At least 48 people have been killed in a crackdown on an anti-UN protest in eastern DR Congo, according to sources and official documentation reviewed by AFP on Thursday, raising a previously reported death toll.On Wednesday, Congolese soldiers stopped a religious sect from holding a demonstration against United Nations peacekeepers in the city of Goma. Some …

48 killed in east DR Congo anti-UN rally crackdownThu, 31 Aug 2023 22:43:53 GMT Read More »

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Thursday floated the idea of a transition back to democracy in neighbouring Niger similar to the nine-month period his country underwent in the late 1990s.The Economic Community of West African States has imposed sanctions on Niger after troops ousted President Mohamed Bazoum in a coup on July 26 and the bloc threatened …

Nigeria president suggests nine-month transition for Niger juntaThu, 31 Aug 2023 22:35:07 GMT Read More »

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, head of the West Africa bloc ECOWAS, on Thursday suggested a nine-month transition back to democracy for Niger’s new regime in the bloc’s first apparent timeline since the July coup.The Economic Community of West African States has imposed sanctions on Niger after troops ousted President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 and …

W.Africa bloc chief sees 9-month transition for Niger juntaThu, 31 Aug 2023 19:28:55 GMT Read More »

The general who overthrew Gabon’s 55-year Bongo dynasty will be sworn in on Monday as transitional president, the army said, as the opposition called for its candidate to be recognised as the winner of weekend elections.The military sought to reassure donors they would “respect all commitments” at home and abroad and “phase in” transitional institutions, …

Gabon strongman to be sworn in as president, opposition seeks vote winThu, 31 Aug 2023 19:10:30 GMT Read More »

Tunisian police arrested four men, including a fisherman, on suspicion of maritime piracy after the robbery of a boat taking Tunisian migrants to Italy, an official said on Thursday.Police intervened and arrested the four Tunisians on Saturday after one of the migrants posted a video online showing men taking the engine of the migrants’ dinghy, …

Tunisia arrests ‘pirates’ after migrants robbed at seaThu, 31 Aug 2023 16:52:04 GMT Read More »

Niger’s new military rulers have stripped France’s ambassador of diplomatic immunity and ordered police to expel him, according to a letter seen Thursday by AFP, a move that ratchets up tensions with the country’s traditional ally.The envoy “no longer enjoys the privileges and immunities attached to his status as member of the diplomatic personnel in …

Niger military regime orders expulsion of French envoyThu, 31 Aug 2023 15:41:46 GMT Read More »

The general who led the overthrow of the 55-year Bongo dynasty will be sworn in on Monday as transitional president of the west African state, the army announced.The military sought to reassure donors they would “respect all commitments” at home and abroad and “phase in” transitional institutions, Colonel Ulrich Manfoumbi Manfoumbia, spokesman for the new …

Gabon coup leader to be sworn in as president ending Bongo eraThu, 31 Aug 2023 14:41:55 GMT Read More »

Blankets and sheets still hang from the blackened windows, used by the desperate to reach safety as flames turned the five-storey building in downtown Johannesburg into a death trap.Others just jumped.Witnesses spoke of parents throwing their babies out into the street, trying to save them, after scrabbling around in vain to find an exit.”It was …

Trapped residents fled through windows in S.African infernoThu, 31 Aug 2023 13:00:14 GMT Read More »

A fire that engulfed a five-storey building taken over for illegal housing killed more than 70 people including children in central Johannesburg overnight, the South African city’s emergency services said on Thursday.Another 52 were injured in what was on track to become one of the deadliest fires worldwide in recent years. Bodies were discovered piled up …

Fire engulfs illegal housing block killing 73 in South AfricaThu, 31 Aug 2023 12:52:55 GMT Read More »

People in the central African state of Gabon awaited a steer on their future on Thursday after rebel army officers brought the curtain down on 55 years of rule by the Bongo family.President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose father Omar had ruled for more than four decades, was toppled on Wednesday, moments after being declared outright …

Gabon awaits word on its future after end of Bongo eraThu, 31 Aug 2023 10:41:05 GMT Read More »