AFP Africa

World champions South Africa were hit by another withdrawal on Sunday before a November tour of Britain when utility back Damian Willemse pulled out due to a groin injury, SA Rugby said.Prop-hooker Jan-Hendrik Wessels was ruled out last week by an ankle injury ahead of Tests against Scotland on November 10, England six days later …

Injured Springbok Willemse to miss November TestsSun, 27 Oct 2024 21:32:40 GMT Read More »

In Morocco’s southeastern desert, a rare downpour has brought lakes and ponds back to life, with locals — and tourists — hailing it as a gift from the heavens.In Merzouga, an attractive tourist town some 600 kilometres (370 miles) southeast of the capital Rabat, the once-parched golden dunes are now dotted with replenished ponds and …

Rare Sahara floods bring Morocco’s dried-up south back to lifeSun, 27 Oct 2024 03:41:57 GMT Read More »

The Commonwealth’s 56 members agreed the “time has come” for talks about the legacy of the “abhorrent” transatlantic slave trade Saturday, in a landmark summit declaration that raised the prospect of future reparations.Gathering in Samoa, leaders from Britain and dozens of former colonies held lengthy and occasionally tense talks over one of the most sensitive …

Commonwealth agrees ‘time has come’ for talks on legacy of slaverySat, 26 Oct 2024 20:10:53 GMT Read More »

At least 50 people have been killed in a single attack by Sudanese paramilitaries who have besieged and raided villages in al-Jazira state, activists said.The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been at war with Sudan’s regular army since April 2023 but have in recent days intensified their violence against civilians in al-Jazira, south of …

Activists say 50 killed in Sudan paramilitary attackSat, 26 Oct 2024 20:10:16 GMT Read More »

The 56-nation Commonwealth announced Ghana’s foreign minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey as the new secretary general of the organisation as a rancorous summit concluded in Samoa on Saturday.The voluntary association of sovereign states is mostly made up of former British colonies.Botchwey was one of three candidates vying for the post, all who have backed calls for …

Commonwealth announces Ghana foreign minister as new secretary generalFri, 25 Oct 2024 23:34:06 GMT Read More »

Senegal’s new world kickboxing champion Mouhamed Tafsir Ba smashes an uppercut into the punching bag in a dilapidated room in a military barracks. Bare-chested, muscles glistening with sweat, he works on the bag, delivering punches at a dizzying speed.This is the punishing regime that helped Ba win the -90kg category at the World Association of …

Kickboxing takes Senegal by storm despite tight fundsFri, 25 Oct 2024 17:24:42 GMT Read More »

The Covid-19 and Ebola outbreaks brought into stark relief the harms that can come to humans if we interfere too much with nature, placing ourselves in contact with animals carrying unknown pathogens.At the COP16 biodiversity summit in Cali, Colombia, experts and activists have urged world leaders world to learn the lessons from the estimated seven …

Covid lessons learned? UN summit mulls plan for healthy planet, and humansFri, 25 Oct 2024 17:18:08 GMT Read More »

Mozambique’s capital Maputo awoke to wreckage and mobile internet cuts on Friday as protests overnight turned violent following the ruling party Frelimo’s re-election after 49 years in power.Hundreds of opposition supporters demonstrated, rejecting what they called a ballot “stolen” by a “corrupt” electoral commission, which on Thursday announced that Frelimo’s candidate Daniel Chapo had won …

Mozambique protests turn violent over disputed voteFri, 25 Oct 2024 16:36:41 GMT Read More »

The war in Sudan is likely to cause heavy economic damage in neighboring countries, the IMF’s deputy director for Africa, Catherine Pattillo, told AFP. “What is going on there for the people in Sudan is just so heart wrenching and devastating. For all of the neighboring countries too,” she said in an interview in Washington ahead …

IMF raises concerns about effects of Sudan conflict on neighborsFri, 25 Oct 2024 14:30:13 GMT Read More »

A Ugandan court on Friday sentenced former Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commander Thomas Kwoyelo to 40 years in prison after a landmark war crimes trial over his role in the group’s two-decade reign of terror.It was the first time a member of the feared organisation — which waged a two-decade rebellion against President Yoweri Museveni …

Uganda court sentences former LRA commander to 40 yearsFri, 25 Oct 2024 10:27:47 GMT Read More »