Africa

Sudan’s peace deal set to be formalised

Sudan’s power-sharing government and several rebel groups are due to formalise a peace agreement on Saturday aimed at resolving decades of regional conflicts which left millions displaced and hundreds of…

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Powerbroker Aguila Saleh removed from EU’s Libya Sanction List

The European Union on Friday removed an east Libyan powerbroker from its sanctions blacklist to encourage peace efforts and ensure the EU plays a central role in any negotiated settlement…

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Libya takes centre stage in Italy-Turkey diplomatic talks

Outgoing Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj remains "fundamental" for Libya without a deal on a new institutional architecture in the north African country, Foreign Minister Luigi D i Maio told…

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U.S. defence chief in rare Algeria visit for talks about Libya

U.S. Secretary of Defence Mark Esper made a rare visit to Algeria on Thursday for talks with the president about war-torn Libya and the troubled Sahel region to the south…

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South Africa to reopen borders

South Africa will reopen its borders to all African countries from today while barring tourists from around 50 nations with high infection rates, including Britain, France, India, Russia and the…

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Libyan rivals agree to further military talks, U.N. says

Libya's warring sides have agreed to resume military talks next week after meeting in Egypt, the United Nations mission said, adding it hoped the step would pave the way towards…

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Russia to supply Egypt with COVID-19 vaccine

Russia has clinched a deal with Egypt to supply it with 25 million doses of its Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, as Moscow seeks to take a leading global role in…

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Egypt to guarantee financing to Egypt Air

Egypt's finance ministry will guarantee long-term financing of 3 billion Egyptian pounds ($191 million) from the central bank for national carrier EgyptAir, according to a law issued by the presidency,…

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Morocco introduces tougher rules to curb Covid-19

With air and sea borders closed for months and eight cities barring people from entering or leaving, Morocco has been pulling out the stops to stanch the spread of coronavirus.…

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15 persons die in another tragedy in the Mediterranean Sea – IOM

"More loss of life in the central Mediterranean". This is what Safa Msehli, spokesperson for Iom - UN Migration wrote on twitter, adding that "last night, 120 migrants brought back…

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Could Egypt’s #MeToo movement be the tinder for a ‘feminist revolution’?

In just two months, Egypt’s burgeoning #MeToo movement has exposed sexual assaults, spurred legal reform and emboldened hundreds of abuse victims including celebrities to speak out, sparking a long-overdue debate…

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Eastern Libyan forces say they killed ISIS leader

Eastern Libyan forces said they killed the leader of the Islamic State group in North Africa during a raid in the southern desert city of Sebha earlier this month. The…

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East Mediterranean states formally establish Egypt-based gas forum

Six states signed a charter for an Egypt-based energy forum on Tuesday, giving formal status to a group that seeks to promote natural gas exports from the eastern Mediterranean and…

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Libya’s NOC says output to rise as it seeks to revive oil industry

Libya's National Oil Company said it expected oil production to rise to 260,000 barrels per day (bpd) next week, as the OPEC member looks to revive its oil industry, crippled…

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Egypt’s Sisi committed to ridding Libya of militia, regional interference

Egypt is committed to helping Libyans "rid their country of armed militias and terrorist organizations, and put an end to the blatant interference of some regional parties," Egyptian President Abdel…

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Oil tanker heads to Libya’s Hariga terminal as NOC partially lifts force majeure

The Marlin Shikoku oil tanker is making its way to Libya's Marsa El Hariga terminal, according to Refinitiv Eikon shipping data. Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) on Saturday lifted force…

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Turkey will keep supporting Libya’s GNA despite Sarraj plan to quit

Turkey's agreements and cooperation with Libya's internationally recognised government will continue despite Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj's desire to quit, Presidential Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin was quoted as saying on Monday. In…

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Libyan medics already faced war, now the pandemic is surging there too

As the pandemic started to rage through Libya last month, medics working in the war-ravaged country's few functioning hospitals faced their nightmare scenario - a surge in cases and dwindling…

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Millions of African children rely on TV education during pandemic

Five-year-old Kenyan student Miguel Munene sits between his parents, holding their hands as he watches cartoon characters teaching him to pronounce “fish”. The television has replaced Munene’s teachers and classmates…

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WHO endorses protocol for testing African herbal medicines as potential treatment for coronavirus

The World Health Organization has endorsed a protocol for testing African herbal medicines as potential treatments for the coronavirus and other epidemics. Covid-19 has raised the issue of using traditional…

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Some Libyan oil facilities restart operations

Workers at Libya's major Sharara field have restarted operations, two engineers working there said, after National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced a partial lifting of force majeure. They said flaring had…

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Morocco orders COVID-19 vaccine as cases approach 100,000

Morocco signed a deal with Russia's R-Pharm to buy a COVID-19 vaccine produced under a licence from Britain’s AstraZeneca, the health ministry said, as its total number of cases approached…

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Libya’s NOC lifts force majeure on oil, except where fighters remain

Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) lifted force majeure on what it deemed secure oil ports and facilities on Saturday, but said the measure would remain in place for facilities where…

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Libyan oil producer wants demilitarisation of facilities before resuming operations

The Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC), which operates Libya's energy sector, said it would not resume exports until oil facilities were demilitarised. The NOC was reacting to a statement by…

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Erdogan upset by al-Sarraj declared resignation

President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that Turkey was upset by news that Libya's internationally recognised Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj wants to quit by the end of October. Sarraj announced…

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Oil production in Eastern Libya to resume as Haftar announces lifting of blockade

Eastern Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar said in a broadcast on Friday that his forces had decided to resume oil production after having blockaded export facilities since January, without giving further…

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Turkish, Russian officials nearing deal on Libya ceasefire

Turkey and Russia have moved closer to an agreement on a ceasefire and political process in Libya during their latest meetings in Ankara, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told an…

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Libyan PM Sarraj says he wants to quit by end October

Libya's internationally recognised Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj said on Wednesday he wants to quit by the end of October, which could feed political tensions in Tripoli amid new efforts to…

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Milder-than-expected pandemic in Africa has experts puzzled

Hundreds of thousands or even millions of deaths and serious infections causing the collapse of already shaky health care systems —this is how experts imagined the effect of the coronavirus pandemic…

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Haftar demands prisoner exchange with Italy for captured fishermen

The Libyan warlord General Khalifa Haftar is reportedly refusing to release 18 Italian fishermen until Italy frees four Libyan footballers convicted of human trafficking. The incident dates back to 1…

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U.N. chief to appoint special envoy to broker peace in Libya

The U.N. Security Council asked Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to appoint a special envoy to broker peace in Libya, although Russia and China abstained from voting on the resolution that also…

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Libya’s Prime Minister al-Sarraj to resign – UPDATE

Libya’s Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj plans to announce his resignation soon. CDE News Agency is reliably informed that al-Sarraj had confirmed his intentions to step down to several international players.…

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Photo Story – Floods in Misrata, Libya

Photos Libya Observer

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Government in Eastern Libya resigns after protests turn violent

Protesters set fire to the government's headquarters in the Libyan city of Benghazi, as rare demonstrations over living conditions and corruption continued in the east of the country for a…

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Haftar committed to end oil-facilities blockade – US Embassy

Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar has committed to ending a months-long blockade of oil facilities, the U.S. embassy in the country said in a statement on Saturday, but it was unclear…

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Severe floods hit 760,000 people in West and Central Africa

Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Niger, Mali, Nigeria, Congo Republic and Senegal are among those worst-hit this year, with at least 111 people killed, according to latest figures from the…

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Protests flare in Libya’s Benghazi over power cuts, living conditions

Scores of people protested in Benghazi on Thursday over power cuts and living conditions, witnesses said, burning tyres and blocking some roads in an unusual public show of dissent in…

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EU sea patrol stops UAE ship on suspicion of breaking Libya arms embargo

A European Union naval vessel on Thursday stopped a ship that was carrying jet fuel from the United Arab Emirates to Libya on suspicion it was violating a United Nations…

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EU increases Angola’s Covid-19 response by €20 million

Angola and the European Union held a ministerial meeting co-chaired by the Minister for External Relations of Angola, Tete Antonio and the EU's chief foreign minister, Josep Borrell. The meeting…

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Photo Story: Archaeologist uncover a burial complex in the necropolis of Saqqara

Photos made available by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, showing the discovery of an ancient burial shaft at a necropolis some 19 miles south of Cairo, Egypt. A…

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UPDATED: Tanker expected to load stored crude from Libya’s Es Sider port this week

An oil tanker is expected to start loading a 630,000 barrel crude cargo later this week from storage tanks at Libya's blockaded Es Sider port, according to a shipping source…

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EU prepares to lift sanctions on Libyan powerbroker, diplomats say

The European Union plans to remove an east Libyan powerbroker from its sanctions blacklist to encourage peace efforts and ensure the EU plays a central role in any negotiated settlement,…

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UNHCR’s latest position on Libya as a safe country

The position notes that there is political and military fragmentation in Libya. It also notes that there are armed hostilities between the Sarraj’s Government of National Accord of Libya and…

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EgyptAir to resume direct flights between Cairo and Moscow

EgyptAir will resume direct flights between Cairo and Moscow as of Sept. 17, at the rate of three flights per week, state news agency MENA reported on Tuesday, citing a…

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Islamic State claims responsibility for Tunisia attack

The Islamic State jihadist group has claimed responsibility for a knife attack in Tunisia which yesterday killed one National Guard officer and badly wounded another. Three assailants were shot dead…

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Libya oil units halt operations due to spread of virus

Two affiliates of Libya's National Oil Corp (NOC) have suspended some work because of the spread of the coronavirus, they said in statements posted online on Monday. The country's biggest…

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Photo Story: International flights resume in Nigeria

Airport officials check passengers' travel documents on arrival at the Murtala Muhammed International airport in Lagos, Nigeria. After a five-month closure of the Nigerian airports to international flights to curb…

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UPDATED: Police in Tunisia shoot dead three suspected militants after officer stabbed

Police in Tunisia chased and shot dead three suspected Islamist militants after they attacked two police officers, killing one of them, in the coastal city of Sousse on Sunday, the…

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Sudan declares national state of emergency due to floods

Sudan's Security and Defense Council declared a national state of emergency for three months because of floods that have killed 99 people this year and designated Sudan a natural disaster…

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Libyan interior minister restored to post after talks

Libya’s internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) on Thursday restored the interior minister to his post after announcing his suspension last week following protests over living conditions. Fathi Bashagha…

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U.N. report shows Russia stepping up support for private military contractor in Libya

Russia has stepped up its logistic support for private military contractor Wagner Group in Libya with some 338 military cargo flights from Syria in the nine months to July 31…

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U.N. warns of Libya arms build-up and virus surge

The United Nations acting Libya envoy said on Wednesday that foreign supporters of both sides in the civil war were helping them stockpile weapons in breach of an arms embargo…

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Tunisia’s parliament approves a technocratic government

Tunisia’s parliament approved a technocratic government in a confidence vote on Wednesday, hoping to end months of political instability and focus on tackling worsening economic and social problems. There were…

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Italy backs Libya’s ceasefire – Di Maio

Italy backs the ceasefire deal reached between Libya's UN-backed government and the Speaker of the Tobruk parliament Aguila Saleh, Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio told the president of the Tripoli-based…

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Peace deal in Sudan

Sudan's power-sharing government signed a peace agreement with key rebel groups on Monday, a step towards resolving deep-rooted conflicts from the long rule of ousted leader Omar al-Bashir. Three major…

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EU Bank provides €100 million in emergency funding to help Morocco combat COVID-19

Mohamed Benchaaboun, the Moroccan Minister of Economy, Finance and Administration Reform, and Emma Navarro, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), announced the release of €100 million to finance the Kingdom of…

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PhotoStory – Dolphin’s deaths in Mauritius

Fishermen pick up a dead dolphin from the Indian Ocean off Grand Sable, Mauritius, 28 August 2020 (issued 29 August 2020). According to Greenpeace Africa the carcasses have been taken…

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