AFRICA

Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP | Eight West African countries Saturday agreed to change the name of their common currency to Eco and severed the CFA franc’s links to former colonial ruler France. The CFA franc was initially pegged to the French franc and has been linked to the euro …

Port-Bouet, Ivory Coast | AFP |  French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Ivory Coast on Friday to celebrate Christmas with French troops, saying Paris would work to give “new force” to the regional fight against Islamist militants. The jihadist insurgency in several poor Sahel nations will be a top item on …

Brussels, Belgium | AFP | A Belgian court on Friday sentenced a former Rwandan official convicted of genocide for his part in his country’s 1994 massacres to 25 years in prison. Fabien Neretse, an agricultural engineer, was arrested in France in 2011 and was found guilty of genocide and war crimes …

Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP  In keeping with tradition, President Emmanuel Macron on Friday will celebrate Christmas with French soldiers posted abroad, travelling this year to Ivory Coast as Paris seeks to strengthen regional ties against Islamist militants. Far from protest strikes gripping France, Macron will share a dinner cooked by …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP |  In a cooking oil factory in Khartoum, Sudanese workers hammer at a broken-down machine, as general manager Sarah al-Fateh sighs in frustration. She is unable to import replacement parts for her family’s business, she said, because of “American sanctions”. A year after the start of a …

Brussels, Belgium | AFP | A Brussels court on found a 71-year-old former Rwandan official guilty of genocide on Thursday after hearing of his role in the 1994 massacres in his country. Fabien Neretse, who protested his innocence, is the first person to be convicted in Belgium on such a …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Exuberant crowds took to the streets of Sudan on Thursday to celebrate the first anniversary of the uprising that toppled veteran autocrat Omar al-Bashir and to demand justice for slain protesters. Thousands turned out in different districts of the capital Khartoum chanting slogans such as “we’re …

Tripoli, Libya | AFP |   In the Libyan capital Tripoli, where war casts a long shadow over everyday life, a church offers something of a sanctuary for Christian migrants like Nigerian engineer Jonathan Joshua. “I find life very difficult but here at the church… I forget I am in Libya, …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP |  A year after demonstrations broke out in Sudan over soaring bread prices, celebrations are planned across the country on Thursday to mark the uprising that brought down veteran autocrat Omar al-Bashir. In the central town of Atbara, the cradle of the revolt, hundreds of people are …

Juba, South Sudan | AFP |  The US ambassador to South Sudan on Wednesday warned that Washington would not hesitate to slap additional sanctions on “spoilers” holding back peace in the war-torn African nation. Ambassador Thomas Hushek was recalled in November when South Sudan’s rival leaders failed to meet a …