MOSCOW | TASS | Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will pay an official visit to China on April 8-9, during which he will discuss a number of ‘hot topics,’ including Ukraine, with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. “On April 8-9, top Russian diplomat Sergey Lavrov …

COMMENT | CHRISTOPHER MULINDWA | The latest National Livestock Census report released last month indicates the pig population in Uganda has increased from 3.2million (UBOS 2008) to 7.1million (UBOS 2021). The number of pigs increased more than 100%! The number of households keeping pigs also increased from about 1.1 (UBOS …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  At least eight members of Crane Performers entertainment group were put in Police custody for allegedly insulting President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni as he delivered a speech as former Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi celebrated 50 years of his marriage to Jacqueline Mbabazi on Saturday. It …

JERUSALEM | Xinhua |  Israel withdrew all ground troops except for one brigade from southern Gaza on Sunday, local media reported. The one brigade, named Nahal, remains in central Gaza, splitting the strip in two and preventing the return of civilians from south to north of Gaza. In addition, the …

  Kigali, Rwanda | THE INDEPENDENT | Rwanda President Paul Kagame’s speech today at the 30th Commemoration (Kwibuka 30) of the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi. **** FULL ADDRESS *** Today, our hearts are filled with grief and gratitude in equal measure. We remember our dead, and are also grateful for …

HARARE | Xinhua |  Zimbabwe’s new currency — the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) — will start circulating in the economy on April 30, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mushayavanhu has said. In a statement issued Saturday night, Mushayavanhu said the new notes and coins were already under production while …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda’s National Livestock Census (NLC) results indicate near double growth in the country’s total population of cattle, goats, sheep, pigs, poultry, rabbits, and pack animals between 2008 and 2021. There has been a 27.2% increase in the cattle population, an increase of 54.5% in the chicken …

  Entebbe, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  Muslims have appealed to the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) top management to consider affirmative action for them while recruiting staff to enable the Muslim community “move at the same pace” with other Ugandans. The Muslims also want management to at least designate …

Yumbe, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  Residents and leaders in Yumbe District have hailed the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) for restoring sanity along the disputed Uganda-South Sudan Border in the West Nile sub-region. Over the past years, residents along the disputed border areas of Uganda-South Sudan have grappled with …

NEW YORK | TASS  | Washington is alarmed by the possibility of a full-scale war between Iran and Israel following the deadly air strike on Iran’s consulate in Syria, US National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby told CNN. “Yes, we’re very concerned [about this scenario]. In fact, one …