African Migrant Vessel Capsizes Near Yemen, 68 Dead
A boat carrying African migrants, mostly Ethiopians, sank off the coast of Yemen, killing at least 68 people and leaving 74 missing, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM). The vessel was carrying 154 people when it capsized near the southern governorate of Abyan, where bodies have since washed ashore. Only 12 people survived the incident. Despite Yemen’s ongoing civil war, it remains a major transit route for migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia. Many Ethiopian migrants face grave risks along the journey, including violence, human rights abuses, and extreme poverty and hunger exacerbated by conflict and climate shocks at home. The IOM reported that 60,000 migrants entered Yemen in 2024 alone, calling the Horn of Africa–Yemen route one of the world’s most dangerous migration corridors.
Cholera Outbreak Threatens Thousands of Children in North Darfur
Cholera is ripping through North Darfur, Sudan, threatening thousands of children already weakened by hunger and displacement, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned, as aid convoys struggle to reach cut-off communities amid escalating conflict. More than 1,180 cholera cases, including an estimated 300 in children, and at least 20 deaths have been reported in Tawila, a town that has absorbed over half a million people fleeing violence since April. Across the wider Darfur region, nearly 2,140 cases and over 80 deaths were recorded. Tawila, overwhelmed by over half a million displaced people, faced severe water shortages, poor sanitation, and overcrowding, and has become a flashpoint of overlapping crises.. Since the war began in April 2023, infrastructure collapsed, famine was declared in at least 10 areas, and malnutrition rates among children doubled. Over 640,000 children under five in North Darfur were at risk. UNICEF ramped up its emergency response with water, hygiene kits, and health outreach, while calling for $30.6 million in urgent funding and unimpeded humanitarian access. Since the outbreak’s official declaration in August 2024, more than 94,000 cases and over 2,370 deaths have been reported across 17 of Sudan’s 18 states.
New Wave of Attacks in Northern Mozambique Displaces Tens of Thousands
Recent attacks by armed groups in northern Mozambique displaced tens of thousands in July alone, deepening an already dire humanitarian crisis in Cabo Delgado and straining limited aid supplies. The violence, particularly intense in Chiúre district, uprooted more than 42,000 people, over half of them children, and left many without civil documentation, limiting access to services and safety. Families fled to overcrowded shelters, with reports of unaccompanied children and urgent needs for food, shelter, and basic supplies. In Ancuabe and Muidumbe, similar attacks forced hundreds of families to flee. Humanitarian access remained fragile, and protection concerns grew amid forced relocations and insecurity. Despite escalating needs, Mozambique’s 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan was only 19% funded by July, forcing aid agencies to cut their target support from 1.1 million people to just 317,000.
South Africa Cracks Down on Illegal Mining
At least 1,000 undocumented migrants working illegally at the Sheba Gold Mine in Barberton, Mpumalanga, were arrested during a week-long police crackdown dubbed Operation Vala Umgodi. The miners, many reportedly from neighboring countries and some possibly underage, were found working underground near South Africa’s borders with Eswatini and Mozambique. They now face charges related to immigration violations and illegal mining. The mine’s owner, Barberton Mines, welcomed the arrests, stressing that illegal mining would not be tolerated. Founded in the 1880s, Sheba is one of South Africa’s oldest gold mines, but now faces significant challenges from gold theft and rising costs. Illegal mining, largely driven by economic hardship and the decline of the formal mining sector, remains widespread, with abandoned mines across the country attracting thousands of “zama-zamas” using rudimentary methods to extract gold.
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New French Bill Aims to Ease Repatriation of Looted African Art
A bill to make it easier for France to return cultural objects taken during the colonial period was presented at a ministerial council in Paris by Culture Minister Rachida Dati. Despite a pledge by President Emmanuel Macron in Burkina Faso in 2017 and follow-up reports, only a small number of items have been returned so far. The new bill would allow artefacts to be given back by government decree, without needing a full vote in Parliament each time. It would apply to objects taken from their countries of origin under conditions described as “illicit”. France has returned only 27 works to African nations in the past six years. The proposed law, set to be debated in September, would allow the return of objects deemed looted, acquired between 1815 and 1972, through a government decree rather than a full parliamentary vote. At least 10 countries have filed official requests for thousands of other items, including Algeria, Madagascar and Côte d’Ivoire.