AFP Africa

Rights groups accuse DR Congo militia of rapes, ethnic massacresWed, 20 Aug 2025 10:59:40 GMT

Rights groups on Wednesday accused the Rwanda-backed M23 militia of abuses in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, with Human Rights Watch alleging its fighters carried out ethnically targeted “mass killings”.Both the M23 and the Wazalendo, a disparate collection of militias loyal to the Congolese government, were responsible for rights abuses including gang rapes and …

Rights groups accuse DR Congo militia of rapes, ethnic massacresWed, 20 Aug 2025 10:59:40 GMT Read More »

Japan hosts African leaders for development conferenceWed, 20 Aug 2025 06:47:49 GMT

Japan hosted African leaders on Wednesday for a three-day development conference, offering itself as an alternative to China as the continent reels from a debt crisis exacerbated by Western aid cuts, conflict and climate change.Attendees at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) included Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, William Ruto …

Japan hosts African leaders for development conferenceWed, 20 Aug 2025 06:47:49 GMT Read More »

Somalia-Jubaland power struggle benefits Al-Shabaab militantsWed, 20 Aug 2025 06:08:53 GMT

Recent clashes in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Jubaland region are alarming experts, exposing cracks in the country’s federal system and creating an opening for extremist militant group Al-Shabaab to gain ground.Following years of conflict, Somalia is a loose federation of five semi-autonomous member states — Puntland, Jubaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and South West — that maintain often fractious …

Somalia-Jubaland power struggle benefits Al-Shabaab militantsWed, 20 Aug 2025 06:08:53 GMT Read More »

Former Mali PM Choguel Kokalla Maiga charged with embezzlement, imprisonedTue, 19 Aug 2025 20:53:22 GMT

Mali’s civilian ex-prime minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga, dismissed in November after he criticised the junta, was charged Tuesday with embezzlement of public funds and remanded in custody following a hearing before the country’s Supreme Court.Plagued by jihadist and separatist violence, Mali has been led by the military since back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021.Maiga is …

Former Mali PM Choguel Kokalla Maiga charged with embezzlement, imprisonedTue, 19 Aug 2025 20:53:22 GMT Read More »

Record number of aid workers killed in 2024, UN saysTue, 19 Aug 2025 16:11:14 GMT

A record 383 aid workers were killed last year, the United Nations said Tuesday, branding the figures and lack of accountability a “shameful indictment” of international apathy, and warning that this year’s toll was equally grim.The 2024 figure was up 31 percent on the year before, the UN said on World Humanitarian Day, “driven by …

Record number of aid workers killed in 2024, UN saysTue, 19 Aug 2025 16:11:14 GMT Read More »

Ex-owner of world’s largest rhino farm arrested for traffickingTue, 19 Aug 2025 15:12:09 GMT

South African police said they arrested Tuesday the former owner of the world’s largest rhino conservation farm on charges of smuggling the horns of the endangered animals. John Hume was arrested with five other people following a “complex investigation into transnational trafficking of rhino horns” that began in 2017, the police’s specialised Hawks unit said. Trading in …

Ex-owner of world’s largest rhino farm arrested for traffickingTue, 19 Aug 2025 15:12:09 GMT Read More »

Nigerian judge delays trial over 2022 church massacreTue, 19 Aug 2025 14:00:11 GMT

A Nigeria court postponed on Tuesday the beginning of a highly anticipated trial over the killing of dozens of Catholic worshippers in a church massacre that rocked the nation’s usually safer southwest region and drew international condemnation.On June 5, 2022, gunmen attacked Saint Francis Catholic Church in Nigeria’s Ondo state, killing at least 40 worshippers …

Nigerian judge delays trial over 2022 church massacreTue, 19 Aug 2025 14:00:11 GMT Read More »

Togo tight-lipped as Burkina jihadists infiltrate northTue, 19 Aug 2025 06:14:29 GMT

Jihadists from Burkina Faso have stepped up their assaults on northern Togo since the beginning of the year, with the Togolese government tight-lipped on their covert infiltration.Keen not to sap the morale of the Togolese soldiers fighting the incursion, the small west African nation’s authorities have offered little in the way of official comment or …

Togo tight-lipped as Burkina jihadists infiltrate northTue, 19 Aug 2025 06:14:29 GMT Read More »

UN says record 383 aid workers killed in 2024Tue, 19 Aug 2025 04:09:17 GMT

A record 383 aid workers were killed in 2024, the United Nations said Tuesday, branding the figures and lack of accountability a “shameful indictment” of international apathy — and warned this year’s toll was equally disturbing.The 2024 figure was up 31 percent on the year before, the UN said on World Humanitarian Day, “driven by …

UN says record 383 aid workers killed in 2024Tue, 19 Aug 2025 04:09:17 GMT Read More »