Africa News

Burkina Faso violence: Bodies of

28 people found in Nouna

The bodies of 28 people who were shot dead have been discovered in Burkina Faso’s north-western town of Nouna, the government has said.

A civil society group blamed the killings on armed civilians claiming to be members of a government-backed volunteer force fighting jihadists.

The government did not comment on the claim, but said it was investigating.

Burkina Faso has been hit by a decadelong insurgency that has displaced nearly two million people.

The military seized power in Burkina Faso last January, promising an end to attacks, but the violence still rages.

The government said the bodies were discovered on 30 and 31 December.

It condemned the “unacceptable violence” and called for calm, pending the outcome of an investigation.

The incident had occurred at a time when the government had initiated the “mobilisation of the whole people for unity of action in the fight against terrorism”, it added.

The government has formed the Homeland Defence Volunteers (VDP), recruiting civilians into its ranks to fight militant Islamists.

A civil society group, the Collective Against Impunity and Stigmatisation of Communities (CISC), said that armed civilians, claiming to be members of the VDP, carried out the killings in retaliation for an attack by suspected militants between 29 and 30 December.

There is no independent confirmation of its claim.

Tanzania president lifts opposition rally ban

Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan has lifted a ban after six years on opposition political rallies outside of election campaigns.

It was imposed by her predecessor, the late President John Magufuli, who argued that in between elections they were a waste of time and money.

But it was criticised by the opposition and activists as unconstitutional.

President Samia made the announcement during a meeting with leaders from all 19 of the country’s registered political parties.

“Our duty as a government will be offering protection for the rallies… now that the rallies are back, I hope we are going to conduct ourselves in civil and mature way and avoid trading insults,” Ms Samia said.

The lifting of the ban is part of the president’s political reconciliation and reform drive which she initiated after taking power in 2021 following MagufuIi’s death. His period in power was often seen as taking Tanzania down a more authoritarian route.

In recent months, the president and her governing CCM party has been talking with opposition parties behind closed door talks.

Speaking on Tuesday, President Samia also said her government would try to restart a stalled constitutional review process.

Nigeria president’s last budget leaves big deficit

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the 2023 budget of more than $45bn (£37bn) into law.

It is the last budget of his administration.

The budget reveals that the government wants to sell some public assets in order to lessen the huge deficit, which amounts to just less than 5% of GDP.

Alongside the main spending plan is an additional spending plan to deal with the aftermath of the recent nationwide floods which damaged vital infrastructure.

A large portion of the budget is funded by the earnings from crude oil but volatility in the oil price has meant that borrowing has increased and forced the government to look for other ways to raise funds.

Mr Buhari’s two terms in office will come to an end after voters elect his successor next month.

Ghana and Morocco to start Covid checks for China arrivals

Ghana and Morocco have become the first African countries to impose travel restrictions on passengers from China over concerns about coronavirus.

From Tuesday, Morocco has banned travellers from China regardless of their nationality until further notice.

The foreign ministry says the move is aimed at preventing a spike in infections in the country.

Ghana’s restrictions will take effect on Friday.

The moves come after China abruptly dropped its Covid-19 controls in December last year.

Other countries outside Africa have also imposed restrictions.

For example, passengers arriving in England from China now have to provide a negative Covid test before they board a flight. The US is testing people on arrival.

Countries that plan to test travellers say the policy will help spot worrying new variants early and prevent an influx of cases.

Ghana says passengers from China will be tested at the airport for free and must also present a negative test result 48 hours before arrival.

International health experts have argued that the lifting of restrictions in China has led to Covid-19 spreading much faster.

But Beijing’s foreign ministry has said coronavirus rules should only be introduced on a “scientific” basis and accused Western countries and media of “hyping up” the situation.

Conflict in Burkina Faso has forced nearly two million people to flee their homes

Malawi schoolbus driver to be charged after crash kills pupil

Malawi police say they will charge a driver of a school bus in which one student was killed after a road accident.

He was taking school students from the capital, Lilongwe, to the northern city of Mzuzu on Monday.

The country’s schools re-opened on Tuesday (except in Lilongwe and Blantyre) following the festive break.

Marymount Secondary School, a girls boarding school owned by the Catholic church, hired a private bus to transport students ahead of the re-opening.

The accident happened after the driver lost control of the bus, which was carrying 58 students, due to speeding, according to the police.

A 14-year-old girl was pronounced dead on arrival at a nearby district hospital while another, aged 12, had her left arm amputated.

Police say the bus driver will be prosecuted, but did not say on what charges.

Burial date set for DR Congo’s last WW2 veteran

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s last surviving World War Two veteran, Corporal Albert Kunyuku, will be buried next Friday, according to the producer of the film about his life José Adolphe Voto

Corporal Kunyuku died on 25 November last year, aged 100.

He was was among 25,000 soldiers of the Belgian Congo Army, La Force Publique, deployed to fight alongside Belgian troops during the conflict.

He was honoured last June by Belgium’s King Philippe at an elaborate ceremony during the monarch’s first visit to the African country.

Ugandan soldier kills three colleagues in Somalia

Investigations have started into the circumstances in which a Uganda soldier under the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (Atmis) shot three of his colleagues dead in Mogadishu on Monday morning.

The shooting took place at the headquarters of the Ugandan army contingent.

The spokesperson of the Ugandan army, Felix Kulaigye, confirmed the incident to the BBC and the arrest of the soldier.

He is said to have gone on a rampage and shot his first victim in the chest.

Other soldiers initially thought that their base had come under attack.

The second victim was shot three times in the head as he tried to find out what was happening. A third soldier was shot in the back as he tried to run away.

The shooting only stopped when an officer tiptoed and disarmed the shooter.

This is the first incident in several years in Somalia involving Ugandan soldiers.

A similar incident happened in 2019 when a Ugandan captain killed himself after shooting a colleague dead.

Raid against Oromo rebels successful - Ethiopia army

The Ethiopian army says it has “liberated several localities” from the rebel Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) in operations in the Oromia region, the military posted on Facebook on Tuesday.

An unnamed senior army officer said “the security forces have launched a coordinated operation to stop the subversion by the Shene and ensure stability in the region”.

The report said the army was carrying out a mission in West and East Guji zones and Borena zones in South Oromia.

“The operation is aimed at annihilating the Shene [OLA} and creating a stable region,” said Haru Germa, a senior official in East Guji Zone.

The OLA, which claims to fight for the right of ethnic Oromo people, was designated a terrorist group in 2021.BBC