Africa

Gen. Brice Oligui Nguema salutes as he is inaugurated as Gabon's interim president, in Libreville, Monday.

World News

A Gabon military coup leader is sworn in as interim president, promising elections

3:58pm September 04, 2023

by Emmanuel Akinwotu

Gen. Brice Oligui Nguema, leader of a coup in Gabon last week, has been sworn in as interim president, while the deposed former president remains detained at his residence.

Whatever happened to the 'period day off' policy?

12:13pm September 03, 2023

by Raksha Kumar

In 2017, two Indian firms began offering workers a day off for a painful period — earning much praise but also some criticism. We wondered if this policy is gaining favor in India and beyond.

Squatters stand on a rooftop overlooking the scene of one of South Africa's deadliest inner-city fires in Johannesburg, South Africa, Friday.

World News

With Johannesburg's building fire, the misery of gang-hijacked towers comes into focus

2:03pm September 01, 2023

by Kate Bartlett

People desperate for housing in a country with sky-high unemployment have taken to squatting in squalid conditions in former office buildings that are rented out by criminal gangs.

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World News

Deadly Johannesburg building fire brings attention to housing operations run by gangs

5:28pm August 31, 2023

by Kate Bartlett

A deadly fire in an apartment block in Johannesburg, South Africa, has raised questions about the grip of gangs who illegally occupy and sell off space in empty buildings with squalid conditions.

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Firefighters work on the scene of a deadly blaze in downtown Johannesburg on Thursday.

World News

A building fire in Johannesburg kills at least 74, many homeless, authorities say

1:41pm August 31, 2023

by The Associated Press

At least 12 of those killed were children. Some people threw babies out of third-story windows to others waiting below in the desperate scramble to evacuate, witnesses said.

Morning news brief

5:53am August 31, 2023

Concerns rise over Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's health. Florida picks up the pieces after Idalia swept through the Gulf Coast. The coup in Gabon triggers fears of destabilization.

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Why have we seen so many recent coups across West and Central Africa?

5:12am August 31, 2023

NPR's Michel Martin asks Christopher Fumonyoh of the National Democratic Institute about coups in Africa, including the latest in the Central African nation of Gabon.

A catastrophic fire in South Africa has taken the lives of dozens of people

5:12am August 31, 2023

Officials in Johannesburg say many of the victims had lost their homes — and had taken shelter in the high-rise.

Italian rapper Ghali aims to save migrants from drowning in the Mediterranean

5:12am August 31, 2023

In his home country of Italy, Ghali is a major star. His parents are Tunisian, and he's working with Tunisian refugees trying to enter Italy. NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Ghali about his mission.

This video grab shoes the spokesperson for the mutinous soldiers speaking on state television as they announce that they had seized power in Libreville on Wednesday.

World News

Military officers in Gabon say they have seized power

9:21pm August 30, 2023

by Emmanuel Akinwotu

Crowds celebrated in Gabon after mutinous soldiers said they were seizing power to overturn results of a presidential election and remove President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose family has long held power.

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