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Monday

The relative calm of Senegal has been shattered by protests, arrests and deaths

Senegal has been wracked by unrest, violence and sporadic social media blackouts in a country that is usually seen as a beacon of democracy and calm in an unstable region of West Africa.

The relative calm of Senegal has been shattered by protests, arrests and deaths

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Movies

Sudan and South Sudan's ethnic and religious divisions play a role 'Goodbye Julia'

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Mohamed Kordofani about his film Goodbye Julia. It's about two very different Sudanese women who form a friendship against the backdrop of a civil war.

Sudan and South Sudan's ethnic and religious divisions play a role 'Goodbye Julia'

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Sunday

She writes for a hit Ethiopian soap opera. This year, the plot turns on child marriage

A scene from the popular Ethiopian soap opera Yegna, which sends messages about health and well-being to its teen viewers. Topics range from child marriage to menstrual pads. @yegnaplayer via YouTube/ Screengrab by NPR hide caption

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@yegnaplayer via YouTube/ Screengrab by NPR

Goats and Soda

She writes for a hit Ethiopian soap opera. This year, the plot turns on child marriage

The show is Yegna. Its goal (besides entertainment) is to tackle issues affecting teen girls (and boys, too), from a lack of menstrual pads to why betting is unwise. We talk to one of the writers.

Saturday

Death toll in Senegal protests rises to 15 as opposition supporters clash with police

A demonstrator throws a rock at police during a protest at a neighborhood in Dakar, Senegal, on Saturday. The clashes first broke out after opposition leader Ousmane Sonko was convicted of corrupting youth and sentenced to two years in prison. Leo Correa/AP hide caption

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Leo Correa/AP

Death toll in Senegal protests rises to 15 as opposition supporters clash with police

The clashes broke out after opposition leader Ousmane Sonko was convicted of corrupting youth. His supporters say his legal troubles are part of a government effort to derail his candidacy in 2024.

Friday

World

U.S.-imposed sanctions on Sudan is a good first step, says former special envoy

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with former ambassador J. Peter Pham about how the U.S. has imposed its first sanctions related to the conflict in Sudan after ceasefire efforts collapsed.

U.S.-imposed sanctions on Sudan is a good first step, says former special envoy

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The conflict in Sudan leaves hundreds dead, including babies at an orphanage

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Reuters journalist Maggie Michael about the deaths of at least 50 children at a state-run orphanage in Sudan since fighting began weeks ago in Khartoum.

The conflict in Sudan leaves hundreds dead, including babies at an orphanage

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Thursday

The Ghost in Your Phone
JUNIOR KANNAH/AFP via Getty Images

Throughline

The Ghost in Your Phone

It's hot. A mother works outside, a baby strapped to her back. The two of them breathe in toxic dust, day after day. And they're just two of thousands, cramped so close together it's hard to move, all facing down the mountain of cobalt stone.

The Ghost in Your Phone

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Tuesday

Music

Peter One blends West African nostalgia with Nashville flair in first solo album

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with musician Peter One about starting from scratch in Nashville after a successful career in Côte d'Ivoire and his first album in decades Come Back to Me.

Peter One blends West African nostalgia with Nashville flair in first solo album

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In Uganda, a new anti-gay law calls for life in prison for those who are convicted

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Richard Lusimbo, an LGBTQ activist in Uganda, where the president has signed one of the toughest any-gay laws in the world.

In Uganda, a new anti-gay law calls for life in prison for those who are convicted

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Refugees fleeing fighting in Sudan are streaming into neighboring Chad

Sudanese refugees from the Tandelti area who crossed into Chad, in Koufroun, near Echbara, gather for aid distribution. GUEIPEUR DENIS SASSOU/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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GUEIPEUR DENIS SASSOU/AFP via Getty Images

Refugees fleeing fighting in Sudan are streaming into neighboring Chad

The stories of those refugees crossing the border from Sudan to Chad, tell of horror, destruction and non stop fighting, in a dreadful deja vu of Darfur's genocidal past.

Refugees fleeing fighting in Sudan are streaming into neighboring Chad

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People fleeing Sudan face uncertain futures in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and beyond

A man is assisted by Saudi commandos as he gets off a tugboat near Port Sudan and onto a Saudi warship that will travel across the Red Sea to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. May ‎2, ‎2023. Aya Batrawy/NPR hide caption

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Aya Batrawy/NPR

World

People fleeing Sudan face uncertain futures in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and beyond

In Port Sudan, Jeddah, Aswan and Cairo, people have sought safety from the fighting in Khartoum. After making difficult decisions and journeys, the biggest challenges for many are only beginning.

People fleeing Sudan face uncertain futures in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and beyond

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Monday

Uganda's LGBTQ community faces harsh legislation — including the death penalty

Uganda's president has approved some of the harshest anti LGBTQ legislation in the world, including life imprisonment and even the death penalty. What will this mean for Uganda's queer community now?

Uganda's LGBTQ community faces harsh legislation — including the death penalty

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A new anti-gay law in Uganda calls for life in prison for those who are convicted

Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema speaks during their picket against Uganda's anti-homosexuality bill at the Ugandan High Commission in Pretoria, South Africa on April 4, 2023. Uganda's president Yoweri Museveni has signed into law tough new anti-gay legislation supported by many in the country but widely condemned by rights activists and others abroad. Themba Hadebe/AP hide caption

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Themba Hadebe/AP

A new anti-gay law in Uganda calls for life in prison for those who are convicted

The bill, signed into law by President Yoweri Museveni on Monday, calls for life imprisonment for anyone convicted of homosexuality. It drew swift condemnation from rights groups around the world.

Saturday

Doctors in Sudan recount horrors of ongoing fighting at hospitals

Relatives sit by a patient at a makeshift emergency room set-up by Sudanese volunteers in a school building in Omdurman, the capital's twin city, on May 27, 2023, amid ongoing fighting between the forces of two rival generals. -/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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-/AFP via Getty Images

Doctors in Sudan recount horrors of ongoing fighting at hospitals

Sudanese American doctors are sounding the alarm about the conflict in Khartoum.

Doctors in Sudan recount horrors of ongoing fighting at hospitals

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