Opposition leader Umaro Sissoco Embalo has won presidential elections in the volatile West African state of Guinea-Bissau, picking up 53.55 per cent of votes, the National Electoral Commission (CNE) announced Wednesday. His rival Domingos Simoes Pereira, head of the country’s historic ruling party PAIGC, took 46.45 percent in Sunday’s runoff. “I declare Umaro Sissoco Embalo […]

China’s central bank announced Wednesday it was cutting the reserve requirements for banks, freeing up about $114 billion to boost lending and spur the slowing economy. The People’s Bank of China will cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) on January 6 by 50 basis points, it said in a statement, reducing the amount of cash […]

The daughter of former Angolan president Jose Eduardo dos Santos has denied allegations of financial irregularities after a court froze her bank accounts, calling the claims “politically motivated”. Isabel dos Santos — nicknamed Africa’s wealthiest woman — is under investigation for alleged irregularities involving state companies including the OPEC nation’s giant state oil company Sonangol. […]

The head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State, Pope Francis, had to pull himself away from a woman in a crowd in St Peter’s Square on Tuesday after she grabbed his hand and yanked him toward her. The pope was on Tuesday was greeting pilgrims on his way to see the […]

Algeria’s richest man Issad Rebrab walked free on time served early Wednesday after a court sentenced him to six months for tax, banking and customs offences. Prosecutors had sought a one-year prison sentence for the 74-year-old head of Algeria’s biggest privately owned conglomerate Cevital, who was one of several tycoons arrested in April as part […]

Hong Kong police fired tear gas a few minutes into 2020 as pro-democracy protesters marked the New Year with midnight countdown rallies and a massive march planned for January 1. The city has been battered by more than six months of unrest with marches attended by millions, as well as confrontations in which police have […]

Iran hit out Tuesday at the “audacity” of United States to blame it for violent anti-US demonstrations in Iraq, warning the United States to review its policies in the region. “The surprising audacity of American officials is so much that after killing at least 25… and violating the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, that now… […]

Algerian prosecutors on Tuesday sought a one-year prison sentence for the country’s richest man Issad Rebrab who went on trial accused of tax, banking and customs offences. The 74-year-old, who heads Algeria’s biggest privately-owned conglomerate Cevital, was one of several tycoons arrested in April as part of a corruption investigation. The probe followed the resignation […]

The Arab League Council on Tuesday warned that foreign military interference in Libya would facilitate the transfer of foreign terrorist fighters into the war-torn North African country. In a resolution after an emergency meeting in Cairo, the council said the ongoing military escalation in Libya was exacerbating the situation in the country and threatening the […]

Charles Ble-Goude, an ally of former Cote d’Ivoire President Laurent Gbagbo, has been sentenced in absentia to 20 years in prison by a court in Abidjan, for his role in the civil war. The civil war followed the 2010 presidential election, his lawyers said. Ble-Goude headed the notorious Young Patriots street militia during Gbagbo’s presidency. […]