theguardian.com
@theguardian Wed, 01 Jul 2026 02:00:29
'Witch-hunt' in Niger as military regime rounds up LGBTQ+ population
Fears of resurgence of HIV/Aids amid loss of access to PrEP drugs as at least 40 people arrested in 'toxic' climateA "witch-hunt" is under way in Niger, where dozens of people have been arrested for homosexuality in the west African state following the introduction of a new penal code earlier this year.Up to 40 people have been arrested and 16 men, including high-ranking military officials, have been imprisoned across the country, according to local media. Continue reading...
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theguardian.com
@theguardian Thu, 06 Aug 2026 09:30:32
Top Ugandan footballer killed by robbers armed with paving stones
David Owori, who played for the national team, died in hospital after he tried to stop robbers taking his phoneThe Ugandan football community is in mourning after the death of a player who was fatally injured during a robbery in the capital, Kampala, on Tuesday night.David Owori, who captained Sports Club Villa, a Uganda Premier League club, and represented the national team, was attacked after resisting an attempt to steal his mobile phone and other belongings. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Sat, 01 Aug 2026 23:00:11
Anti-LGBTQ+ laws are on the rise across west Africa, campaigners warn
Activists in the region say politicians regard LGBTQ+ people as 'the easiest scapegoats to maintain their power'A growing number of west African countries are implementing or strengthening anti-LGBTQ+ laws, amid local political pressures and a global pushback against LGBTQ+ rights.In March, Senegal doubled the maximum prison sentence for gay sex to 10 years and criminalised the "promotion" of homosexuality. Niger criminalised "sexual relations with a person of the same sex" in February, the first time same-sex intimacy had been outlawed in the country. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Mon, 27 Jul 2026 02:00:34
Uganda begins emergency food handouts after 19 die from hunger
Government move follows months of drought and crop failures in Karamoja, with 1.5m people facing malnutritionUganda has launched emergency food relief distribution after at least 19 deaths from hunger were reported in an area of prolonged drought in the east of the country.A crisis has been building in the Karamoja region of Uganda as crops have failed without the season's expected rains, leaving the region's 1.5 million people facing acute food shortages and rising malnutrition. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Fri, 24 Jul 2026 05:00:11
'We can't even walk through the streets': women arrrested for kissing in public on life under Uganda's anti-LGBTQ+ law
Wendy Faith and Alesi Diana Denise have been released after five months in prison over allegations of engaging in same-sex activityFor five months, Wendy Faith and Alesi Diana Denise shared a small prison cell knowing that there was a possibility they might spend the rest of their lives there. Accused of engaging in same-sex activity, an offence under Uganda's anti-LGBTQ+ laws, the two young women faced a life sentence.Faith, a 22-year-old musician known as Torrero Bae, and Denise, 21, say they have been left "traumatised" by their arrest and detention, an ordeal that began with a police raid on their single rented room in Arua City, north-west Uganda, in February. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Thu, 16 Jul 2026 06:33:27
Uganda calls for travel restrictions to be lifted after last Ebola patient discharged
Country begins 42-day countdown to outbreak being declared officially over, as numbers continue to rise in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the CongoUganda has started lobbying countries to lift Ebola-related travel restrictions after discharging its last confirmed Ebola patient from hospital.The discharge of a Congolese national from the Mulago national referral hospital's isolation centre in Kampala on Thursday triggered the start of a 42-day countdown required by the World Health Organization before Uganda can officially be declared Ebola-free, provided no new infections are detected. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Fri, 10 Jul 2026 01:00:13
Visualised: how conflict, aid cuts and health-worker attacks are helping Ebola spread in DRC
The rapid spread of the virus has been intensified by misinformation and violence towards volunteers and treatment centresNearly two months after the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) confirmed an Ebola outbreak in one province, the virus is continuing to spread rapidly, reaching more parts of the country and infecting more people.According to government data from 8 July, 1,759 cases and 600 deaths have been recorded. The virus has also spread to Uganda, where there have been 20 confirmed cases, including two deaths. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Thu, 09 Jul 2026 06:00:03
Less drugs, less care, less food: how aid cuts have hit Uganda's 2m refugees
Africa's largest refugee population has seen rations and healthcare slashed as funding levels dropThe skies are gloomy over the wattle-and-mud houses of Kiryandongo refugee settlement, home to more than 167,000 people. Spread across an undulating plateau, the crowded camp, 120 miles (200km) north of Uganda's capital, Kampala, draws new arrivals every day as conflicts in Sudan and South Sudan add to the displacement toll. Of nearly 50,000 refugees who have arrived in Uganda since January, more than 1,000 have come to Kiryandongo.Known for its progressive refugee policies, which include granting freedom of movement, land to cultivate, and the right to work and open a bank account, Uganda is home to 2 million refugees – the largest refugee population in Africa – who live in 13 settlements across the country. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Tue, 07 Jul 2026 10:17:19
Catnip lotion as effective as Deet at repelling mosquitoes, study finds
Researchers testing a cheap, homegrown oil in Uganda found what cats knew all along – it worked as well as the artificial chemical used globally A homegrown catnip lotion has proven "just as effective as Deet" as a mosquito repellant in trials carried out in Uganda.Catnip, or Nepeta cataria, is a common herb from the mint family. The chemical in the plant that causes feline euphoria – nepetalactone – also has insect-repelling properties but this has not previously been commercialised. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Sun, 05 Jul 2026 12:17:22
Anthony Kasozi obituary
My friend and colleague, Anthony Kasozi, who has died of cancer aged 65, was a coach and consultant with the rare gift of making his clients feel more confident.Specialising in leadership development, Anthony worked over many years with a wide range of organisations such as the International Committee for the Red Cross, the London School of Hygiene Tropical Medicine, the African Academy of Science and the Mental Health Foundation. Often dealing with directors and multinational teams, he was no stranger to difficult conversations held in stressful situations and always found ways to create calm, a sense of possibility and a way ahead that elicited the best from people. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Tue, 30 Jun 2026 05:00:04
'I was devastated': the Nigerian with albinism deported under Trump's asylum crackdown
Ladidi Shaibu's two siblings both gained asylum before the Trump administration's changes to immigration policy. But instead of being allowed to join them, she is being deported to UgandaGrowing up and living with albinism in rural Nigeria was tough for Ladidi Shaibu. She and her two siblings with the condition were shrouded in stigma and lived in constant fear of being mutilated or killed. Her sister was attacked twice and her brother was kidnapped as a child by people who wanted to sell his body parts.Three years ago, Shaibu, 35, entered the US via the border with Mexico and registered as an asylum seeker. Her brother had already been granted asylum and her sister's case was soon to be successful, too. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Sun, 28 Jun 2026 23:00:27
Trafficked, beaten and raped: raids reveal scale of abuse of women in Asia's cyberscam centres
As tens of thousands are freed, female survivors are increasingly reporting gender-based violence in the compounds, previously thought to hold mainly menLate one evening in October 2023, Sarah* felt labour pains starting. It was 11pm, but at the cyberscam compound inside Laos' Golden Triangle, workers were logging on for a long night shift, scamming Americans online.Every night, workers sat at their computers until the early hours, building fake profiles of glamorous, jet-setting women on Facebook and Instagram. Sarah trawled the web to find older men to target with messages, where she fawned over their jobs, asked how their day had been and exchanged photos of luxury travel and beach trips. Each conversation she had was meticulously designed to follow a multi-day script, and monitored by bosses who walked up and down the long rows of desks. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Thu, 18 Jun 2026 13:55:09
CDC to tap $107m in emergency funding for Ebola response in DRC and Uganda
Number of people infected now tops 1,000 though health officials say the global risk remains lowSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will tap $107m in emergency funding for Ebola outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, officials said on Thursday.The continued Ebola outbreak in the DRC comes as Canada, Mexico and the US jointly host the Fifa World Cup, attracting visitors from around the world. The officials said the outbreak, now the third largest on record, required "strong immediate support", but that the global risk remained low. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Sun, 14 Jun 2026 08:00:46
Ebola one month on: will the latest outbreak in DRC become the most deadly yet?
With more than 670 confirmed cases and over 135 deaths, the disease has yet to be contained amid funding shortfalls, fear and disinformationWhen an orphanage in Bunia took in a newborn baby after his mother died from Ebola, the nuns who ran it hoped they were giving the infant a chance for life. The baby survived for only another two weeks. Now four of the nuns who cared for him have fallen sick with the deadly virus.It is a snapshot of the tragedies at the centre of an outbreak in which the number of victims is roughly doubling every week, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Continue reading...
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@theguardian Thu, 04 Jun 2026 03:00:29
The race to combat Ebola: what vaccines and treatments are being developed and how long will it take?
With the Bundibugyo strain of the disease spreading across the DRC and Uganda, scientists and researchers are trying to find rapid solutionsThere is no vaccine or treatment available for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola that is spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, but this week three vaccine developers were awarded $60m (£45m) in emergency funding as the race to halt the outbreak ramps up.Security issues in the affected region of the DRC, where conflict has displaced tens of thousands, have made it challenging to set up trials to test drugs. Militias operate in the area and some Ebola treatment centres have been attacked. Continue reading...
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@theguardian Wed, 03 Jun 2026 23:00:25
Rebel attacks in eastern DRC kill 30 people and hamper Ebola response
Islamic State-linked militia blamed for raids in North Kivu as governor says three patients with disease fled clinicsRebel attacks around a town that is one of the centres of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have left more than 30 people dead over the past few days, complicating the response to the disease.At least 10 people were massacred in raids on three villages around the city of Beni, in North Kivu, in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Continue reading...
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