Veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga led Kenya’s presidential race, official election results showed Saturday, pushing Deputy President William Ruto into second place.

With just over 26% of votes counted, Odinga had 54% and Ruto had 45%, according to results provided by the Kenyan election commission and displayed on a large screen at a national tallying center in the capital, Nairobi.

East Africa’s wealthiest nation and most vibrant democracy held presidential, parliamentary and local elections Tuesday.

Ruto and Odinga are in a tight race to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta, who has reached his two-term limit. Kenyatta fell out with Ruto after the last election and has endorsed Odinga.

Official vote tallying has been proceeding slowly, fueling public anxiety.

Election commission chairman Wafula Chebukati blamed party agents, who are allowed to scrutinize results forms before they are added to the final tally.

“Agents in this exercise cannot proceed … as if we are doing a forensic audit,” he told a news briefing Friday.

“We are not moving as fast as we should. This exercise needs to be concluded as soon as possible.”

Representatives from Odinga’s and Ruto’s coalitions did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Reuters news agency and other media outlets have been tallying results forms from 291 constituencies posted on the election commission website. These have not yet been verified, and this tally is running well ahead of the official one.

As of 1200 GMT, Reuters had tallied 237 forms, which showed Ruto in the lead with nearly 53% of the vote, compared to just over 46% for Odinga. Two other candidates had less than 1% between them.

Nineteen other forms could not be included in the count because they were unreadable or were missing information.

The forms Reuters is tallying are preliminary and the results subject to change. After the forms are uploaded to the commission’s website, Kenyan election law requires that they are physically brought to the national tallying center, where party representatives can examine them for any discrepancies.

The process was designed as a safeguard against the kind of rigging allegations that have triggered violence after previous polls. More than 1,200 people were killed after a disputed 2007 election and more than 100 killed after a disputed 2017 election.

The winning candidate must receive 50% of the national vote plus one, and at least 25% of the vote from 24 of 47 counties.

The commission has until Tuesday to declare a winner.
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Human Rights Watch (HTW) says Cameroon’s military executed at least 10 people while fighting rebels this year in the country’s troubled western regions. The rights group says troops committed other abuses, including forced disappearances, burning homes and destroying health facilities.

In its report, Human Rights Watch said between April 24 and June 12 of this year, Cameroonian soldiers burned 12 homes, arbitrarily detained at least 26 people, and are presumed to have forcibly disappeared up to 17 others.

Cameroon’s military has yet to comment on the report, but last month the country’s defense minister acknowledged such abuses for the first time and ordered troops to stop.

The report, released Thursday, said the abuses were carried out in and around Belo, Chomba and Missong, towns in Cameroon’s Northwest region, during operations against armed separatist groups.

In one incident on April 24, Cameroon government troops stopped, severely beat, and detained over 30 motorbike riders who were part of a funeral convoy, allegedly because the soldiers suspected them of being separatist fighters. HRW said about 17 riders are presumed forcibly disappeared, as their whereabouts are unknown, but they were last seen in military custody.

Ilaria Allegrozzi, HRW’s central Africa researcher, said the abuses are causing untold suffering among civilians.

“We are facing a situation where the army, [which] is supposed to be protecting the civilian population from the threats posed by the separatist fighters is committing serious human rights violations against civilians causing frustrations and also more sufferings and leading to displacements,” Allegrozzi said.

HRW also said serious abuses by separatist fighters, including killing and kidnapping of civilians, and attacks on students, teachers, and schools were also documented during the same period.

Ngong Cyprain, a 27-year-old sports teacher, said he fled from Belo after government troops torched his house in June. He spoke to VOA by a messaging app from the town of Douala, where he has relocated.

“I, just like many other people would want to go back to Belo, but how can we when both the military and the separatists torture us,” he said. “My house was burnt by the military, I saw them burn my house. Before then, my wife who is a teacher was abducted by the fighters.”

Separatist groups said on social media they will investigate and punish fighters who abuse human rights, but blame Cameroon government troops for what they call a majority of the abuses.

Contacted by VOA after the report was published, Cameroon’s military spokesman, Cyrille Serge Atonfack Guemo, promised to get back to reporters, but has not done so.

But on June 19, during the installation of military officials fighting separatists in Bamenda, capital of the Northwest region, Cameroon’s defense minister acknowledged that troops commited grave rights abuses against civilians and ordered such violations to stop.

In June, Cameroon’s military said it arrested four of its troops for killing nine civilians, including four women and a baby in the northwest village of Missong, describing the act as reckless.

HRW said the media and international community have been very quiet about the crisis wrecking Cameroon’s western regions, making the armed conflict one of the most neglected crises in the world.

The crisis degenerated into an armed conflict in Cameroon’s English-speaking western regions in 2016 after teachers and lawyers protested the dominance of French-speakers in the officially bilingual country.

The military responded with a crackdown and rebels took up arms, saying they had to defend the minority English speakers.

The U.N. says that clashes between the two sides have left at least 3,300 people dead and more than 750,000 internally displaced.
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The head of Kenya’s government-created media council says local media outlets haven’t been asked to stop their counting of presidential election results after observers noticed a dramatic slowdown in reporting on the close contest.

Media Council of Kenya CEO David Omwoyo told The Associated Press on Friday that “no one has asked anyone to stop,” but added that “we want to align the numbers with each other” and “I think let’s peer review our numbers.”

He said he was going into a meeting with media leaders as he spoke.

Observers and journalists with local media houses have expressed concern after Kenya Television Network, NTV Kenya and Citizen TV tallies of presidential results forms posted online by the electoral commission stopped or slowed on Thursday evening.

The differing results as media raced to do their tallies led to anxiety among some Kenyans as longtime opposition leader Raila Odinga, backed by former rival and outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta in his fifth attempt at the presidency, faces Deputy President William Ruto, who fell out with the president years ago.

Kenya could see a runoff presidential election for the first time.

The public posting of results forms was meant to be a groundbreaking exercise in transparency for the electoral commission, which has been under pressure after the high court cited irregularities and overturned the results of the previous presidential election in 2017, a first in Africa. Kenyatta won the new vote after Odinga boycotted it.

The electoral commission chair, Wafula Chebukati, even appeared to tease local media houses a day after Tuesday’s election, saying they were “behind” in tallying the more than 46,000 results forms being posted from around the country. On Thursday, however, he stressed that only the electoral commission can declare a winner.

On Wednesday, the media council in a statement noted “growing concerns” about the varying tallies and said it was consulting with media owners and editors “to find an urgent solution to this to ensure Kenyans receive synchronized results.”

To win outright, a candidate needs more than half of all votes and at least 25% of the votes in more than half of Kenya’s 47 counties. No outright winner means a runoff election within 30 days.

Official results will be announced within a week of the vote, but impatience among some Kenyans is growing. Some have turned to counting a far smaller set of results forms for 291 constituencies also being posted online by the electoral commission. More than 65% of them had been posted Friday morning.

Human rights groups have warned about “rising levels of false or misleading information being shared on social media” as the country awaits the official results.

Turnout dipped sharply in this election, to 65%, as some Kenyans expressed weariness with seeing long-familiar political leaders on the ballot and frustration with economic issues including widespread corruption and rising prices.
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Guinea’s military-appointed government this week announced the dissolution of the main opposition group, the National Front for the Defense of the Constitution, or FNDC.

The decree Monday cited alleged violence and threats to national unity and peace. Critics and rights groups said the move threatened Guinea’s return to democratic rule.

The decision to dissolve the FNDC came just hours after it had called for nationwide peaceful demonstrations to demand dialogue among the military, opposing parties and civil society groups.

A report by Human Rights Watch called the government’s allegations vague and said the FNDC was not given the opportunity to defend itself before an independent judicial body.

Dissolution of the FNDC comes 11 months after it led demonstrations against then-President Alpha Conde, who was ultimately ousted in a military coup last September.

Democratic values ‘jeapordized’

Ilaria Allegrozzi, a senior Africa researcher with Human Rights Watch, said the coup was already a major blow to democracy and human rights in Guinea.

“And this recent decision to dissolve the main opposition coalition is yet another indication that democratic values in Guinea are being jeopardized,” Allegrozzi said. “Human rights defenders, political activists and political opponents are at risk.” 

The FNDC was composed of civil society groups and opposition parties that accused Guinea’s transitional government of authoritarian behavior.

Guinea is one of several West African countries that have experienced coups over the last two years. The unrest has been driven by the growth of a jihadist insurgency and an increase in unconstitutional third-term bids.

Allegrozzi said Guinea’s actions send a negative message to other countries in the region that are struggling to transition to democracy.

“Regional political volatility is becoming entrenched in West Africa and Central Africa, and that should be countered,” Allegrozzi said.

Allegrozzi called on the African Union and the West African economic bloc ECOWAS to increase pressure on Guinea to reestablish democratic rule.

In 2010, Conde became Guinea’s first democratically elected president, but accusations of corruption and authoritarian behavior mounted throughout his time in office. Last September, after winning what critics said was an illegal third term, he was overthrown.

Pledge of civilian rule again

Guinea’s interim president, Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, a former special forces commander, pledged to return the country to civilian rule within three years. However, ECOWAS and the FNDC argue three years is far too long.

Amadou Barry, a Guinean Canadian professor of philosophy specializing in international relations at the Cegep de Saint-Hyacinthe in Quebec, Canada, told VOA from Conakry that since Conde’s ouster, Guineans have clung to the hope that they would see peace. Instead, they have witnessed the same conflict repeating itself.

“This hope is falling down,” he said, “because now we are seeing that we are not able to organize society around democratic principles and the rule of law. It is important to ask, ‘Why aren’t we able to have a political regime that is democratic?’ ”

Barry said constructive dialogue around the issue of collective power is the only way forward.
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At least two police officers and one civilian died after a day of anti-government protests in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, staff at the city’s main mortuary said Wednesday.

Sierra Leone’s government previously said there had been deaths, but did not say how many, as protesters threw rocks and burned tires in the streets out of frustration at worsening economic hardship and other issues.

The West African country, which has been struggling with rising inflation and a fuel crisis, imposed a nationwide curfew from 3 p.m. local time in a bid to stem the violence.

“As a government, we have the responsibility to protect every citizen of Sierra Leone. What happened today was unfortunate and will be fully investigated,” President Julius Maada Bio said on Twitter.

In addition to the three bodies at the mortuary, a Reuters reporter saw another civilian body on a street in eastern Freetown.

The police chief and spokesman could not be reached for comment.

Videos on social media verified by Reuters showed large crowds of protesters and piles of burning tires in parts of the capital. Other footage showed a group of young men throwing rocks on a street filled with whitish smoke.

“People are upset about the country’s justice system, which is sickening, daily price rises and economic hardship,” said Daniel Alpha Kamara, a university student.

The violence started around 10:30 a.m. local time, he said, when he saw clouds of tear gas rising up outside his dormitory room.

“These unscrupulous individuals have embarked on a violent and unauthorized protest which has led to the loss of lives of innocent Sierra Leoneans, including security personnel,” Vice President Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh said in a video address.

“The government hereby declares a nationwide curfew,” he said. “The security sector has been authorized to fully enforce this directive.”

Regional political and economic bloc ECOWAS said it condemned the violence and called in a Twitter post for “all to obey law and order and for the perpetrators of the violence to be identified and brought before the law.”

Discontent has been boiling over for a number of reasons, including a perceived lack of government support for ordinary people who are struggling, said Augustine Sorie-Sengbe Marrah, a constitutional lawyer and governance activist.

“There has been little empathy from the central government to encourage folks that they see them suffering, and that they understand these are tough economic times,” he told Reuters.

Long-standing frustration has also been exacerbated by rising prices for basic goods in Sierra Leone, where more than half the population of around 8 million lives below the poverty line, according to the World Bank.

Earlier on Wednesday, internet observatory NetBlocks said Sierra Leone faced a near-total internet shutdown during the protests, with national connectivity at 5% of ordinary levels.

On Tuesday, the national security coordinator asked the armed forces to be prepared to back up the police through Friday, warning of a “potentially volatile security situation,” according to an internal letter shared widely online.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed for Rwanda Wednesday after meeting with Democratic Republic of Congo leaders to discuss tensions and human rights challenges in Africa’s Great Lakes region.

Blinken arrived in Kigali on Wednesday evening for what the State Department said are continuing efforts to engage with African leaders on U.S. strategy for sub-Saharan Africa, with the aim of strengthening U.S.-Rwandan relations.

Key issues to be addressed during Blinken’s visit are the tensions between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and other conflicts in the region.

Human Rights Watch’s Central African Director Lewis Mudge said there is blatant disregard for human rights in the region and conflict continues to disrupt the lives of innocent civilians. He said Blinken must use this opportunity to reiterate the United States’ commitment to protecting the rights of people in the region.

“He really should use this as an opportunity to reinforce to [presidents] Felix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame in DRC Congo and in Rwanda, respectively, that the United States wants to continue to be a partner to Rwanda and Congo,” Mudge said, “but only in so much that steps are taken to respect human rights and principles.”

Blinken and Rwanda officials will likely discuss fighting in Congo that involves rebel group M23. In 2013, the U.S. blocked military aid to Rwanda due to its alleged support for the group, which is believed to use child soldiers, according to the State Department.

Another issue on the table is Rwanda’s imprisonment of U.S. permanent resident Paul Rusesabagina.

According to Trial Watch, a legal organization monitoring trials globally, Rusesabagina’s trial in 2020 did not conform to international and regional standards. Rusesabagina’s actions arguably saved hundreds of lives during the 1994 genocide and inspired the movie “Hotel Rwanda.”

Rwanda’s government has repeatedly refuted these claims, but officials said they are open to exchange views on human rights and governance during Blinken’s visit.

Gatete Nyiringabo Ruhumuliza, a human rights lawyer in Rwanda, argues that the country has a commitment to human rights and is seeing benefits because of it.

“For Rwandans, human rights is not a concept. For Rwandans, human right is an action,” Ruhumuliza said. “Human rights mean last week they [the government] increased salaries of teachers. This is what we consider human rights. Human rights is not two people, three people quarreling on television. Human rights for Rwandans after what happened to us, human rights is action, it is seeing our livelihoods change, it is security.”

Ishmael Buchanan is a lecturer of foreign relations and diplomacy at the University of Rwanda. He said a new Cold War-like environment will influence the outcome of these discussions as the U.S. is vying with Russia and China for relations in Africa.

“We have so many investors from the United States of America. So, obviously it is going to affect them too,” he said. “So, both countries are going to look at their national interests.”

Buchanan said that included the Rusesabagina case.

“What is going to happen is just a matter of dialogue and the understanding they will come to,” he said.

The government of Rwanda said addressing security challenges in the Great Lakes region is a key priority, and that Rwanda remains committed to the various regional mechanisms in place to find durable solutions.
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The number of people displaced by the record-breaking drought in Somalia has topped one million, with the United Nations warning of widespread famine if emergency needs are not soon met. 

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA, said that during the month of July another 83,000 people were forced to flee their homes because of the drought, with the worst displacement coming in the Bay, Banadir and Gedo regions. 

Ishaku Mshelia, deputy emergency coordinator for the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, told VOA via telephone Wednesday that people are migrating in search of food and other assistance. 

He said the FAO is trying to help. 

“Our ability as [a] humanitarian community is to be able to reach the affected people in their communities and provide the services that they need so that they … don’t feel pushed to migrate,” Mshelia said. “Unfortunately, previous droughts, what we have seen is that a lot of mortalities have been reported where people that, unfortunately, died on their way to open areas in search of assistance.” 

FAO Somalia said it needs $130 million to fully fund its famine prevention plan, designed to help about a million people in rural areas.  

A statement issued by the FAO on Wednesday said that if the funding gap is not addressed, widespread famine may be inevitable. 

Drought-related malnutrition has killed 500 children, according to the U.N. Children’s Fund, UNICEF. 

Authorities in Somalia’s Gedo region also confirmed to VOA more than 50 deaths of children due to suspected drought-related illnesses. The deaths were reported in the towns of Bardere and Beledhawo, which border Kenya. 

Ali Yusuf Abdullahi, the Gedo regional administration spokesman, said that the region is witnessing a “catastrophic” situation due to drought. 

He said that people are fleeing in search of a better life and have gathered in major towns including Dolow, near the Ethiopian border. 

As of today, Abdullahi said, Dolow has received more than 50,000 displaced people and there are people who are coming from the Ethiopian side who were affected by the drought there and settling in IDP camps in Dolow. He said the town administrators are doing their best to provide relief, but that is not enough. 

Somalia’s federal government declared the three-year drought a national emergency last year. The drought, Somalia’s worst in more than 40 years, has affected more than 7 million people. 

According to the Somali prime minister’s office, the drought has also killed more than two million livestock. 

 
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Kenyans are waiting for the results of a close but calm presidential election in which the turnout was lower than usual.

Tuesday’s election was likely the final try by longtime opposition leader Raila Odinga, who on his fifth attempt was backed by former rival and outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta. The other top contender is Deputy President William Ruto, who fell out with the president earlier in their decade in power.

Voters have expressed little hope of real change and frustration with rising prices and widespread corruption in East Africa’s economic hub. Both top candidates are long known to Kenyans, Odinga as a democracy campaigner and former political detainee and Ruto as a wealthy populist who plays up his humble youth as a contrast to dynasties that produced Odinga and Kenyatta.

The president’s backing of Odinga cut across the usual ethnic lines that have long defined elections and contributed to violence. This time there is no candidate from Kenya’s largest ethnic group, the Kikuyu, though both top candidates chose Kikuyu running mates.

Official election results must be announced within a week of the vote, but there’s some anticipation a winner might be known Wednesday. The electoral commission still must verify results forms coming from across the country. More than 95% of results forms from the over 46,000 polling centers had been sent to the commission before noon Wednesday.

A runoff election will be held if no candidate receives more than 50% of votes.

The commission has said it expected turnout to be above 60%, far lower than the 80% in the previous election in 2017. More than 22 million people were registered to vote, but some told The Associated Press they doubted they would bother, dispirited by economic challenges including high national debt and widespread unemployment.

A relatively uneventful election might be welcome. On the eve of the vote, Kenya’s government reminded people that “this will be a CONTEST, not a FIGHT. A contest must have a winner, and a loser. In a fight, life can sometimes be lost.”

Kenyans tend to say elections are calm and troubles come later. More than 1,000 people were killed after 2007 election results were announced and Odinga alleged massive rigging. In 2017, the high court overturned the election results, a first in Africa, after Odinga alleged irregularities. He boycotted the fresh election and declared himself the “people’s president,” drawing accusations of treason.

A handshake with Kenyatta calmed that crisis, set up their unusual alliance and angered Ruto, who still accuses the president of betrayal.

Both Odinga and Ruto have said they will accept the results as long as the vote is free and fair.

Already, reported troubles include the failure of about 200 voting kits out of more than 46,000 across the country. The electoral commission called it “not widespread” and “normal” for technology to break down at times. But some local reports also cited people saying they were unable to vote when the kits didn’t recognize them and polling workers wouldn’t use the paper voters’ register as a backup, which was allowed.

Such frustrations occurred even after Kenya budgeted $347 million, or more than $15 per voter, for one of Africa’s most expensive elections.

Kenyans have a week from the announcement of official results to file any court challenges. The court has two weeks to rule. A fresh election would be held within 60 days.

 
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Ethiopia’s Somali region is mobilizing against al-Shabab militants to prevent further incursions by the group.

The region had been hailed as the most peaceful in Ethiopia since Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in 2018. But that was put to the test three weeks ago when al-Shabab fighters forced their way into the region, igniting a deadly confrontation deep in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia has now amassed troops along the border for possible military operations against al-Shabab. But the Somali region is also mobilizing community leaders including religious scholars, women and traditional elders. Business leaders have pledged funds and pastoralists have donated livestock to the security forces. The apparent goal is to resist infiltration of al-Shabab’s ideology in a region known for its tolerance and peaceful cohabitation between various faith communities.

Sheikh Mohamed Hassan Burawi is one of the clerics who spoke out against al-Shabab during a recent government-organized gathering in the region’s capital, Jigjiga.

“They want to manipulate people by saying they want to spread religion and jihad,” Burawi told VOA Somali in a phone interview. “We have to give people awareness that what these men are preaching is not jihad, but it’s independent of the religion.”

Burawi said the Somali region does not need al-Shabab’s intervention, and said the scholars are obliged to speak at mosques and inform the public about the militant organization.

“This is the right time to speak out,” he said. “We should not give these men a chance, the government should not give them a chance and the clerics should not give them a chance. We have to stop them here.”

Samira Gaid, a security expert and executive director of the Mogadishu-based Hiraal Institute, said the community appears for now to be ready to reject any al-Shabab incursion.

She said al-Shabab has been struggling to build a support base inside Somali Region.

Although extremist groups in Somalia so far have failed to set up permanent bases in Ethiopia, they have succeeded in recruitment. Ali Diyaar, commander of al-Shabab’s Ethiopia front, and several other commanders who were reportedly involved in the recent incursion are from the region. Al-Shabab has also recruited from other Ethiopian communities, including from the Oromo.

Lengthy operation

The picture that is emerging from the region indicates the operation against al-Shabab fighters has been lengthy and more complex than previously reported by authorities. It appears security forces have been engaging the militants until at least late last week.

Two Ethiopian officials, one a diplomat and the other a security official who requested not to be named because they are not allowed to speak to the media, admitted that some of the al-Shabab fighters have reached their target — a mountainous area that stretches between the Somali and Oromia regions.

The number of militants who reached there is estimated to be between 50 and 100. But Somali Region officials repeatedly reported that al-Shabab militants who entered Ethiopia have been crushed. They ruled out the possibility that al-Shabab fighters are organized as a fighting force inside the region.

“Operations have officially lasted four to three and a half days,” the region’s deputy security chief Mohamed Ahmed Gurey told VOA Somali last week.

Gurey said al-Shabab’s strategy in Ethiopia has “failed.” Officials said they have seized weapons, walkie-talkies, SIM cards, phones, rice and sugar — indicating the militants planned for a lengthy operation inside Ethiopia.

“Since then, people in the rural areas and villagers have been hunting them, but their remnants have been apprehended yesterday and the day before in different locations,” Gurey said. “They are on the run. Some are trying to return to Somalia. Some are thirsty and don’t know whether they are going. All that remains is clearing up.”

El Kari

Officials believe al-Shabab wanted to reach the mountainous area near the small town of El Kari located close to the border with Oromia. The region’s officials confirmed the militants have been courting locals in that vicinity for at least a year. El Kari is in an area where locals have some grievances stemming from land disputes, and where some locals may feel their concerns are not being addressed by the local administration, an official said.

The social integration of the locals is more connected to the southern regions of Somalia. The area is also strategic, mountainous and with enough water to support a farming and pastoral community.

Officials believe al-Shabab was building a local cell for at least a year. On July 15, five days before the al-Shabab invasion, regional security forces conducted an operation in the El Kari area that killed a local cleric identified as Sheikh Mohamed Hassan Osman. The region’s security chiefs accused him of being the al-Shabab “worker” in the area.

Osman’s body was displayed by the authorities, who described him as an al-Shabab commander. He allegedly fought against the security forces. Officials said they confiscated weapons during the operation that led to Osman’s killing.

“The information we have is that this man was important to al-Shabab and a pillar for their attempts to destabilize Ethiopia,” Gurey said.

He said al-Shabab’s target in this incursion was the El Kari area, which Gurey argues proves the information they had about Osman was correct.

Authorities alleged Osman possessed extremist views and was known to the authorities for many years.

“The view about him was that he is an extremist who will cause fitnah (trouble) sometime,” Gurey said.

Osman’s relatives could not be reached for comment.

Al-Shabab vowed to fight the Ethiopian forces and also has been conducting its own mobilization along the border.
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Authorities in Somalia say bomb blasts near the southern coastal town of Kismayo killed at least four people and wounded 11 others. Separately, Somali authorities say the U.S. launched an airstrike in central Somalia in support of counterterrorism operations.

One of the bomb blasts targeted a minibus carrying civilians in the village of Buulo-haji on the outskirts of Kismayo, the administrative capital of the southern Somali state of Jubaland, resulting in multiple casualties.

A police officer in the port city of Kismayo who spoke with VOA on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to media said the attacks involved multiple landmine explosions and killed more than 4 people.

He said more than 11 others were wounded and taken to Kismayo hospitals for treatment.

Medical sources told VOA that some of the wounded have life-threatening injuries.

Residents told VOA that after the first explosion that hit the minibus, rescuers who were trying to reach the site were hurt when the second explosion went off. 

Authorities blamed al-Qaida-linked Islamist group al-Shabab for the attack, but no one has yet to claim responsibility.

Kismayo is a major port city, located 500 kilometers south of Mogadishu.

Meanwhile, Somali officials said U.S. forces launched an airstrike at the request of the Somali federal government in the central Hiran region.  There was no U.S. confirmation.

Government officials say the airstrike was conducted in defense of Somali National Army forces who, at the time, were conducting counterterrorism operations in the region.

According to a short statement issued by Somali authorities, there were no civilians harmed in the incident and the United States continues to support its Somali partners.
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Polls opened Tuesday in Kenya’s unusual presidential election, where a longtime opposition leader who is backed by the outgoing president faces the deputy president who styles himself as the outsider. 

The election is considered close, and East Africa’s economic hub could see a presidential runoff for the first time. Hundreds of voters lined up hours ahead of polls opening in some locations. 

The top candidates are Raila Odinga, who has vied for the presidency for a quarter-century, and deputy president William Ruto, who has stressed his journey from a humble childhood to appeal to millions of struggling Kenyans long accustomed to political dynasties. 

“In moments like this is when the mighty and the powerful come to the realization that it is the simple and the ordinary that eventually make the choice,” a smiling Ruto told journalists after becoming one of the first voters. “I look forward to our victorious day.” He urged Kenyans to be peaceful and respect others’ choices. 

More than 22 million people are registered to vote in this election in which economic issues could be of greater importance than the ethnic tensions that have marked past votes with sometimes deadly results. 

Outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Kenya’s first president, cut across the usual ethnic lines by backing longtime rival Odinga after their bitter 2017 election contest. But both Odinga and Ruto have chosen running mates from the country’s largest ethnic group, the Kikuyu. 

Odinga has made history by choosing running mate Martha Karua, the first woman to be a leading contender for the deputy presidency. “Make your voice heard,” she said after voting early in a knitted cap, a sign of the unusually cold weather in parts of the country. 

Rising food and fuel prices, huge government debt, high unemployment and widespread corruption mean economic issues are at the center of an election in which unregulated campaign spending highlighted the country’s inequality. 

Kenyans are hoping for a peaceful vote. Elections can be exceptionally troubled, as in 2007 when the country exploded after Odinga claimed the vote had been stolen from him and more than 1,000 people were killed. In 2017, the high court overturned the election results, a first in Africa, after Odinga challenged them over irregularities. He then boycotted the new vote and proclaimed himself the “people’s president,” bringing allegations of treason. A handshake between him and Kenyatta calmed the crisis. 

This is likely Odinga’s last try at age 77, and Kenyans and election observers will be watching to see how his often passionate supporters react to the results and any allegations of rigging. 

Official results must be announced within a week of the election, but impatience is expected if they don’t come before this weekend. The underfunded Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission is under pressure to ensure an untroubled vote.

 
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Zimbabwe has charged two journalists under its cybercrime law in a move media advocates say runs counter to global trends to support and promote press freedom.

Police in Harare have charged two journalists from the national paper, News Day, under provisions of the country’s Cyber and Data Protection Act that cover “false data messages.”

Editor Wisdom Mdzungairi and senior reporter Desmond Chingarande were called in for questioning last week over their coverage of a legal dispute involving local authorities and a memorial park in Harare.

Both deny the charge and Chingarande said he was surprised when police called.

“They allege l published a false statement on internet, but l see this as an intimidation tactic. There were allegations that they are burying people on a part of Glen Forest Memorial Park called Chikomo Chemhute, which is situated at the confluence of Mazowe River, without approval from responsible ministries,” he said.

Chingarande said he sought comment from all sides in the story before publishing. But, with the story now part of a police matter, he says he is unable to say much more.

Mdzungairi and Chingarande are the first journalists charged under new provisions of the cybersecurity law that Zimbabwe enacted during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Media Institute of Southern Africa said such laws are a means to target journalists and citizens.

Tabani Moyo, who heads the regional media watchdog, said, “These are some of the challenges which we continue having in Zimbabwe, where in we make progress in repealing acts such as the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, then the government claw(s) back using other pieces of legislation to retain elements that will further targets journalists. To have penal or sedition provisions in our statute books that target journalists [is] so out of sync with the global trends toward promotion and protection of media and journalistic expression.”

Zimbabwe is not alone in passing such laws, Moyo said. Zambia, Eswatini and Tanzania enacted cybersecurity laws and Namibia and Lesotho are finalizing similar legislation.

Moyo says heavy penalties, including up to 20 years in prison for those deemed to have shared false news, goes against democratic norms.

“This is an anathema to democratic existence and out of sync with our own constitution which provides for freedom of expression and media freedom, also violating international and regional conventions and tools,” Moyo said.

Ruby Magosvongwe, chair of the Zimbabwe Media Commission — a government-appointed body set up to promote and protect journalism — said she is aware of concerns over violations against the media.

Speaking at a conference on the safety of journalists, organized by UNESCO and media watchdogs in Africa Friday, she called for the government to be more involved in complaints of attacks against the media.

“My wish, my desire, is that in future we include our line ministries so that they get the firsthand reports, because they provide the link between ourselves as media institutions, media entities, with the respective governments from across the continent, across Africa, because examples have been given where journalists have suffered violence but if the line ministries are not involved, then it becomes kind of a conspiracy of sorts,” Magosvongwe said.

For News Day journalists Mdzungairi and Chingarande, they are now waiting to hear from court officials on when a trial in their case will take place.
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