Group declares support for Obiano’s second term bid

CEO of Nigerian firm Invictus Group, Obinwanne Okeke, was in August 2019 arrested for conspiracy to commit computer fraud and wire fraud by the FBI. The Nigerian entrepreneur and a Forbes Africa 30 Under 30 honoree Obinwanne Okeke was sentenced to a 10-year jail term for computer and wire fraud by an American court yesterday.

US Republicans launch their national convention with a full-throated endorsement of President Donald Trump's record, while attacking Democratic candidate Joe Biden. Trump blames the "plague from China" for derailing his administration's progress, and his right-wing firebrand son Donald Jr says Joe Biden is "basically the Loch Ness Monster".

President Donald Trump warns that his election opponent Joe Biden wants to destroy "American greatness" in a speech accepting the Republican nomination for a second term against a backdrop of explosive racial tensions and the deadly coronavirus pandemic.

Nigerian boy Omar Farouq has been sentenced to 10 years for blasphemy by a Sharia court. Now the head of the Auschwitz Memorial is offering to serve part of the sentence, slamming it as "disgraceful" for humanity.

In an interview with FRANCE 24 in Niamey, Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou confirmed he does not plan to seek a third term in December's presidential vote. "The elections will be free and transparent," he vowed, insisting on the importance of having "strong democratic institutions".

Here are a few reasons to pick up a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday.⁣

Veteran politician Nana Akufo-Addo has won a second term as Ghana's president. He still has old campaign promises to fulfill plus a post-coronavirus economy to reboot.

Alassane Ouattara has begun his third term as president of the Ivory Coast. His win continues to be disputed by the opposition, but in his speech Ouattara called for help from his opponents to defuse the situation. Also, more than 300 schoolboys are still missing in Nigeria, after armed kidnappers captured hundreds of children from a high school in the country's north. And as the Central African Republic gets ready to hold presidential and legislative elections, our correspondents meet with the women who are aiming to bring more female representation to the government.

Chad President Idriss Deby Itno kicks off his campaign for a sixth six-year term in power, calling for unity after rival protests were banned and broken up.

Ahmed Bassam Zaki has received a second sentence in the case sparked by an Instagram account that provided an anonymous platform for assault survivors to come out.

Somalia's lower house of parliament has voted to extend the president’s mandate for two years. The speaker of the Senate, which would usually approve the legislation, immediately slammed the move as unconstitutional. This comes as Somalia's political scene has been in deadlock for months over the holding of elections. Also, the African Union urges the continent to boost its vaccine production efforts as richer regions are accused of hoarding Covid-19 inoculations. And in Tunisia, protesters continue to demonstrate against the dumping of waste from Italy on Tunisian land.

Said Djabelkhir, an Algerian scholar on Islam, says he'll appeal his three-year jail sentence and keep fighting for "freedom" of reasoned thought.