Africa

Forces free seized German cargo ship off Africa (AP)

October 25th, 2010

In this undated photo released Sunday Oct. 24, 2010, by Interunity Management Corporation SA, (IMC) showing the MV York merchant vessel which was boarded by suspected Somali pirates approximately 90 nautical miles from Mombasa, Kenya, on Saturday Oct. 23, 2010.  A distress signal from the vessel was received Saturday as the York sailed between Mombasa and Mahe, Seychelles, with 17 crew aboard, and is now believed to be headed towards Somalia under the control of pirates. (AP Photo/IMC) ** EDITORIAL USE ONLY **AP - Rescue forces using a ship, a plane and a helicopter freed a German cargo vessel being held by Somali pirates off eastern Africa on Monday, but the hijackers…

Quadruple amputee plans swim from Europe to Africa (AP)

September 20th, 2010

Philllipe Croizon, a Frenchman whose arms and legs were amputated jokes during a press conference in Wissant, northern France, Monday, Sept. 20, 2010 after crossing the English Channel this weekend using leg prostheses that have flippers attached.  Croizon, 42, had expected the tough crossing to take up to 24 hours and instead, he finished in only 13 and a half. (AP Photo/ Michel Spingler)AP - Just days after swimming across the English Channel, quadruple amputee Philippe Croizon is already dreaming of a new challenge: crossing from Europe to Africa in the Strait of…

Charles Taylor’s war-crimes lawyer in South Africa (AP)

September 16th, 2010

AP - Charles Taylor’s defense team says the chief lawyer representing the former Liberian president at his war crimes trial is visiting South Africa.

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Violence erupts during South Africa strike (AP)

August 19th, 2010

Hospital workers protest outside the Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg, Thursday, Aug.19, 2010 during the second day of a nationwide civil service strike. Public service unions went on strike after rejecting the government's offer of a seven percent salary increase and a R700 monthly housing allowance.  Unions were demanding an 8.6 percent increase and R1000 allowance. (AP Photo/Denis farrellAP - Police fired rubber bullets on protesting teachers throwing bricks and stones and nurses tore down a gate at a hospital as a nationwide civil servants’ strike for higher…

1997 South Africa dinner raises diamond questions (AP)

August 6th, 2010

In this image made from television Naomi Campbell is seen at the U.N.-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone in Leidschendam, Netherlands, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2010. Naomi Campbell appeared at a Dutch courthouse to give evidence at the war crimes trial of former Liberian ruler Charles Taylor after the supermodel lost her battle to avoid testifying. Campbell will be questioned about claims made by actress Mia Farrow that Taylor gave the British model an uncut diamond after a dinner party hosted by Nelson Mandela in South Africa in 1997. Prosecutors say if that's true, it's evidence that he received diamonds from Sierra Leone rebels in exchange for weapons during that country's 1992-2002 civil war. (AP Photo/Special Court for Sierra Leone, via APTN) ** TV OUT **AP - The party to raise money for Nelson Mandela’s children’s charity started with an odd guest list: Dining among the celebrities was Liberian warlord Charles Taylor, also known as…

Al-Qaida in N. Africa says French hostage killed (AP)

July 25th, 2010

AP - The leader of al-Qaida’s offshoot in North Africa said in a message broadcast Sunday that the group has killed a French engineer taken hostage in Niger in April.

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Uganda president calls for Africa to fight terror (AP)

July 25th, 2010

AP - A top U.S. official on Sunday pledged continued support for African peacekeeping efforts in war-torn Somalia, as Uganda’s president urged African leaders to unite against terrorism just weeks…

TIME’s Global Forum in South Africa Kicks Off (Time.com)

June 26th, 2010

Time.com - In geographic terms, Robben Island sits in the Atlantic Ocean, just a few miles from Cape Town’s bustling waterfront, which is nestled beneath Table Mountain. But, for decades,…

South Africa revels in its World Cup moment (AP)

June 9th, 2010

Local residents and soccer fans watch a Ghana training session at Eersterust Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa, Wednesday, June 9, 2010. Ghana is preparing for the World Cup, where it will play in group D. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)AP - Soccer’s stars have converged on South Africa from across the globe, but on the eve of the World Cup it is the host nation â?? with all its…

Millions face hunger in arid belt of Africa (AP)

May 28th, 2010

In this Tuesday, May 11, 2010 photo, taken following a sandstorm, nomadic tribal chief Ibrahim Mangari walks past the carcass of a cow that he says died of hunger, in Gadabeji, Niger. At this time of year, the Gadabeji Reserve should be a refuge for the nomadic tribes who travel across the moonscape deserts of Niger to graze their cattle.  But the grass is meager, not enough even for the small goats, after a drought killed off the last year's crops. International aid groups once again warn this nation of 15 million on the verge of the Sahara Desert faces a growing food crisis.(AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)AP - At this time of year, the Gadabeji Reserve should be refuge for the nomadic tribes who travel across a moonscape on the edge of the Sahara to graze…