Police in Zimbabwe say they have arrested the suspected leader of a religious sect in a village in northern Mashonaland West province and rescued dozens of women and children.

Ishmael Chokurongerwa, 56, who leads the Gore Jena Penyeranyika sect was arrested alongside seven other senior members of the cult on Tuesday, police spokesperson Paul Nyathi said in a statement, external.

Police said most of the 251 children found in Mr Chokurongerwa's farm in Nyabira, about 34km (21 miles) north-west of the capital, Harare, had no birth certificates and were not allowed to attend school.

Police also discovered a gravesite at the farm where 16 people have been secretly interred, including seven infants whose burials were not registered with authorities.

The rescued children "were being used to perform various physical activities for the benefit of the sect’s leadership", the police statement said.

“Police also established that all children were subjected to abuse such as cheap labour, doing manual work in the name of being taught life skills," it added.

Mr Chokurongerwa, who calls himself "Prophet Ishmael", told local reporters that he was “not aware of women’s and children’s rights”.

One of the cult members told reporters that formal education in schools was not wanted by God "because what children are taught there is against the teachings of God".

Ghana is spending almost $250m hosting the African Games, and the country's outlay amid a time of economic turmoil has brought scrutiny.

Image source, Bihi Egeh/X

Several countries have agreed to cancel more than $2bn (£1.5bn) of debt owed to them by Somalia.

The Paris Club which includes the US, Japan and Russia wrote off almost all the money it was owed after Somalia reached the end of a debt forgiveness initiative overseen by the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

Somalia has in turn committed to prioritise poverty reduction by investing in health, education and basic infrastructure.

"Achieving full debt relief will transform Somalia's future and allow our government to create fiscal space for basic public services," Finance Minister Bihi Egeh shared on X, external, formerly Twitter.

Somalia's conclusion of the IMF and World Bank Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt forgiveness initiative last December made the country eligible for $4.5bn ($3.5bn) worth of debt forgiveness.

Achieving the full $4.5bn debt relief will slash the country's external debt from 64% of its GDP in 2018 to just 6%.

Somalia had been exiled from the global financial system for more than three decades following years of civil war and militant threats.

Image source, Reuters

South Africa has terminated a deal to sell a stake in its national airline after failing to agree on a value and other terms with a consortium of private investors.

The government had since 2021 planned to sell 51% of the loss-making South African Airways (SAA) to the Takatso Consortium, as part of efforts to end recurring bailouts of the flag carrier.

After three years of negotiations, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on Wednesday said the deal had been called off "as there is no clear path forward".

Mr Gordhan cited the impact of the post-Covid-19 market as a significant factor in the decision, leading to a revaluation of SAA’s worth.

“We are convinced that SAA can sustain itself in the next year to 18 months and that there are various other ways in which immediate financing can be obtained," he added.

In a statement, the Takatso Consortium said the changes in the deal to buy SAA would have taken too long to achieve.

SAA will now revert to being fully state-owned but the government said the airline was open to entering into other partnerships.

The collapse of the deal is a blow to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s efforts to sell off non-performing state entities and bring state debt under control.

Read more:

• South African Airways: Troubled airline returns to intercontinental travel

Nkechi Ogbonna
West Africa business journalist, BBC News

Image source, EPA

Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu has lifted all economic sanctions imposed on neighbouring Niger, eight months after a military coup there.

He ordered the immediate opening of borders, the resumption of commercial flights and the supply of electricity to Niger.

Exports including livestock and onions from Niger to Nigeria have dwindled significantly.

Import dependent Niger has suffered the lack of essential commodities, with border communities being the worst hit by these sanctions.

Last month, the West African regional body, Ecowas, agreed to lift economic sanctions against Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Guinea which have all seen military takeovers in the last two years.

Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso had earlier announced they would withdraw from Ecowas after the sanctions were imposed.

Niger’s ousted President Mohamed Bazoum has been detained by the military leaders in Niger since last July's coup.

Authorities in Uganda's capital, Kampala, say the city is experiencing an outbreak of conjunctivitis, a highly contagious eye infection.

The Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) says conjunctivitis cases have also been reported in schools in the city.

It has asked schools to take preventative measures such as screening visitors, asking learners to stop rubbing their eyes and urging them to frequently wash their hands with soap.

Conjunctivitis often causes the eyes to become red or pink.

Other common symptoms include watery eyes, blurred vision, discomfort, itching, pain and swelling of the conjunctiva (eye lining).

Uganda is the latest African country to record cases of the disease this year.

An outbreak of viral conjunctivitis was reported in Tanzania in mid-January, and over 5,000 cases have been recorded across more than 17 regions.

Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Comoros, Madagascar and Mayotte have also recorded cases, while Rwanda issued an alert last month.

With good hygiene and avoiding contact with infected people, the infection tends to heal on its own.

Image source, Getty Images

Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu has ordered security forces not to pay ransom for the release of close to 300 students and staff who were kidnapped from a school in north-western Kaduna state last week.

Mr Tinubu instead directed security agencies to ensure the release of all kidnapped victims without any payment to the kidnappers, the country's Information Minister Mohammed Idris told reporters on Wednesday.

Mr Idris said the president had told forces searching for the pupils to make sure "not a dime is paid".

Earlier, relatives of those taken said gunmen had demanded hundreds of thousands of dollars for the release of the students abducted from their school in Kuriga village.

There have been several mass kidnappings over the last week, including the seizure on Tuesday night of more than 60 people from a village also in Kaduna state.

Over the last three years hundreds of students have been abducted.

Some of the hostages have been released following negotiations with the authorities, although officials deny ransom payments are made.

A law passed in 2022 banned paying ransom to kidnappers.

The surge of large-scale abductions is challenging Mr Tinubu's government, which had promised to tackle insecurity.

Read more about Nigeria's kidnap crisis:

• Schoolboy recounts daring escape from bandits
• Why mass abductions have returned to haunt Nigeria

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The disgraced ex-president has ditched the ANC, spelling danger for the party that ended apartheid.

Rose describes the exploitation and sexual violence she faced after escaping a "life of hell".

Victoire Ingabire, an outspoken critic of President Kagame, fails in her bid to run for the presidency.

Kelly Smith has been charged with involvement in the abduction of her child, Joslin, who is still missing.

The Home Office is offering up to £3,000 to encourage people to relocate to the East African country.

The 11 violated the Ramadan fast in northern Kano state, where Sharia operates alongside secular law.

The electoral body is against an opposition plan to use drones near polling stations in December.

An Egyptian suspect has been arrested as police try to determine a motive for the stabbings.

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That's all from the BBC Africa Live team for now.

Until we're back, there'll be an automated service here, plus you can get the latest news on or website or listen to our podcasts - Africa Daily and Focus on Africa.

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And we leave you with this shot of Senegalese presidential candidate Anta Babacar Ngom waving at her supporters.

Image source, AFP

Jose Tembe
BBC News, Maputo

Four people have died and one person has been injured as Storm Filipo hit southern Mozambique's Inhambane province, according to the state-owned broadcaster.

Roofs have been ripped off schools and residential homes.

In the tourist areas of Tofo and Barra, the waves have destroyed several boats.

In some areas the roads are inaccessible.

Local authorities say the storm has disrupted electricity supply and communication lines.

Storm Filipo continues to batter the province, with intermittent rain and gusty winds.

Its effects are already being felt in the capital Maputo and the area around it.

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

Image source, Getty Images

A cargo ship in the Indian Ocean has been boarded by suspected Somali pirates about 600 nautical miles (1,000km) off the country's coast.

A maritime security firm said 20 armed men had attacked the vessel which was heading from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates.

A British maritime monitoring agency confirmed the incident but didn't specify if Somali pirates were involved.

There have been about 20 hijackings or attempted hijackings in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin since November.

There have also been attacks in the same region by Houthi rebels.

More on this topic:

• Are we witnessing the return of piracy on Somalia's coast?
• The world's most dangerous seas