West Africa

A group of Nigerian athletes who were ruled ineligible to compete at the Olympics in Tokyo have held a protest in the Japanese city. On Wednesday, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) ruled that a total of 20 competitors, including 10 from Nigeria, would be unable to take part in the …

Ivorian ex-first lady Simone Ehivet Gbagbo has been acquitted by the International criminal court. The arrest warrant issued against her has been lifted. She was facing accusations of crimes against humanity committed during the country’s 2010-2011 post-election crisis, after her husband’s refusal to hand over power to Alassane Ouattara, who …

Ghanaian information minister says politicians have “no intention” of changing its laws on sexuality, after an anti-gay bill was submitted to parliament. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said that the country’s current laws on “matters of sexuality” were “adequate”. Ghana’s criminal code outlaws what it describes as “unnatural carnal knowledge” but does …

They are at least eighteen people to have been killed by gunmen in Niger in an area near the border with Mali. The area has been the scene of frequent attacks by Islamist militants. According to a local authority, armed men on motorbikes attacked the village of Dèye Koukou on …

Authorities in Equatorial Guinea have detained six French soldiers who were travelling in a helicopter that had stopped to refuel in the port city of Bata, the AFP news agency reports. The detention came on the same day that the top appeals court in France upheld the conviction of Equatorial …

The dean of actresses of Niger, Zalika Souley, died Tuesday, July 27 in Niamey, at the age of 74. According to those around her, she died after a long illness. “We have the deep sorrow to announce the death of Hadja Zalika Souley on July 27, 2021 following a long …

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the number of Nigerians experiencing hunger has doubled because of the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. In its report Between Hunger and the Virus, the Organization suggested that government cash transfers to vulnerable strata had failed to mitigate the effects of the pandemic …

The french top appeals court is due to rule on a conviction handed to Teodorin Obiang Mangue, the son of Equatorial Guinea’s president for using public money to fund his lavish lifestyle. Mr Teodorin Obiang who is the vice-president of Equatorial Guinea will see his assets redistributed to people living …

The late Ivorian Prime Minister Hamed Bakayoko, who died of cancer in Germany last week, was buried in the west of the country next to his father’s grave. The private ceremony took place at the family farm about 6km (nearly four miles) from the western town of Séguéla. Beforehand the …

Niger is starting three days of national mourning after 58 people were killed by gunmen in two separate attacks near the border with Mali. Residents of the Western Tillaberi region said suspected militants targeted vehicles carrying traders returning from local markets on Monday. It’s not clear who carried out the …