Lausanne (AFP) - World record holder Wayde van Niekerk stormed to victory in the 400m at the Diamond League meet at Lausanne on Thursday, as American veteran Justin Gatlin went sub-10sec for the 100m. Van Niekerk is on fire this season, having run personal bests in the 100m (9.94sec) and 200m (19.84) last month, and setting a new world best time ...

Juba (AFP) - Witnesses described looting and finding a dead body, but the trial of 12 soldiers accused of raping foreign aid workers in Juba proceeded Thursday in the absence of the victims. The chilling attack on a hotel compound during fierce fighting in the South Sudanese capital a year ago cast a spotlight on atrocities by government troops ...

Lilongwe (Malawi) (AFP) - Seven children and one adult were killed in a stampede at Malawi's national stadium on Thursday as large crowds gathered for independence day celebrations, police said. The stampede occurred when gates were opened at the 40,000-seat Bingu stadium in the capital Lilongwe for a presidential address and football match to m ...

Lusaka (AFP) - Zambian President Edgar Lungu on Thursday justified imposing a state of emergency by alleging that opposition parties were behind a string of arson attacks intended to create terror and panic . Lungu denied he was establishing a dictatorship in Zambia -- until recently a relatively stable country -- and said his political rivals ...

Accra (AFP) - Rescuers on Thursday called off a search for miners who were trapped underground after an illegal goldmine collapsed in western Ghana, declaring 17 dead, a local lawmaker told AFP. Nsuta representative Williams Adomako said teams that were trying to rescue the miners after the pit caved in on Sunday managed to locate the body of on ...

Johannesburg (AFP) - CAF Confederation Cup title-holders TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo must defeat visiting Horoya of Guinea this weekend to be sure of a quarter-finals place. Every Group D match between leaders Mazembe, Horoya and third-place SuperSport United of South Africa has been drawn, setting the scene for a thrilling fi ...

The African Freedom of Expression Exchange (AFEX), a network of African freedom of expression groups, has expressed serious concerns about the increased incidents of attacks against journalists, media practitioners and free expression advocates on the continent and called upon governments in the region to step up efforts to safeguard free speech ...

Johannesburg (AFP) - CAF Confederation Cup title-holders TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo must defeat visiting Horoya of Guinea this weekend to be sure of a quarter-finals place. Every Group D match between leaders Mazembe, Horoya and third-place SuperSport United of South Africa has been drawn, setting the scene for a thrilling fi ...

Johannesburg (AFP) - Coach Mumamba Numba insists nothing can stop Zanaco of Zambia reaching the CAF Champions League quarter-finals this weekend when they tackle Wydad Casablanca in Morocco. The Lusaka-based outfit top hotly-contested Group D, two points ahead of former champions Wydad and three in front of record eight-time title-holders Al A ...

Rio de Janeiro (AFP) - What Popole Misenga remembers most is the crowd chanting his name. After a lifetime of war and poverty in the Democratic Republic of Congo, here he was in Rio, competing in judo at the 2016 Olympics as part of the first international refugee team in history. But now Misenga was down on the mat, pinned in an armlock by h ...

Sydney (AFP) - Australia's players on Thursday boycotted this month's Australia A tour to South Africa, escalating a bitter pay dispute which threatens to derail senior tours to Bangladesh and India as well as this year's home Ashes. The Australia Cricketers' Association (ACA) said the players were unavailable to tour South Africa for the Austra ...