Rethinking Congo peace: Eastern DRC plans should prioritise humanitarian, not militarised interventions
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has struggled with a multifaceted humanitarian crisis since the 1990s. The situation worsened in the past two years as the number and magnitude of conflicts escalated, especially in the east. Millions have fled their homes, creating a significant demand for humanitarian assistance. The...
France announces radical policy change in Africa, vows to respect sovereignty of former colonies
The era of French interference in African affairs is “well over”, President Emmanuel Macron said in Gabon during his four-nation tour of central Africa. Speaking on the fringes of an environment summit in the Gabonese capital Libreville, Macron said France harboured no desire to return to past policies of interfering...
New WHO study links high incidence of heart diseases among African American women in US to racism
The rates of heart disease are higher among African Americans than any other ethnic group in the United States, new research finds. The research suggests that racism is associated with higher rates of heart disease in Black women. Two cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) – ischaemic heart disease and stroke – are,...
South Africa greylisted by G-20 for failing to act firmly on money laundering, terrorist financing
The greylisting of South Africa last month by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has made waves in the country, occupying substantial media attention. South Africa became only the second G20 country to have been greylisted other than Turkey – an embarrassing fall from grace. Nigeria’s addition to the list...
Somali national security adviser says Kenya and Ethiopia will contribute more troops to fight Al-Shabaab
Three neighbouring countries of Somalia are to send new troops to support Somali forces against al-Shabab in the next phase of military operations, the national security adviser for the Somali president said. In an interview with VOA’s Somali Service on Wednesday, Hussein Sheikh-Ali said Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya will be...
US cartoonist in trouble for Whites ‘assisting Blacks, Native Americans, Vietnamese, Iraqis and have never been thanked once’ remark
Wednesday’s peculiar Youtube remarks by Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams about Black Americans being a “hate group” have certainly received a lot of attention. Hundreds of newspapers across the US have now dropped Adams’s strip. What’s gotten almost no notice, however, is how Adams went on at length about his efforts...
Without giving actual numbers, new UN report says violence in South Sudan is up 87 per cent
Violence against South Sudanese civilians increased sharply at the end of last year according to the United Nations (UN) mission in the world’s youngest country. The latest quarterly brief compiled by UNMISS shows the number of civilians “harmed” was up 87 per cent – without giving actual numbers – for...
Ukraine reporter’s diary: When I visited Lidiia last she refused to move and vowed ‘I want to die in my bed’
The last time I visited Lidiia – an 85-year-old woman who lived alone in Mariinka, a town along the ‘line of contact’ that has been largely reduced to rubble – was in early February 2022, a couple of weeks before the full-scale invasion. The fighting around Mariinka was already intensifying,...
Ukraine reporter’s diary: After all the horror they’d experienced, the desperation I saw was hard to process
I’ve been covering conflict in Ukraine for more than eight years. I was in the country when Russia launched its full-scale invasion on February 24 last year and have visited several times since. Still, I was shocked by what I saw during my latest reporting trip in January. Before the...
Geneva report paints gory picture of cost of living in Haiti cities, security risks of economic collapse
Less than two years after Haiti’s president was assassinated in his home, a stranglehold of gang violence has made life for millions of residents all but impossible as national security forces struggle to contain it. Hunger levels and humanitarian needs are rising. But some 60per cent of the capital, Port-au-Prince,...
