NEWS - The African Mirror

Sep

25

2023

Fire in shop kills 35 people in southeastern Benin

NEWS

AT least 35 people were killed in southeastern Benin after a fire broke out at a shop where witnesses said gasoline was being unloaded, a justice ministry representative said. The fire broke out at 0930 local time in Seme-Podji municipality, near the border with Nigeria. "The fire burned down the store and according to an initial assessment resulted in 35 deaths including one child," said Prosecutor Abdoubaki Adam-Bongle in a ministry statement, adding that an investigation had been opened to determine the cause. "According to the witnesses interviewed, the fire was probably started during the unloading of bags of gasoline."…

Sep

24

2023

By AHMED KINGIMI

Nigerian gunmen broke doors, windows in university abduction

NEWS

GUNMEN in Nigeria broke down doors, shattered windows and abducted 24 female students from hostels of a university in northwestern Zamfara state in the early hours, witnesses said, in the latest kidnapping to hit the state. As they marched their victims away, the armed men also took a security guard and 10 construction workers who were sleeping in a makeshift shelter on the premises of Federal University Gusau, local officials said. "The armed bandits arrived on motorcycles and started shooting sporadically, that's when I woke up. They went to the girls' hostels near the campus, breaking windows and doors and…

Sep

24

2023

By The African Mirror

Morocco earthquake affected 2.8 million people

NEWS

MOROCCO'S earthquake damaged 2,930 villages in the High Atlas mountains with a total population of 2.8 million people, the minister in charge of the budget said. The 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck on Sept. 8 killed more than 2,900 people, most of them in hard-to-reach mountainous areas. At least 59,674 houses were damaged, of which 32% have totally collapsed, the minister, Faouzi Lekjaa, said in a presentation at parliament. The government would offer 2,500 dirhams ($244) monthly over a year in aid to quake-stricken households, in addition to 140,000 dirhams compensation paid for totally destroyed homes and 80,000 for partially…

Sep

26

2023

By The African Mirror

Which Western countries have foreign forces in West Africa?

NEWS

FRANCE will pull its troops out of Niger by the end of the year following a coup in the West African country in July, dealing a huge blow to French influence and counter-insurgency operations in the West Africa Sahel region. Niger, a key ally of Western countries against Islamist insurgencies in the Sahel, is host to a number of foreign forces. Those numbers have increased over the past two years following coups in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, which soured relations between the countries and their Western partners. Following is a list of Western countries with troops in the West and Central…

Sep

26

2023

By The African Mirror

Egypt to vote for president in December, Sisi expected to win

NEWS

Egypt will hold a presidential vote on December 10-12, the elections authority said, with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi widely expected to win reelection despite an economic crisis including record inflation and foreign currency shortages. Sisi, 68, can stand for a third term due to constitutional amendments in 2019 that also extended the length of presidential terms to six years from four, opening the way for him to stay in office until at least 2030. Election results are expected to be announced on December 18 and, in the event of a run-off round, final results should be announced on Jan. 16…

Sep

24

2023

By The African Mirror

Truck bomb kills at least 10 in Somalia

NEWS

A truck bomb exploded at a checkpoint in the central Somali town of Beledweyne, killing at least 10 people and obliterating nearby buildings, a police officer said. It was not immediately clear who was responsible but the Islamist group al Shabaab frequently carries out bombings in the Horn of Africa country. "So far I have seen 10 dead people including soldiers and civilians and over a dozen others injured, but the death toll is sure to rise," police officer Ahmed Aden told Reuters. Beledweyne is in central Somalia's Hiran region which has recently witnessed battles between the military and al…

Sep

25

2023

By FRANCIS KOKOROKO

Multi-day protests over economic crisis grip Ghana’s capital

NEWS

HUNDREDS of demonstrators gathered in the Ghanaian capital Accra on Saturday for a third day of anti-government protests linked to economic hardship that have led to dozens of arrests. Protesters, some waving placards of the Ghanaian flag, decried the high cost of living and a lack of jobs as they marched under the watch of riot police. The gold-, oil- and cocoa-producing nation has been battling its worst economic crisis in a generation brought on by spiralling public debt. "The average Ghanaian can't afford three square meals (per day) ... the government doesn't care," said 24-year-old unemployed protester Romeo, who like others…

Sep

24

2023

By DAPHNE PSALEDAKIS and KHALID ABDELAZIZ

Sudan’s army chief says he favours negotiated settlement to war

NEWS

SUDAN's army chief said that he had not sought military support on a recent regional tour and that his preference was for a peaceful solution to the conflict that has killed thousands and displaced millions of civilians. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan also said in an interview with Reuters that he had asked neighbouring states to stop sending mercenaries in support of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). War between the army and the RSF broke out in mid-April over plans for a political transition and the integration of the RSF into the army, four years after long-time ruler Omar al-Bashir…

Sep

24

2023

By GABRIELA BACZYNSKA

Germany’s Baerbock joins chorus criticizing EU migration deal with Tunisia

NEWS

GERMAN Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock joined a growing chorus of critics of the European Union's new migration deal with Tunisia, saying human rights and procedural faults ruled it out as a blueprint for the future. Her letter to the EU executive European Commission highlights the EU's inner conflict between those pursuing ever-tougher policies to stop illegal immigration and others who emphasize humanitarian considerations and labour market gaps. Italy, the Netherlands and EU institutions in July signed the agreement with Tunisia, promising aid to Tunis in exchange for President Kais Saied cracking down on people smugglers and keeping a tighter lid…

Sep

23

2023

By AHMED ELUMAMI, ABDELHADI RAMADI and MAYA GEBEILY

Libya floods sweep away migrants, and their hopes

NEWS

THE small first-floor apartment in Derna became home away from home to Syrian migrant Ammar Kanaan after the risk of drowning kept him from attempting the dangerous Mediterranean crossing to Europe that has cost the lives of so many. After fleeing Syria two years ago to avoid military service, Kanaan had found a steady job in a pastry shop in the Libyan city and lived with two Sudanese roommates a few metres away from Derna's riverbed. But this month, the 19-year-old drowned with thousands of others when a flash flood washed away swathes of the city. Now, the plot where…