Six activists in the Democratic Republic of Congo have rejected a presidential pardon for their release from prison, the International Business Times reports, external

The activists are members of Lutte pour Le Changement (LUCHA), a youth activist group which has been calling for President Joseph Kabila to step down at the end of his term in November.  

The group has asked not to be released from prison in solidarity with other prisoners of conscience, and has demanded that the pardon should be extended to those in custody waiting for their appeals. 

The  government has warned it will forcibly release the six activists, according to the report.

They were sentenced on 24 February to six months imprisonment in Goma, the main city in eastern DR Congo. 

Image source, AFP

US President Barack Obama's half-brother, Malik Obama, says he's changing party loyalties in the up-coming poll to vote for Republican party candidate Donald Trump. 

Malik told BBC's Newsday programme that he admires Mr Trump's straight talking manner and supports his controversial immigration plans. 

Malik is registered to vote in the US state of Maryland, but he's currently in Kenya.

You can listen to the full interview here:

Seven UN guards were among those killed in the suicide bombings in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, police Captain Mohamed Hussein has said, the Associated Press news agency reports. 

He said one bomber detonated his vehicle outside the UN compound office while a second bomber targeted a checkpoint manned by Somali security forces near the African Union base. 

See earlier posts for more details

We have spotted this tweet about a man in Zambia's capital, Lusaka. 

The tweeter, a journalist who reports for us, says the man is conducting his campaign ahead of general elections on 11 August. 

He says the huge foot model is his campaign symbol. 

The number of people killed in the double suicide car bombings in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, has risen to at least 13, police official Bishaar Abdi Gedi, AFP news agency reports. 

The BBC's Ibrahim Aden has been to the scene of the blasts and has shared these images with us: 

Image source, AFP

Renowned Congolese musician Koffi Olomide has been arrested in the capital, Kinshasa, reports the BBC's Poly Muzalia from the city. 

The reason for the arrest is unclear, but it comes after his deportation from Kenya on Saturday for allegedly kicking one of his female dancers at the main airport in the capital, Nairobi.

He denied assaulting her.  

We'll bring you more details as soon as get them.   

South Africa's Labour Court has ordered the public broadcaster to reinstate four journalists it sacked after they challenged a decision to censor images of violent protests. 

SABC  covered the ruling against it:

And a private radio station has captured the reaction of the four:

The case was seen as a litmus test for press freedom, with the SABC being accused of behaving like a state broadcaster by censoring images that showed attacks on government buildings by protesters. 

The SABC has said it did not want to incite unrest by showing such images, but the High Court ordered it last week to lift the ban.

A Malawian man, who  featured in a BBC story as being involved in an initiation ceremony to "cleanse" young girls by having sex with them, has been arrested. 

Eric Aniva had been arrested on President Peter Mutharika's orders, a former presidential spokesman, Bright Malopa, has told the BBC's Focus on Africa radio programme. 

He said Mr Aniva, nicknamed "hyena" for his role in the initiation, would be prosecuted for violating children's rights. 

"Whether there is tradition or not, it is against the law," he said.

Police have confirmed the arrest.

The man revealed in the feature that he had had sex with more than 100 girls and that he was HIV positive.   

The sex cleansing practice is a traditional custom endorsed and funded by some communities in southern Malawi but the government has been trying to stop it.

Many people have been repulsed by the story. You can watch the video here: 

Correction: This entry has been amended to reflect that Bright Malopa is a former presidential spokesman, not the current one.

Mohammud Ali Mohamed
BBC Africa, Nairobi

Image source, Abdulaziz Billow Ali

Somalia's militant Islamist group al-Shabab says it was behind the twin explosions in the capital, Mogadishu, this morning, killing at least three people.  

The group said the target was the heavily fortified headquarters of African Union (AU) troops, not far from the main airport. 

Big explosions followed by gunfire were heard near the airport's entrance and thick smoke could be seen rising. 

A Somali police official, Captain Mohamed Hussein, said a suicide bomber had detonated an explosives-laden car, the Associated Press news agency reports. 

He put the number of killed at three but eyewitnesses told the BBC that more than 10 had died in the attack. 

Read: Who are al-Shabab?

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Image source, AFP

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