FOREIGN NEWS

Officials say it is unclear what sparked the blaze at the city centre five-storey building, which had been abandoned but was being occupied by homeless people. The city of Johannesburg confirmed in a news conference that it owned the building but said cartels had taken it over. A spokesman for the emergency services, Robert Mulaudzi, […]

People in the central African state of Gabon awaited a steer on their future on Thursday after rebel army officers brought the curtain down on 55 years of rule by the Bongo family. President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose father Omar had ruled for more than four decades, was toppled on Wednesday, moments after being declared […]

Gabonese President Ali Bongo Ondimba has been placed under house arrest, and his son, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, has been arrested for “treason” following a military coup that overthrew the government. The military officers behind the coup have accused Bongo and his son of various charges, including treason, embezzlement, corruption, and falsifying the president’s signature among […]

India on Wednesday became the first nation to land a craft near the Moon’s south pole, a historic triumph for the world’s most populous nation and its ambitious, cut-price space programme. The unmanned Chandrayaan-3, which means “Mooncraft” in Sanskrit, touched down at 6:04 pm India time (1234 GMT) as mission control technicians cheered wildly and […]

The African Union said on Tuesday that it had suspended Niger until civilian rule in the country is restored and would assess the implications of any armed intervention in the troubled Sahel nation. The Peace and Security Council “requests the AU Commission to undertake an assessment of the economic, social and security implications of deploying […]

The Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, said yesterday in Accra, Ghana, that it will not hesitate to invade Niger Republic, if all efforts to reverse the coup in the country fail. This came as the German government said it is in support of sanctions imposed on the military junta in the country by […]

United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has commended President Bola Tinubu’s leadership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to restore constitutional order in Niger Republic. The US top official said he spoke with the Nigerian President over the phone and discussed “shared efforts” to reinstate President Mohamed Bazoum. He spoke to […]

Niger President Mohamed Bazoum on Wednesday was being held by disgruntled members of the elite Presidential Guard, who in turn were given an “ultimatum” by the army, a source close to Bazoum said on Wednesday. The West African bloc ECOWAS condemned what it called an “attempted coup” and called on the “plotters” to release Bazoum […]

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend a BRICS nations summit in South Africa next month, the country’s presidency said on Wednesday, ending months of speculation. Putin’s potential visit has been a thorny diplomatic issue for South Africa. The Russian leader is the target of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant — a provision that […]

Britain’s export finance agency will add the naira to its list of “pre-approved currencies” for financing transactions. This will enable the agency provide financing for transactions with Nigerian businesses denominated in the local currency. The naira will become one of three West African currencies that has pre-approved for its programme of funding transactions that promote […]