Congo Rebels Leave Strategic Town Ahead of Planned Doha Talks
Rwandan-backed M23 rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have withdrawn from the strategic town of Walikale, describing the move as a goodwill gesture ahead of planned peace talks with the government next week. M23 has seized eastern Congo’s two largest cities in a swift advance since January that has resulted in thousands of deaths and forced hundreds of thousands more from their homes. The fighting has raised fears of a wider regional war, as Congo’s neighbours Uganda and Burundi also have troops in the region. Congo’s government and M23 plan to hold their first direct talks in Doha on April 9, sources from both camps told Reuters this week. Situated along a road linking four eastern Congo provinces, Walikale is in an area rich in minerals including tin. M23 pledged to withdraw from Walikale last month but initially failed to do so, accusing the Congolese army of going back on its own commitments and not withdrawing attack drones. Two residents and a local official confirmed to Reuters this week that they had left the town. Army spokesperson Sylvain Ekenge told Reuters on Friday that Congolese troops were there, confirming M23 soldiers had left…Doctors Without Borders said this week that civilians, along with its own teams, had been trapped by the violence in Walikale and that essential medical supplies would soon run out there. Reuters
South Sudan: AU Panel’s Request to Meet Machar Declined
A request by the African Union (AU) Panel of the Wise to meet South Sudan’s First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar, who is under house arrest, has been denied, credible sources revealed. The AU dispatched the high-level delegation to Juba to address ongoing instability in the country. The United Nations, African Union, and regional leaders have condemned Machar’s detention, warning it risks destabilizing the fragile peace in the world’s youngest nation. According to a schedule seen by Radio Tamazuj on Thursday, the panel, led by former Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye, was due to meet Machar on Friday morning before holding talks with President Salva Kiir in the afternoon. The delegation’s visit aims to engage stakeholders to bolster mediation efforts and support implementation of the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement. The AU delegation arrived in Juba on Wednesday and met with Kiir, though few details emerged beyond brief statements reaffirming commitment to the peace deal…Multiple diplomatic sources, speaking anonymously to Radio Tamazuj on Friday morning, said Kiir told the AU panel on Wednesday that no one would be allowed to meet Machar until investigations conclude and he appears in court…Multiple sources also confirmed to Radio Tamazuj that no investigations have begun since Machar was placed under house arrest on March 26. Radio Tamazuj
Sudan: Starvation Threatens Sudan’s El Fasher as RSF Siege Cuts Supplies
The humanitarian situation in El Fasher, the capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state, has deteriorated sharply amid severe food shortages, residents and aid workers said. This has prompted activists to call for emergency airdrops to save a population facing starvation. El Fasher has been under a tightening siege by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2024. The RSF began ground attacks on the city in May 2024 using heavy weapons including artillery, drones and missiles, killing hundreds of civilians and displacing nearly one million people, according to humanitarian groups and local accounts. Mohamed Khamis Douda, a spokesperson for the vast Zamzam camp housing displaced people near El Fasher, said all markets there had shut. He told Sudan Tribune that shortages of basic goods and residents’ inability to afford those still available forced the closures. Community kitchens known as takaya and Red Cross distribution points providing meals to thousands have also stopped operating due to the lack of supplies, Douda said…Severe fuel shortages have also crippled water wells, with the price of a barrel of water soaring to between 15,000 and 20,000 Sudanese pounds (SDG), he said. An airdrop of five tonnes of food last week by regional and federal authorities was welcome but insufficient for the camp, which shelters over a million people, Douda said. He urged international and local aid organisations and authorities to establish an air bridge for food and medicine immediately “to preserve what remains of the population.” Sudan Tribune
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Appoints New Naval Commander
In a bid to strengthen water surveillance, Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud appointed a new naval commander, a move that comes at the time the government is working with stakeholders to stabilize the Horn of Africa nation. Maritime security has been a major issue for the last decade, with the Somali National Army (SNA) operating without the crucial naval component, raising questions about its ability to compete globally. On Wednesday, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud appointed Brigadier General Abdiwahab Abdullahi Omar as the new Commander of the Somali Navy, a move that signifies Somalia’s renewed energy to fight the war against Al-Shabaab…Besides terrorism, piracy has been a major challenge within Somali waters for the last couple of decades. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is also reviving Somalia Air Force which has also been on its knees for over three decades. The government depends on international partners to strengthen the force at a time when terrorism is a major national security threat. Garowe Online
Livestock Theft Is Central to Jihadist Economy in West Africa
Livestock theft provides Boko Haram with a major source of revenue, as members resell some of the animals at local markets to support their operations in the Lake Chad region. The method of criminal financing is also used by other jihadist groups in the Sahel region, where livestock is a coveted resource. “It’s an economy that feeds the conflict,” Flore Berger, a researcher with the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), told AFP. Nigeria and Mali, which are the leading and second-leading livestock exporters in the region ravaged by jihadist violence, are particularly affected, she added…Stolen livestock is then sold through well-established channels involving agents, intermediaries, transporters, traders, butchers or “corrupt” local officials, Berger said…Stolen animals from Mali, for example, are “laundered” by being mixed with herds of legal livestock then sent to countries such as Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso or Niger, Berger said. As such, Madueke said there was a need to target auxiliary networks. The cross-border nature of the illicit trade also requires regional cooperation that is not always easy given the geopolitical situation in west Africa. AFP
Why Niger’s Withdrawal from Lake Chad Military Force Matters
[VIDEO] Niger’s exit from an international force combating armed Islamist groups in West Africa’s Lake Chad region has sent shockwaves across the region. Analysts warn this security gamble could weaken regional counterterrorism efforts, particularly along the Niger-Nigeria-Chad border — a critical operational zone for terrorist groups. DW
Armed Group Kidnaps British Missionary, 83, In Cameroon
An armed group in Cameroon’s separatist conflict-hit anglophone northwest abducted an 83-year-old British missionary and his assistant, his church group said Thursday. The Catholic Mill Hill Missionary said Huub Welters and his assistant Henry Kang were “brutally abducted” Tuesday in the town of Bambui on their way to a project to build classrooms for underprivileged children in nearby Ilung…Kidnapping and violence has been common in Cameroon’s Northwest and Southwest regions, which are mainly populated by Cameroon’s English-speaking minority. Separatists have regularly targeted and killed civil servants, including teachers, and elected officials accused of “collaboration” with the French-speaking central government in Yaounde. The army and police are accused of carrying out punitive raids against people they accuse of pro-separatist leanings. AFP
Senegal President Warns Over African Nation’s Finances
Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye on Thursday warned in his annual state of the nation speech that the country faces a tough financial future that would need sacrifices. Faye spoke after authorities and the International Monetary Fund said the previous government had underestimated the West African nation’s debt levels…Social tensions have risen in recent months, and the government’s financial watchdog said in a report released in February that Senegal’s debt was at more than 99% of gross domestic product, higher than the figure given by the last government. It said the 2023 budget deficit was 12.3% of GDP, when the last government said it was 4.9%. The IMF said in March that there were “significant” errors in Senegal’s public debt figures for 2019-23 and called for “corrective measures”. AFP
Burundi Opposition Says Fuel Shortages Will Impact Local Polls
Burundi’s opposition coalition said on Thursday that severe fuel shortages plaguing the country would impact upcoming local polls. The landlocked and cash-strapped east African nation, which relies entirely on fuel imports and has seen widespread shortages for the past two years, is due to hold legislative elections on June 5. Opposition coalition Burundi Bwa Bose (One Burundi for All) said in a statement that “holding the upcoming elections is a matter of concern since candidates cannot reach their supporters… due to a lack of fuel”. Burundi’s fuel shortage has worsened in recent years, with gasoline costing five times the official price on the black market. Coalition president Patrick Nkurunziza said Burundi was “facing an economic crisis” as a result of the government’s “irresponsible decisions and catastrophic management of public affairs”. The Burundi Bwa Bose coalition has emerged as the main opposition force after opposition figure Agathon Rwasa was barred from running in the next election. AFP
Meta Can Be Sued in Kenya over Posts Related to Ethiopia Violence, Court Rules
A Kenyan court has ruled that Facebook’s parent company Meta can be sued in the East African country over its alleged role in promoting content that led to ethnic violence in neighbouring Ethiopia, a plaintiff in the case said. The landmark case, which stems from alleged hate speech on the platform during the 2020-2022 civil war in northern Ethiopia’s Tigray region, could have implications for how Meta works with content moderators globally. The company has argued that local courts do not have the power to hear cases against it where it is not registered as a company. Kenya’s High Court rejected that argument in its ruling on Thursday, said the Katiba Institute, which is a plaintiff in the case alongside two Ethiopian researchers. “The court here has refused to shy away from determining an important global matter, recognising that homegrown issues must be addressed directly in our courts,” said Nora Mbagathi, the institute’s executive director…The plaintiffs allege that Facebook’s recommendation systems amplified violent posts in Ethiopia during the Tigray war…They are demanding that Meta create a restitution fund for victims of hate and violence and alter Facebook’s algorithm to stop promoting hate speech…The case is the third to be brought against Meta in Kenya, where the company also faces lawsuits from content moderators employed by a local contractor who say they faced poor working conditions and were fired for trying to organise a union. Reuters
Study Says More Women than Men in Africa Will Likely Lose Outsourcing Tasks to AI
More women than men working in Africa’s outsourcing sector will likely see their tasks in the workplace replaced by automation and artificial intelligence by 2030, a report said Thursday. The report, released at a conference on AI in the Rwandan capital, also said that the now-surging growth of the outsourcing industry on the African continent may slow, and it urged workers to boost their skills so that they can trade up to better jobs. More than 1,000 policymakers, business leaders, and interest groups were gathered in Kigali for the first-ever Global AI Summit for Africa…The new report by Caribou and Genesis Analytics in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation says that tasks performed by women are on average 10% more vulnerable to automation than those by men in the same sector…But AI experts at the summit said that with the right investments and training, women and youth could access better-paid, higher-skilled work than what the currently do. Jeremy Jurgen, managing director of the World Economic Forum, which is co-hosting the conference, said there was a shortage of AI workers and a need to invest in developing talent to address that…African leaders present called for more collaboration. “African countries need to have clarity on what they want to do with AI and what they’re bringing to the table, then we can start talking about collaborating on AI without compromising our sovereignty,” Nigerian Communication Minister Bosun Tijani said during the conference. AP
Ballet Company Preserves Traditional Dance Forms in Central African Republic
Three times a week the National Ballet rehearses traditional dances of the many ethnic groups making up the Central African Republic (CAR)…”Promoting our cultures means going to the hinterlands to find the different dance steps of the Central African Republic in order to create a show that is diverse,” National Ballet choreographer Ludovic Mboumolomako, 55, said. He spent three weeks living among the Pygmies in their ancestral forests in the south in order to enrich his choreography with their dances, songs and ways of living. The National Ballet archives movements, sounds and rites that were the hallmark of traditional village communities to preserve them “for future generations”, Culture Minister Ngola Ramadan said…The company is often called upon to perform the ancestral dances in public at political gatherings, inaugurations and official ceremonies…The dancers were even recently integrated into the civil service, just like the actors and musicians who also belong to the National Artistic Ensemble…The ballet company is now gearing up for its show during the World Expo universal exhibition in Osaka, Japan, which begins this month…”Traditional dance has brought us together. After the recent wars, different ethnic groups were divided. Thanks to dance, we’ve become children of the same family,” [one of the dancers] said. France 24 with AFP