Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan’s exiled rebel leader Riek Machar arrived in Juba on Monday for the first time in a year and held rare talks with President Salva Kiir as the rivals try to salvage a stalled peace agreement. Machar landed in the capital in a Sudanese …
Read More »Machar back finally in Juba for meeting with Kiir
S.Sudan rebel leader in Juba in bid to salvage peace deal Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan’s exiled rebel leader Riek Machar arrived in Juba on Monday for the first time in a year and held rare talks with President Salva Kiir as the rivals try to salvage …
Read More »Africa’s future is innovation rather than industrialization
The continent must also overcome significant hurdles if it is to grab the 4IR opportunity | THE INDEPENDENT | Africa has taken three significant steps in recent months on its journey to a stronger economic future. In March, the African Union launched the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This …
Read More »One killed, five wounded in new Johannesburg violence
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | At least one person was killed and five others injured in Johannesburg on Sunday, police said, after security forces clashed with looters in the latest outbreak of xenophobic violence. South Africa’s biggest city and other areas were hit by a surge of attacks against …
Read More »Tunisia airs first ‘great debate’ ahead of presidential poll
Tunis, Tunisia | AFP | Days before the first round of Tunisia’s presidential election, the fledgling democracy on Saturday began three nights of televised debates between the candidates, a rare event in the Arab world. The showdown between the 26 hopefuls over three nights is seen as the highlight of the …
Read More »Zimbabweans cold-shoulder Mugabe national mourning
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Flags flew at half mast in Harare on Saturday, but a day after former president Robert Mugabe’s death many Zimbabweans preferred to work as usual than publicly mourn the independence hero turned despot. President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced a period of national mourning on Friday following Mugabe’s …
Read More »Mugabe’s lavish birthday parties an annual controversy
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Every February, in different venues around Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe would throw an extravagant birthday party with thousands of guests, huge cakes and a defiant speech. But the annual jamboree also exposed the leader’s declining health as his physical and mental strength drained away, his voice weakened …
Read More »African Union lifts suspension of Sudan
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | The African Union (AU) has lifted its suspension of Sudan three months after freezing its membership following Khartoum’s bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. The AU’s Peace and Security Council said Friday that the decision followed the announcement of Sudan’s first cabinet since the ousting of …
Read More »Zimbabwe begins national mourning for hero-turned-despot Mugabe
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe was on Saturday due to begin a period of national mourning following the death of Robert Mugabe, the former guerrilla hero turned despot who ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years. As Zimbabweans expressed sharply divided opinions about Mugabe, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said his predecessor had been declared …
Read More »Celebrate or cry? Zimbabweans have mixed feelings about Mugabe
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Some call him a ‘true African’ and a ‘revolutionary icon’. For others, the name evokes only ‘evil’, ‘destruction’ and ‘suffering’. Zimbabweans on Friday woke up to the death of their founding president Robert Mugabe — a hero-turned despot whose increasingly tyrannic rule and economic mismanagement prompted …
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