Kenya
More than 200 traders clashed with riot police in the capital, Nairobi as they protested at the demolition of their kiosks. The traders were furious at the destruction of their makeshift stands in the city's eastern suburbs. Claiming that they had lost millions of shillings, they engaged the police in running battles disrupting traffic in the area. Meanwhile 20 people were hacked to death and another 28 left seriously injured after bloody clashes in another estate in the city. The attacks were blamed on a local vigilante group that was revenging an earlier killing of two of its members by a rival group. Source: The Daily Nation
Zimbabwe
The European Union (EU) imposed sanctions on Zimbabwean after president Robert Mugabe refused to let EU observers monitor the country's presidential polls held mid this month. The EU ordered the observers back after its foreign ministers issued a statement on March 19 in Brussels, Belgium saying that Mugabe's government had "prevented the deployment of an EU election observation mission." Earlier, Harare had expelled from the country Pierre Schori, the Swedish head of the EU's observers. Source: Reuters
Angola
Angola's armed forces claimed to have killed a general of the UNITA movement who was said to have succeeded slain rebel leader, Jonas Savimbi. The army said that Gen. Antonio Dembo died from injuries sustained in the offensive that led to Savimbi's death late last month. The death of Dembo, seen as moderate by diplomats has ignited hopes of peace talks in the country. But there others who fear a fragmentation of the rebel group will scuttle the possibility of such negotiations. Source: AP
Republic of Congo
Incumbent president Dennis Sassou Nguesso won an overwhelming victory in the country's presidential elections held on March 14. Nguesso took 89 percent of the vote, according to the country's interior ministry. The election was the first for the central African state since two back-to-back civil wars ended with a cease-fire in 1999. The victory gives Nguesso, who has ruled the country for all but five years since 1979, another seven years in office. Source: AP
The Hague
A Scottish Appeals court upheld the conviction of a Libyan intelligence agent for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am plane that killed 270 people in the Scottish town of Lockerbie. The five judge court ruled unanimously that Abdel basset al al-Megrahi was guilty of the bombing. Megrahi was found guilty last year but his co-accused was acquitted. He will spent the rest of his life in a Scottish prison. Source: AP
Nigeria
Peace talks on Liberia opened mid this month in Abuja, Nigeria without a main rebel group that opted to stay out. Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo and other west African leaders are brokering the talks bringing together president Charles Taylor, rebel groups and political exiles in a bid to force dialogue in Liberia, which has seen a resurgence of fighting in recent months. Meanwhile, Obasanjo sacked the country's police chief and six deputies citing rising insecurity and the country's first strike by the police force. The decision to sack Inspector General, Musulini Smith and his deputies was approved at a meeting of the police council chaired by Obasanjo in Abuja early this month. Source: Reuters
DR Congo
Ugandan backed Congolese rebels agreed early this month to reopen River Congo to commercial traffic starting from April. It is a move that is aimed at restoring links between sectors of the vast central African state. However, another rebel group that is backed by Rwanda has refused to reopen the portion of the river they control in eastern Congo,. This latter move will jeopardise the revival of the economy in the area, which collapsed when the country sunk into another civil war broke out in 1998. Meanwhile, Congolese president, Joseph Kabila has been urged to assist in tracking down suspects of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda in his country. The call was made by the Registrar of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, Adama Dieng. Source: AP
Madagascar
Troops were deployed in the country's capital, Antananarivo, early this month to prevent a planned invasion of government ministries by opposition protestors. Several hundreds of troops guarded the offices as demonstrators amassed in the capital's central square, planning to use the weight of their numbers to seize the offices on behalf of the self-declared president, Marc Ravolomanana who has appointed a rival 17-member cabinet to run the Indian Ocean island. Source: Reuters
Uganda
The Uganda army sent troops early this month inside southern Sudan to track down rebel forces that had earlier abducted civilians in northern parts of the country. The army said the pursuit had seen the army get engaged in fighting with the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) inside Sudan. The fighting at Labone, 10km inside Sudan left 80 rebels dead. Source: AP
