By Rédaction Africanews and AFP More than a million people in South Sudan are at risk of losing vital food aid, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday. Conflict, displacement, climate shocks, and the war in neighbouring Sudan are converging to push millions of people deeper into vulnerability. And cuts to international aid are exacerbating their effects, the UN agency said. “7.8 million people today, more than half the country’s population, struggle to find food each day. 2.2 million children and 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding mothers require urgent nutrition support,” Matthew Hollingworth, WFP Assistant Executive Director for Operations,…
Author: Montage Africa
By Rédaction Africanews and AP As artificial intelligence rapidly advances, concerns over its potential impact are growing in South Africa and around the world, with some members of the public worried about jobs, safety and the technology’s ability to operate beyond human control. Call centre trainer Natheera Berdien says she fears AI could eventually replace workers across industries as systems become capable of performing more tasks. She says seeing demonstrations of increasingly advanced AI has made her question how far the technology could ultimately go. Model Ben Kalambo also expressed concerns, arguing that AI could limit employment opportunities and give…
By AFP Amnesty International urged Algeria’s government on Tuesday to abandon plans to resume executions after it pledged to give the death penalty to those responsible for wildfires following deadly blazes last month. Algeria struggled to put out fires that swept through its northeast and killed 12 people last month, according to an official tally, while witnesses spoke of dozens of deaths. The North African country has not carried out executions since 1993 but has handed down the death sentence in some instances, including terror-related cases, without carrying it out. Last month President Abdelmadjid Tebboune ordered the justice minister to…
South African prosecutors have dropped criminal charges against the country’s suspended police chief after concluding there was insufficient evidence to secure a conviction. General Fannie Masemola was charged in April with failing in his duties to provide proper oversight in his role following a health contract that became the subject of a criminal investigation. He denied the charges. President Cyril Ramaphosa subsequently placed him on precautionary suspension while the criminal case was underway. Following a review of the case, state prosecutors said on Tuesday they were satisfied there were “no reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution” against Masemola. Masemola, 62,…
Teenage brothers Olly and Seb Fisher are closing in on their dream of international recognition – but it won’t come from their homeland of Scotland. Instead, the Partick Thistle duo are in line to play for Uganda. They believe they would become the first white players ever to represent the African nation, thanks to their mother Kate being born there. “My gran and grandad lived out here for, I think, four or five years,” Olly, 18, tells BBC Sport Scotland. “My grandfather came out here to teach in a school then my mum was born here. So, it’s a bit…
By Rédaction Africanews and AP Two deadlines are looming for Iraq at the end of the month: the end of a decades-long U.S. military presence and the disarmament of non-state armed groups. The U.S. withdrawal is underway, and officials say the hundreds of troops remaining in northern Iraq will be out by the Sept. 30 deadline. The Iraqi government has linked the U.S. withdrawal to an ultimatum for militias to lay down their weapons. But most have indicated they have no plans to do so. That leaves major questions about what the day after will look like in Iraq. Iranian-backed…
By Rédaction Africanews and AP Tensions erupted in Kinshasa on Tuesday as hundreds took to the streets to protest proposed constitutional changes that critics say could allow President Félix Tshisekedi to seek a third term. Clashes broke out shortly after the march began, before protesters could reach Parliament. The opposition says at least one person died. ADD Congo says a party member was found unconscious after the clashes and later died at Olympic Hospital. At least 10 people were also arrested. DRC’s constitution currently limits presidents to two five-year terms. But in June, parliament approved legislation allowing constitutional changes to…
The US has announced visa restrictions targeting people it accuses of discriminating against South Africa’s white minority, in the latest escalation of tensions between the two countries. The Trump administration has criticised South Africa over several issues, including policies aimed at addressing racial inequality that it says discriminate against Afrikaners, descendants mainly of Dutch and French settlers. South Africa has repeatedly denied the claim. South Africa’s Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said he noted the announcement with “concern”. “The announcement once again, [sic] aligns with the mischaracterisation of South Africa’s domestic policies by fringe groups who wrongly portray themselves as representatives…
By Rédaction Africanews and AP At least 82 people have been killed in a gold mine collapse in Sudan’s West Kordofan state, with dozens more injured and others feared trapped beneath the rubble. Rescue teams and fellow miners worked through the night using basic tools, recovering 60 bodies by dawn, with another 22 found on Wednesday. A local administrator says around 50 people were injured, while the number still missing remains unknown. The collapse highlights the dangers of Sudan’s largely unregulated gold industry, where millions depend on small-scale mining for income. Miners often work in unstable shafts with little safety…
By Rédaction Africanews with AFP South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has withdrawn from public engagements after returning from the BRICS summit in India, his office said on Wednesday, citing ill health. His absence comes as Deputy President Paul Mashatile continues to recover from a minor medical procedure, leaving both of the country’s top leaders away from public duties. Ramaphosa, 73, returned from the BRICS summit in India on Monday and had been advised by his doctors to rest and recover, the presidency said. Leaders of the BRICS bloc, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, concluded a two-day…