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Live Reporting

Farouk Chothia and Clare Spencer

All times stated are UK

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  1. Scroll down for today's stories

    We'll be back tomorrow

    That's all for today from the BBC Africa Live page. Listen to the Africa Today podcast and keep up-to-date with stories from across the continent on the BBC News website.

    Today's African proverb: Use your tongue to count your teeth before you speak . An Igbo proverb sent by Uche Duru, London, UK. 

    Click here to send your African proverbs.

    We leave you with this photo from Zimbabwean surface designer Tanya Nefertari of her "long suffering test subject" - her mother:  

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  2. Ghana judges risk impeachment

    Sammy Darko

    BBC Africa, Accra

    Ghana's chief justice has said that apart from the latest investigation into alleged corruption in the judiciary (see 15:15 post), impeachment proceedings are pending against three high court judges and two others.

    An even larger number of judicial staff face impeachment proceedings, said Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood.

    She has expressed surprise at the scandal because she says just in the same period that the journalists was doing the undercover work, she coincidentally was also on a nationwide tour admonishing judicial staff against corruption.

  3. Spotting counterfeit drugs

    One of the inventions presented at Quartz Africa's innovation summit in Kenya is Bright Simon's tool which spots counterfeit drugs.

    Here's what the audience made of it:

  4. North Korea protests to Nigeria over film

    Nigeria's Premium Times newspaper is reporting that North Korea has called on Nigeria to prevent the illegal distribution of The Interview, a film about a fictional plot to kill its leader Kim Jong-un.

    It quotes the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) as saying it has "swung into action" to block the film's distribution.

    Movie posters for the premiere of the film 'The Interview' at The Theatre at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, California on December 11, 2014.
    Image caption: The film caused international controversy when it was released last year

    North Korea regards the Hollywood film as provocative, and inciting the assassination of its leader.

  5. Bongo hits out at France over arrest

    Gabon's President Ali Bongo has said the arrest of his chief of staff in Paris in August was an attempt to humiliate Gabon, the news agency AFP reports.

    Mr Bongo was speaking on the steps of the official residence of French President Francois Hollande after a meeting with him in Paris.

    Gabonese President Ali Bongo Ondimba speaks to the press after meeting with his French counterpart at the Elysee Palace in Paris on September 14, 2015

    His chief of staff, Maixent Accrombessi, was briefly detained at Charles de Gaulle airport on suspicion of corruption after an army uniform contract in Gabon was awarded to a French manufacturer, AFP reported at the time.

  6. Debate over Homo naledi rages

    Pumza Fihlani

    BBC News, Johannesburg

    Professor Lee Berger kisses the skull of aHomo Naledi , a newly discovered human ancestor during the unveiling of the discovery on September 10, 2015 in Maropeng

    Last week's historic discovery of Homo naledi, a new human-like species, continues to be a talking point in predominantly Christian South Africa (see 09:56 post).

    Some have weighed in on what the discovery, in a burial chamber deep in a cave system in South Africa, means for the "creation versus evolution" debate.

    In his first reaction, the South African Council of Churches' leader Bishop Ziphozihle warned against comments likening humans to baboons, calling this dangerous.

  7. Angolan activist jailed

    A court in Angola has sentenced prominent rights activist Jose Marcos Mavungo to six years in prison for helping to organise a protest in the oil-rich Cabinda region, reports BBC Africa's Zenaida Machado.

    His arrest in March was a sign that the Angolan government was becoming increasingly intolerant of dissenting views, according to Amnesty International.

  8. From a street vendor in Ghana to a film star

    Attah Abraham

    The showbiz pages of the Ghanaian press are finding out more about the back story of the 14-year-old who won the Best Young Actor Award at Venice Film Festival over the weekend.

    Graphic Online says that Attah Abraham was a street vendor when he auditioned for the part of a child soldier in the film Beasts of No Nation.

    Ghana Broadcasting Corportation adds that the film makers are now going to put him through boarding school.

  9. Girl with Ebola dies in Sierra Leone

    The 16-year-old girl diagnosed with Ebola in northern Sierra Leone's Bomabli district has died, the authorities say.

    This is the first confirmed death from the virus in the district for nearly six months.

    Tombstones are seen at a cemetery at the Kenama ebola treatment center run by the Red cross Society on November 15, 2014.
    Image caption: Ebola has killed more than 11,000 people in three West African states

    Initial suspicions are that Kadiatu Thullah died after having sex with a survivor, but there is no confirmation of this (see 11:22 post).

    Sierra Leone celebrated last month when it discharged the last remaining Ebola patient from its treatment centres.

    But since then a new spate of cases has erupted, leaving two dead and five people in treatment.

  10. 'Dare to invent tomorrow'

    Kenyan activist and photographer Boniface Mwanga has just finished speaking at Quartz Africa's innovation summit.

    The audience have been tweeting the highlights:

  11. Mexican outrage over Egypt killings

    Mexico has lodged a diplomatic protest with Egypt, expressing "deep consternation" for the "deplorable" attack on its citizens by the security forces, Mexico's Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz Massieu has said.

    Six survivors said there had been an "air attack with bombs dropped from a plane and helicopters", she added.

    Egypt's interior ministry says the security forces mistakenly killed 12 people, including Mexican tourists, during an anti-terror operation.

    The tourists were travelling in four vehicles that entered a restricted zone in the Wahat area of the Western Desert, it says.

    Egyptian security members stand guard as newly appointed Tourism Minister Khaled Ramy arrives at the Dar al-Fouad Hospital in a western Cairo suburb to visit injured tourists who were mistakenly targeted by a joint police and military operation "chasing terrorist elements", on September 14, 2015
    Image caption: Those wounded in the attack have been admitted to hospital

    Ten Mexicans and Egyptians were also injured in the attack.

  12. Increased drought risk in South Africa

    South Africa will see an increased drought risk as the next two years could be the hottest on record globally, says research from the UK's Met Office.

    A trend affecting weather patterns in the near and medium term is in the Pacific Ocean.

    El Nino happens when a Pacific current reverses on average every five years or so, bringing downpours where there is normally drought and drought where there is normally rain.

    Infographic
    Image caption: This map shows the patterns in precipitation over land favoured during El Nino events
  13. Confidence in democracy 'falls'

    Satisfaction levels with democracy in African states has declined, a new survey suggests.

    About 46% of people surveyed in 28 African countries said they were "very" or "fairly satisfied" with the state of democracy in their countries, compared with 50% in 2011 and 2013, according to the survey by South Africa-based Afrobarometer.

    A Namibian woman dances during the swearing in ceremony of President Hifikepunye Pohamba on March 21, 2010 at a packed sports stadium in Windhoek.
    Image caption: Most Nambians are satisfied with their democracy

    It adds that satisfaction levels vary substantially across countries, from highs of 72% in Namibia and 68% in Botswana to lows of 26% in Togo and 11% in Madagascar.

  14. Leading Africans honoured

    Anne Soy

    BBC Africa, Nairobi

    Business magazine Quartz Africa says it is honouring 30 African "innovators" at an event in Kenya's capital, Nairobi.

    They include South Africa rocket scientist Siya Xuza, Nigerian author Cimamanda Ngozi Adichi, Ivorian footballer Didier Drogba and Kenyan Hollywood star Lupita Nyonng'o.

    Some are speaking at a summit in Nairobi, starting with Nigerian architect Kunle Adeyemi who built a school on water:

  15. School collapse pictures

    Some pictures are coming through of the primary school which collapsed near the Nigerian city of Jos:

    collapsed school
    collapsed school

    At least four children were killed.

    Investigators are looking at whether the addition of extra floors on a single story building caused the collapse.

  16. Ghana judge opposes broadcast

    Sammy Darko

    BBC Africa, Accra

    One of the Ghanaian high court judges allegedly shown taking bribes in an undercover film has applied to court to stop it being broadcast.

    Justice Paul Uuter Dery argues that investiagtive journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas used illegal means to record him and in the interest of a fair trial he should not be allowed to broadcast it.

    Ghana's Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood

    Meanwhile, Ghana's Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood (pictured above) has spoken on the corruption scandal for the first time.

    "Those who have failed to heed all of these timely warnings must face the wrath of the law and bear the full force of blind justice that knows no favouritism," she said at the Ghana bar conference in Kumasi city.

  17. Kenyan teachers scan pupils' eyes for disease

    Dr Rono

    Kenyan eye doctor Hilary Rono got frustrated when people came to his clinic already blind.

    He told BBC Outlook that the problem is there are one million people in Kenya to every two ophthalmologists.

    So he got teachers to scan their pupils' eyes using a retina scanner which you can attach to your mobile phone.

    They screened 21,000 children in two weeks.

    Dr Rono
    Image caption: Once pupils' pupils were scanned those with problems were sent to hospital
  18. UAE woman sues Kenya over 'illegal rendition'

    A United Arab Emirates (UAE) woman is suing the Kenyan authorities, saying she was kidnapped by police, and taken to Somalia and Ethiopia where she was tortured after being mistaken for an al-Qaeda agent.

    Kamilya Mohammedi Tuweni says she was seized by Kenyan special police while on a business trip in 2007.

    Ms Tuweni was released without charge after being detained for 72 days.

    The head of Kenya's Anti-Terrorism Police Unit has denied the allegations.

    Ms Tuweni is suing the Kenyan government for financial compensation and is demanding a formal apology for her treatment. 

    A rights group is tweeting on the evidence Ms Tuweni is giving to a court in Nairobi via video-link from London:  

    View more on twitter
    View more on twitter
    View more on twitter
  19. Tough draw for Egypt

    Egyptian fans carry placards and the national flag ahead of the match between Egypt and Senegal during the Africa Cup of Nations group G football match at the Cairo International Stadium in the Egyptian capital on November 15, 2014.

    Egypt have been handed a tough draw as they bid to reach the men's Olympic football tournament for a twelfth time in Brazil next year.

    They will face Algeria, Mali and Nigeria in Group B of the Africa Under-23 Cup of Nations in Senegal from 28 November to 12 December.

    Hosts Senegal will play South Africa, Zambia and Tunisia in Group A.

    Only the top three sides at the tournament will qualify for next year's Games in Rio.

  20. The shoe that charges your phone

    We've been asking you for your favourite inventions, ahead of an innovators summit today in Kenya.

    Haruna Hassan in Kaduna, Nigeria said this on Facebook:

    "My favourite is the shoe that can charge a phone, by the Kenyan inventor, Anthony Mutua. That means endless chatting and gaming."

    IDG Connect explains how it works:

    "He developed a very tiny chip of crystals that is fitted under the sole of a shoe. When a person walks, the chip harvests the energy that is generated."

    A make-up artist takes reference photos with her phone before the annual Nairobi Fashion week in Nairobi on November 28, 2014.
    Image caption: One you have taken pictures and played games there is sometimes no battery left for actually phoning

    What's your favourite African invention?

    Tweet us with the hashtag #Africaninvention, comment on Facebook or email us at africalive@bbc.co.uk.

  21. Cameroon security forces in bombed town

    Cameroon's security forces are meeting with residents of the town where two suicide bombers blew themselves up yesterday.

    Cameroon security forces speak with locals after a twin suicide attack in the extreme north village of Kolofata on September 13, 2015.

    At least seven people were killed in the attack in the northern town of Kolofata near the Nigerian border which has been targeted in the past by Islamist militants Boko Haram.

  22. Kenyan DJ's joy after Nollywood award

    Abdinoor Maalim

    BBC Africa, Nairobi

    Popular Kenyan DJ has been celebrating after winning a Nollywood award for her role in the film When Love Comes Around.

    She surprised many by winning the award, as she is known for her music - not acting skills. 

    But she scooped the award for supporting role in the best actress category at the Nollywood & African Film Critics' Awards in Los Angeles. 

    Makena played the character Didi, an unlucky woman desperate for love. 

    She expressed her joy on Instagram: 

    View more on instagram
  23. Leafy greens 'affect life expectancy'

    Michael Mosley holding newborn baby
    Image caption: Researchers have been collecting data in The Gambia on the effect of the month of since the 1940s

    Researchers in Keneba village in The Gambia have found babies conceived in January and born in September are seven times more likely to die as an adult in any given year than someone conceived in September and born in June.

    The reason has a lot to do with the weather and, therefore, what their parents were eating at the time they were conceived, they say.

    During the dry season people have plenty of couscous and rice to eat. During the rainy season there are fewer calories around (these are known as the Hungry Months) but there are a lot more leafy green vegetables to eat.

    Micheal Mosley says this shows that if you are thinking of having a baby, then eating lots of leafy green vegetables is certainly a good thing to do.

  24. Young girl in Sierra Leone diagnosed with Ebola

    Umaru Fofana

    BBC Africa, Freetown

    A 16-year-old girl has been diagnosed with the deadly Ebola virus in northern Sierra Leone's Bomabli district, which had gone for 169 days without a case.

    The initial suspicion is that the girl got Ebola after having sex with a survivor of the illness, but this has not yet been confirmed.

    The survivor was discharged after being treated for Ebola in March, according to DR Emmnauel Conteg, who is spearheading medical care for patients in Bombali.

    A sign warning of the dangers of ebola outside a government hospital in Freetown on August 13, 2014
    Image caption: The Ebola outbreak is the deadliest ever

    He said 690 people in the entire village of Robuya, just outside Makeni city, had been quarantined with seven "high risk contacts" taken to a treatment unit.

  25. Burkina Faso to play Nigeria

    The BBC's Matthew Kenyon has been following the coin tosses to decide which football teams will play each other in the All Africa Games:

  26. Deaths after Nigeria school collapses

    Four children and a teacher have been killed after an Islamic primary school collapsed near the central Nigerian city of Jos, the relief agency has said.

    Twenty-four people, 21 girls and three boys, were injured and taken to hospital, said Mohammed Abdulsalam from the National Emergency Management Agency, AFP news agency reports.

    The cause of the collapse was not yet clear, but investigators were looking at whether the addition of extra floors onto the single-storey building was a factor, Mr Abdulsalam added.

  27. Your favourite African invention

    What's your favourite African invention?

    Tweet us with the hashtag #Africaninvention, comment on Facebook or email us at africalive@bbc.co.uk.

    We're asking because later today inventors are getting together in Nairobi for an innovation summit.

    Speakers include an architect who designed a school which floats on a lagoon on Lagos, Nigeria. Kunle Adeyimi is now trying to work out how to secure land tenure for people who live on water.

    Makoko
    Image caption: The school is in Makoko in Lagos
  28. Aston Villa keen on Adebayor

    Emmanuel Adebayor of Tottenham Hotspur is challenged by Marcin Wasilewski of Leicester City during the FA Cup Fourth Round match between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City at White Hart Lane on January 24, 2015 in London, England

    Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood says he is keen to sign Togolese football star Emmanuel Adebayor if he shows the right attitude, Reuters news agency reports.

    "I would not hesitate if he had the desire to want to come and play football," Sherwood told reporters when asked if he would try to sign Adebayor in the January transfer window.

    "He's too good a talent - I've seen that first hand - to not play any football, but unfortunately I don't think there's any window open for him now."

    Tottenham Hotspur said on Sunday that the striker had been released from his contract by mutual agreement.

    The 31-year-old has not played for Spurs this season and was left out of both their Premier League and Europa League squads.

    Adebayor has also fallen out of favour with Togo coach Tom Saintfiet, who likened him to a bad date and said recently that Adebayor had failed to respond to a call-up for an African Nations Cup qualifier.

  29. South African clerics: 'We are not baboons'

    South Africa's main religious body says it is celebrating the discovery of Homo naledi, but it is an insult to suggest that "humans come from baboons," Eyewitness News reports.

    "That black people are baboons is the perception of many who come from the western world," said South African Council of Churches President Bishop Ziphozihle Siwa.

    He added that everyone should enjoy dignity, justice and peace.

    "God the creator is far greater than all of us, but we celebrate that discovery in South Africa," Bishop Siwa said.

    Naledi skull
    Image caption: Scientists discovered a new human-like species in a burial chamber in South Africa

    There has been heated debate in South Africa over last week's discovery of Homo naledi.

    Former Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) secretary-general Zwelinzima Vavi said he was "no grandchild of any ape, monkey or baboon", while Mathole Motshekga, director of the Kara Heritage Institute, said the discovery was intended to perpetuate the theory that Africans were subhuman.

  30. Children 'used' as suicide bombers in Cameroon

    The UN's Toby Lanzer has told BBC Newsday that yesterday's suicide bombers in Cameroon were children.

    At least seven people were killed by two suicide bombers in the town of Kolofata, near the Nigerian border, which has been targeted in the past by the Islamist group Boko Haram.

    Children are "easy prey for groups who want to spread terror", said Mr Lanzer, the UN assistant secretary-general and regional humanitarian coordinator for the Sahel region.

    "Once again very young children have been used. Children who haven't had access to the sort of education that one would hope, children who haven't got a particularly bright future ahead," he said.

    Chadian soldiers patrol near a tank in the Cameroonian town of Fotokol, on the border with Nigeria, on February 3, 2015.
    Image caption: Cameroon is part of a regional force that is trying to defeat Boko Haram
  31. Buhari seeks to strengthen ties with France

    Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari will start a three-day visit to France today to strengthen security and economic ties, his office said in a statement.

    Mr Buhari will meet French President Francois Hollande and also hold talks with Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and other senior government figures, the statement added.

    In this Friday, May 29, 2015 file photo, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari salutes his supporters during his Inauguration in Abuja, Nigeria. Bomb blasts at two bustling bus stations killed 29 people and wounded 105, officials said Thursday, July 23, 2015 after Nigeria's new president warned that U.S. refusal to sell his country strategic weapons is "aiding and abetting" Boko Haram
    Image caption: Mr Buhari has been on several trips abroad since taking office in May

    Meetings with the heads of French oil firm Total and concrete manufacturer Lafarge, both of which have operations in Nigeria, have also been planned, AFP news agency reports.

    Mr Buhari's entourage will include the newly appointed national security advisor, Babagana Monguno, as well as senior officials in the defence, finance and foreign ministries.

  32. Egypt 'mistakenly' kills 12

    Security forces in Egypt have mistakenly killed 12 people, including Mexican tourists, during an anti-terror operation, the interior ministry says.

    The tourists were travelling in four vehicles that entered a restricted zone in the Wahat area of the Western Desert, a ministry statement said.

    Ten Mexicans and Egyptians were also injured and are being treated in a local hospital.

    The ministry said it had formed a team to investigate the incident.

    Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto condemned the incident and said he had "demanded an exhaustive investigation by the Egyptian government".

    Egyptian soldiers on patrol in Egypt - 6 August 2015
    Image caption: Egyptian soldiers on patrol on 6 August
  33. Wise words

    Today's African proverb: Use your tongue to count your teeth before you speak. An Igbo proverb sent by Uche Duru, London, UK.

    Click here to send your African proverbs.

  34. Good morning

    Welcome to the BBC Africa Live page where we will keep you up-to-date with the latest news developments from across the continent.