Islamic State extremists exploit instability in Africa and Syria, UN experts say
The militant group is now using advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, and social media, which poses a new challenge, the experts told a U.N. Security Council meeting.
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New York Times
17 minutes ago
- New York Times
Sonallah Ibrahim, Egyptian Novelist of Irony and Dissent, Dies at 88
Sonallah Ibrahim, an Egyptian novelist who chronicled with deadpan irony his country's submission to dictatorship and materialism in an influential career spanning nearly six decades, died on Aug. 13 in Cairo. He was 88. The Egyptian culture minister, Ahmed Fouad Hanno, announced his death, in a hospital. The state newspaper Al-Ahram said the cause was pneumonia. Mr. Ibrahim shocked the Arab literary world with his short, singeing debut novel, 'That Smell,' published in 1966. Many other books followed, but the tone was set by the first — it was censored, banned, circulated underground and not definitively published in complete, open form until 20 years later. The stripped-down style of 'That Smell' and its harsh depiction of a present without perspective were at odds with the ornate main currents of Arabic literature, as well as the self-confidence of the official Egyptian narrative, which was firm until the country's shattering defeat by Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967. Through one individual's disabused journey across Cairo, Mr. Ibrahim portrayed the malaise of an entire society, a literary experiment that earned him a lasting place in his country's cultural landscape. 'That Smell' portrays the anomie of a young man just released from prison, like Mr. Ibrahim himself, who had spent five years in the harsh jails of the nationalist dictator Gamal Abdel Nasser after he rounded up the country's Communists on New Year's Day 1959, even though he was supported by many of them, including Mr. Ibrahim himself. Mr. Ibrahim was released, along with other Communists, only as a good-will gesture to the Soviet premier, Nikita Khrushchev, who had come to inspect the Kremlin-financed Aswan High Dam in 1964. The narrator of 'That Smell' tries to readjust to a mid-1960s Cairo he hasn't seen in years. It doesn't go well. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Sudan's army denies bombing convoy taking aid to famine-hit area
Sudan's army has denied bombing a World Food Programme (WFP) convoy taking aid to a famine-hit area in the country's Darfur region. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) had blamed the army for Wednesday's air strike in the town of Mellit, which is under RSF control. A UN agency said a drone hit the convoy, and three lorries in the 16-vehicle convoy caught fire and were destroyed. All staff travelling in the convoy were safe, it added. Sudan plunged into a civil war in April 2023 after a vicious power struggle erupted between the army and the RSF, creating one of the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The RSF does not have an air force, but both sides use drones. The attack is the latest in a string of assaults on humanitarian operations in Sudan. "Humanitarian staff and assets must never be a target," the WFP said, urging the warring parties to respect international humanitarian law. Aid worker returns to base where he hid from bullets Sudan war: A simple guide to what is happening The convoy was headed towards a village near Mellit, a "famine-affected area" some 90km (56 miles) north-west of el-Fasher, the WFP said. The city, the army's last foothold in the Darfur region, has been besieged by the RSF for more than a year. It is one of the main areas of conflict in the civil war, and the RSF has intensified its battle for control of el-Fasher in recent weeks. Both sides have previously been accused of using starvation as a weapon of war by obstructing the delivery of aid and looting food. Five aid workers were killed in a similar attack in el-Fasher in June. Tens of thousands of people have died, and 12 million have been forced from their homes because of the conflict. More than 4.5 million refugees, mostly women and children, have fled to neighbouring countries. More BBC stories on the war in Sudan: 'Tortured and terrified' - BBC witnesses the battle for Khartoum 'Our children are dying': Rare footage shows plight of civilians in besieged Sudan city Oil-rich Sudanese region becomes new focus of war between army and rival forces The two generals at the heart of the conflict Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica BBC Africa podcasts Africa Daily Focus on Africa
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Bloomberg
Japan, Kenya Agree Credit Deal Smaller Than Nairobi First Touted
Japan agreed to provide Kenya with as much as ¥25 billion ($170 million) in yen-denominated funding, a smaller amount than Nairobi previously indicated it expected to secure. The loan facility was announced by Japan's foreign ministry in a statement on Wednesday following a meeting between Kenyan President William Ruto and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in Yokohama on the sidelines of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, but the amount and terms weren't initially disclosed.
