At least 100 people died and 150 others were injured in a fire during a mega-wedding organized in a village hall in northern Iraq, according to a “preliminary assessment” announced Wednesday by the authorities. According to emergency services, “fireworks” and “highly flammable construction materials” were at the origin of the …
Read More »Man arrested for pouring hot water on his daughter
A landlord has poured hot water on an 11-year-old girl in Mowe, Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, Nigeria, according to reports. “The landlord had made it a habit to beat the girl and her mother when the mother was still with him,” according to a tenant. “The …
Read More »French Ambassador Sylvain Itté finally left Niger
The French ambassador to Niger, Sylvain Itté, left the country by plane this Wednesday morning, Reuters reported, citing security sources. The repatriation of Sylvain Itté takes place following a standoff with the military junta which seized power on July 26 in Niamey. The military ordered the expulsion of the diplomat …
Read More »Kenya confident its police will end Haiti gang war
Kenya says it is confident the deployment of hundreds of its police to Haiti by January will end gang warfare there. Last year Haiti’s government appealed for help because of the spiralling gang violence. Gangs have largely overpowered the police and now control more than three-quarters of the capital. Initially …
Read More »Russia issues ‘search warrant’ for ICC president
Russian authorities have issued a search warrant for Pole Piotr Hofmanskithe, President of the International Criminal Court without specifying the reason. “The Pole is wanted in connection with a criminal investigation,” the Interior Ministry said in its database of wanted persons, according to the state agencies Tass and Ria Novosti. …
Read More »Trailer crashes into commercial bus, killing 15
No fewer than 15 persons were killed in an accident involving a trailer and a commercial bus in Okpella, Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria, according to reports. “The incident occurred after the trailer had a brake failure and crashed into a Toyota bus,” according to an eyewitness. …
Read More »Tanzania culls five million invasive quelea birds
More than five million invasive quelea birds have been killed in a mass cull in Tanzania, the authorities have said in comments reported in the local media. The birds had invaded more than 1,000 acres of rice farmland in the Manyara region in the north of the country, causing extensive …
Read More »South Africa mourns Nelson Mandela’s granddaughter Zoleka
Zoleka Mandela, granddaughter of South Africa’s first democratically elected president Nelson Mandela, has died of cancer at the age of 43, her family has announced. In a statement on Instagram, a spokesperson said that Zoleka passed away on Monday evening surrounded by friends and family. In recent years she had …
Read More »Nigeria: two children electrocuted to death
A mother is fighting for her life after losing two of her children to electrocution in the Mushin district of Lagos State, Nigeria. “The children were electrocuted when they attempted to turn on the television after returning from school,” according to reports. The parents were thrown into despair with the …
Read More »Zambian President sacks information minister in mini-reshuffle
Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema has sacked his Information Minister Chushi Kasanda in a mini-cabinet reshuffle announced on Monday. Ms Kasanda was replaced with Cornelius Mweetwa, the ruling United Party for National Development spokesperson and Southern Province minister. President Hichilema also named Ron Mwambwa as the country’s auditor general. A statement …
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