The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | France on Wednesday arrested a member of Africa’s top footballing body on war crimes charges in the Central African Republic, the International Criminal Court said. Patrice-Edouard Ngaissona, a former minister, is accused of being a top coordinator of armed groups in the conflict-hit country, …
Read More »Fact-check: have 60,000 Christians been killed in central Nigeria since 2001?
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | A video uploaded to Facebook by one of US president Donald Trump’s lawyers claims that 60,000 Christians have been killed by nomadic Muslim herdsmen in central Nigeria since 2001. The claim has been shared hundreds of thousands of times on Facebook but AFP has found …
Read More »Nigeria’s Buhari signs election ‘peace deal’ with opponents
Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari and a number of opposition leaders on Tuesday signed a deal for peaceful elections but the main challenger for the country’s top deal was not present. The 75-year-old former military ruler was joined by representatives of dozens of other parties to …
Read More »France ships 1,400 assault rifles to C.Africa army
Bangui, Central African Republic | AFP | France on Tuesday handed over 1,400 AK-47 assault rifles and three amphibious vehicles to the Central African Republic to shore up its beleaguered armed forces. French Defence Minister Florence Parly oversaw the handover at a ceremony at M’Polo military base in the capital …
Read More »Amnesty calls on ICC to fully probe Boko Haram conflict atrocities
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Amnesty International on Monday said the International Criminal Court should start a full-blown investigation into atrocities committed in the Boko Haram insurgency, accusing Nigeria of failing to bring those responsible to justice. ICC chief prosecutor Fatma Bensouda opened a preliminary examination in 2010 into eight …
Read More »Fight to end rape in war must begin in peacetime: Mukwege
Oslo, Norway | AFP | Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege may have won his Nobel prize for his work to end sexual violence in war, but the crusading surgeon said the groundwork for equality must be laid in peacetime, as he praised movements like #MeToo. Mukwege, whose work has made him …
Read More »Western donors pledge over 2bn euros anti-terror aid for Africa’s Sahel
Nouakchott, Mauritania | AFP | Western donors said Thursday they have pledged 2.4 billion euros ($2.7 billion) in funding aimed at preventing terrorism and lawlessness along the southern rim of the Sahara. The updated pledge total was announced in a final statement from a donors conference held in the Mauritanian …
Read More »DR Congo election candidate campaigns in region hit by unrest, Ebola
Beni, DR Congo | AFP | A key opposition candidate in DR Congo presidential elections launched his campaign Wednesday in a city caught between an Ebola epidemic and militant attacks in one of the country’s most dangerous regions. Martin Fayulu, vying to replace President Joseph Kabila in the pivotal December …
Read More »Nigeria confirms eight soldiers killed in Boko Haram attack
Kano, Nigeria | AFP | The Nigerian Army on Tuesday said eight soldiers have been confirmed dead in a Boko Haram attack on a military base over the weekend in the country’s restive northeast. Gunmen from the self-styled Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) faction of Boko Haram attacked the …
Read More »Army clashes kill 18 in east DR Congo as election tensions rise
Bukavu, DR Congo | AFP | Clashes between the army and rebels loyal to a renegade former general in eastern DR Congo have killed 18 people, military sources said Monday, in the latest violence before crucial elections to replace President Joseph Kabila this month. Fighting killed 14 rebels and …
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