For a second week, crowds of Tunisians took to Tunis’ main avenue to denounce president Kais Saied, not long before the presidential election on October 6th. They’re accusing him of reinforcing authoritarian rule and suppressing political competition.  The demonstration, which took place amid a heavy police protest, comes after lawmakers put forward a bill that would take away the administrative court’s power to adjudicate electoral disputes. The opposition insists that this would discredit the upcoming election, and lay the groundwork for Saied to clinch another term in office.  Earlier this month, the country’s electoral commission rejected a court ruling reinstating three presidential candidates, in what critics say is another example of Saied stamping out competition.  The president has denied accusations that he is using the electoral commission and judiciary to ensure a victory in October. Rather, he says he is waging a battle against traitors and the corrupt.  Political tensions in Tunisia have been on the rise since 2021, when Saied started to rule by decree. The opposition has called this move a ‘coup’.

Somalia received a large consignment of military equipment on Monday from Egypt amid tensions with a breakaway territory of the East African country.  An Egyptian military cargo ship docked at the port of Mogadishu accompanied by a small warship which provided escort and security. The shipment is the largest since the UN arms embargo was lifted last December. The military aid included heavy artillery and anti-tank weapons, according to local media. The Somali government has not explicitly confirmed or denied the military aid, but Defense Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur, who visited Mogadishu’s seaport on Monday, thanked Egypt. “Somalia has passed the stage where they were dictated to and awaited the affirmation of others on who it will engage with,” Nur said in a brief statement on X. He added that Mogadishu knows its “own interests, and we will choose between our allies and our enemies.” The military supplies come amid tensions between Somalia and Ethiopia over Addis Ababa’s sea access deal with Somalia’s breakaway territory of Somaliland. The region has expressed grave concern over the supply of heavy weapons to Somalia by Egypt, which it said jeopardizes the security of a region already facing complex security challenges. It said the unchecked proliferation of arms in an already fragile environment heightens the risk of an arms race, with various factions likely seeking to acquire their own stockpiles to safeguard their interests.

Ghana’s police have arrested dozens of demonstrators in the capital protesting against perceived economic mismanagement by the government. The crowds also expressed concerns over illegal mining practices that damage the environment. Police accused some protesters of attacking officers and pledged a strong response to those involved. A police spokesperson claimed the gatherings were unlawful and led to clashes. However, Democracy Hub, the group organizing the three-day protest, accused the police of attacking peaceful protesters. Oliver Barker Vormaw, a convenor for the group, stated, “We’ve contacted our lawyers regarding today’s actions. We’re warning everyone about potential random arrests.” The demonstrations come as Ghana prepares for its presidential election in December, with the country’s financial situation weighing heavily on voters. The nation is slowly recovering from a severe financial crisis in 2022 that pushed inflation to 54 percent.

Senegal’s military reported on Monday that at least 30 bodies have been recovered from a boat along a migrant route off the coast of Dakar. The navy discovered the vessel on Sunday evening and dispatched a patrol to investigate. Authorities indicated that further investigations will provide more details about the boat’s origin and the total number of casualties. This incident follows a separate tragedy earlier in September, when a boat carrying 89 people capsized off Senegal’s coast, resulting in numerous fatalities. Many migrants are fleeing poverty and unemployment in Senegal, aiming for the Canary Islands, which have seen over 22,300 arrivals since the start of the year. The route from West Africa to the Canary Islands is among the deadliest in the world. In August, Senegal’s military announced the arrest of hundreds of migrants and members of smuggling networks.

As the war in Sudan rages on, a cholera epidemic has swept through the country, claiming hundreds of lives and displacing thousands.

Tensions rise in Ghana as police detain protest leader Barker-Vormawor amid illegal mining unrest.

Morocco’s drought crisis is being compounded by severe floods that have claimed the lives of 10 people.

A new coalition pledges $6.5 million to support Sudan’s humanitarian crisis, as the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting kicks off.

A group of South Sudanese lawyers has filed a petition in the country’s constitutional court challenging the government’s decision to extend the transitional period and delay elections.

Congo is facing a shortage of testing kits, while neighboring Burundi is experiencing a growing outbreak

Ethiopia is one of the few nations that successfully resisted European colonization

Cyril Ramaphosa says Pact of the Future agreement an ‘opportunity’ to reform global governance architecture, including UN

President William Ruto, during a visit, praised the progress made by the Kenyan police and promised better equipment

This delicious treat has earned a special place in the hearts of Algerians

Health authorities have struggled to contain outbreaks of mpox in Congo, a huge central African country where a myriad of existing problems makes stemming the spread particularly hard. Last month, the World Health Organization declared the outbreaks in Congo and about a dozen other African countries a global health emergency. And in Congo, scientists have identified a new strain of mpox that may spread more easily. It has reached areas where conflict and the displacement of a large number of people have already put health services under pressure. Overall, Congo has more than 21,000 of the 25,093 confirmed and suspected mpox cases in Africa this year, according to WHO’s most recent count. Has Congo seen cases of mpox before? Yes, Congo is one of the African countries where mpox has been endemic for decades. Mpox, once known as monkeypox, comes from the same family of viruses as smallpox but causes milder symptoms such as fever. People with more serious cases can develop skin lesions. More than 720 people in Africa have died in the latest outbreaks, mostly in Congo. Mpox is a zoonotic disease, meaning it can spread to humans from infected animals. In the global mpox outbreak of 2022, the virus spread between people primarily through sex and close physical contact. What changed in Congo? In September 2023, mpox spread to Congo’s eastern province of South Kivu; it had previously been seen in the center and far west. Scientists then identified a new form of mpox in South Kivu that may be more infectious. The WHO said that from the outbreak in South Kivu, the virus spread among people elsewhere in the country, arriving in neighboring province North Kivu. Those two provinces — some 2,000 kilometers from the capital, Kinshasa — face escalating violence, a humanitarian crisis and other issues. What are the problems in eastern Congo? More than 120 armed groups have been fighting each other and the Congolese army for years in the eastern part of the country over the control of minerals. That has forced millions of people fleeing violence into refugee camps or nearby towns. That means mpox is hitting already-stretched health facilities. Dr. Musole Mulambamunva Robert, medical director of the Kavumu hospital in eastern Congo, said it is “truly a challenge” — sometimes treating as many as four times the facility’s capacity for patients. With more than 6 million displaced people in the east, authorities and aid agencies were already struggling to provide food and healthcare, while fighting other diseases such as cholera. Many people have no access to soap, clean water or other basics. Some eastern Congo communities are out of reach of health clinics — roads are unreliable, and hourslong risky boat trips are sometimes the only means of transport, said Mercy Muthee Lake of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent. People can be more susceptible to severe mpox cases because of malnutrition and undiagnosed HIV, she said. She also said health workers in eastern Congo have requested more mpox training as medications to treat fever and ease pain run out. Health authorities “are up against it because it’s such a complex area,” said Chris Beyrer, of Duke University’s Global Health Institute. What about vaccines? Africa has no capacity to produce mpox vaccines. Around 250,000 doses have arrived in Congo from the European Union and the United States, and more are expected. Congolese authorities say they need around 3 million vaccines. It will likely be weeks before any vaccines reach people in eastern Congo. For now, the vaccine is approved only for adults. There’s limited evidence of how it works in children. Vaccines are desperately needed, but they’re just “an additional tool,” said Emmanuel Lampaert, the Congo representative for Doctors Without Borders. The key, Lampaert said, is still identifying cases, isolating patients, and executing grassroots health and education campaigns. Local conditions make that trying — Lampaert noted it’s almost impossible to isolate cases among poor, displaced people. “Families with six to eight children are living in a hut, which is maybe the space of the bed we are sleeping in,” he said. “So, this is the reality.” Why are critics blasting the mpox response? Unlike the millions of dollars that poured into Congo for Ebola and COVID aid, the response to mpox has been sluggish, many critics say. Health experts say the sharp contrast is due to a lack of both funds and international interest. “Ebola is the most dangerous virus in the world, and COVID wiped out the world economy,” said professor Ali Bulabula, who works on infectious diseases in the medical department at Congo’s University of Kindu. “While mpox is a public health emergency of international concern, there is a lack of in-depth research and interest in the virus, as it’s still seen as a tropical disease, localized to Africa with no major impact on Western economies.”

As Somalia progresses toward self-reliance and sustainability in national security, the threat of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) remains significant. Over the past year, approximately 600 IEDs have caused around 1,500 casualties, severely impacting local communities and national armed forces. The Somali National Army (SNA), supported by the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), is leading efforts to combat this persistent IED threat. “The seriousness of this threat is well understood here. The primary targets are your fellow SNA soldiers. It is vital that we find a solution,” stated James Swan, the UN Acting Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, during the launch of a month-long ‘train-the-trainer’ course aimed at enhancing the SNA’s capabilities in countering IEDs. Many attendees at the training have firsthand experience of the dangers faced by soldiers. “We faced numerous threats, including enemy blockades and remote-controlled IEDs, leading to the loss of many comrades,” recalled Lieutenant Colonel Mohamed Mohamud Awale, reflecting on his operational experience in the Hiraan and Galgaduud regions. Colonel Faisal Ali Noor shared his haunting memories of IED incidents: “At times, IEDs detonated while we were digging, resulting in casualties. Our limited knowledge even led us to use fire to attempt to defuse them, which caused more fatalities.” The statistics are alarming: in 2023 alone, the SNA reported 378 deaths and 451 injuries due to IEDs, underscoring the ongoing risks faced by both military personnel and civilians. As Somalia strives to take full responsibility for its security, training initiatives like the one beginning today in Mogadishu aim to better equip national forces through comprehensive training, mentoring, and hands-on experience.

President William Ruto’s visit to Haiti underscores international attempts to support Kenyan and Jamaican forces combating widespread gang control.

Makala Prison in Congo, one of the most overcrowded prisons in the world, released hundreds of inmates as part of a government initiative to decongest the facility.

The floods in Chad have had a devastating impact on livestock, with 69,000 cattle drowned.

Unusually heavy snowfall caused significant disruptions on South Africa’s roads, leaving many people stranded in their vehicles.

RSF seeks to fill the power vacuum left by the collapse of Sudan’s military-led government

106 protests held in 50 cities to condemn Israeli oppression, says Moroccan civil society group

Madagascar’s RN5 road is often hailed as one of the toughest roads in Africa

A Kenyan court of appeal declared Friday that Meta can be sued in Kenya over the firing of dozens of content moderators. The decision paves the way for a legal battle between the Facebook parent company and the aggrieved moderators, who allege wrongful termination. In a statement, their lawyer Mercy Mutemi applauded the ruling, saying: “The Court of Appeal has today upheld the Employment Court’s decision that Facebook can be sued in Kenya.” Noting that the cases by the content moderators could now proceed, he said Facebook had “argued it’s a foreign company that can’t be sued in Kenya.” The development follows an out-of-court settlement in August last year, where Meta reached an agreement with the group of content moderators who had previously sued the company over similar claims of unjust dismissal. The dispute originated from when 260 Kenyan-based content moderators employed by Sama, a company contracted by Meta for content moderation, were abruptly informed of their redundancy in March 2023. In response, the moderators filed a lawsuit against Meta, asserting that their terminations were unlawful and lacked valid justification. This incident was not the first legal challenge Meta has faced in Kenya. In December 2022, the company was sued for $2 billion over accusations of exacerbating ethnic violence in the East African country, as well as in neighboring Ethiopia.