NEWS ANALYSIS

Ostseebad Binz, Germany | AFP | Chancellor Angela Merkel may appear to be cruising to a victory in next week’s elections, but her campaign rallies across Germany have been plagued by rowdy protesters who jeer, boo and even throw tomatoes at her. From the western university town of Heidelberg to the …

Tel Aviv, Israel | AFP |  Tens of thousands of Africans who fled misery at home for safety in Israel are living in limbo, fearing deportation though some have lived in the country for more than a decade. Recognising a rising tide of discontent among Israelis over the migrants’ presence …

Fear, confusion as Uganda ‘serial killer’ murders pile up Entebbe, Uganda | Michael O’HAGAN |  AFP | “We keep finding bodies. It was once a month then once every two or three weeks then every week,” said Rose Nakasinge, a middle-aged farmer. “We had to do something.” In a gruesome spate …

Yangon, Myanmar | AFP | A military campaign to wipe out Rohingya insurgents has rained violence down on Myanmar’s Rakhine state, sending nearly 390,000 Muslim Rohingya refugees fleeing for sanctuary in Bangladesh. Around 30,000 Rakhine Buddhists and Hindus have also been displaced, as ethnic and religious hatreds carve through the state. …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | His family has ruled Togo for more than 50 years but President Faure Gnassingbe has in the last week faced unprecedented public pressure to step down. He and his country stand alone in West Africa in resisting calls for constitutional reform, even as parliament begins …

ANALYSIS: What made Kenya’s Supreme Court ruling possible. Why it cannot happen in Uganda Kampala, Uganda | IAN KATUSIIME | Minutes after the historic Supreme Court ruling in Kenya that nullified the Aug. 8 presidential election, someone tweeted a quick thought, “It is not an understatement to say that Kenya’s Supreme Court has taught …

Cost of democracy: Uganda democracy activists jubilate over court annulment of Kenya election Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | On Oct.17, Kenyans will get back into the long queues to vote again after the Supreme Court annulled the last presidential election which saw incumbent, Uhuru Kenyatta, declared winner. The next election will be exactly …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Accused of glossing over flaws in Kenya’s election which later caused the result to be overturned, international observers are under a harsh spotlight ahead of a re-run next month. The August 8 poll, which saw President Uhuru Kenyatta reelected, was annulled by Kenya’s Supreme Court earlier …

Will 80% supply hole in Uganda’s polythene bag market be crisis or opportunity? Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | Ugandan environmentalists are renewing their fight against the manufacture of polythene materials in the country following the Aug. 28 enforcement of a ban on plastic carrier bags by the Kenyan government. …

Norway’s wealth fund – a jumbo piggy bank to be used prudently Oslo, Norway | AFP |  Norway has the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund — a treasure chest nearly $1 trillion (830 billion euros) to be set aside for rainy days but also to help fund today’s election promises. …