May 21, 20245:12 AM ET
South Africa’s constitutional court has ruled that former president Jacob Zuma, one of the most divisive political figures in the country, is not allowed to participate in next week’s election.
May 20, 20245:31 PM ET
Questions are mounting about a failed coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo over the weekend that involved several U.S. citizens.
May 20, 202411:11 AM ET
Enlarge this imageFormer South African President Jacob Zuma arrives at Orlando stadium in the township of Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, for the launch of his newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party’s manifesto Saturday, May 18, 2024.
Jerome Delay/AP
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Jerome Delay/AP
Former South African President Jacob Zuma arrives at Orlando stadium in the township of Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, for the launch of his newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party’s manifesto Saturday, May 18, 2024.
Jerome Delay/AP
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – The Constitutional Court in South Africa has ruled that former President Jacob Zuma cannot run for parliament, just 9 days before what’s being seen as the most pivotal vote in South Africa’s 30 years of democracy.
It’s a significant blow for Zuma and his new uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, which is named after the former armed wing of his previous party, the ruling African National Congress. ..
May 20, 20245:00 AM ET
Enlarge this imageRwanda’s post-genocide transformation has been remarkable, but uneven.
Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR
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Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR
Rwanda’s post-genocide transformation has been remarkable, but uneven.
Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR
KIGALI, Rwanda — Staring at the skyline in this city, you can’t miss the tiered dome of the Kigali Convention Center. At night, its blue, yellow and green lights can be seen from the surrounding hilltops.
Completed in 2016, it’s known to be the most expensive building on the African continent, and a project that’s special to Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
Staff inside the complex say he comes by “every day” to check on the progress. While that’s almost certainly an exaggeration, the building is one of the most visible signs of the ways in which the country has changed since Kagame came to power in the years after the brutal genocide shocked the world.
Yet that transformation ..
May 19, 20246:33 PM ET
Enlarge this imageSupporters of Niger’s ruling junta gather for a protest in Niamey, Niger, on Aug. 3, 2023.
Sam Mednick/AP
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Sam Mednick/AP
Supporters of Niger’s ruling junta gather for a protest in Niamey, Niger, on Aug. 3, 2023.
Sam Mednick/AP
WASHINGTON — U.S. troops ordered out of Niger by the West African country’s ruling junta will complete their withdrawal by the middle of September, the Pentagon and Nigerien defense officials said Sunday.
The timeline was the product of four days of talks between the countries’ defense officials in the capital city of Niamey, according to a joint statement.
Niger’s decision to kick out American forces dealt a blow to U.S. military operations in the Sahel, a vast region south of the Sahara desert where groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group operate.
U.S. troops and some gear already have begun leaving the country, a senior military official and a senior defense..
May 19, 20248:10 AM ET
Enlarge this imageParamedic Papinki Lebelo waits for a police escort before responding to an emergency call-out in the Red Zone neighborhood of Philippi East in Cape Town, South Africa. Due to a rise in attacks on paramedics, large parts of the city are only accessible to ambulance crews when they have a police escort. This severely delays response times.
Tommy Trenchard for NPR
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Paramedic Papinki Lebelo waits for a police escort before responding to an emergency call-out in the Red Zone neighborhood of Philippi East in Cape Town, South Africa. Due to a rise in attacks on paramedics, large parts of the city are only accessible to ambulance crews when they have a police escort. This severely delays response times.
Tommy Trenchard for NPR
It’s 7:30 p.m. in the South African city of Cape Town. Paramedic Papinki Lebelo wears an expression of deep frustration as he waits in his ambulance outside the Phi..
May 16, 20243:00 AM ET
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Peter Dunne/Getty Images
Peter Dunne/Getty Images
For nearly thirty years, the South African government held a man it initially labeled prisoner number 46664, the anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela. But in 1994, Mandela transformed from the country’s ‘number one terrorist’ into its first Black president, ushering in a new era of democracy. Today, though, many in South Africa see Mandela’s party, the ANC, as corrupt and responsible for the country’s problems. It’s an ongoing political saga, with all sides attempting to weaponize parts of the past – especially Nelson Mandela’s legacy. On today’s episode, we tell Mandela’s story: the man, the myth, and the cost of freedom.
Guests:
Sean Jacobs, professor of international affairs at The New School.
Tshepo Moloi, senior lecturer in the Department of History at the University of Johannesburg.
Sisonke Msimang, author of The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela.
Richard Stengel, collaborate..
May 13, 20245:01 AM ET
Enlarge this imageJosephine Dusabimana says she rescued 12 people during the Rwandan genocide.
Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR
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Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR
Josephine Dusabimana says she rescued 12 people during the Rwandan genocide.
Jacques Nkinzingabo for NPR
LAKE KIVU, Rwanda — To be clear, there is nothing funny about genocide. Which is why it is particularly disconcerting to hear Josephine Dusabimana laugh out loud, repeatedly, as she recounts the events that took place in her Rwandan village on the shore of Lake Kivu in 1994.
Over 100 days almost a million people were killed in one of the worst genocides in modern history.
As Dusabimana recounts the events, she smiles often at little details. You can see her big, crooked grin. At times, when she remembers a close call, or a moment of humor in a time of incredible tragedy, she laughs.
Maybe this explains Dusabimana’s courage — she finds joy in the face of evil..
May 12, 20246:34 AM ET
Enlarge this imageParis Lekuuk, 15, (center) listens to a math lesson in the third grade classroom of his primary school in northern Kenya. Just weeks earlier, he had been living the traditional life of a Samburu “moran,” or warrior — herding cattle on a mountain.
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Claire Harbage/NPR
Paris Lekuuk, 15, (center) listens to a math lesson in the third grade classroom of his primary school in northern Kenya. Just weeks earlier, he had been living the traditional life of a Samburu “moran,” or warrior — herding cattle on a mountain.
Claire Harbage/NPR
The Science of Siblingsis a new series exploring the ways our siblings can influence us, from our money and our mental health all the way down to our very molecules. We’ll besharing these storiesover the next several weeks.
The Science of SiblingsParis Lekuuk is 15 years old. But he’s standing in the third grade of a primary school in Northern Kenya &..
May 10, 20241:25 PM ET
Enlarge this imageIsabella Mogeni, 54, from the neighborhood of Mukuru kwa Reuben, looks on as bulldozers destroy homes in the slum area on May 3.
Emmanuel Igunza for NPR
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Emmanuel Igunza for NPR
Isabella Mogeni, 54, from the neighborhood of Mukuru kwa Reuben, looks on as bulldozers destroy homes in the slum area on May 3.
Emmanuel Igunza for NPR
Though Isabella Mogeni lost everything she owned, she was lucky to survive the heavy storm waters that swept through the Mukuru kwa Reuben slums in Nairobi, Kenya, last week, killing dozens of her neighbors.
But hours after the storms, while Mogeni was out at the market, city authorities demolished her house and hundreds of others that had weathered the deluge.
“They never should have done this to us,” Mogeni wails, collapsing to the ground as neighbors try to comfort her amid the din of bulldozers.
For decades, the sprawling corrugated iron shacks and crammed, busy alleys in Mu..