Spain is sending frigate to the coast of Somalia following the seizure of a Spanish tuna fishing boat, the Playa de Bakio, by pirates. Some 26 people were aboard, including 13 Spaniards and a crew of various African nationals. The Dubai-flagged Al-Khaleej, was carrying food for sale in Somalia, was also hijacked seven kilometers off the northeastern Somali port of Bosasso, and pirates reportedly fired on a Japanese-flagged chemical carrier off Yemen.

South African dock workers are refusing to unload a Chinese cargo ship carrying 77 tons of small arms destined for Zimbabwe. The arms, including three million rounds of ammunition for AK-47s and 1,500 rocket-propelled grenades, were ordered by the Zimbabwean military at the time of the March 29 election—which the UK and other Western powers have accused Robert Mugabe of trying to rig. The arms arrived at Durban April 16 aboard the Chinese-owned An Yue Jiang and must be taken by road to landlocked Zimbabwe, where the government is accused of arming rural militias before a possible run-off vote for the presidency. The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has accused Mugabe's Zanu-PF of preparing for a "war."

Workers from the public and private sectors throughout Burkina Faso launched a two-day strike April 8 to protest high food costs and demand salary increases. Ouagadougou, the capital, was almost completely shut down. In Bobo-Dioulasso, the second largest city in the west of the country, the central market was closed. Police were out in force in front of banks and government offices.

Comorian rebel leader Mohamed Bacar was taken into custody on the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion April 4 at the request of Comoros, which is demanding his extradition. French officials are also considering Bacar's request for asylum. Bacar fled the Comoros island of Anjouan last week when Comorian and African Union troops toppled his breakaway government. Bacar and 22 followers first fled to the French island of Mayotte, but his presence there provoked riots and he was transferred to the larger island of Reunion. (Reuters, April 4)

Recent clashes between the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and fighters from the nomadic Arab Miserriya community have displaced hundreds of civilians from their homes and raised tension across Abyei, a region lying between the north and South Sudan. Abyei's Gov. Edward Lino, appointed by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, said that in new fighting March 20, "our men, the SPLA, exchanged fire with the Miserriya 20 kilometers east of the Heglig oil field."

Kenya has largely disappeared from the headlines, and what is reported generally has an optimistic slant—a new power-sharing accord is hoped to end the violence. Meanwhile, the situation seems to be escalating to open war. On March 10, the armed forces reportedly opened fire and launched aerial bombing raids with helicopter gunships on the Sabaot Land Defense Forces (SLDF) at Mount Elgon in the west of the country. The SLDF is a local militia representing the Sabaot clan of the Kalenjin community, which says it seeks to reclaim traditional lands and is accused of a massacre last week in which 13 people were burned alive or hacked to death. (BBC, March 11; AP, March 10)

A US submarine fired three Tomahawk cruise missiles into southern Somalia March 3, aiming at what the Defense Department called terrorist targets. The missiles hit the town of Dobley, five miles from Somalia's border with Kenya, partly destroying a house and injuring local residents. Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said it was a "deliberate and precise strike" aimed at "a known al-Qaeda terrorist." Residents reached by telephone told the New York Times three civilians were wounded, and three cows and donkey killed.

The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) has issued a statement condemning "in the strongest possible terms" attacks on Mogadishu radio stations by the armed forces of the Transitional Federal Government. The statement said government troops raided the offices of the independent Radio Simba on March 2, taking away computers, audio recorders, digital cameras and other equipment. Reporter Abdiaziz Hussein Hassan was beaten in the raid. One day earlier, a rocket hit Radio Simba, destroying the station's archive. A few minutes after the raid on Simba, soldiers broke down the doors of Shabelle Radio, again confiscating equipment, and detaining station director Shabele Muktar Mohamed Hirabe. Security forces also visited the offices of Horn Afrik Radio and ordered them to stop broadcasting. (NUSOJ, March 3 via AaaAfrica)