Bulawayo, Zimbabwe | AFP | Troops and police were out in force in Zimbabwe’s second city of Bulawayo on Monday blocking a planned opposition march, three days after brutally dispersing a banned protest in the capital Harare. Soldiers and armed police on horseback and in trucks patrolled the city’s central business …
Read More »Gabon’s Bongo shaky, but ‘firmly in control’ after stroke
Libreville, Gabon | AFP | Gabon’s presidency said Monday that a recent speech showed leader Ali Bongo was “firmly in control” of the country after he suffered a stroke 10 months ago that fuelled speculation about his ability to rule. The opposition has claimed that President Bongo is unfit …
Read More »Bashir trial opens as Sudan sovereign council delayed
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudan’s deposed military leader Omar al-Bashir, who ruled the country for 30 years, arrived in court Monday in Khartoum for the start of his trial on corruption charges. The trial comes as a sovereign council was being formed, following Saturday’s signing of a transitional constitution by …
Read More »Angola set to host Museveni and Kagame again
Luanda, Angola | THE INDEPENDENT & AFP | President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and Rwanda’s Paul Kagame are expected to hold discussions in Angola next week, the second such meeting in two months. According to a press release from the Angolan presidency, they two leaders will be the second …
Read More »‘Nightmare’ as Egypt aided China to detain Uighurs
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Abdulmalik Abdulaziz, an Uighur student, was arrested and handcuffed by Egyptian police and when they removed his blindfold he was surprised to see Chinese officials questioning him in custody. He was picked up in broad daylight with friends, and taken to a Cairo police station where …
Read More »Euphoria grips Sudan as historic transition deal signed
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Rapturous crowds filled the streets of Khartoum Saturday as Sudan’s generals and protest leaders signed a historic deal paving the way for civilian rule. Thousands of cheering people gathered around the Friendship Hall next to the Nile, where the documents that will govern the country’s 39-month …
Read More »Gabon’s Bongo re-emerges, attends independence parade
Gabon’s Bongo attends independence parade in rare public appearance Libreville, Gabon | AFP | Gabon’s President Ali Bongo on Saturday made a rare public appearance to attend the country’s independence day celebrations, nearly ten months after suffering a stroke that fuelled speculation about his ability to rule. Bongo, whose every …
Read More »Sudanese celebrate transition to civilian rule
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudan was poised Saturday to celebrate a historic deal between generals and protest leaders for a transition to civilian rule, which many hope will bring increased freedom and prosperity. During a ceremony to be held at a hall by the Nile in the capital Khartoum, members …
Read More »Zimbabwe police beat protesters defying regime ‘worse than Mugabe’
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Riot police in Zimbabwe on Friday fired teargas and beat demonstrators who defied a protest ban, as the opposition accused President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government of surpassing Robert Mugabe’s regime in brutality. Scores of people gathered in a square in the capital Harare to demonstrate against the …
Read More »Uganda, Zambia deny Huawei helped spy on political opponents
Kampala, Uganda | AFP | Uganda and Zambia on Friday denied a report that employees of Chinese telecom giant Huawei had helped them spy on political opponents. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported this week that Huawei technicians helped the two African governments intercept communications and social media activity of their …
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