Ethiopian and Somali troops have captured the strategic Somali city of Baidoa from al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab  fighters, who vowed to avenge the loss. Baidoa, 250km northeast of the capital Mogadishu, is one of the main bases of the anti-government group, and Wednesday’s capture deals a major blow to the fighters, who control large parts of southern and central Somalia. “We have taken... 

Hundreds of Afghans have staged angry protests at two sites in and around the capital Kabul, angered by reports that NATO troops had set fire to copies of the Quran, the Muslim holy book. General John Allen, the American commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, offered his apology and ordered an investigation into the incident as protesters shouting “Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar” [God... 

NAIROBI — Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab rebels have forced children as young as 10 to fight alongside them and serve as “cannon fodder” in battles against government troops, Human Rights Watch said Tuesday. The Islamists have also abducted girls to help on the frontline and as wives to rebel fighters, according to a report by the New York-based group. Parents who try to prevent... 

Somalis living in the UK say diaspora groups have not been properly consulted ahead of Thursday’s international conference in London aimed at setting a course for a country ravaged by war for two decades. Somali representatives of UK organisations addressed some of the questions raised by readers at a roundtable organised by Global development on Friday. A feeling emerged that the concerns of... 

The Associated Press Date: Sunday Feb. 19, 2012 7:36 AM ET KHARTOUM, Sudan — Famed Sudanese singer Mohammed Osman Wardi, who popularized the music of his native Nubia, died Saturday at the age of 80, the state media reported. The reports said the singer died of kidney complications in a Khartoum hospital. His funeral early Sunday was aired live on state television, despite his strained relation... 

In the Dadaab camp – the largest refugee camp in the world- where life is becoming more difficult everyday, hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers are facing a humanitarian emergency. The health of refugees is at risk of deteriorating rapidly while humanitarian aid agencies are struggling to provide meaningful assistance on an ongoing basis. In October 2011, in the wake of the kidnapping of... 

Amnesty International has accused Libyan militias now ruling much of the country of committing widespread abuses, saying suspected supporters of former ruler Muammar Gaddafi are being tortured with impunity. In a report released on Wednesday, the rights group said the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) had failed to control the fighters. Amnesty said it had documented widespread abuses, including... 

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Trapped inmates screamed from their cells as a fire swept through a Honduran prison, killing at least 300 inmates in the world’s deadliest prison fire in at least a century, authorities said Wednesday. Some 475 people escaped from the prison in the town of Comayagua and 356 are missing and presumed dead, said Hector Ivan Mejia, a spokesman for the Honduras Security Ministry.... 

NAIROBI, KENYA—Five children around the world die every minute because of chronic malnutrition, according to a report released Wednesday that also said that almost half a billion children risk are at risk of permanent damage over the next 15 years. A report from Save the Children said the deaths of 2 million children each year could be prevented if malnutrition were better addressed. The report called... 

Supporters of Lucene Charles say the single mother will have to leave three of her four children in foster care, if she is deported to St. Vincent on Feb. 20. Charles married a Canadian 15 years ago but her former husband never sponsored her for citizenship. Now Charles is devastated she may have to leave Canada, and leave her three Canadian-born children behind. Charles is hoping an 11th hour hearing...