AFRICA

United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN Security Council on Tuesday tasked its huge peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo with helping to prepare elections meant to end President Joseph Kabila’s rule. The council unanimously adopted a resolution presented by France that renews the mandate for …

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | Ethiopia’s ruling coalition on Tuesday elected as leader Abiy Ahmed, from the country’s largest ethnic group the Oromo, paving the way for him to become prime minister, state media reported. As the leader of the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), Abiy is set …

Niamey, Niger | AFP | Four leading opposition and rights figures are being held in Niger prisons following a banned weekend demonstration that turned violent in the capital Niamey, media reports said Tuesday. They were among 23 people arrested after the protest Sunday against new taxes degenerated into clashes between …

United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN Security Council on Tuesday unanimously backed a resolution that tasks the peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo with helping to prepare elections and avoid deadly violence. France presented the measure that renews the mandate for MONUSCO, the UN’s biggest …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Eight prominent columnists working for Kenya’s biggest media group quit Tuesday over what they said was increased meddling by government and a loss of media freedom at its outlets. The columnists include George Kegoro, executive director of the Kenyan Human Rights Commission; Lynne Muthoni Wanyeki, …

Alexandra, South Africa | AFP | Self-testing kits and vending machines distributing prescription drugs are two ways that HIV treatment is being automated to reduce stigma in South Africa, home of the world’s biggest HIV epidemic. With 7.1 million people living with HIV in the country, removing human intervention is …

Makurdi, Nigeria | AFP | Five people have been killed in fresh clashes between farmers and nomadic herders in Benue state in central Nigeria, the epicentre of a wave of deadly violence this year over grazing land, police said Monday. “Just yesterday we had a case where two persons were …

Tshikapa, DR Congo | AFP | Of the many headaches facing the UN mission in DR Congo as its mandate comes up for renewal, few are greater than the ethnic bloodshed and brewing humanitarian crisis in the Kasai region. The sprawling diamond-rich region exploded into violence in September 2016 after …

Luanda, Angola | AFP | The son of Angola’s former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos has been charged with fraud linked to a $500 million transfer executed when he ran the country’s sovereign wealth fund, prosecutors said Monday. Jose Filomeno dos Santos is accused of “fraud, misappropriation of funds, money …

Freetown, Sierra Leone | Sierra Leone’s High Court on Monday lifted an order that had halted the country’s presidential runoff, although the electoral commission has requested a brief postponement after losing valuable time to prepare the vote. The High Court removed an injunction it imposed on Saturday to halt preparations …