Cracks emerge in South Africa’s ruling coalition as President Ramaphosa is told to take responsibility for death of 87 miners
The tragedy at the abandoned gold mine near the town of Stilfontein began to unfold in August, when police cut off food supplies for a period of time to the miners working illegally in the mine’s tunnels.
Africa’s invisible wars, visible suffering: Conflicts are compounded by vulnerabilities, mass displacement and lack of political attention
Despite the grim realities, Patrick Youssef conveyed a note of optimism. He highlighted a MOU recently signed by the ICRC with the African Development Bank as a beacon of hope, and a positive step toward addressing these challenges collectively, in 2025.
Burundi’s pull out of soldiers from Somalia worries Bujumbura about how it’ll raise salaries for the military
As funding sources dried up in response to state repression, AMISOM participation became an increasingly important financial lifeline for Burundi’s government, which needed the revenue to pay its troops. Engaging in peacekeeping abroad had become vital to keeping peace at home.
Misfiring Nigerian military comes under searing criticism after its airstrikes kill 400 civilians
Since 2017, the military has killed about 400 civilians, according to SBM Intelligence, a Lagos-based research firm that gathered reports and data from affected villages regarding the airstrikes. Rights groups and citizens have expressed concern over the military’s actions in Africa’s most populous country, which has been battling violent security crises on multiple fronts for many years.
South African police end mine rescue operation with at least 78 dead and 246 survivors
Authorities launched the rescue effort on Monday in response to a court order last week ordering them to do so. A specialist mining rescue company had been dropping a small cage thousands of meters down a shaft to retrieve survivors and bodies. But no personnel from the company went down because they considered it too dangerous – instead two community volunteers were in the cage to help the miners out.
Trade unions in South Africa accuse state of ‘horrific’ crackdown as 78 corpses pulled from illegal mine
Mametlwe Sebei, a trade union leader who has been trying to help the miners, said police had begun attempting to force the miners up to the surface in August by removing a pulley system used to deliver food and water supplies to them. Sebei said some miners had died crawling through flooded tunnels in an attempt to reach shafts that would have allowed them to climb out.
China’s credit cuts to Kenya forces the East African nation to turn to UAE for railway financing
Trade between Kenya and the UAE has more than doubled over the last decade, Ruto’s office said. The UAE is the sixth biggest export market for Kenyan goods, and its second biggest source of imports. The value of the trade stood at Ksh445 billion ($3.44 billion) in 2023, with the UAE buying agricultural products, while Kenya imports petroleum products, machinery and chemicals.
UN says 21,000 child soldiers are fighting in Africa’s multiple civil wars with girls most vulnerable conscripts
The economic impact of using child soldiers significantly hampers national development. Missing out on schooling results in lost human capital and reduced productivity, contributing to long-term economic stagnation, decreased workforce participation, higher poverty rates and reduced foreign investment due to ongoing instability.
Defiant Mozambique opposition leader returns from self-imposed exile, maintains he won presidency
Venancio Mondlane left the country in October following an election clouded by allegations of rigging against the long-ruling Frelimo party, which has been in power since Mozambique gained independence from Portugal in 1975.
‘Disorganised and intoxicated by alcohol and drugs’ insurgents shot dead in Chad’s presidential palace
In an interview with state TV, Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah praised the vigilance of the palace guards, describing the attackers as disorganised and intoxicated by alcohol and drugs.
