AFP Africa

In Mali, a month-long blockade by jihadists on fuel imports from neighbouring countries is beginning to seriously disrupt the landlocked Sahelian nation, where long lines form at the few remaining stations with petrol. Since September, the jihadists have targeted fuel tankers, particularly those coming from Senegal and Ivory Coast, through which the majority of Mali’s imported …

Mali fuel running dry after a month of jihadist blockadesWed, 08 Oct 2025 14:24:59 GMT Read More »

Cameroon’s President Paul Biya on Monday made his first major appearance of the election campaign in his run for an eighth straight term as the world’s oldest head of state.With five days to go before the vote, Biya — aged 92, and in power since 1982 — addressed supporters at a stadium in Maroua, in …

Cameroon president, 92, stages first appearance of electionWed, 08 Oct 2025 11:37:04 GMT Read More »

At the foot of the Simandou mountains in southeast Guinea’s lush tropical forest, thousands of workers, trucks and excavators are digging up the hills.The verdant paradise is home to a gigantic mining project that promises to propel the poor west African country into the ranks of the world’s largest iron exporters — raising economic hopes but …

In Simandou mountains, Guinea prepares to cash in on iron oreWed, 08 Oct 2025 10:59:34 GMT Read More »

Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of joining forces with a hardline opposition faction in preparing to launch a war, according to a letter from the foreign affairs ministry obtained by AFP on Wednesday.The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which dominated Ethiopian politics for some 30 years, has been banned from political activity. Relations have been extremely strained …

Ethiopia accuses Eritrea of ‘actively’ preparing for warWed, 08 Oct 2025 08:45:51 GMT Read More »

President Andry Rajoelina’s appointment of an army general as new prime minister was met with little enthusiasm in Madagascar Tuesday, as protesters gathered again ahead of a looming deadline set by the youth-led movement for a national strike. Rajoelina named Major General Ruphin Fortunat Dimbisoa Zafisambo as head of government late Monday in a bid to …

New prime minister inspires little hope in protest-hit MadagascarTue, 07 Oct 2025 19:23:19 GMT Read More »

Yann Anoko fondly remembers the days when tourists would flock to his hotel in southwestern Cameroon, before the English-speaking region’s decade-long separatist conflict put paid to the boom.Where visitors once used to throng Limbe’s spectacular beaches of black volcanic sand, holidaymakers have become scarce since fighters from the country’s anglophone minority mounted a revolt in …

Cameroon hotels long for tourists spooked by conflictTue, 07 Oct 2025 10:33:54 GMT Read More »

From explosive drones to inflatable decoy vehicles, Tuareg rebels in Mali have increasingly turned to tactics learnt from Ukrainian intelligence to strike the west African country’s army and its Russian allies.The tactics are reshaping the balance in the conflict between Mali’s junta government and the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), a pro-independence armed coalition of predominantly …

From Donbas to the desert: Mali Tuaregs borrow Ukraine’s war tacticsTue, 07 Oct 2025 05:39:45 GMT Read More »

UNESCO executives voted Monday to make an Egyptian ex-antiquities minister the UN culture body’s next leader, as it grapples with accusations of anti-Israel bias that prompted the United States to say it would quit the organisation.The board voted to appoint Khaled el-Enany, Egypt’s former antiquities and tourism minister, to replace French director-general Audrey Azoulay after …

UNESCO board backs Egyptian for chief after US rowTue, 07 Oct 2025 05:16:53 GMT Read More »

Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina on Monday appointed an army general as prime minister, hoping to quell surging protests against his leadership that have plunged the country into crisis.In the latest in days of youth-led marches, security forces dispersed hundreds of demonstrators with tear gas in Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo, injuring at least one, AFP reporters saw.Sparked …

Madagascar president taps general for PM in bid to defuse protestsMon, 06 Oct 2025 19:57:05 GMT Read More »

The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday convicted a feared Sudanese militia chief for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during brutal attacks in Darfur.The ICC found Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, also known by the nom de guerre Ali Kushayb, guilty of multiple crimes including rape, murder and torture carried out between August 2003 …

ICC finds Sudan militia chief guilty of crimes against humanityMon, 06 Oct 2025 14:36:33 GMT Read More »