NEWS - The African Mirror

Dec

13

2023

Sudanese warring parties throw cold water on African mediation gains

NEWS

THE Sudanese army and the rival paramilitary force it has been fighting for eight months have both cast doubt on an announcement by regional mediators that they had committed to a ceasefire and political dialogue. IGAD, a grouping of East African nations, has sought along with the United States and Saudi Arabia to mediate an end to the conflict which has killed more than 12,000 people, displaced more than 6.5 million, and severely hit Sudan's economy. IGAD had said on Sunday that army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Rapid Support Forces leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo had agreed to meet for the…

Dec

13

2023

By The African Mirror

Ivory Coast upgrades sports infrastructure ahead of Africa Cup of Nations

NEWS

IVORY Coast has built roads and constructed four new sports stadiums in preparation for hosting the Africa Cup of Nations, the soccer tournament which will kick off in January. The West African country is eager to develop football locally and demonstrate its ability to host an international sporting event. "Ivory Coast will become a hub in the sub-region. All countries in the sub-region which do not have approved stadiums will be welcome," said Idriss Diallo, president of the Ivorian Football Federation. He estimated the country had invested more than $1 billion in roads, stadiums, hospitals and other infrastructure relating to…

Dec

12

2023

By The African Mirror

Attack on ICRC convoy in Sudan’s Khartoum kills two, injures seven

NEWS

AN attack on a humanitarian convoy of the International Committee of the Red Cross in the Sudanese capital Khartoum killed two people and injured seven, the ICRC said. The wounded included three ICRC staff members, the Red Cross added in a statement. "The humanitarian convoy, consisting of three ICRC vehicles and three buses, all clearly marked with the Red Cross emblem, was due to evacuate over a hundred vulnerable civilians from Khartoum to Wad Madani when it came under attack upon entering the evacuation area," the statement read. The ICRC said it is shocked and appalled by the attack, which…

Dec

12

2023

By The African Mirror

Torrential rains kill at least 14 in city in east Congo

NEWS

AT least 14 people died in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo after torrential rains battered the city of Bukavu overnight, causing landslides and houses to collapse, a local official said. The victims were all killed in the Bukavu commune of Ibanda, where many people live in makeshift houses that collapsed under the rain, the mayor of the commune, Jean Balek Mugabo, told Reuters via telephone. The death toll is likely to rise as several victims are in hospital with serious injuries, he added. Congo is amid political campaigns in the run-up to general elections on Dec. 20 that have highlighted weak infrastructure…

Dec

12

2023

By FARAH SAAFAN and AMINA ISMAIL

Push to mobilise turnout as Egyptians vote for president

NEWS

EGYPTIANS, some arriving on buses or stationed waving national flags outside polling stations, voted in the second of three days in a presidential election in which Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is expected to sweep to a third, six-year term. Many have shown little interest or knowledge about the election, which is being held amid a grinding economic crisis and war on Egypt's border in the Gaza Strip. Authorities and commentators on tightly controlled local media have been urging people to vote out of national duty. Crowds have appeared at polling stations where patriotic music is blasted through loudspeakers, though other polling stations observed…

Dec

12

2023

By The African Mirror

Kenya Airways warns of disruptions in holiday season due to spare parts shortages

NEWS

KENYA Airways (KQNA.NR) has told its customers to be prepared for potential disruptions to its flight schedule during the busy Christmas holiday season due to shortages of spare parts. The carrier, one of the biggest in Africa, said the lack of parts, which is affecting the global supply chain, would disrupt flights for about two weeks. "These challenges are leading to extended ground time of our aircraft for maintenance," it said in a statement seen by Reuters on Monday. "This may also lead to the grounding of one or more of our aircraft." The airline first flagged the problems it is grappling with due…

Dec

12

2023

By ANDREW MACASKILL, MICHAEL HOLDEN and KYLIE MACLELLAN

UK lawmakers in Sunak’s party say Rwanda bill not tough enough

NEWS

BRITISH Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was scrambling to get enough support for his flagship immigration policy of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda after some lawmakers in his party said a planned emergency law was not tough enough. Sunak is facing a critical test of his authority with politicians on the right and the left of the Conservative Party threatening to vote against the bill when it goes before parliament on Tuesday. In a boost late on Monday, a centrist group of lawmakers in the One Nation faction recommended that its members back the bill but warned that they would not accept any…

Dec

12

2023

By MICHAEL HOLDEN

Explainer: What is the UK’s Rwanda migrant deportation bill?

NEWS

BRITISH Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's new bill, which seeks to send immigrants who arrive illegally in Britain to Rwanda, faces a contentious vote in parliament on Tuesday. A month after the British Supreme Court declared the policy unlawful, Sunak hopes the new legislation will fulfil his pledge to stop people arriving across the Channel in small boats. Here are details about the plan and the migration issue: WHY IS IMMIGRATION SUCH AN ISSUE IN BRITAIN? Taking back control of the country's borders and ending the free movement of people was a major factor that led to the 2016 vote for…

Dec

11

2023

By The African Mirror

African mediators claim progress in efforts to end Sudan’s war

NEWS

AN African regional body involved in efforts to mediate over the war in Sudan says it has secured a commitment from warring parties to implement a ceasefire and to hold a political dialogue aimed at resolving the conflict. There was no immediate comment from Sudan's army or the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been locked since mid-April in a conflict that has devastated the capital Khartoum and triggered waves of ethnic killings in Darfur despite several diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting. Eyewitnesses reported blasts at the major Al-Jaili oil refinery on the outskirts of Khartoum on Sunday, while both…

Dec

11

2023

By AMINA ISMAIL, FARAH SAAFAN and NAFISA ELTAHIR

Egyptians vote in presidential election overshadowed by Gaza war

NEWS

EGYPTIANS began voting on Sunday in a presidential election set to hand Abdel Fattah al-Sisi a third term in power, as the country grapples with an economic crisis and a war on its border with Gaza. If Sisi wins a new six-year term, his immediate priorities would be taming near-record inflation, managing a chronic foreign currency shortage and preventing spillover from the conflict between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers. Voting, which runs from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. (0700-1900 GMT), is spread over three days, with results due to be announced on Dec. 18. Patriotic songs played on a loop as polling stations…