Congo Catholic Delegation Meets Rebel Leader in Move that Could Rankle Government
Representatives of Congo’s powerful Catholic church met on Wednesday with a rebel leader whose Rwandan-backed M23 forces last month seized the biggest city in the country’s east, Goma, in a move that could rankle the Kinshasa-based government. The meeting in Goma comes as the rebel leader, Corneille Nangaa, tries to assert himself as the public face of politicians and rebel groups opposing Democratic Republic of Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi. His Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), which sees M23 as their military wing, has controlled Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, since late January and on Tuesday threatened to renew its advance on the capital of South Kivu province, Bukavu…After the meeting, Donatien Nshole, secretary-general of the Catholic bishops conference, said church officials pushed for the reopening of Goma’s airport and port and requested a ceasefire. Tshisekedi’s office said on X on Wednesday that the president had met various religious leaders and was open to the Catholic church’s outreach, provided it was “inclusive”. Reuters
Sudan: RSF Renews Attack on Zamzam Camp, Governor Calls for Arms, MSF Urges to Spare Civilians
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) renewed its attack on the Zamzam camp for displaced persons in North Darfur state on Wednesday, as the governor of the Darfur region, Minni Arko Minawi, called on those able to bear arms to defend the displaced. The fighting has prompted a desperate plea from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) for safe passage for civilians trapped in the crossfire. The RSF launched a violent attack on the camp on Tuesday, committing widespread abuses against civilians, burning down the main market and looting vehicles and property of the displaced. The attacking force was repelled by the army, the Joint Force and the Popular Resistance…Minawi’s call came as the RSF and Arab tribal militias launched a new attack on the Zamzam camp southwest of El Fasher for the second day in a row, leaving a large number of victims…The displaced fear that the RSF, if it takes control of the Zamzam camp, will commit crimes of ethnic cleansing and genocide, as happened in the city of Geneina in West Darfur state, because the RSF claims that the residents of the camp belong to the joint force that is leading bloody confrontations inside El Fasher. Sudan Tribune
‘No Obstacles’ to Russian Red Sea Base – Sudan
Sudan has said a final deal has been agreed with Russia to establish a naval base on the war-torn country’s Red Sea coast, saying there were “no obstacles” to it…Sudan’s Foreign Minister Ali Youssef said on Wednesday a deal had been signed and they were in “complete agreement” with Russia over the establishment of the port. He said what remained was only the ratification of the deal. The US, China and France already have a naval presence in the seas off the Horn of Africa – a key strategic and trading route…The port agreement, which was to last for 25 years, had been for Russia to establish a naval logistics hub, with warships including nuclear-powered vessels, and up to 300 personnel. The Red Sea provides a strategic route that is vital to global commerce as well as a defence and geopolitical hotspot. Russian interests in Port Sudan are said to have grown amid fears of losing its military assets in Syria. The new government in Syria last month terminated a treaty granting Russia a long-term lease for a port where Russia has had its only foreign naval base. BBC
Attorney Says Opposition Figure Detained in Uganda for Alleged Crimes against the State Is Unwell
A prominent opposition figure jailed in Uganda for allegedly threatening state security is unwell and in need of urgent medical care, his attorney said Thursday. Four-time presidential candidate Kizza Besigye, who has been in detention since his abduction from Kenya on Nov. 16, is infirm and experiences episodes of hypertension, said Erias Lukwago. A military tribunal in Kampala has charged Besigye, 68, and an assistant with offenses related to illegal possession of a firearm and threatening national security. Besigye also faces a separate charge of treachery, a crime under military law that carries the death penalty. Lukwago on Wednesday saw Besigye at the maximum-security prison in Kampala where the opposition figure is being detained. Besigye needs specialized care that health authorities in the prison system are not equipped to provide, Lukwago said…Besigye’s wife, UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima, had asserted that he is on a hunger strike. AP
Key Islamic State Planner Killed in Airstrike, US and Somali Officials Say
Ahmed Maeleninine, an Omani-born leader of Islamic State, was killed in U.S. airstrikes against the terror group in Somalia earlier this month, officials of the Puntland region said Wednesday. Maeleninine was the main target of the Feb. 1 airstrike against Islamic State hideouts in the semi-autonomous region of northern Somalia. In an interview with VOA Somali, the Puntland state minister for presidency, Abdifitah Mohamed Abdinur, said Somalia and its international security partners had been watching Maeleninine’s movements in the region…The U.S. Africa Command confirmed late Tuesday that Maeleninine and 13 other operatives linked to the Islamic State were killed in the Feb. 1 operation, which it said was run in coordination with the Somali government. In a statement, AFRICOM described Maeleninine as a “recruiter, financier, and external operations leader responsible for the deployment of jihadists into the United States and across Europe.”…IS has increased its presence in Somalia over the past several years, while IS-Somalia has become a key cog in the IS financial network, funneling money to affiliates in Afghanistan and elsewhere in Africa. VOA
Ethiopia: US, EU, and Other Envoys Arrive in Mekelle for Talks on Pretoria Agreement, Tigray’s Current Situation
A delegation comprising representatives from the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, France, and the European Union arrived in Mekelle [Tuesday] to discuss the current situation in Tigray…The visit comes amid a deepening rift within the TPLF, particularly between factions led by Debretsion Gebremichael and Interim Administration President Getachew Reda, with tensions escalating since the TPLF’s 14th Congress. This internal split previously led to Debretsion’s group removing Getachew and others from their roles, while the interim administration under Getachew repeatedly accused Debretsion’s faction of attempting to “destabilize” the region through a “coup d’état.” Tensions have risen recently after some senior members of the Tigray military forces made an unprecedented announcement calling for the dissolution and restructuring of the region’s interim administration. They expressed support for one faction within the TPLF’s political divide, abandoning their previously neutral stance. Addis Standard
South Sudan’s Deputy President Says Firing of Officials Threatens a Peace Deal with the President
South Sudan’s deputy president says a Cabinet reshuffle this week that saw the removal of multiple senior officials threatens a fragile peace agreement reached with the president in 2018. Riek Machar, whose political rivalry with President Salva Kiir has in the past exploded into civil war, called for the reinstatement of Health Minister Yolanda Awel Deng and Gen. Alfred Futuyo Karaba, governor of Western Equatoria state. Other officials sacked by Kiir include two other vice presidents and the spy chief. Machar said Tuesday that the unilateral dismissals violate the 2018 power-sharing agreement following which he returned to Juba, the capital, with the title of first vice president of South Sudan…South Sudan has five vice presidents, according to the 2018 agreement…The 2018 peace agreement is yet to be fully implemented. Challenges include the government’s failure to implement promised reforms such as completing the unification of the army command. Presidential elections, repeatedly postponed, are now scheduled for 2026. AP
Barrick Aims to Reopen Mali Mine Once It Can Ship Gold, CEO Says.
Barrick Gold will resume operations at its shuttered Loulo-Gounkoto mine in Mali once authorities in the country allow it to resume gold shipments, CEO Mark Bristow told Reuters on Wednesday. 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. In January, Barrick suspended mining operations after the military-led government blocked shipments from the Loulo-Gounkoto complex and then seized three metric tons of gold. Barrick has been assured by Mali that the gold worth about $245 million seized by authorities still belongs to the company, Bristow said at the company’s Toronto headquarters…Tensions between Mali and Barrick, the country’s largest investor, escalated last year when authorities detained four of the company’s employees and issued an arrest warrant for Bristow…Mali’s aggressive push for higher taxes and a bigger state shareholding in mining projects has soured ties with its mining investors. Gold output plunged 23% to 51 metric tons last year, the nation’s mines ministry said. Reuters
French Troops to Exit Senegal by End of 2025
France and Senegal are setting terms for a withdrawal of all French soldiers stationed in the West African country by the end of this year. The two countries said in a statement on Wednesday that they are establishing a joint commission that would oversee the “departure of French elements” from the country and “a restitution of [military] bases” by year’s end. The foreign ministries of both countries said they intend to work on “a new defence and security partnership” that would take into account “strategic priorities of all parties”. In November, Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye announced that French army bases were “incompatible” with the country’s sovereignty and its 350 soldiers should leave…At the end of January, France completed its troop withdrawal from Chad while Ivory Coast had earlier announced the withdrawal of French forces. The tone was very different from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, whose military governments collectively ejected about 4,300 French soldiers from their countries in 2022. In all three countries, France had refused to back the coups that brought them to power. Al Jazeera
Audit Shows Senegal’s Previous Government Misreported Key Economic Data
Senegal’s Court of Auditors released a long-awaited review of the country’s finances on Wednesday that confirmed the previous government misreported key economic data including debt and deficit figures. Senegal’s sovereign Eurobonds tumbled after the report was released…President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who came to power in April 2024, ordered an audit that revealed that its debt and budget deficit were much wider than former President Macky Sall’s administration had reported. As a consequence of the audit, Faye’s government decided in June not to table a request for further disbursement under its three-year $1.8 billion credit facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). IMF suspended the programme pending the review of the Court of Auditors. A spokesperson for the IMF said last week that the Fund was working closely with Senegalese authorities to identify their capacity development needs and to implement corrective measures. Reuters
Ghana’s Ex-finance Minister Declared a Fugitive
Ghana’s former finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta has been declared a fugitive by prosecutors over his alleged involvement in multiple corruption cases when he was in government…Ofori-Atta has been accused of causing financial losses to the state, including over a controversial national cathedral, which remains a hole in the ground despite the alleged spending of $58m of government money…[Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyabeng] told a press conference that Ofori-Atta, 66, failed to attend an interview with the Office of the Special Prosecutor, despite being told he was a suspect…Ofori-Atta was finance minister from January 2017 to February 2024, when the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was in power…President John Mahama, who was inaugurated in January, went on to establish an investigative committee known as Operation Recover All Loot. The committee has received over 200 complaints of corruption, amounting to more than $20bn in recoverable funds. BBC
Nigeria: Jubilation as Borno’s Displaced Community Gets New Shehu Years After Insurgency
Dikwa, a border community in Borno State, North East Nigeria, erupted in celebration on Saturday, Feb. 8, as it officially installed its 13th Shehu, Ibrahim Ibn Umar Ibrahim. The event marked a milestone in the town’s recovery, years after its residents were forced into displacement by Boko Haram insurgents…Dikwa had been overrun by Boko Haram militants seven years ago, forcing its people to flee and leading to the occupation of the Shehu’s grand palace—the second most prestigious traditional seat in Borno—which the insurgents repurposed as their headquarters. The 12th Shehu of Dikwa, Alhaji Abba Tor Shehu Masta II, was installed in 2010 but spent much of his reign in exile due to insecurity. He passed away in Maiduguri in 2020. Although the new Shehu was appointed in January 2021, his coronation was postponed due to lingering security concerns…For many residents, [Saturday’s] coronation symbolised a new chapter of hope. HumAngle