Uganda’s leading telecom company MTN prepared Thursday morning for Friday’s deadline of SIM-Card registration, by deactivating numbers that have not yet been verified. MTN called it a “soft deactivation”, that was lifted at midday. “This is a soft suspension, dial *197*3#ok to submit your NIN, however,your SIM will be activated at …

Washington, United States | AFP |  Special counsels like the one named Wednesday to oversee the probe into Russia’s alleged election interference are rare super sleuths with more power and independence than regular American investigators. This time it is former FBI director Robert Mueller who will take over the probe …

Oslo, Norway | AFP |  A British-Norwegian dual citizen who was serving a life sentence for murder and espionage in a Congolose prison was released and returned to Norway on Wednesday, authorities said. Joshua French, 35, was sentenced to life in prison in 2013 for the murder of his cellmate …

Paris, France | AFP |  French President Emmanuel Macron appointed his first cabinet on Wednesday mixing Socialists, centrists and rightwingers with newcomers to politics as he pressed ahead with plans to create a broad governing coalition. The new cabinet of 22 people meets campaign pledges of being smaller than its …

Paris, France | AFP |  Another large-scale, stealthy cyberattack is underway on a scale that could dwarf last week’s assault on computers worldwide, a global cybersecurity firm told AFP on Wednesday. The new attack targets the same vulnerabilities the WannaCry ransomware worm exploited but, rather than freeze files, uses the …

Washington, United States | AFP |  A US Senate panel investigating Russia’s interference in America’s elections and possible collusion with President Donald Trump’s campaign team Wednesday requested that sacked FBI director James Comey testify before its members. The Senate Intelligence Committee’s Republican chairman and Democratic vice chairman sent a letter …

Uganda’s Nakaayi wins 800m silver medal, Jebet wins gold in Steeplechase Baku, Azerbaijan | AFP-Services (text stories) | Uganda’s Halimah Nakaayi has won a silver medal in the women’s 800-metre final on the second day of athletics at the fourth Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku. The 22-year-old Ugandan Olympian, was beaten by …

Putin ‘ready to provide recording’ of Lavrov-Trump exchange Sochi, Russia | AFP |  Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Moscow could provide a recording of a controversial exchange between Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US President Donald Trump that has plunged the White House into turmoil. His comments were …

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP |  Rebels from an outlawed political-religious group attacked Kinshasa’s central prison on Wednesday, breaking out their leader and about 50 other prisoners, the Congolese government said. “Followers of the Bundu Dia Kongo (BDK) attacked Makala prison at dawn and broke out around 50 prisoners including …

Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP |  At least three members of the Somali security forces were killed Wednesday as they tried to defuse a bomb inside a vehicle in the capital Mogadishu, police said. “The vehicle was seized and the security forces were trying to defuse the bomb inside when it …