AFRICA

Blantyre, Malawi | AFP | In a continent where armies often prop up governments, crush dissent and interfere in mainstream politics, Malawi in southern Africa has been an exception for decades. From Sudan to Zimbabwe to Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau, the military has had a long track record of being …

Tripoli, Libya | AFP | The UN’s envoy to war-plagued Libya, Ghassan Salame, announced his resignation on Monday citing health reasons, nearly three years after taking up the post. “I tried to unite Libyans and restrain foreign interference… but for health reasons I can no longer continue with this level …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Members of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) have been urged to make appropriate laws that protect victims of Online Child Sexual Exploitation (OCSE). Speaking to MPs of the continental parliament in South Africa, experts said that the interpretation of the laws on OCSE are ambiguous …

  Bissau, Guinea-Bissau | AFP |  The man appointed interim president of Guinea-Bissau by the side beaten in the December presidential election has stepped down because of death threats, less than two days after being nominated. “Given the death threats against me and my bodyguards, I have decided to give …

Nekemte, Ethiopia | AFP |  Desta Garuma, a 27-year-old rickshaw driver, never showed much interest in politics, so his family has no idea how soldiers concluded he was involved in a rebel movement active in Ethiopia’s Oromia region. But one day in January, five truckloads of soldiers followed him home, shouting …

Conakry, Guinea | AFP |  Guinea’s President Alpha Conde announced a “slight postponement” of Sunday’s referendum on whether to adopt a new constitution, following mounting international criticism over the poll’s fairness. The government argues that the draft constitution would, among other things, codify gender equality and ban female circumcision and underage …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Residents of Nigeria’s economic hub Lagos scrambled for hygiene products Friday, after the chaotic megacity of 20 million announced the first confirmed case of new coronavirus in sub-Saharan Africa. Health Minister Osagie Ehanire said in a statement overnight that the infected person was an Italian citizen …

  Luanda, Angola | AFP |  Angola’s former first son Jose Filomeno dos Santos has spent hours contemplating the marble floor and wood-panelled walls of Luanda’s Supreme Court where he has been on trial since December. The 42-year-old child of Jose Eduardo dos Santos could soon hear whether he is guilty …

Conakry, Guinea | AFP |  Guineans will be called to vote Sunday on whether to adopt a new constitution, after months of protests sparked by charges that it is a trick by President Alpha Conde to stay in power. The government says the draft constitution will, among other things, codify gender …

  Lagos, Nigeria | AFP |  Nigeria on Friday announced the first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus in sub-Saharan Africa. The case is an Italian citizen who works in Nigeria and returned from Milan earlier this week, Health Minister Osagie Ehanire said in a statement on Twitter. “The patient …