Zambia’s President to Be Sworn in for Second Term while Opponent Detained
Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema is due to be sworn in for a second five-year term on Tuesday following a disputed election and the arrest of his main opponent on treason charges. Hichilema – credited with stabilising the economy – swept to victory on 13 August with 60% of the vote, according to official results. Runner-up Brian Mundubile, who received 38%, alleged that the outcome had been tampered with. He was unable to mount a legal challenge to the result as the courts were sealed off last week on the final day a case could be filed. Election observers said that while polling day was largely peaceful, some have raised questions about the vote tallying process. … The day after the poll, security forces raided a property in the capital, Lusaka, linked to Mundubile, killing a former cabinet minister and arresting a number of opposition politicians. The authorities accused the opposition of planning an armed insurrection, which they denied. Mundubile and his running mate, Makebi Zulu, had gone into hiding. They were detained by police last week and charged at the weekend. BBC
Vote Counting Underway in Guinea-Bissau Referendum that Could Expand Presidential Powers
Ballot counting began in military-run Guinea-Bissau as voting ended in Sunday’s referendum, which could give the president more powers ahead of a general election meant to restore civilian rule later this year. … The referendum came less than 10 months after a coup in which the military seized power in the impoverished Portuguese-speaking west African country. … The junta says the change seeks to stabilise institutions before new presidential and parliamentary elections designed to hand power back to civilians scheduled for December 6. But the political climate is tense in the coup-prone coastal nation. The opposition has urged voters to boycott the referendum “in a context of restrictions on public freedoms.” Under the transitional charter he upholds, the general is barred from running for election. The junta has unanimously approved a constitutional amendment for the country to switch to a presidential system from a parliamentary one, and was asking the public to back it. The new text proposes abandoning the old system whereby the prime minister came from the parliamentary majority, which has led to uncomfortable power-sharing. It would also allow the head of state to appoint and dismiss the prime minister and members of the government, and to dissolve parliament. AFP
Darfur Gold Flows Fuel Sudan War Economy through Regional Smuggling Routes
A weeks-long investigation by Sudan Tribune reveals a complex operational link between the RSF and Russia’s Wagner mercenary group that predated the outbreak of the April 2023 conflict, persisted intermittently, and later transitioned into corporate front structures. The dual-track arrangement relies on securing extraction sites and running closed processing facilities using cyanide and mercury in exchange for logistical support, technical expertise, arms, and military hardware for RSF field units. Multiple sources said supplies and consignments were routinely moved via unpaved airstrips in remote parts of Darfur and through Wagner-linked military outposts at the Birao base in northern CAR. The illicit network relies on several overland corridors to bypass official customs monitoring and national port infrastructure. The primary route runs through the Um Dafuq–Birao border crossing. Gold from Radom, Songo, and Um Dukhun is transported in four-wheel-drive convoys escorted by armed RSF fighters to the Um Dafuq frontier, where it crosses into the CAR at Birao before continuing on to Bangui. The investigation also identified the N’Djamena–Ennedi corridor, where gold is transported via desert tracks from North Darfur into Chad, then loaded onto commercial vehicles or private charter flights to obscure its trail. … Flight tracking and source accounts indicate that once in the CAR, consignments of gold are flown to the United Arab Emirates, the primary trading and refining destination. Other parcels are routed directly through informal channels to Russia, generating hard-currency liquidity outside international sanctions regimes. Sudan Tribune
Thwarted Niger Mutiny Exposes Junta’s Russia Dependence
The pivotal role played by Russia’s Africa Corps mercenaries in putting down a mutiny in Niger at the weekend has revealed just how dependent on Moscow the west African country’s ruling junta has become. The growing reliance on Russian mercenaries is also at odds with the junta’s insistence that its 2023 coup was about reclaiming the nation’s sovereignty and independence from foreign powers, according to analysts. On Saturday, after a night of intense fighting in the capital Niamey, Niger’s military government asked for — and obtained — the Africa Corps’ help in wresting back control from disgruntled soldiers who had attacked several sensitive sites and hunkered down in a key military base at the airport. … Lou Osborn, co-founder of the collective All Eyes on Wagner, which tracks the mercenary outfit, “what the Russians are promising above all is this praetorian guard service, to protect the regime — and they are keeping that promise”. Beverly Ochieng, an analyst at Control Risks, argued that the Africa Corps had an interest in keeping General Abdourahmane Tiani in power against any opposition — not just the jihadists. “In order to maintain its presence, its foremost mission is to ensure that the government prevails no matter what threats are underway,” Ochieng said. “So it was not choosing a side, it was still fulfilling the obligation of protecting and responding to the government’s requirements.” AFP
Nigeria: Benue, Plateau Governors Seek Regional Approach to North-central Insecurity
Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, and his Benue counterpart, Hyacinth Alia, have called for stronger regional cooperation and community-based security measures to address insecurity across Nigeria’s North-central region. The governors made the call on Monday at the North Central Regional Security Summit in Makurdi, organised by the Federal Ministry of Defence and the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement, in partnership with the Benue State Government. The summit, held at the New Banquet Hall of the Benue State Government House, brought together the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, who represented President Bola Tinubu, governors and representatives from states in the region, security and intelligence chiefs, traditional and religious leaders, community leaders and other stakeholders. … [T]he summit focused on banditry, terrorism, farmer-herder conflicts, kidnapping, organised crime and violent extremism spillovers affecting communities across the region. … The summit organisers said the meeting was intended to localise security responses by bringing government and security agencies closer to communities affected by violence. Mr Alia said the North-central region’s agricultural and mineral resources made it critical to Nigeria’s economic stability. Premium Times
Uganda: Besigye, Lukwago Evacuated from Luzira Prison for Medical Care
Uganda Prisons Service has confirmed that veteran opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye and former Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago were again evacuated from Luzira Prison for medical attention at the Joint Clinical Research Centre (JCRC). Prisons spokesperson Frank Baine said on Monday that the two inmates were taken to JCRC by the prisons medical team, but dismissed reports circulating on social media that either was in critical condition. … His comments followed reports that Dr Besigye and Mr Lukwago had separately been evacuated from Luzira after their health reportedly deteriorated. On August 28, Dr Besigye’s wife, Ms Winnie Byanyima, said her husband had been transferred to JCRC after dark and described him as being in a weak condition. “After dark, Dr @kizzabesigye1 was moved from Luzira Prison to JCRC hospital today. He is still very weak. He struggles to walk, speak, write or even hold anything steadily,” Ms Byanyima said in a post on X. She appealed to authorities to allow Dr Besigye to return to Geneva for specialised medical treatment and to be with his family. “He needs care, not cruelty. This is not justice. It is persecution,” she said. Mr Baine, however, said any decision on Dr Besigye’s request to receive treatment outside prison was a matter for court and not the Uganda Prisons Service. Monitor
Congo Authorities Report More than 6,000 Confirmed Ebola Cases and Nearly 3,000 Deaths
Congo’s authorities said Monday that the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history has topped 6,000 cases with 2,911 deaths. More than 1,360 people have recovered from the virus, in what authorities said was an “encouraging” development. The outbreak in eastern Congo is spreading under extremely difficult conditions, fueled by insecurity, displacement, a health workers’ strike and intense population movements. The situation is particularly concerning at displacement sites, where residents already live in extremely precarious conditions. Last week, the virus spilled into two new health zones in the region. The World Health Organization has said that it remains out of control and is on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, the deadliest on record, which killed more than 11,000 people, primarily in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. AP
African NGOs Demand Probe into Six Bodies Found in Guinea Mass Grave
A group of 20 African civil society organisations has called for an independent investigation into the discovery of six unidentified bodies in a mass grave in Guinea. The call on Sunday came after local men gathering firewood stumbled upon the six male bodies in the village of Alassoya in Lower Guinea’s Forecariah administrative prefecture on August 24. The bodies were found bound and blindfolded. Guinea’s Armed Forces have confirmed the discovery. The NGOs included the Afrikajom Centre and several branches of the Tournons La Page (TLP), an organisation that unites citizens’ movements across a dozen African countries. They demanded that “all hypotheses be examined as part of an independent, impartial and transparent investigation”. They also called for the investigation to be conducted “with the support of national and international forensic experts in order to formally identify the victims”. The groups said the discovery of the mass grave comes on top of “at least 35 cases of enforced disappearances documented by TLP-Guinea since September 5, 2021”. They added that the circumstances in which the bodies were found “raise fears that the victims may have been subjected to extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions”. … The discovery comes amid a wide-ranging crackdown on dissent in Guinea following General Mamady Doumbouya’s seizure of power in a coup in 2021. Since the power grab, several political parties have been suspended and protests suppressed, while numerous opposition and civil society leaders have been arrested, sentenced, or forced into exile. Civil society groups have also documented cases of opposition activists being abducted or disappearing under the military government. Al Jazeera
Five Years after Saied’s Power Grab, Tunisia’s Old Grievances Resurface
More than 15 years after Tunisians rose up to topple longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, familiar grievances are again being heard on the streets from north to south. A slogan from the 2011 revolution is being heard again: “employment, freedom and national dignity”. This time, those demands are being fuelled by water cuts, electricity outages, rising prices, medicine shortages and a struggle to make ends meet, problems increasingly affecting Tunisians across social and economic divides. But the anger is unfolding in a very different political environment. The discontent comes as Tunisia marks five years since President Kais Saied suspended parliament, dismissed the government and began ruling by decree, moves he described as necessary to end years of political paralysis and corruption. Many Tunisians welcomed the move at the time, frustrated with a political system that had failed to address the country’s economic problems after the 2011 revolution. Five years later, many of those grievances remain while the political space for challenging those in power has narrowed sharply. Al Jazeera
Indian National Defence College Delegation Visits Ethiopia to Deepen Strategic Ties
A multinational delegation from India’s National Defence College has arrived in Ethiopia for a study visit aimed at strengthening military and strategic ties between the two countries, according to the Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) and Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). The delegation, led by Major General Pawanpal Singh, Senior Directing Staff at India’s National Defence College, was received by State Minister for Defence Finance Martha Luigi at the Ministry of Defence, the ENDF said in a statement issued on 31 August. Luigi welcomed the delegation, saying the visit demonstrated India’s commitment to strengthening military relations with Ethiopia through professional exchanges, sharing of experience and enhanced mutual understanding. She said Ethiopia and India have longstanding historical relations and share values including sovereignty, national independence, peace, stability and development. She also emphasized the importance of understanding different security environments, national experiences and cultures in developing strategic military leadership. … The visit comes amid growing defence and security cooperation between Ethiopia and India. In October 2025, Addis Standard reported that the two countries held their first-ever Joint Defence Cooperation (JDC) meeting in New Delhi, marking a new institutional step in their longstanding military relationship. Addis Standard
Illegal Mining Ravages South Africa’s Economic Hub
Whole chunks of a once-busy road in Johannesburg have collapsed because of damage caused by the illegal mining rampant across South Africa’s economic hub. Elsewhere along Wemmer Pan Road are cracks and sinkholes from underground blasting by irregular miners digging under the city for gold and other minerals. The round-the-clock operations are undermining Johannesburg’s infrastructure — from transport and power networks to homes and buildings — and introducing crime linked to competition between gangs, residents and officials say. … Illegal mining in South Africa pulls in thousands of impoverished men from countries around the region who can spend days underground at a time. Known locally as zama zamas, which means “those who try” in Zulu, they are mostly heavily armed and descend deep into shafts abandoned by mining companies, or dig out new ones. … They steal electricity cables, damage water pipes and dig up roads, said Michael Sun, a member of the provincial legislature in Gauteng, which includes Johannesburg. “Who gets to suffer? The residents get to suffer,” he said. AFP
Kenya Aviation Workers End Strike that Paralyzed Airport Operations in the Capital
Kenyan aviation workers on Tuesday called off a strike that paralyzed air traffic for two days at the main international airport in the capital Nairobi. Moss Ndiema, head of the Kenya Aviation Workers Union, said the strike that started Sunday had been called off immediately. The go-slow strike ended after the union reached an agreement with Kenya Airports Authority and others. The strike left many travelers stranded by cancellations and flight delays. … Operations at airports elsewhere in Kenya also were affected by the strike. Unionized members alleged unfair staff hiring practices, poor compensation and proposed changes to the management of Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. The airport has been plagued by intermitted industrial action as unionized workers demand better pay and working conditions. A similar strike in February stranded passengers at the airport, a major transport hub for regional and international travel. AP