Africa

Maalim Seif Sharif Hamad, the first vice-president of Tanzania’s semi-autonomous islands of Zanzibar, has died at the age of 77, a few weeks after contracting coronavirus. He had been receiving treatment at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s President John Magufuli has offered his condolences in a tweet. …

Gunmen have stormed a boys boarding secondary school in Nigeria and abducted some students and staff, reports from the north-central town of Kagara in Niger state say. A local official at the school said that the gunmen attacked the institution in the early hours of Wednesday. He said a number …

South Africa has received the first batch of Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccines. The government said the vaccine would be stored at a secure location in Gauteng province and then distributed to other provinces. The country’s vaccination rollout is expected to begin soon. Health Minister Zweli Mkhize tweeted photos of …

Ugandan opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, wants the chief justice to recuse himself from hearing a petition challenging the re-election of President Yoweri Museveni. Bobi Wine accuses Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo of bias because of his close association to the president. The opposition politician also wants two …

Zimbabwe says the Covid-19 variant first detected in South Africa now accounts for the majority of cases in the country. Results of genomic sequencing conducted recently showed that the variant the nation had in 2020 had receded and that the new and more aggressive variant accounted for 61% of cases, …

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) says South Sudan is facing its highest levels of food insecurity since it declared independence 10 years ago. The agency says this is due to outbreaks of violence, extreme weather patterns and the economic impact of Covid-19. Pibor county in the east of the …

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has nominated Abdulrasheed Bawa to head the country’s anti-corruption agency. The president has forwarded Mr Bawa’s name to the senate for confirmation as chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). If confirmed, the 40 year-old will be the agency‘s youngest chief since its establishment …

Nigerian artist Azeez Fashola popularly known as Naira Marley has broken his silence about the cancellation of a Valentine’s Day concert in Cameroon. Naira asked his fans to “calm down” saying not all Cameroonians were bad. The concert was reportedly cancelled after some Cameroonian artists protested against the Nigerian artist …

Ongwen’s defence lawyer, Krispus Ayena Odongo argued that he (Ongwen) was a victim who was abducted when he was 9 years old and forcibly conscripted along the LRA ranks raising questions about his mental abilities. Ayena wants to challenge various components of the ruling like for instance, the court did …

Scientists have identified another new variant of coronavirus in the UK with some potentially troubling mutations. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh said the variant, known as B1525, has been detected through genome sequencing in countries including Denmark, the United States and Australia. Some 32 cases have been identified in …