Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan has been plunged back into violence as it marks five years of independence, with a peace deal stalled and huge swathes of the country facing food shortages. Tens of thousands have died in the war that started in December 2013 in the …
Read More »Fresh firefight in South Sudan capital: residents, UN
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | Gunfire was once again heard in South Sudan’s capital on Sunday as former rebels and government soldiers exchanged fire on the outskirts of the city. “Gunshots, heavily armed exchange UN House area once again; going on now since approx. 0825 (0525 GMT),” the UN …
Read More »Britain exits EU: What does it mean for Africa?
A view from the Economic Policy Research Centre Makerere On June 23, the British voted in a referendum to exit the European Union. The referendum was predictably surrounded by discussions of what a British exit- Brexit- would mean for the people and its social, political and economic impact. Of particular …
Read More »Five soldiers killed in S.Sudan clashes
Juba, South Sudan | AFP Five soldiers have been killed in a shootout in South Sudan’s capital Juba, army and former rebel officials said Friday, in the latest blow to a shaky peace deal. “There were military clashes yesterday (Thursday) around 8 pm. Five soldiers have been killed in the …
Read More »Pistorius in prison single room cell
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius is serving his six-year sentence for killing his girlfriend in a single hospital prison cell, an official said Thursday. The disgraced paralympian is in the same cell in Pretoria’s Kgosi Mampuru prison he was previously incarcerated for one year. Manelisi …
Read More »Israel and Rwanda share bond of ‘pain of genocide’
Kigali, Rwanda | AFP | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Rwanda on Wednesday for a symbolic stop on his “historic” African tour, boosting ties between two countries with a history marked by genocide. Welcomed on arrival by Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Netanyahu visited the Kigali Memorial Centre where …
Read More »Two Dutch UN troops killed in Mali training accident
Bamako, Mali | AFP | Two Dutch UN peacekeepers were accidentally killed and one seriously wounded Wednesday in an explosion in northwest Mali during a training exercise, the Dutch defence ministry said. “During the accident, two of our men lost their lives,” said The Netherlands’ Vice Chief of Defence, Vice …
Read More »Kenya demonstrations over lawyer’s murder
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Hundreds of people marched through Kenya’s capital on Monday condemning “extrajudicial executions” following the murder of three men, including a lawyer who criticised police abuse. Dressed in T-shirts smeared in red paint to symbolise blood, the demonstration organised by the Kenya National Commission on Human …
Read More »Israel PM Netanyahu in Uganda
The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Uganda, his first trip as premier to sub-Saharan Africa. He has just flown in Monday, exactly 40 years after Israel commandos rescued hostages in the famous Operation Thunderbolt at Entebbe. He was received by President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, and given a …
Read More »Jail looms as Pistorius to be sentenced for murder
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Disgraced Paralympian Oscar Pistorius could return to jail on Wednesday, when a judge is set to sentence him for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp three years ago. Pistorius was freed from prison in the South African capital Pretoria last October after serving one year …
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