Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Zimbabwe’s ex-leader Robert Mugabe sent shockwaves through the party he dominated for decades when he posed with the retired general who will take on the ruling ZANU-PF in this year’s election. Mugabe grinned broadly in the posed photo, standing beside brigadier general Ambrose Mutinhiri, …
Read More »FARC withdrawing from Colombian presidential race
Bogota, Colombia | AFP | Colombia’s FARC said Thursday it is pulling out of the country’s presidential race after its candidate, 59-year-old ex-guerrilla leader Rodrigo “Timochenko” Londono, suffered a heart attack. Ivan Marquez, a senate candidate and senior member of the political party formed by the former Revolutionary Armed Forces …
Read More »World Bank hopes Trump ‘careful’ on tariffs
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | The chief executive of the World Bank urged US President Donald Trump on Thursday to be “careful” before imposing steel and aluminium tariffs and weigh up possible effects on global trade. Kristalina Georgieva said Trump should assess the “implications” before going ahead with a plan …
Read More »UN envoy warns of risk of violence in DR Congo
United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN envoy for the Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday warned of a risk of violence as the country heads toward elections in December. DR Congo is in the grip of a “shocking” humanitarian crisis with 4.5 million people in need of …
Read More »Counting begins in Sierra Leone as opposition residence raided
Freetown, Sierra Leone | AFP | Counting began on Wednesday in Sierra Leone following a general election, as the residence of an opposition leader was raided by police. Polls closed at 5 pm as expected for the West African nation’s 3.1 million voters, who were choosing a new president, parliament and …
Read More »Trump denies porn star affair allegation: White House
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump denies allegations he had an affair with a porn star more than a decade ago and paid for her silence, the White House said Wednesday. “The president has denied the allegations against him,” press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters. “The president …
Read More »Netanyahu accuses police of pressuring witnesses in graft cases
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Embattled Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has used a video posted online Wednesday to accuse police of pressuring witnesses to “smear” him as corruption investigations against him intensify. In his first direct reaction since the announcement that his ex-aide Nir Hefetz would testify against him, Netanyahu …
Read More »Ethiopian ruling party to meet next week to choose new PM
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | Ethiopia’s ruling coalition will meet next week to choose a successor to Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn whose surprise resignation last month has sparked a rare succession race, state media reported Wednesday. Hailemariam’s decision to step down was unprecedented in the 27-year reign of the …
Read More »IMF chief warns trade war will harm global growth
Paris, France | AFP | The head of the International Monetary Fund warned Wednesday that a trade war US President Donald Trump apparently intends to provoke with tariffs on steel and aluminium would snuff out global growth. “If international trade is called into question by these types of measures, it …
Read More »Sierra Leone picks new president with hopes of economic turnaround
Freetown, Sierra Leone | AFP | Sierra Leoneans voted Wednesday in a general election to pick a new president, with many craving economic change and a boost to living standards in one of the world’s poorest countries. Dozens of people joined queues at a polling station visited by AFP in …
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