Tag: Africa

US Mission to Nigeria Faulted as Genocidal Violence Intensifies

For 34-year-old conflict reporter Lawrence Zongo, Nigeria’s so-called “silent slaughter” struck too close to home this week. “On Monday, I helped bury my cousin, Wiki Moses, and her two small children,” he told The Epoch Times. She was among the 27 citizens of the Northern Plateau state who have fallen victim to terrorist attacks since…


Semenya Bids for 5,000 Meters Slot at Tokyo Olympics

CAPE TOWN—Caster Semenya, denied an opportunity to win a third successive Olympic 800 meters gold, will on Friday attempt to qualify for the Tokyo Games over 5,000 meters. Semenya will run in a meeting in Durban where she must dramatically improve her personal best over the distance to be able to go to the Olympics…


France’s Macron Admits Some Guilt for Rwanda’s Genocide

KIGALI, Rwanda—In a key speech on his visit to Rwanda, French President Emmanuel Macron said he recognizes that France bears a heavy responsibility for the 1994 genocide in the central African country. Macron solemnly detailed how France had failed the 800,000 victims of the genocide but he stopped short of an apology. France “was not…


Earthquakes at Congo Border Raise Fears of Second Volcano Eruption

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo—An earthquake measuring a magnitude 5.3 rocked the borderlands between Rwanda and Congo on Tuesday morning, the Rwandan Seismic Monitor said, raising worries about a fresh eruption following one on Saturday that killed at least 32 people. On Saturday Democratic Republic of Congo’s Mount Nyiragongo, one of the world’s most active…


Mali’s Coup Leader Dismisses President and Prime Minister

BAMAKO, Mali—Mali’s former coup leader Assimi Goita took control of the country again Tuesday after firing the president and prime minister of the transitional government after they announced a cabinet reshuffle without his permission. While Goita pledged to go ahead with holding new elections in 2022 as promised, his display of force casts doubt on…


China Expands Influence in Africa By Building Government Facilities, West Starting to Counter

In mid-May, China invested $35 million in Kenya to build a new foreign ministry building. It’s the latest in a series of investments and grants given by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to African countries, which allows the regime to expand its political and economic influence in the continent. China’s investment offers, mainly through its Belt…


Court Allows Suez Canal to Keep Holding Ever Given: Lawyers

CAIRO—An Egyptian court on Sunday rejected a complaint by the Japanese owner of a container ship that blocked traffic in the Suez Canal for six days in March against the vessel’s continued detention by canal authorities, a lawyer said. The Ever Given, one of the world’s largest container ships, became jammed across the canal in…


Madrid Says Western Sahara Independence Leader Must Answer Legal Case in Spain

MADRID—A Western Sahara independence leader at the centre of a diplomatic dispute between Rabat and Madrid must answer legal charges in Spain before leaving the country, Spain said on Sunday. Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said last month that Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali had arrived in Spain from Algeria for medical treatment. Spain’s…


France’s Foreign Minister Confirms Kidnapping of Journalist in Mali

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian confirmed on Sunday that a French journalist who disappeared in Mali last month was likely kidnapped by Islamist terrorists. Reporter Olivier Dubois was believed to have been kidnapped after his disappearance on April 8. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) announced Dubois’s kidnap on May 6 after a video was released that showed…


Congo Volcano Leaves Death and Smoking Wreckage, but Major City Spared

GOMA—A smoking trail of lava from a volcanic eruption covered hundreds of houses in eastern Congo on Sunday, leaving residents to pick gingerly through the wreckage for belongings and loved ones, though the flow halted just short of the city of Goma. Goma was thrown into panic on Saturday evening as Mount Nyiragongo, one of…