On Sept. 14, the same day a US Special Forces helicopter raid reportedly killed a Shabab insurgent leader in Somalia, residents at the southern village of Erile reported a second chopper raid by foreign forces. Abdinasir Mohamed Adan, an elder from the nearby village of Barawe, told AFP by phone: "There was a military operation carried out by four foreign choppers in Erile village. A car was destroyed, we are also hearing that some of the vehicle's passengers were taken on the choppers."

Our July issue featured the story "Sufis and Neocons: the Global War on Terrorism's Strangest of Bedfellows" by Sarkis Pogossian, on US efforts to groom Sufis to counter the influence of jihadists in Pakistan and Somalia—where Sufis are already arming to resist the fundamentalist Shabab militia. Our multiple-choice July Extra Credit Exit Poll was: "Should the US arm Somalia's Sufis?" We received 6 votes. The results follow:

At least 185—mostly Lou Nuer tribespeople—were killed in South Sudan's Jonglei state Aug. 2 when their fishing camps were attacked by Murle fighters. Eleven SPLA soldiers, who were guarding their camp, were among those killed. Thousands of others have been displaced in Jonglei following an attack on Mareng village by Murle tribesmen. There have been several such attacks since March, resulting in a food crisis as displacement has disrupted agriculture. The fighting has claimed several hundred lives this year—more than in Darfur, the UN says.

The leader of Nigeria's Boko Haram rebels was killed after capture by the military July 30 following a massive offensive on the sect's strongholds in the north of the country. Initial statements said Muhammad Yusuf "died in police custody," but international rights groups are demanding an investigation. Eric Guttschuss, of Human Rights Watch, said: "The extrajudicial killing of Mr Yusuf in police custody is a shocking example of the brazen contempt by the Nigerian police for the rule of law." Some 300 were killed in the 72-hour offensive, and possibly twice that number. At least 100 were killed when soldiers shot their way into the mosque in Maiduguri. (PTI, The Guardian, AP, July 30)

Rebels of a group known as the "Nigerian Taliban" expanded attacks against security forces to three northern states July 27, leaving at least 80 people dead in two days of clashes. The attacks began a day earlier in Bauchi state, apparently in retliation for the arrest of local leaders; they have now spread to Yobe, Kano and Borno states. The group is formally known as Boko Haram, which is said to translate as "Western education prohibited," and wants to impose sharia on all of Nigeria.

Chad admitted to an air raid on rebel positions at Um Dukhn in Darfur, but denied attacking Sudan's armed forces or populace in the raid. (Reuters, July 21) Meanwhile, the SPLA denied breaking terms of the Sudan peace deal after UN monitors accused its troops of moving into the contested region of Abyei. The Permanent Court of Arbitration in the The Hague is to give a final ruling on the boundaries of Abyei this week. (BBC News, July 19)

Tens of thousands have taken to the streets in Niger to protest President Mamadou Tandja's plan for a new constitution that would abolish term limits and give him more power after 10 years as president. Tandja has also dissolved a high court that ruled against his bid to remain in office, dismissed a fractious Parliament, shut down a critical radio and TV station, and arrested opposition leaders. Opposition leader Mohamadou Issoufou calls the plan "a coup d’état in its first phase." (NYT, July 13)

Police arrested 13 women in a raid on a cafe in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and flogged 10 of them in public for wearing trousers. The women were detained July 10 by officers of the public order police, who enforce Sudan's strict Islamic law in public places. One of those arrested, Lubna Hussein, a journalist, said she is challenging the charges, which can be punishable by up to 40 lashes. "I didn't do anything wrong," she said. (AP, July 13)