By BBC Africa LONDON – First it was the US secretary of state who went on a trip to Africa, now it is the vice-president and later in the year the president himself is expected to come. This flurry of visits by top figures in the US administration reflects a growing awareness that the US
By Associated Press KIGALI: Rwanda’s government has commuted the 25-year sentence of Paul Rusesabagina, who inspired the film “Hotel Rwanda” for saving hundreds of countrymen from genocide but was convicted of terrorism offenses years later in a widely criticized trial. Government spokeswoman Yolande Makolo told The Associated Press on Friday that the presidential order was issued
By AFP US Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Ghana, Tanzania and Zambia during a three-country tour of Africa starting this weekend. The trip is aimed at deepening ties with the continent and to counter China and Russia’s involvement in Africa. Five of President Joe Biden’s cabinet secretaries and First Lady Jill Biden have done
By Associated Press JOHANNESBURG: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has welcomed Belgium’s King Philippe and Queen Mathilda to the capital Pretoria, lauded the European country for its assistance to Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ramaphosa emphasized the role played by Belgium in backing the World Health Organization’s mRNA technology transfer hub initiative established in South
By Associated Press LONDON: A senior Nigerian politician and his wife were found guilty Thursday of conspiring to transport a street trader to the U.K. as part of an organ-harvesting plot. Ike Ekweremadu, who was deputy president of the Nigerian Senate and a lawyer, and his wife, Beatrice, were accused of arranging the travel of
By Associated Press KAMPALA: The United Nations rights chief on Wednesday urged Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to block an anti-LGBTQ bill that prescribes harsh penalties for some homosexual offenses, including death and life imprisonment. “The passing of this discriminatory bill — probably among the worst of its kind in the world — is a deeply troubling
By Reuters Uganda has passed a law that criminalises identifying as LGBTIQA+. Uganda is one of more than 30 African countries to ban same-sex relationships. The law also bans promoting and abetting homosexuality as well as conspiracy to engage in homosexuality. Uganda’s parliament on Tuesday passed a law that criminalises identifying as LGBTIQA+, handing authorities broad powers
Reuters JOHANNESBURG, March 20 (Reuters) – Thousands of protesters marched through South Africa’s cities on Monday, calling on President Cyril Ramaphosa to resign over the lack of jobs and electricity, as security forces guarded malls and streets to prevent any violence and looting. South Africans are furious about failures of the governing African National Congress
By Agencies South Africans are nervously awaiting a controversial “national shutdown” on Monday organised by a radical opposition party, which is accused of threatening violence and “looting” for those who refuse to take part. Amid ongoing rolling blackouts — and the looming threat of a total collapse of the power grid — skyrocketing crime and unemployment and
By Associated Press LONDON: Britain’s interior minister arrived in Rwanda on Saturday for a visit aimed at reinforcing the U.K. government’s commitment to a controversial plan to deport some asylum-seekers to the African country. Ahead of her visit, Home Secretary Suella Braverman said the migration policy “will act as a powerful deterrent against dangerous and
By News24.com The SANDF says it is disappointed that a soldier has been arrested for allegedly attacking Limpopo police officers. During the attack, six awaiting trial prisoners were freed. The soldier forms part of anti-poaching efforts along the South Africa-Zimbabwe border. A South African National Defence Force (SANDF) member deployed to safeguard the SA-Zimbabwe border
By AFP Muhoozi Kainerugaba currently serves as a military advisor to his father, Yoweri Museveni. Museveni, 78, who has been in power for 37 years, has not said when he will leave office. In a deleted tweet, Kainerugaba said he will stand for the Presidency in 2026. KAMPALA: The controversial son of Uganda’s veteran leader Yoweri
By Associated Press KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — On Twitter, the Ugandan president’s son has mused about invading neighboring Kenya, praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and offered cattle for the Italian prime minister’s hand in marriage. While many of his tweets are dismissed as laughable, the ones about succeeding his father in this East African nation
By Associated Press BLANTYRE, Malawi (AP) — The devastating Tropical Cyclone Freddy which has ripped through southern Africa in a rare second landfall has killed at least 219 people in Malawi and Mozambique since Saturday night, with the death toll expected to rise. Heavy rains that triggered floods and mudslides have killed 199 people in
By Reuters Rwanda’s president, Paul Kagame says the government is discussing the fate of Paul Rusesabagina. He was sentenced in 2021 for having ties with an organisation in opposition to Kagame’s rule. Rusesabagina is famous for sheltering people during the Rwandan genocide in 1994. Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Monday said there were discussions about
By Reuters Mozambique and Malawi on Monday were counting the cost of Tropical Storm Freddy, which killed more than 60 people, injured scores and left a trail of destruction as it ripped through southern Africa for the second time in a month. Freddy is one of the strongest storms ever recorded in the southern hemisphere
By AFP Tropical Cyclone Freddy hit Mozambique for the second time in two weeks, causing heavy rains and strong winds. The cyclone made its second landfall near the eastern seaport of Quelimane, with a high risk of flooding in Zambezia and neighbouring Nampula province. Freddy, which formed off northwestern Australia in February, is on track
By Associated Press Record-breaking Cyclone Freddy made its second landfall in Mozambique Saturday night, pounding the southern African nation with heavy rains and disrupting transport and telecommunications services. French weather agency Météo-France warned of “destructive and devastating” winds and “dangerous seas and heavy rains” that could lead to landslides. It said Freddy will go further
By Associated Press GOMA: The death toll from several attacks this week by extremist rebels in eastern Congo has risen to at least 45 people, local officials said on Friday. Dozens of people were killed by rebels using machetes over two days when rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces, a militia with links to the
By AFP As soon as the power goes off and the traffic lights are out, homeless men sporting bright-green high-visibility vests emerge apparently from nowhere and start directing the cars at a busy Johannesburg intersection. South Africa is buckling under unprecedented power cuts, which are crippling everything from manufacturing to the flow of traffic. But
