Africa- The daily news from Africa

Police fired tear gas and birdshot at protesters on Saturday in the third day of deadly clashes in Cairo.

Police fired tear gas and birdshot at protesters on Saturday in the third day of deadly clashes in Cairo, as anger at Egypt's ruling military boiled over after 74 people died in football-related violence.

The police responded after dozens of protesters threw stones at officers guarding the interior ministry headquarters hundreds of metres (yards) from the capital's iconic Tahrir Square.

By noon, as some protesters tried to intervene between their colleagues and the police, sporadic stone throwing continued in central Cairo, which the violence has turned into a rock-strewn battlefield.

In the canal city of Suez, two people died in clashes overnight from birdshot wounds, medics said. Hospital officials said nine people have been killed in Cairo and Suez since the violence erupted.

Five people were also wounded in overnight clashes outside police headquarters in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, state media reported.

Marchers had taken to the streets on Friday across the country to demand that Egypt's ruling generals cede power immediately after a night of violence in several cities.

The health ministry said 2,532 people have been injured in the violence, in a statement published by the official MENA news agency on Saturday.

A reporter for the state-owned Nile News television station was wounded in the eye by birdshot, the channel reported.

The interior ministry said 211 policemen were wounded in the violence, including a general who lost an eye. It said 16

conscripts were wounded by birdshot.

Protesters, many of them organised supporters of Cairo's main football clubs known as the Ultras, held up a huge banner to the police that read: “Those who didn't deserve to die have died at the hands of those who don't deserve to live.”

Many of the dead in Wednesday's football riot in the northern city of Port Said were thought to have been Al-Ahly supporters, set upon by partisans of the local Al-Masry side after the Cairo team lost 3-1.

The Ultras played a prominent role among anti-regime elements in the uprising that overthrew president Hosni Mubarak a year ago, and commentators and citizens have suggested pro-Mubarak forces were behind the massacre, or at least complicit.

In the ongoing aftermath, rocks and stones flew in all directions on Friday as police vans in Cairo repeatedly charged the demonstrators before retreating.

At one point, police clubbed protesters just metres away from the interior ministry.

Across the street, a building housing the Tax Authority burned, state television reported.

A soldier injured outside the interior ministry on Thursday died in hospital on Friday, MENA reported.

In a sign of increased insecurity, gunmen carrying automatic weapons stormed a police station in east Cairo, freeing detainees before torching it.

And in the Dokki neighbourhood, a group of men attacked a police station, taking weapons from the building.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) blamed the unrest on “foreign and domestic hands targeting the country.”

In a statement on Facebook, it urged “all political and national forces of this great nation to take a national and historic role and intervene... to return stability.”

Wednesday's clashes between fans of Port Said team Al-Masry and Cairo's Al-Ahly marked one of the deadliest incidents in football history, and came amid claims by witnesses the security forces did little to prevent the it.

After the final whistle, victorious Al-Masry fans invaded the pitch, throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at Al-Ahly supporters, causing panic as players and fans fled in all directions, witnesses said.

On Friday, the prosecutor general slapped a travel ban on the head of the Egyptian Football Association Samir Zaher - a day after he was sacked - and on ex-Port Said governor Mohammed Abdullah, who resigned after the clashes.

“This happened under the military council whose ouster the people are demanding, and who has proved that it is a failure,” he said.

Egyptians have become increasingly angry with the junta, which they accuse of failing to manage the country and of human rights abuses.

For months, they have taken to the streets to demand the ouster of the SCAF and its chief, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who was Mubarak's defence minister for two decades.

The SCAF has pledged to cede full powers to civilian rule when a president is elected by the end of June, but its opponents believe it intends to hold on to power behind the scenes after a transfer to civilian rule.

In the Sinai, the brief abduction on Friday of two US tourists and their guide by masked gunmen dealt a new blow to Egypt's already hard-hit tourism sector, despite their release unharmed several hours later.

The kidnappers intercepted their tour bus on its way from the historic St Catherine's monastery to the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, security officials told AFP. - Sapa-AFP

A purported spokesman of Nigeria's violent Islamist sect Boko Haram has denied he is the man authorities arrested on Wednesday.

MAaiduguri - A purported spokesman of Nigeria's violent Islamist sect Boko Haram has denied he is the man authorities arrested on Wednesday, February 01, 2012, throwing into confusion the identity of the sect member the secret service has detained.

A senior source at Nigeria's State Security Service (SSS) said on Wednesday it had arrested Abu Qaqa, the group's supposed spokesman, whom journalists have not seen but who has regularly telephoned local media to claim responsibility for attacks.

Yet late on Thursday, a man calling himself Abu Qaqa phoned journalists in the sect's heartland of Maiduguri to deny he was under arrest, saying another senior comrade was being held.

Some security officials suspect, in any case, that the “spokesman”, whose voice is often electronically disguised on the telephone, is actually more than one person.

“The person that was arrested was Abu Dardam and not Abu Qaqa. I am Abu Qaqa, the spokesman of Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati Wal-Jihad,” the man told local reporters on Thursday, using Boko Haram's full, formal name.

“Abu Dardam is a senior member of our group who plays a key role on public enlightenment. The arrest of Abu Dardam is an outright deception and betrayal by government and security agents,” he added.

The use of the familiar form “Abu”, or “father of” in Arabic, indicates the names are pseudonyms.

The past three months have seen a surge in violence by Boko Haram, a movement loosely modelled on Afghanistan's Taliban which says it is fighting to install sharia law across Nigeria.

Bomb and gun attacks by them have killed nearly a thousand people in the past two years, Human Rights Watch says.

The SSS source said Abu Qaqa was found hiding under his bed when security forces raided his dwelling in the northern city of Kaduna in the early hours of Wednesday.

The confusion over identity underscores the secretive and impenetrable nature of a movement whose bearded members rarely appear in public, and whose fighters favour night-time hit and run tactics against security forces or civilians.

The arrest of a senior Boko Haram figure would be a coup for the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, which has been criticised for failing to curb the sect's violent activities in the mainly Muslim north.

“Abu Qaqa” would often claim high profile attacks - like one in the northern city of Kano that killed 186 people - for the group and frequently justify the choice of target.

For a long time he was the closest thing the sect had to a public face, before its purported leader Abubakar Shekau posted a video debut of himself last month on YouTube.

The purported spokesman also told local press that the man arrested had been tricked because he was on the way to meet a government official for talks. No known talks have taken place between the government and Boko Haram.

“The person we have been trailing for months and now have him with us is Abu Qaqa. He did not say he is Abu Dardam,” the SSS source who first revealed his arrest told Reuters on Friday, saying the SSS knew of no dialogue going on.

“We are a security agency. We don't play politics. In any case, why would someone who they claimed came for dialogue hide under the bed?”

The reported arrest came two weeks after the prime suspect in a deadly Christmas Day bombing on a church on the edge of Abuja escaped from police custody, prompting Jonathan to sack his police chief. - Reuters

Zambian police have questioned the wife of former president Rupiah Banda about the source of funding for a luxury villa.

Lusaka - Zambian police have questioned the wife of former president Rupiah Banda about the source of funding for a luxury villa, the latest in a string of investigations into high-profile figures by the southern African country's new government.

President Michael Sata has made fighting corruption one of his priorities since ousting Banda in September. His administration has reversed several deals made during Banda's term and launched probes into a host of other transactions.

Sata directed law enforcement agencies in December to investigate the purchase of the villa that Thandiwe Banda owns jointly with other members of a private trust.

Police spokeswoman Charity Munganga said the former first lady was questioned on Friday for allegedly abusing authority and laundering money during the purchase of the villa.

“The former first lady co-operated very well and our investigations are continuing,” Munganga said.

Banda told supporters in Lusaka that his wife was innocent and the truth would soon come out. He said Sata would soon realize that he had been misled.

Last month, the government said it was investigating former finance minister Situmbeko Musokotwane over a tax deferment agreement he concluded with an Indian company.

It has also said it will take full control of fixed-line operator Zamtel from Libyan owner LAP Green Networks after an inquiry in November ruled the 2010 transaction illegal.

Officials are also looking into the 2007 sale of a 49 percent stake in state-owned Zanaco Bank to Rabobank of the Netherlands. - Reuters

Street battle rages near Egypt's Interior Ministry for the second day.

Cairo - Rock-throwing protesters fought riot police through clouds of teargas to within metres of Egypt's Interior Ministry on a second day of clashes triggered by the deaths of 74 people in the country's worst soccer disaster.

A demonstrator and an army officer were reported dead in Cairo and in the city of Suez two people were killed as police used live rounds to hold back crowds trying to break into a police station and fought in front of the state security headquarters, witnesses and the ambulance authority said.

Most of those killed in the Port Said football stadium on Wednesday night were crushed in a stampede and the government declared three days of mourning, but protesters hold the military-led authorities responsible.

It was country's deadliest incident since an uprising ousted Hosni Mubarak almost a year ago and it gave fresh impetus to regular street protests against Egypt's ruling generals.

“We will stay until we get our rights. Did you see what happened in Port Said?” said 22-year-old Abu Hanafy, who arrived from work on Thursday evening and decided to join the protest.

The ministry in Cairo, an object of hatred for football fans who say lax policing was to blame for the stadium disaster, has been hemmed in by the street battles since Thursday.

Thousands were still battling riot police there and more protesters were expected to gather in the centre of the capital for a “Friday of Anger” declared by 28 youth activist groups and political parties.

A Reuters witness heard firing and found gun pellets on the ground. A core of demonstrators had heaved aside a concrete barrier blocking a main road near the ministry overnight to get closer to the building.

“We pulled it down with our bare hands,” said Abdul-Ghani Mohamed, a 32-year-old construction worker. “We are the sons of the pharaohs.”

Ambulances had to intervene overnight to extract riot police whose truck took a wrong turn into a street full of protesters.

Police fired round after round of teargas but the wind picked up on Friday afternoon to waft the fumes back to the police lines, leading the rioting protesters, some of whom waved soccer team flags, to cry “God is Greatest”.

Some of the demonstrators, mostly men in their late teens and 20s, goaded the security forces defending the neat five-story ministry building, shouting “The army, the police - one filthy hand”.

Close to 400 people have been hurt in the confrontations since Thursday, the Health Ministry said, many of them by inhaling teargas.

An army lieutenant was killed by a security vehicle that ran over him by mistake, Health Ministry officials said.

Rocks thrown by protesters were strewn across streets that two months ago witnessed violent clashes between police and activists who see the Interior Ministry as an unreformed vestige of Mubarak's rule.

Hardcore football fans known as “ultras”, who often clash with the police and were at the forefront of the uprising against Mubarak, vowed to continue their protests.

“The crimes committed against the revolutionary forces will not stop the revolution or scare the revolutionaries,” said a pamphlet printed in the name of the ultras.

In Suez, witnesses said fighting broke out at a local police station in the early hours of Friday. “We received two corpses of protesters shot dead by live ammunition,” said a doctor at a morgue.

Many shops in Suez were wrecked and the facade of the Suez Canal Bank was destroyed.

Police cordoned off the Suez state security headquarters and a Justice Ministry compound with razor wire and seven burned-out vehicles lay nearby. Roads were strewn with glass.

The soccer stadium deaths have heaped new criticism on the military council that has governed Egypt since Mubarak stepped down. Critics regard the generals as part of his administration and an obstacle to change.

The army leadership, in turn, has presented itself as the guardian of the “Jan. 25 revolution” and promised to hand power to an elected president by the end of June.

Health officials said at least 1,000 people were hurt in Port Said when fans invaded the pitch after local team al-Masry beat Cairo's Al Ahli, Africa's most successful club.

Hundreds of al-Masry supporters surged across the pitch to the visitors' end and panicked Ahli fans dashed for the exit. But the steel doors were bolted shut and dozens were crushed to death in the stampede, witnesses said.

The cause of the violence has been the focus of intense speculation. Some believe it was triggered by unknown provocateurs working for remnants of the Mubarak administration who are seeking to sabotage the transition to democracy.

Fans were puzzled at how match officials allowed the game to continue even as rival supporters threw stones and fired flares.

They also pointed to a thin police presence given the tense build-up to the game and a precedent of violence at such a highly charged event.

Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim said the fans started it by insulting and provoking each other.

He was widely blamed for the deaths during an emergency parliamentary session on Thursday. MPs including the Islamists who control some 70 percent of the chamber called for him to be held to account and accused him of negligence.

Safwat Zayat, an analyst, said the incident had done further damage to the image of the country's military rulers. “The current events push in the direction of speeding up the transfer of power to civilians,” Zayat said. - Reuters

The U.N.'s human rights office says cattle raiding and tribal violence appear to be the motive for the massacre of 78 people in South Sudan.

Geneva - The U.N.'s human rights office says cattle raiding and tribal violence appear to be the motive for the massacre of 78 people by armed men in uniforms in South Sudan.

A spokesman for the U.N.'s High Commissioner for Human Rights says the attack targeted a cattle camp in South Sudan's Warrap State, also wounding 68 people.

Rupert Colville said Friday the attackers have not yet been identified but crossed over from a neighboring state and apparently targeted another tribe.

South Sudan continues to grapple with tribal and rebel violence since seceding from Sudan in July 2011 under a 2005 peace agreement that ended decades of civil war with Khartoum.

Colville said the area's remoteness and insecurity make it “very hard to investigate” such incidents. - Sapa-AP

ALI ABDULLAH SALEH ended his 33 years as president of Yemen on January 22nd and boarded a plane to Oman and may go on to America. This has brought to a close, at least temporarily, a violent power struggle.Riven by civil strife for many years, opposition groups rose up in open revolt a year ago, following the example of youths in Tunisia and Egypt. Mr Saleh, weakened by an injury from a bomb attack in June, clung to power. For months Yemen appeared in danger of sliding into bloody chaos. Mr Saleh?s loyal troops fought not only student protesters but also tribal bands and defecting soldiers, leaving extremist groups to set up strongholds in the north and south of the country.His departure was brokered by Western diplomats and Gulf leaders. It follows an agreement that gives him and his loyalists immunity from prosecution. The final sign-off on the deal was delayed by several months, until it was enshrined in law by the Yemeni parliament. Mr Saleh?s going should ease political tensions in Yemen. UN envoys have coaxed its competing factions into a detailed power-sharing plan that excludes jihadists. However, Mr Saleh has accepted neither defeat nor permanent exile and says he plans to return to Yemen, a possibility that could yet disrupt the delicate transition of power.Mr Saleh left behind a country that is broke and sclerotic. For decades he secured his power by playing off...

LIBYA?S interim rulers had their first serious wobble on January 21st when a crowd of several thousand massed outside a government building in Benghazi, the country?s second city, where members of the National Transitional Council were meeting. They hurled grenades and Molotov cocktails, yelled angry slogans and demanded more support for rebel fighters now out of a job.Their discontent had been building for some time, particularly in the east of the country, which fell swiftly to rebel forces early last year. As war raged further west until the fall of Tripoli, the capital, in August and the death of Colonel Muammar Qaddafi in October, Benghazians felt increasingly neglected.The most recent uproar came after more than a month of nightly protests. Pictures of the once-popular Mustafa Abdel Jalil, who led the rebels in opposition, have been burned in the streets; other leaders have been vilified for their links with the former regime. Protesters complain that the city, marginalised under Qaddafi, has seen few improvements since his fall from power. The judicial system is still suspended, schools have only recently reopened, official handouts for the poor are not yet restored, and promised medical treatment for fighters wounded in the uprising last year has yet to materialise.The deputy head of the council, Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, whom many dislike for having once led the lawyers?...

A Nigerian Bible scholar once told me as we met for breakfast in Nairobi, "once you drink the waters of Africa, you must return again and again for more."

It has been a little over a year since I've been back for a sip. I cannot believe it's been this long. Priorities have shifted with the new and exciting challenges at CBN News in my professional life and raising my little son in my private life.

I miss Africa so very much; exploring new cultures and meeting new people. And, of course, having a good, strong cup of Kenyan coffee with my friends at Java House.

I carry a bit of Africa in my heart and in my arms?

In my heart, I carry the memories of the past four years of coverage.

The oppressive heat of the Somali winds as they blow across the desert sands. The shock of seeing the bones and dried blood of the massacred in Rwanda. The grief of holding a dying baby. The fear of being a foot from a landmine, knowing little children pass by dozens like it everyday on their way to school. Sitting in the dirt under a scrub brush tree talking with Somali women who have seen horrors I could never imagine.

But for every sad memory, there are two happy memories.

The joy of the Masai dancers as they leapt in to the air with the widest of smiles. The beauty of the early morning mist on the plains. The hope of a South Sudanese teacher as she taught her pupils. Drinking a steaming cup of "coffee sludge" in a small village. Drinking a warm Coke in the desert. Drinking ANYTHING in the middle of nowhere. The naming ceremony a group of Dinka Christians held to "adopt" me into their tribe. The bliss on the face of a young woman holding her first healthy baby thanks to a new local clinic. Getting lost in a Sudanese swamp and walking across dry river bed with my cameraman whose name really is "Moses!"

And the church services! There's nothing like the hours-long worship in African churches. In every country, I met brothers and sisters who have very little, but gladly give anything to their neighbors in need.

I also carry a bit of Africa in my arms. Although he is now an American citizen, my Ethiopian son will always know his heritage. I need only look into his face to see the beauty of his race. The hope, joy and potential of the many I've met and, God willing, will meet again.

There is a part of me that will always remain scattered amongst the acacia trees. And the longing to return is too strong not to return.

Africa Matters is not gone. The column will only be on hiatus for a while as things settle down around here. Keep an eye out for my byline. I will continue to write news analysis pieces in the coming months and warmly welcome your comments and story ideas.

Also, thank you to all the Africa Matters readers who sent e-mails over the years. You have shared your wisdom and insights; the good, the bad and the critical. All have been appreciated. Please, please feel free to e-mail me anytime.

I remain your faithful correspondent, dedicated to covering news around the world... especially on the African continent.

(Editor's Note: This submission is from Tony Das. He will continue as a guest contributor to Africa Matters from time to time.)

Many Westerners believe Africa is a continent of animists who worship multiple gods, and a smattering of Muslims. In fact, Christian website www.the-tidings.com http:/www.the-tidings.com/ reported that "Christian growth in Africa is nothing short of astonishing" and that Africans represent 33% of the planet's Christians. Europe, by contrast is the only continent where Christian numbers are declining "and will likely decline for the foreseeable future."

I belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Martin Luther started the Protestant reformation in Wittenberg, Germany where only one-in-four citizens now call themselves Christian (undoubtedly due to generations of atheistic communism in that former East German city).   

In America, the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reports that "the US is on the verge of becoming a minority Protestant country". However, that report concedes that Catholics have been able to maintain a "steady" percentage of the Christian population due to the impact of Latino immigration.

Christianity is nothing new to Africa. By 500 AD there were three African-born Catholic Popes, all of whom made significant marks on Christianity.

Pope Victor I (AD 189-199), born in the Roman Province of Africa changed the liturgical language from Greek to Latin.

Pope Militiades (AD 311-314) was a North African Berber, a people who live west of the Egyptian Nile Valley. His Edict of Milan in 313 forced Roman Emperors Constantine and Licinius to tolerate Christians and return their confiscated lands.

Pope Galasius I (AD 492-496), also a North African commanded that the Eucharist be celebrated with both bread and wine; the latter had been prohibited by Persian Manicheans who claimed "dual identity" with the Christian church.

To escape King Herod's thugs Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus to Egypt, an African state for refuge. One of the first to be baptized a Christian by the Apostle Philip was a eunuch and aide to Ethiopian Queen Candace. Acts 8:39 says Philip went "on his way rejoicing."

In more recent years, Christian missionaries in Africa left local populations understanding that Christian charity is based upon providing those things that God has deemed necessary for what we now call "quality of life." Food, clean water, medical care and pastoral ministry during Africa's too-frequent natural and man-made disasters are not lost on the recipients.

I have been working in some of the most remote African locations - and some of the most violent - since 1978. I find that Christian clergy, missionaries and aide workers are among the most respected people on the continent. In 1982 as a foreign news correspondent, I covered the first Africa trip of the late Pope John Paul II. In Onitsha, Nigeria -- a country with the largest Muslim population in sub-Sahara Africa-- more than one million people walked as long as two weeks to attend his outdoor mass.

Nigerian Cardinal Francis Arinze, who in 1965 became the world's youngest bishop at the age of 32, was by all accounts a serious contender to replace John Paul II after his death. Cardinal Arinze said at the time: "the great St. Augustine of Hippo, Algeria (again, an African nation), son of St. Monica was the earliest philosopher/theologian to ?re-interpret the teachings of Christ, the Epistles and the Old Testament, thus welding together the old and new in honor of Christ".

To turn Western preconceptions of Africa's religious demography on its head: African Protestant and Catholic clergy have raised the concept of "re-evangelizing the West" by sending African missionaries to under-served Christian communities in Europe, their former colonial masters.

Tony Das has 30+ years of experience as a U.S. diplomat, foreign news correspondent and businessman in Africa. Now President/COO of Global Markets Consulting Group he has just been elected to Church Council at Prince of Peace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Orkney Springs, VA. He can be reached at: tonydas@shentel.net

Earlier this week, we carried a report about seven Somalis beheaded by Islamists with links to Al-Qaeda in Baidoa, Somalia.  The murderers accused the seven of everything from being "spies" to leaving Islam to become "Christians."

I do not know whether these victims were indeed Christians or not.  It's very hard to confirm.  The families are probably not volunteering that information for fear they, too, may be killed. 

What we do know is that, according to Open Doors, there are only 4,000 Christians in the predominantly Muslim country of more than 10 million.  And Somalia is ranked fifth in the world by the organization for persecution against believers.

"Christian" = Criminal

Unfortunately, calling someone a Christian has become the "accusation du juor" that leads to persecution and death in many Muslim countries-whether or not the accused is indeed a Christian.  It seems the term has become an easy way to make sure someone is convicted.

It's kind of like a reverse of the American "Salem Witch Trials" in the late 1600s.  When many good and honest people were accused of being witches and killed by hanging.  The meer accusation often led to death.

"They even called me a 'Christian!'"

When I was in the Dadaab refugee camp on the border between Somalia and Kenya, I interviewed a young Somali girl regarding the awful practice of female genital mutilation (FGM).  Her father, a devout Muslim holy man (imam), stood up in his mosque to denounce the practice.  He refused to let his daughters be mutilated.

As I talked with the beautiful young refugee, she said she had been beaten and called vicious names, because of her father's unpopular stand against FGM. 

"They even called me a Christian," the Muslim girl said with eyes downcast.

Even though this girl's family is obviously Muslim, the easiest way to persecute them without just cause is to call them Christians.

Radical Islam

To be fair, those that beheaded the seven in Somalia do not represent the majority of Muslims.  Most of the Muslims living in the neighboring countries of Kenya, Ethiopia and Sudan are followers of Sufi Islam, a more contemplative "denomination," if you will.

The brand of radicals that killed these Somalis come straight from Saudi Arabia.  Hard-liners that believe those who disagree with their point of view are worthy of death.

"To live is Christ, to die is gain."

Early believers were ripped to shreds by lions and  persecuted beyond imagining simply because they were called "Christians."  And Acts 11:26 says the term "Christian" was first used by believers in Antioch.  For more than two thousand years, people have lived and died for being associated with the label.

Murdering people, Christian or Muslim, is against everything Scripture dictates.  Persecution of any kind is wrong.  We are told to treat others the way we want to be treated, regardless of their race, gender or creed.

However, if someone must die for being a "Christian," at least let it be one who believes in Christ.  One who has promise of a better life; for whom death is considered "gain." 

On the heels of the G-8 summit, President Obama is making his first trip to sub-Saharan Africa since he assumed the presidency.

The G-8 leaders have earmarked $20 billion to help poor African farmers boost their productivity.  That may sound like a lot of money, but it really isn't.  A good portion of that figure had already been tagged to go to the continent anyway.  And many countries are far behind in paying the money they had already promised to give four years ago.

Also, if you compare the more than $48 billion President Bush set aside for Africa during his administration to this $20 billion cumulative donation from some of the richest countries in the world; their promise seems very small indeed.  It almost seems a nice symbolic gesture.  If history is our guide, this is a promise many countries may never keep.

Make sure to tune in to special coverage of the President's trip to Africa on the CBN Newschannel and Christian World News next week.

NAIROBI ? The United Nations on Friday declared Somalia?s famine over, but officials warned that more than 2 million Somalis are still in dire need of assistance and that conditions could again slide by May.

LIKUANGOLE, South Sudan ? Nothing is intact in this town, save the memories. Every hut was burned to the ground. The only health clinic and the only school were torched. Hundreds were killed or injured. Thousands more fled.

HONG KONG ? More than 20 Chinese road builders have been captured by rebels in Sudan, highlighting the growing risks faced by Chinese companies that have poured billions of dollars and thousands of workers into some of Africa?s most volatile areas.

U.S. Special Operations forces rescued an American hostage and her Danish colleague in Somalia early Wednesday in the kind of daring raid that the Obama administration has said will be the hallmark of future U.S. military missions.

TUNIS, Tunisia ? A year after Tunisia?s president fled a revolution fueled in part by his government?s corruption, huge amounts of the money controlled and invested by his family and allies remain out of the reach of the country?s people and new government.