AFRICA

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe’s former vice president, who was on a trip abroad during last month’s military takeover that led to Robert Mugabe’s resignation, has returned home, local media reported Saturday. Phelekezela Mphoko was the second deputy appointed in 2014 by longtime strongman Mugabe, along with current President Emmerson …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe’s new president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, came under fire on Friday for unveiling a debut cabinet that named two military allies to top positions, reappointed figures from Robert Mugabe’s discredited era and sidelined the opposition. Mnangagwa gave key jobs to two top military officers, including Sibusiso …

Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | As many as 512 died in an October truck bombing in the Somali capital Mogadishu, an emergency committee investigating the terrorist atrocity has found. An earlier death toll of 358 already made the October 14 bombing the deadliest terrorist attack in Somalia’s history. No group claimed …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Nearly 1,300 Nigerian migrants were brought home from Libya in November — nearly twice as many as in the previous month, the head of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said on Friday. “1,295 Nigerians voluntarily returned from Libya in November after being stranded in …

Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | Liberia’s Supreme Court on Friday began hearings of an appeal filed by two political parties claiming fraud in the first round of the presidential election and calling for a re-run of the vote. “We remain optimistic till the final ruling is given. This is the …

The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | South Sudan is joining the Chemical Weapons Convention outlawing the use of toxic arms, meaning only three nations have not signed on to the treaty, a global watchdog said Friday. “South Sudan has no reason to sit on the fence,” top foreign ministry official …

Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP | Leaders at an EU-Africa summit called Thursday for the immediate evacuation of nearly 4,000 distressed African migrants in Libya under a new drive to fight slave traders and traffickers. Wrapping up a two-day summit in Ivory Coast’s economic capital, a top African Union (AU) official …

  Paris, France | AFP | To young African migrant women seeking help at a centre outside Paris, AIDS is much more than a disease. It is social death. The women, some of whom were infected after being raped on the perilous journey across land and sea to Europe, complain …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | A group of plainclothes men attacked journalists in the Republic of the Congo on Thursday as they tried to attend a press conference held by the legal team of a jailed opposition figure, an AFP correspondent said. The assault took place outside the offices of …

Lome, Togo | AFP | Protesters in Togo showed no signs of relenting in their bid to oust President Faure Gnassingbe on Thursday, taking to the streets for a second day as the opposition outlined conditions for talks with the government. In Lome, the rallies — which have become a common …