Africa, favorite fishing field for French secret agents
Sunday 16/September/2018 - 08:52 PM

Paduan Ishapas
The book deals with the successes and failures of France-sponsored spy networks in the southern Mediterranean. What remains of the Foccart Networks in the Southern Mediterranean? Twenty years have passed since the departure of the founder of Francafrique (African France), the complex parallel diplomacy pursued by the French Foreign Ministry, which has incorporated secret agents and former diplomats and serves without discrimination the interests of the French state and the major French groups. Reporters try to answer this thorny question. In their book, “Our Dear Spies in Africa”, Antoine Glazer and Thomas Hovnong tackle the actual domination exercised today by Paris on the African continent. The authors note that the scene has changed completely, especially after Omar Bongo's death on June 8, 2009. Many African leaders who wish to be freed from the tutelage of the old colonial power have forged partnerships with foreign intelligence agencies. Although a colonel from the Directorate General of External Security boasts his weekly meetings with President Todira in Bangui, the French intelligence services found themselves facing increasing competition from the Chinese, American, Arab, Russian and Israeli apparatuses in most countries, especially in Chad, Cameroon, Congo and Togo. The privatization of intelligence services On the other hand, the phenomenon of private sector brokers has speed intensively offering their services to support intelligence interests in domestic control tasks or in training. Most of these small firms offer themselves as innocent and harmless consulting firms, but they are founded by former French officers who are keen to maintain their relations with their officials. This privatization of the intelligence world will have its implications. This is what we can notice almost at the time of the trial of two former officers of the General Directorate of External Security, who were put under investigation on September 12 by French justice on charges of "forming a gang" and "possession of explosives". In ten chapters, full of exciting facts, Antoine Glazer and Thomas Hovenong show how “our dear spies" have evolved in Africa 10 years ago. The book reviews the whole of the French system by describing the efforts of these shadow men and women to "maintain control" of strategic regions in the continent. The authors also try to understand the reasons for the failure of many operations, especially those related to the release of Donnie Alex, the French client who was held hostage in Somalia in 2009.