Benghazi, Libya | AFP | The head of Libya’s rival government in the east called Sunday on the international community to recognise his administration which he says controls most of the North African country. Libya, which plunged into chaos after the ouster and killing of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011, has …
Read More »Indian priest thankful, even to abductors, after release from Yemen
Rome, Italy | AFP | An Indian priest kidnapped last year during a deadly attack by Islamist militants in Yemen thanked on Saturday all those involved in his release, and even had a kind word for his abductors for not harming him. “I thank in the name of the Lord God …
Read More »Papal nuncio calls DR Congo a ‘predatory state’
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The pope’s representative in DR Congo said the pontiff will not visit Kinshasa before long delayed elections are held in the strife-torn country, calling it a “predatory state.” In March, Pope Francis cancelled a planned summer visit to Kinshasa owing to the climate of political …
Read More »US kills six in Shabaab air strikes in Somalia
Washington, United States | AFP | US forces in Somalia conducted three air strikes on Islamist Shabaab targets Wednesday, killing six fighters with the Al-Qaeda linked group, the US military said. The pre-dawn operation occurred in southern Somalia about 160 miles (260 kilometers) south of Mogadishu. The strikes were conducted under …
Read More »Somali troops flee to Kenya to escape Shabaab attack
Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | Somali soldiers, some of them wounded, fled across the border into Kenya during an attack by Islamic militants on the town of Bulo Hawo on Monday, security sources said. At least 12 people died when fighters from the Al-Qaeda-aligned Shabaab group attacked the border …
Read More »Red Cross driver killed in S. Sudan ambush
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | A Red Cross driver was killed when unknown militants attacked an aid convoy in South Sudan, the organisation said Saturday. Lukudu Kennedy Laki Emmanuel was shot dead Friday when gunmen ambushed the nine-vehicle convoy transporting humanitarian supplies in the war-torn country’s Western Equatoria region. “We are …
Read More »Hamas chief in Egypt for first visit since election
Gaza City, Palestinian Territories | AFP | The head of Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas Ismail Haniya travelled on Saturday to Egypt for his first visit there since his election, the group said. Hamas controls the small Palestinian Gaza Strip enclave and has been seeking to improve relations with neighbouring Egypt …
Read More »Israeli defence chiefs warn Iran, Syria after air strike
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israel’s defence minister on Thursday issued a veiled warning to Syria, without confirming or denying what Damascus said was an Israeli air strike on its territory. Syria’s army accused Israel of hitting one of its positions, killing two people in an attack earlier the same day …
Read More »14 people die of cholera in northeast Nigeria
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Fourteen people have died of cholera in northeast Nigeria, with most of the victims living in a camp for people displaced by Boko Haram violence, the health ministry said Saturday. “Up to September 1, 14 deaths have been reported,” the health ministry said in a statement, …
Read More »Bid for UN vote on Mali sanctions gains momentum
United Nations, United States | AFP | A bid for a UN Security Council vote early next week on a French-sponsored resolution that would set up a sanctions regime for Mali gained momentum Friday despite resistance from some countries, diplomats said. Russia and Ethiopia have voiced reservations over the proposal, raising …
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