The UK has agreed to hand the archipelago over to Mauritius after decades of diplomatic dispute
The UK has agreed to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in a historic deal. Here we detail the history of the archipelago.
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Britain to return Chagos Islands to Mauritius ending years of dispute
Agreement to hand back UK’s last African colony follows 13 rounds of negotiations and international pressure
The UK has agreed to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, ending years of bitter dispute over Britain’s last African colony.
The agreement will allow a right of return for Chagossians, who the UK expelled from their homes in the 1960s and 1970s, in what has been described as a crime against humanity and one of the most shameful episodes of postwar colonialism.
Continue reading...Dikembe Mutombo, NBA Hall of Famer and humanitarian, dies at 58
- Former NBA star’s diagnosis was revealed two years ago
- Center was known for charity work in US and Africa
Basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo, whose towering presence dominated basketball on and off the court, has died from brain cancer at the age of 58.
“Dikembe Mutombo was simply larger than life,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement on Monday. “On the court, he was one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players in the history of the NBA. Off the floor, he poured his heart and soul into helping others.”
Continue reading...Seventeen killed in two mass shootings in South African town
Police hunting for suspects in attacks that took place in same neighbourhood in Eastern Cape province
Seventeen people, including 15 women, have been killed in two mass shootings that took place close to each other in a rural town in South Africa, police said.
A search was under way for the suspects, the national police spokesperson, Brig Athlenda Mathe, said in a statement on Saturday. One other person was in critical condition in the hospital, she added.
Continue reading...British army to investigate conduct of troops in Kenya amid rape and murder claims
Defence secretary to meet family of woman allegedly killed by soldier, as ITV airs documentary alleging fresh abuses
The army is to launch an inquiry into the behaviour of British troops posted to a military base in Kenya, after multiple allegations of serious abuses committed by soldiers, including rape and murder.
The inquiry is to examine the conduct of military personnel posted to the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK). It is where the soldier alleged to have murdered a Kenyan woman, Agnes Wanjiru, was posted at the time of her death in 2012.
Continue reading...Libya central bank deal could resolve ‘all political issues’, says head of state
Mohamed al-Menfi defends dismissal of previous governor and says deal will bring back international accountability
A deal backed by leaders on both sides of Libya’s political divide to appoint a new central bank governor has the potential “to resolve all the political issues” in the country, Libya’s head of state has said.
Mohamed al-Menfi, the president of Libya’s Presidential Council who is largely aligned with the UN-recognised government in Tripoli, was accused of acting unilaterally and propelling the country into fresh turmoil when in August he dismissed the previous long-serving bank governor, Sadiq al-Kabir, who then fled into exile.
Continue reading...Sudan’s army launches push to retake ground in capital
Heavy bombardments and clashes reported before army commander addresses UN general assembly
Sudan’s army launched artillery and airstrikes in Sudan’s capital on Thursday in its biggest operation to regain ground there since early in its 17-month war with the Rapid Support Forces, witnesses and military sources said.
The push by the army, which lost control of most of the capital at the start of the conflict, came before its commander, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, gave an address at the UN general assembly in New York.
Continue reading...Eswatini opposition leader in critical condition after alleged poisoning
Mlungisi Makhanya stable in hospital in South Africa, where he was in exile from Africa’s last absolute monarchy
The leader of Eswatini’s main opposition party is in a critical but stable condition after allegedly being poisoned in what allies say is an assassination attempt.
Mlungisi Makhanya is in a hospital in South Africa after the alleged poisoning on Monday night at his home in the capital, Pretoria, where he was living in exile from Africa’s last absolute monarchy, said Penuel Malinga, the secretary general of the People’s United Democratic Movement (Pudemo).
Continue reading...Race to combat mpox misinformation as vaccine rollout in DRC begins
Poll suggests half of Congolese have not heard of deadly disease, as conspiracy theories and rumours spread
For doctors and nurses fighting mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the virus itself is not the only enemy. They are also facing swirling rumours and misinformation.
The first of millions of promised doses of mpox vaccine have finally started to arrive. Now the focus is on ensuring that people who need them will take them when the vaccination campaign begins next month, and teaching wider communities how to protect themselves.
Continue reading...‘Thrown like a rag doll’: British tourist narrowly survives hippo attack in Zambia
Roland Cherry, from Warwickshire, sustained severe bite wounds after being mauled by animal during safari
A man narrowly survived after being dragged to the bottom of a river and “thrown through the air like a rag doll” when he was attacked by hippo while canoeing on holiday in Zambia.
Roland Cherry, who was on five-week holiday through southern Africa with his wife, Shirley, sustained severe bite wounds across his body, including a 10in wound to his abdomen, as well as a thigh injury and dislocated shoulder in the attack.
Continue reading...Rwandan forces and M23 rebels shelled refugee camps in DRC, report claims
Human Rights Watch alleges potential violation of international human rights law on many occasions this year
Rwandan forces and M23 rebels have shelled refugee camps and other highly populated areas in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo on many occasions this year, Human Rights Watch has claimed.
The NGO also accused the DRC’s armed forces and its allied militias of putting the camps’ residents in danger by stationing their artillery nearby in its report alleging violation of international humanitarian and human rights law in the longstanding war in the central African country.
Continue reading...US announces $424m in Sudan aid amid pleas to stop ‘senseless’ war
American envoy to UN urges humanitarian pause and says international community ‘cannot simply look away’
The United States has announced $424m in new aid for displaced and starving Sudanese, with the US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, saying all options for civilian protection must now be considered by the international community.
Describing the war in Sudan as horrific and shaming for the whole world, she said it was now necessary “to compel, insist and demand that the warring parties agree a humanitarian pause to allow aid to flow and for citizens to flee”.
Continue reading...Eswatini opposition leader poisoned in South Africa, party says
Alleged poisoning follows last year’s killing of human rights lawyer and 2021’s pro-democracy protests
Eswatini’s main opposition party has alleged that its leader was poisoned in an assassination attempt, putting renewed scrutiny on the southern African country that is one of the last remaining absolute monarchies, where authorities have for years moved to quash pro-democracy movements.
The People’s United Democratic Movement party (Pudemo) said its president, Mlungisi Makhanya, was hospitalised after being poisoned in neighbouring South Africa on Tuesday. It said he was under security protection but gave no detail on his condition or the circumstances of the alleged poisoning. Makhanya had recently said there would be new pro-democracy protests in Eswatini next month. The Eswatini government spokesperson Alpheous Nxumalo denied any involvement.
Continue reading...South Sudan medics trial AI app to identify snakes and improve bite treatment
Software with database of 380,000 pictures aims to aid quick and accurate identification and ensure correct use of antivenoms
The race to treat snakebite patients in time to save them could be eased by the development of software powered by artificial intelligence.
The medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is trialling AI snake detection in South Sudan using a database of 380,000 pictures of snakes to identify venomous species.
Continue reading...Firm disclosed phone data of shot Tanzanian politician, UK tribunal hears
Tigo’s former investigator claims he was unfairly dismissed for raising concerns over 2017 attack on Tundu Lissu
Gunmen tried to assassinate a Tanzanian opposition politician after a telecoms company secretly passed his mobile phone data to the government, according to evidence heard in a London tribunal.
The mobile phone company Tigo provided 24/7 phone call and location data belonging to Tundu Lissu to Tanzanian authorities in the weeks before the attempt on his life in September 2017.
Continue reading...Fresh Egypt arms shipment to Somalia raises regional tensions
Ethiopia fears weapons could worsen security situation amid regional rows over water, territory and Red Sea access
Egypt has sent a second arms shipment to Somalia’s federal government in the space of a month, drawing criticism from its longstanding rival Ethiopia, amid concern about rising tensions in the Horn of Africa.
Egypt’s foreign ministry confirmed that a shipment had been sent, which it said was intended to “build the capabilities of the Somali army” to “achieve security and stability, combat terrorism, and uphold its sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity”.
Continue reading...As it meets against backdrop of Israel’s bombing of Lebanon, is UN too broken to be fixed?
Supporters say UN mediation has prevented even worse outcomes, but security council is stuck in vicious circle
As diplomats from nearly 200 member states gather in New York this week for the United Nations general assembly against the backdrop of a massive Israeli bombing campaign in southern Lebanon, a nagging question to be addressed is whether the UN is too broken to be fixed.
UN officials are facing three intractable conflicts, in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan. While it remains one of the most important humanitarian organisations on Earth, organising relief efforts for refugees, natural disaster victims and others in dire need, the UN’s principal security body appears to be powerless to intervene in some of the world’s most grinding conflicts.
Continue reading...Family call on UK to ensure British activist goes free from Egyptian jail
Alaa Abd el-Fattah is due to complete five-year sentence over social media post but family fear further charges
The family of Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a British activist and author imprisoned in Egypt, are calling on the UK government as well as the Egyptian authorities to ensure he walks free at the end of this month after five years in detention.
“Let’s remember that this is an innocent man who has committed no crime, but even so he will have served his time on 29 September,” said Abd el-Fattah’s sister, Sanaa Seif.
Continue reading...Tanzania opposition leaders arrested amid crackdown on dissent
Protest had been planned against alleged disappearances and killings of government critics by security forces
Police in Tanzania have arrested three leaders of the main opposition party in a series of detentions to prevent a planned anti-government protest, the latest in a string of events that analysts and rights groups say erode hopes of a new style of politics under President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
Freeman Mbowe, the chair of the Chadema party, was arrested on Monday in the commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, while speaking with journalists. The party’s deputy chair, Tundu Lissu, was taken from his home in the city in a fleet of 11 vehicles, the party said. Godbless Lema, a central committee member, was also arrested, police said.
Continue reading...UN chief calls on Sudanese paramilitary leader to end siege of North Darfur city
António Guterres ‘gravely alarmed’ by RSF assault on al-Fashir as EU foreign policy chief warns of another genocide
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, is “gravely alarmed” at reports of a full-scale assault on the Sudanese city of al-Fashir by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and has called on its leader to halt the attack immediately, according to Guterres’ spokesperson.
“It is unconscionable that the warring parties have repeatedly ignored calls for a cessation of hostilities,” Stéphane Dujarric said in a statement.
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