Dozens Killed in Attacks in Central Mali
A fresh wave of attacks by jihadist fighters in central Mali killed dozens of people, local and security sources said on Saturday, May 9. Friday’s attacks were claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), who had already killed at least 30 people in attacks on villages on Wednesday. One local official said the latest attacks by the armed groups had brought the toll to more than 70 in recent days. Another local official put the death toll at 80. “Our hearts are bleeding,” one local youth leader said, accusing nearby army detachments of doing nothing to help, despite multiple calls. … The latest attacks come after JNIM and the Tuareg-dominated Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) carried out an unprecedented assault against the ruling junta in Mali last month. Since then, Mali’s security situation has become critical, with several areas in the north now controlled by armed groups. Le Monde with AFP
Macron Tours East Africa Amid Push to Redefine France’s Role in Africa
French President Emmanuel Macron has started a tour of East Africa as Paris seeks to rebuild its influence on the continent after a series of setbacks, especially in its former West African colonies. Macron began the three-country tour in Egypt on Saturday, which will also take him to Kenya and Ethiopia. He will cohost a summit in English-speaking Kenya on Monday and Tuesday as France seeks to redefine its role in Africa, moving away from its postcolonial role towards closer cooperation. The summit will bring together African leaders and business executives, with several agreements between French and Kenyan companies set to be signed during the visit to boost economic and commercial cooperation. The “Africa Forward” summit will be the first in an Anglophone country attended by Macron since he took office in 2017. The French president will wrap up his tour in Addis Ababa on Wednesday, where he will hold meetings with Ethiopian officials and take part in talks at the African Union headquarters on peace and security in Africa. Al Jazeera
Rebel Fighters Kill at Least 69 People in Northeastern DR Congo
An attack by armed rebels has killed at least 69 people in Ituri province in the conflict-torn northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to security officials. For more than 30 years, the mineral-rich eastern DRC has been a battleground for various armed groups, vying for control of its many mines. Armed men affiliated with the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo (CODECO) coalition of militia groups, which claims to protect the Lendu, carried out attacks in several villages on April 28, local and security sources told the AFP news agency. These attacks followed an earlier assault by another armed group, the Convention for the Popular Revolution (CRP) – which says it fights for the Hema community – on positions held by the Congolese army (FARDC) near the locality of Pimbo, they said. Al Jazeera
DR Congo President Eyes Third Term
DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi opened the door to seeking a third presidential term — ostensibly blocked by his country’s constitution — saying during a nationally televised press conference on Wednesday that he would remain available for office if the Congolese people demanded it. Tshisekedi, first elected in 2019, is due to complete his second and final term in December 2028. … The Congolese president’s comments come amid mounting opposition concerns that proposed constitutional changes could weaken presidential term limits. Semafor
Somali Piracy Threatens Ships Rerouted From Middle East
… half the vessels bound for Europe from Asia and the Gulf were bypassing the Red Sea and Suez Canal due to earlier strikes by the Iran-backed Houthis. Faced with the threat of attacks around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow chokepoint between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, major shipping firms opted instead for the long detour around southern Africa. This diversion adds two to three weeks and thousands of nautical miles to the journey, taking ships right past Somalia’s coastline — the same waters where Somali pirates staged a multiyear campaign of hijackings that peaked in 2011. Sporadic incidents have been reported ever since. That stretch of sea is now seeing piracy return with a vengeance, with three ships hijacked off Somalia and nearby Yemen in the past three weeks alone. As of May 8, 2026, the Honour 25 and Eureka oil tankers and the cargo ship Sward all remain under pirate control. Experts believe that organized crime groups in Somalia are taking advantage of the Iran war to launch hijackings, as international naval patrols, first deployed in 2008 to counter the pirates, have been stretched thin by current events around Hormuz and the Red Sea. DW
‘It’s Like We Went Bankrupt Overnight’: Poorest Somalis Suffer as Piles of Worthless Shillings Mount Up
Last month, fed up with greasy, ripped and aged banknotes, a handful of traders in Mogadishu decided they would no longer accept them. Soon businesses, shops and even bus drivers were following suit, and the decision quickly spread to regions outside the capital. The impact on prices was immediate, pushing up everyday expenses such as groceries, medicines and public transport. A small bag of powdered milk, for example, more than doubled in price. Amid global food price rises and Somalia’s ongoing drought, poor people are bearing the brunt of the effects of an economy that is becoming completely “dollarised.” … Now farmers refuse to accept the shillings and request payments in mobile money instead, increasing vegetable prices. “Vegetables were already expensive because of the drought,” she says. “The rejection of the shilling only exacerbated our situation.” The Guardian
Sudan Was Already at War and Hungry. Now Its Farmers Are Hit by Another Conflict”
Al-Hassan and other farmers in Sudan are bracing for an expensive planting season in the weeks ahead. Some told The Associated Press they are reducing production or not planting at all — dangerous news for a country where three years of war have left millions hungry. The Iran war has “affected everything related to agriculture,” al-Hassan said as he and others pulled onions from the ground. They had spent two months clearing the weed-choked land, ”plowed the soil and we said God bless, and even then we struggled so much, one had to sometimes skip a meal.” He and 10 other farmers who work his land said they can’t handle agricultural costs without government support, forcing cuts in production and rationing of fertilizer on his farm that also produces potatoes and tomatoes. … WFP has said its Sudan-bound food assistance shipments are traveling 9,000 kilometers (5,500 miles) farther to reach their destination, adding costs and time. That’s in part because many vessels also avoid the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, another crucial waterway, according to WFP shipping chief Henrik Hansen. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have threatened some shipping there. AP
UN Warns Drone Attacks Drive Surge in Civilian Deaths in Sudan
The United Nations human rights chief warned on Monday that widening and intensifying violence in Sudan, as well as the rising use of drones, could lead to more death and displacement. “The international community is on notice that, unless action is taken without delay, this conflict is on the cusp of entering yet another new, even deadlier phase,” the high commissioner for the U.N. Human Rights Office, Volker Turk, said in a statement. Turk warned that armed drones have now become the leading cause of civilian deaths. Drone strikes accounted for 80% of all conflict-related civilian deaths, with at least 880 people killed by an unmanned aerial vehicle between January and April this year, according to OHCHR data. Most were recorded in the Kordofan region. Twenty-six civilians were reportedly killed following drone strikes on Al Quz, in South Kordofan, and near El Obeid, in North Kordofan, on May 8, according to OHCHR. Reuters
Major Opposition Split Sparks Nigerian Election Scramble
The dramatic exit of two leading Nigerian opposition figures from a coalition preparing to challenge President Bola Tinubu in January’s elections has dealt a potentially deadly blow to hopes of a united front to take on an increasingly powerful incumbent. Peter Obi, a former state governor in the southeast, finished third in the 2023 presidential poll with a quarter of the popular vote compared to Tinubu’s 37%. He left the African Democratic Congress (ADC) — a smaller party that several major opposition politicians co-opted as a united platform to challenge Tinubu — alongside Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a popular figure in Kano, the most populous northern state. Both men had left the parties with which they contested the last election to join the ADC with other heavyweight opposition politicians including Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president, who came second in 2023. Last month they attended a meeting where a pact was reached to field one consensus opposition candidate. But citing legal disputes over the party’s leadership, as well as “suspicion and division,” Obi joined the newly formed Nigeria Democratic Congress and looks set to be on its ballot in January, potentially with Kwankwaso being tipped as his running mate. Semafor
Nigeria’s Ex-Power Minister Convicted of Fraud, Money Laundering
A High Court in Abuja has convicted former Minister of Power Saleh Mamman on 12 counts of fraud and money laundering. The conviction follows an investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) into the illegal diversion of public funds during Mamman’s tenure under former President Muhammadu Buhari. In a scathing ruling, the trial judge said: “… rather than creating a legacy to tackle the country’s epileptic power supply, the defendant was living large at the expense of ordinary citizens”. Sentencing has been deferred due to the defendant’s absence from court. AllAfrica
Remains of US Soldier Who Went Missing During Military Exercises in Morocco Have Been Recovered
The remains of a U.S. soldier who went missing during military exercises in Morocco a week ago were recovered in the Atlantic Ocean, the army said Sunday. Military teams were still searching for a second missing soldier. The remains were those of 1st Lt. Kendrick Lamont Key Jr., a 14A Air Defense Artillery officer who was one of two U.S. soldiers who fell off a cliff during a recreational hike in Morocco while off duty. He was 27 years old. The two were reported missing May 2 after participating in African Lion, an annual multinational military exercise held in Morocco. “A Moroccan military search team found the Soldier in the water along the shoreline at approximately 8:55 a.m. local time May 9, within roughly one mile of where both Soldiers reportedly entered the ocean,” U.S. Army Europe and Africa said in a statement. AP
Botswana Mourns Death of ‘Remarkable’ Former President Mogae
Tributes poured in after the Botswana government announced the death at the age of 86 of former President Festus Mogae, who served as the country’s third president post independence. Mogae was widely acclaimed for his commitment to good governance and his management of the diamond-rich nation’s economy during his decade-long tenure. “He was a true statesman, who used his wisdom and experience to advance Africa’s development where it matters most: in the wellbeing of its people,” said Mo Ibrahim in a statement issued by his Foundation. Mogae was the 2008 Mo Ibrahim Prize and for 15 years chaired the Prize Committee. AllAfrica