Image source, Reuters

The African Union has said it is disturbed by reports of Africans in Ukraine being refused the right to cross the border to safety.

The body urged all countries to respect international law and offer assistance to everyone fleeing from the war irrespective of their race.

"Reports that Africans are singled out for unacceptable dissimilar treatment would be shockingly racist and in breach international law," AU said in a statement issued late Monday.

The union hailed member countries and their embassies in countries neighbouring Ukraine who are supporting those fleeing from the war.

Africans living in Ukraine had complained of racism at the Ukraine-Poland border.

Image source, Reuters

Nine African migrants drowned off Tunisia's coast on Monday after their boat sank.

Tunisia's defence ministry said nine others were rescued by the navy and the coast guards.

The migrants are believed to have been on their way to Italy.

People have drowned off the Tunisian coast in the past while others have made it across to Europe.

BBC World Service

Image source, Getty Images

A court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has temporarily removed control of a huge copper and cobalt mine from its Chinese owners.

The ruling in favour of the Congolese state mining firm, Gecamines, is part of a dispute in which the government says it is owed billions of dollars.

It accuses China Molybdenum, the firm that has owned the Tenke Fungurume mine for the past six years, of understating its reserves.

The Chinese company has denied the allegation.

The mine is one of the world's largest sources of cobalt, which is a vital component in batteries for electric cars.

BBC World Service

Image source, EPA

Burkina Faso's new military ruler has approved a transitional charter which will allow him to stay in power for three years.

Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba signed a charter which was drawn-up by a military-appointed commission and had been discussed by a national forum in Ouagadougou.

The document says he will not be allowed to stand in elections scheduled for 2025.

An opposition leader, Eddie Komboigo, said not everyone would be happy with the plan, but it was based on consensus.

The previous leader, Roch Kaboré, has remained under house arrest since he was toppled in January.

Burkina Faso has been suspended from the regional group, Ecowas, and the African Union.

Related stories:

• Who is Burkina Faso coup leader Lt-Col Damiba?
• Return of the military strongmen to West Africa

About 460 Ghanaian students have left Ukraine en route to Poland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic following Russia's invasion, Foreign Affairs Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey has said.

The students will be received by officials from the countries' diplomatic missions, honorary consuls, and officials of the Ghana students' associations.

They are expected to return to Ghana in coming days.

Parents and guardians of the students have been invited by the government to a meeting in the capital, Accra, on Tuesday.

The government had earlier urged Ghanaian students in Ukraine to seek shelter in their homes or in designated government places of shelter.

More than 1,000 Ghanaian nationals are currently studying or working in Ukraine.

A number of Africans had complained of racism at the Ukraine-Poland border.

Ishaq Khalid
BBC News, Abuja

Image source, Getty Images

Nigeria will on Wednesday start repatriating its citizens from countries neighbouring Ukraine, Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama has said.

Hundreds of Nigerian nationals left Ukraine, following Russia's invasion.

Many of them complained of discrimination at border crossings after being prevented from boarding trains and busses that were carrying foreigners fleeing the conflict.

Mr Onyeama .said that about 5,600 Nigerians were still in Ukraine, most of them students, and efforts were under way to ensure they moved to safety in neighbouring Romania, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary.

He said Russia could also be one of the exit points.

Ukraine shut its airspace last week following Russia's invasion.

Read more:

• Bread, tea and students: How Ukraine war affects Africa

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Frustration among the middle class is pushing many to want to leave, writes Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani.

That's all from the BBC Africa Live team for now. We'll be back on Tuesday morning with the latest news from around the continent.

In the meantime, you can check our website or listen to the Africa Today podcast

Our African proverb of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

And we leave you with this photo of one of the many Africans who are trying to flee the conflict in Ukraine:

Image source, Reuters

Issa Abdull
BBC News, Nairobi

A Somali businessman living in Ukraine was forced to flee Kyiv after Russia's invasion last week.

Mohamud Arab spent four days on the road to reach the Ukraine-Poland border.

He was lucky because he had the money to hire a car to reach the border but the situation is different for those who cannot afford to.

“All foreigners have been fleeing Ukraine. Some people have been facing documentation issues, some are stuck at the border,” Mr Arab said.

He fled with his wife and their one-year-old daughter, leaving behind his shops - and life in Ukraine.

Together with his business partners, he used to regularly ship up to 10 containers of second-hand clothes and electronics to numerous African countries, including Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti and Ethiopia..

Trade with Ukraine has since ceased as vessels have stopped calling on ports there.

“I have been in Ukraine for about six years, dealing in the import and export business of second-hand products, maybe now everything will be destroyed. It’s a difficult situation," Mr Arab said.

“I have 150 employees in Ukraine, and my operations have been worth about $300,000 (£230,000) a month,” he added.

Mr Arab also cited “racial mistreatment” at the border, from Ukrainian and Polish officials.

"We were held at the border for three days, denied entry despite arriving ahead of native Ukranians,” he said.

Mr Arab added that he was now looking at restarting his life somewhere else in Europe.

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

Sudanese security forces have opened fire and used tear gas in a bid to disperse large crowds of protesters calling for an end to military rule in the country.

There are reports that one civilian was shot dead in Omdurman - the twin city of the capital Khartoum where the demonstrators advanced towards the gates of the presidential palace.

A doctors' organisation linked to the protest movement said dozens of people had also been injured.

At least 84 people have been killed by the security forces since a coup in October ended a power-sharing agreement that was to lead to elections.

Image source, Reuters

Hortor Jospeh Kwabala - a Ghanaian medical student who was until last week studying in Ukraine's second largest city, Kharkiv - has managed to arrive in Hungary after a four-day journey.

Kharkiv was the scene of fierce fighting over the weekend and Ukrainian forces say they've now re-taken it from Russian forces.

Mr Kwabala managed to find safety across the border in Hungary. But like many of the Africans who've documented their experiences on social media, he said it was a harrowing ordeal.

He told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme they had to pay for their tickets from Kharkiv to the Ukrainian-Hungarian border.

He added they were forced to wait for five hours before they could receive their tickets and then they were made to stand overnight before they could board the train.

He said once on the Hungarian side, they had tea and biscuits offered to them and free train tickets to Budapest.

Now, Mr Kwabala is uncertain what the future holds for him, stranded in Hungry with no means to return home to Ghana

Ajax keeper Andre Onana insists he will help the team during his remaining time in Amsterdam after making a surprise return to the starting line-up.

Egyptian giants Zamalek part company with coach Patrice Carteron following defeat by Wydad Casablanca in the African Champions League.

Prime Ndikumagenge
BBC Great Lakes

A total of 34 Rwandan nationals are stranded in areas hit by heavy fighting in Ukraine but are so far safe, Rwanda’s government spokesman Alain Mukurarinda has told BBC Great Lakes.

He added that there were 85 Rwandans - most of them students - in Ukraine, but 18 had so far managed to enter Poland, 27 had crossed the first Ukrainian checkpoint to the border while another six were on their way to Poland.

“The remaining 34 are in areas where there’s intense fighting and are unable to leave,” Mr Mukurarinda said, adding that the government was closely monitoring their situation.

He said there were no reports of any deaths or injuries among them so far.

The Rwandan government is making arrangements to repatriate those who have managed to cross into Poland.

Image source, EPA

Belgium's King Philippe has postponed a historic visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the royal palace has said, Reuters news agency reports.

The visit had been billed as an attempt to promote reconciliation over the atrocities Belgium committed during colonial rule in DR Congo.

The trip had initially been slated for June 2020 to mark the DR Congo's 60th anniversary of independence, but was called off because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The visit was rescheduled for 6 March, but would now take place place at a later date "because of the invasion of Ukraine and the crisis this is generating," Reuters quoted a palace statement as saying.

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

The authorities in northern Ethiopia's Tigray region are warning of a deteriorating humanitarian situation and have blamed a government-imposed blockade for increasing levels of hunger.

About 16 months of war have left nine million people in need of food aid in three regions.

The rebel Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) welcomed a recent government decision to allow emergency medical and food aid to be flown in.

But it said the quantities were far too small to meet the vast needs of the population.

The TPLF suggested it would use force to try to break the blockade if aid was not allowed in by road. The UN says no aid convoys have reached Tigray since mid December.

Thomas Naadi
BBC News, Accra

Image source, Getty Images

The West African regional bloc Ecowas has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement it urged both parties to agree to a ceasefire and to resolve the crisis through dialogue.

Ecowas also called on the two countries to ensure the safety of Africans living in Ukraine.

Its statement came as Russia and Ukraine began face-to-face talks for the first time since Russian forces entered Ukraine five days ago.

Ukraine's delegates have said they want an immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of troops from their territory; Russia's negotiators have talked of a deal that's in the interests of both sides.

Nigeria condemns reports that citizens of African countries have been stopped from leaving Ukraine.

Russia has highlighted its "strong bonds" with South Africa, as the two nations mark 30 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties.

The now-defunct Soviet Union played a central role in supporting South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC), during its decades-long fight against the legalised system of racism in the country.

In a tweet, Russia's foreign ministry said: "Our interaction is distinguished by the strong bonds of friendship & cooperation established during the struggle against apartheid, which continue to develop today."

It made no reference to South Africa's foreign affairs ministry issuing a statement last week calling on Russian troops to immediately withdraw from Ukraine.

South African news sites are quoting unnamed officials as saying that President Cyril Ramaphosa disagrees with the ministry's statement, and wants the government to remain neutral in the conflict.

South Africa is the only African state that is part of Brics - a grouping of emerging economies that also includes Brazil, Russia, India and China.