Daily News on the Issues Affecting Africa for August 21st

Continue reading for a summary of recent news stories relating to some of the most pressing issues on the continent. We draw on a wide range of respected news sources, both from Africa itself and around the world. The themes of today's In the News post are updates on Boko Haram, elections in Zimbabwe and other parts of Africa, US linkages with Egypt, and textile workers rights in South Africa.

Boko Haram Chief 'May be Dead,' Nigerian Army Says
The Nigerian army said on Monday that the leader of Islamist extremist group Boko Haram may have died after a clash with soldiers last month. Abubakar Shekau is blamed for a bloody campaign on security targets and churches across the country. The leader of militant Islamist sect Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, may have died of gunshot wounds some weeks after a clash with soldiers, the Nigerian military said on Monday. Past reports of Shekau's death have proved false and there was no independent confirmation of the army account. In a statement, the army said that Shekau, blamed for a campaign of deadly attacks on security targets and churches across Africa's biggest oil-producing country, was hit during a gunbattle near one of his camps in the northeast on June 30.
To read more please visit France24 here

Coup leader sworn in as CAR president
Former rebel leader Michel Djotodia has beem sworn in as president of the Central African Republic, five months after seizing power in the violence-wracked country. Djotodia swore the oath of office on the Transition Charter, which has substituted for the constitution since the removal of President Francois Bozize, who himself had come to power on the back of a military coup in 2003. A group of Bozize supporters calling themselves the Front for the Return of Constitutional Order in Central Africa dismissed the inauguration as a masquerade.
To read more please visit Al Jazeera here

Cairo Military Firmly Hooked to U.S. Lifeline
The money seems like a pittance for Egypt, which has a $256 billion economy. But the $1.3 billion in military aid that the United States gives the country every year is its main access to the kind of big-ticket, sophisticated weaponry that the Egyptian military loves. In fact, Egypt is so enamored of Apache attack helicopters, M1A1 battle tanks and F-16 fighter jets that exasperated American military officials have been telling generals there for years that they need to expand beyond the hardware of bygone wars and spend more American money on border security, as well as counterterrorism and surveillance equipment and training that a truly modern military needs.
To read more please visit the New York Times here

Zimbabwe court rules election 'fair'
Zimbabwe's constitutional court on Tuesday ruled that a disputed elections which handed Robert Mugabe five more years in power were free and fair, dismissing allegations of vote-rigging. "The Zimbabwe presidential election held on 31st July, 2013 was in accordance with the laws of Zimbabwe," said Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku. "The said election was free, fair and credible." Mugabe was declared the winner in general elections on 31 July with 61% of the ballot, against his main rival Morgan Tsvangirai's 34%.
To read more please visit the News 24 site here

US says Zim vote flawed, won't lift sanctions
The United States believes Zimbabwe's recent election was flawed and it doesn't plan to loosen sanctions against President Robert Mugabe's government until there are signs of change in the country, the State Department said on Monday, despite an endorsement of the vote by Southern African leaders. Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980, is set to be sworn in as president as early as this week, extending his 33-year rule of the country after winning the 31 July election. The 15-nation Southern African Development Community, which helped broker a power-sharing deal after disputed elections in Zimbabwe in 2008, backed Mugabe's re-election on Sunday.
To read more please visit the News 24 site here

Bold steps President Keita must take to reconcile warring parties after winning elections
Former finance minister Soumalia Cissé, also a candidate in Mali's presidential elections wrote "May God bless Mali" after announcing his decision, on Twitter, to conceding defeat in person to President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. Mr Cissé's is an extremely rare gesture in a continent where election aftermaths are riddled with disputes, legal tussles, riots and violence, turning competitive elections into the most potent trigger of conflict from Cote d'Ivoire to the Democratic Republic of Congo and from Kenya to Zimbabwe. Election observers also gave the election a clean bill of health, with the European Union and US observers declaring it "credible and transparent."
To read more please visit The East African here

Textile Union Sactwu Endorses Clothing Strike
"As expected, we have received a strong 'yes vote' in support of a national wage strike in the clothing industry," Sactwu general secretary Andre Kriel said on Wedneday. Kriel said around 37 846 of the 40 000 ballots had been counted by early Wednesday morning." Of the total number of votes counted, 86% (32 505 votes) support wage strike action in pursuit of the union's demands," said Kriel. About 86% of members in the Western Cape and Gauteng, 85% of KwaZulu-Natal workers and 81% in the Eastern Cape backed the strike. There were still some adjustments to be made, but these were not expected to change the voting results.
To read more please visit the Mail & Guardian here

Madagascar court bars presidential candidates
Three high-profile Madagascan politicians, including the de facto leader Andry Rajoelina, have been barred from running for president. Their candidacies had been seen as an impediment to holding elections in the country. An electoral court in Madagascar has removed the names of three high-profile presidential contenders, including strongman Andry Rajoelina, whose disputed candidacies had stalled polls aimed at ending a four-year political crisis. The new electoral court set up last week met to "clean" up the list of 41 candidates approved by its predecessor in May.
To read more please visit the France 24 site here