Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday backed the efforts of Libya’s military commander Khalifa Haftar and his rival UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj to reach a peace agreement in the conflict-ridden country. “We actively support the emerging trend to step up the process of …
Read More »Kenya president urges opposition to use ‘legal mechanisms’
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday appealed to the opposition to hold legal demonstrations, not street protests, and allow Kenyans to get back to normal life after last week’s disputed vote. “To our friends who have yet to accept the outcome, we continue to appeal …
Read More »Conflict leaves millions hungry in DR Congo, UN warns
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Nearly eight million people face acute hunger in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a result of conflict, especially in the central Kasai region, UN food agencies said Monday. “Food security and nutrition… are deteriorating in many parts of DRC, but nowhere is the situation …
Read More »Zambia opposition leader due in court on treason charges
Lusaka, Zambia | AFP | Zambia’s detained opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema is due to appear in court Monday on treason charges, four months after he was arrested and as political tensions rise in the country. Hichilema, who narrowly lost last year’s presidential elections, has been in custody since April over …
Read More »Kenya’s election standoff: Five key questions
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has been declared the winner of the country’s election, but his rival Raila Odinga insists he is the true winner, and the election was stolen from him. Odinga has said he will outline his strategy to contest the vote on Tuesday. Deadly …
Read More »17 dead in Burkina Faso restaurant ‘terrorist attack’
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso | AFP | Seventeen people have been killed and a dozen injured in a “terrorist attack” on a restaurant in Burkina Faso’s capital, the government said Monday. Witnesses said three gunmen arrived at a Turkish restaurant in a pickup truck on Sunday evening and opened fire on customers …
Read More »Mama mia! Benin shock Nigeria in CHAN
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Benin shocked Nigeria 1-0 Sunday in African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifying to complete a rare weekend of football celebrations for the tiny west coast country. On Saturday, Beninese Steve Mounie scored twice for promoted Huddersfield Town in a 3-0 triumph at Crystal Palace that …
Read More »Former Shabaab spokesman turns himself over to Somalia government
Top Somalia jihadist turns himself over to government Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | A one-time deputy leader and spokesman for Somalia’s Shabaab insurgents defected to the country’s government on Sunday, a local official said. Muktar Robow was the subject of a $5 million bounty from the United States for his …
Read More »‘It’s time to get back to work and move Kenya forward’
Nairobi, Kenya , Kenya | THE INDEPENDENT | State House Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu has urged Kenyans to go back to work following the final declaration of Presidential results on Friday. “It’s time to get back to work and move Kenya forward,” Esipisu said at a first post-election press briefing. Uhuru Kenyatta was declared winner with 54.3% …
Read More »Defiant Odinga vows not to back down over ‘stolen’ Kenya vote
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya’s opposition leader Raila Odinga vowed Sunday not to back down over an election he claims was stolen from him and urged his supporters to boycott work until he announces his strategy next week. The 72-year-old told his supporters to stay at home and out …
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