An extremist group, Al Shabab, claimed responsibility for the attack at the hotel in the Somali capital. There were few immediate reports of casualties, but the siege was still underway.

Rescuers were still searching for people who might have been swept up in the disaster.

From Somalia to Ukraine to Xinjiang in China, Volker Türk will have no shortage of challenges as he steps into one of the United Nations’ most delicate roles.

She helped Jews in Africa and elsewhere feel connected to their origins by helping them start businesses and open synagogues and schools.

President Cyril Ramaphosa emerged well-placed to win a second term as the head of the country’s governing party, although there is much haggling and horse-trading to come.

The Supreme Court decision raises the possibility that former President Jacob Zuma, who was granted medical parole from a contempt-of-court sentence, may have to return to prison.

The worst drought in 40 years is pushing Somalia to the brink. If it triggers a rare famine declaration, the militant group Al Shabab will also be to blame.

The global appetites of Europe’s major leagues shape talent pipelines from South America to Africa. That picks winners and losers long before the games are played.

Droughts, cyclones and floods have forced the people of Madagascar, a poor country in the southern Indian Ocean, to find new homes, new livelihoods and even new diets.

“What matters at the World Cup is experience,” Senegal’s coach says. “How do you want to have experience if you go to the World Cup every 20 years?”

Amid the ‘loss and damage’ debate at global climate talks, the study adds to evidence that less-developed countries suffer from warming that industrialized nations largely cause.

The small country in southeastern Africa is leveraging its little-known rock cliffs and boulders to develop local interest in climbing — and to draw adventure tourists.

A note in the handwriting of Alaa Abd El Fattah, who has been on hunger strike for about seven months, read: “I began drinking water, my vitals are good.”

The West African nation of Benin adopted one of the continent’s most liberal laws on abortion last year after hearing testimony from gynecologists about women dying from illegal abortions.

Gabon knows its oil won’t last forever, so officials are turning to the Central African nation’s rainforest for revenue — while also promising to preserve it.

A township’s battle over a new mine shows the challenge of a nation dependent on coal, but also desperate to leave it behind.

The public disclosure of a 2014 loan agreement for a cross-country train fulfilled a campaign vow by President William Ruto and revealed China’s tough terms.

Truck drivers used to wait for days before crossing the Gambia River by ferry, but a towering bridge has cut the transit time down to minutes, and brought Senegal and Gambia closer.

The new right-wing government appears to be taking a harder line with people who are picked up in the Mediterranean as they try to cross from Libya.