Train Crash in Cameroon Kills at Least Five
A train crash in Cameroon killed at least five people and injured more than 275, the BBC reports. The crash happened in the capital city, Yaounde, of the west African nation. The train was carrying 1,000 people when it derailed, and rescuers are still looking for people who survived. This is the country’s second major train accident in just a couple of days. A fuel train derailed on Friday, killing at least one person and starting a huge fire. “These two days have been very unfortunate for our national railway carrier,” Cameroon’s communications minister said. The government is investigating both accidents. 
 

Guyanese Sailors Fired Following Murder
Three coast guardsmen in Guyana have been dismissed with dishonor for their alleged role in the murder of a civilian, reports the BBC. In the incident that occurred last week, the officers told a young man to get out of his boat and into the coast guard vessel. Then, according the officers’ admission, they robbed the man of $70,000, strangled him and then dumped his body into the river. Government spokesman Roget Luncheon wants an investigation into what led to the crime, the BBC reports.

African singer is sent behind bars for riots.

 A Cameroon court has sentenced popular singer Lapiro de Mbanga to jail for allegedly participating in riots, reports the BBC. Lapiro was ordered to serve three years over riots against the West African nation’s government that took place in February that killed at least 40 people. He was also ordered to pay $640,000 (280m CFA francs) for the destruction the riots caused. While he recently penned a song speaking out against a change to the constitution that would let longtime leader President Paul Biya run for the office again in 2011, his wife says Lapiro was trying to promote peace and didn’t participate in any rioting. In actuality, he “calmed people down so that they wouldn’t set fire to the city hall,” she said in an interview with AFP. And supporters of the 51-year-old singer say he is often a target of the government for his political songs.  Back in February the high cost of living and government policy prompted riots in the town of Mbanga and several other towns in the nation. Lapiro, a member of the opposition party Social Democratic Front, stood accused of devising it.

South Africa officially elects new president.

Just a few days after Thabo Mbeki announced he was stepping down as South Africa’s president after 10 years, the parliament chose Kgalema Motlanthe as interim president, reports CNN. He was sworn in Thursday and will stay in office until elections next year. Motlanthe is currently the deputy president of the African National Congress. Mbeki resigned under pressure from the ANC, after a judge ruled he may have interfered in a corruption investigation of another ANC leader. Since his resignation, about ten of his cabinet members stepped down as well. During the nation’s apartheid era Motlanthe served 10 years incarcerated at Robben Island.

Nigeria hands over land to neighboring Cameroon. Nigeria officially agreed Thursday to hand over claims to a peninsula to neighboring Cameroon, reports The Associated Press. Ownership of the Bakassi Peninsula had been disputed for years. In fact the two nations almost went to war during the 1990s over the peninsula that is said to contain possible energy reserves since it is in an oil-rich area. But in 2002, an international court ruled that Cameroon should get the land, which is why officials from both Cameroon and Nigeria signed an agreement stating that Nigeria would withdraw their claims to the land, reports the news service. “As painful as it is, we have a responsibility to keep our commitment to the international community, promote international peace and cooperation and advance the cause of African brotherhood and good neighborliness,” Michael Aondaokaa, Nigeria’s attorney general, said. Many Nigerian citizens, though, are very unhappy with giving the land to Cameroon. According to Nigeria, about 300,000 citizens live on the peninsula. Before Thursday’s ceremony, security was increased throughout southeast Nigeria, and officials changed the location of the ceremony from the peninsula to the city of Calabar at the last minute and did not give an explanation.

Zimbabwe opposition leader gets his passport back.

After confiscating his passport Thursday, Zimbabwe authorities then returned it to opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai the same day, reports Reuters. Tsvangirai was on his way to the Southern African Development Community summit in South Africa when he was held up by authorities. Members of his party are still in the dark about why his passport was taken in the first place. “The passport situation has just been resolved,” said an official from Tsvangirai’s party, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). “They have their passports now. They will be leaving [for South Africa] on the 6 p.m. flight. There was no explanation.” This weekend’s conference in South Africa is hosted by the country’s president, Thabo Mbeki, who is also helping mediate power-sharing negotiations between Tsvangirai and longtime leader Robert Mugabe. Even though the two leaders haven’t reached a deal yet after three days of meetings in the country’s capital, Tsvangirai told reporters at the airport that he remained optimistic. A smaller, breakaway faction of MDC (a group that has 10 seats in Parliament) recently reached a power-sharing deal with Mugabe.