Africa

Nigeria Senegal Rwanda Central African Republic Burkina Faso Tunisia Kenya Niger Democratic Republic of the Congo Morocco Libya Mali Sudan
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One of the world's largest diamonds found in Botswana

The diamond – a rough 2,492-carat stone – was found in the Karowe Diamond Mine in northeastern Botswana, Lucara Diamond Corp. said in a statement.

Published yesterday at 1:44 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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The Wagner method: How Russia crept into Africa

'Russia's conquest of Africa' (2/3). Capitalizing on growing anti-French sentiment, the Kremlin has extended its influence across the continent through the paramilitary group. After arriving in the Central African Republic in 2018, the militia expanded into Mali, then Burkina Faso, forging military and economic partnerships.

Published yesterday at 5:30 am (Paris), updated yesterday at 11:37 am Benjamin Roger

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What we know about mpox: Transmission, dangerosity, who's at risk

Here are six questions to better understand this disease, which was deemed a public health emergency of international concern by the WHO.

Published yesterday at 5:00 am (Paris) Delphine Roucaute

Editorial

Moscow's winning return to Africa

In 10 years, Vladimir Putin has succeeded in re-establishing Russia's military and diplomatic influence on the African continent, to the detriment of the West and France in particular.

Published on August 21, 2024, at 12:05 pm (Paris), updated on August 21, 2024, at 3:10 pm Le Monde

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Row between France and Algeria raises questions on deportation procedures

Since President Emmanuel Macron's change of position on Western Sahara, Algiers may be tempted to prevent the return of nationals France wants to deport. NGOs are concerned about the legality of their lengthened detentions.

Published on August 21, 2024, at 9:30 am (Paris) Julia Pascual

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Africa, the new frontline between the West and Russia

'Russia's conquest of Africa' (1/3). The Kremlin has successfully deployed a military presence and media influence on the continent, surprising the West. A year after the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner paramilitary group that spearheaded the breakthrough, Putin's Russia is no longer hiding its intentions.

Published on August 21, 2024, at 5:50 am (Paris) Frédéric Bobin Benjamin Quénelle

Long Read

In South Africa, a new generation of winemakers in search of quality

'Africa, land of wines' (1/4). Breaking away from the mass production of cooperatives, independent winemakers are striving to upmarket local blends, some of which are now ranked among the best in the world.

Published on August 21, 2024, at 2:01 am (Paris), updated on August 21, 2024, at 8:43 am Mathilde Boussion

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Morocco's king pardons more than 4,800 cannabis farmers

The world's leading cannabis producer has pardoned farmers accused of illegally growing the crop as the country positions itself on the global market for legal cannabis.

Published on August 20, 2024, at 10:36 am (Paris), updated on August 20, 2024, at 10:47 am Le Monde with AFP

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Mpox cases on the rise in DR Congo as nations pledge vaccines

More than 3.5 million doses of mpox vaccines have been pledged to the Democratic Republic of Congo as it continues to see an increase in the spread of mpox.

Published on August 20, 2024, at 2:59 am (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Libya UN-brokered political transition at risk as tensions rise

On Sunday, a group of men attacked the Central Bank of Libya headquarters in Tripoli in an attempt to oust its governor.

Published on August 17, 2024, at 4:49 am (Paris), updated on August 17, 2024, at 10:41 am Le Monde with AFP

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Basel exhibit examines representation of Black people by artists from Africa and diaspora

Basel's Museum of Contemporary Art, also known as Gegenwart, is devoting a rich and much-needed exhibition to a hundred years of pan-African creativity.

Published on August 17, 2024, at 2:00 am (Paris) Philippe Dagen

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The 'Akon City' mirage fades in Senegal

Launched in 2020, the American singer Akon's futuristic city project has come to a standstill. At the end of June, he received a formal warning notice that could bury the undertaking for good.

Published on August 16, 2024, at 11:24 pm (Paris), updated on August 19, 2024, at 9:09 am Célia Cuordifede

Editorial

War in Sudan: Breaking the silence

The conflict, which has already caused the deaths of 150,000 people, cannot have a military outcome. The essential ceasefire requires an end to third-party interference and must lead to political negotiation including representatives of the Sudanese civil society that brought down the dictatorship in 2019.

Published on August 16, 2024, at 12:31 pm (Paris) Le Monde

News

French football: Five African players to watch in Ligue 1 this season

They are French-Senegalese, Ivorian, Algerian, Gabonese and Moroccan, and play for French clubs where they are set to showcase their talents in the season that starts on Friday.

Published on August 16, 2024, at 12:01 pm (Paris) Alexis Billebault

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'France forgets nothing': Macron pays tribute to French and African veterans of Provence landings

'There would have been no Allied victory without the contribution of other peoples, without foreigners, or other African tirailleurs,' declared Cameroonian President Paul Biya to a handful of African heads of state and government on Thursday, in France.

Published on August 16, 2024, at 2:10 am (Paris), updated on August 16, 2024, at 9:10 am Solenn de Royer

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After the Provence landings, 'whitewashing' of French troops made Africans invisible

The vast majority of the soldiers in the 'B army,' which landed in southeast France in August 1944, came from the colonies.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 5:00 pm (Paris), updated on August 15, 2024, at 7:20 pm Judith Renoult

News

Mpox has killed 548 people in DR Congo since start of 2024, says government

The World Health Organization on Wednesday declared the mpox surge in Africa a global public health emergency.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 4:07 pm (Paris), updated on August 15, 2024, at 4:18 pm Le Monde with AFP

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Leaders mark 'sacrifices' of African soldiers at commemoration of Provence landings

President Emmanuel Macron said France 'forgets nothing of the sacrifices' of African soldiers in its colonial army during World War II, as he and African leaders marked the 80th anniversary of the landings in southeast France.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 12:41 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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From World Wars to Algeria, a Senegalese family served in France's army from father to son

N'Dongo Dieng was a 'tirailleur' in France's army, like his father and grandfather before him. He will be present at the commemorations on Thursday of the Provence landing's 80th anniversary in which his father participated.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 10:45 am (Paris), updated on August 15, 2024, at 11:35 am Jules Crétois

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Why the WHO classified mpox epidemic in Africa as a 'public health emergency of international concern'

This is the UN agency's highest alert level for the disease, triggered for the second time in two years.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 10:21 am (Paris), updated on August 16, 2024, at 10:06 am Delphine Roucaute

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80th anniversary of Provence landings: Part of ceremony canceled due to bad weather

A weather warning has been extended in the region until mid-afternoon on Thursday due to the risk of severe thunderstorms. Several African leaders are expected to attend the commemoration.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 9:27 am (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Senegal president calls for 'renewed dialogue' with national press

The Senegalese Council of Press Distributors and Publishers has warned the industry is under threat, claiming authorities have frozen the bank accounts of media companies, as well as seized equipment.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 5:16 am (Paris), updated on August 15, 2024, at 8:55 am Le Monde with AFP

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On 80th anniversary of Provence landings, Macron's African memorial headache

France's declining influence in Africa is reflected in the representation of the continent's states at commemorations of Operation Dragoon, which opened the southern front on August 15, 1944, with the massive participation of soldiers from the colonies.

Published on August 15, 2024, at 4:48 am (Paris), updated on August 15, 2024, at 12:33 pm Morgane Le Cam

News

WHO declares mpox a global health emergency

Mpox has swept through the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus formerly called monkeypox was first discovered in humans in 1970, and spread to other countries.

Published on August 14, 2024, at 8:13 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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French prosecutors launch probe into 'cyberharrassment' of Algerian boxer Imane Khelif

Imane Khelif was at the center of a high-profile gender row at the Paris Olympics in which she was accused of not being a biological woman.

Published on August 14, 2024, at 11:27 am (Paris), updated on August 14, 2024, at 11:30 am Le Monde with AFP

News

Africa's CDC declares mpox a public health emergency

According to CDC data as of August 4, there had been 38,465 cases of mpox and 1,456 deaths in Africa since January 2022, with the Democratic Republic of Congo particularly affected.

Published on August 13, 2024, at 5:20 pm (Paris), updated on August 13, 2024, at 5:21 pm Le Monde with AFP

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Sudan at 'cataclysmic breaking point,' says UN agency

The International Organization for Migration said famine and floods were adding to a catalogue of challenges facing millions of people in the war-torn country, amid the world's largest displacement crisis.

Published on August 12, 2024, at 6:13 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Paris Olympics: Gold medallist boxer Imane Khelif files complaint over 'moral harassment'

The 25-year-old Algerian woman, who won the Olympic final in her category on Friday, August 9, has been the target for the past week of an online hate campaign regarding her gender identity.

Published on August 11, 2024, at 3:15 am (Paris), updated on August 11, 2024, at 12:09 pm Soren Seelow

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Botswana gets afternoon off to celebrate Letsile Tebogo and first Olympic gold

President Mokgweetsi Masisi gave Botswana the afternoon off after Tebogo won gold on the 200m sprint at the Paris Olympics.

Published on August 9, 2024, at 11:27 am (Paris), updated on August 9, 2024, at 12:36 pm Le Monde with AFP

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Tunisian president sacks prime minister with no explanation

Hachani had taken office on August 1 last year, replacing Najla Bouden, who was also dismissed without an official reason by President Kais Saied.

Published on August 8, 2024, at 2:06 am (Paris), updated on August 8, 2024, at 7:44 am Le Monde with AFP

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Ukraine struggles to implement its 'African Strategy'

After the revelation of its aid to independence fighters in Mali, who are fighting against the Malian army and its Russian ally Wagner, Kyiv is suffering a series of diplomatic setbacks in West Africa.

Published on August 7, 2024, at 4:45 pm (Paris) Morgane Le Cam

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Following Mali, Niger breaks off diplomatic ties with Ukraine

The decision comes in the wake of heavy losses suffered by the Malian army in late July at the hands of jihadists and separatist forces, which they blamed in part on Ukraine.

Published on August 6, 2024, at 11:12 pm (Paris), updated on August 7, 2024, at 8:51 am Le Monde with AFP

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Nigeria arrests over 90 protesters with Russian flags

As thousands of Nigerians have come out in protest against government policies and the high cost of living, the country's security chiefs have railed against those carrying Russian flags, seen as 'crossing the red line.'

Published on August 6, 2024, at 5:23 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Somalia police confiscate and burn hundreds of face veils

The authorities in the southern state of Jubaland imposed a ban on the niqab in the port city of Kismayo in 2021 for security reasons. But officers said the edict had not been comprehensively followed.

Published on August 6, 2024, at 5:19 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Tunisia's President Kais Saied buries the democratic progress deeper and deeper

The detention of Sihem Bensedrine, human rights activist and former president of the Truth & Dignity Commission, is a further blow to the regime's opponents.

Published on August 6, 2024, at 2:25 am (Paris), updated on August 6, 2024, at 8:25 am Monia Ben Hamadi

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Over 30 killed in Al-Shabaab attack on busy Mogadishu beach

A suicide bomber and gunmen attacked the popular Lido beach area in the Somalian capital. The Islamist militants claimed responsibility.

Published on August 3, 2024, at 11:15 am (Paris) Le Monde

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Paris Olympics: Biniam Girmay, the cyclist all of Africa has been waiting for

The Tour de France 2024 green jersey starts the Paris Olympics road race on Saturday, where he will be the sole representative of his country, Eritrea.

Published on August 3, 2024, at 8:58 am (Paris) Noé Hochet-Bodin

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Paris 2024 Olympics: Faced with gender row, Algeria supports boxer Imane Khelif

After her brief fight against Italy's Angela Carini, public figures such as Elon Musk, Giorgia Meloni and J. K. Rowling questioned the Algerian athlete's legitimacy to compete in the women's category.

Published on August 2, 2024, at 8:25 pm (Paris), updated on August 2, 2024, at 9:50 pm Karim Amrouche

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Mali separatists say they killed dozens fighters from Wagner Group and government troops

Analysts said this was the heaviest loss suffered so far by Wagner in Africa.

Published on August 2, 2024, at 1:18 am (Paris), updated on August 2, 2024, at 7:25 am Le Monde with AFP

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In Mali, the shadow of Ukraine behind rebels at war with Wagner's Russian mercenaries

According to corroborating sources, the Ukrainian authorities are collaborating with the pro-independence fighters operating in the north of the country, providing them with strategic information and training them in the use of drones.

Published on August 2, 2024, at 12:55 am (Paris), updated on August 2, 2024, at 8:03 am Benjamin Roger

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Guinea ex-dictator Dadis Camara jailed for 20 years for crimes against humanity

The trial centered around the September 28, 2009 massacre of over 156 people, conducted by members of former junta leader Moussa Dadis Camara's security forces, and led to him and 7 others being convicted.

Published on July 31, 2024, at 7:29 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

Editorial

France's North African dilemma

By adopting Rabat's position on the Western Sahara, Paris has made a major diplomatic shift, marking the failure of its reconciliation policy with Algiers.

Published on July 31, 2024, at 12:37 pm (Paris) Le Monde

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France faces Algeria's wrath after concessions to Morocco over Western Sahara

Algeria on Tuesday announced the withdrawal of its ambassador to Paris following President Emmanuel Macron's letter to King Mohammed VI, in which he said Morocco's plan was the 'only basis' for resolving the conflict.

Published on July 31, 2024, at 12:06 pm (Paris) Frédéric Bobin Philippe Ricard

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Africa, the missing ring of the Olympics

The continent has never hosted Olympic Games since their resurrection in 1896. Above all, it has had a tumultuous relationship with the competition, marked by racist prejudice and the geopolitical context since independence.

Published on July 31, 2024, at 4:30 am (Paris) Mustapha Kessous

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Paris shifts position and recognizes Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara

Risking a new crisis with Algeria, French President Emmanuel Macron wrote in a letter to king Mohammed VI, that the territory's future falls 'within the context of Moroccan sovereignty.'

Published on July 30, 2024, at 5:14 pm (Paris), updated on July 30, 2024, at 5:41 pm Frédéric Bobin Alexandre Aublanc Philippe Ricard

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France makes gesture over WWII massacre of African troops on French army orders in Senegal

According to the report drawn up by French authorities at the time, at least 35 soldiers died on the spot or from their injuries. Senegal's Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko said this 'tragic story' was not France's to tell alone.

Published on July 29, 2024, at 1:25 am (Paris), updated on July 29, 2024, at 1:02 pm Le Monde with AFP

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Italy, Niger's last Western partner

The junta that seized power in Niamey a year ago has entered into partnerships with Russia, Turkey and Iran. Rome, whose diplomatic efforts are focused on controlling migratory flows, remains an ally of the Niger putschists.

Published on July 25, 2024, at 4:00 am (Paris), updated on July 25, 2024, at 8:28 am Judith Renoult

News

Kagame's landslide victory confirmed in Rwandan election

The incumbent president cruised to a fourth term in office, winning 99.18% of votes in final count.

Published on July 23, 2024, at 10:26 am (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Tunisian President Kais Saied announces bid for reelection amidst turbulent first term

The birthplace of the 'Arab Spring' has become, under Saied's presidency, the scene of an authoritarian toughening, raising fears of a return to dictatorial practices.

Published on July 19, 2024, at 11:46 pm (Paris), updated on July 21, 2024, at 6:42 pm Le Monde with AP

In Depth

Moroccan academia mobilizes against normalization with Israel

More and more students and teachers are calling for a halt to the partnerships forged by part of the Moroccan academic world with Israeli universities.

Published on July 16, 2024, at 7:00 pm (Paris) Alexandre Aublanc

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Rwanda's Kagame cruises to crushing election victory

The president won more than 99% of the vote in provisional results from Monday's presidential election, electoral authorities said. The outcome was never in doubt, with Kagame accused of muzzling the opposition and several prominent critics barred from the race.

Published on July 16, 2024, at 12:04 am (Paris) Le Monde with AP and AFP

News

In Rwanda, women occupy high positions

Despite the conservatism of Rwandan society, women are ministers, judges, bosses and more, while also constituting a majority in Parliament. This female prominence is set to continue after the July 15 elections, in which Paul Kagame is running for a fourth term.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 6:52 pm (Paris), updated on July 15, 2024, at 8:57 pm Marie de Vergès

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Gambian lawmakers uphold ban on female genital mutilation

Gambian MPs voted on Monday to reject a controversial bill seeking to overturn the 2015 ban after months of heated debate and international pressure.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 3:44 pm (Paris), updated on July 15, 2024, at 4:01 pm Le Monde with AFP

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Kenyan police arrest serial killer who confessed to murdering 42 women

The announcement of the arrest comes after the discovery of nine mutilated bodies in a Nairobi garbage site.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 1:03 pm (Paris) Le Monde with AFP

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Rwanda votes in presidential election with foregone conclusion

Paul Kagame, who has been at the country's helm for 30 years, is certain of re-election and could remain in power until 2034 following a constitutional revision in 2015.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 9:36 am (Paris), updated on July 15, 2024, at 11:04 am Christophe Châtelot

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At least nine dead in Mogadishu cafe bombing during Euro final

The popular restaurant was crowded with football fans watching England take on Spain in the Euro 2024 final.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 5:15 am (Paris), updated on July 15, 2024, at 11:03 am Le Monde with AFP

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Dozens dead in DR Congo clashes

The village of Kinsele, where the clashes happened, is in an area which has seen a resurgence of violence in recent days.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 5:07 am (Paris), updated on July 15, 2024, at 7:56 am Le Monde with AFP

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Civilian kidnappings in Chad: 'You can thank your friends, they're the ones who betrayed you!'

The population and NGOs who are present in the south-west of the country, a neglected region where kidnappings for ransom are frequent, suspect the complicity of the law enforcement agencies.

Published on July 15, 2024, at 4:00 am (Paris) Carol Valade

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Rwanda's Paul Kagame, criticized abroad but undisputed favorite in presidential election

After ousting two of his opponents, the Rwandan president will go before the electorate once again on July 15. All-powerful in Kigali, he is under fire internationally for his support of the Congolese M23 rebels.

Published on July 14, 2024, at 7:00 pm (Paris), updated on July 14, 2024, at 7:13 pm Christophe Châtelot

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The Bear Brigade, the Kremlin's new paramilitary outfit in Africa

Since Yevgeny Prigozhin's death on August 23, 2023, the Russian Ministry of Defense has taken over the Wagner Group's activities in Africa. Among the many paramilitary units it supervises is the Bear Brigade, whose men made a conspicuous arrival in Burkina Faso.

Published on July 14, 2024, at 5:00 pm (Paris) Thomas Eydoux Benjamin Roger Le Monde's video investigation team

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