In this strategically important African country, militias now roam the streets, the U.S. State Department staff has been evacuated and the president-elect remains a virtual prisoner in a downtown hotel. By Firouzeh Afsharnia.
Born in Iran and later immigrated to the US at the time of the Iranian revolution, Firouzeh was part of the United National Peacekeeping Mission in DR Congo where she lived for two years. Firouzeh holds an MBA from University of Southern California and a Master of International Service—focus on Conflict and Africa from the American University. She has traveled extensively in Africa, consulted for the World Bank and served on several election missions with the Carter Center in Nepal, DRC and Ivory Coast. She lives and writes in Los Angeles.