AFRICA

The Islamic State (IS) group has confirmed for the first time that it is engaged in heavy fighting with al-Qaeda linked militants in Mali and Burkina Faso. In its online publication, al-Naba, it described members of al-Qaeda’s Sahel affiliate as apostates and wild dogs. IS said it had targeted its …

President Cyril Ramaphosa has convened a virtual consultative meeting with Heads of State and Government from neighbouring countries to discuss responses to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Today’s meeting, which will be chaired by President Ramaphosa, aims to afford countries the chance to share views on coordinated responses to curb the …

Police in Dedza has arrested 22-year-old Daniel Sambani for killing his mother’s boyfriend. Dedza Police Deputy spokesperson Cassim Manda said Sambani was infuriated by the relationship that his mother identified as Seleniya Tsamba had with the man identified as Harold Sosola. According to Manda, Sambani’s mother started the affair with …

A virtual meeting held by a South African parliamentary committee has been hacked and the speaker abused. The programming committee’s session had just started on Thursday morning when pornographic images appeared on the screen and a male voice hurled insults at Speaker Thandi Modise, who was chairing it. The outraged …

Africa is the only continent in the world where deforestation is accelerating, according to key findings of a five-year report released Thursday by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In South America, where some countries have been blamed for rampant forest exploitation, the rate of forest loss was …

Mercenaries working for the Russian private military contractor Wagner PMC (Private Military Company) are operating in Libya, according to UN diplomats. The Reuters news agency reports that the contractor has clandestinely deployed up to 1,200 people to help Libya’s renegade General Khalifa Haftar. It quotes an experts’ report submitted to …

Ghana is to receive quantities of Madagascar’s highly publicized Covid-19 remedy and preventative herbal mixture, the Ghana Health Service has revealed. According to Director of Public Health at the Ghana Helth Service Dr Badu Sarkodie, Madagascar has made an offer to Ghana concerning the herbal solution but the FDA will …

Floods and landslides in Kenya have killed nearly 200 people since heavy rain began last month across much of the country. Another 100,000 people have been displaced. A statement from the presidency said thousands of hectares of crops had been swept away. The rain is expected to continue for weeks. …

A massive fire broke out at a residential tower in Al Nahda, Sharjah on Tuesday night. According to reports, the fire broke out on the 10th floor of the Abbco Tower at 9.04 pm. Nine people sustained minor injuries and were being treated on-site, Col. Sami Khamis Al Naqbi, Director …

Two inmates have died of Covid-19 in an East London prison, the correctional services department said on Tuesday. Both had “underlying comorbid conditions,” said spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo. A third inmate death – this one at a Western Cape facility – was “under investigation”. There have been an additional six cases …