News That Matters To Africa©️
Quote of the Day:
You can mark the intelligence of a leader by the people he has around him.
Highlights:
ICC allows Kony trial in his absence
Ghana anti-LGBTQ bill could derail IMF support
US sanctions Zimbabwe leaders
Chad’s turbulent week.
Top News:
Eastern Africa
Rwanda opposes AU support for SADC troops in Congo
DRCongo’s East plagued by poor infrastructure and security threats
Haitian PM’s whereabouts unknown since he signed bilateral deal with Kenya
Human Rights group urges accounting of UK Army abuses
Kenyans resort to humour to counter unpopular state policies
UK’s Rwanda asylum plan suffers House of Lords defeat
Communication blackout thwarts mutual aid efforts in Khartoum
Burhan conditions AU role to return of Sudan to the AU
ICC allows in-absentia hearings in Ugandan warlord case
An online protest movement exposes corruption in Uganda
West Africa
Gambian parliament to discuss bill to decriminalise FGM
Ghana anti-LGBTQ bill could derail IMF support
Liberia’s civil war refugees left destitute after decades-old Ghana camp demolished
Nigeria tightens security as food theft continues
‘No justification for Gaza carnage’: Nigeria Foreign Minister
National Dialogue Report submitted to President Sall
Election crisis shakes support for Macky Sall’s coalition
Southern Africa
Mozambique to receive support from Algeria in anti-terror fight
Canal+ raises bid for South Africa’s MultiChoice
Zambia’s Socialist Party gains momentum amid economic concerns, eyes 2026 elections
US refocuses sanctions only on Zimbabwe leaders
The Pakistan-born cricketer who rules Zimbabwean hearts
North Africa
Egypt sentences top leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood to death
Suez Canal head says Egypt studying further expansion of waterway
Scientists unearth mysteries of giant, moving Moroccan star dune
Central Africa
Red Sea cables have been damaged, disrupting internet traffic
Doping: the only African laboratory suspended for flaws in analysis
The ‘Luxury Route’ to the U.S. for African Migrants
UNODC’s Ghada Waly tackles organized crime and piracy threats in Somalia
Video of the Day:
Fighting back: Quane Martin Dibobe
Africa News Podcast:
The traumatic legacy of colonial era vaccination programs
(4) Articles on Analysis,Editorial & Opinion
Eastern Africa
DR CONGO
Rwanda opposes AU support for SADC troops in Congo
Rwanda has asked the African Union (AU) not to support troops from southern African countries deployed to fight armed groups in the restive eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), claiming the force will exacerbate the conflict. Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta said in a letter to the Chairperson of the AU Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat made public Monday that Rwanda learned “with great concern” about a scheduled meeting of the AU Peace and Security Council, part of whose objectives are to endorse the deployment of the Southern African Development Community Mission in DRC (SAMIDRC) and assess possible support that the AU and other strategic partners could extend to the mission. Biruta accused the regional force of fighting alongside the DRC army and other coalition armed groups, which include Rwandan rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR). “SAMIDRC, as an offensive force in coalition with these elements, cannot substitute for a political process that has been blocked by the government of DRC. Therefore, the AU is urged not to ‘authorise’ or fund SAMIDRC,” the statement said. It said the SAMIDRC supports the DRC government’s belligerent posture, focusing on a military solution against the spirit of all regional peace initiatives. Rwanda “wishes to bring to the attention of the AU Commission that the intention to compel the African Union to support the SAMIDRC deployment can only exacerbate the conflict,” the statement said.
DRCongo’s East plagued by poor infrastructure and security threats
The road network in eastern DR Congo serves as a vivid illustration of the broader challenges facing this vast country’s remote areas. Unlike the well-maintained roads of Rwanda, the Bukavu-Uvira route is fraught with potholes and craters, making any journey a test of endurance and patience. This dire state of infrastructure not only hampers economic development but also complicates efforts to ensure safety and security. Bandits and militia groups exploit these conditions, further endangering those who dare traverse these paths. The deteriorating situation in eastern DR Congo has profound implications for local communities and neighboring countries. The closure of the Burundi border, a critical lifeline for many, signifies the growing regional tensions and the challenges of maintaining open and secure borders amidst such insecurity. This isolation affects not just the flow of goods, but also the mobility of people, exacerbating an already volatile humanitarian situation.
KENYA
Haitian PM’s whereabouts unknown since he signed bilateral deal with Kenya
The whereabouts of Haiti’s prime minister, Ariel Henry, were not known Monday, three days after he signed a bilateral accord in Kenya to pave the way for a possible multinational force to help restore security in the troubled Caribbean nation. A fierce battle between police and armed gangs took place in Haiti over the weekend, and a gang leader there has called for Henry’s ouster. Haiti’s government declared a 72-hour state of emergency after an intense battle between the country’s police against powerful armed gangs over the weekend. The Kenyan government has not commented on Henry’s whereabouts since the Friday signing ceremony, even after repeated inquiries. Macharia Munene, a professor of history and international relations at USIA-Africa in Nairobi, said the signing of the document doesn’t legalize the deployment of Kenyan police given that a Kenyan court had deemed such a move unconstitutional in a recent ruling. Munene said the Haitian prime minister should try to go back to show he’s in charge. “We don’t know whether he is still in the country or has gone to another country,” Munene said. “We don’t know for now where he is but it’s clear that in Port-au-Prince, the Barbecue has said he wants to barbecue the prime minister once he gets there. That may not be a good indicator.” Munene said what happened this weekend in Haiti may complicate matters, not just for Kenya but for the other countries that have volunteered to participate in the intervention.
Human Rights group urges accounting of UK Army abuses
The Kenya National Human Rights Commission now wants the National Assembly to hold the British army operating in the country to account for several cases of human abuse. In a report presented to the Defence Foreign Relations Committee, the committee listed several incidences of murder, rape, and exploitation that have been allegedly committed by the British Army training unit in Kenya, commonly known as BATUK. In a report submitted by KNCHR Commissioner Prof. Marion Mutugi, 43 complaints received by the Commission against BATUK date back as far back as 1975. In the report, KNHCR points to the mistrust by the host community in the British army following several incidences of lack of justice where the army has been accused of committing different crimes including murder, rape, maiming and assault. The commission highlighted a case where a woman was murdered by one of the service men in the BATUK army in 2012, but only came to light in 2021 and caused uproar among Kenyans. The commission now wants parliament to ensure the army is held accountable for their actions and to follow human rights and the law of the land.
Kenyans resort to humour to counter unpopular state policies
Seemingly disillusioned with the country’s leadership, Kenyans have taken to new ways of expressing their anger and frustration with their government. On social media and in everyday conversations, President William Ruto is now referred to as Zakayo, named after the infamous Zaccheaus, the much-hated chief tax collector in biblical Jericho. President Ruto is also called Kaunda Uongoman, which mimics the stage name of a controversial Congolese musician, Kanda Bongoman. The first name is a reference to Ruto’s recent penchant for Kaunda suits. The surname is a portmanteau of the Kiswahili word uongo, meaning liar, and man. These nicknames are examples of the many humorous but pointed and pithy descriptions now widely used by Kenyans, particularly on social media platforms, to ridicule and express defiance towards a president and government whose policy decisions have become deeply unpopular. Satire and humour have always been legitimate sites for popular engagement with the state in Kenya. But a new weapon in the armoury of those criticising the state is the use of memes. Across social media, Kenyans are employing a range of memes drawn from folk, biblical, global and everyday expressions, as well as videos, screen grabs and photographs riffed off circulating news stories to comment on the government’s failings.
RWANDA
UK’s asylum plan to to Rwanda suffers House of Lords defeat
PM Rishi Sunak suffered his first defeats over his legislation to send asylum seekers to Rwanda after the upper house of parliament demanded greater protections to be introduced before deportation flights can take off. Under the Rwanda plan, which has yet to be carried out, asylum seekers who arrive on England’s southern coast in small, inflatable boats would be sent to live in Rwanda, but so far no one has been deported because of ongoing legal challenges. In an effort to overcome resistance from the courts, Sunak’s government is passing legislation through parliament that would block further legal challenges by declaring Rwanda a so-called safe country for asylum seekers. Unelected members of the House of Lords, largely made of former politicians and government officials, voted in favour of one amendment that would mean flights could only take off when a treaty – that would implement legal safeguards in the Rwandan asylum system – had been fully implemented…However, the more powerful elected House of Commons can overturn the changes at later stages in a process known as “parliamentary ping-pong” and the legislation could still enter the statute book unamended.
SUDAN
Communication blackout thwarts mutual aid efforts in Khartoum
Ten months of conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has overturned the lives of millions of people in Khartoum. And now the one-month blackout has left civilians enduring the still-expanding war in the dark. “The outage brought me different obstacles, but the main thing is that I cannot communicate with my relatives outside of Sudan who are supporting us financially,” said Amani*, who lives in Khartoum and looks after a large family. Amani said the severing of support from relatives – who send her money via a mobile banking application – has left her family dependent on a communal kitchen run by one of the city’s many mutual aid groups, which are known as emergency response rooms. The communication outage began in early February and has been blamed on the RSF. The group is accused of cutting the network to force engineers to restore the internet to their stronghold in Darfur, where services have been absent for several months. International aid groups say the blackout has disrupted their already hamstrung operations at a time when 25 million people across the country need humanitarian assistance, and seven million are expected to face extreme hunger by June. Though connectivity has improved in some areas, networks are down in many cities, including Khartoum, where bank closures and cash shortages mean residents and mutual aid groups depend entirely on e-wallets to receive money and buy goods.
Burhan conditions AU role to return of Sudan to the AU
The African Union (AU) suspended Sudan’s membership following the October 25, 2021, military takeover, which eventually led to conflict between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Subsequently, the AU formed a high-level mediation group to facilitate a return to stability. On Sunday, Sudan’s de facto leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan met with the members of the AU High-Level Panel on the Resolution of the Conflict in Sudan led by Mohamed Ibn Chambas…According to a statement from the Sovereignty Council, al-Burhan expressed “Sudan’s confidence in the AU’s potential solutions, but only if the state regains its full membership and the organization treats it as such”…Chambas, according to the statement, reiterated the organization’s commitment to ending the conflict and achieving stability in Sudan. He emphasized that the delegation has engaged with all relevant stakeholders, including various political forces. The three-member mechanism was established by the AU Commission in January 2024 to facilitate dialogue, restore constitutional order, and work collaboratively with Sudanese stakeholders and the international community towards lasting peace.
UGANDA
ICC allows in absentia hearings in case against Ugandan warlord Kony
Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday ruled that prosecutors can bring a hearing on charges against fugitive Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony in his absence on Oct. 15. Kony, the founder and leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), is the ICC’s longest standing fugitive. An arrest warrant was issued against him in 2005. ICC prosecutors are looking to charge Kony with 36 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity including murder, rape, using child soldiers, sexual slavery, forced marriage and forced pregnancy. The abducted children were subjected to a “carefully designed and coordinated regime of physical and psychological violence” including sometimes being forced to beat and even kill other abductees, the document containing the charges said. Kony, who is still at large, has said he is not guilty of the allegations against him. It is the first time since the court became a legal reality in 2002 that ICC judges have allowed a so-called confirmation of charges hearing without the suspect present and could have implications for other cases with fugitive suspects.
Online protest movement exposes corruption in Uganda. Officials and others are rattled
Abuse of public funds. Failing hospitals. Potholes in the streets of Kampala, the capital of Uganda. These and other issues feature in an online protest campaign that is rattling government officials…The campaign has been trending on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, as #UgandaParliamentExhibition. The latest posts, about Uganda’s National Assembly, focus on Parliament Speaker Anita Among, an influential member of the ruling party, who is criticized for allegedly collecting huge sums in allowance spending on foreign travel, including trips that did not happen. The campaign alleges Among was paid the equivalent of $894,500 in per diems and entertainment allowances between July and January, an astonishing amount in a country struggling to implement its budget amid persistent revenue shortfalls. A parliamentary commission which Among heads had earlier raised daily per diem rates for the speaker from $990 to $4,000. The annual per capita income in Uganda was $850 in 2022, according to World Bank figures. The government of President Yoweri Museveni, who has held power in Uganda since 1986, has long been accused of shielding corrupt but influential officials from criminal prosecution. After his reelection to a sixth term in 2021, Museveni promised to crack down on corruption. But many Ugandans are not hopeful.
Western Africa
GAMBIA
Parliament to discuss bill to decriminalise FGM
A bill seeking to repeal Gambia’s ban on female genital mutilation (FGM) was presented in the West African country’s parliament on Monday and will be discussed by lawmakers later this month. Former president Yahya Jammeh banned the practice in 2015 and introduced steep fines and jail sentences for perpetrators. However, many Gambians still believe that FGM is a requirement of Islam and the bill — introduced by lawmaker Almameh Gibba — argues that the current ban violates citizens’ rights to practice their culture and religion. The bill has divided public opinion. Anti-FGM advocates point to the harmful physical and psychological effects of the practice on girls and women and say a lifting of the ban would be a huge step back. The practice has no health benefits and can lead to a host of serious medical problems, according to the World Health Organization.
GHANA
Ghana anti-LGBTQ bill could derail IMF support
Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ bill could lead to a loss of $3.8 billion in World Bank financing over the next five to six years if it becomes law, derailing a $3 billion IMF loan package, the finance ministry said.Lawmakers last week unanimously passed the legislation that will intensify a crackdown on the rights of LGBTQ people and those accused of promoting LGBTQ identities. The bill, one of the harshest in Africa, will now be presented to President Nana Akufo-Addo, who will decide whether to sign it into law. The United States has said it is “deeply troubled” by the proposed legislation and urged a review of the “constitutionality of the bill”. A document, dated March, said it summarised deliberations between the finance minister, central bank governor, head of the tax authority and other senior officials and contained recommendations for the president…Losing World Bank funding would in turn “derail” the IMF programme, triggering a negative market reaction that would affect exchange rate stability, it added. It also recommended “engagement with conservative countries, including the Arab countries and China”, to secure additional financing to fill any potential funding gaps.
LIBERIA
Civil war refugees left destitute after decades-old Ghana camp demolished
More than 200,000 people were killed and thousands more were mutilated and raped in brutal civil wars in Liberia between 1989 and 2003. Though the U.N. ruled in 2006 that it was safe for refugees to return home, many, traumatised and without connections, remained in the so-called Liberia Camp in Buduburam, about 45 km west of Ghana’s capital, Accra. But last week, under the orders of traditional authorities who own the land, demolition of the camp began. By Monday, a large part of the site where the once bustling Liberia Camp had stood for 34 years was reduced to concrete rubble…A spokesman for the Gomoa Fetteh Stool, the traditional chieftaincy that owns the land, said the operation would continue until the entire site is cleared. Liberia Camp ceased to be classified as a refugee shelter in 2012. Since then, the landowners have made several attempts at demolition. Tetteh Padi, executive secretary of the Ghana Refugee Board, a government body, said the board had lobbied to delay its demolition. Only about 3,000 of the estimated 15,000 Liberians in the camp hold valid refugee status, Padi said, but efforts were underway to re-register the others for potential relocation to another camp in Ghana.
NIGERIA
Nigeria tightens security as food theft continues
Nigerian authorities have heightened security at government food stores around the country amid a crisis. With people struggling to afford food, recently there have been increased cases of attacks on warehouses to steal food items. On Sunday, the National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) said on X, formerly known as Twitter, it was increasing security “to forestall any breaches” at its offices and warehouses nationwide. It comes after local residents looted food items including bags of maize at a facility in Nigeria’s federal capital, Abuja. The looters also vandalised the warehouse. The incident, which reportedly went on for hours, is said to have caused a gridlock as people blocked roads near the area. Some videos are being shared online showing the chaotic scenes on Sunday, with crowds gathered around the facilities and others walking away with sacks of grain.
No justification for Gaza carnage’: Nigeria Foreign Minister
Israel must stop its war on Gaza, and the world needs to drop its “double standards” over the killings in the besieged enclave, Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar while he was visiting Qatar as part of a delegation led by Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The visit came at a time when Nigeria faces mounting economic and social challenges with armed attacks proliferating and an inflation rate at 30 percent. Yet Nigeria, with a population of more than 200 million people and Africa’s largest economy, is also eyeing a greater role in regional and global affairs. Tinubu leads the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) established in 1975. The bloc faces an uncertain future with Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso announcing in late January they are quitting the regional grouping.
SENEGAL
National Dialogue Report submitted to President Sall
Minister of the Interior Me Sidiki Kaba, presented the report resulting from the national dialogue on Monday, March 4, 2024, to the President of the Republic, Macky Sall. The talks were held at the Abdou Diouf International Conference Center in Diamniadio (Cicad),30km east of Dakar. “He (Sall) plans to contact the Constitutional Council to obtain its opinion on the date of the election and after April 2. The Head of State also saluted the Senegalese genius in overcoming difficulties,” according to the Senegalese presidency’s X/Twitter account. Sall convened this meeting on February 26 and 27, apparently so that Senegalese society could decide on a new date for the presidential election, the first round of which was initially scheduled for February 25, 2024. Most opposition politicians and 15 of the 19 presidential candidates refused to participate, with some saying they believed the talks were only for show. At the end of two days of discussions, the participants proposed that the presidential election be held on June 2, with an extension of the mandate of the current president until his successor takes office.
Election crisis shakes support for Macky Sall’s coalition
Writer Moustapha Gueye voted for Senegalese President Macky Sall at the last two elections. But disappointment in Sall’s second term and the president’s thwarted attempt to postpone the next vote have shaken Gueye’s allegiance to the ruling Benno Bokk Yakaar (BBY) coalition. Sall’s shock decision to issue a decree delaying the election just weeks before it was due to take place in February revived widespread fears that he was trying to tweak the constitution to stay in power longer. Sall denies this. A court later overruled his order, but too late to keep to the original electoral schedule. Authorities have still not confirmed a new date for the vote. Sall cited concerns over potential election disputes as the reason for the delay. But many believe BBY and Sall tried to postpone the vote because they were unsure about their own candidate and wanted time to think. With Ba still on the ticket for now, the crisis may turn out to have been a politically costly miscalculation by Sall and BBY if their electoral manoeuvring has put off many other voters like Gueye and Sene. With no official public election polls, shifts in voter intention are hard to measure. But of those who voted for Sall in the last election in 2019, only 60% are believed to be planning to vote for BBY’s candidate this time, said statistician Moubarak Lo who, as adviser to the prime minister, produces strategic analysis for the authorities.
Southern Africa
MOZAMBIQUE
Algeria pledges support for Mozambique in anti-terror fight
Algeria has pledged that it will support Mozambique in its fight against terrorism in the northern province of Cabo Delgado, Mozambique’s news agency AIM reported Monday. Summarizing a four day working visit to Algeria, Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi made the announcement on Sunday. He said that both delegations spoke of forms of equipping, exchanges of information”; adding that an instrument that will guide cooperation in defence and security”, will be concluded. Nyusi added that the Algerian government has promised immediate support in individual equipment for members of the local militias who are fighting the terrorists alongside the armed forces. Mozambique’s ties with Algeria are decades old. Fighters in the Mozambican independence war received their own training in Algeria in the 1960s. President Felipe Nuyusi’s announcement comes after Mozambique’s government confirmed on February 27 that over 60,000 people were driven from their homes by a wave of recent jihadist attacks in the restive north.
SOUTH AFRICA
Canal+ raises bid for South Africa’s MultiChoice
French media group Vivendi’s Canal+ has raised its offer to buy all the shares of South Africa’s MultiChoice that it does not already own, the companies said on Tuesday. Canal+, the biggest shareholder in MultiChoice, will offer 125 rand per share, valuing the pending shares at about 33.7 billion rand ($1.77 billion) after its previous offer of 105 rand was rejected last month. On Monday, Canal+ said it would make a firm offer by no later than April 8 after the Takeover Regulations Panel said it should immediately announce one because its 35.01% shareholding in MultiChoice triggered a mandatory offer requirement. MultiChoice, Africa’s biggest pay-tv company, had said the 105 rand per share offer significantly undervalued the group. Both companies said they intend to mutually co-operate and “accordingly, MultiChoice will give customary exclusivity undertakings to Canal+.”
ZAMBIA
Zambia’s Socialist Party gains momentum amid economic concerns, eyes 2026 elections
As Zambia grapples with escalating living costs, the Socialist Party is increasingly seen as a formidable force against the current ruling party, the United Party for National Development (UPND). This development is particularly significant as the country heads towards the presidential and general elections scheduled for 2026. During a recent media briefing, Trymo Mwenda, a prominent member of the Socialist Party, detailed the party’s active involvement in various by-elections, despite facing hurdles such as candidate clearance issues and intimidation tactics from the UPND. Mwenda lauded the party’s performance, noting significant voter support despite these obstacles. He raised concerns over the integrity of the electoral process, urging the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to ensure fairness and transparency. As Zambia looks towards the 2026 elections, the Socialist Party’s increasing prominence and advocacy for economic reforms represent a pivotal shift in the nation’s political dynamics. With the cost of living reaching unprecedented levels, the party’s focus on economic issues resonates with many Zambians, positioning it as a significant contender in the upcoming electoral showdown.
ZIMBABWE
US refocuses sanctions only on Zimbabwe leaders
The United States on Monday terminated a Zimbabwe sanctions program and reimposed curbs on nine people and three entities, including the country’s president, over their alleged involvement in corruption or serious human rights abuse. Washington also targeted for the first time First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa Washington is seeking to make clear that the sanctions are not intended to target the people of Zimbabwe with Monday’s move, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement. Sanctions on dozens of people and entities were set to be removed, including against the president’s eldest son, who is largely viewed as the face of his father’s business interests. Mnangagwa’s first term is marked by runaway inflation, currency shortages and sky-high unemployment. The Zimbabwean dollar has lost more than 60% of its value against the U.S. dollar so far this year, while annual inflation is at 47.6%, in a country still scarred by memories of hyperinflation under Mugabe.
The Pakistan-born cricketer who rules Zimbabwean hearts
Sikandar Raza, Zimbabwe’s Pakistan-born cricketer, has been on a fairytale run since 2022. The 37-year-old has been nominated twice in succession for the ICC Twenty20 International Player of the Year award in addition to becoming the first player to score five consecutive T20 international (T20I) half-centuries. Since January 2022, Raza has scored almost 2,500 runs, including four centuries in one-day internationals (ODIs) and T20Is at an average of more than 40. He has also taken 71 wickets in the same period. Raza has almost single-handedly rekindled Zimbabwe’s interest in cricket and is easily the most admired sportsperson in his adopted homeland, a country where football rules the roost. It is not just his numbers that sing his praise. The adoration of crowds at Zimbabwe’s sold-out international cricket matches in the last two years is what completes the story. “Monya”, a popular chant originally composed for a revered former captain of Zimbabwe’s biggest football club, has now been turned into an anthem for Raza when he is on song. Raza moved from Pakistan to Zimbabwe in 2003 with his parents. After becoming a Zimbabwe citizen, Raza made his international debut in 2013. Fast-forward 11 years, 240 matches and more than 7,000 runs across formats, respect and admiration towards Raza is huge among his teammates…
North Africa
EGYPT
Egypt confirms death penalty for eight opposition politicians after mass trial
An Egyptian court sentenced senior opposition leaders to death on Monday in a case that has been decried as “politically-motivated” by rights groups. Ahmed Attar, director of the Egyptian Network for Human Rights, said the verdicts were “politically motivated. The defendants have faced serious legal violations, including arbitrary detention, torture and denial of legal representation, in contravention of the constitution and due process”. He added that the “Supreme State Security Court is an exceptional court that does not adhere to fair trial standards. It is based on emergency laws, and its judgments, once endorsed by the military ruler, are final without the possibility of appeal”. Those on death row include the head of the Muslim Brotherhood Mohamed Badie and the group’s acting leader Mahmoud Ezzat; as well as former MPs Mohamed El-Beltagy and Amr Mohamed Zaki; former minister Osama Yassin Abdel Wahab,;Salafi preacher Safwat Hamouda Hegazy; Assem Abdel-Majid; and Mohamed Abdel-Maqsoud Mohamed. In addition to the death sentences, the court also sentenced 37 others to life imprisonment, six defendants to 15 years of rigorous imprisonment, and seven defendants to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment. A sentence of rigorous imprisonment usually involves hard labour. Of the 79 charged, the court acquitted 21 defendants.
Suez Canal head says Egypt studying further expansion of waterway
Egypt is studying further expansions of the Suez Canal to extend and complete a second channel of the waterway, the canal’s head said on Monday, a move that could allow for higher volumes of shipping and prevent blockages from halting traffic. The comments come as the canal is seeing a sharp fall in revenue due to shipping companies diverting away from the waterway, the shortest route between Europe and Asia, because of attacks by Houthi militants in Yemen against ships in the Red Sea. Any new extension would come on top of current work to extend the second channel by 10 kilometres, and to deepen and widen a section of the canal. That work was expedited after the Ever Given, a giant container ship, ran aground in a single lane section of the canal in March 2021, stopping traffic for six days. The canal is a key source of scarce foreign currency for indebted Egypt, which spent an estimated $8.2 billion on an expansion of the canal that opened in 2015 and included the creation of a 35-km (22-mile) parallel waterway. Canal revenues have increased gradually but by less than officials had forecast, reaching a record $9.4 billion in the financial year ending in June 2023, before dipping by at least 40% at the beginning of this year due to the Houthi attacks.
MOROCCO
Scientists unearth mysteries of giant, moving Moroccan star dune
There are impressive, mysterious structures that loom out of deserts on the Earth and are also found on Mars and on Saturn’s biggest moon, Titan. Experts from universities including Aberystwyth in Wales have now pinpointed the age of a star dune in a remote area of Morocco and uncovered details about its formation and how it moves across the desert. Prof Geoff Duller of the department of geography and earth sciences at Aberystwyth said: “They are extraordinary things, one of the natural wonders of the world. From the ground they look like pyramids but from the air you see a peak and radiating off it in three or four directions these arms that make them look like stars.” The team, which was also made up of University of London academics, travelled to the south-east of Morocco to study a 100-metre high and 700-metre wide dune in the Erg Chebbi sand sea known as Lala Lallia, which means the “highest sacred point” in the Berber language. They discovered that the very base of the dune was 13,000 years old but were surprised that the upper part of the structure had only been formed in the last 1,000 years or so. The base continued to build up until about 9,000 years ago…the dune was formed because the wind blows in two opposing directions – from the south-west and the north-east – leading to the sand building up. A steady third wind that blows from the east is shifting the dune slowly to the west at a rate of about 50cm a year.
Central Africa
CHAD
Chad’s Turbulent Week
→ What’s happening? Chad’s interim president Mahamat Idris Deby announced his plans to run for the presidency in the country’s election on May 6.
→ Why is the announcement significant? Saturday’s announcement capped a chaotic week, coming after opposition leader Yaya Dillo was killed on Wednesday — an incident opposition groups described as an assassination. The government claimed he fired at law enforcement officers at his party headquarters. Dillo was expected to run against Deby. Days before his death, the government accused Dillo’s party of orchestrating an attack on the national security agency headquarters.
→ What’s Deby’s background? He seized power in 2021 after his father, former president Idris Deby, was killed by rebels after 30 years in power. Mahamat initially announced an 18-month timeline to transition to democratic elections, but his administration passed resolutions that would keep him in office until 2024 and allow him to run. At least 50 protesters were killed in 2022 as the Deby-led government cracked down on demonstrators seeking democratic elections in the country.
→ How will Dillo’s death affect the election? “Holding elections in a repressive context will certainly pose risks to the country’s stability as the opposition is unlikely to accept the outcome,” said Ulf Laessing, Sahel program director at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a political think tank. He said the credibility of the elections would be undermined and that other contenders may not run due to intimidation.
→ What does it mean for the region’s stability? Cameron Hudson, Africa analyst at Washington-based think tank CSIS, said Chad was surrounded by conflict-hit areas in Sudan and the Sahel, which meant political turmoil and an armed struggle would have major implications for the region.
“You might see Zaghawa fighters currently fighting in Sudan with the Rapid Support Forces return to Chad to support Deby,” said Hudson. “Similarly, Chadian rebel groups in neighboring Libya and the Central African Republic could see this as an opportunity to restart their war against the regime. You might see others, like Chad’s neighbors in the Sahel, try to come to his aid.”
→ Why haven’t Western governments said much about this? “Chad is key to stability in Central Africa as it is practically surrounded by neighbors where Russia and its mercenaries are active and seek to expand,” said Laessing. “That’s why Western powers are so silent about the killing last week and delayed transition.”
AFRICA – GENERAL NEWS
Red Sea cables have been damaged, disrupting internet traffic
Damage to submarine cables in the Red Sea is disrupting telecommunications networks and forcing providers to reroute as much as a quarter of traffic between Asia, Europe and the Middle East, including internet traffic. Cables belonging to four major telecoms networks have been “cut” causing “significant” disruption to communications networks in the Middle East, according to Hong Kong telecoms company HGC Global Communications. HGC estimates that 25% of traffic between Asia and Europe as well the Middle East has been impacted, it said in a statement Monday. Underwater cables are the invisible force driving the internet, with many funded in recent years by internet giants such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook parent Meta. Damage to these subsea networks can cause widespread internet outages, as happened following the Taiwan earthquake in 2006. The destruction of cables in the Red Sea comes weeks after the official Yemeni government warned of the possibility that Houthi rebels would target the cables.
Doping: the only African laboratory suspended for flaws in analysis
Less than five months before the Paris Olympic Games, the World Anti-Doping Agency suspended the activities of the only approved analysis laboratory in Africa at the end of the day on Monday. WADA said the accreditation of the laboratory in Bloemfontein, South Africa, has been withdrawn for up to six months due to flaws in an analysis method aimed at detecting steroid use by athletes. Samples from Bloemfontein must now be transported safely to another WADA-accredited laboratory. The 30 WADA-approved laboratories closest to South Africa are in Qatar (6,600 km from Bloemfontein), India, Portugal, Spain and Turkey. Collecting samples at remote training centres and transporting them long distances to laboratories increases the risk that they will degrade and be unusable for testing. These laboratories may also be involved in the evaluation of all future samples taken from African athletes, notably as part of a global anti-doping program before the Paris Olympic Games which open on July 26.
The ‘Luxury Route’ to the U.S. for African Migrants
Nearly three thousand miles to the south, inside Colombia’s main international airport, hundreds of African migrants have been pouring in every day, paying traffickers roughly $10,000 for flight packages they hope will help them reach the United States. The surge of African migrants in the Bogotá airport, which began last year, is a vivid example of the impact of one of the largest global movements of people in decades and how it is shifting migration patterns. With some African countries confronting economic crisis and political upheaval, and Europe cracking down on immigration, many more Africans are making the far longer journey to the U.S. The migrants in Bogotá come mainly from West African countries such as Guinea, Mauritania, Senegal and Sierra Leone, though some are from as far east as Somalia. They are bound for Nicaragua, the only country in Central America where citizens from many African nations — and from Haiti, Cuba and Venezuela — can enter without a visa. Experts say the country’s president, Daniel Ortega, loosened visa requirements in recent years to compel the United States to lift sanctions on his authoritarian government. To reach Nicaragua, migrants embark on a journey of several stops, flying to hubs like Istanbul, then on to Colombia, where many fly to El Salvador and then to Nicaragua. (There are no direct flights between Colombia and Nicaragua). Once there, they head northward again, by land, toward Mexico and the U.S. border. The trip, which has been called by airline employees “the luxury route,’’ bypasses the dangerous jungle pass linking South and North America called the Darién Gap.
Why some African countries have strange shapes
Arbitrary boundaries were drawn on maps to separate European colonies in Africa. Most of those lines drawn on a Berlin Conference table between 1884 and 1885 are still in place today – with deadly consequences. For example, the Caprivi Strip, Namibia, looks like a pan handle, was created when German Chancellor Leo von Caprivi negotiated with Britain for a strip of land that would allow German access through South West Africa to the Zambezi River, which Germany knew mouthed in East Africa. For this potential trade route, Germany agreed to recognize British influence over Zanzibar and Pemba, just off the coast of German East Africa, and Germany would get the tiny naval base of Heligoland in the North Sea off the German coast. This became known as the 1890 Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty between Britain and Germany. The on-the-ground consequences of this geographical oddity were severe. Multiple ethnic groups, who spoke over a dozen languages, suddenly found themselves in different colonial territories…From the 1960s, the Caprivi Strip’s strategic geopolitical location meant it was hotbed of war and incursions between South African military forces and liberation fighters launching cross border raids related to the Angola Civil War, the Border War and the Rhodesian Bush War. That’s three separate conflicts which had very little to do with the people living there, and everything to do with foreign powers trying to assert dominance over the region. In Cameroon, the Bakassi conflict erupted in the 2000s between Nigeria and Cameroon over the Bakassi peninsula. Here, Nigerian nationals had lived for generations on land claimed by Cameroon based on colonial era agreements. Sporadic clashes still occur, despite an International Court of Justice ruling in Cameroon’s favor. And in Tanzania, thanks to the 1890 Heligoland Zanzibar Treaty, the very same deal that created the Caprivi Strip there is a long running dispute with Malawi over who controls Lake Malawi or Lake Nyasa, as Tanzanians call it, there is a dispute over where the border lies.
UN – RELATED NEWS
UNODC’s Ghada Waly tackles organized crime and piracy threats in Somalia
The Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Ghada Waly has highlighted the threats of transnational organized crime, terrorism and corruption that is plaguing Somalia. On a mission to the Horn of Africa nation, Executive Director Waly underscored on Friday that “Somalia faces daunting challenges that range from terrorism to resurgent piracy, poverty and the consequences of climate change.”Ms. Waly said interlinked threats included piracy, illegal fishing, different types of trafficking and smuggling together with terrorism, all underpinned by money laundering and corruption. These threats also have an impact far beyond Somalia. Firearms trafficking across the Gulf of Aden supplies Al-Shabaab and other terrorist groups while migrant smugglers operating along Somalia’s northern coast transfer people towards the Arabian Peninsula. At the same time, unregulated foreign fishing fleets are exploiting Somalia’s marine resources, threatening biodiversity and livelihoods in the Indian Ocean. Drug trafficking could also be an expanding threat, Ms. Waly added, due to the difficulty of policing Somalia’s long coastline and the country’s connectivity in terms of air travel.
VIDEO OF THE DAY:
Fighting back: Quane Martin Dibobe
Quane Martin Dibobe campaigned for human rights and equality between Germany and its colonies. But his remarkably story, which included becoming Berlin’s first African train driver in the early 1900s, revealed how fundamentally flawed Germany’s attitudes were to people from Cameroon and other colonies.
AFRICA NEWS PODCASTS
The traumatic legacy of colonial era vaccination programs
Tropical medicine boomed as European powers claimed territories in Africa. Germany sent the famed Robert Koch and many others to the colonies to find cures to tropical illnesses – but also to test new medicines. This shadowy practice led to Africans being mistreated, and many died in the process, leaving a legacy of physical and psychological trauma that has never been properly cured.
AFRICA – ANALYSIS, EDITORIAL/OPINION
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Competition for junior partner status in a possible coalition Government In South Africa
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Critical UN fact-finding mission in Sudan hobbled
Sudanese democracy should not be US-made
Protecting climate refugees requires a legal definition
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