Volume XXVI – Number 2
C. Owusu Kwarteng
Abstract: As a result of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the need to mobilize Africa’s diplomatic support, Black Africa has been a target of Arab-Israeli competition. Using examples such as Israeli relations with Libya and Sudan, Arab efforts to “Islamize” Uganda, and the establishment of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, this article examines some of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the strategies used by Israel and the Arabs to encourage support from Black Africa. Using these and other examples, this article highlights some of the major political, economic, cultural, and strategic factors such as Islamic ties in Africa, and Israeli support of African liberation movements, which have influenced Black Africa’s relations with Israel and the Arab world, in the context of Arab-Israeli competition and rivalry in Africa. Finally, this article addresses changing regional factors and their possible effects on Afro-Arab and Afro-Israeli relations, arguing that these changing factors provide Israel the opportunity to expand its influence in Africa.
Keywords: Israel, Arab-Israeli conflict, Africa, economic development, Organization of African Unity, OPEC
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