A Netflix docudrama series has sparked controversy over the skin-tone of the lead actress.

Shingai Nyoka
BBC News, Harare

Image source, AFP

Zimbabwe has scrapped duties and the requirement for import licences for basic food items in an effort to reduce the cost of food in a renewed cost-of-living crisis.

The measures followed the setting up of a government taskforce to investigate spiralling food prices.

According to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (Fews Net), a global network of partners reporting on food insecurity, bread, sugar, and wheat flour prices increased by about 40% in Zimbabwe between February and April.

It said maize meal prices shot up by nearly 60% and rice and vegetable oil prices increased by about 20%.

Using the official exchange rate, the Zimbabwe dollar has dropped 32% in value against the US dollar since the beginning of April, however on the black market it's fallen by almost double that.

The government blames businesses for using the black market rate to price their goods.

South Africa's defence department has welcomed a probe announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa into allegations the country supplied arms to Russia amid the ongoing war with Ukraine.

"The inquiry will offer the department an opportunity to ventilate its side of the story with concrete evidence," a spokesperson from the department said.

This comes as South Africa's Head of Diplomacy, Clayson Monyela, said the country's foreign minister will speak to her US counterpart, Anthony Blinken later on Friday.

On Thursday, the US ambassador to South Africa, Reuben Brigety, claimed that a Russian ship was loaded with ammunition and arms in Cape Town last December.

President Ramaphosa's office said it was disappointed by the claims and said no evidence had been provided to support them.

The country has maintained claims of neutrality over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Read more about the allegations against South Africa here.

Image source, Lion Guardians/Facebook

One of the oldest lions in Kenya has died at the age of 19, authorities have said.

The male lion, named Loonkiito, was speared by local herders in Olkelunyiet village on Wednesday night after preying on livestock. The village borders Amboseli National Park - in southern Kenya.

Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) spokesperson Paul Jinaro told the BBC that the lion was old and frail and wandered into the village from the park in search of food.

Mr Jinaro could not confirm if it was the oldest lion in the country but noted it was "very old".

Lion Guardians, a conservation organisation, said Loonkiito was the oldest male lion in its ecosystem and possibly in Africa.

"He was a symbol of resilience and coexistence," the organisation said in a statement.

Paula Kahumbu, a wildlife conservationist and chief executive officer of WildlifeDirect, said she was pained by the killing of the lion and called for measures to protect wildlife in the country.

"This is the breaking point for human-wildlife conflict and we need to do more as a country to preserve lions, which are facing extinction," Ms Kahumbu told the BBC.

BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

UN human rights investigators say Malian troops and foreign military personnel killed more than 500 people in a village in central Mali last year.

A new report says the killings in the village of Moura happened during an operation against a jihadist group.

After an exchange of gunfire, the villagers were rounded up and killed. Dozens of women were raped.

The foreign troops were described as white men speaking an unfamiliar language.

They're widely believed to have been members of the Russian mercenary group, Wagner, which is active in Mali.

The UN Human Rights Commissioner Volker Turk said the killings could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

They agree to allow safe passage for civilians and to protect relief workers but not to a ceasefire.

Image source, Getty Images

Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Garba Umar, an assistant inspector-general of police, as a senior security adviser on counter-terrorism.

Mr Umar is the vice-president of the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) for Africa and also the head of the agency's national central bureau (NCB) in Nigeria.

He was elected as a member of the executive committee of Interpol in 2021 and his tenure is ending next year, local media said.

In a statement on Thursday, Garba Shehu, the presidential spokesperson said President Buhari took note of Mr Umar's service at Interpol and hoped he would assist Nigeria in counter-terrorism efforts.

The president also hoped that Mr Umar's appointment would "get more Nigerians into important positions in the Interpol”.

The appointment takes effect next week and Mr Umar's role is stationed in the office of the minister of police affairs, according to Mr Shehu.

Mr Buhari is expected to hand over power to President-elect Bola Tinubu on 29 May.

The Newsroom
BBC World Service

The United Nations World Food Programme is appealing for urgent funds to provide rapid food assistance to more than two million people in Chad.

WFP country director in Chad Pierre Honnorat said he expected to provide for 30,000 refugees who had crossed to Chad to flee the recent fighting in Sudan.

The WFP warned that food for refugees and internally displaced people in Chad would come to a halt this month due to financial difficulties.

In a separate warning, the WFP said hunger is set to hit a record high in Sudan, with an additional 2.5 million people affected by the ongoing bloodshed.

Read more: Terrified Sudanese on the run from Arab militias in Darfur - again

Waihiga Mwaura
BBC News, Nairobi

The UK has signed an agreement with Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia aimed at tackling the causes of instability in the region.

Speaking to the BBC, UK Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said the agreement - worth some $12.5m (£9.9m) – will support the three countries to come up with policies in their fight against terrorism.

This is the first time high-level officials from Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia have accepted international support to address a common problem along their borders.

These borderlands are usually isolated and insecure, which makes it difficult for countries to monitor threats.

Mr Tugendhat believes that al-Shabab militants conduct terror activities in these areas because there is no governing authority.

The militants have carried out a series of attacks within the region in recent months and the group remains a threat.

The funding from the UK is also aimed at empowering local communities to effectively report suspected terror-related incidents.

Image source, Getty Images

The East African Community (EAC) has urged Democratic Republic of Congo's leader to respect regional states' move to deploy forces in an attempt to stabilise eastern parts of his country.

President Félix Tshisekedi on Tuesday accused the East African force of not doing its job, warning if it did not do so by June, it would be asked to leave DR Congo. He also accused the force of colluding with M23 rebels.

EAC Secretary-General Peter Mathuki said he had not received any communication regarding Mr Tshisekedi's complaints, saying any issues raised would be discussed by EAC heads of state.

"Let us honestly respect members of [EAC] summit in their own rights because I know they are in charge of this situation," Mr Mathuki told Uganda's NTV on Thursday.

The EAC chief earlier told French public radio RFI that the criticisms of the force were not justified.

"To say that the regional force is doing nothing, in such a short time, is not fair," he said, although he acknowledged that the pace of stabilising DR Congo "may not be what we expected".

DR Congo's criticism of the East African force came a day after the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) approved the deployment of troops to the east of the country.

Patience Atuhaire
BBC News, Kampala

Image source, Uganda Police Force/Twitter

A major highway leading out of Uganda’s capital Kampala to the south-west of the country has been cut off after a bridge collapsed following flash floods.

In the early hours of Thursday, traffic was brought to a standstill by knee-deep running water across the road.

And as the water receded later in the day, it was discovered that part of the bridge at River Katonga had collapsed.

Swathes of land in Lwera swamp, a major part of the Lake Victoria catchment, have been reclaimed for farming, and a lot of sandmining carried out in the area in recent years.

The country’s roads authority has been advising travellers to use alternative routes to get to the main cities of Masaka, Mbarara and further towards the borders.

One of the diversions is at least 200km (124 miles) which is double the distance between Mpigi town and Masaka city.

The highway is an important travel and trade route for the country, as it is the main highway for exports and imports from across the region not only to the south-west, but also to and from Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

East Africa’s Great Lakes region has been facing severe weather, resulting in disastrous floods.

At least 20 people have died in Uganda in recent weeks due to landslides and flooding.

Flooding has also claimed hundreds of lives in Rwanda and DR Congo.

Image source, Getty Image

The South African rand crashed on Thursday minutes after the US ambassador accused the country of providing weapons and ammunition to Russia.

The currency lost more than 30 cents of its value against the dollar, according to local media. This was the rand's weakest since the record low set in 2020.

US ambassador to South Africa Reuben Brigety said the weapons and ammunition were loaded onto a Russian ship that docked at the Simon's Town naval base in Cape Town in December last year.

The report triggered fears that the US would take economic action against South Africa.

The office of the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, said there would be an independent inquiry into the allegations, led by a retired judge.

Barbara Plett Usher
BBC News, Nairobi

Image source, AFP

Sudan's two warring factions have signed an accord to protect civilians and aid deliveries from violence, but could not agree on a ceasefire.

This is a first step to providing relief for Sudanese civilians trapped in the conflict, but there is still a long way to go.

The rival parties promised to respect humanitarian principles, but they didn’t agree to pause the fighting. The statement says they will allow safe passage for people leaving battle zones, protect relief workers and they won’t use civilians as human shields.

The two sides committed to let in badly needed humanitarian assistance, after looting and attacks that targeted aid. They are still discussing a proposal for a truce and a mechanism to monitor it.

US officials have been mediating the talks together with the Saudis. An American diplomats described the talks as difficult, with the two sides still "far apart".

On Thursday, Sudan's capital, Khartoum, was rocked by more clashes but the overall situation was calmer than a day earlier.

The conflict erupted in mid-April when the RSF refused to be integrated into Sudan's army under a planned transition to civilian rule.

Our proverb of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

A selection of the best photos from across Africa and beyond this week.

Peter Royle, 103, endured a month of solid fighting in the hills outside of Tunis in 1943. Eventually the Allies prevailed and took more than 250,000 German and Italian prisoners of war. They declared victory in Tunisia on 13 May.

Peter came close to dying many times. He recalls how he once hummed God Save the King to prevent himself being shot by friendly fire. He was under the command of Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, fresh from victory in the North African desert, and recalls him being inspirational to the troops.

This episode is presented by Josephine McDermott. Ahead of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in 2025, the BBC is trying to gather as many first-hand accounts from surviving veterans as possible, to preserve for future generations.

Working with a number of partners, including the Normandy Memorial Trust and the Royal British Legion, the BBC has spoken to many men and women who served during the war. We are calling the collection World War Two: We were there.

(Photo: Peter Royle in battle kit in 1941. Credit: Peter Royle's family)

President Cyril Ramaphosa's office says it is disappointed by the claims and demands evidence.

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

In the meantime, you can get updates on BBCAfrica.com or listen to the BBC's Africa Today podcast.

A reminder of our wise words of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

We leave you with a photo of horse riders performing on Wednesday during the historic equestrian event called "Tbourida" in Morocco's Bouznika city:

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has given an assurance that his government is not "sleeping on the job" as the country experiences crippling power cuts.

Answering questions in parliament, Mr Ramaphosa said three ministers were working to resolve the crisis, including restructuring the state-owned power company, Eskom.

"We are not sleeping on the job and we are hoping that all these efforts will lead to a solution that the people of South Africa want to see," he said.

Many households and businesses have to go without power for more than 10 hours a day, in the worst electricity crisis to hit South Africa.

The power crisis has also affected the currency market - the South African rand hit a three-year low against the US dollar on Thursday.

Anti-riot police have fired tear gas to break up a protest against the military junta in Guinea, Reuters news agency reports.

The protest came after opposition and civil society groups accused the security forces of shooting dead at least seven people and wounding more than 30 others at similar demonstrations on Wednesday in the capital Conakry and other towns.

Protesters threw stones and burnt tyres in Conakry in Thursday's protest, Reuters reports.

They were the latest in a series of demonstrations against Guinea's military rulers, who have delayed a return to civilian rule since taking power in 2021.