Colombian President Gustavo Petro has suspended a ceasefire with the country’s main drug trafficking cartel, the Gulf Clan. He accused it of “sowing anxiety and terror” and ordered the security forces to reactivate their military operations against the criminal gang. The ceasefire had been agreed in December as part of the president’s plan for “total peace” in Colombia. Its suspension is a major blow to Mr Petro’s attempt to end armed conflict. His policy is radically different from that from his predecessor in office, Iván Duque, who tried to secure peace by stepping up military operations against Colombia’s illegal armed groups. Mr Petro is instead trying to negotiate an end of hostilities with dozens of criminal organisations. On 31 December 2022, the government had announced that it had reached a bilateral ceasefire with the Gulf Clan as well as rebels of the National Liberation Army (ELN) and dissidents from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) among others. But this past week, President Petro has accused the Gulf Clan of breaking the ceasefire, blaming it for an attack on an aqueduct and saying it had incited protests from informal gold miners.(BBC)…[+]

Around 43,000 people may have died in Somalia last year after several failed rainy seasons, a new report by the Somali government and UN suggests. It is the first official death toll from the drought in the Horn of Africa. Half of the fatalities are thought to be in children under five. The crisis is “far from over”, with 18,000-34,000 more deaths expected in the first six months of this year. In 2011, a famine in Somalia killed over a quarter of a million people. “We are racing against time to prevent deaths and save lives that are avoidable,” said World Health Organisation (WHO) representative Dr Mamunur Rahman Malik. He added that the “cost of our inaction” would mean children, women and vulnerable people would die as “we hopelessly, helplessly witness the tragedy unfold”. The UN says it needs $2.6bn (£2.1bn) for its Somalia drought response plan this year. So far, under 15% of that has been funded. Millions of farm animals have died in the crisis, which has been worsened by climate change, political instability and the global rise in food prices. One problem has been getting aid into territory controlled by al-Shabab, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda and considered a terrorist group by both the US and UK. Al-Shabab regularly launches brutal attacks in Somalia and poses a massive obstacle to humanitarian activity. But strict US government rules blocking any assistance from benefitting designated terrorist groups have also complicated efforts to reach many desperate communities. Some humanitarian officials believe the international community has sidelined the crisis due to the war in Ukraine.(BBC)…[+]

At least one person has been shot dead as police crack down on demonstrators in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. Thousands have heeded the call for nationwide protests by opposition leader Raila Odinga, who claims that Kenya’s last election was stolen. Mr Odinga, who has run for president five times, also accuses the government of failing to help Kenyans tackle the “skyrocketing” cost of living. There are reports police fired tear gas at Mr Odinga’s convoy on Monday. Roads leading to key government buildings in the capital have been blocked and the president’s official residence sealed off. Some of the fiercest scenes have been in the Kibera settlement in Nairobi – a poor neighbourhood with a strong history of supporting the opposition. The BBC witnessed demonstrators setting up barricades and throwing stones at the police. Several arrests have been made. “We came here peacefully, but they tear gassed us,” 21-year-old Charles Oduor told the AFP news agency in another district of Nairobi. “They lie to us everyday. Where is the cheap maize flour they promised? Where are the jobs for the youth they promised? All they do is hire their friends.”(BBC)…[+]