Violence-wracked Somalia is seeking a three-month delay in the planned reduction of African Union troops after suffering “several significant setbacks” in its fight against Al-Shabaab militants, according to a government letter seen by AFP.Somalia’s national security adviser wrote to the United Nations requesting a 90-day delay in the second phase of a pullout that provides …

Somalia seeks 90-day ‘pause’ in AU force drawdown: letterFri, 22 Sep 2023 09:15:17 GMT Read More »

Acute deprivation is endemic in Niger, one of the world’s poorest nations. But West African sanctions aimed at forcing a return to democracy after a coup are making people’s lives worse.  Food and medicines are scarce in the landlocked country, prices are skyrocketing and blackouts after regional powerhouse Nigeria cut its electricity supplies mean that …

Sanctions deepen economic misery in post-coup NigerFri, 22 Sep 2023 05:26:21 GMT Read More »

Sudan’s army chief warned Thursday at the United Nations that months of war could spill over in the region as he urged international pressure on the paramilitary unit he is fighting.General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the de facto ruler of Sudan since a 2021 coup, alluded to the rival Rapid Support Forces’ ties with Wagner, the …

Sudan army chief warns UN that war could spill over in regionThu, 21 Sep 2023 22:01:59 GMT Read More »

A US government contractor who worked at the State and Justice departments has been arrested on charges of spying, reportedly for Ethiopia.Abraham Teklu Lemma, 50, a US citizen of Ethiopian descent, was arrested August 24 and is charged with providing national defense information to a foreign government, the Justice Department said.The criminal complaint against Lemma, …

US govt contractor charged with spying for EthiopiaThu, 21 Sep 2023 19:46:44 GMT Read More »

Kenyan President William Ruto on Thursday urged the United Nations to quickly authorize an international security mission to Haiti, which it has agreed to lead, as the impoverished Caribbean nation suffers from devastating gang violence.”Haiti is the ultimate test of international solidarity and collective action,” Ruto told the UN General Assembly. “The international community has …

Kenya urges quick UN green light of Haiti missionThu, 21 Sep 2023 19:33:35 GMT Read More »

The head of the Central African Republic on Thursday accused the West of triggering a migration crisis by pillaging Africa’s natural resources through slavery and colonization.Taking the podium at the United Nations General Assembly, Faustin-Archange Touadera addressed the migrant crisis on the Italian island of Lampedusa, where thousands of African migrants arrived last week, overwhelming …

CAR leader blames West’s ‘plundering’ of Africa for migrant crisisThu, 21 Sep 2023 19:13:30 GMT Read More »

Libya’s flood disaster, which killed thousands in the city of Derna, also displaced more than 43,000 people, the International Organization for Migration said Thursday. A tsunami-sized flash flood broke through two ageing dams upstream from the coastal city after the Mediterranean Storm Daniel lashed the area on September 10. It razed entire neighbourhoods, sweeping untold thousands of …

Libya flood disaster displaced over 43,000 people: IOMThu, 21 Sep 2023 18:35:20 GMT Read More »

The historic Ethiopian town of Lalibela was rocked by the sound of heavy artillery on Wednesday as federal government troops fired towards areas where local militias were believed to be hiding, residents said.Lalibela, a UNESCO World Heritage site, lies in the region of Amhara, which has for months been the scene of fighting between the …

Ethiopia’s Lalibela rocked by artillery fire: residentsThu, 21 Sep 2023 17:16:30 GMT Read More »

Kenyan police said Thursday they had learned from their “mistakes” as the nation commemorated the 10th anniversary of a bloody siege at an upmarket shopping centre in the capital Nairobi.In all, 67 people were killed and more than 200 wounded after gunmen from Somalia’s Al-Shabaab jihadist group stormed the Westgate mall, spraying bullets and hurling …

Kenya marks 10 years since mall massacreThu, 21 Sep 2023 15:08:09 GMT Read More »