Africa highlights: Mourning declared in Ivory Coast, Museveni victory challenged in Uganda court

What's it like hiding from gunmen during an attack? 

This man filmed two minutes of the experience he and his three-year-old daughter had soon after the start of Sunday's attack on a beach resort in Ivory Coast. 

They both survived and were reunited later with the rest of their family.  

The Somalia-based Islamist militants al-Shabab are occupying a coastal part of the semi-autonomous Puntland region.

A BBC Somali radio producer has tweeted the confirmation:

Farhan says that this is the first time the militants have reached this part of the Somali coast.

More details are coming out about the nationalities of those killed in Sunday's attack at the Grand Bassam beach resort in Ivory Coast.

The office of the French president has said that four of the 15 civilians who were killed were French citizens.

A German citizen killed in the attack has been named as 51-year-old Henrike Groh, who ran the German cultural centre, the Goethe Inistitute, in Ivory Coast's main city, Abidjan.

There were also victims from Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Mali, according to a minister quoted on the AP news agency.

Three Ivorian soldiers died in the attack. 

AFPCopyright: AFP

Togo have voiced their fears about security for their Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Tunisia, while the Confederation of African Football has rejected their relocation request.

The Togolese FA wrote a letter to Caf, saying it was concerned following recent terror attacks in Tunisia.

But Caf stated in a reply that the Group A match will take place in Monastir on 25 March as scheduled. 

In 2010, three people died when Togo's team bus was attacked in Angola as they were travelling to the Africa Cup of Nations finals.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Read the full BBC Sport story

We've already written about ordinary Ivorians displaying their defiance in the face of Sunday's attack (see 15:49 entry), and now the government has also said that it won't be put off.

The BBC's reporter in Abidjan said Commerce Minister Jean Louis Billon told her that his plans will not change.

One freelance journalist is reporting that an important business event next week is unaffected:

An Italian father and son have been shot dead during an anti-poaching patrol in Zimbabwe, officials say, in an apparent case of mistaken identity.

Claudio and Massimiliano Chiarelli were killed on Sunday by wildlife rangers in Mana Pools National Park.

They belonged to a volunteer anti-poaching unit and were shot while repairing a fault on their vehicle.

The elder Mr Chiarelli worked as a professional hunter, running safaris for European tourists.

Science Photo LibraryCopyright: Science Photo Library

Read the full BBC News story

Ghanaian political commentator Jemila Abdulai has a question: Is West Africa preparing for future attacks or are we just sitting ducks?

In a piece on the Circumspector blog Ms Abdulai expresses her concern that governments do not seem to be getting their citizens ready for future attacks.

She argues that in Ghana people are not discussing these things.

Her piece has more questions than answers but she says there are some things that governments can do "like sensitizing people, coming up with local language to describe terror events, warn people, and so on".

AFPCopyright: AFP

Burundi's Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe has said that he is not surprised by the European Union decision to suspend its direct aid to the government (see 10:46 entry).

Mr Nyamitwe told the BBC that aid is meant to help a country, it is "not meant to be an instrument of control".

The EU made the move because of continued concerns over the country's human rights record.  

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Many people in Ivory Coast have taken to social media to defy those behind Sunday's attack at the beach town of Grand Bassam.

One popular drawing depicts a group of young boys, one of whom is holding up a sign saying "Meme Pas Peur" ("Not even scared"), the letters drawn in the orange, white and green colours of the national flag.

Another user has posted a photo showing a view from both sides of his car on the road to Grand Bassam this morning, with the description (translated from French):

"Let's show the world we won't give in to terror. We're off to work. Horrendous traffic jams. #IvoriansStandUp"

At least 18 people are now known to have died in a gun attack on a beach resort in Ivory Coast. 

The attackers fired on beach-goers in Grand Bassam, about 40km (25 miles) from the commercial capital, Abidjan. 

The BBC's Maud Jullien visited the scene.  

An independent Ethiopian rights group says that there have been more than 100 extra-judicial killings during the recent wave of protests in the country's Oromia region.

The Human Rights Council (HRC), based in the capital, Addis Ababa, said that along with evidence of the killings, it also found evidence of beatings and torture.

"Most of the victims were shot in the back or in the head," the AFP news agency quotes a statement as saying.

HRC said it also found that "government armed men are conducting house-to-house searches at night, committing illegal acts of beating, threats, intimidation and harassment".

The government has disputed previous human rights reports which have alleged similar things.

The current phase of protests began last November with Oromo people angry about a plan to expland the boundaries of Addis Ababa into the Oromia region.

That plan has now been dropped but the protests have continued.

Last week, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said that the grievances of the people need to be listened to, but blamed "anti-peace forces" for the violence.

AFPCopyright: AFP

BBCCopyright: BBC

The leader of Zambia's main opposition party, the UPND, has alleged that the state and President Edgar Lungu were were sponsoring militias to destabilise the country and avoid elections. 

Three years ago Hakainde Hichilema was himself arrested for accusing government of training militias, and his deputy leader has also been accused of the same crime.

President Lungu "pretends that he's a humble man, inside that deception of humbleness lives a brutal devil," Mr Hichilema said.

On Saturday, UPND and ruling-Patriotic Front cadres clashed during youth celebrations. 

Police were forced to use tear gas, several school children passed out while some UPND cadres were injured badly. 

Mr Hichilema has called on the president to provide leadership and end violence.

The official Twitter account for Ivory Coast's government is saying in French that security will now be reinforced at the country's borders:

It has also updated the death toll saying that "15 civilians, three soldiers form the special forces and three terrorists were killed", 33 people were injured. 

The BBC's Efrem Gebreab is in Grand Bassam at the site of the attack. He took this picture earlier of people leaving one part of the beach after they were told to vacate the area as there was still a possible threat from undetected devices:

BBCCopyright: BBC

A $328 (£228m) million solar power plant was launched earlier in South Africa's Northern Cape province, Reuters news agency reports.

The plant, built by a Saudi Arabian power company, represents part of South Africa's plan to expand its power supply and cut its reliance on coal. 

It is due to provide 1,300 megawatts per hour, powering more than 200,000 homes. 

A South African newspaper has tweeted the full story: 

The office of the president of Ivory Coast has been tweeting details from a statement that has come after a national security council and cabinet meeting.

One of the first announcements was that three days of national mourning have been declared:

The government has also announced that security will be reinforced at schools and the residences of the heads of diplomatic missions, among other places (translated from tweet in French, below):

Hundreds of supporters of South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC) party and South African Communist Party (SACP) have marched to the Constitutional Court in Pretoria to protest against last week's decision to release the killer of anti-apartheid hero Chris Hani on parole. 

The ANC says the move is a travesty of justice and a tragedy for the Hani family. 

Mr Hani’s widow Limpho Hani was also on the march. She has accused the judge who ruled on the release of Janusz Walus of being a racist, and local media have been tweeting photos of her at the scene:

Quote Message: “It was quite interesting for a white judge in this country to say to me that I should forget and move on, that is why I called her a racist. I take my husband’s cold murder like a holocaust so she has no right... to tell me and many others in South Africa and over the world who think they are more Christian than all of us put together, pushing me to forget.” from Limpho Hani Widow of Chris Hani

“It was quite interesting for a white judge in this country to say to me that I should forget and move on, that is why I called her a racist. I take my husband’s cold murder like a holocaust so she has no right... to tell me and many others in South Africa and over the world who think they are more Christian than all of us put together, pushing me to forget.”

South Africa’s minister of sport and recreation Fikile Mbalula has been addressing the crowds outside the court. 

He said that he was marching to voice his disgust at the release of Walus, but also in the hope that the decision could be challenged. 

He posted a video of himself addressing protesters on Twitter: 

Walus is expected to leave prison within the next two weeks.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

The court case challenging Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's February election victory, which gave him a fifth term, has started in the capital, Kampala.

Lawyers for losing opposition candidate Amama Mbabazi have been presenting their case. 

First on the witness stand was Badru Kiggundu, chairman of the Electoral Commission.

The central line of questioning from Mr Mbabazi's lawyers was what evidence he used to announce results of Mr Museveni's win. 

Mr Kiggundu admitted he didn't know how many verified voters there were. This is because the biometric system did not tally the exact number of people who used it. 

He added that some people voted without going through the biometric checks but couldn't specify how many.

At several points, lawyers for the Electoral Commission questioned the authenticity of the documents Mr Mbabazi's lawyers presented. 

Both sides are expected to present their cases by Saturday after which the nine judges will make a ruling. The constitution says a decision must be made by 31 March.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Africa's first drone for speeding up HIV tests is being put through its paces in Malawi this morning, with one freelance journalist tweeting a video of the launch.

We'll have a report on the innovation tomorrow:

People in Ivory Coast's commercial capital, Abidjan, have been reacting to Sunday's attacks on the beach resort of Grand Bassa in which 16 people died.

Just 40 km (25 miles) from Abidjan, the resort is popular with people there wanting to get away for the weekend.

The BBC's Valerie Bony has been hearing from some Abdijan residents:

Quote Message: There is a lack of seriousness when it comes to security. If Abidjan is watched, they should keep an eye on Grand Bassam too. They know a lot of people visit Bassam at the weekend, so they should pay attention to that. They were focusing on supermarkets in Abidjan and major areas and they left out the small cities."

There is a lack of seriousness when it comes to security. If Abidjan is watched, they should keep an eye on Grand Bassam too. They know a lot of people visit Bassam at the weekend, so they should pay attention to that. They were focusing on supermarkets in Abidjan and major areas and they left out the small cities."

Quote Message: The killings are deplorable. We want to go for a new Ivory Coast. We don't want to go back to where blood will flow."

The killings are deplorable. We want to go for a new Ivory Coast. We don't want to go back to where blood will flow."

Quote Message: If the attackers are in Grand Bassam, they have to be here in Abidjan. And if you see how people cross the borders... Now, there are no barriers, everything is open. It's really worrying."

If the attackers are in Grand Bassam, they have to be here in Abidjan. And if you see how people cross the borders... Now, there are no barriers, everything is open. It's really worrying."

AFPCopyright: AFP