of the dialogue remain unresolved so far.
Criticism has come in particular from the C64. It accuses Tshisekedi of acting as a political player while simultaneously controlling the organisation and composition of the dialogue, and is calling for a more inclusive process. C64 politician and former presidential candidate Martin Fayulu reiterated on Wednesday his call for the armed actors involved in the conflict in the East of the country to also be included. The National Assembly, however, explicitly rejected the participation of the Alliance Fleuve Congo/Mouvement du 23 mars (AFC/M23) in the National Dialogue on Thursday.
Meanwhile, representatives of the DR Congo and Rwanda met in Geneva on Wednesday and Thursday for the seventh session of the Joint Security Coordination Mechanism. The talks focused on the outstanding security commitments under the agreement signed in Washington in December 2025 to end the conflict in the east of the DRC. These include the neutralisation of the Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR) operating in the east of the country, as well as the lifting of Rwanda’s defensive measures.
Strengthening of ties between Morocco and Israel; breakdown in relations between Algeria and the UAE
On Wednesday, the foreign ministers of Israel and Morocco agreed to further strengthen diplomatic and economic ties between the two countries. Following a trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers in New York, organised by the US, the Israeli Foreign Ministry announced that ambassadors would be posted to each other’s countries for the first time since the resumption of relations. The liaison offices currently operating in both countries will be upgraded accordingly to become full-fledged embassies. However, no timetable for this was announced. According to the Ministry, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and his Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita also agreed to conclude agreements on investment protection and the avoidance of double taxation by the end of 2026. Furthermore, plans are underway to introduce direct flights operated by Moroccan airlines, following last month’s resumption of the Tel Aviv–Marrakesh route by the Israeli airline Arkia – the first direct service on the route since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. At the meeting, the US and Israel also reaffirmed their recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara and their support for Morocco’s autonomy plan.
The current agreements build on from the resumption of official relations between Israel and Morocco in December 2020. Under the Abraham Accords, negotiated during US President Donald Trump’s first term in office, Morocco – following the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain – normalised its relations with Israel. In return, the US government recognised Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. Since then, cooperation between Israel and Morocco has been gradually expanded; however, this has drawn criticism from large sections of the Moroccan population, particularly since the start of the Gaza war. Since then, there have been repeated pro-Palestinian demonstrations, during which calls were also made for relations with Israel to be severed. At the same time, the governments of both countries deepened their cooperation, particularly in the defence sector. In November 2021, they signed a comprehensive agreement covering, amongst other things, cooperation on intelligence, industrial defence collaboration and joint military exercises. This was followed in January 2026 by a joint military work plan for the current year, which provides for deeper cooperation on air defence systems and drone technology. Furthermore, as early as 2023, Israel officially recognised Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.
The further deepening of relations also needs to be considered in the context of the longstanding tensions between Morocco and its neighbour, Algeria. The two states have had no diplomatic relations since August 2021 and hold opposing positions, particularly on the Western Sahara issue: Whilst Morocco claims the territory as part of its national territory and is pursuing a plan for autonomy, Algeria supports the Polisario Front and calls for a solution that takes into account the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination. At the same time, Algeria opposes the normalisation of relations between Arab states and Israel. Cooperation between Israel and Morocco thus touches on two key foreign policy disputes between Rabat and Algiers.
Meanwhile, on 10 September, the Algerian government announced the severance of diplomatic relations with the UAE. In its statement, the Foreign Ministry cited “provocative and hostile” actions by the Emirates, without specifying any particular incidents. The Emirati ambassador was ordered to leave the country within 48 hours. In addition, the Algerian Ministry of Defence announced the closure of its airspace to civilian and military aircraft registered in the UAE. Commercial flights to and from Algeria are to remain exempt from this measure until the end of 2026. The UAE government stated that it regretted the move and hoped that the severing of relations would be only temporary. Six days later, the Algerian authorities also withdrew the accreditation of the Emirati news channel Sky News Arabia’s bureau. No reason was initially given for the decision.
In other news
Nairobi will host the World Athletics Championships in 2029, as announced by World Athletics on Tuesday. This will mark the first time the World Championships will be held on the African continent. Kenya’s capital prevailed over bids from London and Rome; Munich was awarded the 2031 World Championships. When announcing the decision, the President of World Athletics, Sebastian Coe, highlighted Nairobi’s experience in hosting international athletics events, the great enthusiasm for the sport in Kenya and the country’s sporting successes. With 72 gold medals, the East African country is the second most successful nation in the history of the World Athletics Championships after the US; however, its bid for the 2025 World Championships failed, partly due to the condition of the proposed venues. The venue is now set to be the Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi, which is currently undergoing extensive modernisation in the run-up to the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), to be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Once the work is complete, the stadium is expected to have a capacity of around 48,000 spectators.