Events in Libya continue to affect other parts of Africa. The BBC looks at how sub-Saharan African migrants in Libya are faring. Apparently these migrants number one million persons. Meanwhile, journalists continue to probe Qadhafi’s connections with mercenaries from elsewhere in Africa. VOA has more. Finally, Nigeria, one of the most powerful countries in Africa, has condemned the Libyan government’s use of force against protesters and has started to withdraw its citizens from Libya. Libya’s loss in terms of economic and political prestige could be Nigeria’s gain.
Sub-Saharan African Protests: Yahoo News reports that echoes of North Africa’s protests have been heard in Benin, Senegal, and Mauritania. Mauritanian activist Weddady reported that the government there was censoring media and stopping buses in order to block the protest movement.
In Sudan, more protests occurred this week as demonstrators blocked a main road in Khartoum. But the government crackdown continued as well. A rape victim has come forward to share her story, and international rights groups are criticizing the government’s actions.
In Niger, AQIM has released three of the seven hostages it kidnapped last September. The freed hostages include a Togolese man, a Malaghasy (national of Madagascar) man, and a French woman. That leaves four French men – who are potentially of higher ransom value – in AQIM’s hands. Expect more details to emerge about this, and more speculation about ransoms to circulate, over the weekend.
President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed of Somalia asserts that TFG orces have pushed Al Shabab back in Mogadishu.
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