Mystery of Big Bang persists as scientists discover ‘early dark energy’ of the expanding Universe
There are hints of a previously unknown, primordial form of the substance could explain why the cosmos now seems to be expanding faster than theory predicts. Cosmologists have found signs that a second type of dark energy – the ubiquitous but enigmatic substance that is pushing the current Universe’s expansion...
Scientists warn the world should brace for more coronavirus-like infections as others emerge from bats
Only two new coronaviruses have spread globally the past two decades: SARS-CoV, which caused an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003 and SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. But that may just be the tip of the iceberg of undetected infections with related viruses emerging from bats,...
Evergreen Senegalese star Sadio Mane scores his Liverpool century against Crystal Palace at Ainfield
Sadio Mane scored his 100th goal for Liverpool in his 224th appearance as they claimed a 3-0 victory at home against Crystal Palace, with Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita scoring the other goals. Jurgen Klopp changed his entire back four compared to the lineup that had faced AC Milan in...
Arsenal survive second half Burnley pressure to pick second Premier League win
Ben White survived an almighty scare as Arsenal hung on to claim a vital 1-0 win against Burnley on Saturday afternoon. The £50 million summer signing from Brighton was the most relieved man in Turf Moor when the VAR overturned a Clarets penalty after confirming Aaron Ramsdale had in fact...
Burundi genocide: A guard walked over to lift the security barrier; I was looking at the man who tried to stab me two decades earlier
In the northern province of Kirundo, I met the daughter of a Tutsi army corporal – Emmanuel Ndahigeze – killed for the crime of feeding Hutu prisoners. And in Makamba, Hutu residents told me about a Tutsi pastor who challenged soldiers carrying a list of Hutus to be killed in...
How safe city tech turned 8 African countries, including Kenya and Senegal, into ‘Chinese data colonies’
Chinese technology firms have been peddling “safe city” and “smart city” packages of technology in Africa for years. Suites of interconnected products and services include surveillance equipment, communications tools and digital municipal management systems. Billed as public safety tools, the programmes are increasingly used to control the population and crack...
Burundi: Ethnic violence never used to be a problem, differences in class were less about Hutus and Tutsis
In September 2020, I met Jean Marie, a young man who was patiently exhuming a grave in southern Burundi’s Makamba province, where I was born. He told me the events of 1972 had trapped his family in decades of hardship. His grandfather – the main breadwinner – was killed during...
Demand for exotic pets and human-wildlife conflict driving cheetah numbers in eastern Africa to extinction
Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) has warned that the cheetah population in the Horn of Africa is hurtling towards extinction as demand for the big cats rises in the Middle East and human-wildlife conflict escalate in source countries in Eastern Africa. Data tallied by CCF show that 300 cheetah cubs were...
Kenyan president moves offices as pressure to ditch ex-PM, pick former finance minister to succeed him piles
Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta’s kitchen cabinet is reportedly divided on who should succeed him, with concerns growing that the president’s choice of Raila Odinga will hand Deputy President William Ruto a rollercoaster run to the helm. With family and community interests at stake, President Kenyatta is said to be re-evaluating...
Kenyan clergymen land from Paradise, find president and deputy ‘talking in tongues’
Some religious leaders have been sojourning in Mars – or even further in the outer space! They touched down in Kenya from Wonderland aboard Savannah Galactica only to find that their President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto are speaking at cross-purposes mostly of late. As they say in...
