The past 10 months have seen the highest number of Africans reaching Yemeni shores compared to figures for the same period in 2008 and 2007, when large numbers began travelling to Yemen by boat, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). More than 56,600 people have arrived on 1,100 boats to Yemen from Somalia and elsewhere the Horn of Africa so far this year, already exceeding the total for all 2008, when 50,091 people crossed, said UNHCR representative Rocco Nuri.

Shabab insurgents amputated a foot and a hand from each of two young men accused of robbery in Somalia's southern port of Kismayu Oct. 9. A third man who received the sentenced had only a foot cut off, because the militants realized one of his hands was disabled. The Shabab has imposed its strict version of Islamic law on much of Somalia's south and parts of Mogadishu, the capital. The militants compelled thousands of residents to attend the amputations. "It was shocking," said one. "No one could endure such a sight. They were bleeding heavily when they were carried away." (Reuters, Oct. 9)

The African Union, European Union and United Nations Sept. 29 strongly rebuked the Guinean army's repression of a protest in the capital, Conakry, in which 157 people are said to have been killed. France has suspended its military co-operation with the country's ruling junta. The military crackdown on junta opponents killed 157, the Guinean Human Rights Organization said, citing army and hospital sources.

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.