Morocco joins Spain and Portugal in a three-way bid to host the 2030 Fifa World Cup.

The rapper - who died after collapsing on stage - had plans to take things to "a whole new level".

Chris Ewokor
BBC News, Abuja

Nigeria says 11 women who human traffickers planned to smuggle into Libya have been found in next-door Niger and repatriated.

Anti-trafficking police say the women have been kept in a safe location in Sokoto since the weekend while officers try to reunite them with their families.

Most of the victims are from southern Nigeria, police say.

The force says an investigation is under way into exactly what happened.

But so far officers have found out that the women were robbed of their phones and goods in Niger where their traffickers abandoned them. They were then rescued by Niger police and handed over to Nigerian immigration officials at the border.

Morocco hopes to become the second African nation to host world football's premier tournament, announcing its intention on Tuesday to bid for the 2030 World Cup. It will be the sixth time the country has aimed to host the competition.

This time though it will mount a joint bid with Spain and Portugal, according to the BBC's Piers Edwards at the Fifa Congress in Rwanda, where the announcement was made.

Last month, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay put in a joint bid. They hope to host the tournament 100 years after the first edition was held in Uruguay.

Morocco won fans across Africa and the world for its spirited performance at last year's World Cup in Qatar, finishing fourth and becoming the best-ever ranking African side.

The formal bidding process starts in June and we'll have to wait at least another 13 months after that to find out if Morocco will get to welcome the world to its shores.

The first African World Cup was held in South Africa in 2010.

Zeinab Mohammed Salih
Journalist, Khartoum

Image source, Zeinab Mohammed Salih

Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, today aiming to reach the republican palace, the head of the state’s office. They were met with volleys of tear gas fired by the police and prevented from reaching their goal.

Young women and men carried banners showing the names of those who had been killed during recent protests against continued military rule. Other placards said the protests would continue until civilian rule is achieved.

Tuesday's protests came under the slogan of “the revolution is a union and a neighbourhood committee” with many participants coming from the capital’s three cities - Omdurman, Khartoum North and Khartoum City.

The protests came as a celebration of the formation of new trades unions.

The demonstrations, which have been taking place since December 2018, have been led by professionals - including doctors, journalists, lawyers, teachers and engineers.

They had intensified after Gen Abdul Fattah al-Burhan, the de facto leader of the country and the head of the sovereign council staged a coup in 2021 ending a two-year transitional period towards democracy.

A new deal aimed at returning to civilian rule, which was signed at the end of last year, has been met with scepticism by pro-democracy activists.

Image source, Zeinab Mohammed Salih

Anthony Mmesoma Madu got a ballet scholarship after he was filmed dancing barefoot in Lagos.

Jose Tembe
BBC News, Maputo

Riot police have outraged many in Mozambique by firing tear gas at mourners and well-wishers who were accompanying the coffin of popular rapper Edson da Luz, better known as Azagaia.

Hundreds of people have been marching in the funeral procession in the capital, Maputo, which police diverted.

Officers told marchers to change their course because one of the roads they wanted to walk down was off-limits to pedestrians.

The rapper's widow pleaded with police to let them pass. Police say they then issued orders to the marchers, which were not understood, and they used tear gas to disperse people.

Edson da Luz was laid to rest at the Michafutene cemetery, in Marracuene, an hour later than scheduled.

Members of the public have been keen to pay their last respects to the musician - and scenes of people singing in tribute to him in the capital city's Independence Square are being shared online:

James Finlay Kenya Ltd is being sued in Scotland by 1,300 Kenyan farm workers over working conditions.

Grant Ferrett
BBC World Service

Campaign groups have urged Burundi to release five human rights activists who were detained a month ago on charges including rebellion and undermining state security.

Those being held include two leading members of Burundi's Association of Women Lawyers, Sonia Ndikumasabo and Marie Emerusabe.

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and a local organisation described the charges as baseless.

They said the case signalled a worsening climate for civil society in Burundi.

The government in Bujumbura accuses the activists of benefiting from undeclared foreign funds. The interior minister, Martin Niteretse, has linked the case to possible financing of terrorism.

Sabitha Prasher
BBC Weather

Tropical Storm Freddy has finally dissipated over southern Malawi and Mozambique, 38 days after originally forming to the north-west of Australia.

Although Freddy is no longer a cyclone, this area of low pressure will continue to bring strong winds and flooding rains to parts of Malawi today and tomorrow.

There will be strong wind gusts today in the south of the country close to 80km/h, weakening quickly tonight.

More heavy and flooding rains are on the way over the next 24 hours at least, with between 300mm and 400mm of rain expected across the southern tip of Malawi up until Wednesday night.

The head of an orphanage supported by Christian Atsu reveals how children there used to call the Ghana midfielder ‘father’.

Image source, TANZANIA POLICE

A Tanzanian man is in critical condition in hospital, after he posed for a selfie with an elephant which then attacked him.

It was part of a herd that had escaped a conservation area in the northern Manyara region and was eating farm crops in one of the villagest, according to the authorities.

A regional police commissioner said the elephants became agitated after a group of locals approached them while taking selfies.

"The man has been admitted at Kiteto district hospital and is undergoing treatment...He has had some improvement," said George Katabazi.

Human-wildlife conflict is common in Tanzania, where dry periods often lead to wildlife straying onto farms for food.

Chris Ewokor
BBC News, Abuja

Image source, Getty Images

Nigeria's election commission has promised to hand over immediately to the opposition all material linked to last month's disputed presidential poll.

The chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, said it had nothing to hide.

The opposition Labour Party and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) want access to the election data in order to back up a legal challenge to the result.

They have just over a week to file their case.

Labour had threatened nationwide protests if the election commission prevented access to the information.

According to the official results, the presidential poll was won by the governing party candidate, Bola Tinubu.

His challengers, Labour party's Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar of PDP, subsequently secured a court order granting them access to inspect the electoral materials.

These include data contained in the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines, the electronic devices that have been in the centre of the dispute.

Guy Bandolo
BBC News

Gabon has begun three days of national mourning following a ferry accident that left six dead and around 20 others missing.

The Esther Miracle ferry, a mixed passenger and freight vessel, sank off the coast of the capital, Libreville, on Thursday night.

The government has since suspended four officials and the public prosecutor has announced the opening of an investigation.

The search continues to find the missing people

Civil society organizations plan to file a complaint against the Gabonese state and the ferry owner, Royal Coast Marine (RCM).

President Ali Bongo announced three days of national mourning in a brief address on national television on Monday evening. Festive and sporting events are suspended during the morning period.

The ferry operated between Libreville and oil city of Port-Gentil. Its wreckage was detected at a depth of 30m, according to Gabonese authorities,

A South African woman who was sent to jail for spending a huge chunk of money sent to her in error has now been appointed treasurer of a university committee.

Sibongile Mani received a student grant of nearly $1m (£700,000) in her bank account five years ago, and instead of reporting the mistake she went on a £70,000 spending spree buying weaves, mobile phones, alcohol, luxury goods and more until she was caught.

According to local media reports she was sentenced to five years in jail but released early.

South African media say Mani has now been elected as treasurer of the Walter Sisulu University (WSU) Eastern Cape convocation committee, but her appointment will not be formally confirmed until later this week after a "vetting" procedure is carried out.

Posters for her election campaign have been shared online:

A whistle-blower who reported corruption within the South African Police Service (SAPS) in 2019 has fled the country to an undisclosed location.

Patricia Mashale has been in hiding since February 2022 over fears for her life.

Local media quoted her post on Twitter, external in which she says she has "turned into a fugitive", and added that she was safe.

She was reportedly sacked from the police force in 2022 after blowing the whistle on huge corruption that implicated senior officials.

Ms Mashale has accused President Cyril Ramaphosa of not taking action to secure her safety.

More than 30, 000 people have signed a petition to protect her.

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Image source, EPA

Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki has urged Sudan to be wary of foreign "meddling" and solve their problems by themselves, the state television (ERi-TV) reported on Monday.

President Isaias made the comments during talks in Asmara with the deputy head of Sudan's ruling Transitional Sovereign Council, Mohamed Hamdan "Hemeti" Dagolo, who made a one-day visit to the country.

The president also called on the Sudanese army to keep off politics.

Eritrea is believed to be backing efforts to solve the political crisis in Sudan that has persisted since the October 2021 coup.

Emmanuel Igunza
BBC News, Nairobi

Image source, Getty Images

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is travelling to Africa for a two-nation tour - the latest in a series of visits to the continent by top American officials.

Security, a ravaging drought and the jihadist threat in the Sahel will be the focus of Mr Blinken’s visit to the two countries this week

He will be in Ethiopia on Wednesday to discuss the implementation of the peace deal signed between the government and rebel troops following a two-year bloody war.

He will also meet humanitarian agencies in the country.

Ethiopia is battling the aftermath of the fighting that displaced tens of thousands and the effects of the worst droughts in the Horn of Africa region in decades.

Secretary Blinken will then visit Niger - the first by a US Secretary of State - and will help shore up efforts to counter the expansion of jihadist groups in the Sahel.

His visit to Africa follows that of US First Lady Jill Biden, who last month visited Namibia and Kenya.

Image source, Getty Images

The second biggest crocodile habitat in Africa has dried up completely following failed rainy seasons.

Lake Kamnarok in Kenya's Rift Valley was once home to 10,000 crocodiles, second to Lake Chad in holding capacity.

But the ox-bow lake has been shrinking over the years, largely due to fluctuations in weather systems.

It has also been draining its water to a nearby river through a natural fissure, according to local reports.

Crocodile carcasses are now scattered on its cracked floor. The few remaining crocodiles have relocated to nearby private dams, a resident told NTV television station, external.

He said they are worried of increased human-wildlife conflict because of encroachment.

Image source, South African police/Twitter

Six Zimbabweans, all suspected armed robbers, escaped from custody while on transit on Monday morning after their accomplices engaged South African police in a shoot-out.

In a statement, external, South African police said they have launched a manhunt for the "heavily armed" suspects who freed the six prisoners during the gunfight.

The daring attack was staged some 120 kilometres south of Beitbridge - a border town near Zimbabwe.

"People are advised not to approach the suspects under any circumstances as they are considered dangerous but must instead call the police," South African police said.

Zimbabwe has the largest migrant population in South Africa as its nationals continue to run away from the political and economic woes at home.

The South African government has been cracking down on foreign nationals, especially Zimbabweans, involved in violent crimes.