longtime

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Djibouti went to the polls on Friday in a presidential election that is all but certain to hand longtime leader Ismaïl Omar Guelleh a sixth term, after lawmakers removed presidential age limits last year. Guelleh, 78, has governed the Horn of Africa nation of roughly 1 million people for more than 20 years. In the 2021 vote, he won nearly 99% of the ballots cast. This time, he faces just one opponent, Mohamed Farah Samatar, a former member of the ruling party, in a contest analysts describe as lacking…

Mthunzi Gxashe, a close aide and son-in-law to Archbishop Desmond Tutu who served as the clergyman’s spiritual companion during his retirement, has died in Johannesburg, his family and associates said. Gxashe was widely regarded at home and abroad for his long association with Tutu, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and moral voice of South Africa’s anti-apartheid movement. In retirement years, Gxashe was described by those around Tutu as a constant presence — helping to manage daily affairs, offering spiritual support and…

Sudan will hand over longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court along with other officials called for the Darfur conflict, Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi said on Wednesday. "The Cabinet decided to hand over wanted officials to the ICC," Mahdi was quoted as saying by state media. Bashir, who ruled Sudan with an iron fist for three decades before being ousted from popular protests in 2019, is charged with genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. The UN says 300,000 people…

The United States congratulates Djibouti's longtime strongman on re-election WASHINGTON, USA - The United States has praised Ismail Omar Guelleh for his re-election as president of Djibouti, a small Horn of Africa nation whose election ended last week, amid ongoing political instability in the region. Guelleh, who has been at the helm since 1999, scored a handsome majority after…

Guineans voted for a president on Sunday, with 82-year-old incumbent Alpha Condé going through his longtime rival Cellou Dalein Diallo for the third time. Protection within the West African state ended Friday at midnight, limiting a tense political marketing campaign marked by insults traded between President Alpha Condé and his…