Niger Civil Society Figure Critical Of Junta Arrested
A leading Niger civil society figure and critic of the military-led authorities has been arrested after returning from a trip abroad, his NGO and other sources said. The reason for the detention late on Tuesday of Moussa Tchangari, who has voiced “total support” for Niger’s ousted president Mohamed Bazoum, is not known. He is among those who have been critical of the military junta which seized power in the July 2023 coup, an act that Tchangari has described as a “setback”. Since then, Bazoum, who had been democratically elected, has been imprisoned with his wife Hadiza at the presidential palace in the capital Niamey…According to the Air Info newspaper, Tchangari “was coming back from a trip outside of the country” when he was arrested at home by “four men dressed in civilian clothes”. AFP
Niger Military Junta Seizes Control of French Uranium Operations
French nuclear group Orano has announced that authorities in Niger have taken “operational control” of its uranium mining unit, in an escalating conflict between the company and the country’s ruling junta. The junta, which took power in a coup in July last year, has vowed to revamp regulation of the mining of raw materials by foreign companies. In June, authorities withdrew Orano’s permit to exploit one of the largest uranium deposits in the world, Imouraren – which holds an estimated 200,000 tonnes of the mineral…This latest clash between the junta and Orano – majority owned by the French state – comes as Niger downgrades links with its former colonial power France, and strengthens ties with Russia and Iran. Last month, Nigérien Mining Minister Ousmane Abarchi invited Russian firms to invest in uranium and other natural resource production in the country. RFI
Biden Visits US-financed Angolan Rail Hub
U.S. President Joe Biden got a firsthand look Wednesday at a U.S.-financed rail project that weaves together his personal love of railroads with his desire to leave a legacy in Africa that will outlive his administration. The Lobito Corridor is a 1,300-kilometer rail line stretching from copper-rich Zambia to the port of Lobito in the southwest nation of Angola. The railway is meant to form a “strategic economic corridor” under the Biden administration’s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment…On Wednesday, he toured the Lobito Port terminal and met with Angolan President Joao Lourenco, Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema and Tanzanian Vice President Philip Mpango. VOA
China’s Duty-free Access for Poor African States Kicks in as Biden Tours Angola
China’s zero-tariff access for Africa’s least developed countries kicked in this week, a senior Chinese diplomat said, just as U.S. President Joe Biden visits Angola…China announced a pivot from outright lending to trade and investments in 2021. Some countries it lent to have defaulted on debts, starting with Zambia in 2020…China began implementing zero tariffs for a range of products from Africa’s LDCs in 2005. But consultancy Development Reimagined said Beijing’s move expands this, removing tariffs from a further 140 products, including rice, wheat, sugar, cotton and paper and wood…According to UNCTAD, in 2022, China was the main export destination for Africa’s developing economies, with $101 billion, followed by Italy with $46 billion, India with $42 billion and Spain with $39 billion. Reuters
How Russia Is Expanding Its Military Foothold in Africa
Telegraph analysis of three Libyan air bases found Russian military transport planes, upgraded runways, bolstered perimeter defences and entirely new buildings – changes that all occurred this year. The upgrades suggest that Russia is significantly ramping up its military presence in Libya, thanks to a growing partnership with Libyan warlord General Khalifa Haftar, who controls the eastern and southern parts of the country. Libya serves as the core for Russia’s fast-expanding operations in Africa, paving the way for greater access to countries including Sudan, Mali, Chad, and the Central African Republic. Experts say military control in Libya also allows Russia to draw an arc of power from the eastern Mediterranean – where it already controls coastal positions in Syria – down to the southern Mediterranean via Libya…An increased footprint in Libya gives Moscow the ability to impact political, security and economic stability along Nato’s southern flank, whether that means flexing military muscle or disrupting energy markets by manipulating Libya’s role as a major exporter of crude oil. The Telegraph
Statue of Russia’s Wagner Founder Prigozhin Unveiled in Central Africa
A monument in honour of the late leader of Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has been unveiled in the Central African Republic (CAR). The statue of Prigozhin and his right-hand man Dmitru Utkin, who both died in a plane crash last year, was erected in the capital Bangui. The statue shows Prigozhin in bullet-proof clothing holding a walkie-talkie next to his colleague who holds an AK-47 rifle. Fighters from the Wagner Group have been in CAR since 2018…They are also operating in several other African countries but their most significant presence is in CAR…The Wagner Group has since been renamed Corps Africa, although it continues to operate under the Wagner name in CAR. BBC
African-led Peacekeeping Fills a UN-sized Hole
African governments and regional organisations are not only taking on the responsibilities once assumed by the UN, they are also accepting riskier deployments that the UN’s Department of Peace Operations would tend to avoid. UN missions traditionally deploy with all-party consent, consolidating an existing peace agreement. African PSOs are geared to intervene offensively in ongoing conflicts. These are increasingly more transnational – involving violent extremism and banditry – which can generate monumental levels of violence and humanitarian suffering…There is no one-size-fits-all approach for the form PSOs have taken…Mandates also differ – from hard-edged cross-border counter-insurgency operations, to support for the Ebola health response. What they do share, however, is a common ability to deploy much faster and more cheaply than UN missions. They also typically work in tandem with the armed forces of the host government. The New Humanitarian
Mozambique’s Auction of ‘Tuna Bonds’ Fleet Fails to Attract Single Bid
Mozambique’s post-election unrest has scuppered attempts to sell the rusting fleet of fishing trawlers at the centre of the $2bn “tuna bonds” scandal that sank the southern African country’s economy, after protests scared off buyers…The vessels are the wreckage of one of Africa’s worst graft scams that forced the country to default on its debt and prompted the IMF to suspend direct budget lending…Once one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies, Mozambique is still reeling from the fraud, which ultimately led to a government debt default in 2016 and pushed millions into poverty. Anger at economic hardship and growing inequality has spurred weeks of post-electoral protests since polls on October 9, with anti-riot police parked on the streets of Maputo on Wednesday afternoon. Financial Times
South Sudan Security Detains The Dawn Editor
Emmanuel Monychol Akop, the Editor-in-Chief of The Dawn Daily English Newspaper, was detained by South Sudan’s National Security Service (NSS) on Thursday, according to Patrick Oyet, President of the Union of Journalists of South Sudan (UJOSS). Akop’s detention was confirmed after NSS agents reportedly visited The Dawn office in Juba on Thursday, where they held a meeting with the editor before taking him into custody. Since the arrest, Akop has not been heard from…The arrest raises concerns about the growing powers of the NSS under the National Security Service Act of 2014, which was amended in 2024. The law grants the NSS the authority to arrest individuals without a warrant, a provision that has drawn criticism from international human rights organizations and press freedom advocates, who warn that it could undermine civil liberties and press freedom. Radio Tamazuj
Suspected Bandits Lay Explosives on Nigerian Road, Causing Damage
A gang of armed men planted explosives along the Dansadau-Gusau road in northwest Nigeria’s Zamfara state, causing significant damage and casualties, a military spokesperson and witnesses said on Wednesday. Armed gangs in northwest Nigeria, known by locals as bandits, have escalated their attacks, resorting to a dangerous new tactic of planting explosives on major highways to target civilians and security forces…Joint Task Force spokesperson Abubakar Abdullahi said in a statement that the military had deployed an explosive ordnance disposal team to the area to neutralize any remaining explosives…Bandits in northwest Nigeria have frequently raided communities, killing and kidnapping residents, farmers, students and motorists for ransom. Reuters
Belgium Found Guilty of Crimes against Humanity in Congo
Belgium has been found guilty of crimes against humanity for the kidnapping of mixed-race children in the Congo, the first time the country has been held accountable for its actions as a colonial power. In a final ruling on Monday, the Brussels court of appeal found that the abduction of mixed-race children “is an inhumane and persecutory act constituting a crime against humanity” and ordered the Belgian state to pay a compensation of €50,000 to each of the plaintiffs…Five women born to Congolese mothers and Belgian fathers in the former colony before it became independent in 1960 had sued the Belgian state. They had been taken away from their families in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo and placed in religious institutions where they were subject to abuse…It is estimated that about 15,000 to 20,000 children were subject to similar treatment. Financial Times
Weapon Contamination in Ethiopia Wrecks Limbs and Dreams
Two years after the peace agreement was reached, towns in Tigray are brimming with hope for lasting stability and economic renewal. Despite the heavy damage the armed conflict caused to the economy, the streets of cities like Mekelle, Shire and Axum, lined with traditional coffee shops, bristle with traffic and revived commerce. But the scars of violence remain visible in rural areas, where metal carcasses of burned vehicles are slowly rusting away on the roadsides, and unexploded remnants of war continue to kill and maim civilians – mostly children. “Since the beginning of last year, we treated 243 people injured by unexploded ordnance,” said Venkatakannan Packirisamy, who runs the physical rehabilitation project for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Ethiopia. “But people we receive make just a fraction of all victims.” Al Jazeera
It Isn’t Safe’: South African First Responders Attacked while Saving Lives
South Africa has the fifth highest crime rate in the world…In recent years, first responders and emergency services have reported a growing number of attacks on their staff and vehicles – some ending in injury and even death. According to Foster Mohale, spokesperson for the National Department of Health, the number of attacks against emergency medical services (EMS) personnel has increased since 2014…In areas that are regarded as dangerous, EMS workers now often insist that the patient’s family or friends bring them to a police station where they park the ambulance safely and can give them vital emergency treatment without being threatened by criminals, and without risking their own lives. Organisations designate specific areas as “Red Zones”, where EMS personnel cannot go except with a police escort. Al Jazeera
Rwanda Bets on Formula 1, Sports Deals to Boost Tourism
Rwanda is pushing ahead with its bid to be added to the lucrative Formula 1 race calendar as part of a wider drive to double down on sports events as a central plank of its economic growth plan. Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe told Semafor Africa Rwanda is still in talks with Formula 1 concerning its bid to host the sport’s first race in Africa since the 1993 South African Grand Prix…Rwanda will host the cycling world road championships next year. It has also partnered with the NBA’s Basketball Africa League, hosting key games at the BK Arena in the capital, Kigali…Critics have repeatedly accused Rwanda of using sport to distract from what they say is the country’s poor human rights record. In August, US Senators Marsha Blackburn and Jeff Merkley sent a bipartisan letter to the NBA, accusing them of “putting profit over principle” through their ties with the Rwandan government. Semafor