AFRICA

  Bukavu, DR Congo | AFP | Clashes between the army and rebels loyal to a renegade former general in eastern DR Congo have killed 18 people, military sources said Monday, in the latest violence before crucial elections to replace President Joseph Kabila this month. Fighting killed 14 rebels and …

Rabat, Morocco | AFP | Morocco’s King Mohammed VI on Monday visited Gabon’s President Ali Bongo at a military hospital in Rabat where the Gabonese leader is recovering from an illness, an official source said. During the visit, the king said he was pleased about the state of Bongo’s health …

Kenya to play in Africa Cup of Nations after Sierra Leone disqualified Nairobi, Kenya | AFP |  Kenya will compete in the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 15 years, after Sierra Leone was disqualified by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). They join East African colleagues …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Malawi has passed a law that will ban politicians using cash payments and other incentives to buy support ahead of key polls due in May next year. The Political Parties Act, which came into force on Saturday, will see candidates convicted of improperly swaying …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday quashed a rumour stemming from his ill health that he had died and been replaced by a lookalike impostor from Sudan, his spokesman said. “It’s real me, I assure you. I will soon celebrate my 76th birthday and I …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Burundi’s former president Pierre Buyoya on Sunday denounced as politically motivated a warrant issued against him for his alleged role in the assassination of his country’s first democratically elected leader. On Friday, Burundi issued an international arrest warrant against Buyoya, 11 former senior officials and five …

Kampala, Uganda | AGENCIES | Morocco’s King Mohammed VI and French President Emmanuel Macron launched on Nov.15 the first high-speed train in Africa. The Moroccan king and Macron took the train from the northern city of Tangier to arrive in the capital Rabat, in a ride that lasted 80 minutes, compared …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s football association (SAFA) said on Sunday it is considering making a bid to host the Africa Cup of Nations in 2019 after Cameroon was dramatically stripped of the continental showpiece. Though South Africa has much of the necessary infrastructure after hosting the 2010 …

Niamey, Niger | AFP |  The number of new AIDS infections in Niger dropped by more than two thirds between 2012 and 2016, the health ministry said Saturday, in a statement marking World AIDS day. Health Minister Idi Illiassou said new infections in the four-year period under review fell from …

Pietermaritzburg, South Africa | AFP |  Former South African president Jacob Zuma will return to court in May for a hearing on whether corruption charges against him should be dropped, a judge ruled on Friday. Zuma, who served as president from 2009 until February, is battling to quash charges against …