NEWS - The African Mirror

Jul

02

2023

African killed in France: Macron cancels trip

NEWS

MORE than 1,300 people were arrested in France during a fourth night of rioting and President Emmanuel Macron cancelled a trip to Germany as the funeral took place of teenager Nahel M, whose shooting by police sparked nationwide unrest. Macron's government deployed 45,000 police officers as well as armoured vehicles overnight to tackle the worst crisis for his leadership since the "Yellow Vest" protests which paralysed much of France in late 2018. A similar number of police would again be on the street into Saturday night, interior minister Gerald Darmanin told a press conference, with reinforcements sent to major cities…

Jul

01

2023

By EDWARD MCALLISTER

Exclusive: Gambia families sue Indian drugmaker after cough syrup deaths

NEWS

THE relatives of 20 Gambian children whose deaths were linked to toxic cough syrups made in India have sued Indian drugmaker Maiden Pharmaceuticals as well as local authorities in the West African country, according to a case filed and seen by Reuters. The filing, which has not yet been made public, opens a new front in the fight for compensation and justice after at least 70 children, mostly babies and toddlers, died from acute kidney injury in Gambia last year. The filing was presented to the High Court of Gambia on Friday. In it, the families seek about $250,000 in compensation for…

Jul

02

2023

By MICHELLE NICHOLS

UN ends peacekeeping mission in Mali, US blames Russia’s Wagner

NEWS

THE United Nations Security Council unanimously voted to end a decade-long peacekeeping mission in Mali after the West African country's military junta abruptly asked the 13,000-strong force to leave - a move the United States said was engineered by Russia's Wagner mercenary group. The end of the operation, known as MINUSMA, follows years of tensions and government restrictions that have hobbled peacekeeping air and ground operations since Mali teamed up in 2021 with Russia's Wagner group, which was behind an abortive armed mutiny in Russia last weekend. U.N. peacekeepers are credited with playing a vital role in protecting civilians against an Islamist insurgency that has killed…

Jul

02

2023

By The African Mirror

Sudanese airspace to remain closed to all traffic until July 10

NEWS

SUDAN'S Civil Aviation Authority has issued a statement extending the closure of Sudanese airspace until July 10, to all air traffic with the exception of humanitarian aid flights. Sudanese airspace was closed to regular traffic after a military conflict erupted between the country's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in mid-April. Thomson Reuters Foundation

Jul

02

2023

By CHRISTIAN AKORLIE

Ghana power producers call off shutdown after interim deal reached

NEWS

GHANA'S independent power producers (IPPs) have suspended a threatened shutdown from July 1 after reaching an interim deal with the state-run Electricity Company of Ghana over arrears owed to them, the group said in a statement. In late May, the IPPs rejected a government proposal to restructure $1.58 billion in arrears owed them by the state as part of the West African nation's efforts to implement a $3 billion loan deal from the International Monetary Fund aimed at addressing its worst economic crisis in a generation. The group later warned of outages from July if its members did not receive…

Jul

02

2023

By The African Mirror

Egypt’s Sisi praises sacrifices of Egyptians in 10th-anniversary speech

NEWS

PRESIDENT Abdel Fattah al-Sisi paid tribute to the "sacrifices" and "patience" of Egyptians struggling with an economic crisis 10 years after he came to power. His speech marked the anniversary of protests during which Sisi, then army chief, led the ouster of Egypt's first democratically elected president, before becoming president himself the following year. He alluded to the militant attacks and political and economic uncertainty of that era. "I believe that this generation who through their effort and patience transported Egypt from chaos and anxiety to stability and security is able to complete its development transformation," he said, reading from…

Jul

01

2023

By LAYLI FOROUDI and CHARLOTTE VAN CAMPENHOUT

Murder of an African sparks riots in France

NEWS

FRANCE'S interior minister said the coming hours would be decisive as he sent 45,000 police onto the streets following three nights of riots since an officer shot dead a teenager at a traffic stop in a working-class suburb of Paris. The violence, in which buildings and vehicles have been torched and stores looted, has plunged President Emmanuel Macron into the gravest crisis of his leadership since the Yellow Vest protests that started in 2018. Unrest has flared nationwide, including in cities such as Marseille, Lyon, Toulouse, Strasbourg and Lille as well as Paris where Nahel M., a 17-year-old of Algerian and…

Jul

01

2023

By CARIEN DU PLESSIS

‘Farmgate’: Watchdog clears South Africa’s President Ramaphosa of conflict of interest

NEWS

SOUTH Africa's anti-corruption watchdog has cleared President Cyril Ramaphosa of a potential conflict of interest in relation to more than half a million dollars in cash stolen from his game farm. A report released by acting Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka found no evidence for the allegation that Ramaphosa violated his oath of office or exposed himself to a risk of conflict between his constitutional duties and his private interests. The incident raised questions about how Ramaphosa, who came to power on the promise to fight graft, acquired the money and whether he declared it. It nearly cost him his job…

Jun

30

2023

By BIRD STORY AGENCY

Desalination breakthroughs: Could this be Africa’s path to water security?

NEWS

AFRICA'S growing need for fresh water and increasingly abundant and cheaper renewable energy sources together offer a growing opportunity for desalination, according to the founder and managing director of Terra Energy, a consulting firm specializing in market research, business development, and training in sustainable energy. "Desalination is an energy-intensive process and energy costs account for the majority of a plant's typical operating expenditures," said Mohamed Alhaj, noting that energy consumption translates to 44% of total water costs in more energy-intensive desalination options, such as Reverse Osmosis. However, the continent's vast renewable energy potential "could provide a significant source of cheap…

Jun

30

2023

By The African Mirror

BMW to produce electric X3 model at South Africa plant

NEWS

GERMANY'S BMW will build its X3 model in South Africa from 2024, investing 4.2 billion rand ($225.09 million) to electrify its plant in Rosslyn, the company said in a statement. "From 2024, we will produce the BMW X3 in South Africa as a plug-in hybrid and export it all over the world," Milan Nedeljkovic, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW South Africa, said in the statement. "With an investment of 4.2 billion rand (over 200 million euros), the Rosslyn plant will be enabled for electromobility," he added. The Rosslyn plant currently produces the combustion engine 3 series, with a…