Southern Africa Leaders Open Virtual Summit On DRCongo Conflict
Southern African leaders held a virtual summit Thursday to discuss the conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, including reviewing a military mission that has lost several soldiers this year…The virtual meeting of the 16-nation [Southern African Development Community] SADC bloc will be updated on the security and humanitarian situation and review the mandate of the SADC mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC), SADC executive secretary Elias Magoso said in opening remarks. South Africa lost 14 soldiers in the eastern DRC conflict in January. Most were from the SAMIDRC mission but at least two were deployed as part of a separate United Nations peacekeeping mission. Three Malawian troops in the SADC deployment were also killed. The mission was sent to the eastern DRC in December 2023 to help the government of the DRC, a SADC member, restore peace and security. AFP
Somali Forces End a 24-hour Siege by Al-Shabab Militants on a Hotel, Leaving All Fighters Dead
Somali security forces on Wednesday ended a 24-hour siege at a hotel in the central city of Beledwyne, leaving an unknown number of people dead, including all the al-Shabab militants who launched the attack, officials said. The attack began when a car bomb exploded Tuesday at the Cairo Hotel, which houses traditional elders and military officers involved in coordinating the government’s offensive against al-Shabab…Beledweyne, about 335 kilometers (208 miles) north of the capital, Mogadishu, is the capital of the Hiran region and a strategic location in the ongoing campaign against al-Shabab…Al-Shabab, which opposes Somalia’s federal government, frequently carries out bombings and assaults targeting government officials and military personnel in the Horn of Africa nation. The group controls parts of rural Somalia and poses a significant threat despite sustained military operations by government troops and African Union peacekeepers. AP
Sudan: Darfur Violence Escalates, At Least 10 Killed in Artillery Strike, Villages Attacked
At least 10 people were killed and 23 others injured on Wednesday in an artillery bombardment by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the capital of North Darfur, El Fasher. Concurrently, the RSF launched fierce attacks on dozens of villages in an area of North Darfur state controlled by the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) faction led by Abdel Wahid Nur. The security and humanitarian situation in Darfur’s historical capital continues to deteriorate amid ongoing military operations between the Sudanese army, alongside allied armed groups, and the RSF, which seeks to control the last stronghold of the central government in the Darfur region…Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) faction led by Minni Minawi, Al-Sadiq Ali Al-Nur, accused the RSF of committing killings that targeted women, children, the elderly, and the sick in villages northeast of Tawila locality in North Darfur state…In recent months, the town has hosted thousands of displaced people who fled El Fasher following the escalation of military operations in the city. Sudan Tribune
South Sudan: IGAD Demands Release of Arrested Machar Allies
The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) on Wednesday called for the immediate release of officials allied with South Sudan’s First Vice President Riek Machar, warning that their detention risks derailing the country’s fragile peace agreement amid escalating tensions following deadly clashes in Upper Nile State. The East African regional bloc, in a communiqué issued after an emergency virtual summit chaired by Djibouti’s President Ismail Omar Guelleh, urged President Salva Kiir’s government to free the detainees unless “credible evidence” justifies legal proceedings conducted transparently…The move follows clashes on March 7–8 in Nasir County between forces loyal to Kiir and Machar, which killed South Sudanese army commander Gen Majur Duk and a United Nations staffer during evacuations. Kiir’s administration subsequently detained multiple Machar allies, including Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chol and senior military officials. Radio Tamazuj
India, Mauritius Upgrade Strategic Ties with Eye on China
India and Mauritius have upgraded their ties, say leaders of both countries — a move analysts say is aimed at increasing New Delhi’s influence in the Indian Ocean as it seeks to counter China’s expanding footprint in the region. The announcement of upgraded ties came during a two-day visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mauritius, an island nation that sits along vital seaways in the western Indian Ocean…Mauritius conferred the country’s highest civilian honor on Modi, and the prime ministers signed eight pacts to boost cooperation in several sectors including maritime security…[A]nalysts said Modi’s visit came amid a recognition that India needs to step up its engagement with a country that is called the gateway to the Western Indian Ocean and Africa, and where Beijing’s presence has grown…In 2019, China signed a free trade agreement with Mauritius that went into effect in 2021…Last year, India helped Mauritius build an airstrip and a jetty in Agalega — two tiny islands covering 25 square kilometers that are located north of the main island. Although Mauritius has said that the facilities are not for military use, they give India a foothold to monitor traffic in the western Indian Ocean, say analysts. VOA
Malawi Court Says Fugitive Preacher May Be Extradited To South Africa
A Malawi court ruled Wednesday that a fugitive preacher wanted by South Africa for alleged rape, fraud and forgery may be extradited to face the charges. The South African government had asked Malawi to return Shepherd Bushiri and his wife after they fled the country in 2020 while on bail for alleged fraud and money laundering in a multi-million-dollar case. A magistrate’s court acknowledged that four of 10 charges against Bushiri require him to stand trial in South Africa, the Malawi justice ministry said in a statement…”Today’s ruling is a significant milestone in international legal cooperation, demonstrating the strength of both countries’ judicial frameworks and diplomatic engagements,” [South Africa’s] justice ministry said. AFP
Zimbabwe Journalist Still in Custody after Case Adjourned
A High Court judge in Zimbabwe on Wednesday adjourned the case of a journalist arrested over his interviews with a war veteran-turned-politician who criticized the country’s president. Blessed Mhlanga, a journalist with NewsDay and Heart and Soul Television, has been in custody since Feb. 24 over accusations of incitement. Lawyers for the journalist had requested that he be bailed out, but at a hearing in Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, Justice Gibson Mandaza requested more time to examine the case…The arrest is related to his interviews with war veteran and politician Blessed Geza in November and January, in which Geza said that he would mobilize public protests to push President Emmerson Mnangagwa out of office, citing economic issues and what he called the president’s failure to govern. On Friday, Geza was expelled from the Zanu PF party for what the party described as violating regulations in public comments about the president. Mhike said he believed his client’s arrest served as a warning to others to refrain from discussing political topics, such as whether Mnangagwa should seek a third term. VOA
Sierra Leone Fires Immigration Chief Caught on Tape Taking Drug Lord Gift
Sierra Leone’s chief immigration officer was fired hours after the emergence of a video of him accepting a gift from one of Europe’s most notorious drug barons, the government told AFP on Wednesday. In a video posted Friday by investigative website Follow the Money, Alusine Kanneh can be seen laughing at a party while taking a gift from Jos Leijdekkers, a fugitive Dutch trafficker believed to be hiding out in the west African country. Previous pictures apparently showing Leijdekkers, nicknamed “Chubby Jos”, in the company of officials as high as President Julius Maada Bio have sparked speculation that the cocaine lord has cosied up to Sierra Leone’s political class — including the president’s daughter. Besides Kanneh, the director of Sierra Leone’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Andrew Jaiah Kaikai, was pictured observing the festivities featuring Leijdekkers in Friday’s video…Leijdekkers, who also goes by the alias “Omar Sheriff”, is considered by European Union law enforcement agency Europol to be a major player in the international cocaine trade…West Africa serves as a midway point for cocaine traffickers shipping the drug from its Latin American producers towards consumers in Europe, according to the Swiss-based Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. AFP