Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudanese police fired tear gas at hundreds of protesters planning to march on parliament Sunday, as President Omar al-Bashir insisted demonstrators who died in anti-government rallies were not killed by security forces. Deadly protests which erupted on December 19 after a government decision to …
Read More »Mnangagwa ends foreign tour after Zimbabwe protests
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa broke off a foreign tour on Sunday as criticism grew over a brutal crackdown on protests at home, saying he wanted “to get Zimbabwe calm, stable and working again”. “In light of the economic situation, I will be returning home after …
Read More »African Union cancels delegation to Kinshasa over vote result
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | The African Union has cancelled a delegation to the DR Congo over the country’s disputed presidential election after the Constitutional Court declared Felix Tshisekedi the victor, an AU source said Sunday. At a summit on Thursday, AU leaders had cited “serious doubts” about the election …
Read More »S.Africa urges ‘all parties’ to accept Tshisekedi DRC win
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa on Sunday congratulated Felix Tshisekedi on becoming president-elect of DR Congo following a Constitutional Court ruling, despite the African Union and EU warning of doubts over the country’s disputed election result. “President Cyril Ramaphosa has congratulated Mr Felix Tshisekedi Tshilombo,” the presidency …
Read More »In the spotlight: Martin Fayulu, a fiery adversary in DR Congo
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Much responsibility for shaping DR Congo’s post-election future now lies with a former oil executive who made a stellar rise from political obscurity. The man in the middle is Martin Fayulu, who insists that electoral fraud has cheated him of the presidency of sub-Saharan …
Read More »DR Congo’s Tshisekedi: son, heir and president-elect
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Felix Tshisekedi, whose victory in the DR Congo’s presidential election was confirmed by the country’s top court on Sunday, is the son of a veteran opposition leader but has never held high office or even a managerial role. Known to friends as “Fatshi”, the …
Read More »DR Congo: Key dates since independence
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Key dates in the post-independence history of the Democratic Republic of Congo: – End of Belgian rule – On June 30, 1960, the Belgian Congo becomes independent. Power is shared between Joseph Kasa-Vubu, the president, and his prime minister, Patrice Lumumba. Rivalry between the …
Read More »COURT: Tshisekedi winner of disputed DRC presidential election
DRC court confirms Tshisekedi winner of disputed presidential election Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | DR Congo’s top court on Sunday declared opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi the winner of disputed presidential elections after throwing out a legal challenge by the runner-up. Announcing the final results of the much-delayed poll, the …
Read More »DR Congo court to rule on disputed poll tonight
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | DR Congo’s top court said it will give its verdict Saturday on the final election results which have been challenged both internationally and at home, spurning an appeal from the African Union to suspend the announcement. The Constitutional Court is urgently hearing an …
Read More »From Westgate fiasco to Dusit, Kenyan response praised
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya’s security response to the Islamist assault on the Dusit hotel complex in Nairobi shows the numerous lessons learned since a chaotic intervention when the Westgate mall was attacked in 2013, according to analysts. The swift reaction, under a single chain of command, with the …
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