Africa

Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara will consider deploying soldiers to help the United Nations-backed government in Libya fight off rival factions in the civil war-torn country. Erdogan made the comment in a meeting with Tunisian President Kais Saied during a surprise visit to Tunisia on Wednesday. We …

Somalis battling the worst invasion of locusts in 25 years have resorted to eating the insects to stop them from destroying crops. Local media reports have shown residents in central Somalia frying locusts and serving them with rice, with one man saying the desert insects are tastier than fish. Another …

A revamped common currency in West Africa known as the ECO will be launched in 2020, according to French President Emmanuel Macron. The ECO is supposed to replace the CFA franc which is currently being used in eight West African countries and six countries in central Africa. During a trip …

France killed 33 militants in Mali on Saturday using attack helicopters, ground troops and a drone near the border with Mauritania where a group linked to al Qaeda operates, the French army said. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the operation in a speech to the French community in Ivory Coast’s …

A Sudanese court has indicted the country’s former president Omar al-Bashir for corruption and illicit possession of sizeable amounts of foreign currency, sentencing him to two years in confinement. The sentence was issued on Saturday against the 75-year-old, who was the country’s head of state for three decades before being …

At least 23 people died and more than 130 were injured in Sudan after a fire triggered an explosion at a factory in northern Khartoum on Tuesday, according to state news agency SUNA. The incident happened while a tanker truck was offloading gas at a ceramics manufacturing company in an …

Thirty-six people died in DR Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, after overnight torrential rains, with some swept away by landslides, a top city official said Tuesday, giving a provisional toll. “The (provincial) interior minister has just advised of a toll of 36 dead. The search (for survivors) is continuing. The loss, in …

Thirteen French soldiers were killed when two helicopters collided during an operation against terrorists in Mali, the French president’s office said. It’s believed to be the biggest single loss of life for the French military since the 1980s. French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his “deep sadness” over the incident. An …

The death toll from a light plane crash in the northern Congolese city of Gomo on Sunday morning has risen to 24. The site “7 Sir 7” that “rescue teams have taken out of the wreckage 24 bodies so far, adding that” searches are underway at the site for other …

At least 24 people, including seven children, have been killed by landslides triggered by unusually heavy rains in northwestern Kenya, a local governor said on Saturday. The downpour began on Friday in West Pokot County, which borders Uganda, and worsened overnight, causing flooding and mudslides that swept away four bridges …

The African Union ordered Britain on Friday to withdraw from the Chagos Islands and end its “continued colonial administration” after a United Nations deadline for it to do so expired. The Chagos Islands belong to the Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius, according to the advisory opinion the top U.N. …

Tunisia’s moderate Islamist Ennahda, which came first in last month’s parliamentary elections, has named Habib Jemli, a former junior agriculture minister, as its choice to become prime minister, party spokesman Imed Khemiri said on Friday. President Kais Saied is expected to officially ask him to form a new government later …

A court in Algeria sentenced 21 protesters on Tuesday to six months in jail for “undermining national unity”, official media reported, a month ahead of a presidential election. The verdict by the court in central Algiers also included additional six-month suspended sentences for the protesters, who were arrested for raising …

The small west African nation of The Gambia has filed a lawsuit at the UN’s top court formally accusing Myanmar of genocide against Rohingya Muslims. It was filed at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which normally rules on disputes between states. Last year, the UN issued a damning report …

The International Criminal Court passed its highest ever sentence, sending a Congolese warlord known as “The Terminator” to prison for 30 years for crimes including murder, rape, and sexual slavery. Bosco Ntaganda was found guilty in July of 18 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role …

Five candidates will run in Algeria’s presidential election next month, including two former prime ministers, the head of the election authority said on Saturday, amid mass protests rejecting the vote. The authorities have repeatedly said the Dec. 12 vote would be the only way to get out of a crisis …

Rescue teams in Cameroon were scouring the rubble of destroyed houses for survivors on Tuesday after a landslide caused by heavy rainfall killed at least 22 people, state television reported. The police were searching for dozens of more people reported as missing in the town of Bafoussam in the western …

At least two people have been killed and dozens injured in violent Ethiopian protests against Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, state media reported Thursday. Demonstrations erupted Wednesday after high-profile activist Jawar Mohammed, a member of the Oromo ethnic group who has been a public critic of …

Tunisia has a new president. Kais Saied has been sworn in after winning a landslide victory in this month’s election. The low-profile law professor took the presidential oath of office before the parliament on Wednesday. Saied’s victory delivered a heavy blow to the established political elite, who have failed to …

China has been developing Kenya’s rail service as part of the Belt and Road Initiative to connect Asia, Europe, and Africa. The railway is Kenya’s largest infrastructure project since its independence. The so-called Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project was launched in 2017. Trains operating on a daily schedule between the …