AFRICA

. Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP |  South African Olympic 800-metre champion Caster Semenya married her long-term partner in Pretoria on Saturday. Semenya celebrated her 26th birthday by tying the knot with Violet Raseboya after exchanging vows during a lavish ceremony in the South African capital. The Rio gold medallist …

Accra, Ghana | AFP | Nana Akufo-Addo is to be sworn in as Ghana’s new president on Saturday after beating incumbent leader John Dramani Mahama in elections last month. The 72-year-old former human rights lawyer will take the oath of office at a ceremony in Independence Square in central Accra …

Pretoria, South Africa | AFP |  South African President Jacob Zuma on Friday held talks in Pretoria with the leader of Western Sahara’s Polisario Front independence movement, in a show of support for the territory’s struggle against Morocco. Brahim Ghali was making his first visit to South Africa — a …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s presidency on Friday said a “major decision” would be taken this weekend on the crisis in The Gambia caused by veteran strongman Yahya Jammeh’s refusal to step down after elections. President Muhammadu Buhari’s spokesman Garba Shehu said African leaders would meet in Accra on …

Accra, Ghana | AFP |  Ghana’s outgoing president John Mahama urged his compatriots to get behind his successor, Nana Akufo-Addo, during his last state of the nation address on Thursday. Mahama told parliament in the capital, Accra, that he was happy to step down and let his long-time rival take …

Banjul, Gambia | AFP | The Gambia’s army chief on Wednesday reaffirmed his loyalty to President Yahya Jammeh, despite the threat of a regional military intervention if the strongman refuses to step down. Lieutenant General Ousman Badjie used a New Year message published in the pro-government Daily Observer newspaper to …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP |  DR Congo President Joseph Kabila gave the green light Wednesday for the Catholic Church to pursue mediation to end the crisis sparked by his refusal to step down, sources said. The country’s influential bishops brokered a New Year’s Eve deal to sketch a timetable …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Algeria forward Riyad Mahrez is favourite to be crowned African Footballer of the Year for 2016 on the back of his contribution to Leicester City’s shock English Premier League title win. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) title would make it a hat-trick of wins …

Banjul, Gambia | AFP | The head of Gambia’s electoral commission has fled to neighbouring Senegal fearing a plot against him, a month after declaring President Yahya Jammeh lost elections following 22 years in power, one of his relatives said. Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) chairman Alieu Momar Njie “fled to …

Banjul, Gambia | AFP |  Two more private Gambian radio stations have been ordered off air for unspecified reasons, staff said Monday, after a first station was shut down at the weekend amid a political standoff in the west African nation. On Sunday popular station Teranga FM, whose manager had …