The United Nations raised the alarm on Tuesday over fighting raging near the former safe haven of Wad Madani in Sudan where the population had swelled to more than 700,000.The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces on Sunday set up a base near Wad Madani, where their offensive has sent thousands fleeing Sudan’s second city and former …

UN sounds alarm over fighting near Sudan aid hubTue, 19 Dec 2023 18:42:00 GMT Read More »

The UN Security Council voted Tuesday to accede to a demand from Democratic Republic of Congo and launch a gradual withdrawal of UN peacekeepers starting this month, a year earlier than originally planned.The resolution, which renews the mandate of the peacekeeping mission in DRC for a further year, includes plans for the departure of peacekeepers …

UN Security Council agrees to early withdrawal of peacekeepers from DR CongoTue, 19 Dec 2023 17:11:59 GMT Read More »

A French elderly couple on Tuesday saw its request to cancel the 4.2-million-eurosale of a rare African mask that they had let go for 150 euros thrown out, with the court calling their claim frivolous.The couple, in their eighties, sold the wooden mask in September 2021 as part of a number of antiquities including African …

Controversial African mask sale cleared by French courtTue, 19 Dec 2023 15:01:10 GMT Read More »

On the eve of elections in the vast and impoverished Democratic Republic of Congo, voters of all stripes voiced hopes on Tuesday that the poll would be well-organised and conducted without violence.Forty-four million people are registered to vote in the concurrent presidential, parliamentary, provincial and municipal elections on Wednesday in the central African nation. “Tomorrow will …

Voters in DR Congo veer between despair and hopeTue, 19 Dec 2023 14:52:23 GMT Read More »

Frantic families waited at the surface Tuesday for news of more than 2,000 platinum miners who have taken over two shafts in one of South Africa’s biggest mine protests in years.Some 2,205 miners started the protest about 500 metres below the surface on Monday but Impala Platinum Holdings, or Implats, said 63 came up during …

Fears for miners on second day of S.Africa underground protestTue, 19 Dec 2023 12:22:08 GMT Read More »

The UN Security Council is expected on Tuesday to accede to a demand from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and launch a gradual withdrawal of peacekeepers, starting later this month.The drawdown would come despite United Nations concern about violence in the eastern part of the country.Ravaged by conflict, the vast and impoverished DR Congo …

UN prepares to start pulling peacekeepers from DR CongoTue, 19 Dec 2023 02:47:55 GMT Read More »

Fourteen people were killed and 178 others injured after a powerful explosion and fire at the main fuel depot in Guinea rocked the centre of the capital Conakry early on Monday, causing substantial damage and bringing the city to a standstill.Schools were closed and workers told to stay at home as thick black smoke filled …

Explosion, blaze at Guinea fuel depot kills 14, injures 190Mon, 18 Dec 2023 21:56:45 GMT Read More »

Presidential candidates in DR Congo made their final pitches to voters on Monday as campaigning officially ended in the vast and impoverished central African nation of 100 million people.Forty-four million Congolese are registered to vote in Wednesday’s presidential, parliamentary, provincial and municipal elections, in a country ravaged by conflict in its east. The presidential race is …

DR Congo presidential candidates in final push ahead of voteMon, 18 Dec 2023 18:07:41 GMT Read More »

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has won a third term with 89.6 percent of the vote in the Arab world’s most populous country, the national election authority said Monday. The outcome of the December 10-12 poll was widely expected after the former army chief with a fondness for infrastructure mega-projects campaigned against a small field of …

Egypt’s Sisi secures third term in widely expected election winMon, 18 Dec 2023 17:26:31 GMT Read More »

Thirteen people have been killed and 178 others injured after a powerful explosion and fire at the main fuel depot in Guinea rocked the centre of the capital Conakry early on Monday, bringing it to a standstill and causing substantial damage.Schools were closed and workers told to stay at home as thick black smoke filled …

Explosion, blaze at Guinea fuel depot kills 13, injures 178Mon, 18 Dec 2023 16:49:20 GMT Read More »