Africa StreaM

Last year, the aggressive genre of Drill could only be heard on social media in Ethiopia. But over the last few months the fast-paced, often matched with violent lyrics, style of hip hop has exploded on the streets of Addis Ababa, taking over mainstream bars and nightclubs. For some, its rapid popularity is due to Gen Z's lack of political and economic certainty. But Ethiopia remains a very conservative country, and not everyone is a fan of Drill. This report by our correspondent Tom Canetti.

The UN refugee agency and the Ethiopian government have opened a new support centre in Addis Ababa to provide refugees with free legal advice and access to essential services. The initiative aims to help refugees navigate bureaucracy, obtain vital documents and improve their chances of finding work. Ethiopia hosts more than one million refugees, making it Africa's third-largest refugee-hosting country. Tom Canetti reports from Addis Ababa.

After a leak of confidential documents revealed how Russian agents have been placing hundreds of articles in French-speaking media outlets in West and Central Africa, FRANCE 24 travelled to Dakar, Senegal, to investigate this secret operation.

Russia continues to recruit Africans to fight on the front in Ukraine. The Stop Russian Recruiters platform, which is linked to Urkaine's Ministry of Defence, has now identified nearly 3,000 recruits. Around one in six has already been killed. Among the countries most affected are Cameroon, Ghana, Egypt and Kenya, where FRANCE 24's Bastien Renouil tells us more.

This week in Reporters: a special report by FRANCE 24's The Observers. After a leak of confidential documents revealed how Russian agents have been planting hundreds of articles in French-speaking media outlets in West and Central Africa, FRANCE 24 travelled to Dakar, Senegal, to investigate this secret operation. Nathan Gallo and Derek Thomson report, with footage by Aminatou Diallo.

In tonight's edition, Ebola is spreading faster in the DRC than in any previous outbreak, the WHO says. Also, new data has identified nearly 3,000 Africans recruited to fight on the Ukrainian front, with around one in six already killed. And Algeria is battling a wave of devastating wildfires.

The World Health Organization on Thursday warned that the Ebola virus is spreading through the Democratic Republic of Congo faster than during any previous outbreak, with more than 2,000 confirmed cases and 796 deaths recorded in just two months. Health officials say the rapid spread, lack of approved vaccine for the virus strain and ongoing conflict in the country are complicating efforts to contain the epidemic.

Health workers fighting the Ebola outbreak in DR Congo are going on strike over unpaid wages. This comes as the World Health Organization warned that Ebola was spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo at a faster pace than during any previous outbreak of the deadly virus. More than 2,000 Ebola cases, including 754 deaths, have been recorded in DRC. FRANCE 24's Emmet Livingstone tells us more about the strikes.

In Kenya, a court delivered a closely watched ruling this morning that had been eagerly awaited by the country's Rastafarian community. Since 2021, the court had been considering a petition seeking to decriminalise the use of cannabis by the community, which is officially recognized as a religion in the country. Rastafarians argue that the drug is an essential part of their religious rituals. FRANCE 24's Bastien Renouil tells us more.

The French Prime Minister along with a retinue of officials has arrived in Morocco. The choice for his first overseas trip is significant - as Paris looks to turn a diplomatic rapprochement into a broader strategic partnership with Rabat. If all goes well - Morocco's Mohammed VI could potentially visit France. New French investments and partnerships — particularly in the defence and civil nuclear sectors— are on the table.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is set to visit Morocco on July 16 in an effort to strengthen ties between Paris and Rabat, whether it is for trade or defence. But as the visit starts, an investigation has revealed that Morocco has used Israeli spyware to spy on several French ministers, including the French prime minister himself. FRANCE 24's Shirli Sitbon tells us more.

In West Africa, plastic waste is a major environmental challenge. In Senegal, activist Modou Fall has taken an unusual approach to raising awareness about plastic pollution. He walks through Dakar and other parts of the country wearing an eye-catching outfit made from discarded plastic waste. His goal is to highlight the scale of the problem and urge authorities to enforce environmental protection laws.

Wildfires are raging across Algeria, where extreme heat and prolonged drought have fuelled dozens of blazes. Authorities say more than 130 fires were reported on July 15 alone. At least one person has been killed, and the damage has been devastating— especially for farmers and livestock owners. Wildfires are common in Algeria during the summer, but they have been unusually severe this year.

A fire at an orphanage outside of Algiers claimed the lives of at least 11 people and wounded 19, the country's civil defence announced on Thursday.

In this edition, FRANCE 24’s François Picard speaks to Léa Perruchon, Journalist with Forbidden Stories, who details how journalism, France's national security and their complex asylum policy clash. She also addresses Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo – a participant in Russia's disinformation campaign in the Central African Republic who became a whistleblower. His crucial testimony helped uncover a Wagner-linked disinformation network across Africa. Following an intervention reportedly supported by the French presidency to evacuate him and his family from imminent danger, French authorities changed course and abruptly rejected his asylum application.

For Spotlight, François Picard is pleased to welcome Lea Perruchon, Journalist with Forbidden Stories. She exposes a collision of competing interests: journalism, France's national security and their complex asylum policy. Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo, a former participant in Russia's disinformation campaign in the Central African Republic, turned whistleblower, offered crucial testimony that helped uncover the operations of the Wagner-linked disinformation network across Africa. Following an intervention reportedly supported by the French presidency to evacuate him and his family from imminent danger, French authorities changed course and abruptly rejected his asylum application. Perruchon frames the case not simply as an individual immigration dispute but as a broader test of democratic states' willingness to protect those who expose covert authoritarian influence operations. She highlights an unresolved contradiction: the same testimony that contributed to investigations of significant public interest and corroborated subsequent international sanctions now appear to have become entangled in an asylum process whose reasoning remains opaque. More broadly, fundamental questions are now being raised about how liberal democracies reconcile security concerns, legal consistency, investigative journalism, and the strategic importance of encouraging and protecting future whistleblowers.

In this edition, Kenya's Rastafarians lose a landmark court battle over the religious use of cannabis. Also, the continent's top cocoa producers join forces to process more of the seeds at home instead of exporting it raw. And on the beaches of Dakar, an environmental activist is turning heads in a colourful outfit made entirely from discarded plastic waste.

The World Health Organization launched the first clinical trial on Tuesday to test whether an antiviral drug can prevent infection in people exposed to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as the outbreak continues to outpace response efforts and spread beyond known chains of transmission.

In this edition: a murder case makes the headlines and a man is sought in the UK over the death of his wife and two daughters. Also, the WHO warns the numbers for the Ebola crisis in DRC may be four times higher than previously estimated. Finally, we look at the DR Congo's national team's jackets – a success story made in Kinshasa.