The DRC’s Catholic Church issued a stern condemnation of last year’s elections. It’s a welcome position from one of the most influential institutions in the country, but critics think the church didn’t go far enough. By SIMON ALLISON.

The capture of 13 Somali pirates by a Nato-led force this weekend is being hailed by the British government as evidence the tide is turning in the war against piracy. REBECCA DAVIS examines recent developments to make international shipping lanes safe once more.

Zimbabwean opposition party Movement for Democratic Change 99 has announced its plan to oust President Robert Mugabe by June 2012 and vowed not to allow elections while Bob’s in power. Party president Job Sikhala says he will use whatever means necessary, but who will follow? By GREG NICOLSON.

Mohamed ElBaradei has quit the Egyptian presidential race, dismissing the current political set-up as little more than an extension of the ancien regime. SIMON ALLISON takes this chance to look at the Nobel Laureate’s dodgy dancing, his John the Baptist role in Egypt’s revolution and why Youssou N’Dour is copying his moves.

As the Dutch government moved on Tuesday to ban qat, a mild narcotic plant popular in Yemen and the Horn of Africa, Yemeni activists also launched a campaign against it. Lamenting the effects of the plant on Yemeni life, activists are marking January 12th as a qat-free day in the embattled Gulf state. By KHADIJA PATEL.

Even for an eternal optimist, it’s hard to be sanguine about the news coming out of Nigeria at the moment. The strike is in its third day and worsening. The national assembly has rebelled against the executive, demanding fuel subsidies be reinstated. Boko Haram misguidedly targeted attacked a mosque. Is there any good luck for President Jonathan? By SIMON ALLISON

The ICC deadline for Libya to give details about the health and status of Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam has come and gone, without word. This isn’t all the fault of Libya’s transitional government. As long as Saif remains in the control the Zintan militia, he’s their trump card and they’re holding that card very close to their chest. By SIMON ALLISON.

Poking fun at Islam is no Mickey Mouse affair. Egyptian businessman and Free Egyptians Party founder Naguib Sawiris has learnt this the hard way: after tweeting a picture of Mickey & Minnie dressed in conservative Islamic garb, his court appearance on blasphemy charges is set for 14 January. By THERESA MALLINSON.

On Monday, Liberian newspaper New Dawn ran a front-page story that should have been noticed especially in America. While the main characters were questionable Liberian politicians, the backdrop was nothing less than an American cultural war being fought on African soil. The issue? Homosexuality. The weapons? Money, lots of it. By SIMON ALLISON.

The elected President of Gabon, Ali Bongo Odimba, doesn't like it when the self-proclaimed president, André Mba Obame, receives media coverage about his claim. His reaction is to shoot the messenger – or, in this case, shut the television station. By THERESA MALLINSON.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend, the saying goes; that’s how Britain, France and Nato found themselves fighting on the same side as pariah state Sudan in the Libyan revolution. They weren’t happy about it at the time, and they’re even less happy now that Libya is paying tribute to all its benefactors – including, this weekend, rolling out the red carpet for Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir. By SIMON ALLISON.

Nigeria’s major Christian leaders determinedly paint the Boko Haram violence – worsening by the day – as religious warfare, but the situation is a lot more complicated than that. If the Christian leaders don’t tone down their rhetoric, their dire predictions of civil war risk becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. By SIMON ALLISON.

So there is such a thing as African unity. Under the banner of the African Union, five African countries have agreed to coordinate their armies in Somalia, in the interests of wiping out Al Shabaab once and for all. But Al Shabaab won’t go easy. By SIMON ALLISON.

Jacob Zuma will be busy this weekend, but if he can drag himself away from the party, he should have a chat with one of his guests. Goodluck Jonathan, Nigeria’s pimp-hatted president, has flown down to join in the festivities and he might be able to give Zuma – and any ambitious cadres – a few lessons on how a dominant ruling party can end up ruining the state. By SIMON ALLISON.

Poor old Coca-Cola. The world’s favourite drink can’t do much right these days. If it’s not responsible for America’s obesity epidemic, then it’s causing children’s teeth to rot. Or using up all of India’s water while stealing Nigerian jobs. But this latest accusation goes even further, claiming Coke is responsible for propping up the authoritarian regime of an entire country – and it refuses to do anything about it. By SIMON ALLISON.

Nigeria has scrapped fuel subsidies, causing petrol prices to double overnight. For many of Nigeria’s citizens, cheap petrol was the only proof that they lived in an oil-producing country and they’re not at all happy that this too has now been taken from them. By SIMON ALLISON.

Journalism isn't a profession you get into if you want an easy ride. This has certainly proven true for journalists covering Africa in 2011, many of whom paid with their lives. Challenges in 2012 include covering ongoing conflict zones, election periods, and continuing the fight for access to information. By THERESA MALLINSON.

Last year was a momentous one for Africa: a few revolutions, a couple of wars, a new country, a booming economy. SIMON ALLISON takes a look at where this has left the continent and what new developments 2012 might bring.

The jailing of a Moroccan rapper Mouad Belrhouate, aka LHAKED L7A9AD, popularly known as The Indignant, has outraged cultural activists across Africa. LHAKED is celebrated as the February 20 Movement’s “Voice of freedom” and his imprisonment has sparked a creative social-media campaign calling for his release. By SUZY BELL.

Jailed Egyptian blogger Alaa Abd El Fattah – known on Twitter simply as @alaa – made yet another court appearance on Tuesday. And, yet again, his jail time was extended by 15 days. El Fattah lived for some time in Pretoria, and  THERESA MALLINSON spoke to his South African friends about their recollections of him – and what steps can be taken to secure his release.

While there are plenty of signs that point to progress, there is a lot that is still going wrong in Africa. SIMON ALLISON looks at the five most troubling stories to emerge from the continent this year.

There’s been plenty of good news coming out of Africa this year. Economically, politically and socially the continent is demonstrably not the basket case it’s often perceived to be. It never has been, of course, but now there’s a lot more stories being told which prove it. SIMON ALLISON picks the top five.

Protesters from the DRC have accused President Zuma of complicity in what they allege is electoral fraud in the recent election in the restive country. Supporters of opposition candidate Etienne Tshisekedi believe South Africa acted at the behest of western interests who seek to keep incumbent President Joseph Kabila in power to protect international investments in the mineral-rich country. By KHADIJA PATEL.

Distracted by the revolution, Egypt is struggling to deal with three existential crises that might ultimately prove far more revolutionary to Egypt’s way of life: overpopulation, high food prices and water shortages. This was the message of former UN secretary general, Boutros Boutros-Ghali. The bad news for Egypt is that he’s probably right. By SIMON ALLISON

A great irony of the cyber age is the way it connects seemingly incongruous and anachronistic opposites in bizarre and unexpected ways. Now the ragtag though powerful Islamist terror group, Al Shabaab, is taking on the Kenyan army on the battlefields of … Twitter. By SIMON ALLISON.

In modern elections, it is the scale of the electoral irregularities that matter. Anomalies occur in almost every election, everywhere. I know a person who voted in the last British elections, despite not being British. And think of the American elections in 2000 that put George W Bush in the White House. By SIMON ALLISON.

As the International Year for People of African Descent draws to an end, GREG NICOLSON visits Zandspruit informal settlement, which was marred by the 2008 xenophobic violence, to see if the lot of our continental brothers has improved.

Mohamed Bouazizi lived for only four days of 2011, but his death sparked a historic tumult that dramatically shifted the politics of North Africa and the Middle East from the “convenience of dictatorship” to the chaos of nascent democracies. By KHADIJA PATEL.

There are currently 52 journalists imprisoned in Africa, in nine countries. More than half the jailed journalists are held in that scourge of media freedom – Eritrea. The most disturbing news to come out of CPJ's recent report on journalists behind bars, is that the trend of imprisoning journalists – often on trumped-up charges – has seen a sharp increase over the last decade. And if the Protection of State Information Bill is passed next year, the 2012 CPJ report could very well see South African journalists join their colleagues across the continent in serving prison time for doing their job. By THERESA MALLINSON.

Fatou Bensouda’s impending appointment as chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court might be exactly what the beleaguered institution needs to revive its reputation on the continent. She’s black and she’s African, which helps. But she’s also very good. By SIMON ALLISON.