ABUJA – Nigeria is facing renewed violence from armed groups as the country heads towards elections, with assaults in the northeast killing high-ranking officers and analysts warning of the entrenchment of foreign jihadists in the west. Insecurity has long been an issue, from “bandit” kidnapping gangs, farmer-herder violence, a smouldering southeastern separatist conflict and a...
ALGIERS – Algeria launched a new call for international bids for hydrocarbon concessions on Sunday, with global energy markets under extreme stress from the war in the Middle East. Oil and gas prices have soared since the US-Israeli war on Iran broke out, driven up by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a major...
DAKAR – Three civil society groups filed a case before the African Union’s human rights court on Monday over alleged abuses in Mali involving its armed forces and the Russian mercenary Wagner Group. The groups said it is the first known case before the court against a state for hiring and hosting private military and...
BUCHAREST – The sultry songs of Lolita Cercel, an AI-generated singer, are a sensation in Romania, racking up millions of views online, but angering real-life musicians and drawing criticism from the Roma minority as a racist cliche. Since debuting late last year, “Lolita” has given TV interviews, secured agency representation, and been used by a...
LUANDA – Pope Leo XIV headed to Angola’s remote and diamond-rich northeast yesterday in the latest stop on an Africa tour during which he has spoken out against the country’s glaring poverty. On the eighth day of a trip to four African nations, Leo will fly to the town of Saurimo, 800 kilometres east of...
TEHRAN – Iran’s foreign ministry yesterday said that the United States was not serious about pursuing diplomacy, citing what it called “violations” of their two-week ceasefire. “While claiming diplomacy and readiness for negotiations, the US is carrying out behaviours that do not in any way indicate seriousness in pursuing a diplomatic process,” said ministry spokesperson...
BRUSSELS – European backers yesterday put on a show of support for the Palestinian Authority and the push for a two-state solution, as the US-Israeli war with Iran has dragged focus away from Gaza. The efforts to bolster the Palestinian Authority come as US President Donald Trump has sidelined it in his plans for Gaza...
SHREVEPORT – A man allegedly shot dead eight children seven of them his own early Sunday in the southern US state of Louisiana in an incident of domestic violence that spanned three locations, police said. The early morning massacre at a grey house in the city of Shreveport was the deadliest mass shooting in the...
WASHINGTON – US House Democrats introduced six articles of impeachment against Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth on Wednesday, accusing him of “high crimes and misdemeanours” including waging war on Iran without congressional approval. The impeachment resolution is led by Yassamin Ansari, a Democratic Congresswoman from Arizona, and has slim chances of passing due to the Republican...
EAST LONDON – A South African court yesterday sentenced radical left-wing opposition leader Julius Malema to five years in jail for firing an assault rifle at a rally eight years ago. Hundreds of red-clad supporters of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party leader gathered outside the court for the sentencing in the politically charged case....