France aims to reduce the number of its troops fighting Islamist militants in Mali to 1,000 by the end of the year, President Francois Hollande says.

A special combat force is approved by the United Nations for the first time, to be sent to battle rebel groups in the eastern DR Congo.

President Jacob Zuma says South Africans "must not panic" as ex-leader Nelson Mandela undergoes treatment for the recurrence of a lung infection.

The Somali capital is enjoying a revival of its nightlife scene as relative peace and stability return

Charlton Athletic sign Burkina Faso's Florent Rouamba on a deal until the end of the season, subject to a work permit.

Former South African President Nelson Mandela is "responding positively" to treatment for the recurrence of a lung infection, the presidency says.

Nigeria is running one of Africa's biggest space programmes in a bid to combat flooding, urban overcrowding and desertification.

At least seven people are killed in a Kenyan coastal town during a raid on a casino by a machete-wielding gang of separatists, police say.

A severe plague of locusts has infested about half of Madagascar, threatening crops and raising concerns about food shortages, a UN agency says.

Life in Mozambique - football, dancing and masks

Could an African country become the next space super-power?

Former South African President Nelson Mandela has been re-admitted to hospital with the recurrence of a lung infection, the government says.

Lawyers for South African athlete Oscar Pistorius are challenging some of his bail conditions in court, arguing he should be allowed home and to travel.

How tomb raiders benefit from Egypt's revolution