BBC Africa Live
Esther Namuhisa, Damian Zane and Natasha Booty

That's all from BBC Africa Live for this week. Keep up-to-date with what's happening across the continent by listening to the Africa Today podcast or checking the BBC News website.

A reminder of Friday's wise words:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

And we leave you with these images from Dakar Fashion Week which ended on Sunday. They're among our favourite shots taken over the last seven days:

Image source, Getty Images

Kalkidan Yibeltal
BBC News, Addis Ababa

Image source, AFP

The US assistant secretary of state for Africa, Tibor Nagy, has called for a credible and independent investigation into the killing of dozens of protesters by security forces in Sudan last week, calling it "critically important".

There has been international condemnation of Sudan's Transitional Military Council (TMC), which decided last week to scrap all existing agreements with the main opposition coalition and announced plans to hold elections within nine months.

Before that point, the military and protesters agreed a three-year transition period to civilian rule.

On Thursday, Mr Nagy met senior members of the TMC for talks in the capital, Khartoum.

He described the discussions "as frank [and] as direct as possible, and obviously we didn’t agree on some points".

Speaking to reporters in the Ethiopian capital on Friday, he said the US wants to see a civilian government acceptable to the Sudanese people at the end of the transitional period.

A third-party negitiator would help to break the deadlock between the military council and the opposition, Mr Nagy said.

He applauded efforts by the African Union and Ethiopia's prime minister to broker a deal, but added that "all tools are available and remain on the table".

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

The head of Sudan's ruling military council, Lieutenant General Abdul Fattah al-Burhan, has met Eritrea's President Isiaias Afwerki in the capital, Asmara.

General Burhan is seeking to build up regional support for the military, which is under pressure to hand over to a civilian administration.

Eritrea has already criticised the decision of the African Union (AU) to condemn the military takeover in Sudan, which was suspended by the pan-African body last week.

Eritrea and Sudan often had poor relations when President Omar al-Bashir was in power as both countries accused each other of supporting opposition rebel groups.

Correspondents say Eritrea, an oppressive single-party state ,will be reluctant to see democratic reforms in neighbouring Sudan.

In a statement on Friday Eritrea's information ministry applauded the overthrow of Sudan's former president by people power, but said it pledged its "full and unequivocal support" to the military council "in its efforts to shoulder its responsibilities at this crucial phase of transition".

A Kenyan MP has been charged with assault after allegedly slapping a female colleague because she did not allocate money to his constituency.

Rashid Kassim is accused of slapping Fatuma Gedi - who sits on the budget committee - in the car park of the parliament building in the capital, Nairobi.

He denied the charge in court on Friday and has been released on bail, according to the Daily Nation news site, external.

A photo of Ms Gedi crying with blood in her mouth after the alleged assault on Thursday has been shared widely on Twitter:

Female MPs subsequently walked out of parliament in protest:

AFP news agency quoted Speaker Justin Muturi as saying: "I have received the complaint from [Ms Gedi], and I want to say that that is not acceptable. The matter has been referred to the police. Parliament has no room for criminals."

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

The World Health Organization (WHO) is meeting to decide whether the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, which has killed about 1,400 people, should be declared an international public health emergency.

The agency previously decided that it wasn't a global threat, partly because the virus was confined to DR Congo.

But this week Ebola spread to Uganda, where two members of the same family died from the disease.

Doctors have confirmed that another relative - a three-year-old boy who was repatriated to DR Congo from Uganda - had also died.

Image source, AFP

A zoo in northern Nigeria is investigating reports that a gorilla has eaten about 7m naira ($19,400, £15,400), officials have told BBC Pidgin.

The Managing Director of Kano Zoo, Umar Kashekobo, said: "Police are investigating what happened - all I can say is money is missing."

Five days’ worth of gate fees had disappeared, Kano Police spokesperson Abdullahi Kiyawa said.

He told the BBC that 10 people had so far been arrested and officers were also investigating why such a lot of money was being kept in the office instead of the bank.

Freedom Radio, a popular station in Kano, reported earlier this week that the money had gone missing.

It interviewed someone from the zoo’s finance department who said a gorilla sneaked into the office, stole the money and later swallowed it.

Last year an official for Nigeria’s national exam board in Benue state said a snake had come into an office and eaten 36m naira of exams fees.

A few weeks ago, she and other officials pleaded not guilty to fraud.

Cyuzuzo Samba
BBC Great Lakes, Nairobi

A group of LGBTQ+ refugees who have been targeted in Kenya say a "good Samaritan" has come to their aid by giving them accommodation in the capital, Nairobi.

They say there are 76 refugees in the group coming from Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.

They told BBC Great Lakes that they left Kakuma refugee camp in north-western Kenya after a series of homophobic attacks against them by fellow camp residents.

In April, the group rented rooms in Nairobi's Kangemi suburb, where they later faced the same hostility once local residents heard about their sexual orientation.

The landlord then told them to go.

The Refugee Coalition of East Africa, which works with LGBTQ+ refugees, stepped in to help.

It says the group is composed of 14 lesbians, 20 transgender women, one intersex person and the others are gay and bisexual men. There are also 10 children.

Image source, .

Frank (not his real name) told the BBC that the coalition took them to a new house in the south of Nairobi. But the conditions there are not good.

“We have no water here, no food for the past few days and we are in three rooms. It’s too bad,” Burundian refugee Claude (not his real name) told the BBC.

They have not received any help from the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, he added.

In a statement sent to the BBC, UNHCR spokesperson Dana Hughes said the agency was concerned about the situation of the group and is working with "community-based organisations" to deal with it.

“We are aware that many LGBTI refugees living in Kenya continue to face challenges, we advise refugees to remain in safe neighbourhoods, and in small groups for their own protection,” she said.

Munira Hussein
BBC Africa, Dar es Salaam

The Democratic Republic of Congo has applied to join the East African Community (EAC), President Felix Tshisekedi has confirmed on a trip to Tanzania.

The East African regional bloc currently has six members: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and South Sudan. It is working towards free trade between its members and free movement of people.

Mr Tshisekedi said he had already written a letter to the EAC chairman, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, expressing interest in membership.

He also said that he believed membership would bring in more economic opportunities and would help secure peace in his country.

‘’We want to join this bloc so as we can stabilise this part of Africa and work together for the better,’’ he said on a visit to Dar es Salaam's port.

DR Congo's government is currently facing insecurity in several parts of the country, including in the east, where there is an Ebola outbreak.

Supermodel Naomi Campbell and US singer Demi Lovato are among the many social media influencers to have turned their profile pictures various shades of blue, in a show of solidarity with pro-democracy protesters in Sudan. Last week, dozens of protesters died in a violent crackdown at the hands of the authorities.

Blue was reportedly the favourite colour of Mohammed Hashim Mattar, 26, who was shot dead by security forces last week in the capital, Khartoum, where the protests are concentrated.

Now supporters want the colour to symbolise the wider movement:

In a separate statement of solidarity, activists in Kenya held a vigil on Thursday night for Sudan, reports the BBC 's Victor Kenani.

Earlier police had disrupted the vigil throwing tear gas into the crowd, terming the meeting as unlawful.

Some of those Victor spoke said they were there to show solidarity with the suffering of fellow Africans in Sudan.

There has been international condemnation of Sudan's Transitional Military Council (TMC), which decided last week to scrap all existing agreements with the main opposition coalition and announced plans to hold elections within nine months.

Before that point, the military and protesters agreed a three-year transition period to civilian rule.

The US assistant secretary of state for Africa, Tibor Nagy, has been trying to encourage talks between the two sides.

Similarly last week, Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed held separate meetings with the TMC and the opposition, but two opposition leaders Mohamed Esmat and Ismail Jalab were arrested the next day.

The TMC had said talks would resume "soon" but these have not materialised.

Read more on the Sudan crisis:

• Sudan's violent political crisis explained
• The PR farce that exposed Sudan's schisms
• The art fuelling Sudan's revolution

Teklemariam Bekit
BBC Tigrinya

Sources from Eritrea have told BBC Tigrinya that the government has ordered the Catholic Church to hand over all the health centres that they run.

Earlier this week, government officials asked health centre administrators to sign a document approving the handover.

However, most of the administrators refused to sign and told the officials to talk to the church leaders.

Security officers then removed the staff from the health centres and closed them down.

It is not yet known why the Eritrean government took this action.

However in April, Eritrean Catholic bishops called for a national reconciliation process that ensures justice for everyone.

In the 30-page letter that the bishops wrote in the wake of the peace deal signed with Ethiopia, they said the nation should come together and heal.

It called on the government to make reforms that would stop people wanting to leave the country.

Read: Eritrea's 'ice bucket' bid for freedom

Patricia Oyella
BBC Africa, Uganda

Image source, EPA

The authorities in Uganda are planning to start an Ebola vaccination campaign in the western district of Kasese, which saw two deaths from the virus earlier this week.

Those who died had crossed over form the Democratic Republic of Congo, where nearly 1,400 people have died from Ebola.

Health workers and people who came into contact with those who had Ebola will get the injection.

Uganda's health ministry says seven people who had earlier been suspected to have Ebola have been found to be negative.

The seven include four of the people who were repatriated to DR Congo on Thursday along with a three-year-old who has the virus.

The European Union has released $3.9m (£3m) to Uganda and South Sudan in emergency funding to help prevent the spread of Ebola.

The additional funding comes ahead of Friday's World Health Organization meeting to discuss whether the Ebola outbreak in DR Congo should be declared a public health emergency of international concern.

Wecyclers is a recycling company that has picked up an international award in Belgium, external.

It uses a fleet of bikes to collect waste from neighbourhoods in Nigeria's biggest city, Lagos.

In return, it gives households points they can redeem for prizes, as an incentive.

Wale Adebiyi, the company's chief operating officer, tells BBC Newsday how the collection system works:

Tanzanian women have reacted with surprise and anger at the news that Finance Minister Philip Mpango is introducing a 25% tax on imported wigs and hair extensions.

Well-known wig importer Annasatasia Sigera told the BBC:

She added that the new tax could affect the market because people will start buying cheaper low quality wigs.

One woman, who wanted to remain anonymous, told the BBC that she currently spends $450 (£360) on her hair extensions. She added:

Image source, Aristote Mwamtobe

Aristote Mwamtobe, who runs a popular salon in the main city Dar es Salaam, also expressed his anger and thought it could have an affect on people's relationships.

"The 10% tax [for locally-made wigs] and the 25% tax [for imported wigs] is too expensive for our sisters," he said.

"They might cut their hair and then get a divorce as the men are used to seeing their wives with long hair, and then suddenly things change!

"Women look so good with wigs."

Mali's President Ibrahim Boubakar Keïta says his government will disarm all those who illegally possess weapons, and punish anybody who refuses to comply.

He made the pledge on a visit to the site of the Sobane Da massacre where 35 people were killed on Monday, 24 of whom were children. The death toll was initially reported as 95 but later reduced.

A similar pledge was made by Mali's government in March, but they have struggled to disarm militias.

Hundreds of people have been killed in violent clashes between Dogon hunters and Fulani herders since January, and there are several Islamist groups based in northern Mali from where they launch attacks.

Although an Islamist uprising was quashed with the help of troops supplied by Mali's neighbours and France in 2015, it nonetheless decreased government control and increased the availability of weapons.

Image source, AFP

Image source, Reuters

A man of Nigerian and Kenyan heritage has been at the forefront of the historic NBA championship win by the Toronto Raptors.

Masai Ujiri, whose mother is Kenyan and father Nigerian, is the Canadian side's general manager - the most senior position in the team.

Overnight, the Raptors became the first Canadian team to win the championship, beating the Golden State Warriors 4-2 in the best of seven series.

Ujiri, who was born in Britain, has become a well-known figure in basketball development in Africa.

He set up the Giants of Africa programme which recruits young African basketball talent and secures scholarships in US universities.

The organisation has built courts in Rwanda, Senegal and South Africa. It is also working to develop coaching talent in Rwanda.

Before Wednesday night's match, Giants of Africa posted a film on Instagram of Kenyan fans shouting: "Let's go Raptors!"

On court, African players made a big contribution to the Raptors' victory.

Cameroon's Pascal Siakam was their top scorer with 26 points, and Congo-Brazzaville's Serge Ibaka scored 15 points.

Image source, Reuters

Digesting the details of Thursday's budget in Kenya, the newspapers are highlighting the measures that could hit the less well off.

The Daily Nation calls it a "rich man's budget" and the Standard says it "does not spare low income earners".

One measure highlighted is Finance Minister Henry Rotich's proposal that passenger-motorcycle riders, known as bodabodas, will have to get insurance.

The Standard estimates that this will cost $35 (£27), a high cost for low earners.

The price of cigarettes and alcohol has also increased. And there is a new tax on betting.

The Daily Nation says Mr Rotich "protected banks and owners of capital, and shielded exporters, government suppliers, among other interest groups".

The finance minister was under pressure to boost the number of people paying tax as Kenya's national debt is growing.

Ethiopia is now in its fourth day of an internet blackout. But whereas on Tuesday and Wednesday the service had resumed temporarily, it did not return after it had been shut down on Thursday.

The text message service also remains blocked.

The state-run monopoly phone provider Ethio Telecom has told BBC Amharic that it "did not have a mandate" to comment on the outages.

The closure of the services coincides with nationwide exams. There has been speculation that the internet blackout is aimed at trying to stop people cheating, but this has not been confirmed by the authorities.

On Wednesday, the state broadcaster ETV reported that four students had been caught cheating after sending each other text messages.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Tanzania's finance minister has announced a 25% tax on all imported wigs and hair extensions and a 10% tax on those made in the country in a bid to raise more revenue.

Philip Mpango announced the measures, which should come in at the beginning of next month, as part of his annual budget statement on Thursday.

Wigs, most of which come from overseas, are commonly worn by women in the country.

The cheapest wig currently costs around $4 (£3.40) but they can go up to $130.

Mr Mpango also ended the exemption on value added tax being placed on sanitary towels. He said it was because consumers had not benefited from the lower price as businesses did not reduce what they charged when the exemption was introduced.

Many women have taken to Tanzanian WhatsApp groups to complain about the new measures, accusing the government of punishing them.

Other tax increases include a 35% tax on chocolate and biscuits - it had been 25%.

South Africa's Caster Semenya can continue to compete pending her appeal, after a Swiss court rejected the IAAF's request to re-impose its new rules on the 800m Olympic champion.

Semenya is appealing to Switzerland's Federal Supreme Court (SFT) against the world governing body's rules restricting testosterone levels in female runners.

The IAAF wanted to reverse the SFT's decision to suspend the restrictions pending Semenya's appeal, but her lawyers said the request was rejected.

The new rules state that Semenya and other athletes with differences of sexual development (DSD) - must either take medication in order to compete in track events from 400m to the mile, or change to another distance.

Three-time world champion Semenya said: "No woman should be subjected to these rules. I thought hard about not running the 800m in solidarity unless all women can run free.

"But I will run now to show the IAAF that they cannot drug us."

In a statement, her lawyers said: "After considering the IAAF's arguments, the Court has now determined in a second order that the IAAF's request failed to set out any reason or change in circumstance that would justify a reconsideration of the prior order.

"This means that Caster remains permitted to compete without restriction in the female category at this time."

Fergal Keane
BBC Africa editor

Image source, EPA

After 10 days of growing condemnation Sudan's military rulers say they "regret that some mistakes happened" during the operation to clear the protest sit-in.

But apparently not sufficient regret to allow an independent international investigation.

Instead the regime says it will announce the results of its own probe on Saturday and that it has already arrested some officers.

The opposition and many in the international community will suspect a cover up.

There is now a growing diplomatic effort involving the United States and the African Union to achieve a political solution and transition to civilian rule.

The generals are rhetorically committed to civilian government but nothing in their actions over the last months has indicated they intend to give up control.

This raises the issue of whether the international actors now calling for change have the will to remain engaged.

Will America press the regimes backers in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to withhold further financial aid until there is democracy?

Certainly US Assistant Secretary of State Tibor Nagy suggests they will. He tweeted that the US stood with the opposition attempts to bring about a civilian led transitional government.

Read more:

• Sudan's violent political crisis explained
• The PR farce that exposed Sudan's schisms