#TopAfricanPassports

[newsbites]

News from southern Africa, 20 July

The top ten passports in Africa comprise countries from southern and southeastern Africa.

The top ten African passports in the Henley Passport Index are Seychelles, Mauritius, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Malawi, Kenya and Tanzania.

2. A suspected underground gas explosion near a minibus taxi rank in Johannesburg, South Africa, during rush hour, resulted in extensive damage, flipped cars, and injured at least nine people.

There are concerns of a second explosion and potential building collapses in the affected area, leading to the evacuation of residents.

The cause of the explosion is suspected to be gas, but the source is yet to be determined, and rescue efforts are ongoing amidst the danger of gas leaks.

3. Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be attending the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg and Sergei Lavrov will attend instead "by mutual agreement", according to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Earlier, Cyril Ramaphosa had declared that detaining Putin pursuant to an international arrest warrant would be seen as a declaration of war, prioritizing national security and avoiding potential conflict with Russia.

South Africa, as the chair of the BRICS group, aims to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict through peace talks led by African heads of state, but European leaders have rejected their peace mission.

#TopAfricanPassports #HenleyPassportIndex #AfricanTravel #Seychelles #Mauritius #SouthAfrica #Botswana #Namibia #Lesotho #Eswatini #Malawi #Kenya #Tanzania #GasExplosion #Johannesburg #UndergroundExplosion #RushHourIncident #SafetyConcerns #RescueEfforts #BRICSSummit #PutinNotAttending #SouthAfricaLeadership #PeaceTalks #InternationalRelations #GlobalSummit #BRICSChairmanship