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Kenyan serial killer who confessed to 42 murders escapes custody

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Thirteen inmates, including Collins Jumaisi, the prime suspect in the gruesome murders of 42 women on Tuesday morning, escaped from a Nairobi police cell, authorities have confirmed. Speaking to local media, Kenya police spokesperson Resila Atieno Onyango confirmed the daring breakout occurred at the Gigiri Police Station in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. Jumaisi, who had confessed to killing 42 women, including his wife, had been awaiting trial for his heinous crimes, police said he escaped along with 12 other inmates and a massive manhunt involving various security agencies is currently underway. The director of criminal investigations, Mohamed Amin, confirmed the escape and stated, “It is very unfortunate, and our officers are pursuing the group.” Jumaisi, known for the Mukuru murders, where the bodies of his female victims were found in a water-filled quarry in Nairobi’s Embakasi area, missed his scheduled court appearance last Friday. This has intensified public outrage and raised concerns about the effectiveness of the justice and security systems. The apparent ease of the breakout from Gigiri Police Station, which is known for its high security due to its proximity to several embassies, has led to speculation about potential security breaches or collusion.

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Sudan declares cholera epidemic after 22 deaths

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Sudan faces a new challenge in the midst of a 16-month conflict between the military and a paramilitary group as health authorities declared a cholera epidemic. Health Minister Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim said 22 people have died and 354 cases of the disease have been confirmed across the country in recent weeks. The World Health Organization said recently that 78 deaths from cholera were recorded in Sudan between 1 January and 28 July this year. Cholera is a highly contagious infection transmitted through ingesting contaminated food or water and can kill within hours without treatment. Seasonal floods in recent weeks have exacerbated the situation with critical infrastructure washed away in 12 of Sudan’s 18 provinces, making access to clean water difficult for many. Ibrahim said outbreak was “because of the weather conditions and because drinking water has been contaminated”. The conflict in Sudan has further battered what was an already weak healthcare system, displaced more than 10 million people, and pushed many into starvation. The WHO on Friday said cases of dengue fever and meningitis infections were also on the rise. A new round of talks aimed at ending the conflict in Sudan began in Switzerland last Wednesday, despite the army’s absence.

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Kenya: Wildebeest migration attracts numerous tourists

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Scores of tourists are converging to Kenya’s Maasai Mara national Reserve to witness the annual spectacle of wildebeest migration. Interspersed among the wildebeest were large numbers of zebras and even hippos. The migration over the Mara River culminates when wildibeast jump to cross the crocodile-ridden water. Wildebeests begin to migrate in troops from early July when Tanzania’s northern Serengeti Park gets dry. Water and pasture are available in the neighbouring Maasai Mara Park during the same period.  The yearly event peaks in August before it settles in October when the animals return to Serengeti. Kenya’s rich wildlife resource is one of the key economic pillars of the country. The Masai Mara park located in southern western Kenya along the Great Rift Valley area is a tourist hotspot. It presents plenty of opportunities for the guests to enjoy its lush vegetation, idyllic setting and presence of iconic land mammals like elephants and rhinos.

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ECOWAS seeks return of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger to regional bloc

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The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is working to reintegrate Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger into the regional bloc. According to the Nigerian News Agency (NAN), the ECOWAS Parliamentary Joint Committee Meeting was held in Abidjan, the former capital of Côte d’Ivoire. Benjamin Kalu, Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives and chair of the meeting, stated that the departure of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger from ECOWAS would exacerbate security issues in the region. Kalu noted that ECOWAS Parliament is using diplomacy to resolve the issues with these three countries, saying, “We will keep the doors open for them to return to this family. We need them.” He also mentioned that committee members from the ECOWAS Parliament will soon visit Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger’s Departure Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger withdrew from ECOWAS in February, forming the Sahel States Alliance (AES) and held their first summit in Niamey, Niger, on July 6. At the summit, a joint declaration was signed to establish the “Confederation of Sahel States” consisting of the three countries, and Malian President Assimi Goita was elected as the rotating president of AES for one year.

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Algerian president pledges to build 3 hospitals in Gaza if borders reopen

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 The Algerian president has announced that his country is ready to build three hospitals in the Gaza Strip if the land border crossing between Egypt and the enclave is reopened. Abdelmadjid Tebboune made his statement on Sunday while campaigning for the presidential election scheduled for Sept. 7, according to an Anadolu reporter. In his presidential bid, Tebboune faces two other candidates: Abdelaali Hassani Cherif, the leader of the Movement for a Society of Peace (the largest Islamist party), and Youcef Aouchiche, the first secretary of the Socialist Forces Front (a leftist and the oldest opposition party). “In case the border between Egypt and Gaza is opened, we will build three hospitals within 20 days,” Tebboune said, referring to field hospitals that the Algerian military is capable of constructing. Previously, Tebboune had enquired about the military’s capacity to build such hospitals and the feasibility of sending them to Gaza under suitable conditions during the opening of the Algeria International Fair in June. Addressing his supporters, Tebboune also expressed readiness to send hundreds of doctors to Gaza and assist in rebuilding what has been destroyed. He condemned the current situation in Gaza as “not a war, but massacres perpetrated by the Zionist occupation,” asserting that the resolution of the Palestinian issue through the “extermination of Palestinians” is unacceptable. Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack last year by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas. The Israeli onslaught has since killed nearly 40,100 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 92,500, according to local health authorities. More than 10 months into the Israeli onslaught, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine. Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

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Kenya: revised eco-levy tax to be reviewed in parliament

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Kenya will soon present a revised eco-levy tax in Parliament. Treasury Secretary John Mbadi announced that “about 49 measures” are under consideration as part of the tax amendment bill. The new eco-levy aims to address pollution and waste management at both the office and household levels, but will exclude sanitary towels—a change from the initial proposal. Companies will still face scrutiny, including a 10 percent levy on locally manufactured plastics, despite opposition from Coca-Cola. Mbadi defended the tax, emphasizing that environmental harm should be compensated. The government is also extending the tax amnesty period by six months. This revision follows the cancellation of Kenya’s Finance Bill 2024 in June due to protests, which led President William Ruto to explore alternative revenue sources. Opposition leaders are now urging the Judiciary to resist any attempt to reintroduce the rejected bill.

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A ransom is demanded for 20 students kidnapped in Benue State, Nigeria

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In Nigeria’s Benue State, a ransom has been demanded for 20 medical students kidnapped on April 15. Adeniran Adebanjo, spokesperson for the Student Union Government (SUG) at Jos University’s Faculty of Health Sciences, revealed that the armed kidnappers have reached out to the families of the abducted students. The kidnappers are demanding 50 million Naira (around 30 thousand USD) for the students’ release. The students were abducted in the Otukpo area of Benue State. Benue State Police spokesperson Catherine Anene confirmed that efforts are underway to rescue the kidnapped students. The armed assailants targeted a bus carrying medical students traveling from Benue State to Enugu State on April 15, resulting in the kidnapping. Despite the death penalty for kidnapping in Nigeria, ransom abductions remain common. Armed groups frequently target northern villages, schools, and travelers to demand ransoms.

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Unprecedented number of aid workers killed in conflicts worldwide

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Marking World Humanitarian Day, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Monday that aid workers on the frontlines of the world’s conflicts are being killed in unprecedented numbers. With 280 aid workers killed in 33 countries last year, 2023 marked the deadliest year on record for the global humanitarian community, with Gaza exacting a heavy toll. “This outrageously high number represents a 137 percent increase compared to 2022, when 118 aid workers were killed,” said OCHA in a statement. And the agency warned that 2024 may be on track for an even deadlier outcome. “The normalization of violence against aid workers and the lack of accountability are unacceptable, unconscionable, and enormously harmful for aid operations everywhere,” said Joyce Msuya, the acting under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator. “Today, we reiterate our demand that people in power act to end violations against civilians and the impunity with which these heinous attacks are committed.” As of Aug. 7, at least 172 aid workers have been killed, according to the provisional count from the UN Aid Worker Security Database. In 2023, more than half of the fatalities were recorded in the three months of the hostilities in Gaza — October to December — mainly due to airstrikes. Since October last year, more than 280 aid workers – the majority of them staff members of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) – have been killed in Gaza alone. Extreme levels of violence in Sudan and South Sudan have contributed to the tragic death toll, both in 2023 and in 2024, said the UN. In all these conflicts, most of the casualties have been among national staff. Many humanitarian workers also continue to be detained in Yemen. The UN said that on this World Humanitarian Day, aid workers and those supporting their efforts worldwide have organized solidarity events to spotlight the horrifying toll of armed conflicts, including on humanitarian staff. Also, a joint letter from leaders of humanitarian organizations will be sent to the member states of the UN General Assembly, asking the international community to end attacks on civilians, protect all aid workers, and hold perpetrators to account.

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15 rescued, 7 missing after yacht sinks off Italian coast

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 Seven people went missing after a yacht sank on Monday due to a storm 20 kilometers east of Palermo in southern Italy, while 15 others were rescued, according to media reports. The incident took place around 5 a.m. local time (0300GMT) when the 56-meters-long (184 feet) boat sank due to heavy rains and stormy weather off the coast of Porticello, 20 kilometers (over 12.4 miles) east of Palermo, media outlets reported. Coastguards and the fire department have rescued 15 people, and a search for the remaining seven is underway, the Italian fire department said in a statement. The British-flagged boat sank to a depth of 49 meters (nearly 161 feet), and a helicopter is also assisting with the operations, it said. The people on the yacht were from the UK, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, France, Ireland, US and Canada. A one-year-old child was among those rescued and taken to a children’s hospital in Palermo for medical care.

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EU urged to issue travel warnings as mpox risk in Africa grows

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European health authorities have recommended that EU countries issue travel warnings for regions affected by mpox following its designation as a global emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). On Friday, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) cautioned that Europe may see more imported cases due to the virus’s spread in several African nations. However, the ECDC noted that the risk of ongoing transmission within Europe remains low, as long as imported cases are quickly identified and controlled. This advisory comes after Sweden detected a new mpox variant, marking the first case of this strain outside Africa. Bruno Ciancio, ECDC’s head of surveillance, expressed concern over the worsening situation in Africa, especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and neighboring countries, where case numbers may be underreported. To curb the spread in Europe, the ECDC stressed the importance of rapid case identification and containment. They have advised EU and European Economic Area (EEA) countries to issue travel advisories for regions impacted by mpox. Since last year, mpox has spread in the DRC and other African countries, resulting in over 500 deaths, primarily in the DRC. The WHO’s global emergency declaration underscores the need for coordinated international efforts to address the crisis. The ECDC highlighted that EU/EEA travelers with close contact to affected communities face a higher risk, while close contacts of imported cases in Europe have a moderate risk. There are two subtypes of the mpox virus: Clade I, more severe and endemic to central Africa, and Clade II, responsible for the 2022 global outbreak. Currently, several African countries are dealing with Clade I and a new strain, Clade Ib. Sweden’s report of the first European case of Clade Ib has led the ECDC to increase the risk level for EU/EEA travelers and the general population. Although the impact in Europe is expected to be low, the ECDC recommends high preparedness, including effective surveillance, testing, and contact tracing. Travelers to mpox-affected areas are advised to consider vaccination, and European clinicians are urged to remain vigilant for potential cases, despite mpox not being endemic to Europe. Ciancio emphasized that while the risk should be taken seriously, it should not be overstated, given the availability of effective and safe vaccines.

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