Gunmen Kidnap More than 50 People in Nigeria’s Northwest, UN Report Says
Gunmen kidnapped more than 50 people in northwest Nigeria in a mass abduction, according to a private conflict monitoring report created for the United Nations and seen by AFP on Sunday. “Armed bandits” targeted the village of Sabon Garin Damri in Zamfara state Friday, the report said, the latest attack in a region where residents in rural hinterlands have long suffered from gangs who kidnap for ransom, loot villages and demand taxes. The report said this was the first “mass capture” incident in the Bakura local government area this year, “the recent trend of mass captures in Zamfara has been concerning”, noting “a shift in bandit strategy towards more large-scale attacks in northern Zamfara”. … Nigeria’s “banditry” crisis originated in conflict over land and water rights between herders and farmers but has morphed into organised crime, with gangs preying on rural communities that have long had little or no government presence. … Bandits, who are primarily motivated by money, have also increased their co-operation with Nigeria’s jihadist groups, who are waging a separate, 16-year-old armed insurrection in the northeast. France24/AFP
Hunger Mounts, Cemeteries Grow in Sudan’s Besieged al-Fashir
Hundreds of thousands of people under siege in the Sudanese army’s last holdout in the western Darfur region are running out of food and coming under constant artillery and drone barrages, while those who flee risk cholera and violent attacks. Al-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur state, is the biggest remaining frontline in the region between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), under fire at a pivotal point in a civil war now well into its third year. “The RSF’s artillery and drones are shelling al-Fashir morning and night,” one resident told Reuters. Electricity was completely shut down, bakeries were closed and medical supplies scarce, he added. “The number of people dying has increased every day and the cemeteries are expanding,” he said. The war between the Sudanese army and the RSF erupted in April 2023 when the former allies clashed over plans to integrate their forces. … The city’s fall would give the RSF control over nearly all of Darfur – a vast region bordering Libya, Chad, Central African Republic and South Sudan – and pave the way for what analysts say could be Sudan’s de facto division. … The RSF has blocked food supplies and aid convoys trying to reach the city have been attacked, locals said. Prices for the goods traders are able to smuggle in cost more than five times the national average. Reuters
Sudan Floods Hit 21 Areas, Raising Disease Fears amid Health System Collapse
At least 21 areas across Sudan have been affected by heavy rains and flooding, the Health Ministry’s emergency committee said on Sunday, amplifying fears of disease outbreaks as forecasters predict an unusually wet season for the conflict-ravaged nation. The warning comes as the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre forecasts above-average rainfall for Sudan this year, thereby heightening the risk of waterborne diseases in a country where the health system has been severely impacted by conflict. … While the rainy season can be a disruption for city dwellers due to poor infrastructure, it is the primary source of income for millions of Sudanese who work in agriculture. However, malnutrition rates typically rise during the rainy season, a period from June to October known as the “lean season,” as most households have depleted their food stocks from the previous year’s harvest. Sudan Tribune
Thousands Flee Northern Mozambique Following Intensified Attacks
The recent attacks by armed groups in northern Mozambique displaced tens of thousands in July alone, deepening an already dire humanitarian crisis in Cabo Delgado and straining limited aid supplies, according to the United Nations. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), attacks by armed groups between 20 and 28 July triggered the displacement of at least 46,667 people across the districts of Chiúre, Ancuabe and Muidumbe. Since January, over 95,000 people have fled insecurity in Cabo Delgado and humanitarian access is becoming increasingly fragile. Reports indicate a high number of unaccompanied or separated children. According to the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM), the number of displaced families nearly tripled in one week, reaching 444 households (1,946 people), including over 1,200 children. The violence forced residents of Nanduli village to seek refuge in Chiote and Ancuabe Sede. … Mozambique has been battling the Islamist insurgency in Cabo Delgado province since 2017. Government forces have struggled to contain the violence, relying on support from troops sent by Rwanda, South Africa, and other regional partners. … Witnesses have said that children abducted from towns and villages have been used as fighters in subsequent attacks. The violence has displaced more than 600,000 people and spilled into neighboring provinces, according to the United Nations. AfricaNews
The UN Says 68 Ethiopian Migrants Were Killed When a Boat Capsized off Yemen’s Coast
A boat capsized on Sunday, August 3, in waters off Yemen’s coast leaving 68 African migrants dead and 74 others missing, the UN’s migration agency said. The tragedy was the latest in a series of shipwrecks off Yemen that have killed hundreds of African migrants fleeing conflict and poverty in hopes of reaching the wealthy Gulf Arab countries. The vessel, with 154 Ethiopian migrants on board, sank in the Gulf of Aden off the southern Yemeni province of Abyan early Sunday, announced Abdusattor Esoev, head of the International Organization for Migration in Yemen. He said the bodies of 54 migrants washed ashore in the district of Khanfar, and 14 others were found dead and taken to a hospital morgue in Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan on Yemen’s southern coast. Only 12 migrants survived the shipwreck, and the rest were missing and presumed dead, Esoev said. … Despite more than a decade of civil war, Yemen is a major route for migrants from East Africa and the Horn of Africa trying to reach the Gulf Arab countries for work. Migrants are taken by smugglers on often dangerous, overcrowded boats across the Red Sea or Gulf of Aden. Le Monde
Ivory Coast Opposition Denounces ‘Arbitrary Arrest’ of 6 Party Members
One of the main opposition parties in Ivory Coast has denounced what it says are “arbitrary arrests” of six party members, calling the arrests part of a broader crackdown following the disqualification of key rivals to President Alassane Ouattara and his bid for a fourth term. Sébastien Dano Djédjé, the executive president of the African Peoples’ Party–Côte d’Ivoire, or PPA-CI, the party of former President Laurent Gbagbo, said during a news conference Sunday that the party members were “abducted and taken to unknown locations” overnight from Saturday to Sunday. Among them are party members from Youpougon, a suburb of the capital Abdijan, where armed attackers torched a bus and assaulted police days before, he said. Interior Minister Vagondo Diomandé released a video to a televion news broadcast Sunday showing a man identifying himself as a PPA-CI member confessing involvement in the attack and saying he acted on the party’s behalf with 15 others. … Ivory Coast is set to hold a presidential election Oct. 12. Ouattara, who has been in power since 2011, is likely to stay in office with little or no challenge from a weakened opposition. Dissent has grown in the West African nation, fueled by the exclusion of main opposition candidates from the voter roll, including the PPA-CI’s Laurent Gbabgo and the president’s most prominent rival, Tidjane Thiam. AP
East, Southern Africa Blocs to Merge Peace Efforts in Congo
Leaders of two regional blocs in East and Southern Africa have agreed to merge further peace processes for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with the African Union (AU) seeking to eliminate duplication and push for more tangible results. The decision came from Nairobi, where a meeting of co-chairs of the joint summit of East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) gathered to weigh progress. After a meeting between Kenya’s President William Ruto, his Zimbabwean counterpart Emmerson Mnangagwa, and a panel of peace envoys the joint summit had appointed, they said they will amalgamate their processes with the AU. … This decision, which is set to be ratified at a joint summit of both blocs next week, signifies that the five envoys appointed by the EAC and SADC will now collaborate with the AU’s mediator for the Congo conflict, Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé. … President Ruto said the Nairobi meeting does not interfere with the similar peace talks that were held in Doha and Washington. The East African
Ex-Mali PM Charged over X Post Supporting Jailed Critics of Military Rulers
A former prime minister of Mali has been charged with “undermining the credibility of the state” following a social media post about his visits to political prisoners, according to a prosecutor. Moussa Mara held the post of prime minister for a brief eight months from 2014 until 2015. He was previously summoned for questioning following a July 4 post on X in which he spoke of visiting the prisoners and promising to ensure them justice. … Mara remains in jail with a trial scheduled for September 29. His lawyers condemned the proceedings in a statement on Friday. Mara’s arrest is the latest in a crackdown on dissent by Mali’s military rulers following the country’s first pro-democracy rally since soldiers seized power nearly four years ago. … Since orchestrating two coups in 2020 and 2021, General Assimi Goita has led Mali. In June, he was granted an additional five years in power, despite the military government’s earlier promises of a return to civilian rule by March 2024. Al Jazeera
More Than 88M People Face Hunger in East, Central Africa
Some 88.5 million people in East and Central Africa were highly food insecure and in urgent need of humanitarian assistance at the end of June 2025, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad) said in a joint report released on Monday. In their June food security and nutrition update, the FAO and Igad noted that of these, 57.1 million people were in seven of the eight Igad member states, namely Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda. … The two organisations noted that countries in conflict and insecurity are the worst affected as the crises continue to disrupt livelihoods and undermine food security across the region. These countries include Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with the last three being the worst affected. As of the end of June, FAO and Igad said an estimated 23.8 million people had been forcibly displaced across the region, including 18 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) and 5.8 million refugees and asylum seekers. The East African
Secret Filming Exposes the ‘Madams’ Involved in Kenya’s Child-Sex Trade
A BBC Africa Eye investigation has revealed how women, known as “madams”, have involved children as young as 13 in prostitution in Kenya. In the transit town of Maai Mahiu, in Kenya’s Rift Valley, trucks and lorries pound the streets day and night transporting goods and people across the country into Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The key transport hub, just 50km (31 miles) east of the capital, Nairobi, is known for prostitution, but it is also a breeding ground for child sexual abuse. Two undercover investigators, posing as sex workers wanting to learn how to become madams, spent months earlier this year infiltrating the sex trade in the town. Their secret filming reveals two different women who say they know it is illegal and then introduce the investigators to underage girls in the sex industry. The BBC gave all its evidence to the Kenyan police in March. The BBC believes the madams have moved location since then. The police said the women and young girls we filmed could not be traced. To date there have been no arrests. Convictions are rare in Kenya. For successful prosecutions, police need testimonies from children. Often vulnerable minors are too afraid to testify. BBC
South Africa Arrests Hundreds in Illegal Mining Operation
South African police said Friday it had arrested some 1,000 illegal miners in an operation that lasted several days. A statement by the police said most of the suspects are foreigners without documents to support their stay in the country. It said their nationalities had not yet been established. They were arrested at a mine in Barbeton in the Mpumalanga province, the statement said. In recent months, South Africa has intensified operations against illegal mining and mines. In January, nearly 2000 illegal miners were arrested at an old gold mine in Stilfontein. Of these, 1,128 were from Mozambique, 473 from Zimbabwe, and 197 from Lesotho. In the same operation, at least 78 people died after authorities blocked supplies from reaching the underground mine. AfricaNews
French Bill Clears Path to Return Artefacts Looted during Colonisation
A bill to make it easier for France to return cultural objects taken during the colonial period was presented at a ministerial council in Paris this week by Culture Minister Rachida Dati. Despite a pledge by President Emmanuel Macron in Burkina Faso in 2017, and follow-up reports, only a small number of items have been returned so far. The new bill would allow artefacts to be given back by government decree, without needing a full vote in Parliament each time. It would apply to objects taken from their countries of origin under conditions described as “illicit”. A similar bill planned for 2024 was blocked by France’s highest administrative court, the Conseil d’Etat, and its review was postponed. On 30 July, the French government said its goal is to speed up restitution. … France has returned only 27 works to African nations in the past six years. This includes 26 royal treasures from Dahomey handed back to Benin in 2021, and one item returned this year from Finland, though it belonged to a French collection. … Experts and lawmakers have criticised the lack of transparency around how these items ended up in France. RFI