Africa highlights: Thursday 19 January 2017

Summary

President-elect Barrow sworn in at the Gambian embassy in Dakar
Huge diplomatic presence at inauguration
Barrow demands loyalty of armed forces
Nigerian military planes 'fly over Gambia'
Jammeh's propaganda chief says he is not quitting
Botswana no longer recognises Jammeh as president
Gambia's capital is 'eerily quiet'
Email stories and comments to africalive@bbc.co.uk - Thursday 19 January 2017

Live Reporting

Tom Spender and Farouk Chothia

Diplomats and Gambians gather at Barrow 'inauguration'published at 16:27 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
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Rwanda's ambassador to Senegal has joined other diplomats and officials at the swearing in ceremony of Adama Barrow at the Gambian embassy in Dakar.
Outside, hundreds of Gambian expatriates have also gathered, eager to be present at the inauguration Mr Barrow, whom they regard as their country's first new leader in 22 years.
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'Few soldiers' at Jammeh's mansionpublished at 16:12 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
The BBC reporter in The Gambia has taken a drive to the presidential mansion in the capital, Banjul, which is under the control of Yahya Jammeh:
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Media scrum for 'inauguration'published at 16:09 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
A BBC correspondent is with the media pack at Gambia's embassy in Senegal:
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Plea to Jammeh to go peacefullypublished at 16:02 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
The streets of the biggest city, Serekunda, are deserted
Diplomatic efforts are continuing to persuade Yahya Jammeh to relinquish ower in The Gambia, a spokesman for President-elect Adama Barrow has said.
Halifa Sallah told BBC Newshour:
Quote Message
Well, you know the situation is changing very rapidly, and the dialogue is continuing. As you can see, the president of Mauritania was here yesterday.
Quote Message
Essentially what is happening in The Gambia is that The Gambia people as a whole, have decided to be in their homes, the streets are empty, the shops are closed, there is a total shut-down of the country, and there is a stand-still of the economy, and I am sure you are aware that ministers are leaving, ambassadors are leaving, and if the army also decides not to be part of the conflict, well, obviously with the inauguration of Barrow, if the international community starts to recognise him, well, where does governability stand in terms of the Jammeh administration?"
Mr Sallah warned that if Mr Jammeh did not leave office, there would be "a state of war":
Quote Message
Who is going to govern? Is [it] the person who can impose one's will on the other, and that is a state of war, and that is why the dialogue is being encouraged so that we do not get to that level."
Why Ecowas is going to the UN over Jammehpublished at 15:49 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Tomi Oladipo
BBC Monitoring's Africa security correspondent
Senegal is sponsoring a resolution to be discussed at the UN Security Council on Thursday afternoon - New York time.
While Ecowas does not need the Security Council’s permission to take military action in the Gambia, it would favour international endorsement of its operations.
The West African body has been engaging in ‘gunboat diplomacy’ - putting on a show of force to make Yahya Jammeh realise he has to step aside or be forced out.
He has a loyal Presidential Guard, a few dozen of the country’s best trained forces, but they stand no chance against regional troops.
Nigeria has provided air and naval capabilities, while Senegalese troops are on the border. Ghana is also preparing more than 200 troops for the operation. Their mandate is to ensure the safety of former estate agent Adama Barrow, whom they regard as the legitimate president following his victory in elections, and the people of the Gambia.
Swearing in preparations under waypublished at 15:46 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
There has been some activity around the Gambian embassy in Dakar. Chairs have been delivered and the faded Gambian flag has been replaced with a new one.
There is a heavy security presence, Reuters news agency reports. Journalist have been taken to a room to watch from there, a BBC journalist there says.
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Jammeh loyalists 'will resist regional force'published at 15:38 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Image source, EPA
Image caption,
Mr Jammeh is said to be staying at State House
Gambia's Yahya Jammeh is at his official residence and intends to stay there, AP news agency quotes an official close to his administration as saying.
If he is to be arrested by a regional military force, it will be at State House and many of Jammeh loyalists there will resist, the official said.
Regional forces are poised to take action. Senegal has deployed hundreds of soldiers to its shared border with Gambia while Nigeria has pre-positioned war planes and helicopters in Dakar and sent a navy ship to the region, Reuters reported.
Some unconfirmed reports suggest some regional troops have already entered the country, meeting no resistance.
Mr Jammeh's term as president was due to end on Wednesday. It was extended for 90 days by the Gambian parliament on Tuesday but West African governments do not recognise this.
The Gambia's army is said to be divided over its loyalties.
'All welcome' becomes 'by invite only'published at 15:35 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Image source, Facebook
The general public has been urged to stay away from Gambian President-elect Adama Barrow's inauguration at the Gambian embassy in Dakar, according to a post on a Facebook page linked to Mr Barrow.
Earlier in the day Mr Barrow's team tweeted, external "you are all welcome" to attend the ceremony.
US tells staff to stay away from Gambia borderpublished at 15:15 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
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Koranic recitations on Gambian TVpublished at 14:54 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
BBC Monitoring
News from around the globe
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
Mr Jammeh has ruled the tiny West African state since 1994
Programming is yet to start on Gambian state-run TV, GRTS, as the country waits for Adama Barrow's controversial inauguration in neighbouring Senegal.
GRTS started showing transmission colour bars with sporadic audio of Koranic recitations from 10:51 GMT, nearly four hours earlier than the previous day.
But it's not unusual for the TV to operate off regular scheduling.
BBC Monitoring found the website of state TV inaccessible and the last entry on GRTS's Facebook page was posted on 5 January.
The government owns the only national terrestrial broadcast station, the preferred medium for Yahya Jammeh's pronouncements.
He has refused to concede to Mr Barrow, who was the declared the winner of the 1 December election.
Vote to extend Jammeh's term 'was legal'published at 14:44 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
Mr Barrow says he is the third president since independence in 1965
Tuesday's vote by Gambia's parliament to extend Yahya Jammeh's presidency by 90 days does have some legal effect. That's the view London-based West Africa analyst Murtala Touray expressed in a BBC interview.
A two-thirds vote is needed to overrule the constitution but this was achieved, he said.
Mr Jammeh's term of office was due to end at midnight following his defeat in elections.
Adama Barrow says he will take the oath of office later today at Gambia's embassy in Senegal, where he has been for the past few days.
It is unclear who will preside over his inauguration, with speculation that it will be a commissioner of oaths.
Will it be legal? It's a matter that legal pundits are bound to debate for a long time.
Welcome to Lagos - tech incubatorpublished at 14:20
A new crop of Nigerian developers is drawing on the depth of culture across the continent to make distinctly African games.
And they hope their reach will go far beyond the continent.
Media caption,
Welcome to Lagos - tech incubator
Gambia 'state of war' warningpublished at 14:01 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
The Gambia will be in a "state of war" if Yahya Jammeh refuses to give up power, a spokesman for his presidential rival Adama Barrow, has told the BBC's Newshour radio programme.
Halifa Sallah urged Mr Jammeh to leave office, saying he will not be prosecuted for alleged crimes committed since he took power in a bloodless coup in 1994 .
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
Mr Barrow's supporters celebrated after Mr Jammeh's defeat in last month's poll
A tale of rival presidentspublished at 13:52 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
The Gambia's Adama Barrow will not be the first opposition leader to have an unconventional presidential inauguration. Nor will The Gambia be the first African state to have rival presidents
On 4 December 2010, Ivory Coast's Alassane Ouattara was sworn in at a hotel in the commercial capital, Abidjan, guarded by UN peacekeepers after the incumbent Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept defeat.
Mr Gbagbo had his own inauguration earlier that day at the presidential palace in Abidjan.
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
Mr Gbagbo took the oath after rejecting his election defeat
Mr Gbagbo was arrested some four months later by French-led forces at the presidential palace, and is on trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes.
In contrast, Mr Ouattara is still the president, having won a second term in 2015.
Unlike Mr Gbagbo, Mr Jammeh is not being sworn in for another term. Instead, parliament has extended his term by 90 days, while he waits for the courts to rule on his bid to annul Mr Barrow's victory in the 1 December poll.
But Mr Barrow wants him to go now, and has the backing of powerful regional states which have threatened to send troops into The Gambia to oust his rival.
He is taking the oath in neighbouring Senegal, but at The Gambia's embassy.
So will Mr Jammeh end up like Mr Gbagbo or will he be luckier? Stay with BBC Africa Live to find out.
Ghana to deploy troops to The Gambiapublished at 13:36 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Thomas Naadi
BBC Africa, Accra
Image source, AFP
Ghana will be deploying more than 200 combat troops to support the Ecowas mission in Gambia.
The spokesperson for the Ghana Armed Forces, Col Aggrey Quashie has confirmed to the BBC that the troops will be deployed in the coming days.
An earlier communique issued by Ghana’s presidency indicates that President Akufo-Addo authorised the deployment.
US bombs IS militants in Libyapublished at 13:33 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
US B-2 bombers carried out air strikes against camps of the so-called Islamic State outside the Libyan town of Sirte on Wednesday night, two US defence officials said, Reuters reported.
The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the strikes were carried out 45 km (28 miles) south-west of Sirte and done in cooperation with the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA).
The Gambian crisis in 60 secondspublished at 13:31 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Media caption,
Behind crisis in The Gambia - in 60 seconds
Gambian President Yahya Jammeh is refusing to step down despite the threat of military intervention by neighbouring states.
Here's a look at what is behind the turmoil that is forcing tourists to flee - in 60 seconds.
You can also see the video on the BBC Africa Instagram page, external
Video journalist: Christian Parkinson
Barrow's change of venuepublished at 13:19 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Gambian President-elect Adama Barrow was due to be inaugurated at a football stadium in the country - but with Yahya Jammeh, whose term was due to end on Wednesday, refusing to budge, it will now take place at the somewhat smaller venue of the Gambian embassy in Dakar:
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The Gambia trending in Africapublished at 13:01 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Image source, Google
A Google search for "Gambia president" is currently yielding two results, with both Yahya Jammeh - whose mandate was due to end on Wednesday - and Adama Barrow - who is due to be sworn in later today in Senegal - showing as results.
Image source, Trendsmap
Meanwhile hashtags related to the Gambia crisis are trending in Africa, with #Gambia #Jammeh #Barrow #Ecowas among the top performers.
Streets peaceful as The Gambia waitspublished at 12:46 Greenwich Mean Time 19 January 2017
Umaru Fofana
BBC Africa, Banjul
Image source, AFP/Getty
Image caption,
Markets in Serrekunda were closed
Very peaceful in the areas I've been to today in The Gambia and reports I've received across the country speak of the same.
Hardly any soldiers or military patrols on the streets. A few policemen around looking pleased with themselves. Two recently mounted military checkpoints dismantled.
Civilians expressing themselves freely - and angrily - with some saying they will take to the streets after Adama Barrow takes the oath at The Gambian Embassy in Dakar.