BBC News Africa

GeCopyright: Ge

The sudden death of Chad President Idriss Déby has propelled his son, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, to the helm of the central African nation

He has a reputation for discretion and shunning the limelight, unlike some of his half-brothers. However, he is a battle-hardened soldier like his father.

Mahamat is 37 - the same age his father was when he took power in a coup in 1990.

He is known as "General Kaka" because he was brought up by his grandmother, or "Kaka" in Chadian Arabic.

Mahamat was, until his father's death, the head of the elite presidential guard.

He was one of several members of the late president's family who occupied senior positions in the government.

Mahamat was reportedly at the frontline with his father when the latter was injured in fighting with rebels in western Kanem Province.

He received military training in Chad in the mid-2000s, followed by three months at the Lycee-Militaire in Aix-en-Provence, France.

He took part in operations against Chadian rebel groups, helping to defeat some of them while fighting for his cousin Timane Erdimi in the eastern region in 2009.

Mahamat was rapidly promoted and became a general in 2010 when he took command of the presidential guard's armoured division.

In 2013, he was appointed deputy head of the Chadian forces in Mali, where he took part in operations alongside the French army at the start of the Islamist insurgency there.

A year later, he was appointed to the elite presidential guard.

Following the death of his father, he was appointed by the military to lead Chad for an 18-month transition period.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Chad has reopened its borders, a day after shutting them following the death in combat of long-time ruler Idriss Déby, the military has said, according to the AFP news agency.

A night-time curfew has also been slightly relaxed. It would now start from 20:00 instead of 18:00, a statement from military council spokesman Azem Bermandoa Agouna said.

The late president's son, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, also known as "General Kaka", has been appointed to lead the country.

He was in charge of the presidential guard before the killing of his father by rebel group Fact (the Front for Change and Concord in Chad).

Tanks and heavy artillery are still deployed around the presidency, with Fact saying it will continue its advance south.

The rebels have objected to Déby's son taking power, saying: "Chad is not a monarchy."

UpstreamCopyright: Upstream

One in nine Android mobile phones in Nigeria has malware-infected apps, according to mobile technology company Upstream which studied 415,000 transactions between November 2020 and January 2021.

There were about 576 malicious apps in the country, its report said.

Many of the apps are still active and have yet to be removed from Google Play store, it says.

The report, which Upstream produced with its cybersecurity arm Secure D, identifies the top five apps with “suspicious behaviour” as:

• XOS Launcher
• HiOS Launcher
• Phoenix Browser,
• AHA Games and
• Cobo Launcher Easily DIY Theme.

On many Android phones sold in Nigeria, these apps come pre-installed. For instance, “com.android.fmradio", a radio player app is said to be responsible for 99.8 million fraudulent transactions.

Only 2.6% of devices globally are reported to be harbouring high-risk apps, Upstream says.

Some mobile markets are being targeted more than others by malicious actors, it says.

The risk of fraud has increased as more businesses and individuals have been using the internet via smartphones during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the report.

Upstream CEO Dimitris Maniatis says that digital novices in rural communities who depend on mobile phones to stay connected to the world may easily fall victim.

Malware activities may be as simple as changing a mobile phone’s settings to something as dangerous as mining for passwords and personal information.

akuapem_polooCopyright: akuapem_poloo

A court in Ghana's capital Accra has granted bail of 80,000 cedis ($13,900; £10,000) to actress Rosemond Brown, pending an appeal against her 90-day jail sentence for posting a naked photo of herself on social media beside her son.

The court ordered Brown, popularly known as Akuapem Poloo, to report to police twice a week, and to hand over her passport. She can travel only with the court's permission.

She was granted bail because she was a young first-time offender who had shown remorse and had pleaded guilty, the judge said.

The court also considered the welfare of her son when deciding to release her on bail.

Last week, the actress broke down in tears after she was jailed.

She was found guilty of publishing obscene materials, engaging in domestic violence and undermining the privacy and integrity of another person - and was taken into custody.

In the photo, posted last July to celebrate her son’s seventh birthday, she is crouching, facing the boy and holding his hands. He is wearing underpants. Her breasts are hidden by her long hair.

The image when viral and there was a huge backlash online.

The actress, who often posts photos of herself with her son on social media, apologised, but was invited for questioning by the police.

Handing down sentence, Judge Christiana Cann said the jail sentence would serve as a deterrent to the general public given increasing levels of moral decadence in the country.

Some agreed with the judge's remarks, though social media users had been calling for the actress's release using the hashtag #FreeAkuapemPoloo.

Celebrities like Ghanaian rapper Sarkodie said it was harsh to separate a child from his mother.

BBCCopyright: BBC

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Police have been deployed and normal activities have resumed in Liberia's north-eastern city of Ganta, on the border with Guinea, following Tuesday’s violence over property dispute

The inspector general of police, Patrick Sudue, spent Tuesday night in the town mobilising forces to put things under control and warned of stern action against violators of the law.

But some businesses in the town are counting their losses after their joint warehouse containing tonnes of goods were reportedly set alight by unknown persons.

The violence started when buildings belonging to a group of people who had lost a long-running case were demolished on orders of the court - in order to turn the vacant lands over to the winning side.

This brought tensions between the two parties with people fighting along ethnic and religious lines. Schools and businesses in Ganta were shut as people fled to safety.

Ganta has become known for land disputes since Liberia’s 14-year civil war ended 17 years ago. The region is where Liberia’s civil war started in 1989.

Gunmen have abducted a number of students from a university in the northern Nigerian state of Kaduna.

The police spokesperson in the state, Muhammad Jalige, confirmed the abduction to the BBC, saying ‘‘many’’ students were kidnapped from their dormitories.

But he said a headcount was still going on to determine the actual number of students. The victims included male and female students, he added.

The gunmen stormed the Greenfield University on the outskirts of Kaduna city overnight on Tuesday and opened fire.

Kidnappings for ransom by armed criminal gangs have increased in recent months in Nigeria, with more than 800 students abducted since December.

Most of them have been released after negotiations with the gunmen but 29 students kidnapped last month from a forestry college are still in captivity.

Teachers have also been targeted in the attacks.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

President Idriss Déby ruled Chad with an iron fist, ruthlessly dispensing of critics and potential rivals. For instance, Chad has not had a prime minister since a coup attempt in 2018.

A new constitution promulgated in December 2020 created the position of vice-president but this had not been filled by the time President Déby was killed.

Ahead of the 11 April presidential poll, Mr Déby dismissed opposition protests, saying “democracy is not disorder”.

He maintained his grip on power by appointing relatives and cronies to key posts. His son, General Mahamat Idriss Déby, was in charge of the presidential guard.

This concentration of power in the presidential clan meant that there was no apparent political successor to Mr Déby.

Thus, it was not entirely surprising that the military seized control when Mr Déby died.

The army said that parliament and the government had been dissolved and a 15-member Transitional Military Council, led by Mahamat Déby, installed “to ensure the continuity of the state”. The military junta will govern for 18 months before overseeing fresh elections.

The constitution has been suspended and will be replaced by a transitional charter to be decreed by Mahamat Déby.

The late Déby had many sons, some of whom served in his government in different capacities. It is likely that there will be tension between Mahamat and some of his half-brothers.

The opposition has rejected the transitional military council. Le Journal du Tchad reported that former prime minister Saleh Kebzabo and Mahamat Ahmad Alhabo, of the opposition Party of Freedoms and Development (PLD), have demanded for the transition to be led by the speaker of the national assembly.

However, the opposition is decimated and divided and will not succeed in mounting a significant challenge to the military junta.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Covid-19 has put teenage girls’ futures at risk.

Thousands of young girls across the continent never returned to school after lockdowns were lifted. And that’s because, while they were away, many of these teenagers got pregnant.

In fact, spikes in teen pregnancies have been reported in several countries across sub-Saharan Africa.

“We have more cases of girls that have fallen victims of teenage pregnancy, that have dropped out of school,” says Hope Nankunda, who works with the Girls Not Brides campaign in Uganda.

“[These girls] may actually never go back to school again as a result of the pandemic.”

So how did the problem get so bad? And what exactly can be done about it?

Find out in Wednesday’s edition of Africa Daily.

Subscribe to the show on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

There were mass protests in at least seven towns in Ethiopia's Amhara region, including the capital Bahir Dar, calling for an end to killings targeting the Amhara people.

The demonstrations come after two towns were destroyed and thousands of people displaced in a series of ethnic attacks.

The attacks occurred in the eastern parts of the Amhara region where a majority of Amhara people reside alongside a minority Oromo people.

The regional government accused the rebel group, OLF Shane, but the group dismissed the accusations.

At least four districts were targeted and the chaos lasted for five days starting Wednesday. The attacks stopped on Monday after the military set up a command post in the area.

Survivors from two areas who spoke to BBC Amharic say at least 20 people died but officials said many people died, without giving an exact number.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Chadian media have issued conflicting reports about an alleged shooting incident at the presidential palace in N’Djamena over a purported dispute within the Déby family over the appointment of Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno to succeed his father.

A series of tweets from the private Tchadinfos website quoted several unnamed sources as denying the alleged shooting incident.

"The president of the Transitional Military Council is alive and well. There was never any shooting at the palace and no quarrels with [Mahamat's] brother Zakaria," Tchadifos said.

However, Toubou Media cited security sources who alleged that Mahamat was injured in a shootout sparked by a "divergence within the family".

The late Déby had a large family, having married several times, and had an unknown number of children.

Meanwhile, pro-government Alwihda Info website reported that gunfire was heard in Ati, some 378km (234miles) east of N'Djamena, after prisoners tried to escape. The website added that “calm had been restored” after the deployment of more troops to the region.

The Nigeria's minister of communication and digital economy, Isa Pantami, is under fire by social media users and the main opposition party over controversial comments he allegedly made in the past in support of global extremist groups, including Boko Haram.

The minister has denied any links with terror groups.

Local media had reported that one of Nigeria's most active cabinet ministers was allegedly “on the watch list of the America’s Intelligence Service.” This triggered massive reactions from Nigerians.

Mr Pantami denied the claim and threatened to sue the newspaper. The news site immediately retracted the story.

But one week after, the story has refused to go away.

There have been growing calls by Nigerians on social media for the minister to resign or be sacked after users recalled his earlier clips and posts on social media stating conversations that allegedly supported the extremist groups.

This has been amplified by the country’s main opposition, the People’s Democratic Party. The party alleges that information in the public space suggests that Mr Pantami is a sympathiser of Boko Haram and other extremist groups.

The BBC called the minister’s office for his reaction to these calls for his resignation but was told that there was no response from the minister at the moment.

As pressures appear to mount on the minister for explanation, he has denied links with extremist groups. During an Islamic lecture on Saturday, he said that he has never held extremist views nor maintained rigid stances on issues.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

The head of Egyptian railways has been sacked following the latest deadly crash on the network.

Ashraf Raslan is among 10 top executives to be dismissed or reshuffled.

Calls on social media for the resignation of Egypt's transport minister Kamel el-Wazir’s have gone unheeded.

Prosecutors investigating the latest disaster on Sunday have now revised the number of those killed from 11 to 23 and have made a number of arrests.

At least 20 people were killed in another train crash last month.

The government of South Sudan has announced that all the learning institutions in the country will reopen on 3 May after a year of closure because of coronavirus.

The government says the country is witnessing a "significant decline" in virus cases.

Learning institutions in the country were closed down in March last year as a measure to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Finalists in primary and secondary schools were allowed to resume classes in October to prepare for national examinations.

South Sudan's Vice-President for Service Cluster Hussein Abdelbagi Akol said the national task force had revived the data and seen a decline in infections hence the decision to reopen all schools.

Education Minister Awut Deng Acuil said there were recommendations for schools to provide learners and teachers with hand washing facilities, sanitisers and face masks to keep them safe while at school.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

African leaders expressed shock and dismay at the death of Chad's President Idriss Déby who was shot as he confronted advancing rebels.

Mali’s interim President Bah Ndaw spoke of his “brutal” death and called it a heavy loss for the Sahel region’s fight against jihadists.

Niger's President Mohamed Bazoum acknowledged Mr Déby’s deep personal engagement against terrorists - while the Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari said he’d played a very active role against the Islamist group, Boko Haram.

Cameroon's Paul Biya called the death an "immense loss for Chad, central Africa and the continent" which he served "tirelessly".

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa said he had "received with sadness the disturbing news of the death".

He said: "We condemn in the strongest terms the violence that has claimed so many lives, including that of President Déby".

Democratic Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi. who is also the AU president, said it was "a great loss for Chad and for all of Africa".

Mr Déby had only just won a sixth term in office.

The army says his son, Mahamat Idriss Déby Kaka, is taking over as interim president until elections next year.

This has been rejected by the opposition.

The rebels who launched their attack on polling day have also rejected the transitional military authority and vowed to pursue their offensive.

BBCCopyright: BBC

The Democratic Republic of Congo is seeking $4.3 billion (£3b) in compensation over its conflict with Uganda in the 1990s, as the top UN court began hearing the dispute on Tuesday.

The lawyer representing DR Congo told the court that "large scale" conflict which included Uganda's invasion and subsequent occupation caused "breaches of human rights that were verging on barbarity".

Paul-Crispin Kakhozi Bin-Bulongo told judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Uganda had not acted in good faith and had not assumed responsibility for the damage it had caused.

Hearings over the dispute began on Tuesday and will last for 10 days, with Uganda expected to make its submissions to the court later in the week.

Between 1996 and 2003, several countries and militia fought in eastern DR Congo, in a series of brutal wars that claimed thousands of lives and involved exploitation of natural resources like minerals and timber.

In June 1999, DR Congo filed a case at the ICJ accusing its neighbours Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi of committing acts of armed aggression, abuse of human rights and looting of resources, in violation of the UN and African Union charters. But it withdrew the accusations against Burundi and Rwanda in 2001.

Uganda claimed that it had invaded its neighbour in self-defence, due to DR Congo providing political and military support to anti-government rebels based in its territory, as well as following attacks on its embassy and abuse of the rights its citizens in the capital Kinshasa.

But in 2005, the ICJ ruled that Uganda invaded its neighbour illegally and DR Congo had not consented to the Ugandan military operating in its territory.

It ordered the countries to negotiate reparations but DR Congo told the court in 2015 that the talks had failed.

Our African proverb of the day:

Quote Message: An orphaned calf licks its own back." from Sent by Mabor Dut in Cairo, Egypt.

An orphaned calf licks its own back."

Click here to send us your African proverbs.