Category Archives: Africa

FGM ban in the Gambia under threat as calls grow to repeal law

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Women’s rights campaigners denounce ‘hugely regressive’ proposals from political and religious leaders to decriminalise practice

Political and religious leaders in the Gambia are threatening to introduce a bill to decriminalise female genital mutilation, eight years after the practice was outlawed.

Members of the country’s national assembly have backed a proposal for the 2015 law to be scrapped while the Supreme Islamic Council has issued a fatwa condemning anyone who denounces the practice and calling for the government to reconsider the legislation.

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Tuesday briefing: The global impact of UK supreme court’s ruling on Rwanda deportation plan

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In today’s newsletter: A complicated legal battle over whether the UK government plan to send thousands of migrants to Rwanda could cause a fundamental shift in how asylum seekers are treated

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Good morning. Five supreme court judges are this week deciding whether the UK government plan to deport tens of thousands of asylum seekers to Rwanda should go ahead.

The decision of the UK’s highest court will be life-changing for more than 24,000 asylum seekers issued with letters warning them that they are being considered for forcible removal. It will also either make home secretary Suella Braverman’s “dream” come true or poleaxe a key part of Rishi Sunak’s pledge to “stop the boats”.

Israel | The leaders of the UK, US, France, Germany and Italy have released a joint statement expressing “steadfast and united support” for the state of Israel and “unequivocal condemnation” of Hamas. Earlier, Israel declared a “complete siege” of Gaza, cutting off water, food and power supplies.

Environment | The damage caused by the climate crisis through extreme weather has cost $16m (£13m) an hour for the past 20 years, according to a new estimate.

Transport | A list of transport projects to be funded using HS2 money, which included schemes that had already been built or were swiftly deleted, was intended only to be “illustrative”, the prime minister has said.

Labour | A new Labour government would give all towns and cities in England new powers and funding to boost local economies, Keir Starmer will announce, in the biggest expansion of devolution since Labour was last in power.

Scotland | A hoard of coins linked to a Highland chief – which may have been stashed away as he tried in vain to escape the Glen Coe massacre – has been discovered underneath a fireplace.

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Rwanda accused of broad campaign of repression against dissidents

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Human Rights Watch report detailing alleged abuses at home and abroad raises questions over UK government’s asylum plan

Rwandan authorities are coordinating a systematic campaign of repression at home and abroad against political activists, suspected dissidents and their family members, according to a Human Rights Watch report, raising questions about plans by the UK government to send asylum seekers there.

The US-based rights group details an alleged campaign of extraterritorial killings, kidnappings and intimidation, as well as arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances on Rwandan soil.

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Climate crisis is ‘not gender neutral’: UN calls for more policy focus on women

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Only a third of countries with climate crisis plans include access to sexual, maternal and newborn health services, UNFPA report finds

Only a third of countries include sexual and reproductive health in their national plans to tackle the climate crisis, the UN has warned.

Of the 119 countries that have published plans, only 38 include access to contraception, maternal and newborn health services and just 15 make any reference to violence against women, according to a report published by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and Queen Mary University of London on Tuesday.

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Court blocks Kenya from deploying police officers to Haiti to fight gangs

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Order comes after UN approved mission to send Kenya-led police officers to help Haiti combat rampant gang violence

A Kenyan court temporarily blocked the government from deploying hundreds of police personnel in Haiti in a UN-approved mission aimed at helping the Caribbean nation tackle rampant gang violence.

The court order issued on Monday is valid until 24 October and followed a petition jointly filed by one of the opposition political parties and two Kenyans who say the decision to deploy the police officers outside the east African country is illegal.

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Egypt: police officer shoots dead two Israeli tourists and Egyptian guide

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Israel’s national security council says its citizens should avoid going abroad and those in Egypt should leave

An Egyptian police officer shot dead two Israeli tourists and their Egyptian guide on Sunday, as war raged for a second day between Israel and Palestinian militants.

Israel’s national security council later said its citizens should consider not travelling abroad particularly in the Middle East “on the backdrop of the attack in Egypt”. It said visitors already in Egypt should leave “as soon as possible”.

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IMF clings to a hopeful agenda as crisis follows crisis

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At the fund’s annual meeting this week in Morocco, ambitions for climate and debt relief may be overwhelmed by events – again

Last week’s turmoil in the global bond markets will be playing on the minds of finance ministers and central bank governors when they gather in Marrakech this week for the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

After the triple shocks of the Covid pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the surge in inflation, the mood may be less febrile than it was a year ago, but few if any of those travelling to Morocco – which suffered a devastating earthquake last month – would dare say that the crisis era is over. Most will be wondering what might go wrong next.

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Nurse main suspect in death of Afrobeats star MohBad, say Nigerian police

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Lagos police chief says unnamed nurse injected singer before his death last month

A nurse has been identified as the “principal suspect” in the mysterious death of a Nigerian Afrobeats star, which triggered days of protests by thousands demanding justice.

Investigations into the death of Ilerioluwa Aloba, better known as MohBad, in the commercial hub of Lagos have pointed to the nurse who treated the late singer before his death, the Lagos police chief, Idowu Owohunwa, told reporters on Friday.

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France’s departure from Niger reflects years of failure in its former colonies

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Niger is only the latest of several west African countries to reject France’s long-standing attempts to interfere in the Sahel

When the French president, Emmanuel Macron, announced he would withdraw France’s ambassador and troops from Niger after a military takeover, the new regime welcomed a historic step forward for the country.

“Imperialist and neocolonialist forces are no longer welcome on our national territory,” it said. “The new era of cooperation, based on mutual respect and sovereignty, is already under way.”

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France to begin pulling out troops from Niger this week

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Paris says it is unable to work with putschists, leaving efforts to counter Islamists in Sahel in disarray

France will begin withdrawing troops from Niger this week following a coup in the west African country, in what marks a turning point in western nations’ efforts to counter a decade-long Islamist insurgency in the Sahel region.

“We will begin our disengagement operation this week, in good order, safely and in coordination with the Nigeriens,” the French military headquarters said.

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UN investigation into Tigray abuses to end despite reports of more atrocities

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Failure to renew ICHREE mandate comes after human rights experts warn that abuses continue in Ethiopia

A United Nations investigation into human rights abuses committed during Ethiopia’s Tigray war has been terminated, despite urgent warnings from its members about the risk of future violations in the east African country.

The mandate of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) will expire later this month, after a deadline passed on Wednesday to table a resolution renewing it to the UN Human Rights Council.

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Boat carrying record 280 people from west Africa reaches Canaries

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Wooden vessel is thought to have held largest number of arrivals to Spanish archipelago in one crossing

A wooden boat crammed with 280 people that arrived at the Canary island of El Hierro on Tuesday is thought to be the most crowded migrant vessel to have reached the Spanish archipelago after traversing the perilous Atlantic route from west Africa.

More than 500 people reached El Hierro on Tuesday alone, as smugglers took advantage of the calmer autumn weather to ferry people to the Canaries. Emergency services reported another boat arriving with 79 people, while 127 others were rescued from the sea.

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Nigerian police detain Afrobeats star Naira Marley over death of MohBad

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Boss of rising singer’s former music label has denied any involvement in unexplained death

Police in Nigeria have detained the Afrobeats star and record label boss Naira Marley for questioning over the death of the fast-rising singer MohBad last month.

MohBad death’s in unexplained circumstances on 12 September at the age of 27 led to an outpouring of grief among his fans and sent ripples through the multibillion-dollar Afrobeats music genre.

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World needs 44m more teachers in order to educate every child, report finds

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Unesco analysis shows that sub-Saharan Africa accounts for a third of the shortfall, but that Europe and North America are lacking too

The world needs 44 million more teachers if education is to be provided to every child, according to new figures from Unesco.

The education and culture agency said 9% of primary school teachers quit the profession in 2022, almost double the rate of 4.6% in 2015.

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The new malaria vaccine will prevent many deaths – but it’s by no means the end of the disease

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The new R21/Matrix-M vaccine will be far more easily available than the first vaccine – but the reality of life in Africa will blunt its impact

A new vaccine against malaria – which kills 600,000 people every year, mostly children – is to be injected into babies’ arms in 18 countries where the disease is most deadly. That’s joyous news. But the unbridled enthusiasm the announcement has generated says as much about the sorry state of malaria control as the brilliance of scientific invention.

Because this is an imperfect vaccine that at best will protect 75% of those given it. That’s the top figure from the clinical trials. In the reality of village life in poverty-ridden parts of Africa, it may keep fewer than half safe. It’s still hugely important to get vaccination programmes going in the 18 countries that will now be funded to run them, because many deaths will be averted. But it’s not the end of malaria. Nowhere near.

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Sudan conflict ‘like planning for the apocalypse’, say aid workers

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At least 5.4 million people have been displaced by the fierce fighting that broke out in the country in April

Humanitarian officials say the widening conflict in Sudan has left them trying to “plan for the apocalypse” as aid supply lines are disrupted and more people are displaced both internally and across the country’s borders.

At least 5.4 million people have already been displaced by the fighting that broke out in April between between the Sudanese armed forces, led by Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces loyal to his rival Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo – known as Hemedti.

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Nobel-prize winning gynaecologist announces plans to run for president of DRC

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Denis Mukwege won the Nobel peace prize in 2018 for his campaign against sexual violence

The Nobel peace prize-winning gynaecologist Denis Mukwege, renowned for helping victims of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has announced plans to run for president in December.

Mukwege, who won the award in 2018 for his nearly two-decade campaign against sexual violence, made the announcement to a jubilant crowd of supporters at a conference centre in DRC’s capital, Kinshasa.

In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support for rape and sexual abuse on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

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East Libya postpones Derna reconstruction conference amid calls for unity

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Rival governments urged to work together to best manage donations for city after catastrophic flooding

The government in eastern Libya has been forced to postpone a reconstruction conference for the stricken city of Derna amid concerns about how donations will be spent and a lack of coordination with the west of the country.

A large part of Derna was destroyed on the night of 10 September when severe flooding caused two dams above the town to burst. The death toll has been put at more than 10,000, but no official figure is yet deemed accurate.

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Weather tracker: South Africa floods kill at least 11 people

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Cape Town mayor declares major incident as roads closed and 80,000 people left without electricity

Extreme rain and strong winds across South Africa’s Western Cape province have caused flooding, torn off roofs, destroyed crops and damaged roads this week. It is estimated that the 48-hour rainfall totals between Sunday and Monday were between 100mm to 200mm (4-8in) in this region.

According to the Cape Town Disaster Risk Management Centre, 12,000 people were affected, but a further 80,000 people were left without electricity, according to the national power utility. The mayor of Cape Town signed a major incident declaration for additional resources and relief measures as 80 roads have been closed, 200 farm workers have been stranded and rail services have been suspended in the Western and Eastern Cape provinces.

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Investigation launched into killings and evictions on World Bank tourism project

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Tanzania government blamed for violence against villagers in national park, while thousands more people face losing their homes

The World Bank is investigating allegations of killings, rape and forced evictions made by villagers living near the site of a proposed tourism project it is funding in Tanzania.

The bank has been accused of “enabling” alleged violence by the Tanzanian government to make way for a $150m (£123m) project ministers say will protect the environment and attract more tourists to Ruaha national park.

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