Africa highlights: State hospital stay for Tanzania first lady, Ethiopia detained 11,000

An airstrike in Somalia that the US said had targeted al-Shabab actually killed 10 members of an allied local militia, US media report, quoting an unpublished Pentagon investigation.

The US says it carried out the September strike to protect Puntland forces who came under fire during an operation against al-Shabab militants.

The strike sparked anti-American protests among local communities.

The Somali army said the dead were civilians and Galmudug regional forces.

Read the BBC News story for more.

Did US President-elect Donald Trump really call Africans "lazy fools"?

Find out by reading this piece by the BBC's Dickens Olewe.

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Ethiopia has lost millions of dollars in tourism revenue, following more than a year of anti-government protests.

The tourism ministry says income from the sector had fallen by more than $7m (£5.5m) over the last quarter alone, forcing the government revise its targets.

In October, the government declared a six-month long state of emergency in a bid to quell the protests.

Last year, more than 900,000 tourists visited Ethiopia - famous for its rock-hewn churches, highlands and national parks.

But tour operators have seen the number of cancellations increase after the US, UK and several other countries issued travel advisories, warning citizens against all but essential travel to Ethiopia.

AFPCopyright: AFP

The authorities in the Nigerian state of Lagos should take immediate steps to provide alternative accommodation for an estimated 30,000 people homeless after their homes were burnt down in the district of Lekki on Wednesday, Amnesty International says.

Although it is unclear who started the first fire eyewitnesses told the rights group that police present did not attempt to stop the fire.

A demolition team then returned overnight with a bulldozer, Amnesty said.

Morayo Adebayo, Amnesty International Nigeria researcher, said in a statement:

Quote Message: Thousands of residents of Otodo Gbame watched in horror as their homes and possessions were destroyed literally overnight, and their futures plunged into uncertainty. What makes this especially shocking is that on Monday this community was granted an injunction preventing the Lagos State government from proceeding with the planned demolition of the informal settlements along the state’s waterfronts – the authorities involved in this destruction are in flagrant violation of the law."

Thousands of residents of Otodo Gbame watched in horror as their homes and possessions were destroyed literally overnight, and their futures plunged into uncertainty. What makes this especially shocking is that on Monday this community was granted an injunction preventing the Lagos State government from proceeding with the planned demolition of the informal settlements along the state’s waterfronts – the authorities involved in this destruction are in flagrant violation of the law."

AllAfrica.com has loaded some footage of the fire on to YouTube from the Nigerian human rights group Justice and Empowerment Initiatives (JEI), which alleges the police lent assistance to the spreading of the fire:

University of California IrvineCopyright: University of California Irvine

We reported earlier that the Kenyan author Ngugi wa Thiong'o was awarded his first honourary degree in his home country today. 

It's been a long time coming - he has already received 10 honorary degrees from top universities across the world.

The author has become famous for being a leading champion in writing in African languages and writes many of his novels in the Kikuyu language.

His publishers say he holds the record for writing the most translated short story in the history of African writing. 

His short story Ituika Ria Murungaru, which translates as “The Upright Revolution: Or Why Humans Walk Upright" has been translated in 55 languages.

For many years he has been tipped to win the Nobel Prize for literature. 

Ngugi joked at a writers gathering in Nairobi last night:

Quote Message: This year, I missed on the Nobel prize. A battery of journalists had camped outside my house all night but when an Argentinian won the prize, they were very disappointed and my wife invited them for a cup of coffee to console them."

This year, I missed on the Nobel prize. A battery of journalists had camped outside my house all night but when an Argentinian won the prize, they were very disappointed and my wife invited them for a cup of coffee to console them."

The Spitfire Heritage Trust has gifted Lesotho a full-sized replica spitfire to commemorate the 24 Spitfires that the southern African kingdom paid for during the crucial Battle of Britain.

Watch my report:

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The news that an MTV award for the best African act was wrongfully given to Nigerian musician Wizkid when it should have gone to Tanzanian musician Alikiba has the music press speculating that this will lead to further rivalry between the two stars.

Yesterday MTV issued a statement congratulating Alikiba and apologising for mistakenly announcing on Sunday night that Wizkid had won.

While MTV did not divulge why the error occurred, just saying it was because of "an error", this hasn't stopped the rumour mill.

Nigeria's Bella Naija says that this isn’t the first time Wizkid and Alikiba have been "at loggerheads for recognition". The site points to an incident at Chris Brown's Mombasa Rocks Music Festival where there were rumours that the two fought over who would perform before the US singer.

Some wonder if the rivalry may just be hype.

Nigerian site The Net calls it "a silent war", so silent that it concedes neither have commented on the story. 

South Sudan's Eye Radio has issued a statement about its closure earlier today, saying it is following up with the authorities to try and resolve the matter.

It does not say why the station was closed by security officials earlier today (see previous posts): 

Some on Twitter have condemned the move:

AFPCopyright: AFP

It is the second day of the trial for the British sugar importer who is accused of smuggling more than 99kg (220lb) of cocaine worth $5.8m (£4.6m) into Kenya.   

Jack Marrian, 31, denies the charges.

The court relocated to the headquarters of police's Department of Criminal Investigations in order to see the packages of cocaine found at Mombasa port in late July inside a container of Brazilian sugar destined for Uganda.

Spanish police and the US Drug Enforcement Administration, which tipped-off Kenyan authorities, believe the drugs were intended for the European market but something went wrong en route and they were not off-loaded in Spain as planned.

Each of the 90 bricks of cocaine seized was about the size and heft of a hardback Bible, the AFP news agency reports.

The blocks of cocaine were embossed with a stamp resembling the Lacoste logo, believed to be the signature of the cartel that produced the drug. 

Investigators say similar blocks of Lacoste-stamped cocaine have been found on the US market.

AFPCopyright: AFP

AFPCopyright: AFP

Police in Mozambique say they have stopped an attempt to traffic two teenage girls who had been allegedly sold as wives for $64 (£51). 

The group was caught by police on the border with Swaziland.

The girls, aged 17 and 13, told the independent TV station STV that they had been lured in by one of their relatives with a promise of jobs in South Africa.

Maputo police spokesperson, Orlando Mudumane, said the girls were kept in captivity for a week in Mozambique before their traffickers attempted to move them to South Africa.

The older girl told STV that they were unhappy when they were told of the plan to marry them off:

Quote Message: I didn’t want to marry someone who was buying me. He said my reaction wasn’t logical because he had already paid for me."

I didn’t want to marry someone who was buying me. He said my reaction wasn’t logical because he had already paid for me."

A woman has been taken into custody, and denies that she was trafficking the girls.  

Mr Madumane said it was believed that there was a network of traffickers selling children from Mozambique into sexual slavery in South Africa.  

After months of drought, the South African city of Johannesburg has been hit by floods this week. 

Several people have been killed and some 200 have lost their homes. 

The BBC's Nomsa Maseko went to Alexandra township, one of the most-affected areas, where a father told her how his daughter was swept away in the floods. Watch her report:

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An army officer in Mali who led a coup in 2012 will go on trial at the end of this month. 

Amadou Sanogo will face charges including murder and kidnapping relating to the deaths of at least 20 paratroopers, who were loyal to the president he overthrew. 

The soldiers' bodies were found in ditches near the town of Kati where he had set up his headquarters.

Gen Sanogo toppled President Amadou Toumani Toure, accusing him of not doing enough to combat a Tuareg-led rebellion in the north.  

It plunged Mali, one of West Africa's most stable democracies, into chaos - allowing Islamist militants to take over territory in the north.

He handed over power after several weeks in a deal brokered by the regional body Ecowas that led to elections the following year.

The former junta leader was arrested not long after the polls.  

Some 11,000 peoplehave been detained over offences related to Ethiopia's state of emergency and violent protests, according to a government-appointed board.

It is not clear yet if all of these people are still being detained or if some have been released.  

In October Ethiopia's government declared a six-month state of emergency in the face of an unprecedented wave of violent protests by members of the country's two largest ethnic groups.

The Oromo and the Amhara make up about 60% of the population. Many of them complain that power is held by a small Tigrean elite.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Angola is restoring the lustre of a town that was a royal capital centuries ago ahead of a bid to become a Unesco heritage site, reports Portuguese news agency Lusa. 

Mbanza Congo in the north-west of the country contains the remains of a royal cemetery and a church:  

Portuguese colonisers negotiated with the king in Mbazi Congo in the 15th Century.

An exhibition in the capital Luanda contains a letter from 1493 in which the king of Portugal ordered that clothing be presented to the king, reports Lusa.

Angola's culture ministry hosted experts this week who discussed the Unesco bid, reports AP news agency.

The bid will be assessed at a Unesco meeting in Poland next year.

Malawi is introducing a 2,000 kwacha ($2.80, £2.20) bank note, which will be in circulation from 19 December this year, the Reserve Bank of Malawi says.

At the moment the highest denomination note is 1,000 kwacha.

The bank says the new note is being introduced because of inflation.

It will have a motif of Malawi University of Science and Technology, a brainchild of the country’s late President Bingu Wa Mutharika, on one side.

The other will carry the portrait of Malawi’s nationalist and freedom fighter John Chilembwe.

Reserve Bank of MalawiCopyright: Reserve Bank of Malawi

The South African Weather Service has warned residents of Gauteng province to prepare for another day of severe thunderstorms that may result in heavy rain, flash floods and strong winds.

The rain has already started in Alexandra, a shanty town north of Johannesburg. 

Hundreds have been already displaced and homes washed away on the banks of the Juksei river. 

At least six people have died this week authorities say.

The BBC's Nomsa Maseko took these photos this afternoon of the aftermath in Johannesburg:

BBCCopyright: BBC

BBCCopyright: BBC

BBCCopyright: BBC

BBCCopyright: BBC

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Ghana and West Ham striker Andre Ayew says the Black Stars will be looking to snatch an unlikely victory against Egypt in a World Cup qualifier in Alexandria at the weekend.

Ayew, who is making a return to the team after a long lay-off with injury, will captain the team in the absence of substantive leader on the pitch Asamoah Gyan.

Quote Message: "It's a difficult game for everyone. It's difficult for us, it's difficult for Egypt. We are playing in Egypt so they have the home advantage but we are Ghana, we need to do our job. We are going to try and make our nation proud. from Andre Ayew

"It's a difficult game for everyone. It's difficult for us, it's difficult for Egypt. We are playing in Egypt so they have the home advantage but we are Ghana, we need to do our job. We are going to try and make our nation proud.

The Black Stars will be looking to keep their hopes of a fourth World Cup appearance alive with a win in Egypt having drawn their opening World Cup qualifying match against Uganda.

Quote Message: Everyone wants to go to the World Cup so we need to take every game seriously and try and make it through." from Andre Ayew

Everyone wants to go to the World Cup so we need to take every game seriously and try and make it through."

AFPCopyright: AFP

A faction of Lesotho's ruling Democratic Congress (DC), led by the party's deputy leader Monyane Moleleki, has announced it is withdrawing from the coalition government, the Daily Maverick newspaper reports.

There has been speculation over rising factionalism for weeks after Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili reshuffled his cabinet on 9 November, removing several members allegedly allied to Mr Moleleki that probably contributed to the upset.

Lesotho was plunged into a political crisis in 2014 after a coup attempt by an army general.

Early elections were held in 2015 as part of regional efforts to dissipate political tensions in the mountain kingdom.  

The country - an enclave within South Africa - is home to some two million people, more than 50% of whom live below the poverty line.