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Namibia: Germany Officially Recognises Colonial-Era Genocide in Namibia

Germany has apologised for its role in slaughter of Herero and Nama tribespeople in Namibia more than a century ago and officially recognised the massacre as genocide for the first time, agreeing to fund projects worth over €1 billion. The announcement comes a day after French President Emmanuel Macron stopped short of apologising for France’s […]

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Burkina Faso: Tobacco Giant’s Burkina Faso Distributor Denies Smuggling, Funding Terrorism

Ouagadougou — Two investigative reports this year accused the Burkina Faso representative of tobacco giant Philip Morris of funding terrorism through tobacco smuggling. In an exclusive interview with VOA, Apollinaire Compaoré rejects those findings. Selling cigarettes to smugglers who pay jihadists to protect their convoys. That’s the accusation leveled against the Burkina Faso representative of […]

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Nigeria: 20 Generals May Go As Buhari Appoints Farouk Yahaya As New COAS

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday appointed Major-General Farouk Yahaya as the new Chief of Army Staff, with about 20 Generals of Regular Course 35 and 36 expected to proceed on retirement. The new Army chief, who was appointed to replace late Lt. General Ibrahim Attahiru who died in a place crash in Kaduna last Friday, alongside […]

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Ethiopia: Urgent Funding Needed to Assist Survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Tigray

Tigray — “I was running from place to place without food or shelter. I was in fear all the time… There was no safe place for me until I got to the safe house,” 22-year-old Selam* recounted to UNFPA. Selam was in an extremely delicate physical and psychosocial state when she arrived. She had been […]

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Nigeria: High Expectations On Sokoto-Born New Chief of Army Staff

People of Sokoto State, which has been experiencing banditry for a long time, have placed high expectations on the new Chief of Army Staff, Major General Faruku Yahaya. General Faruk is from Sifawa district of Bodinga Local Government Area of the state. He attended Sifawa JNI Primary school, Sheikh Abubakar Mahmoud Gummi College of Art […]

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East Africa: Ethiopian, Eritrean Forces Accused of Detaining Hundreds in Tigray

Eritrean and Ethiopian forces forcibly rounded-up more than 500 young men and women from four camps in Tigray’s Shire town on Monday night, three aid workers and a doctor told news agency Reuters. According to an aid worker, several men were beaten, their phones taken and money confiscated. One individual who lived in one of […]

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Ethiopia: News – As Risk of Famine Looms in Tigray, Biden Weighs in – Calls for Ceasefire, Reconciliation

Addis Abeba — U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday joined growing international calls for a ceasefire and immediate and unimpeded humanitarian access to Tigray region in order to “prevent widespread famine.” The President’s statement came amidst growing concerns of a looming famine in Tigray, where seven-months civil war has left thousands dead, millions displaced and […]

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Nigeria: Buhari Appoints New Chief of Army Staff

Farouk Yahaya, a major general, replaces Ibrahim Attahiru, who died in a military plane crash on May 21. President Muhammad Buhari has appointed Farouk Yahaya, a major general, as the new chief of army staff. This was contained in a statement by the acting Director of Defence Information, Onyema Nwachukwu. Mr Yahaya replaces Ibrahim Attahiru, […]

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Tanzania Will Not Send Troops to Mozambique

Dar es Salaam — Tanzania will not send troops to Mozambique to counter insurgents in gas rich Carbo Del Gado Province which is close to the border between the two countries. The Tanzania government has, instead, emphasised on the need for talks as a means of promoting peace and tranquility in Mozambique, calling on the […]

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Southern Africa: What Would It Take to Stabilise Cabo Delgado?

Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province is caught up in a security challenge that has captured global attention. The situation endangers tens of thousands of lives and has destabilised northern Mozambique. It also potentially threatens foreign direct investment in large-scale infrastructure, mining, exploration and other projects in the entire Southern Africa region. At the root of the […]

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Mali Coup – Ousted President, PM Released After Three Days in Detention

Interim President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane were detained at a military base in Kati outside the Mali capital, Bamako, on Monday. Mali’s ousted interim president and the prime minister have been released, a military official said, three days after both men were arrested and made to resign in the nation’s second second […]

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Nigeria: World Bank Approves U.S.$700 Million for Water Supply, Sanitation Programmes

The World Bank has approved the Nigeria Sustainable Urban and Rural Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene Program (SURWASH). The $700 million credit from the bank’s subsidiary, the International Development Association (IDA) will provide six million people with basic drinking water services and 1.4 million people access to improved sanitation services in the West African country. […]

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Mozambique: President Leaves for Mozambique to Attend Double Troika Summit

President Mnangagwa has left for Maputo, Mozambique to attend an extraordinary Sadc Double Troika meeting being convened to help tackle insurgency in the country. He was seen off at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport by Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga, Service Chiefs and senior Government officials. The meeting, which was initially scheduled for last month, […]

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Southern Africa: Delay in Sending Regional Forces to Mozambique Could Exact a High Price

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is poised to intervene militarily on the side of the Mozambican government to stop the emerging deadly Islamist insurgency in the Cabo Delgado Province, in the north of the country. This comes after the regional body of 16-nation states sent a technical team to verify events in the area […]

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Africa: Nigeria Needs to Find Its Place in Africa

Nigeria’s assumption of a leadership role in Africa has mainly been driven by the size of its population and, more recently, its economy. This aggrandisement informed the part it played in situations such as the fight against apartheid in South Africa and wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone. And it continues to shape the country’s […]

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Ethiopia Threatens to ‘Review’ U.S. Relations in the Wake of Sanctions

Ethiopia on Monday said that it will reconsider its relationship with the US if America continues to interfere in its internal affairs. Ethiopia was reacting to the US decision to impose visa restrictions on its citizens and to restrict economic and security assistance to Addis Ababa. The US State Department on Sunday night announced that […]

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South Sudan: Kiir Forms Committee to Hold Talks With Sudan Over Abyei Border Dispute

South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Monday evening formed a committee to dialogue with Sudan over the disputed Abyei area. In a presidential decree, Kiir named his National Security Affairs Advisor Tut Gatlak to head the committee. Gatlak is deputised by Minister of East African Affairs Deng Alor Kuol who is an Abyei native, and […]

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Ethiopia: Govt Denies Using Banned Chemical Weapons in Tigray

The Ethiopian government on Monday denied a news report alleging that chemical weapons are being used in the troubled Tigray region. The report published by UK newspaper The Telegraph says, “civilians in northern Ethiopia have suffered horrific burns consistent with the use of white phosphorus”, a potential war crime. The report also said that the […]