Violence in western Sudan this month alone has displaced more than 84,000 people, doubling the number of those driven from their homes so far this year, according to UN reports. The numbers are the highest since January 2021. Last year, at least 440,500 were displaced, five times more than in 2020, according to United Nations data.

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) agreed to extend their troop deployment inMozambique for another month to help it fight an Islamic State-linked insurgency. Meanwhile, the border between Algeria and Tunisia has been reopened after more than two years of closure due to the pandemic. And in Somalia, the crew at Bilan Media is on a mission to break the silence around gender-based violence in the country.

US intelligence services have said Russia's military has lost 15,000 troops so far in its war on Ukraine. Meanwhile, the mayor of Ukraine's Kharkiv reported Russian shelling in the city. Follow DW for more.

Sri Lankan armed forces have moved to dismantle the main camp set up by anti-government protesters in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo. Hours later, an ally of the Rajapaksa family was tapped as prime minister

Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Thursday.⁣

The French military said the withdrawal of its forces from Mali has been completed after more than eight years of presence in the West African country.

Indian and Chinese soldiers are pulling out of one of three key border areas that have been a focus of bilateral tensions. Some border regions have seen deadly clashes in recent times.

Diplomatic tensions between Mali and Ivory Coast deepen after Bamako sets conditions for the return of dozens of Ivorian soldiers arrested two months ago. Also, Ethiopia's New Year celebrations are overshadowed by an economic crisis. And anti-smoking campaigners in Senegal warn against the damage caused to young bodies when they start lighting up.

Russia's military has acknowledged its withdrawal from the strategically important town of Lyman in Donetsk. The town is in the areas Vladimir Putin unilaterally declared as annexed Russian territory.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed troops in the newly liberated Ukrainian city of Kherson Monday and said Ukraine is "ready for peace. Peace for all our country."

The region has been in the grip of an offensive by the M23 armed group and 900 Kenyan soldiers were recently sent to the area. Also in this edition: South Africa's disgraced ex-president Jacob Zuma could go back to prison, and we talk to Nigerian climate expert Chukwumerije Okereke, who is the Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development. And lastly, guest Karim Baldé breaks down the Senegal's loss against the Netherlands in the World Cup.

Kenya's President William Ruto says East African troops will enforce peace in eastern DR Congo. The region has been in the grip of an offensive by the M23 armed group and 900 Kenyan soldiers were recently sent to the area.