AFRICA

COMMENT: By Abdulhamid Manzil How to deal with a country divided between two polarized, mutually dissenting political groups A showdown awaits the world after January 19 when President Yahaya Jammeh of The Gambia’s term is expected to end. Regional block ECOWAS, through its plain-speaking Commission President Marcel Alain de Souza, …

Kigali, Rwanda | AFP | The remains of Rwanda’s last king, Kigeli V, arrived in the country Monday after a court battle between his relatives over where he should be buried, an official said. King Kigeli died in October, aged 80, in the United States. He had been living in …

As Congo prepares for a general election likely to be held by the end of the year, a new deal was on Dec.30 struck by political parties for President Joseph Kabila to step down paving way for the first peaceful transition of power in the central African nation.   “The government …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP |  The powerful Women’s League of South Africa’s ruling ANC on Saturday chose outgoing African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as their candidate for party leader. Battle has been raging within the African National Congress (ANC) to succeed current leader and head of state Jacob Zuma. …

Lusaka, Zambia | AFP |  Zambia’s President Edgar Lungu’s decision to contest the 2021 election sparked an angry response from the opposition on Saturday, with a prominent lawmaker arguing that the “tin-pot dictator” is ineligible for another term. Lungu announced this week that he was prepared to stand for re-election. …

Bouaké, Ivory Coast | AFP |    Mutinous soldiers were holding Ivory Coast’s Defence Minister Alain Richard Donwahi on Saturday, rejecting the terms of a deal announced by the president to end their mutinous pay protest. An AFP correspondent reported that soldiers were firing Kalashnikov rifles and heavy weapons outside …

Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP |  Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara announced Saturday he has reached an agreement with soldiers who seized the second city Bouake in an angry pay protest that spread to the economic capital Abidjan. “I confirm my agreement to take into account the demands relating to …

Accra, Ghana | AFP | Nana Akufo-Addo was sworn in as Ghana’s new president on Saturday, promising to stamp out government corruption and kickstart the private sector. The 72-year-old former human rights lawyer took the oath of office at a ceremony in Independence Square in the capital Accra in front …

. Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP |  South African Olympic 800-metre champion Caster Semenya married her long-term partner in Pretoria on Saturday. Semenya celebrated her 26th birthday by tying the knot with Violet Raseboya after exchanging vows during a lavish ceremony in the South African capital. The Rio gold medallist …

Accra, Ghana | AFP | Nana Akufo-Addo is to be sworn in as Ghana’s new president on Saturday after beating incumbent leader John Dramani Mahama in elections last month. The 72-year-old former human rights lawyer will take the oath of office at a ceremony in Independence Square in central Accra …