Rebel Advance Causes Panic in Congolese Border Town Uvira
Volleys of gunfire rang out in Democratic Republic of Congo’s eastern border town of Uvira on Wednesday, local sources said, as clashes broke out among allied forces amid the advance of Rwanda-backed rebels. Residents and officials described scenes of looting, bodies lying in the street, and government soldiers commandeering boats to flee across Lake Tanganyika. The local prison was also emptied, they said. The M23 rebels have been moving south towards Uvira, which shares a lake border with Burundi, since they seized the provincial capital Bukavu over the weekend – the heaviest loss for Congo since the fall of the region’s largest city Goma in late January. The militants’ reported entry into the town of Kamanyola on Tuesday has caused panic in Uvira, 80 km (50 miles) to the south…A humanitarian source said there were bodies lying in the streets, around 30 bodies in the town’s morgue, and more than 100 people hospitalised with serious injuries as a result of the violence…Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said clashes and armed looting in Uvira were blocking ambulances and had forced the charity to reduce its staff in the town. Reuters
Congolese Church Leaders Push for Peace Talks between Government, Rebels
Congolese religious leaders are aiming to organise peace talks that would bring President Felix Tshisekedi’s government, Rwanda-backed M23 rebels and exiled opposition figures around the same table, two officials said Wednesday…”We, the two churches, Catholic and Protestant, are trying to get the whole world around one table,” Msgr. Donatien Nshole, secretary-general of the influential Catholic bishops conference (CENCO), said in an interview in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, where he met with President William Ruto to discuss how to combine regional mediation efforts with national ones…Nshole and Reverend Eric Nsenga of the Church of Christ in Congo (ECC), a union of dozens of Protestant denominations, spoke ahead of their return to Congo following a diplomatic tour with stops in Goma, Brussels and Kigali. They met rebel leader Corneille Nangaa, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and Congolese opposition figures such as Moise Katumbi and loyalists of former President Joseph Kabila. On Thursday, they plan to hold a prayer event in Lubumbashi announcing a national dialogue initiative that will cover issues ranging from the country’s mining policies to the disarmament of armed groups. Reuters
Congo Has Asked Chad for Military Support to Help Fight Rebels, Sources Say
Democratic Republic of Congo has asked Chad for military support to help fight a spiralling insurgency by Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in its eastern provinces, a Chadian official and a source at the Congolese presidency said. Congo’s Minister of Regional Integration met with Chad’s President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno on Tuesday on behalf of Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, Chad’s presidency said in a Facebook post. Details on the discussions were not disclosed. A Chadian official with knowledge of the discussions said Chad was considering a request for support from Congo, but had not yet made a decision on the request…Last week, Chad’s Foreign Affairs Minister told Reuters that sending military support to Congo was “pure speculation”. Reuters
UN Confirms Famine in 5 Areas of Sudan, Warns of Catastrophic Hunger
The United Nations warned on Wednesday that famine conditions have been confirmed in at least five areas of Sudan, with children and pregnant women suffering from acute malnutrition as conflict rages. Spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters that the Famine Review Committee of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) had confirmed “reasonable evidence of famine conditions” in Zamzam, Abu Shouk and Al Salam camps in North Darfur, and two locations in the Western Nuba Mountains. “There are reports of people dying of starvation in some areas like Darfur, Kordofan and Khartoum,” Dujarric said, adding that approximately 638,000 people are in “catastrophic hunger conditions,” classified as IPC phase 5. He described the situation as “horrific and sad,” noting that a record 4.7 million children under the age of five, as well as pregnant and breastfeeding women and girls, are suffering from acute malnutrition. Sudan Tribune
African Union Calls for Ramadan Ceasefire in Sudan, Condemns External Actors
The African Union’s Peace and Security Council on Wednesday urged warring parties in Sudan to observe a humanitarian ceasefire during the holy month of Ramadan, which begins in March. Last Friday, the council convened a special session to discuss developments in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. On Wednesday, the second round of Sudanese preparatory talks began in Addis Ababa under the auspices of the African Union Commission. In a statement seen by Sudan Tribune, the council expressed deep concern over the continued escalation of the conflict between the warring parties, particularly the ongoing commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other serious human rights violations, as well as violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law…The council also reiterated its condemnation of all forms of external interference that fuel the Sudanese conflict, which is a flagrant violation of all Security Council resolutions, and demanded that they stop immediately. It called on all actors, including states and non-governmental entities, to cease all military and financial support to the warring parties. Sudan Tribune
France Returns Its Sole Ivory Coast Military Base to Local Authorities
Ministers from France and Ivory Coast signed a document confirming the return of the military base shortly after the Ivorian flag was raised in the base’s parade ground. The 230-hectare Port-Bouet military camp flanking Ivory Coast’s main city has been a fixture in the country’s life for decades and helped stabilise the world’s top cocoa producer after coups and unrest broke out in the stable nation after 2000. The withdrawal of French troops, announced by Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara in December, is part of a regional trend of African countries diluting military ties with France. The links between the two armies date back to the early 1960s and a defence agreement signed between the two countries in the aftermath of Ivory Coast’s independence. About 1,000 French soldiers were deployed in Port-Bouet and helped in the fight against jihadists, who launch regular attacks across the wider region. Both sides said the handover had been agreed upon and carried out harmoniously. France24 with AFP
Barrick Gold Signs Agreement with Mali to End Mining Dispute
Canadian miner Barrick Gold has signed a new agreement with the Malian government to end an almost two-year-old dispute over its mining assets in the West African country, four people familiar with the developments told Reuters on Wednesday. Barrick has signed the agreement and it is now up to Mali’s government to formally approve the deal, the sources told Reuters. An official announcement could come as early as Thursday. Another source said that though a deal was close, last minute hurdles could still derail it. The Toronto-based miner and Mali have been locked in a dispute since 2023 over the implementation of the West African country’s new mining code that gives Mali’s government a greater share in the gold mine. As part of the new agreement, Barrick will pay a total of 275 billion CFA or $438 million to the Mali government, in return for the release of detained employees, seized gold, and restarting the operations at the Loulo-Gounkoto mine…Military governments in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso are using legal disputes, arrests, and nationalisations, as well as threats to deepen their ties with Russia, to assert greater control over their gold and uranium wealth. Reuters
Uganda Discharges the Last Ebola Patients. No New Deaths from the Contagious Virus Reported
Uganda discharged on Tuesday the last eight patients who recovered from Ebola, health authorities reported, and there were no other positive cases in the outbreak declared last month. World Health Organization described the recoveries as a milestone that “reflects the power of Uganda’s quick and coordinated response.” Most of the Ebola patients were treated at the main referral facility in the Ugandan capital, Kampala. The lone Ebola victim was a male nurse who died the day before the outbreak was declared in Kampala on Jan. 30. His relatives are among those later hospitalized with Ebola. Tracing contacts is key to stemming the spread of Ebola, which manifests as a viral hemorrhagic fever. Ugandan officials documented at least 265 contacts, and at least 90 of them have completed a period of quarantine during which they were monitored for signs of Ebola, Health Minister Jane Ruth Aceng told reporters in Kampala. AP
Morocco’s ‘Pablo Escobar of the Sahara’ Trial Takes a Dramatic Turn
With 25 defendants, including prominent political and business figures, a closely watched trial in Morocco has exposed how hundreds of tonnes of cannabis have been smuggled across borders. The case revolves around Abdenbi Bioui, a former regional council president and politician from Morocco’s Authenticity and Modernity Party, accused of running one of the country’s largest drug trafficking networks. He is on trial alongside two dozen others, including former football club president Saïd Naciri, on charges of drug trafficking, corruption, document forgery and witness tampering…The case was brought to light when a convicted drug lord, El Hadj Ahmed Ben Ibrahim — nicknamed the ‘Pablo Escobar of the Sahara’ — accused Bioui and others of being key figures in an international drug operation. His testimony led to a broader investigation exposing a massive trafficking network…Investigators revealed that Bioui allegedly smuggled over 200 tonnes of cannabis from Morocco to Algeria, with the drugs later making their way to Libya and Europe. Bioui, known in the underworld as ‘Le Maltais’, allegedly used a structured network involving small-scale farmers near the Algerian border, corrupt officials, and even military personnel. The Africa Report
Souleymane Cissé, One of the Fathers of African Cinema, Dies at 84
Malian director Souleymane Cissé, one of the fathers of African cinema, died Wednesday, February 19, in a Bamako clinic aged 84…Cissé won the jury’s prize at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival for Yeelen, which draws on legends from West Africa’s Bambara people. In 2023, Cannes honored him again with the Carrosse d’Or, an award given to directors who have “marked the history of cinema with their boldness, their exacting standards and their intransigence in staging.” He is one of two only filmmakers to have twice won the grand prize at Burkina Faso’s Panafrican Film and Television Festival (FESPACO), among the largest and most prestigious in Africa…Cissé championed the cinema of his home country and continent till the end of his life. In his 2023 Cannes interview with AFP he criticied the “censorship” and “contempt” that he said prevented African films being distributed around the world. Even on the day of his death, he urged the military leaders in Mali – which declared 2025 a year of culture – to help the country’s industry catch up with its continental rivals. “It is not enough to make cinema, the works must also be visible. May the authorities help us with the construction of cinemas,” he told a press conference on Wednesday morning. Le Monde with AFP