Gambia Counts Marble Votes in First Post-Jammeh Election

BANJUL, GAMBIA — Election officials started counting marble votes Saturday in Gambia after the polls closed in the country's first presidential election in decades that did not include former dictator Yahya Jammeh, a milestone seen as a test of democra...

Scientist Says Omicron Was a Group Find

JOHANNESBURG — The Botswana scientist who may well have discovered the omicron variant of the coronavirus says he has been on a “roller coaster of emotions,” with the pride of accomplishment followed by dismay over the travel bans immediately slapped o...

Attacks Kill Dozens of Displaced People in Eastern DR Congo

GENEVA — The U.N. refugee agency has expressed outrage at the sharp rise in deadly attacks by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri and South Kivu provinces.Dozens of people have been killed and scores wounded in the last month in a ...

Floods Cut Off Communities in South Sudan’s Unity State

JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN — Severe flooding has hit South Sudan's northern state of Unity, cutting off communities from accessing supplies of food and other vital commodities, a state official said Friday.More than 700,000 people have been affected by the wors...

UN Renews Anti-Piracy Ships Off Somalia for Only 3 Months

UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Friday to allow international naval forces to continue using all necessary means to fight piracy off the coast of Somalia — but only for the next three months because the Somali government sa...