US Sanctions 3 People, 2 Firms over Allegedly Recruiting Colombian Mercenaries in Sudan War
The U.S. imposed sanctions on three people and two firms over allegedly recruiting and deploying Colombian mercenaries to fight alongside the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Sudan’s war, which has entered its fourth year with no end in sight. The sanctions, announced by the Department of Treasury late Friday, were the latest by the United States on the RSF, which have been at war against the Sudanese military since April 2023. … The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said the sanctioned individuals and firms were involved in “recruiting and deploying former Colombian military personnel to Sudan to fight on behalf of the RSF.” They include a Bogota, Colombia-based employment agency, Fénix, which was established last year as a replacement of another firm, A4SI, that the U.S. sanctioned in December also for aiding the RSF. Both firms were founded by Alvaro Andres Quijano Becerra, a retired Colombian military officer, and his wife. They are also on a Sudan-related sanctions list, according to the Treasury’s statement. … It said that hundreds of former Colombian soldiers have been deployed to Sudan since 2024 to assist the paramilitaries in the war, “serving in combat and technical roles and participating in battles across the country.” AP
Sudan Rights Group Denounces Campaign against Member over Chemical Weapon Report
The Emergency Lawyers group on Saturday denounced an “incitement campaign” targeting executive office member Rehab Mubarak following her report on the alleged use of chlorine gas as a chemical weapon in Sudan’s conflict. Sudanese judicial authorities announced on Friday they had begun legal proceedings against Mubarak. Officials accused her of spreading “misleading” information that harms national security. The rights group said in a statement that the campaign is part of a “worrying escalation” in the targeting of human rights defenders. It noted that attacks have become organized digital efforts involving defamation to silence those documenting violations. Media platforms and social networks have been used to level vague accusations and call for Mubarak’s prosecution, the group added. It argued these moves seek to undermine the credibility of human rights work and create a hostile environment that threatens the safety and independence of activists. Sudan Tribune
Pope Urges Angola to Heal Divisions at Events Drawing 130,000
Pope Leo urged Angolans on Sunday to overcome divisions after decades of war, first at a Mass in a field outside Luanda and then in a prayer at a site that was once a hub for transatlantic slavery, events that jointly drew roughly 130,000 people. … During the Mass, he called Angola, which experienced a 27-year civil conflict from 1975 to 2002, a “beautiful yet wounded country”. He urged Angolans to “build together a country where old divisions are overcome once and for all, where hatred and violence disappear.” At the shrine, about 130 km (81 miles) southeast of the capital on the edge of the Kwanza River, throngs of people danced and sang in hot, humid weather as the pope was driven through the crowd in a white golf cart. The shrine, now a popular religious site, was built as part of a 16th-century Portuguese fortress at the heart of the trade that historians estimate captured some six million people from what is now Angola to enslave and send to the Americas. … Leo is visiting Angola on the third leg of a four-nation Africa tour. In a speech to the country’s political leaders on Saturday, he decried the exploitation of natural resources on the continent. The pope criticised “despots and tyrants” who he said guarantee wealth but do not deliver on their promises, leading to suffering and deaths. Reuters
Arrests Fuel Fears among Madagascar’s Gen Z Protesters that New Regime No Better than One They Overthrew
The arrest of several protesters in Madagascar has increased fears among young people that the military regime that took power last year after huge Gen Z demonstrations will be no better than the government it overthrew. Four Gen Z activists, Herizo Andriamanantena, Miora Rakotomalala, Dina Randrianarisoa and Nomena Ratsihorimanana, were arrested on 12 April, one of their lawyers said, two days after taking part in a protest calling for an election date to be set. … Col Michael Randrianirina came to power in a coup in October 2025 after weeks of youth-led protests under the banner Gen Z Madagascar. … Young people had been jubilant when the previous president, Andry Rajoelina, fled in October. However, many have since become disenchanted by Randrianirina’s choice of government officials, whom they see as being part of the old, corrupt elite; a lack of economic reforms; and the new regime’s closeness to Russia. The arrests raise “serious concerns around the respect for fundamental freedoms,” said Ketakandriana Rafitoson, a Transparency International Madagascar board member. “It is a pattern we saw under the previous administration and one that many hoped would be broken with the transition. So [last] Friday’s protests were a test for this regime and they failed it.” The Guardian
UN Relief Chief Warns South Sudan Nearing Famine
U.N. relief chief Tom Fletcher warned Friday that South Sudan is at risk of sliding into famine amid escalating conflict, rising hunger and dwindling international support. Briefing the United Nations Security Council by video link, Fletcher described a worsening crisis following a recent visit to the country, where many people expressed a sense of “despair and abandonment.” … “I fear my next briefing to you on South Sudan will speak of famine. More than 7.5 million people will need food assistance this year,” Fletcher said. To avert famine and a broader collapse, Fletcher urged the council to act in three areas: ensuring rapid and unhindered humanitarian access, increasing flexible funding, and pressing all parties to respect international humanitarian law. He also stressed the need for a political solution, calling for renewed efforts to uphold ceasefire agreements and implement the country’s revitalized peace deal. “Humanitarian action can save lives, but only peace can end this crisis,” he said. Radio Tamazuj
UN Welcomes Progress on Talks between DR Congo, M23 Armed Group
“The DRC and AFC/M23 (the parties) agreed on the critical importance of ensuring life-saving humanitarian assistance for the people of eastern DRC,” a statement issued Sunday by both sides – mediators and other attendees – reads. The parties agreed to “facilitate rapid, unimpeded, safe, and sustained humanitarian access,” and to release prisoners within 10 days as part of efforts “to continue building confidence”. The statement followed five days of talks in Switzerland last week, mediated by Qatar, as mediators push to resolve a years-long conflict that has continued despite a series of peace deals. The two sides “agreed to comply with all of their obligations under international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and international refugee law, as applicable”. … DR Congo and M23 also signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a ceasefire monitoring body to track humanitarian and security developments and monitor potential ceasefire violations. … Kinshasa and M23 signed a US-brokered peace agreement in last December but fighting has continued. RFI
DRC Tightens Grip on Cobalt Supply with Strategic Reserve Shift
The Democratic Republic of Congo has transferred management of its strategic mineral reserve to the markets regulator, which will acquire, hold and market critical resources. The decision was approved by the Council of Ministers on April 10, 2026. It grants the Autorité de Régulation et de Contrôle des Marchés des Substances Minérales Stratégiques (Arecoms) powers to manage a strategic reserve aimed at stabilising markets, supporting development and strengthening economic sovereignty. In a statement, Kinshasa said the reserve, covering cobalt and other critical minerals, would allow it to stockpile unused export quotas and exert greater control over global supply. … The strategic reserve adds a further layer of market control, allowing the state to intervene in mineral supply to help stabilise global prices and reinforce economic sovereignty. Congo is the world’s largest producer of cobalt, a key component in electric vehicle batteries, accounting for about 70 percent of global supply last year. The East African
Botswana Seals Energy, Mining Deals with Oman
Botswana has signed energy and mining exploration agreements with Oman as it seeks to deepen economic ties with the sultanate, the presidency said. The Southern Africa nation has been courting Gulf states as it seeks to diversify an economy heavily reliant on diamonds, of which it is the world’s leading producer by value. President Duma Boko and Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq agreed to develop a 500-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant with battery storage, the presidency said on Monday. The two sides also signed a joint exploration agreement covering copper, gold, graphite and iron ore. AFP
India is Considering Request from Mauritius for Energy Supplies
India is considering a request for energy supplies from Mauritius and wants a government-to-government pact with the country, Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday, adding that New Delhi has also received a similar request from Seychelles. India is already shipping fuel to neighbours Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka and had received a request from Maldives as well. India, which depends on the Strait of Hormuz for 40% of its crude imports, has been invited by Britain and France to join their initiative to open the key conduit, Jaiswal told reporters during a briefing. Reuters
Nigeria, Morocco Plan Transcontinental Gas Pipeline
An intergovernmental agreement between Nigeria and Morocco for a $25 billion gas pipeline is due to be signed this year, according to the head of Morocco’s hydrocarbons and mining agency. The project, known as the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline, will run for 6,900 kilometers (4,200 miles) on a hybrid offshore-onshore route. With a maximum capacity of 30 billion cubic meters, it will supply Morocco and carry exports to Europe, an agency representative told Reuters, with gas from the initial phases — connecting Morocco to gas fields in Mauritania and Senegal — expected in 2031. Later stages will link Ghana to Côte d’Ivoire, with a final segment connecting Ghana to Nigeria’s gas fields. Funding details have not yet been finalized. Semafor
Togo Deepens Diplomatic Ties with Sahel States
Togolese authorities organized a high-level meeting on Saturday, April 18, 2026, bringing together a large official delegation from Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali. … The President of the ECOWAS Commission and the regional institution’s mediator responsible for the separation process with the Sahelian States Alliance also attended. Togolese Foreign Minister Professor Robert Dussey took the opportunity to present Togo’s new cooperation strategy with the Sahelian States Alliance, covering the period 2026-2028. … As a reminder, Togo had already established a strategy for its diplomatic relations with the Sahel countries covering the period 2021-2025. Joy Online
AU Condemns Israel’s Decision to Appoint Diplomatic Envoy to Somaliland
The African Union (AU) on Sunday “strongly condemned” reports of Israel’s decision to appoint a diplomatic envoy to the “so-called Somaliland.” In a statement issued on Sunday, the 55-member continental organization expressed “deep concern” regarding recent developments on Israel’s reported decision to appoint a diplomatic envoy to Somaliland, a self-declared region of Somalia. The AU reaffirmed its “unwavering respect for the sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of Somalia” in accordance with the Constitutive Act of the African Union and international law. “The African Union does not recognize Somaliland as an independent state,” the statement read. … Recalling an AU Peace and Security Council communique that was issued in January, it underscored that “any unilateral recognition of Somaliland is null and void.” It warned that such actions risk undermining regional stability. On Dec 26, 2025, Israel became the first country in the world to formally recognize Somaliland as a sovereign state, prompting immediate condemnation from Somalia and the international community. Garowe Online
Ghana Rescues 305 West African Nationals, Including 113 Children, in Anti-trafficking Operation
More than 300 West African nationals, including 113 children, have been rescued after an intelligence-led bust by the Ghana Immigration Service on street begging networks in the capital of Accra, the agency said on Thursday. The operation early Wednesday targeted suspected street begging rings exploiting foreign nationals linked to human trafficking across parts of the Greater Accra Region. According to a U.S. State Department report in 2024, Ghana does not meet the minimum standards for eliminating human trafficking despite efforts by the government. It is a source, transit and destination country for human trafficking in West Africa. The country breakdown of the 305 nationals was not provided, but it is said to include 36 boys, 77 girls, 66 women and 126 men. The agency said the high number of minors highlighted growing concerns over the use of children in organized begging schemes linked to human trafficking, and the operation was carried out to disrupt networks that exploit foreign nationals, particularly women and children, often under coercive arrangements. AP