Russian drones on Wednesday damaged infrastructure at a Ukrainian port on the Danube, as Moscow targeted facilities vital for grain shipments from Ukraine following the collapse of a key export arrangement.Turkey, which along with the United Nations brokered the deal to allow Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, urged Russia after the port strike not …

Russia hits Ukraine grain export route near RomaniaWed, 02 Aug 2023 14:40:28 GMT Read More »

West African military chiefs were to meet Wednesday to frame a response to the crisis in Niger, a week after the fragile country was shaken by a coup that alarmed its neighbours and prompted France, the former colonial power, to evacuate its citizens.Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) leaders on Sunday imposed trade and …

West Africa army chiefs to grapple with Niger crisis as Europeans leaveWed, 02 Aug 2023 11:52:12 GMT Read More »

The first planes carrying French and other European citizens evacuated from Niger landed in Paris Wednesday, a week after a coup toppled one of the last pro-Western leaders in the jihadist-plagued Sahel.President Mohamed Bazoum was detained by his own presidential guard in a third coup in three years in the Sahel, following putsches in neighbouring …

Evacuation flights from coup-hit Niger reach FranceWed, 02 Aug 2023 08:34:24 GMT Read More »

There has been a power cut, and under moonlight in a poor quarter of DR Congo’s capital, wrestler Maitresse Libondans explains how she invokes her ancestors to cast spells that rout her opponents.”I research the fetish,” says the 28-year-old, a figure wearing a dramatic red wig ahead of her fight and holding a cane that …

DR Congo’s ‘voodoo wrestling’ provides spellbinding funWed, 02 Aug 2023 06:47:45 GMT Read More »

Nigeria, leader of a key west African bloc and a continental economic powerhouse, has intensified its efforts to reverse the coup gripping neighbouring Niger, presenting Abuja with opportunities as well as risks.The ECOWAS bloc, currently chaired by Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu, said on Sunday that coup leaders had a week to restore Mohamed Bazoum to …

Nigeria turning the screw on Niger coup leadersWed, 02 Aug 2023 06:32:07 GMT Read More »

Ivory Coast’s nationalist former president Henri Konan Bedie, who had not excluded the possibility of a return to power even in his latter days, has died aged 89, his party said.The “Ivory Coast Democratic Party-African Democratic Rally (PDCI-RDA) is deeply saddened” to announce the “sudden death” of Bedie in hospital in Abidjan Tuesday, it said in …

Former Ivory Coast president Henri Konan Bedie dies aged 89Wed, 02 Aug 2023 05:31:57 GMT Read More »

The first plane carrying mostly French and European people evacuated from Niger landed in Paris early Wednesday, a week after a coup toppled one of the last pro-Western leaders in the jihadist-plagued Sahel.President Mohamed Bazoum was detained by his own presidential guard in a third coup in as many years in the Sahel, following putsches …

First evacuation flight from coup-hit Niger lands in FranceWed, 02 Aug 2023 03:30:53 GMT Read More »

In the unbearable midday heat, a Libyan patrol near the border with Tunisia comes across a black African man collapsed on the reddish-brown desert sand.He is barely breathing, and officers try to revive him, gently, with a few drops of water on his lips.The man is one among hundreds of migrants arriving daily in Libya …

Migrants between life and death in Tunisia-Libya desertWed, 02 Aug 2023 03:15:45 GMT Read More »

Tunisian President Kais Saied sacked Prime Minister Najla Bouden without explanation Tuesday night and replaced her with former central bank executive Ahmed Hachani, whom he tasked with overcoming the “colossal challenges” facing the cash-strapped North African country.No official explanation was given for Bouden’s dismissal, but several local media outlets highlighted Saied’s displeasure over a number …

Tunisia president dismisses PM as country faces ‘colossal challenges’Wed, 02 Aug 2023 02:38:08 GMT Read More »

The first of three flights to evacuate French and European citizens from Niger lifted off Tuesday evening, six days after a coup toppled one of the last pro-Western leaders in the jihadist-plagued Sahel.”There are 262 people on board the plane, an Airbus A330, including a dozen babies,” French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told AFP.”Nearly all …

France launches evacuation flights from coup-hit NigerTue, 01 Aug 2023 19:10:30 GMT Read More »