Robotic telescope station in South Africa completes global network

Robotic telescope station in South Africa completes global network

An observatory station in South Africa is one of the last two to be installed in a now-completed network that allows scientists across the world to monitor the night sky around the clock. The Burst Observer and Optical Transient Exploring System (BOOTES) system relies on automated robotic stations to detect…

Laureen Fagan

Laureen is the editor of Africa Times

Nigeria’s energy sector eyes European markets at Spain forum

Nigeria’s energy sector eyes European markets at Spain forum

Nigeria is promoting its oil and gas industry during President Buhari’s state visit to Spain, a move that comes as European nations seek to secure resources to replace the now-banned imports of Russian oil. Buhari and representatives of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) have highlighted Nigeria’s energy sector during…

Migrant shipwreck off Senegal claims at least 140 lives

Migrant shipwreck off Senegal claims at least 140 lives

At least 140 people died after a vessel carrying some 200 migrants sank off the Senegalese coast, along an increasingly common West African route that takes them to the Canary Islands, an autonomous region claimed by Spain. It was the deadliest shipwreck so far this year, according to the International…

HRW calls attention to Western Sahara, Morocco dispute

An investigation into the treatment of Sahrawi activists in Western Sahara, including an incident reportedly captured on video last year, has renewed attention to territorial and self-determination claims that have spanned decades in a North African region Morocco claims as its own. “The video shows more than a dozen policemen…

Spain calls for firm defense in maritime dispute with Morocco

Lawmakers in Spain have approved a motion that supports a “firm position in defense of the integrity of the land and maritime territory” of the Canary Islands, as Morocco moves to redefine its territorial waters in a way that creates overlap with Spain’s maritime border there. This week’s decision is…

Spain set to host OECD Africa forum

Representatives from across the continent will be in Madrid on Friday as Spain hosts the annual “Africa Forum” in partnership with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Victor Harison, the African Union Commission’s head of economic affairs, will join OECD and Spanish leaders in welcoming remarks delivered ahead of…

Italy allows 27 minors to leave rescue ship at Lampedusa

Unaccompanied minors aboard the Spanish sea rescue ship Open Arms were permitted to disembark at the Italian port of Lampedusa on Saturday, one day after the head of the rescue organization warned the situation aboard the ship – where migrants have been trapped for two weeks – was rapidly deteriorating….

Tunisia’s Essebsi honored with state funeral

Tunisians on Saturday bid farewell to President Beji Caid Essebsi, the 92-year-old leader who died Thursday at a military hospital in Tunis following years of service to the North African nation. Essebsi’s state funeral included throngs of people in the streets who came to honor him, lining the route between…

Algerian tied to 9/11 attacks arrested again in Spain

Officials in Spain say they’ve arrested 19 people, including an Algerian previously connected with the September 11 attacks in the United States, after breaking up a credit card fraud ring in Madrid. Spain’s National Police said the group created fake credit cards by skimming and cloning them, and were responsible…

Morocco imposes new visa rules to deter EU-bound migrants

The Government of Morocco, under pressure to stem the tide of African migrants crossing into Spain, has established new entry visa rules for travelers from some African nations. Reuters reports that the new requirements apply in up to seven countries that have historically had no visa requirement to visit Morocco….

Migrant ship Aquarius en route to Spain

Migrants aboard a Mediterranean Sea rescue ship denied entry to Italian ports set sail for Spain at 9 p.m. local time Tuesday night, according to the Sos Méditerranée NGO that operates the ship in collaboration with Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Their departure alongside two Italian military vessels ended a two-day…