Mali Attacked by Western-backed Rebels 

Several major cities and towns have been severely impacted in joint attacks by separatists and jihadists from the north to the south of the West African state

By Abayomi Azikiwe, Editor, Pan-African News Wire

Wednesday May 6, 2026

Geostrategic Analysis

On April 25, hundreds of armed rebels conducted attacks against the Malian military and government resulting in the deaths of Minister of Defense General Sadio Camara along with other officials and civilians.

These incursions across the country were by no means surprising in light of the ongoing security crisis in Mali and throughout the entire Sahel region.

The Tuareg people in northern Mali have been in conflict with the Malian government since the early days of independence during the 1960s. The Tuaregs are scattered across several West and North African states including Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya and Burkina Faso. 

They are categorized as a Berber-speaking group which has a recorded presence in Northwest Africa for more than two thousand years. Due to the character of French colonialism, divisions between the Tuaregs and other Malian groups carried over after national independence in 1960.

There are Tuareg organizations which continue to demand autonomy or separation. However, they are not recognized as an independent entity by any international body such as the United Nations and the African Union (AU).

The Islamist rebels known as the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) have found a base for recruitment among the Tuaregs in northern Mali. In the most recent episode of fighting, the JNIM has linked up with a coalition of Tuareg groups labeled as the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA). 

Mali and other Sahel states have been profoundly affected by the rebel attacks. The military coups since 2020 in Mali as well as Niger and Burkina Faso were prompted by the failure of civilian regimes along with their French and U.S. military allies to curb the actions by groups like the JNIM and the FLA.

Mali is a member of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) which was formed amid earlier threats to militarily intervene by the former colonial power of France and its continuing allies in the region. Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso had been suspended from membership in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a formerly 15-member grouping established initially in 1975.

The rationale for their suspension was related to the refusal to return these governments to what is described as “civilian rule.” Yet, all of these heads-of-state which maintained control in these landlocked countries were allied with France, the United States and other NATO countries.

Under the guise of providing security for the Sahel states, two formations were established by France. Operation Barkhane and the G5 Sahel were ostensibly designed to fight rebel incursions by separatists and jihadists. In addition, the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) formed in early 2008, has played a role in West Africa as well. Nonetheless, the presence of these NATO states working in conjunction with governments and their militaries in the region has done absolutely nothing to create a more stable atmosphere in the ECOWAS and AES states. 

Turning Towards the Russian Federation

These AES governments turned to the Russian Federation as an alternative to working with Paris and Washington. Since 2023, these states have been under grave threats by the imperialists and their surrogates.

It was revealed as early as June 2024 that the Ukraine government, a proxy of U.S. imperialism, had been working closely with the rebels in Mali prompting a severing of diplomatic relations between Bamako and Kiev. The right-wing government in Ukraine wants to join NATO and the European Union (EU). 

In regard to the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, Ukraine is on the side of Tel Aviv and Washington irrespective of the worldwide condemnation of the imperialist-zionist aggression. Thousands of people have been killed in the bombings of Iran and Lebanon during the unprovoked operation “Epic Fury” and the later “Project Freedom” launched on February 28. 

Moreover, in the Gaza region of Palestine, there have been at least 70,000 Palestinians killed by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) since October 2023. Demonstrations have occurred internationally denouncing the genocide being carried out against the Palestinians. 

Despite the worldwide solidarity with the Palestinians and Lebanese people, Washington and Tel Aviv have refused to halt their genocidal wars. The Republic of South Africa filed a lawsuit in late 2023 against the apartheid regime in Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the highest legal body within the United Nations. Within a month, the South African lawsuit received a positive ruling from the ICJ jurists. The court ruled that South African charges of genocide against the Palestinians were plausible. Nonetheless, nothing has been done by the U.S. and Israel to ameliorate the situation in Gaza.

Consequently, the Ukrainians, working alongside the rebels, are seeking to destabilize and destroy the governments and resources of the people of the AES. Mali has gold and uranium resources which could be utilized to improve the social conditions of the people inside the country. Burkina Faso is also rich in gold while Niger is a major source of uranium.

In a report published by the Associated Press in 2024, it emphasized:

“Mali’s government is cutting diplomatic ties with Ukraine over allegations that Kyiv aided an attack last month by armed groups in the West African country in which Malian soldiers and Russian mercenaries suffered heavy losses. Mali’s government spokesman, Col. Abdoulaye Maiga, said in a statement Sunday that the decision to immediately cut ties was prompted by comments from a Ukrainian official indicating his country’s involvement in the insurgency in Mali. Ukrainian military intelligence agency spokesman Andriy Yusov last week told Ukrainian broadcaster Suspilne that armed groups in Mali had received ‘all the necessary information they needed’ from Kyiv to conduct the July attack. Dozens of Russia’s Wagner mercenaries and Malian soldiers were killed by jihadis and rebels in July in northern Mali, in what one analyst described as the largest battleground blow to the Wagner group in years.” (https://apnews.com/article/mali-ukraine-wagner-junta-embassy-rebel-russia-senegal-a471c7332369d154af57ad0816fb3504)

The Wagner Group has been phased out and replaced by the Africa Corps which is under the control of the government in Moscow. The Africa Corps has been working with the AES countries to ensure their safety while they embark upon development projects to reverse the underdevelopment engendered by neo-colonialism. 

Economic Status and Political Instability

The AES countries have been negatively impacted by the domination exercised by the world capitalist system over their national and regional economies. Neo-colonialism has not increased the national income and societal development.

Since its break with France and the U.S., there has been economic growth in Mali. Nonetheless, the attacks carried out by the rebel groupings are undoubtedly hampering development which could further drive down the rates of poverty and deprivation.

In a World Bank report on the human development index in Mali, it notes that:

“Poverty incidence in Mali has remained high and stable, averaging around 45 percent since 2011. The ongoing conflict has been devastating, resulting in significant loss of life and mass displacement. The scale of displacement has fluctuated with the intensity of the conflict, with nearly 400,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) currently recorded as of 2024, according to UNHCR. Over time, as many as 855,000 people have been displaced and subsequently returned. Remarkably, agricultural production has shown resilience to the conflict. Cultivated areas of key crops have remained stable, even in regions where agricultural production is vulnerable to disruption. This resilience is evident in rice cultivation in the Niger Delta and cotton production.” (https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/099709004212596601)

Consequently, the western hostility towards Mali and other AES governments will continue until there is greater unity with other states in the region. As long as the divisions between those who remain in ECOWAS and others such as the AES which are seeking greater sovereignty and genuine economic independence continue, the economic growth and development will remain stalled.

Obviously, the unity and development of Africa cannot proceed under neo-colonialism. These states can only advance if a program of socialist transformation is enacted.

Iran Warns US Against Further Aggression After Responding to Attacks

By Al Mayadeen English

The US violated the ceasefire with Iran by attacking Iranian oil tankers and civilian areas near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting a strong Iranian response.

Iran announced that the United States violated the ceasefire agreement by targeting Iranian oil tankers and civilian areas near the Strait of Hormuz, warning that Tehran would respond “forcefully” to any further attacks.

A spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said US forces attacked an Iranian oil tanker moving from Iranian coastal waters near the city of Jask toward the Strait of Hormuz.

The spokesperson added that another vessel entering the Strait of Hormuz near the Emirati port of al-Fujairah was also targeted. According to the Iranian military spokesperson, simultaneous US air attacks struck civilian areas along the coasts of Bandar Khamir, Sirik, and Qeshm Island, “in cooperation with regional states.”

Swift Iranian response to US aggression

The spokesperson further stated that its armed forces responded immediately by attacking US military naval vessels east of the Strait of Hormuz and south of the port city of Chabahar.

The spokesperson said Iranian forces inflicted “heavy losses” on the US naval units involved in the attacks.

Iran also warned that the United States and countries supporting it should understand that Tehran “will respond strongly and without the slightest hesitation with a crushing response to any aggression.”

US Navy vessels retreat

Iranian State TV, citing an informed military source, reported that Iranian retaliation forced the hostile forces to flee in retreat.

Concurrently, Tasnim News Agency reported that three American destroyers came under attack by missiles and drones launched by the Iranian navy near the Strait of Hormuz. They are now reportedly heading toward the Sea of Oman.

Israeli Channel 12 political analyst Amit Segal reported that three US destroyers came under Iranian attack in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian media also reported that an area near the Taheri dock in Sirik was targeted in an attack.

According to sources cited by Tasnim News Agency, multiple sounds heard before 11:30 pm (local time) were linked to Iranian naval forces confronting US military vessels in the region. The sources added that reports had emerged of an explosion near the Taheri dock area in Sirik.

Iranian state television later reported that no civilian deaths had been recorded following the attacks on coastal and port areas in Hormozgan Province.

IRGC Navy missiles, drones used against US destroyers

The command Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps Navy (IRGC-N) stated that, following a US ceasefire violation and an attack on an Iranian oil tanker near Jask, Iranian naval forces launched a “large-scale and precise joint operation” against US destroyers approaching the Strait of Hormuz.

The statement said the operation involved ballistic missiles, anti-ship cruise missiles, and explosive-laden drones targeting US naval vessels.

According to the IRGC Navy, intelligence assessments indicated that US forces suffered heavy losses, while three US naval vessels withdrew rapidly from the Strait of Hormuz area.

CENTCOM says US forces intercepted Iranian attacks

In response, United States Central Command said US forces intercepted what it described as “unprovoked Iranian attacks” while US Navy destroyers were transiting the Strait of Hormuz toward the Gulf of Oman on May 7.

CENTCOM stated that Iranian forces launched missiles, drones, and small boats during the passage of the US vessels. The US command claimed that none of the American vessels sustained damage or casualties.

According to CENTCOM, US forces neutralized incoming threats and struck Iranian military facilities allegedly linked to the attacks, including missile and drone launch sites, command and control centers, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance nodes.

CENTCOM further stated that the United States “does not seek escalation” but remains prepared to protect US personnel and forces in the region.

Iron Dome Platform Destroyed in Hezbollah Strike

By Al Mayadeen English

7 May 2026 23:27

Lebanon’s Islamic Resistance carried out coordinated strikes on Israeli forces and military assets along the border, including destroying an Iron Dome platform and hitting a Merkava tank, as "Israel" acknowledged rising casualties exceeding 900 on the northern front.

Lebanon’s Islamic Resistance announced on Thursday a series of operations targeting Israeli occupation forces and military assets along the Lebanese-Palestinian border, in response to continued ceasefire violations and ongoing attacks on Lebanese territory.

In a statement, the resistance said it destroyed a newly deployed Iron Dome platform near the Jall al-Allam military site using a loitering attack drone, marking a direct hit on the occupation’s air defense systems.

Resistance drones also targeted gatherings of occupation soldiers at the Alaman-Qusayr triangle and at Khillet al-Raj in the town of Deir Seryan in southern Lebanon. In a separate operation, artillery shelling struck additional troop gatherings at Khillet al-Raj toward the river area.

Direct hit on Merkava tank

Earlier in the day, resistance fighters carried out a precision strike on a Merkava tank in the town of Bint Jbeil using a loitering drone, achieving a confirmed hit. As occupation forces moved in to recover the damaged tank, their vehicles were also targeted with artillery fire, compounding the losses.

The resistance affirmed that its operations remain focused on confronting occupation forces at the border, targeting troop gatherings and military vehicles, and carrying out ambushes against Israeli soldiers as part of its ongoing defense of Lebanon and its people.

The escalation comes as Israeli forces continue to violate the ceasefire and truce, carrying out attacks on civilians, homes, and medical teams across southern Lebanon, resulting in casualties and injuries.

Occupation acknowledges mounting losses

In a parallel development, Israeli forces admitted that the number of their wounded soldiers on the northern front has surpassed 900, according to an updated figure published on their official website.

The data shows total injuries have reached 910, an increase of 175 compared to previous figures. The breakdown includes 743 minor injuries, 114 moderate cases, and 52 severe injuries, as fighting continues under what the occupation calls Operation “Roar of the Lion.”

The rising toll points to the sustained pressure faced by occupation forces as resistance operations continue across the northern front.

Twin Jihadist-claimed Attacks Kill More Than 30 in Mali

AFP News

Thu, 7 May 2026 at 3:58 pm GMT-4

An Azawad Liberation Front fighter next to a damaged Mi-24 helicopter at the former Russian mercenary barracks in Kidal on May 6.

Two attacks in central Mali claimed by Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists have killed more than 30 people, local, security and administrative sources told AFP on Thursday.

The two strikes came less than a fortnight after a large-scale, coordinated offensive by jihadists and separatists on junta positions, which plunged the west African country into a fresh security crisis.

"At least 35 people were killed on Wednesday in near simultaneous attacks" on the villages of Korikori and Gomossogou, a youth official said.

A security and an administrative source both reported more than 30 dead in the assaults, claimed by the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM).

WAMAPS, a group of west African journalists specialising in Sahel security, said the provisional toll was more than 50 villagers killed and several still missing.

"Villages have been looted and some properties set on fire," the group added.

The security source said Thursday's assaults were in retaliation for acts committed by the Dan Nan Ambassagou militia, the best-known of the self-defence groups set up by local communities in response to the assaults plaguing central Mali.

"The victims are mostly militiamen. But there are also teenagers and children," the source told AFP.

Made up mainly of traditional ethnic Dogon hunters, Dan Nan Ambassagou has refused an order to disband by the authorities, who accused the militia of a massacre in the central village of Ogossagou that left 160 dead.

The Malian army said on Thursday it had carried out "a targeted operation against terrorist armed groups" in the area and around a dozen fighters were "neutralised".

It did not give further details.

In a statement on Thursday, the governor of the Bandiagara region "condemned these despicable and inhumane acts in the strongest possible terms".

- Central Mali violence -

The devastating assaults on April 25 and 26 by the JNIM and the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), an ethnic Tuareg separatist movement, targeted strategic towns including Kidal in the desert north, and Kati, a garrison town near the capital Bamako.

Defence Minister Sadio Camara, the 47-year-old architect of Mali's military alliance with Russia, was killed by a car bomb at his residence.

Kidal and other towns and villages in the north were captured and are now under the control of the FLA and the jihadists, who have since imposed a blockade on Bamako.

In recent years, central Mali has also been the theatre of deadly violence.

After the 2019 massacre, Ogossagou was the scene of a February 2020 raid that killed some 30 Fulanis, a nomadic people often accused across the Sahel of aiding jihadists.

The UN has accused the Malian army and allied foreign fighters -- likely Russian mercenaries from the Wagner paramilitary group -- of executing at least 500 people in March 2022 during an anti-jihadist operation in the town of Moura, a claim which the Malian junta denied.

And in June of that year, more than 130 civilians were killed in the town of Diallassagou in attacks attributed to JNIM jihadists.

- Wave of arrests, abductions -

On Wednesday, security, legal and family sources told AFP that several opposition figures and military personnel had been detained or abducted following the large-scale attacks on the junta.

The military prosecutor's office said last week it had "solid evidence" of the "complicity" of certain members of the military, accusing them of helping with the "planning, coordination and execution" of the attacks.

But a political official said the wave of arrests and abductions smacked of a witch hunt.

"Everything suggests that these events are being used as an opportunity to carry out a purge within the political opposition and the army," the official told AFP, requesting anonymity for security reasons.

Since 2012, Mali has faced a deep security crisis fuelled in particular by violence from fighters affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, as well as local criminal gangs and pro-independence groups.

On April 30, the JNIM called for a "common front" to "put an end to the junta" and usher in a peaceful and inclusive transition.

Barrick Contractor to Exit Mali, Lay Off More Than 600 People, Sources Say

By Portia Crowe and Tiemoko Diallo

May 7, 20261:38 PM EDT

DAKAR/BAMAKO, May 7 (Reuters) - The largest contractor at Barrick Mining's ​Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex in Mali is closing operations in the country and laying off more than ‌600 employees, three sources said, in a fresh sign the Canadian miner is cutting exposure to higher-risk assets.

The move follows sluggish production and investment at the complex, the sources familiar with the matter said, after Barrick (ABX.TO), opens new tab wrested back control from Malian administrators following a stand-off ​with the state over taxes and ownership.

Barrick does not plan to renew its deal with contractor Gounkoto ​Mining Services (GMS) in 2026, the first and second source said, adding it was unclear whether ⁠it would for 2027.

GMS, which managed extraction at the Gounkoto open-pit mine and the Yalea North mine, has issued ​termination letters to more than 600 workers, who are serving notice after mandatory medical exams, the two sources added. Neither ​mine has restarted production since Barrick regained control in December.

Spokespeople for Barrick and GMS' parent company DTP did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Mali's mines ministry said it had no comment as this is an "internal problem".

GMS' departure, and the broader ​challenges sources say Loulo-Gounkoto faces, are unconnected to the security threats Mali is facing from insurgent groups, whose recent, ​large-scale attacks took place far from the complex.

INVESTMENT EXPECTED TO PICK UP LATER THIS YEAR

The Loulo-Gounkoto complex is one of the biggest ‌gold ⁠mines in Africa. Mali's gold output fell 23% last year, largely due to the mine's suspension.

Barrick has lowered its 2026 production targets for the complex and did not include the Gounkoto mine in its plans for the year, the first source said.

The complex produced about 80,000 ounces of gold in the first quarter of 2026, and is projected to ​produce 103,000 ounces in the ​second quarter, the same ⁠source said - well below average output before the stand-off.

The figures still mark an increase from levels under provisional administration, data seen by Reuters show.

GMS' withdrawal reflects weak investment and, in ​some cases, deteriorating infrastructure, the first source said, citing a mine shaft in poor ​condition due ⁠to a lack of spare parts for maintenance equipment.

Investment is expected to pick up later this year, the first and third sources said. Expatriate workers who left more than a year ago during the dispute are due to return in the ⁠second quarter, ​they added, without specifying their employers.

While Gounkoto and Yalea North remain idle, ​two other open-pit mines - Baboto and Gara West - have resumed operations, one source said. Baboto is operated by Corica and Gara West by Nieta ​Mining, both local companies.

Al-Qaeda-Linked Fighters Storm Mali Prison, Block Food Supplies to Bamako

Al-Qaeda-linked JNIM fighters attacked a maximum-security prison near Bamako and block critical food supplies. The siege threatens a humanitarian catastrophe

May 7, 2026

The security architecture of the West African nation of Mali has suffered a catastrophic breach after Al-Qaeda-affiliated insurgents executed a highly coordinated assault on a maximum-security prison. Concurrently, the fighters have imposed a terrifying economic blockade, setting fire to logistical convoys and blocking crucial food supplies from entering the capital city, Bamako, pushing the region toward a severe humanitarian disaster.

Heavily armed militants belonging to the Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) terror franchise targeted the Kenieroba Central Prison, a recently constructed complex colloquially dubbed "Africa's Alcatraz." Located a mere 60 kilometers southwest of Bamako, the facility houses approximately 2,500 inmates, including at least 72 individuals classified by the Malian military junta as high-value terrorist detainees.

The Assault on Africa's Alcatraz

The brazen attack on Kenieroba Central Prison demonstrates the growing tactical sophistication and geographical reach of JNIM forces, who have historically operated in the vast, ungoverned deserts of the north. By striking within striking distance of the capital, the militants are directly challenging the authority and protective capacity of the military government led by Assimi Goïta.

According to regional security analysts, the assault aimed specifically at liberating captured JNIM commanders and fighters from the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), a Tuareg separatist group. The Malian armed forces reportedly engaged in fierce firefights to repel the insurgents, though independent verification of casualties or the number of escaped high-value detainees remains strictly controlled by state media.

The Target: Kenieroba Central Prison, located 60km southwest of the capital, Bamako.

The Facility: Houses 2,500 inmates, including 72 high-value terrorist detainees.

The Aggressors: Fighters from the Al-Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).

The Blockade: Militants mounted on motorcycles armed with 12.7mm machine guns are actively blocking food trucks from entering Bamako.

A Choking Siege on the Capital

Beyond the kinetic prison assault, JNIM has initiated a brutal economic siege designed to starve the capital into submission. Armed fighters, operating mobile checkpoints on motorcycles equipped with heavy 12.7mm machine guns, have systematically halted incoming and outgoing traffic along the primary logistical arteries feeding Bamako, a city of four million people.

The militants have been documented setting fire to commercial trucks transporting essential food supplies, grains, and fuel. The impact of the blockade is immediate and devastating. In the Mopti region, local government officials, including the mayor of Diafarabe village, have issued desperate pleas for state intervention, warning that local populations have entirely exhausted their food reserves and face imminent starvation.

The Geopolitical Ramifications

The deteriorating situation in Mali holds severe implications for the broader Sahel region and international security frameworks. Following the expulsion of French counter-terrorism forces and the withdrawal of the United Nations MINUSMA peacekeeping mission, the Malian junta pivoted heavily toward Russian paramilitary support to maintain internal security.

However, the ability of JNIM to besiege the capital and assault maximum-security installations reveals critical vulnerabilities in the state's defensive posture. The insurgents have openly called for a nationwide uprising against the government and the absolute imposition of Islamic law, leveraging the vacuum left by departing international forces.

A Looming Humanitarian Catastrophe

The international community watches with mounting alarm as the blockade tightens around Bamako. The strategy of weaponizing hunger is a crude but highly effective tactic to break the political will of the urban population and erode whatever remaining legitimacy the military junta possesses.

If the Malian armed forces fail to quickly shatter the logistical blockade and secure the supply routes, the capital will inevitably descend into widespread famine and civic collapse. For the citizens of Bamako, the terror is no longer confined to the distant northern dunes; the war has arrived definitively at their doorstep.

Al-Qaeda-claimed Attacks Kill More Than 30 in Mali: Report

A general view of damaged infrastructure at the former Africa Corps barracks at Camp 2 in Kidal, Mali, May 6, 2026. (AFP Photo)Photo

By Newsroom

May 07, 2026 08:18 PM GMT+03:00

Two attacks in central Mali claimed by Al-Qaeda-linked terrorists killed more than 30 people, local, security and administrative sources told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Thursday.

A youth official said at least 35 people were killed Wednesday in near-simultaneous attacks on the villages of Korikori and Gomossogou.

A security source and an administrative source also reported more than 30 deaths in the attacks, which were claimed by the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, or JNIM.

WAMAPS, a group of West African journalists specializing in Sahel security, said the provisional death toll was more than 50 villagers, with several people still missing.

“Villages have been looted and some properties set on fire,” WAMAPS said.

Malian army says operation targeted armed groups

The Malian army said Thursday it had carried out “a targeted operation against terrorist armed groups” in the area.

It said around a dozen fighters were “neutralized,” but did not provide further details.

The attacks came less than two weeks after a large-scale, coordinated offensive by terrorists and separatists against junta positions, pushing Mali into a new security crisis.

Earlier offensive targeted strategic towns

The April 25-26 assaults by JNIM and the Azawad Liberation Front, or FLA, an ethnic Tuareg separatist movement, targeted strategic towns, including Kidal in the desert north and Kati, a garrison town near the capital Bamako.

Defense Minister Sadio Camara, the 47-year-old architect of Mali’s military alliance with Russia, was killed by a car bomb at his residence.

Kidal and other towns and villages in the north were captured and are now under the control of the FLA and terrorists, who have since imposed a blockade on Bamako.

On Wednesday, security, legal and family sources told AFP that several opposition figures and military personnel had been detained or abducted following the attacks.

The military prosecutor’s office said last week it had “solid evidence” of the “complicity” of some members of the military, accusing them of helping with the “planning, coordination and execution” of the attacks.

A political official, speaking anonymously for security reasons, said the arrests and abductions appeared to be a witch hunt.

“Everything suggests that these events are being used as an opportunity to carry out a purge within the political opposition and the army,” the official told AFP.

Mali faces deep security crisis

Mali has faced a deep security crisis since 2012, driven by violence from fighters affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Daesh, as well as local criminal gangs and pro-independence groups.

On April 30, JNIM called for a “common front” to “put an end to the junta” and bring about a peaceful and inclusive transition.

Mali has been under military rule since back-to-back coups in 2020.

Mali: More Than 30 Killed in Twin Central Attacks

Two attacks in central Mali claimed by Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists have killed more than 30 people, local, security and administrative sources told AFP on Thursday.

The two strikes came less than a fortnight after a large-scale, coordinated offensive by jihadists and separatists on junta positions, which plunged the west African country into a fresh security crisis.

"At least 35 people were killed on Wednesday in near simultaneous attacks" on the villages of Korikori and Gomossogou, a youth official said.

A security and an administrative source both reported more than 30 dead in the assaults, claimed by the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM).

WAMAPS, a group of west African journalists specialising in Sahel security, said the provisional toll was more than 50 villagers killed and several still missing.

"Villages have been looted and some properties set on fire," the group added.

The security source said Thursday's assaults were in retaliation for acts committed by the Dan Nan Ambassagou militia, the best-known of the self-defence groups set up by local communities in response to the assaults plaguing central Mali.

"The victims are mostly militiamen. But there are also teenagers and children," the source told AFP.

Made up mainly of traditional ethnic Dogon hunters, Dan Nan Ambassagou has refused an order to disband by the authorities, who accused the militia of a massacre in the central village of Ogossagou that left 160 dead.

The Malian army said on Thursday it had carried out "a targeted operation against terrorist armed groups" in the area and around a dozen fighters were "neutralised".

It did not give further details.

- Central Mali violence -

The devastating assaults on April 25 and 26 by the JNIM and the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), an ethnic Tuareg separatist movement, targeted strategic towns including Kidal in the desert north, and Kati, a garrison town near the capital Bamako.

Defence Minister Sadio Camara, the 47-year-old architect of Mali's military alliance with Russia, was killed by a car bomb at his residence.

Kidal and other towns and villages in the north were captured and are now under the control of the FLA and the jihadists, who have since imposed a blockade on Bamako.

In recent years, central Mali has also been the theatre of deadly violence.

After the 2019 killings, Ogossagou was the scene of a February 2020 raid that killed some 30 Fulanis, a nomadic people often accused across the Sahel of aiding jihadists.

In March 2022, around 300 civilians were massacred in the town of Moura, with Human Rights Watch pointing the finger at the Malian army and its foreign allies -- likely Russian mercenaries from the Wagner paramilitary group.

And in June of that year, more than 130 civilians were killed in the town of Diallassagou in attacks attributed to JNIM jihadists.

- Wave of arrests, abductions -

On Wednesday, security, legal and family sources told AFP that several opposition figures and military personnel had been detained or abducted following the large-scale attacks on the junta.

The military prosecutor's office said last week it had "solid evidence" of the "complicity" of certain members of the military, accusing them of helping with the "planning, coordination and execution" of the attacks.

But a political official said the wave of arrests and abductions smacked of a witch hunt.

"Everything suggests that these events are being used as an opportunity to carry out a purge within the political opposition and the army," the official told AFP, requesting anonymity for security reasons.

Since 2012, Mali has faced a deep security crisis fuelled in particular by violence from fighters affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, as well as local criminal gangs and pro-independence groups.

On April 30, the JNIM called for a "common front" to "put an end to the junta" and usher in a peaceful and inclusive transition.

The country has been under military rule since back-to-back coups in 2020.

Public Appeal to African Heads of State for Continental Unity, Justice and the Immediate End of Xenophobic Violence 

By Serwaah Bonsu 

May 7, 2026

The ongoing xenophobic and Afrophobic violence occurring within parts of the African  continent must come to an immediate and permanent end because it threatens the very  foundation of African unity, peace, security, constitutional democracy, and continental  progress. 

Africa cannot successfully pursue regional integration, economic development, diplomatic  cooperation, and collective prosperity while fellow Africans are subjected to violence,  humiliation, displacement, and fear within their own continent merely because of  nationality or migration status. The continued assault, public degradation, looting, and  unlawful targeting of African migrants undermine the principles of Pan-Africanism and  weaken the vision of a united Africa founded upon dignity, solidarity, equality, and mutual  respect. 

Most concerning are the reported incidents involving the public beating and humiliation of  African women, including acts in which women have allegedly been stripped naked in  public spaces. Such actions constitute profound violations of human dignity, gender  protections, constitutional rights, and internationally recognized human rights standards.  These acts must never become normalized within African societies. 

I firmly believe that His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama, His Excellency  President Ibrahim Traoré, and all African Presidents and Heads of State possess both the  constitutional authority and moral obligation to unite collectively and decisively in ensuring  that every person responsible for these unlawful acts is identified, arrested, prosecuted,  and held accountable under the full force of the law. 

Justice is essential not only for the victims and affected communities, but also for the  preservation of public trust in constitutional governance, judicial systems, and democratic  institutions across Africa. Failure to prosecute perpetrators may create a dangerous  culture of impunity capable of encouraging future violence, vigilantism, ethnic hatred, and  social instability. 

Consequently, African governments, the , ECOWAS, SADC, regional courts, law  enforcement agencies, and continental human rights institutions must work together to  utilize every available constitutional, judicial, diplomatic, and legal mechanism necessary  to ensure accountability and long-term prevention. 

Immediate and coordinated legal action is necessary for the following reasons: To restore justice and dignity for victims of violence and humiliation;

To prevent future occurrences of xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks; To reinforce the authority of constitutional law and judicial accountability; To discourage mob violence, unlawful vigilantism, and hate-based crimes; To preserve continental peace, security, and regional stability; 

To strengthen Pan-African solidarity and African unity; 

To ensure that no African citizen lives in fear within Africa because of nationality, ethnicity,  or migration status. 

Africa’s historical liberation movements were built upon unity, collective resistance, and  mutual protection among African peoples. The sacrifices of past African leaders and  freedom fighters were intended to establish a continent governed by justice, equality,  peace, and human dignity—not hatred, violence, and division among Africans themselves. 

I therefore respectfully urge President John Dramani Mahama, President Ibrahim Traoré, all  African presidents, judicial authorities, and regional institutions to take decisive and lawful  action to bring all perpetrators to justice and to establish stronger continental safeguards  capable of preventing the recurrence of xenophobic violence throughout Africa. 

The future peace, moral credibility, and stability of Africa depend upon the willingness of its  leaders to defend human dignity, uphold the rule of law, and protect the rights of all African  peoples without discrimination. 

Justice must prevail over violence. Unity must prevail over division. And peace must prevail  over hatred. 

“An injury to one African is an injury to Africa itself.” 

Respectfully Submitted, 

Serwaah Bonsu 

Independent Public Advocate 

May 07, 2026

Sudan RSF Paramilitary Leader Hemedti Says Ready to Fight for Decades

The leader of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary said his forces are prepared to fight for decades in their war with the regular army, warning that his fighters remained positioned outside the army-controlled capital.

"We do not want this war to continue," RSF chief Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo told a group of soldiers at an undisclosed location late Wednesday.

But "if they [the army] want it to go on for 40 years, it will continue until they are uprooted."

The remarks by Dagalo, who is also known as Hemedti, came a day after Sudan's army-aligned government accused Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates of launching drone attacks since March on several states across Sudan from inside Ethiopian territory, including strikes on Monday against the capital Khartoum and its airport.

The UAE has been accused of arming the RSF but denies the allegation, while Ethiopia has denied hosting RSF and UAE forces on its territory.

Both countries also denied any involvement in the strikes, the details of which AFP could not independently verify.

Daglo said some RSF forces had not left the capital despite being largely ousted by the army last year, and were still positioned on the outskirts of Omdurman, across the Nile river from central Khartoum.

Khartoum, which had seen relative calm since the army recaptured it, has been struck several times in the past couple of weeks.

On Saturday a drone strike killed five civilians in a vehicle in southern Omdurman, while last week another attack damaged a hospital.

More than 1.8 million displaced people have returned to the city since its recapture, according to United Nations figures, only to find dilapidated infrastructure and limited access to electricity and water.

Drone attacks by both sides have escalated across Sudan in recent months, killing nearly 700 civilians since January, according to the UN.

The war, now in its fourth year, has killed tens of thousands, displaced millions and created what the UN describes as the world's largest displacement and hunger crises.

Efforts to end the conflict — including those by the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, a group known as the Quad — have so far faltered, with the two warring sides failing to agree on a humanitarian ceasefire.

Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has repeatedly said his forces will fight until victory, insisting the war will not end unless the RSF surrenders their weapons.

Outside the capital, fighting is raging on several other fronts, including in southern Kordofan and Blue Nile state near the Ethiopian border.

South Sudan's President Kiir Fires Army Chief and Finance Minister

More changes at the top of South Sudan’s government on Wednesday as President Salva Kiir fired the country’s army chief and a finance minister who’d been in office for less than three months, Reuters news agency reported.

General Paul Nang had been head of the military since October but was under scrutiny over the nation’s worsening security situation. According to local media, he’s been replaced by General Santino Deng Wol. A close ally of Kiir, Wol previously held the post from 2020 to 2024.

The former finance minister, Salvatore Garang Mabiordit, only took office on 23 February.

At the end of April, Kiir sacked the foreign minister and the head of the country’s internal security bureau. Earlier in the month, he dismissed the speaker and deputy speaker of parliament.

Analysts say the president’s frequent reshuffles are part of an attempt to maintain a grip on power amid ongoing instability and speculation over his eventual successor.

South Sudan has faced repeated delays in implementing a 2018 peace agreement that ended the country’s five year civil war. Under the deal, Kiir has the authority to appoint and dismiss top officials at both national and state levels.

After years of delays, the country is expected to hold elections in December. If the process goes ahead, it would mark the first national polls since the country gained independence from Sudan 15 years ago.

Somalia's Drought Fallout Worsened by Aid Cuts and Ongoing Conflict

In the largely arid Puntland region in north-eastern Somalia, where the past three rainy seasons have failed, there is nothing to see but dry water ponds, destroyed crops, and animal carcasses.

As the drought intensifies, and the malnutrition rate soars, the race is on to stop another hunger catastrophe.

But several international organisations have had to stop operations in the Kismayo camp and elsewhere, in large part due to aid cuts made last year by United States President Donald Trump.

World Food Programme Assistant Executive Director for Programme Operations, Matthew Hollingworth, said there is a malnutrition crisis across the country.

"We simply don’t have the resources to respond as we should do,” he said.

“This is made absolutely worse because of the Middle East crisis which is raising prices across the whole country; fuel by 150%, even food commodities by at least 20 or 30%."

Experts say even if the forthcoming rainy season is normal, it will take months for affected populations to recover.

Displaced community member, Mahad Farah Muse, said the little bit of rain that fell recently did not last.

"And if rain does not come soon, people may start dying just like the livestock. People depend on livestock, and now the livestock are gone. Everything has been lost," she said.

'Toxic cocktail'

Somalia is facing one of the most complex hunger crises in recent years, driven by drought, conflict, large-scale displacement, and severely limited humanitarian assistance.

Famine has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.

As aid funding dries up, the WFP says it can only reach 1 in 10 people in urgent need and it risks having to halt emergency assistance by July.

Save the Children Somalia director, Mohamud Mohamed Hassan, says the recent foreign aid cuts have had "a huge impact" on its work.

More than 200 health centres and 400 schools have closed since last year.

Farmers, whose herds and crops have been decimated, describe one of the worst droughts ever recorded in a country where a third of people already lacked regular meals.

The United Nations' humanitarian arm has had to steadily reduce its Somalia programme from $2.6 billion in 2023 to $852 million this year, especially since Washington slashed its donations.

So far, only 13% of this year's target has been raised.

"It's a toxic cocktail of factors ... Things are really, really desperate," said Tom Fletcher, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

"Often we're having to choose which lives to save and which lives not to save."

Chad Declares Three Days of National Mourning After Boko Haram Attack

Chad declared three days of national mourning after a new attack by Boko Haram jihadists Wednesday killed two generals in the volatile Lake Chad Basin.

On Monday evening, an attack on the Barka Tolorom military base on the Chadian shore of Lake Chad left at least 24 soldiers dead and several wounded, according to a military source.

On Wednesday afternoon, security and defence force boats patrolling the lake’s island area "fell into a Boko Haram ambush," an officer from the General Staff told AFP, adding that two generals were killed.

The government in a statement declared national mourning "from Wednesday, May 6 at midnight to Saturday, May 9 at midnight...in memory of the martyrs who fell on the field of honour during the attacks by terrorist groups that occurred on May 4 and 6."

During this period, flags will be flown at half-mast and all festive activities are banned throughout the country, it said.

"We will continue the fight with renewed determination until this threat is completely eradicated," Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno said after Monday's attack.

Chadian soldiers are frequently targeted by Boko Haram in the Lake Chad region, a vast expanse of water and marshland dotted with islands, located between Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, and Chad.

Since 2009, it has become a jihadist stronghold sheltering both Boko Haram fighters and its rival, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

Recent months have seen a resurgence in attacks by JAS, one of the Boko Haram factions, involving kidnappings and assaults on forward security positions.

In October 2024, a deadly Boko Haram attack on a military base in the Lake Chad basin left around 40 Chadian soldiers dead.

In response, President Deby launched Operation Haskanite to "destroy Boko Haram’s capacity to cause harm."

The Chadian army completed its counteroffensive in February 2025, asserting that the jihadist group no longer had "any sanctuary on Chadian territory."

DR Congo’s President Warns Next Elections Can’t Take Place Unless the Conflict in the East is Resolved

Democratic Republic of the Congo President Felix Tshisekedi speaks during a ceremony at the U.S. Institute of Peace, Dec. 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Democratic Republic of the Congo President Felix Tshisekedi speaks during a ceremony at the U.S. Institute of Peace, Dec. 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

By JEAN-YVES KAMALE and SALEH MWANAMILONGO

6:01 PM EDT, May 6, 2026

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Congo’s president warned on Wednesday that the African nation will not be able to organize and hold elections after his term ends in two years unless the conflict that has gripped the country’s east is resolved and stability returns.

The remarks by Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi, whose term expires in December 2028, came during a televised address to the nation in which he discussed a range of topics, including deportations of migrants from the United States under a deal with the Trump administration.

Congo’s decades-long conflict escalated in January 2025, when the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic city of Goma, followed by the town of Bukavu, which they took in February as they seek to expand their presence. The fighting has killed some 3,000 people and worsened what was already one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, with around 7 million people displaced.

A U.S.-mediated peace agreement to end the fighting and other efforts have stumbled.

“If we cannot end this war, unfortunately we will not be able to organize elections in 2028,” said Tshisekedi.

“But it will not be because I refused to organize them, the resources are there we can do it, but we cannot organize them without North Kivu and South Kivu,” he added, referring to two eastern provinces.

Even before this year’s escalation, eastern Congo had been battered by decades of unrest, with government forces fighting more than 100 armed groups — M23 being the most prominent — often over access to its mineral riches.

Tshisekedi, who is on his second term now, a limit under the constitution, indicated he could pursue a third term.

“I have not sought a third term, but I tell you: If the people want me to have a third term, I will accept,” he said, adding that a referendum on the constitution would have to take place first to approve an amendment allowing a president to seek more than two terms.

Critics swiftly denounced Tshisekedi’s address. Congolese politician André Claudel Lubaya said that Tshisekedi was citing a supposed will of the people “to justify a fraudulent intention.”

Seth Kikuni, a two-time presidential candidate, said on X that if Tshisekedi “threatens to seize power” in 2028, there would be only one option left for the opposition — “to cross the Rubicon and throw the dice.”

Nigerian Army Says it Rescued Some Children Abducted from an Orphanage Last Month

By DYEPKAZAH SHIBAYAN

6:24 AM EDT, May 7, 2026

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Seven children and two women abducted by gunmen at an orphanage last month in the north-central region of Nigeria have been rescued by troops, the country’s army said on Wednesday.

Authorities in Kogi state said gunmen attacked an Islamic orphanage that was operating illegally and abducted 23 pupils in an “isolated area” of Lokoja, capital of Kogi State, on April 26. Fifteen of those abducted were immediately rescued.

The troops intercepted and recovered the victims within a forest area in the state, army spokesman Hassan Abdullahi said in a statement.

“The rescued victims comprised five boys, two girls, and two adult females, believed to be the wives of the proprietor of the orphanage,” Abdullahi said.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. Armed groups attack schools and abduct students because they are seen as strategic in drawing attention and exacting huge ransoms, according to analysts. Several hundred students have been kidnapped across Nigeria.

A 600-person Search Continues for Missing US Soldiers off Morocco’s Coast

U.S and Moroccan military forces take part in the 20th edition of the African Lion military exercise, in Tantan, south of Agadir, Morocco, Friday, May 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Mosa’ab Elshamy, File)

By AKRAM OUBACHIR

1:20 PM EDT, May 6, 2026

CASABLANCA, Morocco (AP) — Over 600 military personnel from multiple countries are searching for two U.S. soldiers who went missing in Morocco during U.S.-African military exercises, scouring underwater caves and the Atlantic coast, authorities said Wednesday.

As the search entered its fifth day, the African Lion military drills neared their end.

The two U.S. Army members went missing last week near the Cap Draa training area outside Tan-Tan, a coastal city in southwestern Morocco, the Moroccan military said. They are believed to have been on a recreational hike and may have fallen into the ocean.

More than 600 personnel from the U.S., Morocco and other African Lion participants are involved in the search and have covered more than 45 square kilometers of coastal and open ocean area, a U.S. defense official told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak publicly on the matter.

“Our two soldiers and their families remain our absolute priority,” the official said.

The soldiers had been taking part in African Lion 26, a U.S.-led exercise launched in April across four countries – Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana and Senegal – with more than 7,000 personnel from over 30 nations. It is set to end Friday. Since 2004, it has been the largest U.S. joint military exercise in Africa.

The Moroccan Navy released video Wednesday showing military divers examining caves, aircraft scanning the ocean surface and teams of uniformed personnel and canine crews combing the rocky shoreline. Several Moroccan military units are involved in the search.

Two vessels from the maritime training component of the drills have been reassigned to the search, including a Moroccan European multi-mission frigate and a French multipurpose supply vessel. A U.S. logistics vessel continues to support the exercise while assisting in the search effort, the official said.

Aviation equipment involved in the search includes a U.S. UC-35 Citation jet, a U.S. Army C-12 Huron aircraft and Moroccan Puma and Super Puma helicopters.

Several technology vendors involved in the exercise have deployed unmanned aerial systems to help with surveillance of the search area, the official said.

Kenyan Politicians Trade Accusations of ‘Goonism’ as Political Violence Rises Ahead of 2027 Election

By RODNEY MUHUMUZA

3:25 AM EDT, May 7, 2026

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya’s political word of the moment is “goonism,” frequently uttered by national leaders to convey annoyance at the gangs that intimidate those whose political activities they oppose.

Supporters of President William Ruto, who is seeking a second term in elections next year, use the phrase to describe the political violence that authorities will not tolerate. Opposition figures use it to condemn what they see as Ruto’s aggressive — and underhanded — campaign tactics.

At times it can seem as if goonism is up against goonism, an unwelcome turn of events in this East African nation where the contest for political power is becoming ever more vigorous and tinged with a sense of danger.

Many Kenyans doubt Ruto’s commitment to the religious values he espoused before taking power in 2022.

Ruto vowed to raise a kind of born-again Christian nation, fearful of God and at peace with itself.

But as president, he appears to have benefited from the lawlessness that is now a national scourge as religious and political leaders warn that political violence threatens democratic gains. His critics charge that such chaos rises in part from Ruto’s uncompromising style of leadership.

“Goons, goons, goons,” yelled preacher Wilfred Lai during a recent Sunday sermon in which he lamented what had befallen Kenya. “Everyone who wants to rule this country by that kind of thing, I speak as a prophet of God: You shall fall.”

He added: “You can’t use goons and you are telling us that you are taking us into a better place. You are a liar and the truth is not in you.”

Although Lai, the pastor of a megachurch in the coastal city of Mombasa, didn’t mention Ruto by name, many Kenyans suspect he had the president in mind when he gave that sermon, parts of which were shared online.

Some former supporters say Ruto has betrayed Christian values

Lai is among evangelical preachers who embraced Ruto when he was vice president and seeking to replace President Uhuru Kenyatta, whose backing he didn’t have. At the time, Ruto was widely seen as a pious politician.

Ruto said he was fighting for the downtrodden, for those whose manual labor put food on the table. The leader — nicknamed “Nabii,” Kiswahili for “God’s prophet” — said he had risen so high in politics by the grace of God, unlike rivals he depicted as the entitled sons of political dynasties. Ruto won a tight race.

For many of his supporters, however, Ruto changed as soon as he won the presidency.

Although he continued to go to church on Sundays, some noticed that he stopped carrying the Bible and no longer quoted it regularly. His decision to demolish a chapel within the compound of the statehouse — to be replaced by a modern facility — was criticized by some as self-aggrandizing. Others saw betrayal in Ruto’s aggressive income tax measures months after his inauguration.

Thousands of young people took to the streets of Nairobi, the capital, forcing authorities to withdraw some tax proposals but not quite cooling popular anger. Ruto later faced more protests triggered by the death in police custody of a blogger.

Although the protests failed to remove Ruto, they left him wounded and determined to show strength. While his position remains precarious ahead of next year’s vote, some of his adversaries admit he is cunning and still hard to defeat.

After protesters stormed the parliamentary building in 2024, Ruto vowed that such a thing would never happen again. Last year, facing protesters who held placards saying “Ruto must go,” the president urged the police to “break” the limbs of protesters and said he was going nowhere.

“If we go this route, we will not have a country,” Ruto said in a televised address. “The country belongs to all of us. And if there’s no country for William Ruto, there’s no country for you.”

Some saw that as a veiled threat, and some opposition figures suspect the gangs materializing at opposition events are sponsored by the state.

“We must say no, collectively, to the new specter, the new norm, of goonism,” Kalonzo Musyoka, a prominent opposition figure, told a local broadcaster. “The goons are very well-known. So for anybody to pretend that it is the work of united opposition, he really must be ashamed, even before God, that this is state-sponsored.”

Political violence is on the rise

Men armed with machetes and guns can break up political rallies or prevent them from commencing. While opposition figures accuse authorities of fomenting violence, Interior Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen recently warned goons that “since the politician won’t be with you when you commit the crime, we’ll come for you.”

Speaker Moses Wetang’ula, Ruto’s ally, said last month that “the culture of goonism has no place in a democratic society.”

In a notable event last month, an opposition lawmaker from western Kenya was manhandled in a restaurant by men questioning his political views. Sen. Godfrey Osotsi’s injuries required hospitalization. The attack sparked protests in his home area and was condemned by religious leaders.

Ruto hasn’t given up on church leaders — whose influence cuts across social networks — in his quest to retain power. His choice of where to pray on a given Sunday may be unpredictable. Sometimes church leaders, from Methodist to Pentecostal pastors, congregate near him at the statehouse.

Other religious leaders are critical, provoked most recently by insults traded between Ruto and his former deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, who fell out with the president, was impeached and now is the leader of the Wantam movement to make Ruto a one-term president.

Their exchanges can be venomous.

In March, after Gachagua called Ruto a thief who would steal a funeral home, the president called Gachagua a “cold-blooded pig” who stole from his brother.

Days later, the head of the local conference of Catholic primates, Archbishop Maurice Muhatia, rebuked Ruto and Gachagua at a gathering of bishops. “Disagreement is OK, but insulting each other in public is a disgrace,” Muhatia said. “Give us a break.”

Expert warns that election could turn ‘very bloody’

Kenyan elections are often fractious affairs. There was a violent gang, known as Mungiki, that played a role in deadly violence that followed the 2007 election.

There is a pervasive sense this time that more is at stake, with a president who won’t back down. Some worry that Ruto is verging on authoritarianism, unlike his recent predecessors.

Kenyatta, Kenya’s fourth president, is a jolly man who tolerated internal opposition from Ruto while they served together. Mwai Kibaki, whom Kenyatta replaced, was a gentleman who once called a news conference to deny he had a second wife.

Kenya’s current president is different, and goonism is “a product of gangster theology” of which Ruto is the high priest, said Christine Mungai, an independent writer based in Nairobi.

Ruto has mastered “how to perform public piety” while simultaneously working “to make life harder for everyone,” she said.

It isn’t clear who Ruto’s main election opponent will be. It could be Musyoka or Fred Matiang’i, a former cabinet secretary for the interior. While Gachagua is likely ineligible to seek the presidency after his impeachment, his support will be crucial for the opposition.

If Ruto and opposition figures don’t tone down the rhetoric “the election is going to be very bloody,” said Karuti Kanyinga, a Kenyan development scholar who is a visiting professor at Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study in South Africa. “Everyone will have their own protection gangs.”

Central African Republic Opposition Leader Denounces Seizure of His Passport

Presidential challenger Anicet-Georges Dologuele speaks to the media after casting his vote at the town hall polling station in the capital Bangui, Central African Republic, Dec. 27, 2020. (AP Photo, File)

By JEAN FERNAND KOENA

1:55 PM EDT, May 6, 2026

BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — Central African Republic’s former prime minister and major opposition figure, Anicet Georges Dologuélé, criticized the confiscation of his diplomatic passport as an abuse of power on Wednesday.

Dologuélé, who served as prime minister between 1999 and 2001, said he was not allowed to board a flight to an African Union meeting in Addis Ababa on Wednesday.

“It was at the airport that I learned I was forbidden from leaving the country after being declared stateless in my own country,” he told a news conference in capital Bangui.

He is on the board of directors for the African Union Peace Fund, a role he has held since 2018.

Dologuélé renounced his French citizenship last year in line with the country’s constitution to contest President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, who ran for a third term last year.

Dologuélé denounced last year’s election as “very far from the truth” and has regularly criticized Touadéra. He won 13.1% of the votes according to the country’s electoral body.

He has since used his diplomatic passport accorded to him as a former prime minister, claiming the government has refused to issue him a new passport.

Hantavirus is on the Rise in Argentina, Where a Stricken Cruise Ship Began its Journey

By ISABEL DEBRE

1:43 AM EDT, May 7, 2026

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Officials and experts in Argentina are scrambling to determine if their country is the source of a deadly hantavirus outbreak that has gripped an Atlantic cruise.

The health emergency aboard the ship that’s moored across the ocean comes as Argentina sees a surge of hantavirus cases that many local public health researchers attribute to the recently accelerating effects of climate change. Argentina, where the cruise to Antarctica departed, is consistently ranked by the World Health Organization as having the highest incidence of the rare, rodent-borne disease in Latin America.

Higher temperatures expand the virus’ range because, in part, as it gets warmer and ecosystems change, rodents that carry the hantavirus can thrive in more places, experts say. People typically contract the virus from exposure to rodent droppings, urine or saliva.

“Argentina has become more tropical because of climate change, and that has brought disruptions, like dengue and yellow fever, but also new tropical plants that produce seeds for mice to proliferate,” said Hugo Pizzi, a prominent Argentine infectious disease specialist. “There is no doubt that as time goes by, the hantavirus is spreading more and more.”

The Argentine Health Ministry on Tuesday reported 101 hantavirus infections since June 2025, roughly double the caseload recorded over the same period the previous year.

A hantavirus found in South America, called the Andes virus, can cause a severe and often fatal lung disease called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. The disease led to death in nearly a third of cases in the last year, Argentina’s Health Ministry said, up from an average mortality rate of 15 in the five years before that.

Hantavirus usually spreads by inhaling contaminated rodent droppings and can spread person-to-person, though that is rare, according to the WHO, whose top epidemic expert said the risk to the public is low. The Andes strain only hantavirus known to spread from human to human.

Authorities said passengers on the MV Hondius ship tested positive for the Andes virus. Argentina on Wednesday said it was sending genetic material from the Andes virus and testing equipment to help Spain, Senegal, South Africa, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom detect it.

The cause of infection remains under investigation

Argentine officials say they’re trying to pin down where infected passengers traveled in the country before boarding the Dutch-flagged cruise liner in Ushuaia, a city in southern Argentina known as the end of the world. Once they know the itineraries, they plan to trace contacts, isolate close contacts and actively monitor to prevent further spread.

The U.N. health agency, or WHO, says that the first death on board, a 70-year-old Dutch man, happened on April 11. His 69-year-old wife, also Dutch, died on April 26. The third passenger, a German woman, died on May 2.

The virus can incubate for between one and eight weeks. That makes it hard to know whether the passengers contracted the virus before leaving Argentina for Antarctica on April 1; during a scheduled stop to a remote South Atlantic island; or aboard the ship.

The province of Tierra del Fuego, where the vessel docked for weeks before departing, has never seen a case of hantavirus. Before boarding, the Dutch couple went sightseeing in Ushuaia, and traveled elsewhere in Argentina and Chile, WHO said.

The Argentine government’s leading hypothesis is that the couple contracted the virus during a bird-watching outing in Ushuaia, according to two investigators who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, with the investigation ongoing. Authorities are also tracing the Dutch tourists’ footsteps through the forested hillsides of Patagonia in southern Argentina where some infections are clustered.

Because early symptoms resemble the fever and chills of a flu, “tourists might think they just have a cold and not take it seriously. That makes it particularly dangerous,” Raul González Ittig, genetics professor at the National University of Córdoba and a researcher at state science body CONICET, said.

Climate change sends rodents to new frontiers

Argentina in recent years endured a historic drought. But it also had bouts of unexpectedly intense rainfall, part of a broader pattern of wild weather that scientists attribute to climate change.

Some of this variability has created conditions that have allowed hantavirus to flourish, experts say. Dry spells drive animals out of their usual habitats in search of food and water. Huge amounts of rain lead to vegetation growth, scattering seeds that attract leaf-munching rodents.

“When precipitation increases, food availability increases, rodent populations grow, and if there are infected rodents, the chance of transmission between rodents — and eventually to humans — also increases,” Ittig said.

Although hantavirus cases once were limited to the southern reaches of Patagonia, now 83% of cases are found in Argentina’s far north, according to the Health Ministry.

Argentina issued alerts early this year

The ministry issued an alert in January about several fatal outbreaks, including in the most populous province of Buenos Aires.

With rural hospitals underequipped, residents had no clue what hit them.

Daisy Morinigo and David Delgado said they initially thought their 14-year-old son had the flu when he came down with a fever and body aches. Doctors who first saw Rodrigo in the town of San Andrés de Giles sent him home with ibuprofen and orders to rest.

But the feisty fourth grader’s breathing worsened. On Jan. 1, they rushed Rodrigo to intensive care. He died just two hours after a hantavirus test came back positive.

“I wouldn’t wish this pain on anyone in the world,” Delgado said.

ISABEL DEBRE

DeBre writes about Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay for The Associated Press, based in Buenos Aires. Before moving to South America in 2024, she covered the Middle East reporting from Jerusalem, Cairo and Dubai.

Dozens of Passengers Left Hantavirus-stricken Cruise Ship After 1st Fatality

By MOLLY QUELL and GERALD IMRAY

7:03 AM EDT, May 7, 2026

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — More than two dozen passengers left a cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak on April 24 without contact tracing, nearly two weeks after the first passenger died on board, the ship operator and Dutch officials said Thursday.

The news raised concerns that the virus could spread as travelers returned home, although experts say the risk to the wider public is considered low.

The Dutch-based company had previously said the body of the Dutch man who died on April 11 was taken off the ship on the remote South Atlantic island of St. Helena on April 24, when his wife also disembarked. She then flew to South Africa a day later and died there.

The company said Thursday 29 passengers left the vessel at St. Helena, while the Dutch Foreign Ministry put the number at about 40. The company had not previously acknowledged that dozens more people left the ship at that time.

The people who left the ship to return to their home countries were of at least 12 different nationalities, Oceanwide Expeditions said. It said there were also two people whose nationalities were unknown.

The first confirmed case of hantavirus in a passenger on the ship was only on May 2, the World Health Organization has previously said. That was in a British man evacuated from the ship to South Africa from Ascension Island three days after the St. Helena stop.

Three passengers have died in the outbreak, and several others are sick. Three people, including the ship’s doctor, were evacuated Wednesday while the ship was near the West African island country of Cape Verde and taken to Europe for treatment.

The body of the third fatality, a German woman, is still on board the ship after she died on May 2.

The vessel is now sailing to Spain’s Canary Islands, a voyage that is expected take three or four days, with more than 140 passengers and crew members still on board.

Authorities in South Africa and Europe are trying to trace contacts of any passengers who previously got off the ship. It emerged Wednesday that a man tested positive for hantavirus in Switzerland after he also disembarked at St. Helena and flew home, though his precise movements aren’t clear.

Dutch authorities did not confirm where other passengers who disembarked are now.

Hantavirus usually spreads by the inhalation of contaminated rodent droppings and may be transmitted from person to person, though that is rare, according to the World Health Organization, whose top epidemic expert said the risk to the public is low.

Tests have confirmed that at least five people who were on the ship were infected with a hantavirus found in South America, called the Andes virus. It can cause a severe and often fatal lung disease called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.

Argentina’s health ministry said hantavirus led to 28 deaths nationwide last year, with nearly a third of cases leading to deaths, up from an average mortality rate of 15 in the five years before that.

The Andes strain is the only hantavirus known to spread from human to human.

The ship departed from Argentina and investigations into the source of the outbreak are focusing on that country. The Dutch couple, the first passengers to fall sick, traveled there and elsewhere in South America before boarding the ship, according to WHO.

Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa.

Egypt Condemns Attacks on Khartoum Airport, Warns of Regional Escalation

5 May 2026

Smoke near Khartoum airport after a drone attack on May 1, 2026

May 5, 2026 (CAIRO) – Egypt on Tuesday condemned attacks on Khartoum International Airport, describing them as a flagrant violation of Sudanese sovereignty and a dangerous escalation of the country’s security and humanitarian crisis.

The airport and nearby residential areas were hit by drones on Monday. The strikes also targeted the Signal Corps base in Khartoum North and the Al-Markhiyat training camp in Omdurman in an unprecedented aerial escalation.

The Sudanese government has directly accused Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates of involvement in the strikes.

Egypt’s foreign ministry said in a statement it condemned the shelling in the strongest terms, noting it threatened civilian infrastructure and the well-being of the Sudanese people.

The ministry said the escalation would complicate humanitarian conditions and obstruct efforts to reach a truce.

The statement expressed alarm over attacks reportedly launched from a neighbouring country, warning the conflict could spread across the region.

Cairo said such actions undermine U.S.-led efforts within the international Quad to secure a ceasefire and launch a Sudanese-led political process free from foreign interference.

Sudanese officials and a military spokesperson said earlier on Tuesday they had “definitive evidence” that the attacks were facilitated by Ethiopia.

The officials also alleged that UAE drones had operated out of Ethiopia’s Bahir Dar airport to carry out strikes this year.

Egypt affirmed its rejection of foreign interference in Sudan and called for respect for Sudan’s territorial integrity and international law.

The statement concluded by reaffirming Egypt’s support for regional and international efforts to contain the crisis and reach a peaceful solution.

Ethiopia Rejects Sudanese Accusations of Involvement in Khartoum Drone Strikes

5 May 2026

General al-Burhan shakes hands with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Addis Ababa on Nov 15, 2023

May 5, 2026 (ADDIS ABABA) – Ethiopia on Tuesday rejected accusations by the Sudanese government that it was involved in drone strikes targeting strategic sites in Khartoum, including the international airport.

The Ethiopian foreign ministry said in a statement that the allegations were “baseless.”

Sudanese government officials and a military spokesperson said earlier on Tuesday they had “definitive evidence” that the attacks were facilitated by Ethiopia. They also alleged that United Arab Emirates drones had operated out of Ethiopia’s Bahir Dar airport to carry out strikes this year.

Following the developments, Khartoum recalled its ambassador to Addis Ababa for consultations, a diplomatic move that often precedes further escalation.

Addis Ababa said it had exercised maximum restraint and refrained from disclosing “gross violations” of its national security and territorial integrity committed by parties to the Sudanese war.

The Ethiopian statement claimed the Sudanese Armed Forces provided weapons and financial support to “Tigray People’s Liberation Front” mercenaries, facilitating their incursions across Ethiopia’s western border.

The ministry said there was “ample evidence” that Sudan has become a hub for forces hostile to Ethiopia. It added that these “hostile acts” and repeated allegations were being carried out at the instigation of “external parties” seeking to advance “malicious agendas.”

Ethiopia reaffirmed its solidarity with the Sudanese people and maintained its position that there is no military solution to the crisis.

The statement called for an immediate humanitarian truce followed by a sustainable ceasefire and a civilian-led political transition to restore civil rule and lasting peace.

Sudan Recalls Ambassador to Ethiopia Over Drone Attack on Khartoum Airport

Khartoum International Airport ground workers greet the first domestic Sudan Airways flight landing from Port Sudan, in Khartoum, Sudan, on Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali, File)

11:42 AM EDT, May 5, 2026

CAIRO (AP) — The Sudanese government accused Ethiopia of being behind recent drone attacks on sites including Khartoum airport and recalled its ambassador on Tuesday.

In response, Ethiopia’s foreign ministry issued a statement saying it “rejects (the) baseless accusations.”

A military spokesperson in Sudan said the government has evidence of four drone strikes since March 1 originating from neighboring Ethiopia’s Bahir Dar airport. It also accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying the drones.

An attack on Monday targeted the airport in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum. Previous attacks were launched toward the Sudanese states of Kordofan, Blue Nile and White Nile.

Sudan’s military has been at war with a paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces since April 2023, when the RSF stormed the capital. The battles have now shifted toward more drone warfare concentrating in the Kordofan and Blue Nile states.

Sudan has long accused the UAE of supporting the RSF, and U.N. experts and rights groups have also accused it of providing arms to the group. The UAE has rejected the accusation.

Army spokesman Brig. Gen. Asim Awad Abdelwahab told a press conference on Tuesday that the government had analyzed data and evidence from a drone that entered Sudanese airspace heading for El-Obeid in Kordofan state on March 17 and found that it had originated from the UAE and took off from Ethiopia.

“We do not want to initiate aggression against any country, but whoever attacks us will be met with a response,” Sudan’s Foreign Minister Mohi al-Din Salem said.

The Ethiopian foreign ministry statement accused Sudan of violating its territorial integrity by supporting rebels in the northern Tigray region, but said it had exercised restraint from publicizing the violations due to the ties between the two countries.

“It is evident that these hostile actions, as well as the recent and earlier series of allegations by officials of Sudanese armed forces, are undertaken at the behest of external patrons seeking to advance their own nefarious agenda,” the statement said.

The gradual reopening last year of Sudan’s airport marked a key step in efforts to restore normal life in Khartoum, with ministries and millions of people starting their return back to the capital and surrounding states. The U.N migration agency said that around 4 million people have returned back to Sudan.

Drone attacks have occurred frequently in the war, but Khartoum was considered largely safe until a string of attacks shattered the sense of calm in the capital and central Sudan.

A drone strike on Saturday in Omdurman, the capital’s sister city, killed five people in a civilian bus, while another strike the following day in central Sudan state of Al Jazirah killed relatives of Abu Agla Kaikal, a commander with the Sudan Shield Forces, a group allied with the Sudanese military, who defected from the RSF earlier in the war.

In a post on X, the nonprofit Norwegian Refugee Council said more than 700 people have been killed by drone strikes across Sudan since the start of this year, many of which targeted humanitarian convoys and civilian infrastructure.

At least 59,000 people have been killed in the war, according to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, an independent conflict-monitoring body. Aid groups say the true toll could be much higher as access to areas of fighting across the vast country remains limited.