Tag Archives: Africa

The Interior Ministry stated that 55 people had died in a tank truck blast in Niamey on Sunday night. Witnesses told AFP that the truck had overturned on railway tracks, later exploding when people tried to collect fuel that was leaking from it. The authorities also stated that many other …

Over 1,000 people have died in an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – the second deadliest in history. With efforts to bring it under control are hampered by civil war and mistrust, health minister Oly Ilunga said 1,008 lives have been claimed by the virus, which …

Boko Haram terrorists have seized a military base in northeast Nigeria, days after an attack left five troops dead and 30 missings, security sources, and residents said Saturday. A column of fighters from the IS-affiliated Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in trucks and on motorcycles stormed into the base …

Two Turkish restaurant workers have been detained in Libya by forces of eastern military commander Khalifa Haftar, and the Turkish authorities have denied that they were spies, a Turkish newspaper reported on Wednesday. Haberturk newspaper said Volkan Altinok and Mehmet Demir, who worked in a restaurant in the south of …

Six years ago, Martin Hobbs had never swum a mile. This week, he cemented a world record by swimming 361 miles — the full length of Lake Malawi in Africa. Hobbs, 45, set the record Wednesday for a longest solo swim in a lake and became the first person to …

Violent winds of up to 140 kph (87 mph) lashed the East African island nation of Comoros overnight, killing three people, authorities said on Thursday, as Cyclone Kenneth swept toward flood-battered Mozambique. In Comoros, the winds caused widespread power outages in the northern part of the main island, Grande Comore, …

Hundreds of drones will begin delivering life-saving vaccines, blood, and medicines to patients in Ghana this week in the largest scheme of its kind, the global vaccine alliance GAVI said on Wednesday. Medics will place orders by text message when supplies run dry, said GAVI chief executive Seth Berkley. Drones …

Fifty-one people have died in floods that ravaged parts of the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa’s southeast, local authorities said. The flooding began on Monday after heavy rain caused mudslides in several towns in Durban, the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal, government spokesman Lennox Mabaso said. “The areas most …

Sudan’s deposed President Omar al-Bashir is under investigation over the possession of “large sums of cash” without legal grounds, and on suspicion of money laundering. A judicial source told Reuters on Saturday that the public prosecutor had begun investigating Bashir after “large sums of cash” was found at his home. …

Liberia’s president has been forced to work from home after two snakes were found in his office. George Weah was told to stay away from the Foreign Affairs building which houses his office until it can be fumigated. The former international football star is expected to return to the office …

At least 13 people have died and many were injured when a wall collapsed in South Africa at the start of an Easter service at a Pentecostal church. Emergency services said that 29 people were rushed to hospital after the collapse in the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal. Local officials have …

Two Congolese soldiers and a civilian were killed in a shoot-out on Tuesday in Bovata, near the town of Beni, Reuters reported. Isis also claimed to have established a province in central Africa, declaring it the “Central Africa Province” of the so-called caliphate through its Amaq news agency. It was …

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has replaced the country’s first female defense minister, Aisha Mohammed, giving the post to the influential Oromia regional president, Lema Megersa. Mr. Abiy did not give reasons for the decision, but it comes amid growing concern about ethnic conflict in the country. Mr. Lema has …

An outbreak of measles has killed more than 1,200 people on the island of Madagascar. The country is facing its largest measles outbreak in history, with the number of recorded cases growing beyond 115,000. Measles cases are rising in the US and elsewhere, with New York City battling to halt …

The Seychelles president has gone below the surface of the Indian Ocean to call for better protection for the world’s seas. Danny Faure said that a healthy ocean was “crucial for the survival of humanity” in a broadcast made 124m (406ft) below sea level. He had joined a British-led expedition …

The Zimbabwe government has come under fire after it emerged that it spent thousands of dollars on importing legal wigs from the UK for local judges, with critics lambasting the purchase as a colonial hang-up and a waste of money. The Zimbabwe Independent newspaper reported that the country’s Judiciary Service …

A Sudanese government source says President Omar al-Bashir has stepped down and that consultation is underway to form a transitional council. Adel Mahjoub Hussein, the Sudanese minister of production and economic resources in North Darfur, told the Dubai-based al-Hadath TV on Thursday that, “There are consultations to form a military …

This week’s execution of a Nigerian woman in Saudi Arabia over drug-related charges has drawn criticism from international human rights groups and the Nigerian government. Kudirat Adesola Afolabi, a mother of two and a widow, was found guilty of smuggling drugs into Saudi Arabia and executed Monday, Nigeria’s Ministry of …

At least 50 people were killed in clashes with bandits in northwest Nigeria, which has been riven by cattle rustling and kidnapping, the state government said on Friday. The speaker of Zamfara state parliament, Sunusi Rikiji, told reporters the deaths happened on Tuesday in Sakajiki village, in the Kauran Namoda …

The Ethiopian Airlines crew commanding the Boeing 737 Max 8, which crashed last month and killed all 157 people on board, followed all recommended procedures but couldn’t regain control of the doomed flight, Ethiopian investigators told reporters Thursday morning. Ethiopian Transport Minister Dagmawit Moges said preliminary findings from an investigation …