Chad's President Idriss Deby urged the United Nations on Wednesday to take control of Sudan's volatile Darfur region because he said Khartoum was using the conflict there to destabilise neighbouring states. Deby, who faces threats from rebel attacks on Chad's eastern frontier with Sudan and from army desertions at home, made the call during a meeting of central African leaders which he convened in N'Djamena to discuss tensions with Khartoum.

An enormous humanitarian crisis is emerging in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Katanga Province, with tens of thousands of people being displaced, but so far the government and the international community are doing little. "Katanga is not on the political map, which is why such a massive humanitarian crisis can go ignored," said Jason Stearns, the International Crisis Group's senior analyst on Central Africa, who is working on a report on Katanga to be released in early 2006.

Malawian President Bingu wa Muthrika's main rival, the United Democratic Front (UDF), has said it is willing to take up his offer to break the political impasse in the country provided he works on improving relations with parliament. In his New Year's eve address last week, Mutharika said he was ready to talk to the opposition provided "they withdraw the impeachment charges against me", which followed the president's anti-corruption campaign that netted former ruling party members.

A group of Ethiopian opposition leaders, aid workers and journalists - facing treason, conspiracy and genocide charges have been denied bail. The High Court judge said the severity of the accusations against the group of 131 precluded their release. The group, including all the leaders of the main opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) party, are refusing to recognise the court's legitimacy.

Security forces in Nigeria have killed 12 men they say were stealing oil from a pipeline in the southern Niger Delta. Officials said that a gun battle broke out when troops on patrol came across a group using heavy drilling equipment to siphon oil from a pipeline. Three others in the group, in the remote Oghara community, were wounded and five were arrested. Correspondents say oil theft is a common practice in one of Africa's biggest oil-producing countries.