After Niger coup, sanctions pain strikes at shutdown Benin borderThu, 21 Sep 2023 08:34:05 GMT

Lines of hundreds of trucks stretch back many kilometres close to Benin’s northern border with Niger, their cargo wasting and their drivers going broke after weeks stranded at the closed frontier. Almost two months since a coup ousted Niger’s president, the trucks blocked in Malanville at Benin’s border are the most striking symbol of the fallout Niger’s …

After Niger coup, sanctions pain strikes at shutdown Benin borderThu, 21 Sep 2023 08:34:05 GMT Read More »

Italian PM urges UN to wage ‘war without mercy’ on migrant traffickingThu, 21 Sep 2023 00:37:15 GMT

Italy’s prime minister on Wednesday urged the United Nations to launch a “global war without mercy” against migrant smugglers, after a surge of arrivals on the island of Lampedusa.Addressing the UN General Assembly, right-wing prime minister Giorgia Meloni said that Italy, which next year heads the Group of Seven wealthy democracies, was ready to lead …

Italian PM urges UN to wage ‘war without mercy’ on migrant traffickingThu, 21 Sep 2023 00:37:15 GMT Read More »

Climate crisis has ‘opened the gates to hell’, UN chief tells summitWed, 20 Sep 2023 21:11:05 GMT

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday told world leaders the climate crisis had “opened the gates to hell” during a summit where leading polluters China and the United States were conspicuously absent.The talks were partly overshadowed by an announcement from Britain — also not present — that it was rolling back policies that would help …

Climate crisis has ‘opened the gates to hell’, UN chief tells summitWed, 20 Sep 2023 21:11:05 GMT Read More »

UNESCO puts Rwanda genocide memorials on World Heritage listWed, 20 Sep 2023 17:19:04 GMT

Four memorials to the 1994 genocide in Rwanda of more than 800,000 people, mainly Tutsi, were added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list on Wednesday, the UN cultural body said.The sites at Nyamata, Murambi, Gisozi and Bisesero commemorating the mass killings were “just inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list”, the organisation posted on X (formerly …

UNESCO puts Rwanda genocide memorials on World Heritage listWed, 20 Sep 2023 17:19:04 GMT Read More »

World’s oldest wooden structure discovered in ZambiaWed, 20 Sep 2023 15:14:54 GMT

Archaeologists said on Wednesday they have unearthed the oldest wooden structure ever discovered, dating from nearly half a million years ago, which suggests that our ancestors may have been more advanced than previously thought.The exceptionally well-preserved wooden structure was found at Kalambo Falls in the north of Zambia near the border with Tanzania.It dates back …

World’s oldest wooden structure discovered in ZambiaWed, 20 Sep 2023 15:14:54 GMT Read More »

Son of ousted Gabon leader held in corruption caseWed, 20 Sep 2023 14:34:11 GMT

Three weeks after Ali Bongo Ondimba was overthrown in a coup, one of his sons and several allies of the ousted Gabon president have been charged with corruption and placed in custody, the state prosecutor said Wednesday.Bongo’s eldest son Noureddin Bongo Valentin and former presidential spokesman Jessye Ella Ekogha were indicted on Tuesday and placed …

Son of ousted Gabon leader held in corruption caseWed, 20 Sep 2023 14:34:11 GMT Read More »

A chance ‘to heal’: Rwanda genocide survivor on UNESCO memorialWed, 20 Sep 2023 13:33:49 GMT

Vanessa Uwase had little chance of survival when her mother was murdered during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Today, she works at the country’s largest memorial to the slaughter — one of four sites added to UNESCO’s heritage list on Wednesday.The Gisozi genocide memorial is “a resting place for many of my loved ones, and …

A chance ‘to heal’: Rwanda genocide survivor on UNESCO memorialWed, 20 Sep 2023 13:33:49 GMT Read More »

Son of ousted Gabon leader held in graft caseWed, 20 Sep 2023 12:51:27 GMT

The son of Ali Bongo Ondimba and several allies of the ousted Gabon president have been charged with corruption and placed in custody, the state prosecutor told AFP Wednesday.Bongo’s eldest son Noureddin Bongo Valentin and former presidential spokesman Jessye Ella Ekogha “have been charged and placed in provisional detention” on Tuesday over alleged corruption, said …

Son of ousted Gabon leader held in graft caseWed, 20 Sep 2023 12:51:27 GMT Read More »

Fears for ancient Cyrene after Libya floodsWed, 20 Sep 2023 12:17:59 GMT

Floods that killed thousands in the Libyan city of Derna also inundated one of the country’s premier ancient sites, threatening its UNESCO-listed monuments with collapse, a recent visitor and a leading archaeologist said.The immediate damage to the monuments of Cyrene, which include the second century AD Temple of Zeus, bigger than the Parthenon in Athens, …

Fears for ancient Cyrene after Libya floodsWed, 20 Sep 2023 12:17:59 GMT Read More »