The Gambia’s opposition coalition has called on President Yahya Jammeh to step down immediately, after he challenged his defeat in the recent election. Mr Jammeh initially accept the result but then reversed his decision and said he would annul the election. His party says it would file a petition to the Supreme Court. The UN … Read more
The suicide attack was carried on by two women in a busy market At least 30 people have been killed in a suicide bomb attack in the north-eastern Nigerian town of Madagali in Adamawa state, the army says. Two female suicide bombers detonated their explosives in a busy market, an army spokesman told AFP news … Read more
Rescuers are continuing their search for survivors in Indonesia’s Aceh province a day after a powerful quake struck the area killing 97 people. The magnitude 6.5 tremor damaged or toppled more than two hundred buildings, and many are still feared to be trapped under rubble in Pidie Jaya. Thousands of people who lost their homes … Read more
Since their ouster in 2001, Taliban have executed people they accuse of spying for foreign forces Taliban fighters publicly hanged a university student after accusing him of killing a senior intelligence officer. The militia took Faizul Rehman, a fourth-year student at Kabul Polytechnic university, from his car as he traveled home to visit his family … Read more
The Nobel-prize winning author Wole Soyinka has thrown away his green card in protest of Donald Trump’s presidency. Soyinka, who hails from Nigeria, became the first African to win the Nobel prize for literature in 1986. He has resided in the US for more than 20 years and is a regular teacher at prestigious universities … Read more
The fall of rebel-held eastern Aleppo would not mean the end of the fight against President Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian opposition’s senior negotiator has told the BBC. George Sabra added, however, that it would make any hope of a peace deal more difficult. Syrian forces backed by heavy air strikes have seized more than a … Read more
Syrian government forces have retaken the largest rebel-controlled district in eastern Aleppo, state media report. The capture of Masaken Hanano, in north-east Aleppo, could give Syria’s army line-of-fire control over other opposition-held areas, activists say. The government resumed its offensive to retake eastern Aleppo on 15 November. Some 275,000 people are under siege. The assault … Read more
A suspected car bomb has killed at least 11 people and injured another 16 when it exploded at a police checkpoint next to a busy market in the Somali capital, police and witnesses said. Witnesses saw several bodies at the scene of the blast near the vegetable market in Mogadishu’s Waberi district on Saturday, where … Read more
Mexican authorities have discovered 32 bodies and nine heads hidden in mass graves in a southern region plagued by violence from drug cartels. Investigators exhumed the remains of 31 men and one woman from a hillside in Zitlala, where turf wars between rival criminal gangs are common. “The discoveries are terrible” a security spokesperson said, … Read more
The bodies were found spread across 17 pits in the region hit by cartel turf wars Mexican authorities have discovered 32 bodies and nine heads hidden in mass graves in a region plagued by violence from drug cartels. Investigators exhumed the remains of 31 men and one woman from a hillside in Zitlala, where turf … Read more
The case against five Zimbabwean war veterans, charged with insulting President Robert Mugabe, has collapsed. A magistrate’s court in the capital, Harare, set aside the charges after the prosecution was not ready to proceed with the trial for two consecutive days. The five were charged after issuing a statement earlier this year, accusing Mr Mugabe, … Read more
An Iraqi paramilitary force says it has seized a key road west of Mosul, effectively encircling the city controlled by so-called Islamic State. The Popular Mobilisation (Hashd al-Shaabi) declared it had taken control of the road between Tal Afar and Sinjar after linking up with Kurdish forces. IS militants still control the section of the … Read more
A bill which would allow men accused of raping underage girls to be cleared if they marry the girl has been preliminarily backed by Turkish MPs. The government says the bill is aimed at pardoning men who did not realise they were engaging in underage sex. Critics say it legitimises rape and child marriage, and … Read more
Dozens of protesters demanding a military coup have forced their way into Brazil’s lower chamber of Congress in the capital, Brasilia. At least 40 demonstrators scuffled with guards and took over the podium as a session began on Wednesday. Denouncing government corruption, they called for a return to military rule – which Brazil saw from … Read more
A tsunami has hit after an earthquake struck New Zealand’s South Island. The US Geological Survey said the magnitude-7.8 quake hit just after midnight (11:02 GMT on Sunday), some 95km (59 miles) from Christchurch. The tsunami arrived in the north-eastern coast about two hours later. Officials said the first waves may not be the largest, … Read more
The Bataclan concert hall in Paris has reopened with a performance by Sting, a year after Islamist militants killed 90 people at the venue. The British singer told the audience, including survivors, that they had to honour the dead and celebrate life. There was a minute’s silence for those killed in the French capital by … Read more
Thirteen workers have died in a fire at a suspected illegal garment factory on the outskirts of Delhi in India. The workers were sleeping when the blaze started in the early hours of Friday on the ground floor of a narrow building, which was being used to make leather jackets in Sahibabad, a suburb of … Read more
A popular Gambian wrestler has drowned while crossing the Mediterranean trying to reach Europe, his coach says. Ali Mbengu, known to his fans as “Mille Franc”, was on a boat travelling from Libya to Italy when it capsized last Friday, Pateh Nying said. A Gambia Wrestling Federation spokesman told the AFP news agency the 22-year-old … Read more
Many migrants are prepared to risk all to get from Libya to Europe A popular Gambian wrestler has drowned while crossing the Mediterranean trying to reach Europe, his coach says. Ali Mbengu, known to his fans as “Mille Franc”, was on a boat travelling from Libya to Italy when it capsized last Friday, Pateh Nying … Read more
A wrestler from The Gambia has died trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Italy, his coach has told AFP news agency. Ali Mbengu, 22, drowned last Friday when the boat he was travelling in capsized, Pateh Nying said. News of his death comes less than two weeks after the 19-year-old goalkeeper of Gambia’s national … Read more