AFP Africa

West African leaders on Thursday said they firmly supported diplomacy in the search to end the crisis in Niger, stepping back from a threat to intervene militarily in the coup-stricken country.”We prioritise diplomatic negotiations and dialogue as the bedrock of our approach,” said Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, chairing an emergency summit of the Economic Community …

W.African summit backs diplomacy in Niger coup crisisThu, 10 Aug 2023 15:54:46 GMT Read More »

Ethiopia’s restive Amhara region was largely calm on Thursday, local residents said, after the federal government announced its forces had driven back militia fighters following days of fierce clashes.The government said Wednesday it had imposed curfews in six major cities hit by the unrest in the northern region, including the capital Bahir Dar and the …

Ethiopia’s restive Amhara ‘calm’ after govt claims militia retreatThu, 10 Aug 2023 14:58:38 GMT Read More »

A Kenyan court on Thursday extended the detention of a cult leader accused of inciting and possibly forcing more than 400 of his followers to starve themselves to death.Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie has been in police custody since mid-April as investigators search for more bodies in a forest near the Indian Ocean coast.Senior principal …

Kenyan cult leader to remain in police custody: courtThu, 10 Aug 2023 12:38:56 GMT Read More »

West African leaders came together Thursday for an emergency summit on the coup in Niger, whose new military rulers have defied an ultimatum — backed by the threat of force — to restore the elected president and pressed ahead with appointing a new government.More than two weeks after the coup that toppled Niger’s elected president, …

West African leaders huddle for emergency talks on Niger coupThu, 10 Aug 2023 12:05:24 GMT Read More »

Tunisia and Libya announced Thursday they had agreed to share responsibility for providing shelter for hundreds of migrants stranded at their border, many of them for over a month.The migrants, primarily from sub-Saharan African countries, had been driven to the desert area of Ras Jedir by Tunisian authorities and left there to fend for themselves, …

Tunisia, Libya to share responsibility for migrants stranded on borderThu, 10 Aug 2023 11:44:08 GMT Read More »

Ethiopia’s restive Amhara region was largely “calm” on Thursday, local residents said, after the federal government announced it had driven back militia fighters following days of fierce clashes.The government said Wednesday it had imposed curfews in six major cities hit by the unrest in the northern region, including the capital Bahir Dar and the holy …

Ethiopia’s restive Amhara ‘calm’ after govt claims militia retreatThu, 10 Aug 2023 09:29:01 GMT Read More »

Leaders from West African bloc ECOWAS will meet on Thursday for an emergency summit on the coup in Niger, after the country’s military chiefs defied an ultimatum to restore the elected president.Two weeks after the coup that toppled Mohamed Bazoum, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) says it is seeking a diplomatic solution …

West African bloc gathers for key summit on Niger coupThu, 10 Aug 2023 07:39:12 GMT Read More »

Forty-one migrants including three children are feared dead after being shipwrecked last week in the Mediterranean, UN agencies said, citing four survivors brought to the Italian island of Lampedusa Wednesday.Their metal boat overturned in bad weather during the night of Thursday to Friday after setting off from the Tunisian port of Sfax, said a joint …

41 migrants missing after new Mediterranean shipwreckThu, 10 Aug 2023 06:45:29 GMT Read More »

Aminata Kabba says she has not seen justice in the year since learning from a social media video that armed men had shot her son dead, days after widespread riots gripped Sierra Leone.”I just thought of dying that day with my son,” the 65-year-old cook from the northern city of Makeni told AFP, speaking from …

S.Leone riot victims’ families still awaiting justice a year onThu, 10 Aug 2023 06:22:38 GMT Read More »

Niger’s new military rulers on Wednesday accused France, the country’s traditional ally, of releasing captured jihadists and breaching a ban on air space on the eve of a key summit on the Sahel’s latest crisis.Leaders of the West African bloc ECOWAS are to meet in the Nigerian capital Abuja to weigh their options, with diplomacy …

Niger coup leaders take aim at France on eve of key summitThu, 10 Aug 2023 04:21:10 GMT Read More »