Arrests and harassment of journalists, opposition figures and activists in Ethiopia have risen this year, the war-torn country’s rights watchdog said, underlining “concerning” levels of violence despite a peace agreement. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report on the year to June noted “an increase in the arrest and harassment of media personnel, members of […]

Six people were killed on Wednesday in clashes between police and demonstrators who joined a banned opposition protest against tax hikes; police officers told AFP. Police had earlier fired tear gas on protesters in and around Nairobi, with five of the six deaths reported in the towns of Mlolongo and Kitengela on the capital’s outskirts. ALSO […]

Egypt has invited war-torn Sudan’s neighbours for a summit Thursday to “stop the bloodshed”, the presidency said, with Ethiopia’s premier Abiy Ahmed in Cairo despite tensions over a massive Nile river project. ALO READ: Sudan’s warring sides must face accountability for crimes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed “discussed ways to […]

Huw Edwards has been the reassuring face and voice of the BBC for decades, and was entrusted last year with breaking the news to the world that Queen Elizabeth had died. The softly-spoken, proud Welshman began delivering the nightly news to millions in 1994, and has either anchored or commentated on the UK’s most tumultuous events since then. ALSO READ | REMINDER: When […]

Eddie Jones demanded on Thursday that Australia “roll up their sleeves” as he made five changes to his starting team to face Argentina after being thrashed by South Africa in his first game in charge. ALSO READ | All Blacks reveal new-look side to face Springboks Among those missing for Saturday’s clash in Sydney is injured co-captain Michael Hooper, with Fraser McReight replacing […]

The father of stand-in Springboks captain Eben Etzebeth has died, four days before his son is due to lead his country against New Zealand. Photo: Rodger Bosch/AFP The father of stand-in Springboks captain Eben Etzebeth has died, four days before his son is due to lead his country in a Rugby Championship match in New Zealand. MUST FOLLOW | LIVE BLOG: […]

South African police said on Wednesday 21 trucks have been in a series of mysterious attacks that President Cyril Ramaphosa has described as acts of “economic sabotage”. ALSO READ: WATCH: Suspect ‘behind’ torching of trucks captured by in-cab camera Unknown assailants set alight four lorries in the north-eastern province of Mpumalanga on Wednesday in the latest […]

Sudan’s warring sides must face “accountability” for the “crimes” committed in their conflict, which risks spiralling into a regional crisis, the head of UN mission in the country said Wednesday. The fighting, which has gone on for three months, “risks morphing into an ethnicised, tribalised and ideologised conflict which is much closer to being a […]

Voters in Madagascar will go to the polls by the end of the year to re-elect President Andry Rajoelina or pick a successor, the government announced Tuesday 11 July 2023. “The head of government summons voters to the polls” on November 9 for the “first round of presidential election” and on “December 20 for the […]

The father of stand-in Springboks captain Eben Etzebeth has died, four days before his son is due to lead his country against New Zealand. MUST FOLLOW | LIVE BLOG: All Blacks v Springboks – Saturday, 15 July 2023 Lock Etzebeth is standing in as skipper because flanker Siya Kolisi is injured and will not be available to […]

US tech titan Mark Zuckerberg has plunged into a high-stakes game of brinkmanship with the European Union by withholding his new Threads app from users in Europe, but analysts say he will struggle to win the fight. THREADS Threads, billed as the killer of Twitter, a platform that has tumbled into chaos under the leadership of mercurial […]

Kenya’s police chief banned opposition supporters from holding “illegal demonstrations” on Wednesday, 12 July 2023 following a wave of anger over tax hikes announced by President William Ruto’s government. Opposition leader Raila Odinga has urged Kenyans to take to the streets over the surging cost of living, and at least three people were killed following […]

Iran President Ebrahim Raisi held talks with his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto on Wednesday as he kicked off the first Africa tour by an Iranian leader in 11 years. The visit, which was delayed by a day, comes as the Islamic republic tries to shore up diplomatic support to ease its international isolation, with Raisi […]

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will kick off his Africa tour a day late on Wednesday, 12 July 2023 the foreign ministry in Nairobi said after he failed to appear at a press event. The rare visit to Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe marks the latest diplomatic effort by the Islamic Republic to forge new alliances and […]

Just a month in power, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has already received foreign entrepreneurs and investors at his villa, telling them Nigeria is open for business after a flurry of surprise economic reforms. ALSO READ: West African bloc chooses Nigeria’s Tinubu as new chairman The former Lagos governor added a diplomatic step this week, becoming chairman […]

The Lions will start and end the round-robin phase of the 2023/24 URC season with showdowns against South African Shield winners the Stormers. ALSO READ: SA teams’ travel reduced in 2023/23 URC campaign LIONS TO BE TESTED FROM THE OUTSET On the back of their challenging opening URC game against the Stormers at Ellis Park, the […]

A roadside bombing blamed on the jihadist group Al-Shabaab killed eight members of an extended family in central Somalia, a local mayor said on Monday, 10 July 2023. The blast occurred late Sunday near a village outside Buloburde, which lies about 220 kilometres (136 miles) north of Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. “Eight innocent civilians were killed […]

A Libyan court has sentenced 37 people convicted of human trafficking over migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, authorities said on Monday, 10 July 2023. The North African country is a key departure point for migrants, with many risking the perilous sea journey seeking a better life in Europe. The appeals court in Al-Bayda, some 800 […]

Three people died when a helicopter owned by a mining corporation crashed in southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a source in the security services and a witness said on Tuesday. The crash happened in a ravine several minutes after taking off on Monday in bad weather at a mine at Kambove in Haut-Katanga province. ALSO […]

Six people are missing after an apartment block under construction in the Guinean capital Conakry collapsed, a local official and a worker on the site said on Tuesday. ALSO READ: Sixth pupil linked to Mitchell’s Plain accident dies in hospital The building, located in the southern suburb of Matoto, collapsed on Monday afternoon, burying five workers […]

Lawyers for journalists and rights activists held in Morocco called on the authorities Monday 10 July 2023 to find a “judicial, political and legal solution” that would enable their clients to be freed. “I call on the judiciary and the highest authority in the land (King Mohamed VI) to come up with a judicial, political […]

Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on the International Criminal Court to investigate possible “war crimes” in Sudan’s Darfur region where fighting has intensified despite calls for an end to the conflict. The New York-based group charged that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied Arab militias “summarily executed” at least 28 members of the Massalit ethnic […]

Amnesty International said Tuesday that West and Central African nations must do more to fight corruption and stop “persecuting” human rights defenders who reveal and denounce it. ALSO READ: Senior Health official implicated in corruption of Digital Vibes saga In a report launched for African Anti-Corruption Day, the organisation denounced the “arrest, harassment, detention, hefty fines […]

An ex-Mozambican finance minister wanted by Washington in connection with a graft scandal that triggered an unprecedented financial crisis in his home country will be handed over to the FBI this week, South African police said Monday 10 July 2023. Manuel Chang has been held in South Africa since 2018 at the United States’ request […]

The wife of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who is petitioning the British government’s decision to extradite him to the United States, on Monday appealed for clemency from the US president. WATCH | Fists fly in the stands at Loftus Versfeld The Australian publisher is the object of a US extradition request to face trial for divulging US […]