East Africa

From Washington to Brussels, the children mobilize for Paul Rusesabagina, the hero of the film Hotel Rwanda, and call for more international support for their father detained in Kigali. Paul Rusesabagina, who is known to have saved more than 1,200 people during the genocide, now an opponent, is detained since late August in Kigali. He was charged in mid-September with "terrorism, murder and financing of riots". This Friday, 2 October, the Rwandan judiciary is due to rule on a request for bail. His children condemn the…

In an exclusive interview with FRANCE 24 during an official visit to France, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta discussed the biggest challenges facing him. Asked about the fight against terrorism, the Kenyan leader denied that the US military has sought permission to carry out drone strikes inside Kenya. He stressed that if such a request was made, he would reject it. Kenyatta also addressed the Covid-19 pandemic, Kenya's economic development, as well as an attempt to dissolve parliament due to gender inequality. In an…

QOHA, Qatar - The state of Qatar on Thursday expressed its strong condemnation and condemnation of an explosion aimed at a security checkpoint in the capital Mogadishu that killed two people and injured others. In a statement today, the Foreign Ministry renewed Qatar's firm stance on rejecting violence and terrorism for whatever reasons and motives. The statement expressed condolences from the state of Qatar to the families of the victims, the government and the people of Somalia, as they wanted the wounded to…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A top al-Shabaab intelligence chief was killed on Wednesday in a special operation carried out by US-trained Danab forces, several military sources confirmed in the latest significant battle against the al-Qaeda-linked group that controls large parts of rural southern and central Somalia. Since March this year, the Somali National Army has contingents with the help of AU forces and those of the US Africa Command have fought with the militants, leading to massive gains across the country, the…

In Kenya, the Kemsa affair has been causing unrest for several weeks. Millions of dollars have reportedly been diverted from their purpose within the state body responsible for medical supplies. This Wednesday, new revelations before the Senate question its officials a little more. Appointed in July, the new Auditor General is already in the front line in the scandal at the moment in Kenya. According to Nancy Gathungu's report, corruption within Kemsa has swallowed more than $ 21 million intended for the fight against…

The Kenyan head of state is accompanied by five of his ministers for this visit dedicated to economic cooperation. He attended the conference of the Public Investment Bank, the institution responsible for promoting French companies abroad, along with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Thursday morning. The two heads of state took the opportunity to discuss the economic opportunities that bind them, despite the global health crisis. And it was a rather determined Uhuru Kenyatta who appeared on the conference stage.…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A female suicide bomber killed a senior intelligence official after blowing herself up in Mogadishu early Thursday, a police officer said in an attack attributed to al-Shabaab jihadists. The woman detonated a bomb strapped to her waist at the Black Sea Crossing aimed at commonly dressed agents working for the National Intelligence and Security Agency and killed the secret unit commander. Giant smoke birds rippled from the area as ambulances rushed the injured to a nearby hospital for medical…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The race to expand the democratization space in Somalia was markedly strengthened on Wednesday following the recent launch of a political party that would allow people to express their wishes and interests as planned in the country's interim constitution. Somalia has struggled to install discipline in its key institutions for three decades after Siad Barre's ouster, but recent developments give at least a glimmer of hope to a country also bedeviled with clan clashes and the Al-Shabaab threat. .…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The United Kingdom joined other international partners to welcome Mohamed Hussein Roble's endorsement of Somalia's new Prime Minister of the country's parliament last week. Roble, a Swedish-educated engineer, worked with the International Labor Organization in Nairobi for years before his surprising appointment. He was not a politician, but is said to have broad international relations that can help the country restore its long-lost stability. He replaced Hassan Ali Khaire, a man who had…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Federal leaders returned to Villa Somalia on Wednesday to fine-tune the pre-election pact signed almost two weeks ago as the country prepares for the long-awaited election, which would begin in November when the current administration's term expires. The five heads of state and Mogadishu Mayor Omar Filish signed the agreement early following pressure from the international community, but the team did not finalize some of the finer details that would lead to a credible election that would be…