The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen will attack U.S. interests in the Middle East if Washington intervenes in the conflict in support of Saudi Arabia, including by attempting to thwart Houthi efforts to blockade Saudi shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a military adviser for the group told the AFP news agency Wednesday. “If America…
16m ago U.N. says Houthis’ escalation risks expanding conflict The U.N.’s most powerful body said late Friday that the Houthis’ military escalation, attacks and threats “risk further expanding the conflict, threatening maritime security and international trade” while undermining regional and international efforts to secure peace in Yemen. It warned that continued escalation would exacerbate…
The Horn of Africa is once again facing the danger of military and political escalation as renewed manoeuvring involving Eritrea, illegal TPLF-led political and military actors, and other regional and external forces threatens to undermine the fragile peace achieved after years of devastating conflict. At the centre of these concerns is Tigray, a region still…
By blocking many Africans from participating and attending, the US has made a mockery of FIFA’s apparent commitment to universal access. The 2026 FIFA World Cup final this Sunday between Spain and Argentina is the culmination of what should have been the biggest celebration of diversity in football history. Forty-eight teams (compared to the usual…
The United States Treasury Department announced sanctions Wednesday on Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the new Tehran agency that collects fees for traveling through the strategic Strait of Hormuz. “The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent…
Nairobi — China’s zero-tariff treatment to all African countries that have diplomatic relations with it will come into effect starting May 1, 2026 to April 30, 2028. This came after China had granted zero-tariff treatment on 100 percent of tariff lines since December 1, 2024 for 33 least developed African countries with which it maintains…
China’s President Xi Jinping announced in February 2026 that from 1 May China would be granting zero-tariff treatment to 53 African countries. (That is all of them bar Eswatini, which supports Taiwan.) China-Africa trade reached US$348 billion in 2025, up 17.7% from 2024. Chinese exports to Africa dominate trade flows, and amounted to US$225 billion,…
Stockholm, Sweden — The US/Israeli war on Iran might be like messing with a hornets’ nest, spreading fear and chaos all around. The Israeli government claimed that the war was a “preventive” measure to address an immediate threat of Iran constructing a nuclear bomb. However, this war has obviously been meticulously planned over a long…
1m ago Iran claims “large volume” of attack drones “hitting U.S. positions” in Kuwait The Iranian Army claimed Friday to be unleashing “a large volume of Army attack drones” that it said were “hitting U.S. positions” in Kuwait. “Over the past hours, various types of attack drones from the Ground Forces carried out concentrated…
There are liberal reformers, such as human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi, former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi or former deputy interior minister Mostafa Tajzadeh. But all of these are either languishing in jails or under house arrest. The regime “has been very good at repressing dissent by jailing dissidents or…
