Islamist militant group al-Shabab is battling the UN-backed government in Somalia, and has carried out a string of attacks across the region. The group, which is allied to al-Qaeda, has been pushed out of most of the main towns it once controlled, but it remains a potent threat. Who are al-Shabab? Al-Shabab means The Youth […]
Free speech advocates say the move reflects growing pressure against those who use social networks to express anger. A YouTuber who criticised the Moroccan king has been given a prison sentence while a journalist-activist who defended anti-government protesters in a tweet has been detained. Freedom of speech advocates say the moves on Thursday reflect growing […]
At least 11 soldiers killed day after 35 civilians, mostly women, died during assault that sent country into mourning. At least 11 soldiers were killed in Burkina Faso on Wednesday as Burkinabes were mourning dozens of victims who had died in double attacks targeting the country’s north a day earlier. There was worldwide condemnation after […]
Robert Mugabe’s daughter disclosed the assets to the country’s high court after the family could not locate his will. Zimbabwe’s late former leader Robert Mugabe left $10m and a number of properties but no will naming his beneficiaries, details of his estate released on Tuesday revealed. The state-owned Herald newspaper said his daughter, Bona Chikore, disclosed the assets to […]
The US has recalled its ambassador to Zambia amid a diplomatic row after he criticised the imprisonment of a gay couple, embassy sources have said. Last month, Daniel Foote said he was “horrified” that a judge had sentenced the men to 15 years in prison after they were caught having sex in 2017. The government […]
Prosecutors claim ex-rebel chief Guillaume Soro was attempting to carry out plot against state authority. Ivory Coast prosecutors have issued an arrest warrant for presidential candidate Guillaume Soro, who aborted a planned return by diverting his flight to Ghana as security forces stormed his party headquarters in Abidjan. The former rebel chief’s scheduled return to the […]
Yaounde passes law allowing English-speaking regions ‘special status’ in a bid to calm the deadly conflict. Cameroon’s parliament has granted “special status” to two English-speaking regions to try to calm separatist violence that has killed 2,000 people, but the separatists say only independence would satisfy them. The law, passed on Friday in a special session […]
French forces have killed 33 militants in an operation in Mali, according to President Emmanuel Macron. Mr Macron made the announcement on a visit to Ivory Coast, where he reiterated France’s commitment to fighting jihadists in the region. It comes weeks after 13 French troops died in a helicopter collision in Mali in the biggest […]
The South African authorities have suspended several initiation schools where boys have died in recent weeks taking part in circumcision ceremonies. The country’s religious and cultural commission said the schools in different areas of the Eastern Cape would be suspended for a year. It called for the arrest of those responsible for at least 20 […]
Ethiopia undertook a major national reforestation programme this year, with the ambitious target of planting four billion trees in just three months. The highlight was a single day in July, on which people across the country turned out to help with planting 350 million tree seedlings. At the end of August, the government claimed to […]