Tag: Africa

Int’l Court Sentences Ugandan to 25 Years for War Crimes

THE HAGUE, Netherlands—The International Criminal Court sentenced a Ugandan former child soldier who turned into a brutal rebel commander to 25 years’ imprisonment on May 6, with judges saying that his own abduction as a schoolboy and history as a child soldier prevented him from being sentenced to life. Dominic Ongwen was convicted in February of a…


29 Nigerian Students Released 2 Months After Being Kidnapped

KADUNA, Nigeria—Kidnappers have released the remaining 29 students they were holding captive on Wednesday, nearly two months after abducting them from a forestry college in Nigeria’s Kaduna state. Gunmen took 39 students from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization in northwest Nigeria on March 11 and previously released 10 of them. The newly released students…


Islamic Leader Slain in East Congo After Attacks Killing 19

BENI, Congo—An Islamic leader in Congo’s eastern town of Beni was killed during evening prayers by unidentified gunmen after days of violent attacks by rebels left at least 19 people dead, officials said. Gunmen came into Beni’s central mosque Saturday, shooting dead Sheikh Ali Amin Uthman, the representative of the Islamic community of Beni, according…


Somalia’s Parliament Votes to Cancel Presidential Term Extension

MOGADISHU—Somali lawmakers voted unanimously on Saturday to cancel a two-year presidential term extension they had approved last month, after clashes in the capital Mogadishu between factions of the security forces, which are divided over the issue. In a speech following the vote in the lower house of parliament, Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble ordered the…


Chadian Rebels Claim They Have Shot Down Military Helicopter

N’DJAMENA, Chad—Rebels seeking to overthrow Chad’s new transitional government claimed Thursday to have shot down a military helicopter, while the junta in power warned political opponents not to renew protests after violent demonstrations earlier in the week left at least six people dead. The Chadian government has said that the rebels blamed for killing President…


As Kidnapping Crisis in Nigeria Deepens, One Couple Decides to Move Out

For middle-aged couple Nehemiah and Tassi Ghata, the fact that Boko Haram terrorists threaten their Nigerian capital is the least of their worries. Having been kidnapped three times out of their own home within the last 14 months, they have decided to call it quits and sell their comfortable house. “When I think about my…


2 Spanish Citizens Dead After Attack in East Burkina Faso

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso—Two Spanish citizens have been killed in an ambush in eastern Burkina Faso, the Spanish government said on Tuesday. The Spanish journalists and an Irish citizen went missing during an attack by gunmen Monday near a national park, said Arancha González Laya, Spain’s foreign affairs minister, in a press conference. The two Spaniards…


Boko Haram Moves to Northwest Nigeria, Threatening Nation’s Capital

The military of Nigeria, Africa’s most populous state, is scrambling to contain an invasion of ISIS-allied Boko Haram in its bandit-prone Northwestern State of Niger, The Epoch Times has learned. Gov. Sani Bello of Niger State called for an immediate counterattack by the Army to dislodge bandits and “elements of Boko Haram” that have displaced…


Zimbabwe Air Force Helicopter Crashes Into House, 4 Killed Including Child

HARARE—An Air Force of Zimbabwe helicopter crashed on Friday, killing three crew members and a child on the ground as it came down on a house, the Air Force said in a statement. The helicopter was on a training mission, with two pilots and a technician when it disappeared on the radar. It came down…


Faith Leaders, Businessmen, Political Leaders Call for African Development, Countering China’s Belt and Road

Former Secretary of State Michael Pompeo has endorsed an effort to jumpstart the economies of Africa through a bottom-up revolution of African entrepreneurs. That revolution involves countering China’s efforts to dominate the continent while articulating a Christian approach to Africa’s development. Pompeo gave the keynote speech April 13 at a summit of CEOs and African…