United Nations, United States | AFP | Morocco has accused Polisario Front fighters in Western Sahara of violating a ceasefire agreement, just weeks before an expected new round of talks on ending the decades-old conflict. In a letter seen by AFP on Friday, Morocco’s UN Ambassador Omar Hilale cited three …
Read More »Sudan rights body condemns fatal shooting of protesters
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudan’s top human rights body on Friday condemned the killing “by bullets” of protesters during a wave of unrest and called on the authorities to bring those responsible to justice. The statement by Sudan’s National Human Rights Commission was the first acknowledgement by a state …
Read More »Ruling ANC kickstarts S.Africa election season
Durban, South Africa | AFP | South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to unveil the ruling ANC party’s election manifesto on Saturday in front of tens of thousands of supporters, marking the start of four months of hectic campaigning. The African National Congress (ANC), which has ruled since the …
Read More »Sudan demonstrators up against ‘ruthless strategist’ in Bashir: expert
Paris, France | AFP | The demonstrations that have rocked Sudan over the past three weeks represent the biggest threat to President Omar al-Bashir’s rule since he took power three decades ago. Willow Berridge, a lecturer at Newcastle University in northern England and author of “Civil Uprisings in Modern Sudan”, …
Read More »DR Congo’s shock vote result goes to Constitutional Court
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The outcome of DR Congo’s tempestuous presidential election appeared to be headed for the courts Friday after the poll’s runner-up said he would demand a recount. Martin Fayulu, an opposition candidate tipped by pollsters as the likely winner of the December 30 vote, told …
Read More »12 civilians killed in jihadist attack in Burkina Faso
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso | AFP | Twelve civilians were killed on Thursday during a jihadist attack in the north of Burkina Faso, which has been battling a wave of Islamist violence, officials said Friday. The west African country declared a state of emergency in several provinces at the end of …
Read More »DR Congo runner-up to appeal to Constitutional Court
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The runner-up in DR Congo’s presidential elections said Friday he would appeal to the Constitutional Court for a recount as his bloc claimed he won the poll with 61 percent of the vote. “We will go to the Constitutional Court on Saturday… (to demand) a recount of the vote,” …
Read More »S.Africa’s ANC gears up for election under new leader
Durban, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s ruling ANC party launches its election campaign on Saturday ahead of polls in May that it is tipped to win despite recently falling support, internal divisions and a sluggish economy. The African National Congress, which has ruled since the end of apartheid 25 years ago, suffered …
Read More »World reaction cautious to disputed DRCongo vote result
Paris, France | AFP | Foreign leaders reacted cautiously to the outcome of DR Congo’s presidential election Thursday, with many choosing not to congratulate the man declared winner and appealing for disputes to be settled peacefully. Provisional results from the Democratic Republic of Congo’s much-troubled election granted victory to opposition …
Read More »DR Congo divided over opposition chief’s election
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | With DR Congo still reeling from the disputed victory of opposition challenger Felix Tshisekedi, the nation’s attention turned Friday to the results of the legislative elections to see who will control parliament for the next five years. In a country that has never known a peaceful transfer of power …
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