Global Pulse

标签： Africa

非洲

  • Morocco captain Hakimi to stand trial for rape

    Morocco captain Hakimi to stand trial for rape

    French prosecutors have officially confirmed that Paris Saint-Germain and Morocco national team captain Achraf Hakimi will face trial on rape charges, a development that has thrown the 27-year-old fullback’s 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign into uncertainty ahead of his side’s second group stage fixture against Scotland this Friday.

    The allegations date back to 2023, when a 24-year-old woman accused the star defender of assaulting her at Hakimi’s private residence in Paris. Authorities in Nanterre, the western Paris suburb overseeing the case, launched an initial preliminary investigation in March 2023. After more than three years of procedural review, an investigating judge ordered the case proceed to trial in February 2026. Multiple French media outlets have reported that Hakimi’s recent appeal to have the charges dismissed was rejected.

    Hakimi has vehemently denied all allegations against him from the beginning, and broke his years-long public silence on the case in a social media post published Friday. “The justice system looked me in the eye and said, ‘If you weren’t famous, there would never have been a case,’” he wrote.

    The World Cup star explained that he chose to stay out of public discourse for years out of a commitment to preserving his dignity and confidence in France’s judicial process. “Today, a story that isn’t mine is being told at the expense of my family, my life, and above all, the truth. I sometimes feel like I’ve become an easy target,” Hakimi added. “I’ve been waiting for this trial since day one. And now I’m eagerly awaiting it. Finally, I’ll be able to speak.”

    Rachel-Flore Pardo, the legal representative for the accuser, said the judge’s ruling to proceed to trial brings her client both relief and hope, after more than three years of navigating the legal process. Pardo noted that her client believes she has been defamed and publicly maligned by Hakimi’s defense team. “Relief that she has been heard by the justice system and will have the right to a trial,” Pardo said. “Hope that this trial will help other women and further weaken the wall of denial and impunity surrounding sexual violence, including in the world of men’s football.”

    As of this reporting, no official start date has been scheduled for the trial. All three of Morocco’s group stage matches at the 2026 co-hosted World Cup are set to take place in the United States, where the Moroccan squad is currently based, leaving Hakimi able to play for the time being. However, if Morocco advances to the knockout round, the team could be forced to play matches in co-host nations Canada or Mexico, where Hakimi may face entry restrictions.

    This scenario is not unprecedented at this tournament: last week, Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey was denied entry to Canada and forced to miss his country’s opening group stage match against Panama. Partey, 32, has pleaded not guilty to seven rape charges and one count of sexual assault leveled by four separate accuser for alleged incidents between 2020 and 2022, and he is scheduled to go to trial in 2027. Canadian immigration rules explicitly allow officials to deny entry to any person who has been alleged or convicted of a criminal offense.

    The 2026 FIFA World Cup splits matches across all three North American co-hosts through the quarter-final round, after which all remaining fixtures will be hosted exclusively in the United States.

    One of the most decorated active African footballers, Hakimi made his senior international debut for Morocco in 2016 at just 17 years old, and has since earned 97 caps for his country. He was a foundational player for the 2022 Moroccan World Cup squad that made history as the first African nation to reach the tournament’s semi-final. Since transferring from Inter Milan to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, Hakimi has won 13 club trophies, including consecutive UEFA Champions League titles in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons.

  • Boy, 12, wins hearts after trying to check sick chicken into Ethiopian hospital

    Boy, 12, wins hearts after trying to check sick chicken into Ethiopian hospital

    For 12-year-old Markos Abaye, a displaced child growing up in rural Ethiopia, one small feathered companion has become his whole world. So when his beloved pet chicken fell ill earlier this month, unresponsive to every home remedy his young mind could devise, he did what felt like the only logical step: he laced up his shoes, tucked the ailing bird close to his chest, and rushed her straight to the nearest local hospital.

    Markos’ desperate act of kindness has since captured global attention after a nurse on duty at Denbecha Primary Hospital, located in Ethiopia’s Amhara region, filmed the unlikely patient and her worried young owner and shared the clip on TikTok. To date, the video has amassed more than 770,000 views, leaving thousands of viewers across Ethiopia and beyond moved by the preteen’s profound compassion for his animal companion.

    In the viral footage, Markos can be seen cradling the sick hen tightly, his face etched with worry as he explains to the nurse, “She is wheezing.” Nurse Umer Chane, who recorded the interaction, gently responded: “Listen, there are doctors who treat animals. You have to take her there. This is a hospital for humans. Okay, dear?”

    What many viewers do not know from the 15-second viral clip is the deeper backstory that binds Markos to this chicken. Markos moved in with his uncle and guardian Kelemework Amogne in August 2023, when violent conflict broke out between the Ethiopian national army and local Fano militias in Amhara. Fearing for the boy’s safety, his grandparents sent him away to live with his uncle, and gave him the chicken as a cherished parting gift.

    Since then, Markos has formed an unbreakable bond with the hen. His uncle shared that the boy watches the bird’s every move, even mapping her footpaths and building tiny earthen bridges over small holes in the ground to keep her from falling. When the chicken fell ill, Markos was so distraught that he stopped eating and attending to his schoolwork. Kelemework had suggested the boy seek out professional help for the hen, but Markos had no idea that specialized veterinary clinics existed in his town of Denbecha – to him, a hospital was simply a place where any sick living thing could get care.

    Even as onlookers in the hospital teased the boy for bringing a chicken to a human medical facility, Umer the nurse said he could see nothing but pure, earnest kindness in Markos’ face. “He hugged the chicken tightly, worried about her condition, even as others tried to make fun of him,” Umer told the BBC. Struck by the moment, Umer posted the video to TikTok, never expecting it to blow up across the country.

    When Markos returned home after his hospital trip, he only told his uncle that people had laughed at him. It was not until days later, when the family stumbled on the viral video online, that they realized the boy’s act of love had captured national attention. “He thought of a hospital as one that could treat both people and animals,” Kelemework explained, adding that he has been stunned by the outpouring of support for his nephew. “It seemed like a dream!”

    Thankfully, Markos’ beloved chicken has already made a full recovery. The 12-year-old told reporters he is now planning to let the hen hatch the 12 eggs he has saved up for her.

    Following the viral spread of Markos’ story, a local Ethiopian poultry company has stepped forward to honor his love of animals: the firm announced it will donate 100 chickens to Markos, as well as provide him with formal training in poultry farming to help him turn his passion into a skill for the future.

  • A Miami art exhibit is celebrating Africa’s soccer legacy throughout the World Cup

    A Miami art exhibit is celebrating Africa’s soccer legacy throughout the World Cup

    MIAMI (AP) — Near the entrance of a new Miami art exhibition, a striking photograph captures Brazilian star Vinícius Júnior mid-goal celebration, one fist raised high in triumph. It hangs adjacent to a vivid acrylic work by Tasanee Durrett, depicting a Black woman heading a soccer ball, her dreadlocks floating mid-air. A glass-cased replica of the FIFA World Cup trophy anchors the nearby display space, encircled by an array of photographs, paintings and national flags that weave together the untold stories of generations of African footballers and their soccer dreams.

    This immersive collection, titled *Art and the Beautiful Game: Africa on the World Stage*, is the work of AfriKin, a foundation dedicated to amplifying African and African diaspora art. Curated by Alfonso D. Brooks, a former longtime sound engineer turned arts organizer, the exhibition opened in Miami in advance of the World Cup, drawing together works from more than 50 creators spanning 25 countries. The show traces soccer’s deep embedded role in African history, while honoring the sport’s most globally influential figures — from the late Brazilian legend Pelé to contemporary French star Kylian Mbappé.

    Every one of the 10 African nations qualifying for the World Cup is highlighted and celebrated in the exhibition, with a special tribute reserved for Cape Verde. The tiny island nation off West Africa pulled off one of the tournament’s most surprising upsets in its World Cup debut, securing a historic draw against European powerhouse Spain. AfriKin is scheduled to host an official honorary ceremony for Cape Verde on Saturday evening, ahead of the team’s group stage match against Uruguay.

    As the World Cup draws tens of thousands of global football fans to Miami, Brooks and participating artists set out to create a welcoming communal space where the African diaspora can gather, connect and celebrate its distinct cultural legacy throughout the tournament. “Miami is a huge melting pot,” explained Durrett, a 31-year-old Orlando-based artist and licensed architect. “We have Latin residents, Haitian communities, Caribbean communities, so many different cultural influences. Now that we have this platform and this voice, why not lift that story up?”

    Brooks, who was born in the Dutch Caribbean territory of St. Maarten and relocated to Miami in 2008, developed his love for soccer from its humble grassroots origins across the African continent. He recalls growing up watching young children kick makeshift soccer balls — or any round object they could find — down school hallways, in living rooms, across uneven concrete streets. “This is where you get the term ‘the beautiful game,’” he said. “Because it required nothing but a beautiful spirit.”

    That joyful simplicity runs through the entire exhibition, which offers intimate glimpses into neighborhood pick-up pitches while also highlighting the sport’s unique global power to unite people across differing backgrounds, races and languages.

    Columbus-based artist Bamazi Talle, a native of the West African nation of Togo, explores this unifying theme through paintings of the calabash — a large, woody gourd that holds deep cultural meaning across many African communities. Beyond its practical uses, from serving meals to being hardened into water-carrying vessels, the calabash stands as a cultural symbol of community connection and hospitality. Talle paints the gourds floating against the backdrop of flags of all competing World Cup nations, drawing a parallel between the fruit’s cross-cultural history and the unifying spirit of the global tournament. “Calabash became one thing that united all of us,” Talle said. “And this cup, this World Cup is, I think, this celebration of all of us coming together.”

    Durrett, whose acrylic work greets visitors at the entrance, uses her art to lift up the underrepresented stories of Black women in soccer. She first took up drawing as a therapeutic practice years ago, and has centered her work on highlighting marginalized communities, often creating full canvas pieces in a single continuous line. “I hope that visitors see the unique stories that we as artists are telling,” she said. “And I hope they see themselves reflected in these stories.”

    The exhibition also highlights what Brooks terms “Hidden Africa” — a section focused on European national teams including France, Belgium and England that field numerous players of African heritage, who were either born or developed their football skills in European countries. Through this framing, Brooks aims to highlight the far-reaching connections of the African diaspora across the entire World Cup field, while opening up conversations around identity, immigration, and the complex factors that shape a player’s choice of which nation to represent internationally.

    “I’m not just showing a football and hanging up pretty pictures or highlights of goals,” Brooks emphasized. “We want to tell a real story that people can walk into, engage with, and leave saying ‘Wow, I didn’t know that.’ People need to learn from this exhibition.”

  • Can Renard revive Tunisia’s World Cup campaign?

    Can Renard revive Tunisia’s World Cup campaign?

    Tunisia has turned to the charismatic French football manager Herve Renard in a urgent push to rescue their 2026 FIFA World Cup hopes, just days after a humiliating opening match defeat forced the Carthage Eagles to make historic coaching change.

    The North African side moved quickly to part ways with former manager Sabri Lamouchi following a lopsided 1-5 loss to Sweden on Monday, making Tunisia the first nation in World Cup history to dismiss a head coach after just one group stage match. In the expanded 48-team tournament format, Tunisia still holds a narrow path to advance out of Group F, but Renard will have zero room for error when he makes his dugout debut against Japan on Sunday.

    At 57, Renard joins an exclusive club of elite managers to lead three different nations at consecutive World Cup finals, following his stints with Morocco in 2018 and Saudi Arabia in 2022. It was in Qatar 2022 where Renard cemented his reputation for giant-killing, masterminding a iconic group stage upset over eventual champions Argentina, despite Argentina and Lionel Messi taking an early lead in the match.

    When approached by the Tunisian Football Federation about the vacancy, Renard did not hesitate to accept the high-stakes role. “It’s a challenge that isn’t easy, but it’s a motivating challenge,” the manager stated following his official appointment on Tuesday.

    Beyond the famous crisp white shirts he wears while pacing the touchline, Renard’s path to top-level international management has been defined by hard-won experience and humble beginnings. Before his rise to global prominence, he balanced early coaching work with overnight cleaning shifts to make ends meet, a chapter of his career he credits with shaping his relentless work ethic.

    “I woke up at 2:30 in the morning, finished around noon and then left at 5pm for training at Draguignan. That was my rhythm of life for eight years,” Renard told BBC Sport Africa in a 2019 interview. While working his cleaning shift, Renard also studied to earn his coaching qualifications, and he says that grueling period gave him a grounded perspective on his career. “It’s the best schooling I could have had. You have to go through some failures and difficult times but it makes you stronger,” he added.

    Renard’s coaching resume is one of the most varied in international football, including stints with club sides across France, England, Vietnam and Algeria, plus leadership roles with six different senior national teams. He remains the only manager in history to claim the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) title with two separate nations: he delivered a fairy-tale 2012 triumph for Zambia against Ivory Coast, then guided the Ivory Coast side to the same trophy just three years later.

    Longtime Zambian sports journalist Nkweto Tembwe describes Renard as a relentless workaholic and master tactician, whose attention to opponent scouting sets him apart from other managers. “He does a lot of reading to make sure he keeps up with the trends that are going on. He [studies] opponents like he’s studying for an exam,” Tembwe told BBC Sport Africa, adding that Renard’s pre-match motivational speeches were the key to Zambia’s unexpected 2012 Afcon run. “If you listen to Herve’s pep talk in the semi-final against Ghana, you realise that Zambia won that match in the dressing room,” Tembwe said. “He described every player there and told the Zambia players what to do [and] especially what not to do. The famous white shirt delivered.”

    While Renard’s African success is unparalleled, his recent career has brought mixed results. He failed to advance past the knockout stages in Afcon tournaments with Morocco, then coached France’s women’s national team to quarter-final finishes at both the 2023 Women’s World Cup and 2024 Olympics. He returned to lead Saudi Arabia in October 2024 and guided the nation to qualification for the 2026 World Cup, but was surprisingly dismissed in April this year, opening the door for Tunisia’s approach.

    Renard has long been the first choice for many African national teams seeking a new manager, but his high salary demands and contract commitments have often blocked potential deals. During the 2023 Afcon hosted by Ivory Coast, the nation attempted to rehire Renard after sacking Jean-Louis Gasset, but the French Football Federation refused to release him from his contract with the French women’s side. A Nigerian football official even described Renard’s financial demands as “practically outrageous” when the Super Eagles attempted to recruit him in late 2024.

    For Tunisia, this appointment marks Renard’s fifth leadership role with an African national side, following his earlier stints with Zambia, Angola, Ivory Coast and Morocco. Beyond the historic milestone of managing three different countries at consecutive World Cups (a feat only achieved by a handful of managers including Bora Milutinovic, Carlos Alberto Parreira and Guus Hiddink), Renard is also chasing a personal milestone: he has never advanced past the group stage of a men’s World Cup finals.

    Renard’s immediate priority is fixing Tunisia’s leaky defensive structure, which conceded five goals to Sweden just days after allowing five in a pre-tournament warm-up loss to Belgium. The French manager, known for his strict disciplinary approach, has already called on his new squad to put the opening defeat behind them and refocus on their upcoming matches against Japan and the Netherlands. “I just told them we have to hold our heads high… you’re here to represent the country, Tunisia. It’s an honour, it’s a duty,” Renard said. “We owe it to ourselves to do much better.”

    Renard already has prior experience facing Japan during World Cup qualifying with Saudi Arabia, and he will draw on that knowledge to push for Tunisia’s first ever knockout stage appearance at a World Cup. If he can pull off the comeback and secure Tunisia a spot in the round of 32, it will add yet another legendary entry to Renard’s already remarkable coaching career.

  • Vietnamese man deported from U.S. to South Sudan is repatriated after months in detention

    Vietnamese man deported from U.S. to South Sudan is repatriated after months in detention

    JUBA, South Sudan – More than a year after being transferred to South Sudan as part of the former Trump administration’s divisive third-country deportation initiative, a Vietnamese national has finally returned to his home country, shedding new light on the opaque and widely criticized program that resettles non-U.S. citizens with completed criminal sentences in third-party African nations.

    Forty-four-year-old Tuan Phan, who moved to the United States as a child in 1991, was formally repatriated to Vietnam on Friday, South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed during a weekly press briefing. Spokesperson Agok Anyar noted that throughout his more than 12 months in South Sudanese custody, Phan maintained good conduct and remained in stable health, for which the ministry expressed gratitude.

    Phan’s journey to Juba was tangled in legal dispute from the start. He and seven other male deportees were first rerouted to a U.S. military base in Djibouti in May 2025, after a federal judge paused their flight to South Sudan over documented procedural violations in their deportation orders. It was not until a Supreme Court ruling cleared the way for their removal that the group finally arrived in South Sudan’s capital aboard a U.S. military aircraft two months later.

    All eight men had already served full prison sentences for U.S. criminal convictions when Immigration and Customs Enforcement took them into immigration custody last year. Phan’s conviction dates back to 2000, shortly after he turned 18, when he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for a fatal shooting during a gang altercation. His deportation was first ordered in 2009, and he was taken directly into ICE custody upon his release from prison in March 2025.

    The third-country deportation program, negotiated by the Trump administration, has secured agreements from at least seven African nations to accept deportees who are not their native citizens, in exchange for millions of dollars in U.S. financial assistance. Monitoring group Third Country Deportation Watch estimates that more than 180 people have been transferred to these participating nations to date.

    The decision to place deportees in South Sudan has drawn particularly sharp condemnation from human rights groups, due to the country’s well-documented poor human rights record, systemic widespread corruption, and escalating political instability. United Nations data confirms that ongoing armed conflict in South Sudan displaced over half a million people in 2025 alone, creating a fragile humanitarian crisis across much of the country.

    A U.S. Senate investigation into the conditions of the South Sudan transfers found that the eight deportees were held in a walled, gated residential compound under constant armed guard. The report also documented that for months, no independent observers outside of South Sudanese government officials had access to the group, with a congressional aide becoming the first external visitor during a trip to Juba late last year.

    Michael Bochenek, senior counsel for global human rights nonprofit Human Rights Watch, emphasized that the lack of independent access creates dangerous gaps in oversight. “There’s been no independent check on people’s treatment and conditions of confinement, and this raises serious questions about South Sudan’s compliance with human rights norms and essential safeguards against abuses in detention,” Bochenek explained.

    Unlike publicized agreements with other participating African nations, the full terms of the U.S. deal with South Sudan remain undisclosed. Declassified State Department records do show that South Sudan submitted specific requests to U.S. officials after agreeing to accept the deportees, including demands for sanctions relief for a former senior government official and U.S. support for the prosecution of a high-profile opposition leader. It remains unclear what financial or other concessions the U.S. provided to South Sudan’s government in exchange for accepting the group.

    Phan is the second member of the eight-person group to leave South Sudan for repatriation. Jesus Munõz-Gutierrez, a Mexican national in the group, was returned to Mexico in September. Dian Peter Domach, the only South Sudanese citizen among the eight, was released from custody immediately upon arrival. The four remaining deportees are nationals of Cuba, Myanmar, and Laos, and their future status remains unclear.

  • Zimbabwe MPs pass bill to extend president’s time in power

    Zimbabwe MPs pass bill to extend president’s time in power

    Zimbabwe’s political landscape has been thrown into sharp debate after the country’s lower house of parliament passed a sweeping constitutional amendment that will extend presidential terms from five to seven years and allow 83-year-old incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa to stay in office until 2030, two years beyond his previously scheduled departure.

    The vote held on Thursday delivered a decisive victory for ruling party Zanu-PF, which has held continuous power since Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980. Final tallies showed 216 lawmakers backing the amendment, easily clearing the constitutionally required two-thirds majority threshold of 187 votes needed to change the nation’s founding charter. Only 42 parliamentarians cast votes against the controversial proposal.

    Beyond extending Mnangagwa’s current term, the amendment carries far-reaching changes to Zimbabwe’s political system. It scraps direct public presidential elections, a system that has been in place since 1990, and transfers the power to select the head of state to parliament itself. It also extends parliamentary terms from five to seven years and pushes the next scheduled parliamentary election, originally planned for 2028, back to 2030.

    The proposal is the end result of a months-long push by Zanu-PF, which secured cabinet backing for the constitutional amendment plan back in February. The bill will now move to Zimbabwe’s senate for a final vote, where political observers widely predict it will pass, before heading to Mnangagwa to be signed into law.

    This development marks a striking reversal for the president, who has previously positioned himself as a committed constitutionalist and publicly pledged to respect the existing two-term limit that was set to see him step down in 2028. Mnangagwa first rose to the presidency in 2017, when he ousted long-time authoritarian ruler Robert Mugabe in a military-backed takeover. He subsequently won contested national elections in both 2018 and 2023, results that have faced widespread scrutiny from international observers and opposition groups.

    Opposition voices, civil society organizations, and constitutional legal experts have united in criticism of the amendment process, arguing that such a fundamental restructuring of Zimbabwe’s political system requires approval via a national public referendum, rather than a vote solely by sitting lawmakers. Their criticism draws on the text of the 2013 constitution, which currently states that any change to presidential term limits must be approved by voters in a public referendum, and that a sitting president cannot personally benefit from an extension without explicit voter approval in a second public vote.

    A last-ditch legal challenge to block the bill was heard and dismissed by Zimbabwe’s Constitutional Court just one day before the lower house vote, clearing the way for Thursday’s proceeding.

    When Mnangagwa first took office, many observers and domestic supporters hoped he would usher in a new era of democratic reform and economic recovery for the struggling southern African nation. Instead, his tenure has been defined by persistent severe economic crises, repeated disputed electoral contests, and growing international and domestic concern over steady democratic backsliding.

    The amendment has intensified long-simmering tensions over Zimbabwe’s political trajectory. Opponents warn that the changes will drastically weaken democratic accountability and consolidate one-party control, while proponents of the amendment argue the longer terms and shifted election process are necessary to deliver political continuity and national stability as the country works to address its deep economic challenges.

  • A crucial tool of the slave trade, shackles evoke an ugly part of America’s past

    A crucial tool of the slave trade, shackles evoke an ugly part of America’s past

    Three centuries of transatlantic chattel slavery inflicted unfathomable brutality on more than 12 million kidnapped Africans, and few artifacts embody that dehumanizing violence as viscerally as the iron restraints used to control enslaved people. Today, one set of these 400-year-old Ghana-crafted shackles holds a new, transformative purpose at the Roots 101 African American Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, helping visitors confront the unvarnished reality of America’s racial history long buried by incomplete or rewritten historical narratives.

    Donated to the museum by a collector and activist, the shackles are not merely a static display piece for founder Lamont Collins, who launched the institution in 2020. For Collins, the relic is a living educational tool: he invites willing visitors to place the heavy irons on their own wrists to feel the weight of a history that cannot be denied or revised.

    The shackles on display are far more than ordinary metalwork. Designed for every part of the human body — wrists, ankles, waists, and necks — they were even forged in small sizes to restrain enslaved children. For the European and American traders who profited from the transatlantic slave trade, these restraints were nothing more than practical tools to keep the forced migration system running smoothly. Enslaved people were crammed by the hundreds into the holds of transatlantic slave ships during the deadly Middle Passage, chained together at markets across the American Deep South, and marched in chained lines called coffles across vast stretches of land — a sight that was once commonplace across the young United States.

    Beyond physical restraint, the shackles served a darker psychological purpose: they reinforced the constant message that freedom was an impossible dream for enslaved people. They were used as punishment for resistance and a deterrent against future uprisings. Special collar shackles were even fitted with bells or sharpened spikes to help slave catchers track and recapture people who dared to escape bondage.

    Last year, a viral social media video showing Collins fastening the shackles around the wrists of a white visitor pushed the museum’s unconventional educational approach into the national spotlight. Collins attributes the video’s traction to a growing national hunger for honest conversations about race, even as political and cultural movements across the U.S. push back against teaching full and accurate accounts of American slavery.

    Collins has observed that many people approach the history of slavery saying they want to learn, but only on their own comfortable terms. After wearing the shackles, many white visitors have broken down in tears, overwhelmed by the tangible weight of the violence the object represents. Others refuse to go through with the experience, stepping back even as Collins is about to fasten the restraints.

    To those who decline, Collins poses a sharp, unflinching question: “Why can’t I put these on you for two seconds, when we had them on for 200 years?” That question, he says, is exactly the point: the exercise is designed to spark the difficult, necessary conversations that many prefer to avoid.

    This report is part of *American Objects*, a recurring series marking the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, exploring how ordinary and extraordinary objects have shaped the nation’s history and identity.

  • Mother of Cape Verde’s goalkeeper: ‘I’m going to see my son play in the World Cup’

    Mother of Cape Verde’s goalkeeper: ‘I’m going to see my son play in the World Cup’

    For years, Ana Candia Evora has watched her son Vozinha’s career from thousands of miles away, cheering on Cape Verde’s star goalkeeper from her home without ever getting the chance to see him compete in person on an international stage. That long wait is finally over, as the mother of the Cape Verde national team shot-stopper has confirmed she will travel to the United States to watch her son compete in the upcoming World Cup, turning a lifelong dream into a reality.

    Vozinha, one of the most recognizable and accomplished players on Cape Verde’s national squad, has built a reputation as a formidable presence between the goalposts over his decade-long professional career. For Evora, following her son’s journey has meant celebrating clean sheets and tournament runs from afar, limited to watching matches on television and celebrating with family after big wins. The opportunity to travel to the World Cup in the U.S. is not just a trip to see a match — it is the culmination of years of supporting her son through the ups and downs of professional sports, from his early days playing youth football in Cape Verde to his rise as the national team’s starting goalkeeper.

    Football fans across Cape Verde have rallied around Evora’s upcoming trip, with many sharing messages of excitement on social media. The moment when Evora walks into the stadium to watch her son line up for a World Cup match is already being framed as one of the most heartwarming human interest stories of this year’s tournament, a reminder of the family sacrifice and support that underpins every elite athlete’s journey to the world’s biggest sporting stage.

  • South Africa builds another site to ease overcrowding and speed up deportation of Malawian nationals

    South Africa builds another site to ease overcrowding and speed up deportation of Malawian nationals

    JOHANNESBURG – Escalating tensions over undocumented migration in South Africa have pushed authorities to launch construction of a second temporary deportation center, a response to dangerous overcrowding at an existing processing facility where thousands of Malawian nationals have waited for weeks to return home.

    The development comes months after widespread anti-illegal immigration protests across Johannesburg and other major South African cities, where demonstrators demonstrated against the presence of foreign nationals, stoking deep friction between local communities and migrants. Thousands of Malawian citizens have since fled their places of residence in South Africa, citing fears of anti-migrant violence, and converged on the first deportation camp located in Durban’s Sherwood neighborhood. As of this week, an estimated 10,000 people have been camped at the site for more than seven days, with new arrivals swelling the population daily.

    Frustrations over lengthy processing delays boiled over this week, when protesting migrants at the Sherwood site clashed with police on Wednesday. Migrants threw rocks, sticks and logs at officers, who responded by firing rubber bullets and deploying stun grenades to disperse the crowd. The overcrowded conditions have already created a humanitarian emergency: according to South African officials, at least 12 women have given birth at the site since migrants began gathering there, with women and young children forced to share cramped, unsanitary space alongside thousands of men.

    Durban Mayor Cyril Xaba confirmed Thursday that the new facility is designed to act as an overflow camp to alleviate pressure on the overstretched Sherwood site. The center will operate strictly as a 14-day temporary measure, Xaba emphasized, and will not be converted into a permanent refugee or migrant settlement.

    The repatriation process has been slowed by multiple administrative and logistical hurdles. All undocumented Malawians must first appear in South African courts to confirm their irregular status before deportation can proceed. Additionally, the Malawian government has only provided a limited number of buses to transport returnees, and has issued a public appeal for donations to cover the cost of additional transport. As of Thursday, just 10 buses carrying deportees have departed Durban for Malawi since processing began.

    South Africa’s Home Affairs spokesperson Cyril Mncwabe confirmed that all migrants gathered at the camp are undocumented and residing in the country illegally. The 60 immigration officials assigned to process the crowd will need several more weeks to complete screenings for all people at the site, Mncwabe added. Police officers are currently conducting background checks to flag any migrants with pending criminal cases before deportation.

    In an update Thursday, the Malawian government reported that 560 of its citizens returned home Wednesday aboard eight buses, with another 10 buses scheduled to carry 700 additional returnees Thursday. Malawi is the third African nation in recent weeks to organize large-scale repatriation of its citizens from South Africa, amid rising anti-migrant sentiment across the country. Ghana previously arranged a flight to repatriate roughly 300 of its undocumented citizens, and all deportees are banned from re-entering South Africa for a period of five years following their return.

    Associated Press video journalist Alfonso Nqunjana contributed on-site reporting from Durban, South Africa.

  • Zimbabwe vote to extend president’s term underscores the staying power of Africa’s aging leaders

    Zimbabwe vote to extend president’s term underscores the staying power of Africa’s aging leaders

    In a move that spotlights a growing, widely debated trend across the African continent, Zimbabwe’s National Assembly has passed sweeping constitutional amendments that will defer national presidential elections by two years and extend the current tenure of 83-year-old President Emmerson Mnangagwa from five years to seven. The vote, which passed by an overwhelming margin, pushes the 2028 scheduled election to 2030, adding two extra years to Mnangagwa’s time in office. The legislation also includes a controversial provision to shift presidential selection from a direct popular vote to a vote by sitting lawmakers, and it now moves to the Senate for final approval, where a majority in favor is widely expected.

    This development is far from an isolated incident. It underscores the enduring grip of aging political leadership across Africa, a region that holds the distinction of being the world’s youngest continent by population but counts seven of the globe’s 10 oldest national leaders among its ranks. Latest data from the United Nations confirms that Africa’s median population age is just 20, with more than 60% of all residents under the age of 30. Yet a 2025 Pew Research Center analysis finds that seven of the 16 world leaders older than 80-year-old former U.S. President Donald Trump are based on the African continent.

    Mnangagwa first took power in 2017, following a military-backed ouster of former long-time ruler Robert Mugabe, who left office at 93 as the world’s oldest serving head of state at the time. Today, he is part of a cohort of elderly African leaders who have held power for decades, many of whom have altered constitutional rules to extend their tenures. At 93, Cameroon’s Paul Biya is the oldest sitting head of state in the world, having held office since 1982 – a full year after Ronald Reagan first became U.S. president, with seven U.S. presidents having held office since Biya took power. Roughly 70% of Cameroon’s population is under the age of 35. In neighboring Equatorial Guinea, 84-year-old Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has ruled for 47 years as Africa’s longest-serving leader, and has already positioned his son to succeed him as vice president. Ivory Coast’s 84-year-old Alassane Ouattara was sworn in for a fourth term in December 2025, following an election marked by low voter turnout and widespread civil unrest. Malawi voted 85-year-old Peter Mutharika, who previously held office from 2014 to 2020, back into the presidency in 2024. In Uganda, 81-year-old Yoweri Museveni – a long-time U.S. security ally who has faced repeated accusations of authoritarianism from critics – was sworn in for a seventh consecutive term in May 2025, pushing his total rule to 40 years. Like Mnangagwa, all of these leaders have amended or eliminated constitutional term limits to remain in power.

    Blessing Vava, director of the Johannesburg-based Southern Africa Coalition for Democracy and Accountability and a researcher focused on democratic governance, notes that Zimbabwe’s constitutional changes are just one example of a continental pattern. “The population in Africa is getting younger, but the average age of presidents is rising, and tenures are getting longer,” Vava explained. “Zimbabwe is not an exception. It’s the continental norm. Zimbabwe is just one data point in a much broader story of constitutional erosion for political survival.” Vava added that the disconnect between the continent’s young population and aging ruling elite creates a dangerous imbalance: “So you get 25-year-olds making up the majority of a country’s population, but 75-year-olds decide the candidate or rule. Youth are mobilized for votes and not for power.”

    The Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a U.S.-based think tank focused on the region, highlights the stark divides that define African leadership tenure today. Out of the continent’s 54 sovereign nations, roughly 20 actively enforce constitutional term limits, the organization reports. Others, however, have abolished term limits entirely, found loopholes to bypass them, or operate under military regimes that have suspended constitutional rule entirely, clearing the way for long-serving leaders to entrench their power.

    Even as the aging elite retains control in many nations, the past few years have seen the emergence of a new cohort of younger leaders across parts of the continent. In Senegal’s 2024 election, 44-year-old Bassirou Diomaye Faye won the presidency, becoming one of the youngest elected leaders in African history. Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, 49, has held office since 2018. In other cases, younger leaders have risen to power via military takeovers: 42-year-old Mahamat Idriss Deby seized control of Chad in 2021 after his father, former long-time ruler Idriss Deby, was killed while fighting rebel forces, and won a formal presidential election in 2024. In Burkina Faso, 38-year-old army captain Ibrahim Traoré took power in a 2022 coup, making him the youngest sitting leader on the continent. Military coups have also brought younger leaders to power in Mali and Guinea in recent years.

    Even with these emerging shifts, analysts maintain that the vast majority of African political systems remain dominated by long-ruling, aging elites, leaving young, democratically inclined leaders with very limited pathways to seize power through electoral processes.