Pro-democracy activists in Sudan have said they will take to the streets across the country until military leaders step down and restore civilian rule. “We have no option but to go out and demonstrate against the military,” the spokesperson of the Sudanese Professionals Association said. “Our people decided to bring …
Read More »U.S. special envoy for Horn of Africa to leave post
U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman will step down from his post this month after more than nine months in the job, Reuters reports. David Satterfield, the outgoing U.S. ambassador to Turkey, will take up the role, the report say. Feltman, a veteran U.S. diplomat, assumed …
Read More »Senegal: parliament rejects bill to toughen laws on homosexuality
Parliament in Senegal has rejected a bill introduced by 11 MPs to toughen existing laws against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. Same-sex relationships in Senegal are already punishable by up to five years, and the new bill aimed to extend it to ten years. The Office of the …
Read More »South Africa: Zondo inquiry highlights systemic corruption during Zuma’s era
A South African corruption inquiry pointed to systemic graft during former President Jacob Zuma’s tenure in the first part of its report published on Tuesday, after more than three years of investigations involving more than 300 witnesses. The inquiry chaired by senior judge Raymond Zondo was established in 2018 to …
Read More »Ethiopia: US special envoy expected this week for talks
The US special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, is expected in Ethiopia this week to hold talks with the authorities about the ongoing civil war. The US State Department said that Mr Feltman was “to engage with senior officials regarding the prospects for a broader peace”. Read …
Read More »Uganda: Bobi Wine addresses Museveni in new song
Ugandan opposition leader and musician Robert Nyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, has just released a song entitled Ogenda, a Luganda word that loosely translates as “You will fall”, the BBC reports. According to the musician, the song is made directly for President Yoweri Museveni’s ears because he has turned …
Read More »Tense scenes at Sudan protests amid political turmoil
Sudanese security forces have fired tear gas in an effort to break up pro-democracy protests in the capital, Khartoum, and in Port Sudan, BBC News reports. People in several cities have been chanting slogans against the military and calling for the downfall of Sudan’s ruling council. It is headed by …
Read More »Uganda: court orders release of author detained for criticizing president
A Ugandan court has ordered the police to release Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, a prominent writer arrested last week for criticizing President Yoweri Museveni and his son Lt-Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba on social media. Mr Rukirabashaija’s lawyer said he had not yet been released but he expected the authorities to comply with the …
Read More »Nigeria: gang leader frees large numbers of victims in Zamfara State
The leader of a notorious armed gang in Zamfara state, in northern Nigeria, is reported to have released more than 50 people who had recently been kidnapped. Eyewitnesses saw buses full of hostages heading to the state capital, Gusau. Officials have not said why the group’s leader, Bello Turji, decided …
Read More »South Africa: suspect of the parliament’s fire arrested and tried
South African authorities on Tuesday said they had finally contained a suspected arson fire at the parliament building after a second-day flare-up that completely destroyed the lower house National Assembly chamber. A 49-year-old man accused of setting the fire appeared in court to face five charges including arson and possession …
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