Africa (except North Africa)

NAIROBI, Oct 2 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 2.4 million people risk going hungry by November as drought ravages northern and eastern Kenya, a nearly threefold increase from last year, the World Food Programme said.

The East African country has been hit by an accumulation of calamities in recent years, including a locust invasion in December 2019 and poor rainfall in 2020 and 2021, which has left the arid northern and eastern regions facing an emergency.

PORT LOUIS, Oct 2 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The island nation of Mauritius has fully opened its doors to international visitors, hoping to rebuild its key tourism industry after long months of isolation because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The move on Friday was greeted with a mixture of optimism, relief and some caution in the Indian Ocean paradise.

“This reopening is inevitable because 100,000 families depend on tourism to live,” Deputy Prime Minister and Tourism Minister Steven Obeegadoo said at a news conference.

BAMAKO, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- A United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) peacekeeper was killed and three were seriously injured following the explosion of an improvised explosive device in the northeast of Mali, a UN official said.

The head of the UN mission, El-Ghassim Wane, announced Saturday on his Twitter account that it was a MINUSMA vehicle that hit an improvised explosive device near Tessalit of Kidal region.

GULU, Uganda (AP) — The light bulb hanging from the ceiling flickered on and off, infuriating the technician in this remote Ugandan town as he checked the refrigerators filled with vaccine doses to confirm they were still working.

If the power supply didn’t stabilize, he said, he would have to requisition fuel and start the generator.

“It keeps going on and off, like a disco light,” said the technician, Tony Elong. “This is our biggest problem. ... If I am not here and power is off for many hours, we are likely to lose the vaccines. It needs a timely response.”

KIGALI, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Rwanda National Police on Friday paraded to the media 13 suspected terrorists who were plotting to commit terrorist attacks in different parts of the country.

The 13 terror suspects were arrested in the city of Kigali, Rusizi and Nyabihu districts in the Western Province. Rwanda police worked with other security organs in dismantling this terror cell, said the police in a statement.

According to police, investigations revealed that the terror cell is linked to Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a terror group affiliated to ISIS.

ABUJA, Oct 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari has directed a conditional lifting of the ban placed on the operations of the micro-blogging site, Twitter, in Nigeria in June.

Buhari disclosed this in his nationwide broadcast to Nigerians to mark the nation’s 61st independence.

He described the social media as a very useful platform but regretted that some users have misused the platform to organise, coordinate, and execute criminal activities, propagate fake news, and promote ethnic and religious sentiments.

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A report into dealings by senior officials at South Africa’s health ministry during the coronavirus pandemic was made public Wednesday, revealing corruption, fraud and the misappropriation of millions of dollars meant to aid the fight against COVID-19.

The highly awaited report by the Special Investigating Unit, released by President Cyril Ramaphosa, found wrongdoing by former health minister Dr. Zweli Mkhize and others.

KINSHASA, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- At least 12 civilians were killed in violent clashes Sunday night between the armed forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and the Patriotic Force and Integrationist of Congo (FPIC), a local militia group, in the city of Makayanga of the northeastern Ituri province.

Several houses were burned by militiamen who fought the army for several hours before retreating to the forest near the attack site, according to local security sources.

ABUJA, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Gunmen killed at least 22 security personnel at a remote army base in a northwestern Nigerian state plagued by bandits and kidnappers, a lawmaker said.

Aminu Gobir and another security source said bandits attacked the base in Sokoto State close to the border with Niger on Sunday, killing 14 soldiers, five police officers and three members of a civil defence force.

NAIROBI, Sept 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has recommended a temporary ban of recruitment and export of domestic workers to Saudi Arabia until adequate protection measures are put in place.

Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Macharia Kamau told MPs that it had written to the Labour Ministry in July to impose a temporary blockade.