Mali's constitutional court on Friday (28 May) named coup leader, Colonel Assimi Goïta, as the country's transitional president. Col Goïta had already declared himself interim president on Wednesday, two days after seizing power in a military coup. The court said this was due to the "vacancy in the presidency".

Yemen's Houthi movement chief negotiator, Mohammed Abdulsalam, said on Thursday (27 May) that he had met UN special envoy Martin Griffiths. The two had failed to meet earlier this month and Washington had strongly criticised the Houthis for their absence.

The EU sanctions were introduced in 2011 as a response to the violent repression in the country. Currently, 283 individuals and 70 organisations are on the sanctions list.

British International Trade Secretary, Liz Truss, says that the British government is looking at a possible trade deal with Gulf states starting with an investment tie-up with the UAE for an amount of £5 billion ($7.06bn). 

But we are going to talk also about the European Union-Africa Partnership, about the Indo-Pacific Strategy and about the conflicts in our Eastern Neighbourhood, which are affecting our security, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told journalists

The G5 Sahel was created in 2014 with the aim of uniting and co-ordinating actions to fight terrorism in the five countries it brings together, namely Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Chad. Since then, the United Nations has worked with the security alliance to co-ordinate economic and social development programs, as well as a unified response in terms of security and the fight against terrorist and criminal groups operating in the region.

A local organic farm in Egypt is becoming a hub for nature-lovers and family picnics. For the founder of WiiWii's farm, Wael Basheer Abdel Halim, it took some work to turn a small garden into a large sustainable farming site and a tourist destination.