Africa

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says the weeklong looting and deadly unrest that have rocked the country were “planned.” Ramaphosa made the comment on Friday, as he arrived in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, known as the epicenter of the unrest, which spreads in South Africa in the wake of the jailing …

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says the weeklong looting and deadly unrest that has rocked the country were “planned.” Ramaphosa made the comment on Friday, as he arrived in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, known as the epicenter of the unrest, which spreads in South Africa in the wake of the jailing …

Three more Ethiopian regions are sending soldiers to reinforce the national army in its fight against forces from the northern region of Tigray, regional officials said, widening a conflict that has so far largely affected the north. Officials from Oromiya, Sidama, and the Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples’ Region said …

Gunmen shot dead a Nigerian army general as he was traveling by car on a major road from the capital, Abuja, the army said on Friday, in the first such fatal gun attack on a senior serving military officer. Armed robberies and kidnappings for ransom, particularly in the northwest, have …

The war in Ethiopia’s conflict-ridden region of Tigray looks set to intensify as a unilateral ceasefire declared by the federal government in the face of the rebels’ advances seems to be faltering. In a statement on Wednesday, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his government had decided to abandon the …

Rebels in Ethiopia’s Tigray say they have overtaken more territory, despite a unilateral ceasefire by the government forces. Getachew Reda, a spokesperson for the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), said the group had gained control over Korem, a town 170 kilometres south of the region’s capital, Mekelle, on Monday, …

Deployment of troops comes after six people killed in days of protests in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. The South African military said it was deploying soldiers in two provinces, including its economic hub of Johannesburg, to help police cope with looting and arson attacks on businesses. The move comes as the …

Chief of Kajuru, Alhaji Alhassan Adamu, and 10 family members have been kidnapped. Police have deployed rescue operations in Kaduna state. Gunmen kidnapped an emir and 10 members of his family in northwest Nigeria’s Kaduna state early on Sunday, police said. Police and members of Nigeria’s army are currently engaged …

Newly appointed Algerian Prime Minister Ayman Benabderrahmane is infected with COVID-19, Algerian state TV said on Saturday. The prime minister, who had just formed his new government on Wednesday, will quarantine for seven days, but will continue performing his duties virtually, state TV said. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune ordered his government …

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Prosperity Party won the most seats in Ethiopia’s parliamentary election, the election board said on Saturday, a victory that assures him another term in office. Abiy’s party won 410 of 436 parliamentary seats, election board deputy chairperson Woubshet Ayele told a news conference in the capital …

A suicide car bomb targeting a government convoy exploded at a busy junction in Somalia’s capital on Saturday, killing at least eight people, an eyewitness said. Abdiasis Abu Musab, military operations spokesperson for the al-Qaida-linked militant group al-​Shabaab, told Reuters it was responsible for Saturday’s attack. The group, which wants …

South African police said on Saturday that 27 people had been arrested over violent protests linked to former president Jacob Zuma’s imprisonment. Protests raged this week in parts of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), Zuma’s home province after the former president handed himself over to police to serve a 15-month jail term for …

Militants killed at least 45 people in an attack on the town of Faru in northwest Nigeria, residents and a hospital worker said on Friday. Such violence has increasingly become a part of everyday life in the region, with the Nigerian government and security forces showing little ability to stem …

A South African high court on Friday tossed out a last-ditch legal bid by former president Jacob Zuma to avoid jail for refusing to appear before graft investigators. The ruling marks the latest judgement in a long-running drama to go against Zuma, although it does not change his situation as …

South Africa’s mines recorded 32 deaths in the first half of 2021 compared with 24 during the same period in 2020, the mines ministry said on Thursday, continuing a spike in deaths which began last year in some of the world’s deepest mines. South African mines, some of which are …

Rwanda said on Friday it had started deploying a 1,000-strong force to Mozambique to help the country combat an escalating Islamic State-linked insurgency that threatens its stability. Last month, the 16-member Southern African Development Community (SADC) approved the deployment of a joint force to help Mozambique respond to the conflict …

The three countries discussed Ethiopia’s mega-dam at a UN Security Council meeting; significant disagreements remain between the three parties as Ethiopia fills the dam for the second year in a row. The UN Security Council session on Ethiopia’s Nile River dam got heated Thursday as Egypt and Sudan voiced serious …

An enormous 1,174-carat diamond has been unearthed in Botswana, a mining company has said, the second massive diamond to be found in the country in the space of a few weeks. The rare rock was recovered at the Karowe diamond mine last month and presented to the government in a …

Ten years after becoming the world’s youngest nation, war-torn South Sudan mired in instability and faced a deteriorating humanitarian crisis. Friday marks 10 years since South Sudan gained independence to become the world’s youngest nation – yet few citizens are rejoicing. Over the past 10 years, the oil-rich country has …

Nigerian police confirmed on Monday 27 persons earlier kidnapped by gunmen from a secondary school in the country’s northwestern state of Kaduna had regained their freedom. A group of unidentified gunmen stormed the Bethel Baptist High School in Damishi town, Chikun local government area, in the early hours of Monday, …