NEWS ANALYSIS

  Pretoria, South Africa | AFP |  Newly-elected South African President Cyril Ramaphosa faces herculean tasks after he gets down to work after Saturday’s inauguration. They include: – Fixing the economy – South Africa has the most advanced infrastructure in the continent, but its commodities-dependent economy has been in a …

Washington, United States | AFP |  The United States announced Friday it was deploying 1,500 additional troops to the Middle East in response to what the Pentagon called an “campaign” of recent attacks approved by Iran’s top leadership. The escalation of the US military presence follows a decision in early …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has defended the decision to host the Europa League final in Baku in an interview with German news magazine Der Spiegel set to be published on Saturday. Chelsea and Arsenal are set to play in Baku on May 29, and UEFA has …

Florida, United States | AFP | SpaceX on Thursday launched a rocket containing the first 60 satellites of its “Starlink” constellation, which is intended to provide internet from space and could one day number 12,000 satellites. One of the company’s Falcon 9 rockets took off without incident from Cape Canaveral in …

Butembo, DR Congo | AFP | People in Ebola-hit eastern DR Congo are struggling to come to terms with high-security burials that are part of a hard-pressed strategy to roll back the disease. Anyone who dies of the highly infectious haemorrhagic fever has to be buried in carefully-controlled conditions designed …

  London, United Kingdom | AFP | After British Prime Minister Theresa May announced her resignation on Friday, here are the top contenders for her job: – Boris Johnson – A former mayor of London, “Boris” or “BoJo”, has confirmed he would “of course” contest any upcoming leadership contest, surprising …

Malabo, Equatorial Guinea | AFP | In a country awash with oil, the poorest survive in shantytowns a stone’s throw from smart modern apartments and family homes supposedly built to help those most in need. The government of Equatorial Guinea had billed the rows of state-subsidised housing as never-to-be-missed home-owning opportunities for the poor. But …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP |  Over the course of his 66 years, Cyril Ramaphosa has experienced the poverty of Soweto, jail for fighting apartheid, trade union activism, fabulous wealth — and now elected leadership of his country. Ramaphosa, who became president last year through internal ANC politics, won a …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | Bayern Munich may have wrapped up a seventh successive Bundesliga title on Saturday, but their domestic dominance was severely tested in one of the most exciting German league campaigns in years. Perennial champions Bayern, who have romped to the title every season since 2013, finished just …

  Lilongwe, Malawi | AFP | Malawi votes on Tuesday in a presidential race that could test President Peter Mutharika’s hold on power. Here are the leading contenders: – The elderly president – President Peter Mutharika, 78, won the 2014 election — two years after his elder brother Bingu wa …