AFRICA

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | A Palestinian stabbed an Israeli security guard to death in Jerusalem’s Old City on Sunday before being shot dead by a police officer, Israeli officials said. The stabbing came with concerns over the potential for an upsurge in unrest in the coming weeks as the …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza has set May 17 as the date for a referendum on a controversial constitutional reform that could keep him in power until 2034, according to a decree signed Sunday. Critics accuse Nkurunziza of trying to stay in power for life and …

Paris, France | AFP | He’s France’s most anglophone president ever, who reaches for the language of the old foe when telling global audiences that “France is back”, or that he wants ecologically to “make our planet great again.” Emmanuel Macron’s mastery of English has wowed foreign leaders, who are …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | A body linked to the powerful Catholic Church in Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday called on the United Nations to strengthen its role during December elections. The Lay Coordination Committee (CLC), which has held marches against President Joseph Kabila, said it was asking …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will not attend the African Union summit in Rwanda this week, an official statement said Sunday, in a blow to plans to launch a major free trade treaty across 54 countries. The meeting in Kigali is intended to formally launch the …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Oozing charm and confidence, 22-year-old Sithembiso Mutukura beat 12 other contestants in Zimbabwe’s first Miss Albinism beauty contest aimed at reducing stigma and increasing awareness about the condition. Friday’s “Beauty Beyond the Skin” pageant was held in a Harare nightclub, making Zimbabwe the second African …

Freetown, Sierra Leone | AFP | Sierra Leone’s electoral commission sounded the alarm on Saturday over a wave of violence between rival groups ahead of a run-off presidential vote later this month. Opposition leader Julius Maada Bio, from the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), took 43.3 percent of votes in …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | The United Nations on Saturday threw its support behind new elections in Zimbabwe set for July and urged the government to kickstart the African nation’s economy as an “urgent priority”. Achim Steiner, administrator for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), was in Harare as part …

Port Louis, Mauritius | AFP | Mauritius President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim resigned on Saturday after being embroiled in a scandal over her use of a credit card to buy luxury personal items, in an abrupt change of heart after vowing she would not stand down. Gurib-Fakim, Africa’s only female head of …

Ottawa, Canada | AFP | Canada will send peacekeepers backed by helicopters to the troubled west African nation of Mali before autumn, a government source said on Friday. Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan is to provide details of the number of troops on Monday, said the source, speaking on condition of …