BBC News Africa

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Kenya's Chief Justice David Maraga, who created history by presiding over the annulment of the 2017 presidential election, will officially retire on Friday.

He has been praised for restoring faith in the independence of the judiciary since taking office in October 2016.

Justice Maraga is the country’s 14th Chief Justice, according to local media reports.

A devout Seventh-day Adventist, he reportedly told an interview panel that if appointed Chief Justice, he would never preside over a case on a Saturday, a day of rest and worship for members of the Adventist faith.

Justice Maraga, 69, graduated as a lawyer from the University of Nairobi, before going into private practice.

He was appointed a judge in 2003 and rose to join the Court of Appeal in 2012.

He is married and has three children.

Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu will take over in an acting capacity until the Judicial Service Commission appoints the next Chief Justice.

Read:

• David Maraga: The brave judge who made Kenyan history

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Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo has appointed a 15-member transition team as he readies to begin his second term.

The president was re-elected in this month's election whose results have been rejected by his main rival, former President John Mahama.

Ghana's constitution requires the winning presidential candidate to name a transitional team within 24 hours after the electoral commission officially declares results.

The team will be chaired by President Akufo-Addo's chief of staff Akosua Frema Osei-Opare.

The election commission on Wednesday announced President Akufo-Addo winner of the election with 51.59% of the total votes cast, while Mr Mahama secured 47.36%.

In his victory speech the president called for unity and promised to improve living standards.

Read:

• Ghana President Akufo-Addo re-elected

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Lawmakers in the Democratic Republic of Congo have voted to remove the parliament's speaker.

The result is a victory for President Félix Tshisekedi, who's been involved in a power struggle with supporters of his predecessor, Joseph Kabila.

Earlier this week police had to intervene to break up fights between rival politicians.

The speaker, Jeanine Mabunda, was an ally of Mr Kabila. She was impeached after being accused of "partisan leadership" by President Tshisekedi's supporters - allegations she denied.

The vote also saw the majority in parliament swing in favour of President Tshisekedi.

He can now put into motion plans that he put forward last Sunday. They include forming a government which he said would allow him to deliver more to the Congolese people.

The removal of the speaker is a major blow to former President Kabila, who stepped down last year after leading the central African country for 18 years.

He had full control of both national and provincial assemblies.

Our African proverb of the day:

Quote Message: A stink bug does not know its own smell." from A Rukwangali proverb sent by Herculano Mwenyo in Rundu, Namibia.

A stink bug does not know its own smell."

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Click here to send us your African proverbs.

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Algerian football player Hichem Boudaoui has been criticised on social media for travelling to Israel with his French club Nice to face Beer-Sheva in the Europa League.

Internet users condemned the 21-year-old midfielder’s decision to travel to Israel, calling it an act of "treachery".

Algeria has no diplomatic relations with Israel.

The two teams are due to play shortly, but the game is of no importance as both were eliminated in the group stage.

A hashtag reading "Boudaoui does not represent Algeria" has been widely used by angry fans, with some demanding that he be axed from the national team.

Some users have however called fans to be less harsh with the young player who, they say, "has to fulfil the contract he has with his team".

Algerian teams and athletes generally refuse to face Israeli counterparts in international competitions as the two countries do not have diplomatic relationships and in solidarity with Palestinian people under Israeli occupation.

Former Algeria players Ishak Belfodil and Safir Taider had played in Israel but they both have dual nationality and used their French passport to enter Israel.

Boudaoui was born in Algeria and does not have dual nationality.

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US President Donald Trump has announced that Morocco has become the latest Arab state to normalise relations with Israel.

The announcement came after Mr Trump signed a proclamation recognising Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.

Morocco has become the fourth country since August to sign a normalisation deal with Israel - in the wake of the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan.

There has been a territorial dispute over Western Sahara for decades pitting Morocco against the Polisario Front.

The African Union recognises Polisario as the territory's government.

Read more:

• Why Trump wants Sudan to befriend Israel

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The High Court in Kenya has ordered the country's 416 lawmakers pay back 1.2bn shillings ($10m; £7.5m) after ruling that the money had been unlawfully given to them as housing allowances, local media report.

The Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) had encroached on the mandate of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) by granting the lawmakers the allowance, it ruled.

Each lawmaker would be required to repay 2.8m shillings to the government within the next year, Kenya's Star newspaper reported.

It is still unclear whether the ruling would be challenged.

Kenyan MPs are among the highest paid in the world, and have often been accused by non-governmental organisations of fleecing taxpayers.

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Italian prosecutors have formally accused four members of the Egyptian security agency of the kidnap, torture and murder of an Italian doctoral student, Giulio Regeni, near Cairo in 2016.

The four will now have 20 days in which to respond, but any trial against them would likely be conducted in absentia.

Mr Regeni was researching Egypt's trade unions at the time of his disappearance.

His mutilated body was later found in a ditch.

The murder sparked a crisis in relations between Italy and Egypt.

The Egyptian authorities have called the Italian evidence insufficient, and have constantly changed their explanations for the killing.

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Sudan's interim government has cancelled more than 3,500 passports issued to foreign residents by the government of ousted President Omar al- Bashir.

The interior ministry in Khartoum said the decision was taken because of negative security reports, or because foreigners had obtained their citizenship improperly.

Sudanese media say most of those affected were from Arab countries, particularly Syria, and had paid officials $10,000 (£7,500) in exchange for citizenship.

The ministry also announced that Syrian nationals will be required in future to obtain Sudanese visas in advance of travel.

One-hundred-and-fifty-thousand Syrians are estimated to have moved to Sudan since the Syrian war began.

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A popular Catholic priest in Nigeria, Father Ejike Mbaka, and some members of his church, assaulted a BBC team and two others at his complex in Emene town in south-eastern Enugu State on Wednesday evening.

BBC journalists Chioma Obianinwa and Nnamdi Agbanelo, as well as their driver, Ndubuisi Nwafor, were accompanied by another Catholic priest, Father Cajethan Obiekezie and his assistant, Solomon Orakam, to Father Mbaka’s Adoration Ministry at around 10:00 local time on Wednesday.

Father Obiekezie had facilitated an interview with Father Mbaka, but it could not be immediately held because he was preaching.

The BBC crew, led by Father Obiekezie, moved to Father Mbaka’s home after the church service to conduct the interview at around 17:00.

When Father Mbaka got home, the journalists, who were waiting in the car after Father Obiekezie went to talk to him, were suddenly surrounded by about 20 men.

According to Obianinwa, the men seized their equipment and threatened to kill them for writing "negative reports about Mbaka".

“Mbaka asked us to wait until the end of the programme for the interview. The men outside his house said BBC Igbo writes negative things about Mbaka and started beating Nnamdi, Solomon and Ndubuisi. They gave them heavy blows on their heads and all over their body,” Obianinwa said.

The BBC reporter further said that Father Mbaka and Father Obiekezie came out of the house when they heard the noise and that Father Mbaka faced her and started poking his fingers in her face, calling her "satanic".’

“This fired up the men to continue the attacks as Father Mbaka continued shouting and abusing us. He asked his men to seize our phones and cameras. They said they would kill us and nothing would happen. They removed my wig and tried to strangle Nnamdi. Father Obiekezie was telling them to stop but they attacked him too and seized his phone,” she said.

Obianinwa said the attacks stopped when she screamed that “the world would know that they were killed in Mbaka’s house”.

“At this point, Father Mbaka asked us to leave before his men killed us. He asked them to return our equipment and they chased us out of the compound. His men trailed us till we left the state to seek medical assurance and police help,” she said.

When the BBC called the number on Father Mbaka’s official Facebook page for his reaction, it was switched off.

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As a second wave of Covid-19 is officially declared to have hit South Africa, the nation’s teenagers are being blamed for its spread. The health minister said most of the new surge of infections were affecting those aged between 15 and 19.

It began in one crowded nightclub in Cape Town. The next super-spreader event was at a university in Nelson Mandela Bay.

And now comes a series of crowded parties to celebrate the end of school exams, and the school year.

The result, it’s now clear, is that South Africa’s teenagers are driving a second wave of infections.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said 15 to 19 year olds were the worst hit, and he blamed drunken parties, where people ignored social distancing rules and the need to wear masks.

The infection rate in some areas is now rising more steeply than during the country’s first wave, back in July.

Other African nations, including Zimbabwe and Kenya, are also reporting new surges of infections.

This continent, with its young population, and some tough lockdown measures, has been spared the worst of the pandemic so far.

But there are concerns about a second wave, and about whether Africa will be at the back of the queue for vaccines.

Read more:

• Five reasons why Covid-19 has been less deadly in Africa than elsewhere

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The High Court in Kenya has ordered the government to give compensation of about $30,000 each to four people for failing to protect them from sexual and gender-based attacks during the violence that hit the country after the disputed 2007-2008 election.

The ruling is seen as a landmark, with Naitore Nyamu-Mathenge - the head of the Physicians for Human Rights group which supported the court action - saying that justice had finally been served.

However, she urged the government to take steps to prevent such violence in the future.

Justice Weldon Korir ruled that the survivors' right to life and equality had been violated when they were assaulted.

He also said that the state had failed to protect them from torture and inhuman and degrading treatment.

Campaign group Human Rights Watch estimated that at least 1,000 were killed and more than 500,000 people were displaced in the violence.

There were also multiple reports of rape and torture.

The violence broke out after then-President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner of the election. His main rival Raila Odinga said the poll was rigged.

Current President Uhuru Kenyatta - who supported Mr Kibaki - and his deputy William Ruto - who backed Mr Odinga - were charged by the International Criminal Court with crimes against humanity after they were accused of fuelling the violence.

Both denied the charges, which were later dropped.

The Ethiopian government has announced free Covid-19 testing in 34 centres in the capital, Addis Ababa.

The country's Public Health Institute together with the Ministry of Health published a list of the centres that include private and public hospitals.

It is unclear if the service will be extended to areas outside the capital.

Health facilities have been charging 1,250 Ethiopian Birr ($32) for the Covid-19 test. There are places that charged up to 1,500 Ethiopian Birr.

Previously, only those with symptoms and those identified during contact tracing were being tested free of charge.

The announcement comes amidst increased laxity towards the use of face masks in public areas

According to Africa CDC, a technical institution of the Africa Union, Ethiopia is among African countries with high numbers of Covid-19 cases.

The country has so far tested close to 1.7 million people. Some 114,834 people have tested positive and 1,769 succumbed to the virus, according to the ministry of health.

Health Minister Lia Tadesse on Thursday said a senior anaesthetist at the St Phaulos Hospital in the capital died from the virus.

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A former Tanzanian opposition MP Godbless Lema has been granted asylum in Canada, Kenyan media reports.

He had fled to Kenya through the Lungalunga border and was briefly detained before being allowed into the country.

His Kenyan lawyer George Wajackoyah has been quoted by local media as saying that Mr Lema left the country on Wednesday night.

Mr Lema arrived in Kenya last month accompanied by his wife and three children.

He fled shortly after the Tanzania elections in October in which President John Magufuli was declared the winner. His main challenger Tundu Lissu disputed the result.

Mr Lissu fled to Belgium, saying his life was in danger.

Ethiopia has said its federal forces have freed 1,000 soldiers who were "kidnapped" in the northern state of Tigray by fighters linked to the now-overthrown regional administration.

Among those freed was the deputy head of the Northern Command - a military base that was attacked in early November triggering the conflict.

The Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) - which previously controlled the state - has not responded to the claim.

The federal government had two weeks ago said the conflict was over, but the UN has warned of an “appalling impact on civilians".

Nearly 50,000 people who fled the conflict have already crossed the border to neighbouring Sudan.

The authorities in Addis Ababa reject the possibility of an insurgency in Tigray whilst admitting to "sporadic" clashes.

Little has been heard from the TPLF in recent days, but earlier they had vowed to continue fighting as long federal troops - whom they call invaders- remain in Tigray.

The UN has warned that the situation in the state may be "spiralling out of control" with appalling humanitarian consequences.

Read more:

• How a soldier survived an 11-hour gun battle

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South Africa's health minister has said the country is now experiencing a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Minister Zweli Mkhize said four provinces - Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu Natal and Gauteng - are the key drivers of the new wave.

The country reported 6,079 new cases on Wednesday.

The minister said there was a spike in infections among those aged between 15 to 19 years "believed to be due to large number of parties involving young people drinking alcohol with no adherence" to safety measures.

"If this trajectory continues our health care system will be overwhelmed by the numbers," he warned.

Since the pandemic began, South Africa has had the highest recorded number of total cases in Africa.

It has so far confirmed 828,598 cases and 22,574 deaths. Recoveries stand at 754,658.

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Mozambique's Prime Minister, Carlos Agostinho do Rosario, has opposed calls to arm civilians in the gas-rich northern province of Cabo Delgado to combat Islamist insurgents in the region.

Residents in the region have always been requesting for guns to help the security forces.

The prime minister opposed the idea during a security meeting in the province's capital, Pemba.

He said the move would be "dangerous and unsustainable".

He insisted weapons should be in the hands of the "rightful people", namely the defence and security forces and those they trust.

Mr do Rosario said civilians should have a hoe to cultivate the land and a pen to contribute to the country’s development.

Read more:

• Is Mozambique the latest outpost of Islamic State?

Ivory Coast's opposition leader and former president, Henri Konan Bédié, has called for inclusive dialogue with the government after a disputed election.

President Alassane Ouattara was re-elected in October for a controversial third term, sparking political violence. He is scheduled to be sworn in later this week.

The opposition leader said the proposed talks must be supervised by "credible international organisations like the UN".

He also called for the release of all people who were arrested in protests held before and after the elections.

Ivorian opposition figures like Pascal Affi N’guessan and Maurice Kacou Guikahue are still in detention.

Mr Bédié urged Ivorians to prepare for demonstrations intended to call for peace in the country. He asked the police and army to offer security to demonstrators.

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The deaths of more than 2,000 hooded vultures in Guinea-Bissau this year has been linked to superstitious rituals by a researcher.

Mohammed Henriques told the French public radio, RFI, that heads, legs and claws of the vultures are often used in the West African country for superstitious rituals.

He said many of the birds found dead from February were beheaded.

"The body parts of these birds are believed to bring good fortune and special powers," RFI quoted Mr Henriques as saying.

Toxicology reports had indicated that the birds had been poisoned by methiocarb, a pesticide banned in Europe.

Since the initial death of hundreds of hooded vultures in February, there have been other reported fatalities of the scavengers in the Bafata and Gabu regions in eastern Guinea-Bissau and in the Bissagos archipelago, west of the country.

Guinea-Bissau is home to around 22% of the critically endangered hooded vultures, according to Birdlife International.