Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Nineteen suspected jihadists linked to a deadly attack on Coptic Christians in central Egypt have been killed in a shootout with police, the interior ministry said Sunday. Those killed in the exchange of fire were part of a cell that left dead seven pilgrims in …
Read More »Rebels kill at least seven civilians in eastern DRCongo: army
Beni, DR Congo | AFP | Rebels killed at least seven civilians and abducted 15 others, including children, in fresh overnight raids in the far eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, civilian and military sources said Sunday. Fighters of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) staged two raids Saturday night in the …
Read More »EU recalls envoy from Tanzania
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | The European Union said Saturday it has recalled its chief representative in Tanzania to Brussels for discussions, following reports he had been asked to leave by the government. Roeland van de Geer “has been recalled by his headquarters to Brussels to meet next week with …
Read More »Madagascar ex-presidents in final bid to return to power
Antananarivo, Madagascar | AFP | Two former Madagascar presidents drew tens of thousands of supporters to rival rallies in the capital Antananarivo on Saturday as they entered the final stretch of their election campaign. Former President Marc Ravalomanana and rival Andry Rajoelina are frontrunners in the November 7 ballot in …
Read More »US army punishes six over roles in fatal Niger ambush: report
Washington, United States | AFP | The US Army has punished six members of the armed forces for their roles in a 2017 mission in Niger that resulted in the ambush deaths of four Americans and four allied Nigerien troops, The New York Times reported Saturday. The ambush occurred on …
Read More »Gabon opposition figure rallies support as president hospitalised
Libreville, Gabon | AFP | Gabonese opposition politician Jean Ping on Saturday repeated his claim to have won 2016 elections as President Ali Bongo Ondimba remained in hospital in Saudi Arabia. Ping has continued to describe himself as “the elected president” following his defeat by a few thousand votes in …
Read More »France promises money, guns for C.Africa
Bangui, Central African Republic | AFP | France will give the Central African Republic, its restive former colony, aid of 24 million euros ($27.4 million) and weapons, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian announced on Friday. “France wishes to continue its historical partnership with the Central African Republic,” the minister told …
Read More »Prince Charles urges The Gambia to work with UK to promote democracy
Banjul, Gambia | AFP | The Prince of Wales on Thursday called on The Gambia to work with Britain to promote democracy nearly two years after the small West African nation emerged from decades of authoritarian rule. Prince Charles’s arrival in The Gambia was the first royal visit since the …
Read More »Cameroon anglophone separatist in court for first appearance in months
Yaoundé, Cameroon | AFP | A Cameroonian anglophone separatist leader was in court Thursday, in his first public appearance since he was extradited from Nigeria in January, amid spiralling violence in English-speaking areas. Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, who wants Cameroon’s two anglophone regions to separate from the French-speaking part of the …
Read More »DR Congo vote watchdogs ‘weak’, study warns
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The Democratic Republic of Congo presidency has undue influence over two bodies tasked with overseeing elections, a research group said Thursday, warning the country risked “a new cycle of conflict”. The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) and Constitutional Court have been subject to “politicisation”, …
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