Africa

Gender rights activists in Angola have welcomed a change to the penal code, which has come into effect this week, which means same-sex relationships are no longer criminalised. The new law also recognises the rights of people of different sexual orientations. Anyone refusing to employ or provide services to individuals …

Zimbabwe will receive 800,000 coronavirus vaccine doses developed by China’s Sinopharm by the start of March, the government has said. China is donating 200,000 of the shots while Zimbabwe is paying for the other 600,000. Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said in a video posted on Twitter that the first batch …

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo are gearing up to begin an Ebola vaccination campaign following the death of two people in North Kivu province. A 60-years-old female farmer died of Ebola on Wednesday, six days after a 42-year-old woman had died in hospital of the virus near the …

Members of the dreaded Boko Haram terrorist group on Tuesday night abducted three customs officers and carted away foodstuff and medicines during an attack on Geidam in Yobe State. Idris Modu Geidam, a resident of Geidam town told Daily Post that Boko Haram left them empty as they looted their …

The coronavirus variant first found in the British region of Kent is a concern because it is mutating and so could undermine the protection given by vaccines against developing COVID-19, the head of the UK’s genetic surveillance programme said. The coronavirus has killed 2.35 million people and turned normal life …

The United Nations has strongly condemned an attack on a peacekeepers base in central Mali. 28 peacekeepers from Togo were injured when the temporary UN base in Kerena, near Douentza, was hit by fire early Wednesday morning. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Islamic extremists linked to …

Human Rights Watch has accused the Ethiopian military of indiscriminately shelling urban centres during the conflict in the northern region of Tigray last November. The US-based group said the attacks violated the “laws of war” and urged the government to investigate. The government has not immediately reacted to the accusations …

Humanitarian convoys have made way in the Central African Republic’s capital Bangui after rebel groups losing ground to pro-government forces temporarily allowed passage. The Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC), an alliance of six of the most powerful armed groups that have controlled two-thirds of the Central African Republic’s eight-year …

The African Union’s disease control body said on Thursday that it was not “walking away” from AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, after trial data showed it had greatly reduced efficacy against the coronavirus variant dominant in South Africa. Africa CDC Director John Nkengasong told a news conference that more work needed to …

Namibia’s national carrier Air Namibia has decided to suspend all operations, cancelling all of its flights and grounding its aircraft with immediate effect. The airline urged all customers to cancel reservations and request refunds. According to the state-owned New Era newspaper, the announcement leaves more than 600 employees without jobs. …