She’ll speak to Africa  ambassadors in Pretoria about it – as he predecessor Lindiwe Sisulu did five months ago.

South Africa’s High Commission in Abuja and consulate in  Lagos have been temporarily closed because they came under attack from youths angered by the xenophobic violence in Pretoria and Johannesburg.

South African diplomatic missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia have received similar treatment.

African countries are using boycott – the same tactic employed during the anti-apartheid struggle – to express their displeasure.

Nigeria has shunned the World Economic Forum hosted in Cape Town.

Madagascar follows Zambia in refusing to play a friendly fixture against Bafana Bafana.

Air Tanzania has suspended flights to South Africa.

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Her statement does not indicate how long their doors will be shut.

The security situation in Nigeria is somewhat unpredictable, says foreign minister Naledi Pandor because of youths attacking the diplomatic missions and South African businesses in retaliation for violence against Nigerians in South Africa.

She says she’ll speak to African ambassadors in Pretoria next week about the burning and looting of foreign-owned businesses in Pretoria and Johannesburg and attacks on foreigners that have left five dead.

She says South Africa has provided extra security for its diplomatic missions as has in the Nigerian authorities in keeping with customary diplomatic practice.  

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Several people have died in recent months  in demonstrations in the capital Abuja calling for this concession.

The ailing 66-year-old Ibrahim Zakzaky will be accompanied by Nigerian officials tasked with  ensuring  he returns home to face trial on charges of culpable homicide.

His wife Zeenah, who also requires urgent medical treatment, is travelling with him.

Supporters of Zakzaky, who converted from Sunni Islam to form the pro-Iranian Shia Islamic Movement of Nigeria, says he is losing his sight after suffering a number of strokes.

Nigerian authorities have failed to comply with an earlier court ruling that Zakzaky be released.

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The dead include a policeman and a journalist hit by a stray bullet.

The protestors from the Islamic Movement of Nigeria were calling for the release of their leader Ibrahim Zakzaky who has been held since 2015.

They say the medical conditions of Zakzaky and his wife, who is also in detention, are deteriorating.

Their spokesman Abubaker Abdulrahman says the violence began after the police hurled smoke and teargas canisters at them. This was followed by a volley of live rounds.

They say they have yet to ascertain the number of dead. 

Police say they were provoked by demonstrators torching a security building.

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He’s commended the patience of the Nigerian people indexing with the week-long delay in the election.

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari is basking in the congratulation of friends having beaten Atiku Abubaker and won a second term as President.

Buhari’s advised  his followers not to gloat about their victory.

In his message to Abuja, President Cyril Ramaphosa notes the findings the African Union observer mission that the election was peaceful and conformed with Nigeria’s legal framework.

He says he looks forward to working with Buhari to build on the close ties between the countries – they have no fewer than 34 bilateral agreements in place – especially in the economic fields.

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His chief opponent Atiku Abubaker disputes this and alleges there were irregularities in the vote that was delayed by a week.

ends intro

Election observers from the European Union, United States and African Union have expressed concern about delays in the arrival of voting material and malfunctioning of electrical voting machines that led to voting going into a second day in some centres.

They’re also critical of the electoral commission  delaying the elections by a week.

But none have supported the claims of fraud by the opposition People’s Democratic Party.

Early results have incumbent Muhammadu Buhari winning seven of Nigeria’s 36 states.

Atiku Abubaker is given two states and the capital Abuja.

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The Nigerian military claims the newspaper endangered national security by reporting on the fights against Islamist extremist Boko Haram.

Daily Trust was among many news outlets that reported on Boko Haram overrunning a military base in Northeast Nigeria.

Armed soldiers raided its offices in Maiduguri, the centre of the Boko Haram’s theatre of operations and in the nation’s capital Abuja and commercial capital Lagos.

They seized computers and arrested journalists.

The Committee to Protect Journalists deplores this attack on press freedom.

It calls for the release of the journalists and the return of equipment.

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Two policemen were killed in the ambush laid by the kidnappers.

The kidnap victims were reportedly setting up solar stations.

They were travelling from Kaduna  to the capital Abuja.

Nigerian authorities say every possible means is being deployed  to free the abductees.

Kidnapping foreigners for ransom is common in Nigeria’s southern states.

Last October four British missionaries were seized in the oil-rich Delta state.

One was killed while the other three were later released.

In recent years the crime has spread across the country as the economy has stalled. A crackdown on cattle rustling has been blamed for rising numbers of abductions in the north.

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His six-day safari has included  Madagascar, Zambia, Tanzania, Republic of Congo and Nigeria.

Minister Wang Yi has followed five predecessors who visited Africa during their first foreign trip each year.

After seeing Wang yesterday, Nigerian Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama ordered Taiwan to move its trade mission from the capital, Abuja, to the commercial hub, Lagos.

China pledged to invest $40 billion into infrastructure in Africa’s most populous country.

Wang says China will actively practice the values of friendship, justice and shared interests proposed by President Xi Jinping and aid African countries to seek independent and sustainable development

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Their summit  determined to  take all necessary actions to uphold the result of a Dec. 1 election in Gambia, President Yahya Jammeh lost.

The ECOWAS summit in Abuja says the regional grouping will guarantee the safety of president-elect Adama Barrow.

His surprise victory and Jammeh’s initial decision to step down was seen across Africa as a moment of hope.

Jammeh was widely condemned for announcing  a week later  that he would reverse that position and called for a fresh vote.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari’s been appointed to mediate a regional effort to ensure the will of the Gambian people is upheld.

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