Ivory Coast has charged 12 allies of former President Laurent Gbagbo, including his son and the party chief, for their roles in the country's deadly post-election violence. Officials said Wednesday close Gbagbo aide and former leader of the Ivorian Popular Front, Pascal Affi N'Guessan, was charged along with the former president's son, Michel Gbagbo

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British Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed to restore order and punish those responsible for the violent riots that have swept London for a third day and spread to other cities. Mr. Cameron recalled parliament from its summer recess Tuesday and nearly tripled the number of police on the streets to deal with the crisis that has left one person dead and at least 58 injured, most of them police officers

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Turkey's foreign minister has met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in a bid to press Syria to end its violent crackdown on dissent. Turkish officials say Ahmet Davutoglu traveled to Syria on Tuesday to deliver a “decisive” message to the Syrian leadership. Turkey has said it was running out of patience with its neighbor

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A Zambian activist says it is unlikely the main opposition Patriotic Front (PF) party will succeed in its legal challenge seeking to prevent President Rupiah Banda from seeking re-election in September. Lee Habasonda, executive director for the Southern African Center for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes, said Zambians do not think the judiciary is “totally” independent of the executive

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U.S. President Barack Obama has approved $105 million in new drought and famine aid to East Africa. The White House says the United States will continue to help those who desperately need food, shelter, water and medicine

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The maid who accuses former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault has filed a civil lawsuit that alleges a “violent and sadistic” attack took place in his luxury New York hotel room in May

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Somali government troops and African Union peacekeepers are patrolling the streets of Mogadishu, a day after al-Shabab militants staged a surprise withdrawal from most of the Somali capital. Somalia's prime minister, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, has called the pullout “a tremendous step forward” toward a more stable country

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A bus crash in the economic capital of Ivory Coast Friday killed some 30 people. Reports on the crash say the overcrowded bus was crossing a bridge over the Ebrie lagoon in Abidjan, when it veered off the bridge into the water

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A senior United Nations official says he will meet with former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo for an update on his treatment in detention. U.N. officials say the acting human rights chief for the world body in the Ivory Coast, Guillaume Ngefa, is heading to Korhogo, where Gbagbo is detained

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The African Union has announced it will hold a donor summit in an attempt to raise money for the millions of drought-affected people in Somalia. AU Deputy Chairman Erasmus Mwencha Monday said African heads of state, regional economic blocs and international organizations will gather in Addis Ababa on August 9

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Sierra Leone's main opposition party has named a former coup leader as its presidential candidate. Retired Brigadier General Julius Maada Bio will lead the ticket of the Sierra Leone People's Party in next year's elections. Bio will run against incumbent President Ernest Bai Koroma, who plans to seek a second term

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U.S. President Barack Obama says a deal has been reached with House and Senate leaders to raise the nation's debt ceiling and keep the government from defaulting on its $14.3 trillion debt. Mr. Obama appeared in the White House briefing room Sunday night to announce the proposed deal, which he said cuts $1 trillion in spending over 10 years and sets up a bipartisan panel in Congress to look at further reductions

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Leaders of both parties in the U.S. Congress are reported to be engaged in a major effort to work out compromise legislation that will keep the government from defaulting on its $14.3 trillion debt

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Muslims around the world are observing Ramadan, the holiest month on the Islamic calendar. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. The start of the holiday is determined by the appearance of the new moon

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An overnight fire has gutted one of Uganda's largest markets, devastating traders who lost all of their merchandise in the blaze. Local officials say the fire in Kampala's Parkyard market broke out in the early hours of Sunday morning, when the market was empty

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Nigeria's government says it to wants to negotiate with radical Islamist sect Boko Haram, which is blamed for dozens of killings in the country's northeast. A government statement says President Goodluck Jonathan has named a seven-person panel to open talks with the group

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