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/ 21 May 2008

Growing danger of coup in Zimbabwe

There is a growing danger of a coup by military hardliners in Zimbabwe to prevent opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai from toppling President Robert Mugabe, a leading think tank said on Wednesday. The International Crisis Group called for African mediation leading to a national unity government led by Tsvangirai as the best way to resolve the crisis.

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/ 13 May 2008

Sudan at turning point after rebel attack

An unprecedented Darfur rebel attack on Khartoum is a turning point that could persuade Sudan’s rulers to negotiate seriously with their foes or push Africa’s biggest country towards disintegration. Sudan-watchers believe the key is international involvement and say much more pressure is needed on both rebels and the government.

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/ 17 March 2008

Problems loom ahead of Sudan census

Cash-flow problems and logistic headaches are blighting preparations for Sudan’s census, a cornerstone of the fragile peace ending a devastating civil war and paving the way for key elections. The largest civic exercise in national history will go ahead from April 15 to 30 despite complaints about disorganisation.

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/ 21 February 2008

Kenya govt agrees to PM post

Kenya’s government said on Thursday it agreed in principle to creating a prime minister’s post demanded by the opposition, in a possible breakthrough for a political crisis some worry could explode into violence again. Local and international pressure has grown for a deal to end the stand-off over President Mwai Kibaki’s disputed re-election on December 27.

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/ 17 February 2008

Violence flares as poll nears in Pakistan

Leaders of Pakistan’s opposition parties have been making frantic last-minute efforts to convince fearful voters to turn out in crucial parliamentary elections on Monday that may plunge the 164 million-strong nation into chaos. As the last day of official campaigning in the most troubled contest for decades drew to a close on Saturday, no one was confident of a victory.

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/ 28 November 2007

Eritrea-Ethiopia border deadline looms

It’s hard to see the looming threat of war with Ethiopia as you walk Eritrea’s tree-lined boulevards or enter its Italian-style cafes. But beneath the Eritrean capital’s tranquil surface, many Eritreans say they are worried about a repeat of the 1998 to 2000 border war that killed about 70 000 people.

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/ 10 November 2007

Doubts abound over Guinea leader’s capabilities

The enthusiasm that came with the storming to office of Guinea’s latest prime minister has waned and there are doubts over his capability to lift the country out of misery, a global think tank said on Friday. Lansana Kouyate, an ex-United Nations diplomat, was early this year named Prime Minister by ailing President Lansana Conte.

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/ 6 November 2007

Ethiopia says it wants talks, not war with Eritrea

Ethiopia on Tuesday said it had no plans to go to war with rival Eritrea over their disputed border, and again urged Asmara to pull its troops back and begin dialogue over marking the frontier. Ethiopia’s comments came a day after the International Crisis Group warned the two nations could easily slide into a repeat of their 1998 to 2000 border war.

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/ 27 September 2007

DRC hopes hi-tech ID cards will tame unruly army

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) hopes a new biometric identity card (ID) scheme backed by the European Union can help overhaul its undisciplined armed forces, branded by campaigners as the central African state’s worst rights abuser. After decades as a tool of repression under former leader Mobutu Sese Seko and a devastating 1998 to 2003 war, DRC’s army is bloated, unmanageable and corrupt.

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/ 25 September 2007

Burma monks defy threat of military force

Hundreds of monks marched towards central Yangon on Tuesday in defiance of a threat by Burma’s ruling generals to send soldiers in to end the biggest anti-junta protests in 20 years. About 2 000 monks and ordinary people marched out of the Shwedagon Pagoda, the former Burma’s holiest shrine and the symbolic heart of a growing campaign against 45 years of unbroken military rule.

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/ 20 September 2007

SA Cabinet welcomes Zim ‘breakthrough’

The South African Cabinet has welcomed the recent breakthrough by the collective leadership of Zimbabwe on draft constitutional amendments. Zimbabwe’s main political parties have reportedly agreed that President Robert Mugabe should no longer be allowed to handpick members of the lower house of assembly.

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/ 20 September 2007

Brown to boycott summit if Mugabe attends

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown threatened on Wednesday to boycott a summit of European and African leaders if Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe is allowed to attend. He called on fellow heads of state to increase pressure on Harare before the planned December talks between the European Union and African Union.

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/ 19 September 2007

SA govt upbeat over Zimbabwe progress

A day after Archbishop Desmond Tutu called on Britain to toughen its stance on Zimbabwe and press its neighbours, including South Africa, to intervene, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Aziz Pahad said ”quiet diplomacy” was showing results. Speaking on Wednesday, Pahad hailed the constitutional changes agreed to by all the parties in Zimbabwe as a positive development.