Uganda: Kasibante Drags Museveni Election Victory to Supreme Court
The victory of President-elect Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in last week’s general election has been referred to the Supreme Court after one of the losing candidates petitioned for its annulment. Robert Kasibante, who finished sixth in the eight-candidate race, has asked the court to nullify the January 15 poll, citing alleged widespread irregularities, violence and non-compliance with electoral laws. In a petition filed on January 17, the National Peasants Party candidate sued President Museveni, the Electoral Commission (EC) and the Attorney General, arguing that the election was neither free nor fair and did not reflect the will of voters. … Mr Kasibante accuses the President-elect and state security agencies of orchestrating violence, intimidation and harassment against opposition candidates and supporters. … Challenges to Museveni’s election victories have routinely ended up in the Supreme Court, though none have succeeded. The most recent was filed in 2021 by runner-up Kyagulanyi, who later withdrew the case, citing alleged bias. Monitor
Ugandan President’s Son Threatens Opposition Leader
Uganda’s army chief, who is also the son of long-serving president Yoweri Museveni, said he wants opposition leader Bobi Wine dead, days after Wine claimed he had been forced into hiding. General Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s comments come after Museveni won an eighth term following an election on Thursday that was widely criticised by poll observers and rights groups. The embattled opposition, led by 43-year-old Bobi Wine — real name Robert Kyagulanyi — says they faced violence and intimidation ahead of the vote, with international bodies also accusing the government of “brutal repression”. “We have killed 22 NUP terrorists since last week. I’m praying the 23rd is Kabobi,” Kainerugaba posted on X late Monday night, referring to Wine and his National Unity Platform (NUP) party. … Wine’s whereabouts remain unknown after he said on Saturday he had escaped a police raid on his home — where his wife remains under apparent house arrest — and was in hiding. AFP
Uganda Maintains Social Media Ban After Election
Uganda said Sunday it would maintain a ban on social media platforms, while lifting a nationwide internet block hours after longtime ruler Yoweri Museveni was declared the winner of national elections. The internet was blocked two days before polls opened on Thursday. While the government said that was necessary to curb “misinformation”, the United Nations labelled the decision “deeply worrying”. … Thembo declined to say when full access would be restored, telling reporters: “I don’t want to put estimate.” AFP
Togo Says It Has Extradited Burkina Faso’s Former Junta Leader
Togolese authorities said Tuesday they have extradited Burkina Faso’s former leader Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba following a request by the military government there. The former junta leader has lived in Togo since his ouster in 2022. He is wanted in his country on suspicion of criminal embezzlement of public funds, incitement to commit crimes and other charges. The Togo Ministry of Justice said the Lomé Court of Appeal decided to extradite Damiba “based on the offer of reciprocity from the Burkinabè authorities” and assurance that Damiba will not be facing the death penalty. Damiba was arrested on Jan. 16. Earlier this month, the Burkina Faso junta said it had foiled a coup and alleged that Damiba was behind the plot. Damiba, who led the West African nation between January and September 2022, was in turn deposed by current junta leader Ibrahim Traore as the country witnessed back-to-back coups. AP
Nigerian Airstrikes Kill Scores of Militants in Borno, Military Says
Nigerian air force strikes destroyed about 10 canoes and killed more than 40 militants preparing attacks in Borno state, the military said late on Sunday, in the latest in a series of operations targeting groups around Lake Chad. Borno, where fighters from militant groups Boko Haram and ISWAP have recently intensified attacks on military convoys and civilians, remains the epicentre of the 17-year Islamist insurgency in the northeast of the country. Air force spokesperson Ehimen Ejodame said airstrikes on January 15 and 16 in the Musarram and Azir communities signalled renewed military pressure on insurgents who still use the region’s rugged terrain to launch raids on troops and nearby communities. The air force said it hit militants in Musarram on Thursday after intelligence showed they were massing in canoes to attack Baga town and the fish dam area of Lake Chad. … Troops and local officials reported the airstrikes foiled the planned attack. Reuters
Sudan to Get Chinese Transformers for War-Damaged Power Grid
Sudan’s energy ministry is working with Chinese firm Siyuan Energy Company to supply transformers and mobile power stations to repair infrastructure damaged by the country’s civil war, a ministry statement said on Tuesday. The electricity sector has suffered extensive damage in the 20-month conflict, with approximately 150,000 kilometres of transmission lines and 15,000 transformers affected, according to ministry figures. Key power stations in Bahri, Garri and Jebel Aulia have also been severely damaged. Consulting Engineer Mu’tasim Ibrahim Ahmed met the regional director of Siyuan Energy Company in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss accelerating the delivery of hydroelectric generation transformers, the statement said. Both sides agreed the Chinese company would conduct field assessments of war-damaged stations in Sudan and urgently supply emergency mobile transformation stations to provide immediate relief, it added. They also discussed adding more transformers to their agreement. Sudan Tribune
Sudan Anti-War Coalition Meets French Officials on Ceasefire Push
A delegation from the Civil Democratic Alliance of the Revolutionary Forces “Somoud”, a Sudanese anti-war civilian coalition led by former Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, met senior French officials on Tuesday, kicking off a European tour to seek solutions to Sudan’s civil war, the alliance said. … The delegation held talks with Emmanuel Blattmann, Director General for Africa at the French foreign ministry, and other officials responsible for Sudan and the Horn of Africa, the alliance said in a statement. The meeting focused on the humanitarian crisis and alleged violations committed by both sides in the conflict, as well as the need for international action to halt the fighting, according to the statement. The alliance warned that continued warfare risked destroying the Sudanese state and turning the country into a haven for terrorism that could threaten regional and international security. Sudan Tribune
Somalia Confirms Talks on Red Sea Security Pact with Saudi Arabia and Egypt
Somalia’s federal government has confirmed the existence of a proposed three-way security agreement with Saudi Arabia and Egypt, aimed at strengthening cooperation on Red Sea security and expanding military collaboration, a government spokesperson said. The agreement, which officials said is still being finalized, focuses on boosting strategic security coordination, deepening military ties and reinforcing the three countries’ joint role in regional stability. … The confirmation comes after Somalia recently canceled security and port agreements with the United Arab Emirates, accusing Abu Dhabi of violating Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Somali government cited the transfer of a leader linked to Yemen’s separatist movement from within Somalia without informing the federal authorities. Officials close to the talks said Saudi Arabia has applied diplomatic pressure on Somalia to scale back its ties with the UAE, amid growing tensions between the two Gulf powers, both members of the OPEC+ alliance. The rift has been fueled by disagreements linked to the war in Yemen and broader regional influence. … If completed, the agreement would mark Saudi Arabia’s first direct involvement in strengthening Somalia’s security and military capacity, with potential implications for the wider Horn of Africa. Garowe Online
Somali President Visits City Claimed by Breakaway Region
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Friday visited a provincial capital claimed by the breakaway region of Somaliland — the first visit there by a sitting president in over 40 years. The visit to Las Anod, the administrative capital of the Sool region, comes amid heightened diplomatic tensions in the Horn of Africa after Israel officially recognised Somaliland, drawing strong opposition from Mogadishu. Mohamud was attending the inauguration of the president of the newly created Northeast State, which became Somalia’s sixth federal state in August. It was the first visit by a Somali president since 1984. Somalia is a federation of semi-autonomous states, some of which have fraught relations with the central government in Mogadishu. The Northeast State comprises the regions of Sool, Sanaag and Cayn, all territories Somaliland claims as integral to its borders. Somaliland had controlled Las Anod since 2007 but was forced to withdraw in 2023 after violent clashes with Somali forces and pro-Mogadishu militias left scores dead. AFP
South Sudan’s President Fires Interior Minister, Wife of Detained VP Machar
The president of South Sudan has dismissed his interior minister, the wife of a detained opposition leader with whom he was running a unity government following a peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war. President Salva Kiir on Monday evening removed Interior Minister Angelina Teny, a senior opposition figure and the wife of detained First Vice President Riek Machar. No reasons were given for the dismissal. Kiir replaced her with Aleu Ayieny Aleu, a veteran loyalist who previously served as interior minister from 2013 to 2015. The move further weakens the 2018 peace agreement, which allocated the Interior Ministry to the opposition under a power-sharing arrangement. Machar, a former rebel leader who joined the unity government in 2020 following the peace agreement, remains in detention with several associates, facing treason charges linked to violence in Nasir in Upper Nile state. … Teny had headed the ministry since a reshuffle in March 2023, when Kiir transferred her from the defense portfolio and assumed control of the defense ministry himself. She has been largely absent from the Interior Ministry since March 2025, when Machar was placed under house arrest. In June 2025, security agents reportedly confiscated her phone, laptop and a modem. Africanews
Gates and OpenAI Team Up for AI Health Push in African Countries
The Gates Foundation and OpenAI are setting up a $50 million partnership to help several African countries use artificial intelligence to improve their health systems and mitigate the impact of international aid cuts, Bill Gates said on Wednesday. The partnership, called Horizon1000, plans to work with African leaders to determine how best to use the technology, starting with Rwanda. … The foundation has already set up a number of AI initiatives, while Rwanda last year established an AI health hub in Kigali. … Gates told Reuters that the initiative would likely focus on improving care for pregnant women and HIV patients, by supporting them with advice before they reached the clinic – particularly if they spoke a different language to the healthcare provider. On arrival, AI would help reduce paperwork and link up patient histories and appointments more effectively, he added. Reuters
Ivory Coast to Buy Entire Stockpile of Cocoa Beans as Stocks Pile Up
Ivory Coast says it will buy the entire volume of cocoa stockpiled by the country’s cooperatives in order to ensure producers are paid. The news comes as cocoa fell to its lowest price in two years. The cocoa industry accounts for 14 percent of Ivory Coast’s GDP but slowing exports have left stocks piling up. Now the government is stepping in. “The chosen strategy is simple and effective,” Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani, Ivory Coast Minister of Agriculture, said on Tuesday. “The government will primarily rely on credible, solid and structured national operators, who will conduct purchasing and collection operations in collaboration with their traditional partners, notably shredders, multinationals and international exporters.” Ivory Coast is the world’s largest cocoa producer and one in five people in the country relies on the industry to make a living. In recent months, cocoa prices have fallen by about $5 a kilo. A surge in the price of cocoa in late 2024 saw manufacturers cut back on the use of chocolate and exports have fallen to Europe and Asia. Africanews
Sierra Leone President Asks for Civil War ‘Forgiveness’
Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio apologized on Sunday to victims of the country’s 1991-2002 civil war that killed more than 100,000 people. “On behalf of the nation, I ask for forgiveness,” said Bio in an address marking the first National Day of Remembrance in memory of the victims. … The leader, who became president in 2018, was initially a soldier during the conflict and then a member of the junta which was in power during that period. … Early Sunday, a small group of amputees and war wounded gathered at Freetown’s Peace Museum to pay tribute to those who lost their lives during the conflict. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission established in the country to investigate responsibility for the atrocities committed during the conflict recommended that the government dedicate a day to the memory of those who died. AFP