AFRICA

Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP |  Twin suicide car bombs claimed by the Al-Qaeda aligned Shabaab insurgent group wounded nine people Monday at the entrance to Mogadishu’s fortified airport and a nearby hotel, officials said. The first blast occurred at the Medina Gate entrance to Mogadishu airport, home to the UN, …

Optimism in DR Congo as deal reached to end political crisis Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The new year in one of Africa’s most troubled countries began in a burst of optimism Sunday after rival groups agreed a deal for hauling DR Congo out of a perilous political crisis. …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | When Rose Kariuki first felt a lump on her left breast, the spectre of cancer — a disease she had only heard of on television — was the last thing on her mind. “To me, cancer was nowhere near us. It was shocking, I feared …

  Banjul, Gambia | AFP |  Gambian President Yahya Jammeh has accused the West African regional bloc ECOWAS of declaring war after demanding that he stand down following his defeat at the ballot box. Regional leaders warned last month that the 15-member ECOWAS would “take all necessary action to enforce …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Burundi’s environment minister was shot dead in the capital Bujumbura early Sunday, police said, the first killing of its kind since the country was plunged into political turmoil two years ago. Emmanuel Niyonkuru, 54, the country’s water, environment and planning minister, was killed shortly after …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP |  The second largest country in Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo is blessed with oil, timber, diamonds and gold but cursed with violence, instability, graft and poverty. Here are five facts about DR Congo following the outcome of talks to defuse its latest crisis: – …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Fresh problems held up efforts by the Catholic Church to forge a deal on Saturday for ending the political crisis in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). “The agreement is ready, but this morning all the groups came with new demands for details to be …

Kano, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria has recently trumpeted a major victory in its battle against Boko Haram, claiming that its army has routed the jihadists from their forest bastion, but the war against them is far from over. After years of devastating battles and a recent surge in attacks, …

Beijing, China | AFP |  China will ban all domestic ivory trade and processing by the end of 2017, state media reported Friday, in a move hailed by activists as a “game changer” for African elephants. African ivory is highly sought after in China where it is seen as a …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP |  Around 100 bags of “plastic rice” seized in Lagos have turned out to contain real but contaminated rice, authorities said Friday in Nigeria, where prices for the staple have rocketed. Tests on the rice have shown that the product is “not plastic but … contaminated …