Egypt: Female Copts spark Muslim student furor

Sectarian resentment was reignited this week when a Coptic student scrawled an "X" across Koranic verses in a female dormitory at an Egyptian university, just as tensions were beginning to subside after another Coptic student in the same dorm last month drew caricatures of Prophet Muhammad.
http://www.metimes.com/International/2008/05/30/female_copts_spark_muslim_student_furor/4905/

Egyptians fear surge in sectarian clashes

Two unrelated violent incidents have shattered hopes that sectarian conflict between Muslims and Coptic Christians was a thing of the past in Egypt, a nation long boasting a tradition of pluralism and unity between their two major religious communities.
http://www.metimes.com/International/2008/06/02/egyptians_fear_surge_in_sectarian_clashes/6097/172~1212426001~1/

Africa the new mortgage mecca

Middle class East Africans could find themselves unlikely beneficiaries of the escalating credit crisis in the West as large financial institutions look to new markets to sell their mortgage products.
Until recently, home ownership was considered an unattainable dream even for many middle class people in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
http://www.nationmedia.com/eastafrican/current/Business/biz020620081.htm

Africa is being primed for fascism

African heads of state, Kenya’s included, made for Japan last week. We would all be forgiven if we took this latest collective jaunt as being part of the increasingly loud call for Africa to look East instead of West.
There might even be some truth in such an understanding. It is clear that China’s new relationship with Africa has sparked off efforts to renew and strengthen Africa’s ties not only with India, but also (for some parts of Africa at least) with West Asia or the so-called Arab world.
http://www.nationmedia.com/eastafrican/current/Opinion/oped020620082.htm

Does the average Ghanaian understand the economy?

The news of the reduction of taxes on Rice and other agricultural product as well as various mechanisms to cushion the average Ghanaian of the impact of the high oil prices on the world market came with mixed feelings. While some people linked this to strictly political reasons others saw sense in the deal and praised the government for the venture.
http://www.ghanaweb.com/public_agenda/article.php?ID=10415

Vote for Mugabe or quit the military, top general tells soldiers

A top Zimbabwe army general called on the nation's soldiers to vote for Robert Mugabe in a presidential runoff or quit the military, the official media reported Saturday.
Army Chief of Staff Major-General Martin Chedondo told troops at a target-shooting competition to leave the military if they did not support Mr. Mugabe, the state Herald newspaper reported.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080531.wzimbabwe0531/BNStory/International/home

South Africa: Gap Between the Rich And Poor Too Wide

The xenophobic attacks reflect the failure by the ANC government to close the gap between the "two different countries" that South Africa has become in the last 15 years.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200806020848.html