A Kenyan soldier who had been missing since an attack in the north-east of the country on Saturday has turned up alive.

Eight soldiers were killed, two were injured and two were missing after their vehicle hit a roadside bomb near the Somali border.

No-one admitted to planting the explosives.

The soldier who has been found ran away from the blast site and was helped by some local Kenyan-Somalis. They say that they dressed him up to appear as an ethnic Somali in order to protect him.

There is no word about the second missing soldier.

At the weekend, unnamed officials told AFP news agency that the security forces had been pursuing suspected al-Shabab Islamist militants fighting Somalia's government and its backers, including Kenya.

The al-Qaeda-linked group has been trying to overthrow the Somali government for years.

The UN's refugee agency has said it will "provide protection" to the group of LGBT refugees who are being relocated to Kakuma camp in Kenya's north-east.

The group of 76 men, women and children were hounded out of the camp in April in the wake of being targeted because of their sexual orientation.

They went to find safety in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, but were also victimised there.

On Wednesday evening, without warning, two buses arrived outside where they were staying to take them back to Kakuma.

In a statement, the UNHCR says "upon their arrival, [the refugees] will be met by UNHCR Kakuma protection teams.

"Each refugee will be individually counselled and their protection needs will be evaluated and appropriate action taken for each of them.

"Special provisions will be made for refugees with particular needs and vulnerabilities, including those with the LGBTI profile."

The chief administrator for Tanzania's main city, Dar es Salaam, has accused the US of not following proper procedure when it comes to threats to security.

Paul Makonda was responding to an alert by the US Embassy that it had heard of rumours of a possible attack in a tourist area of the city.

He said that instead of talking about the rumours the US was "supposed to go through the proper channels to address the issue".

In other words, the US should have let the Tanzanian security forces deal with it.

A video of him speaking in Swahili about the rumours was shared by a local TV station:

Chief of police Simon Sirro said he was aware of the information that the US was referring to and the police were investigating.

But Mr Makonda appeared to contradict him by saying that there was no information about a possible attack.

He insisted that "our city is safe in all areas and our police are doing their work effectively as usual.

"I want tell visitors in hotels and all citizens that they should not be worried... there is no such threat."

South Africa's President Cyril Ramphosa will give his first state of the nation address since the African National Congress (ANC) won elections earlier this year.

The economy is in the doldrums and according to official figures unemployment now stands at nearly 28%.

So will Mr Ramphosa bring hope?

The talk show host, Redi Tlhabi, in Johannesburg told the BBC's Newsday programme that his chances are hampered by the legacy of his predecessor, Jacob Zuma, and by ANC inaction over land redistribution.

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is expected to arrive in Sudan's capital, Khartoum, to follow up on the mediation process between the Transitional Military Council (TMC) and the opposition Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), the Paris-based Sudan Tribune , externalreports.

Its says Mr Abiy will meet the two parties to try to persuade them to accept a draft agreement put together in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, on a political transition.

Mr Abiy was in Khartoum on 7 June where he held separate meetings with opposition and the TMC leaders.

His special envoy, Mahmoud Dirir, said the TMC and the FFC had agreed to resume talks on the formation of the Sovereign Council, the institution that is supposed to run the country for three years.

An opposition member said Ethiopia proposed that the sovereign council be comprised of eight civilians and seven military officers with a rotating presidency.

The head of the TMC, Lt Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said on Wednesday that he was ready to resume negotiations with the opposition on the country’s transition to democracy.

Talks between the two sides collapsed after the security forces violently dispersed a protest sit-in in Khartoum on 3 June.

The state-run Suna news agency quoted Lt Gen Burhan saying the TMC was read to “complete the dialogue”.

Image source, Reuters

Cyuzuzo Samba
BBC Great Lakes, Nairobi

A group of LGBT refugees who had left a refugee camp in north-west Kenya after being targeted in violent homophobic attacks are being bussed back there from the capital, Nairobi, some of them have told the BBC Great Lakes service.

The group, made up of 76 men, women and children, had been crammed into a small house in south Nairobi.

On Wednesday evening they were told to pack up their belongings for the 740km (460 mile) journey back to Kakuma camp.

At the end of last year, the authorities running Kakuma said that they were no longer able to protect LGBT refugees.

One of the refugees has sent the BBC a photo of a notice, date stamped in February, telling them that they had to get help from the UN refugee agency, UNHCR.

They finally left Kakuma for Nairobi in April. They were hounded out of the first place they settled once people in the area discovered their sexual orientation.

They then went to the small house in the south of the city. Armed police were stationed outside the compound to protect them.

In April, some had mounted a demonstration outside the UNHCR offices in the Kenyan capital to ask for help. Since then, the UN has been giving them a $59 (£46) monthly stipend, which they say is not enough to live on.

One of the group told the BBC that "Wherever we have lived we face homophobia because of our orientation, life is very hard.

"We don’t see our future, we are not criminals, we are with innocent children, we don’t know where to flee to, we beg UNHCR for protection.”

The UNHCR has told the BBC that they will release a statement later on Thursday.

Football's world governing body and the Confederation of African Football (Caf) are considering appointing Fifa General Secretary Fatma Samoura as a High Commissioner for Africa in light of recent governance issues on the continent.

If the proposal is approved, Samoura would take charge for at least six months from 1 August.

African football's ruling body has been in the spotlight recently, with Caf President Ahmad questioned by French authorities earlier this month as "part of a probe into corruption, breach of trust and forgery".

The 59-year-old, who is also being investigated by Fifa's Ethics Committee, was released without charge following the talks in Paris and has dismissed all allegations against him as "false".

There was also controversy with regard to rescheduling the 2019, 2021 and 2023 Africa Cup of Nations finals.

"The rule of the temporary Fifa High Commissioner for Africa would be to conduct a root and brand review of governance of the confederation, oversee operational management of the organisation and recommend where needed a series of reform efforts," a leaked memo stated.

Read more from BBC Sport

The US has told Zimbabwe that there is an "urgent need to hold security forces accountable for acts of violence" earlier this year and last year.

Six people were shot dead in August 2018 as opposition protesters complaining about the election result clashed with security forces.

At the beginning of this year local rights groups said at least 12 people had been killed and many more beaten during demonstrations triggered by a hike in fuel prices.

At the time a government spokesperson said this was "a foretaste of things to come".

The US' top diplomat in Africa, Tibor Nagy, has tweeted that he brought the incidents up with President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

The US assistant secretary for African affairs met the president on the sidelines of a US-Africa meeting in Mozambique, AFP news agency reports.

He said the US wanted to see "real political and economic reforms".

When Mr Mnangagwa came to power in November 2017, after the ousting of long-time President Robert Mugabe, there were high hopes that he would make big changes.

Some have criticised the president for not moving fast enough.

Image source, Reuters

In a rare security alert, the US embassy in Tanzania has told its citizens there to take precautions after saying there were "rumours of impending attacks" in a tourist area of the main city Dar es Salaam.

However the embassy also says it "has no substantiating evidence of the threat or information on the timing":

Responding to the warning, police chief Simon Sirro said he was aware of the rumours and the police were following them up.

"It's news like any other news, it might be true or false, but we don't ignore it," privately owned newspaper Mwananchi , externalreports

He added that the intelligence service had the information since Tuesday.

In 1998, the US embassy in Dar es Salaam was targeted in an al-Qaeda bombing in which 11 people died. But there have been no attacks on foreigners in Tanzania since then.

BBC World Service

The authorities in Burkina Faso say militants have killed 17 people in a village in the north of the country.

Defence Minister Cheriff Sy said an "armed terrorist group" carried out the assault on Tuesday night in the district of Tongomayel.

He said a massive military operation was under way to secure the area.

There have been numerous recent attacks in northern Burkina Faso, many carried out by jihadists.

There have also been ethnic clashes. Earlier this month, 19 villagers were killed in the neighbouring district of Arbinda.

Our proverb of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

Welcome to BBC Africa Live where we'll be keeping you up to date with news and developments on the continent.

BBC Africa Live
Esther Namuhisa, Damian Zane and Natasha Booty

That's all from BBC Africa Live for now.

Keep up-to-date with what's happening across the continent by listening to the Africa Today podcast or check BBCAfrica.com.

A reminder of our wise words:

And we leave you with this fashion shot taken by Gabonese photographer Yannis Davy Guibinga:

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

The head of the ruling military council in Sudan has called on the opposition protest movement to resume peace talks.

In a speech on state television, Lieutenant-General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan urged the Forces for Freedom and Change and all political powers to hold talks with the military council.

It is not clear if they are ready to resume dialogue, as there has been deep mistrust of the military rulers since security forces opened fire on peaceful protesters two weeks ago.

Doctors said more than 120 people were killed. The authorities said 61 died.

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Gunmen have attacked a police station on the outskirts of Niger's capital, Niamey, and killed two officers, says AFP quoting a security official.

The news agency says the attack on Tuesday evening by suspected jihadists was the closest to the city yet, in a long-running insurgency.

"The toll is two dead and four wounded, two of them serious," AFP quotes the security source as saying.

"We heard gunfire coming from the station at 23:00 local time (22:00 GMT)," a witness told the news agency.

More on this topic:

• Why the Sahara is terror's new front line
• More about Niger

Emmanuel Igunza
BBC Africa, Nairobi

Image source, AFP

Three men - Rashid Charles Mberesero, Mohamed Ali Abikar, Hassan Edin Hassan - have been found guilty of conspiracy to commit the 2015 attack on Garissa University in which 148 people were killed.

They were also found guilty of belonging to the al-Shabab Islamist militant group, and will be sentenced will be on 3 July.

A fourth man was acquitted of both charges.

Today's judgement will offer little, if any, reprieve to the victims and their families.

There will, however, be a sense of closure for a case that has dragged on for nearly four years.

Image source, CGTN

The trial had been beset by changes of magistrates and witnesses not showing up in court; a situation typical of the Kenyan justice system.

The ruling today is hugely significant. This was after all the deadliest attack on Kenyan soil since the 1998 US bombings.

The conviction is also in some ways a victory for the Kenyan police and prosecutors who have constantly faced accusations of botching high-profile cases like this one.

During the attack, gunmen fired indiscriminately as well as singling out and shooting those who identified as Christians.

Read more on the BBC News website.

BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

Turkey's president says he'll try to ensure that the Egyptian government faces trial in an international court over the death of ousted President, Mohammed Morsi.

He collapsed and died while on trial in a Cairo court for spying.

"Morsi was killed, he did not die of natural causes," Turkey's leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, contradicting Egypt's public statements on the death.

Concerns have been raised by the UN and others about the conditions of Mr Morsi's detention, and his access to medical care.

Egypt has accused its critics of trying to "politicise" what it says was "a natural death".

Mr Erdogan had close ties with Mr Morsi before he was deposed by the military six years ago.

Three of the four suspects standing trial for the 2015 attack on Kenya's Garissa University have been found guilty.

One was acquitted of responsibility for the terror attack which killed 148 people, most of whom were students.

BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

Tunisia has allowed 65 migrants to disembark a boat that was stranded off its coast for almost three weeks.

The migrants are mainly Bangladeshi but the group also includes nine Egyptians, one Moroccan and one Sudanese national, according to the Tunisian Red Crescent organisation.

They have agreed to return to their home countries immediately.

They were rescued by an Egyptian boat in Tunisian waters last month but local authorities refused to allow them to leave the vessel, saying migrant centres in the region were overcrowded.

Kenyans and Tanzanians are arguing on social media over who uses the correct Swahili word for bank.

The debate was sparked when a Tanzanian radio station showed the two countries' bank notes side-by-side.

The Tanzanian note has the word "benki" whereas the Kenyan note uses "banki".

Some Tanzanians are accusing Kenyans of not using correct Swahili on their new notes, which have been in circulation for just over a fortnight.

Kenya has always used "banki" on its currency.

In general, Tanzanians believe that they speak proper Swahili saying that Kenyans mix it with other languages.

But some wise heads have got involved saying that the benki/banki distinction is just one of pronunciation. Some have compared it to the different ways British people and Americans say tomato, or the way they spell colour/color.

One commenter also pointed out that there are different words for the same thing in the two countries.

For example, in Tanzania electricity is called umeme whereas in Kenya it is called stima.

Swahili is a Bantu language that has borrowed words from Arabic. It spread across the region from the East African coast and into central Africa. In the independence era it has been adopted as a national language in Tanzania and Kenya.