Sudan Army Says It Countered RSF Drone Attacks on Port Sudan for Sixth Day
The Sudanese army said on Friday it had confronted drone attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the interim capital, Port Sudan, for the sixth consecutive day. Military anti-aircraft units fired intensively to repel drones flying over central Port Sudan, site of Sudan’s main Red Sea ports, and northern areas of the city where the army’s Flamingo naval base is located, according to a Sudan Tribune reporter in Port Sudan. The army’s statement follows a period between Sunday and Wednesday when RSF drones reportedly successfully targeted facilities at the Osman Digna airbase, adjacent to Port Sudan International Airport. Those attacks also hit strategic oil depots and privately-owned warehouses near the southern port, in addition to shelling the Flamingo naval base. However, the army said its forces subsequently repelled drone attacks on Thursday and Friday, with reports suggesting several “suicide” drones were downed. These later attacks were said to have focused on the Flamingo naval base and the air college headquarters within the base. Drone activity was also reported on Thursday evening over the Flamingo naval base north of Port Sudan and the Kenana airbase, south of Rabak, the capital of White Nile State. Sudan Tribune
UAE-supplied Chinese Weapons Fuelling Sudan Conflict, Breaching Arms Embargo
Sophisticated Chinese weaponry, likely provided by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has been identified in Sudan, demonstrating a clear breach of the UN arms embargo, Amnesty International said in a report released on Thursday. The rights group’s investigation uncovered the use of Chinese-manufactured GB50A guided bombs and 155mm AH-4 howitzers by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Khartoum and the Darfur region. This marks the first documented use of GB50A bombs in any active conflict globally, Amnesty said. “This is clear evidence that sophisticated Chinese-made guided bombs and howitzers have been used in Sudan,” said Brian Castner, Head of Crisis Research at Amnesty International. By analyzing visual evidence from attacks, Amnesty International traced the GB50A bomb fragments from a March 9 drone strike near al-Malha in North Darfur back to the Norinco Group, a Chinese state-owned defense corporation. Markings on the fragments indicated the bomb was manufactured in 2024. The report noted that these bombs are compatible with drones exclusively used by the RSF in Sudan and supplied by the UAE. Furthermore, videos from late March showed the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) seizing Norinco 155mm AH-4 howitzers from retreating RSF fighters in Khartoum. Amnesty International cited data showing the UAE as the sole importer of these howitzers from China in 2019, strongly suggesting the UAE’s continued support for the RSF. Sudan Tribune
UN Extends South Sudan Mission amid Growing Instability
The U.N. Security Council voted Thursday to extend the mandate of the U.N. mission in South Sudan for another year as the world’s youngest nation faces renewed threats of conflict. The resolution, introduced by the United States and backed by 11 other council members, extends the mission, known as UNMISS, until April 30, 2026. It authorizes peacekeepers to “use all necessary means” to protect civilians, deliver aid, support a fragile 2018 peace deal and investigate human rights violations. China, Russia and Pakistan abstained from the vote. The decision follows a nine-day technical extension approved April 30 to allow more time for negotiations. It comes amid escalating political tensions in South Sudan, where disputes between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar have raised fears of renewed violence…The resolution keeps UNMISS troop levels at 17,000 and police at 2,101, including justice advisers. The council said it could adjust force levels based on future conditions. It expressed “deep concern” over delays in implementing the peace deal and urged South Sudan’s leaders to rebuild trust and engage in dialogue. The resolution also called on the transitional government to fund and organize free elections and condemned sexual violence, child soldier recruitment and interference with aid operations. Radio Tamazuj
DR Congo Aid Operation Reaches Beni with Food Supplies for Thousands
A UN food convoy has successfully delivered vital supplies to support tens of thousands of displaced people affected by escalating violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to humanitarian teams on the ground. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that trucks packed with cereals, beans and cooking oil reached the city of Beni in North Kivu province from neighbouring Uganda, amid clashes between Rwanda-backed M23 rebel fighters and Congolese forces. WFP said that it intends to use the thousands of tonnes of relief supplies transported to warehouses in Beni to help around 140,000 people living in Lubero territory, south of the city of Butembo. Violence escalated on 2 May across Lubero territory, uprooting some 30,000 people, according to the UN aid coordination office, OCHA. UN News
Mali’s Efforts to Stem Political Protests to Face Test
An attempt by Mali’s military government to stamp out public dissent by banning all political activity will be put to the test on Friday as critics wary of security and economic woes call for protests. Authorities on Wednesday announced that all work by political parties and other political organisations had been suspended until further notice to preserve public order. The move came ahead of planned protests in the capital, Bamako, and the city of Segou against the government, which came to power after coups in 2020 and 2021. Government critics, including activists and opposition politicians, appeared keen to build momentum after unprecedented public gatherings on May 3 and 4 in Bamako. Those were triggered by recommendations from a national council of political actors to hand military leader Assimi Goita a five-year mandate and dissolve all political parties…While organisers of Friday’s protest postponed the event until further notice, calls for civil disobedience nonetheless circled on social media…While the council’s recommendations on dissolving political parties and granting Goita a five-year mandate were an important trigger, the protests last weekend highlighted anger over a broad range of issues in a country where military leaders – who took power promising to stem the threat posed by jihadist groups – have instead overseen a worsening security situation. Reuters
On Patrol for Jihadists with Mauritania’s Camel Cavalry
[Mauritania’s camelback cavalry play a vital role in the fight against jihadism.] They are the Meharists, heirs to the camel-riding army units founded back in the time when imperialist France ruled the west African nation, who AFP accompanied on patrol for two days. Kalashnikovs lay slung over the soldiers’ shoulders, while a brand new drone sliced through the burning Saharan air in the southeast of the country. To the east over a porous and at points ill-defined 2,200-kilometre-long (1,370-mile-long) border lies Mali, which along with its Sahel region neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger is riven by violence from jihadist groups. To tame the immense, mainly desert territory, Mauritania has turned to the dromedary camel — a handy navigator of sandy terrain which would defeat offroad vehicles. “The nomadic group can be deployed in very remote or hard-to-reach areas to ensure the state has a presence there,” explained National Guard unit commander Colonel Moulaye al-Bashir. The strategy seems to be bearing some fruit. Mauritania has not suffered a jihadist attack since 2011. Until a few years ago the desert riders’ unit was in decline, numbering barely 50 men. Since 2019 it has enjoyed a renaissance. Today, the “Nomad Group” boasts some 150 riders, as well as a herd of 400 camels. The Meharists have been buoyed by a grant of several million euros from the European Union. AFP
Nigeria Approves $652 Million China Exim Bank Road Finance Package
Nigeria has approved a $652-million China Exim Bank funding package for construction of a road to move goods from a sea port and petroleum refinery on the edge of its main city Lagos to its southern states, the public works minister said. The financing was approved by the federal executive council chaired by President Bola Tinubu on Monday, David Umahi said in a statement. The road will be an evacuation corridor from the Lekki Deep Sea Port, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery – Africa’s biggest with refining capacity of 650,000 barrels per day – and its adjoining fertiliser plant to at least a dozen southern states. China has been providing billions of dollars in funding for power, rail and road projects in Nigeria, the continent’s most populous nation and Africa’s biggest oil producer. Nigeria’s debt to China – its largest bilateral creditor – stands at over $5 billion, the most recent data from the country’s Debt Management Office showed. Reuters
Angolan Lawyers Denounce Court Halt to Election Law Debate
Angola’s Bar Association on Thursday denounced a last-minute court order halting its planned debate on electoral reforms as a “severe blow” to democracy. A Luanda court ruled late Wednesday that the event, set for the following day, could not go ahead on the grounds it fell outside the mandate of the Angola Bar Association (OAA). The association had organised what it called a “national dialogue”, inviting civil society figures, journalists, academics and lawyers to debate the proposed changes ahead of the 2027 general elections…”This decision, of unprecedented gravity, represents a direct assault on the institutional autonomy of the OAA, an attack on fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Constitution and a severe blow to the backbone of the democratic rule of law,” it said…Proposed changes to the electoral law, currently before parliament, include using national identity cards as the sole voting document and introducing mobile polling stations. The ruling MPLA says the measures aim to curb voter abstention, but the main opposition party UNITA has reportedly rejected them as opening the door to manipulation. Rights groups and opposition activists have accused Angola’s authorities of ramping up repression in recent years, including through new laws that would restrict media and clamp down on protests. AFP
Plans Underway for Africa to Produce 8 Vaccines by 2040
The African Union has set a target for 60 percent of vaccines used on the continent to be produced locally by 2040, aiming to strengthen regional health security and reduce reliance on imports. Currently, Africa manufactures only 1 percent of the vaccines it needs, which limits its ability to respond effectively to disease outbreaks. However, progress is being made, with plans for three companies in South Africa and Senegal to produce eight vaccines by 2030. The Citizen
Gang Who Smuggled Thousands of Queen Ants Sentenced in Kenya
A Kenyan court has sentenced four men to one year in prison or pay a fine of $7,700 for trying to smuggle thousands of live queen ants out of the country. The four suspects – two Belgians, a Vietnamese and a Kenyan – were arrested last month with live ants suspected to have been destined for collectors in Europe and Asia…The contraband included giant African harvester ants, which are valued by some UK dealers at up to $220 each…The ants were packed in more than 2,000 test tubes filled with cotton wool to help them survive for months, authorities said…While sentencing [two of the men], Ms Thuku said they were involved in what she described as “illegal wildlife trade and possibly bio-piracy”…In a statement, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) hailed the ruling as a “testament to Kenya’s zero-tolerance stance on wildlife trafficking”. It also highlighted the ecological importance of the giant African harvester ants, noting that their removal from the ecosystem could disrupt soil health and biodiversity. BBC
What East African Soldiers Contributed during World War II
[VIDEO] The King’s African Rifles were a division of African soldiers in the British army during World War II. Toward the end of the war, East African soldiers fought Italians in Africa and Japanese in what was then Burma. DW spoke to one of the few remaining veterans in Kenya. DW