Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is bracing for what the World Health Organization (WHO) calls a "catastrophic collision of disease and conflict," as a rapidly advancing Ebola outbreak outstrips efforts to contain it in a region already scarred by armed groups, displacement and severe hunger. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Ebola Bundibugyo virus outbreak in Ituri province is unfolding in conditions that undermine basic public health measures, with insecurity, assaults on clinics and…

Thursday May 28, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Saadiq Omar Hassan Joon, a Somali lawmaker and former Banadir police chief, has cautioned President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud against meddling in the coming election in Galmudug, as political tensions sharpen in Dhusamareb. Writing on Facebook on Wednesday, Saadiq Joon linked peace in Dhusamareb, the Galmudug capital, with calm in Mogadishu’s Wardhigley district, home to the presidential palace. “Oday Hassan, the peace in Dhusamareb and the peace in Wardhigley are interconnected, you…

The World Health Organization is sounding the alarm over a rapidly deteriorating Ebola situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, warning that relentless violence and a deepening humanitarian emergency are undermining efforts to contain the virus. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the epicenter lies in Ituri Province, a conflict-hit area where nearly five million people live amid persistent insecurity and a severe humanitarian crisis. Ongoing attacks are forcing civilians to flee alongside health…

Mounting tensions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are likely to drive Ebola deeper into the country, an Irish doctor working with Médecins Sans Frontiéres (MSF) has warned. The warning followed an attack yesterday on an Ebola treatment centre in eastern Congo, which was set ablaze by people angered after they were stopped from recovering the body of a local man. About 600 suspected Ebola cases have been recorded in the DRC, along with more than 140 deaths, figures that led the World Health Organization to declare a…

Thursday May 21, 2026 Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, secretary-general of the League of Arab States, on Wednesday issued a sharp condemnation of any plan by North Western State of Somalia, the self-declared authorities in Somalia’s northwestern region, to open an embassy in occupied Jerusalem. In a statement, Aboul-Gheit said such a step would have no legal standing and would amount to a blatant provocation to the Arab and Islamic worlds. "Such rapprochement seeks to solicit illegitimate recognition of Israel from entities and regions…

A surge in politically linked abuses gripped Zimbabwe in April, with 145 human rights violations impacting 3,675 people, the Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) reported. The watchdog highlighted a pattern of political intimidation, arbitrary arrests, and curbs on freedoms of expression and association among the most pressing issues. According to the report, those affected included 1,887 women and 1,788 men. ZPP warned that the human rights climate is deteriorating, citing an escalation in intimidation, violence, and the misuse…

With diplomacy losing momentum and the war now more than two months old, US President Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to Iran, declaring that the "clock is ticking" on efforts to secure an end to the conflict. Writing on social media, Mr Trump warned Iran's leadership that failure to move swiftly toward a peace agreement would bring consequences, saying the country would be left with nothing if no deal was reached. The message followed a conversation between the US President and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin…

As nicotine pouches surge in popularity, the World Health Organization is pressing governments to tighten controls, warning that the highly addictive products are being "aggressively marketed" in ways that hold particular appeal for younger people. The small pouches, placed under the lip to deliver a nicotine buzz, have quickly emerged as a crucial growth area for major tobacco companies as cigarette smoking continues its long decline. That rise, however, has drawn mounting criticism from campaigners and researchers over the…

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Abdullahi Shimbir, the governor of Somalia’s Gedo region, has cautioned against any election process carried out without legal grounding and wider consultation, saying local authorities have been left out of current voting plans. After talks in Mogadishu with federal government officials, Shimbir said the discussions centered on introducing a "one-person, one-vote" system. He said, however, that the political dispute between the Federal Government of Somalia and Jubbaland President Ahmed Madobe continues…

A UN official has warned that tens of millions of people could be pushed toward hunger and starvation unless fertilisers are allowed to move through the Strait of Hormuz in the coming weeks, underscoring the mounting risk of a global food crisis. Iran has effectively held the strategic waterway in a chokehold for months, after the war launched by the United States and Israel on 28 February, disrupting a corridor that normally carries a third of the world's fertilisers. The obstruction has rattled a supply chain farmers…