Kampala, Uganda | GODFREY SSALI | The patron of Boda-Boda 2010 and also Rubaga NRM Chairman Abdalla Kitata and 11 other people on Tuesday appeared before the General Court Martial in Makindye where they faced charges of unlawful possession of firearms and military stores. However they all refused to plead to …

  Paris, France | AFP | The world has abundant freshwater but it is unevenly distributed and under increasing pressure, UN agencies say, as highlighted by the severe shortages in Cape Town. – Water, water ‘everywhere’ – More than 97 percent of the planet’s water is salty, most of it in …

Dabafayed, Ethiopia | AFP | Down a sandy track past a desiccated animal carcass lies a cluster of half-built huts that Ethiopia’s government and aid agencies hope will blunt the worsening toll of repeated droughts. The soon-to-be village of Dabafayed is intended as a new, permanent home for once-nomadic herders made …

New York, United States | AFP | Talks were still on Monday between a group of investors and the troubled Weinstein Company, despite New York prosecutors throwing a spanner in the works by filing a lawsuit against the movie studio, source said Monday. The deal, led by former Obama administration official …

United Nations, United States | AFP | South African troops serving in the UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been accused of beating a 17-year-old boy and sexually exploiting women, a UN spokesman said Monday. UN and South African investigators will conduct a joint probe of the …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Monday criticised media which “denigrates” migrants through emotive or incomplete reporting on their situation. “Some months ago I saw a newspaper headline about a small town in Italy which read, ‘this is the town where there were the most rapes this …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday he has discussed legislation with the United States that would annex settlements in the occupied West Bank, but the White House denied it in a rare show of disunity. Netanyahu later issued a clarification somewhat backing away from the …

Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump on Monday unveiled an ambitious proposal to renew American infrastructure as part of a budget that calls for a stunning rise in debt and trillions in cuts to social and other spending. The blueprint for the 2019 fiscal year abandons the long-held …

Kampala, Uganda | JULIUS BUSINGE | Officials from Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) are optimistic that the discussions and resolutions that will emerge from the 16th African Fine Coffee Conference and exhibition week will support Uganda’s big coffee sector targets. The conference that runs from Feb.14-15, will be held in Kampala …

Miami, United States | AFP | Sea level rise is accelerating and could reach 26 inches (66 centimeters) by century’s end, in line with United Nations estimates and enough to cause significant problems for coastal cities, a study said Monday. The past annual rate of sea level rise — about three …