South Africa is the continent's biggest coal producerImage caption: South Africa is the continent's biggest coal producer
The South African authorities say they have uncovered a coal-smuggling syndicate that has played a major role in exacerbating the country's energy crisis.
The South African Revenue Service (Sars) led what was described as a search and seizure operation across five provinces where the smugglers are active - Gauteng, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and Limpopo.
The suspects include former employees of the state-owned electricity firm, Eskom.
A statement said the scam involved high-grade coal being sold off and replaced with a low-grade product which has been damaging power stations.
The issue of coal theft has been reported in South Africa's media for several years. It is widely felt that high-level corruption long prevented any action being taken to stop the scam.
Peacekeepers suspended over sex abuse claims in DR Congo
Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service
UNCopyright: UN
There are more than 14,000 UN troops in the country (archive photo)Image caption: There are more than 14,000 UN troops in the country (archive photo)
The UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo says it has suspended some of its peacekeepers in response to reports of serious misconduct.
It said it had a policy of zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse.
AFP news agency reports the accusations are against eight South African peacekeepers.
The Monusco mission has faced previous accusations of sexual abuse.
It has more than 14,000 troops in eastern DR Congo.
In recent years there have been several protests against the UN which is accused of failing to protect civilians against attacks by numerous armed groups.
Relations between Mali and France have soured after the military coupImage caption: Relations between Mali and France have soured after the military coup
Mali's ruling junta says they are still examining Air France's request to resume flights to the country.
Relations between former colonial power France and Russia-allied Mali have hit rock bottom since the 2020 military coup.
This August, France's national airline stopped flying to Mali in the wake of the military coup in neighbouring Niger.
Earlier this week Air France said it would start flying to Mali again from Friday onwards, saying it had reached a deal with the transitional
authorities.
But this was later contradicted by Mali's transport ministry, which said it was still considering Air France's request to start flying to the country and it remained suspended for the time being.
Mali also accused the
airline of having "unilaterally suspended" flights earlier without properly
informing the authorities and customers beforehand. Air France has since said it is postponing flights to and from Mali until further notice.
South Africa is ready to mediate in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian territories, says President Cyril Ramaphosa.
He is calling for an immediate ceasefire and says his country can draw on its experience of conflict resolution in Africa and beyond, Mr Ramaphosa added in the statement on Thursday.
The South African president said the atrocities against civilians were deeply concerning, and called for the immediate and unconditional opening of humanitarian corridors to reach people in need.
Families were left homeless after the landslides on SundayImage caption: Families were left homeless after the landslides on Sunday
Cameroonian authorities have denied abandoning victims of the deadly landslides in the capital, Yaoundé.
Sunday's landslide in the low-income Mbankolo neighbourhood left at least 31 people dead and destroyed homes, displacing families.
The
local administrator in charge of coordinating emergency assistance said people complaining
of not having a place to stay had chosen not to go to the temporary accommodation
provided by the government.
Daouda
Ousmanou told the BBC that some homeless victims opted to join their family
members elsewhere, while about 16 others were being taken care of at a centre several kilometres away from the disaster site.
"These
people are taken care of, but not all the victims are at the resettlement
site," he said.
But some
victims have said they still have not received any aid.
"All
persons listed receive their aid after in-depth verification," insisted Mr Ousmanou, adding that other people from elsewhere had been claiming the government aid.
So
far, Cameroonian authorities say about 40 families have received assistance from the
government, and more had been expecting to get theirs on Wednesday.
Ghana reports lower inflation - but it's still high
Nkechi Ogbonna
West Africa business journalist, BBC News
AFPCopyright: AFP
Ghana is facing a tough economic situationImage caption: Ghana is facing a tough economic situation
Ghana's annual inflation rate has seen a small decline of two percentage points and in the 12 months to September prices rose by just over 38%.
The country's statistics body on Wednesday said food prices remain the main driver of the
inflation rate.
The
West African country is facing its worst economic hardship in over a generation
marked by a cost-of-living crisis and huge public debt.
The
government introduced tough measures including increasing utility tariffs, a review of existing taxes and the introduction of new ones to boost domestic
revenue.
In May, the cocoa and gold-rich country secured a $3bn (£2.4bn) loan from the IMF to help
ease the economic problems it faces.
Manhunt on as six South Africa prisoners escape
GeCopyright: Ge
Western Cape authorities have launched a manhunt for the offenders, who are said to be "armed and dangerous" (file photo)Image caption: Western Cape authorities have launched a manhunt for the offenders, who are said to be "armed and dangerous" (file photo)
The authorities in South Africa's Western Cape province are searching for six prisoners who escaped from the holding cell of a magistrates' court
One of the prisoners has been arrested but the other five are still on the run.
Authorities say that the prisoners, aged between 20 and 33, are "armed and dangerous".
The prisoners were waiting to be transported to a correctional detention facility after appearing in court earlier on Wednesday.
"Preliminary investigation suggests that the detainees overpowered one of the police officials and disarmed him. Several shots were fired in the direction of the police officials, but no-one was hit or wounded," police spokesman Malcolm Pojie told South Africa's News 24 outlet.
He added that the offenders escaped on foot.
The offenders were on trial for multiple serious charges, including murder, attempted murder, aggravated robbery and assault.
Following their escape, the authorities have further charged them with escape from lawful custody, attempted murder and robbery of a firearm.
Kenya to end deal with Cuban doctors
AFPCopyright: AFP
Kenya established a deal in 2017 for Cuban doctors to work in county hospitalsImage caption: Kenya established a deal in 2017 for Cuban doctors to work in county hospitals
Kenya
will end a six-year agreement that allowed more than 100 Cuban doctors to work
in Kenyan hospitals.
Health
Minister Susan Nakhumicha said on Wednesday that the move will help address
challenges faced by Kenyan health workers, including the lack of employment
opportunities.
“We have decided not to renew the
agreement with the Cuban doctors. Our very own healthcare professionals are
committed to the cause,” she said.
A 2017 deal established an exchange programme in which
Cuban doctors would help fill the gap in county hospitals while Kenyans would
travel to Cuba for specialised medical training.
It
was unpopular with Kenyan medical professionals, who argued that local doctors
had the requisite training just as their Cuban counterparts did.
There
were also concerns that the Kenyan government was paying the Cuban professionals
much more than their Kenyan counterparts – even as some locally trained doctors
remained unemployed.
Doctors and other health workers in Kenya have
often gone on strike to demand higher wages, better working conditions and for
more doctors to be hired.
Nelson Chamisa formed the CCC in 2022 and is hugely popular in urban areasImage caption: Nelson Chamisa formed the CCC in 2022 and is hugely popular in urban areas
Zimbabwe’s
main opposition party, the Citizen’s Coalition for Change (CCC), has rebuffed
reports that its president, Nelson Chamisa, has been expelled from the party.
The
rumour followed a "press statement" supposedly issued by Sengezo Tshabangu, who
purports to be the party’s interim secretary-general.
The statement announced Mr Chamisa's
expulsion for a litany of charges, including embezzlement of party funds and
nepotism.
The document is the subject of much social media debate, with some suggesting a party split is imminent.
This is despite FactCheckZW, a website that seeks to verify reports, dismissing the statement as a fake.
CCC’s spokesperson Promise
Mkwananzi told the BBC that Mr Tshabangu was not a member of
the party but a “minion” of the ruling Zanu-PF party.
Mr Mkwananzi
said Mr Chamisa was “in full control of the party” and presided over a Citizens'
National Assembly meeting on Wednesday.
The assembly, said to be the highest decision-making body in the
party, discussed a turbulent few days for the party in which a letter
written by Mr Tshabangu led to 15 CCC members losing their parliamentary seats.
Protests in parliament then led to the suspension of all CCC MPs for six sittings and the docking their pay.
The assembly said the CCC's legal department would give the
Speaker of parliament two weeks to rescind the recall of the 15 CCC members.
Should the Speaker refuse to comply with their request, Mr
Mkwananzi said the party's MPs and councillors would "disengage" from
parliament and local councils and it would "activate" unspecified
"citizens' actions".
FBI investigates former Ghanaian minister
Thomas Naadi
BBC News, Accra
The
FBI and the Office of Ghana’s Special Prosecutor (OSP) are looking into the
assets and financial transactions of embattled former minister Cecilia Abena Dapaah and her associates in the US.
In a post on social media app X, the OSP said: "This collaborative effort is to ascertain the lawfulness of Ms Dapaah and her associates' wealth, both in the context of their funds
transitioning from Ghana to the United States and vice versa."
The
former sanitation minister is currently under investigation by the OSP on allegations of corruption and corruption-related offences stemming from the discovery of over
$1m (£813,300) in cash at her residence.
The money came to public attention after it was stolen by two domestic staff - and Ms Dapaah herself called the police.
She was forced to resign when some Ghanaians and MPs questioned the source of the money.
The former sanitation minister is now reported to have filed an application in court seeking to stop the Office of
the Special Prosecutor from investigating her and her husband.
Ethiopia's top student on excelling in exam that only 3% passed
Ameyu Etana
BBC Afaan Oromoo
FBCCopyright: FBC
Hanan Neji said she was pleased with her performanceImage caption: Hanan Neji said she was pleased with her performance
The top student in this year’s national exams
in Ethiopia has said she is "very pleased".
Hanan Neji may have excelled, but overall the national performance was one of the worst the country has ever seen.
Many Ethiopians have been expressing their shock over the mass
failure rate after only 3.2% of students passed in the Grade 12 university entrance exams this year.
Only 27,000 of the 815,000 candidates who sat the exams will be able to directly go to university. Nearly half of all participating schools did not
have a single student attaining the required pass mark, according to the
education ministry.
But Ms Neji, from the capital, Addis Ababa, who scored 649 out of 700, told the BBC she was “very pleased” with the result.
“The exam was not tough. If you
are prepared, it was an exam you could do,” she told the BBC, adding that many
students had not prepared themselves well.
“There was no cheating and [many
were not] able to do the exam. I think that’s why most students failed,’’ she said.
It is the second year in a row that Ethiopia has seen a mass failure
of students. Last year, Education Minister Berhanu Nega called the results “shocking” after only 3.3% of nearly 900,000 students passed.
The number of students who reached the required pass mark this year is below the enrolling capacity of universities across the country.
The poor performance comes after authorities began sending students to university premises to sit their exams in order to stop cheating.
It is another headache for
the country in the aftermath of a deadly war and other crises, with millions of
children leaving school due to violence, drought and displacement.
Weah 'will accept result of Liberia election'
Moses Kollie Garzeawu
Monrovia
EPACopyright: EPA
George Weah is hoping to secure a second term in officeImage caption: George Weah is hoping to secure a second term in office
George Weah, Liberia's president, will accept the result of Tuesday's general election, an official from his party has said.
Jefferson
Koijee, secretary general of the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change, told reporters: "This man has
said many times that the peace of this country is above his
own."
But Mr Koijee ruled out the possibility of defeat for Mr Weah, a 57-year-old former
football star.
Election officials said the turnout for Liberia's fourth post-war was high.
Votes continue to be counted - the electoral commission will begin to release the results at 16:30 local time (17:30 BST).
Mr Weah is expected to face his strongest challenge from former Vice-President Joseph Boakai, 78, of the
Unite Party. Mr Boakai was deputy to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf when she was president.
King Charles to make state visit to Kenya
King Charles will acknowledge the "painful aspects" of the UK's history with Kenya when he makes a state visit to the East African country next month, his office says.
He will be joined by Camilla when he flies to Kenya following an invitation from President William Ruto, whose country is celebrating the 60th anniversary of its independence from Britain.
Kenya won independence from the UK in 1963 and the two nations have enjoyed a close relationship since.
Chris Fitzgerald, deputy private secretary to the King, said: "The King and Queen's programme will celebrate the close links between the British and Kenyan people in areas such as the creative arts, technology, enterprise, education and innovation.
"The visit will also acknowledge the more painful aspects of the UK and Kenya's shared history, including the Emergency (1952-1960).
"His Majesty will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya."