S.Africa demands no ‘unconstitutional’ change of Zimbabwe govt Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa on Wednesday urged neighbouring Zimbabwe to resist any “unconstitutional changes” of government as President Robert Mugabe’s grip on power appeared threatened by the military. President Jacob Zuma “has expressed hope that developments in Zimbabwe …
Read More »Togo opposition says president’s claim a ‘declaration of war’
Lome, Togo | AFP | Togo opposition leaders on Tuesday said President Faure Gnassingbe “declared war on the Togolese people” by accusing them of orchestrating violence in massive anti-government protests across the West African country. At least 16 people have been killed and more than 200 injured since late August in …
Read More »Military takes to streets in Zimbabwe but denies coup
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Military vehicles took to the streets of the Zimbabwean capital and prolonged gunfire was heard near the presidential residence early Wednesday as questions mounted over Robert Mugabe’s grip on power, even as the army denied a coup in a state broadcast. Tensions between the 93-year-old …
Read More »ZIMBABWE: Tanks seen rolling into Harare
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Several tanks were seen moving on the outskirts of the Zimbabwean capital Harare Tuesday, witnesses told AFP, a day after the army warned it could intervene over a purge of ruling party officials. “I saw a long convoy of military vehicles, including tanks, about an …
Read More »Around 20 concertgoers injured in C.Africa grenade attack
Bangui, Central African Republic | AFP | A grenade attack on a concert in Bangui, the capital of the chronically unstable Central African Republic, injured around 20 people, the UN peacekeeping force and witnesses said. The assault late Saturday saw two unidentified attackers hurl a grenade at a cafe named “On …
Read More »Boko Haram kills three soldiers in ambush
Kano, Nigeria | AFP | At least three Nigerian soldiers and a militiaman were killed in a Boko Haram ambush on the edge of Sambisa forest near the border with Cameroon, military and militia sources told AFP Saturday. The ambush occurred as troops returned to base late Friday in the town …
Read More »DR Congo militiamen on trial for raping children
Bukavu, DR Congo | AFP | Eighteen suspected militiamen, including a provincial lawmaker, went on trial Friday in DR Congo’s chaotic east for kidnapping and raping some 40 girls. Frederic Batumike and 17 others face charges of “crimes against humanity through rape and murder … and taking part in an …
Read More »Burundi says it will ‘never’ collaborate with ICC probe
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Burundi on Friday slapped away any idea that it would help the International Criminal Court’s probe into alleged crimes committed after the country spiralled into political turmoil in 2015. “Burundi rejects this decision from the very outset,” said Justice Minister Aimee Laurentine Kanyana, a day …
Read More »ICC opens full probe into alleged crimes in Burundi unrest
The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | International judges have given the go ahead for a full investigation into alleged crimes against humanity in Burundi, triggering anger Thursday in the crisis-torn African nation, the first ever to leave the war crimes tribunal. The decision to probe abuses in which at least 1,200 …
Read More »Nigeria’s president urged to free ailing Shiite leader
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s government was on Thursday urged to order the release of a pro-Iranian Shiite Muslim group leader, who has been in custody for nearly two years since clashes with soldiers. Ibrahim Zakzaky, who heads the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, and his wife should be freed “on …
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