This artwork is titled Strada con lampioni (Street with Lampposts), painted by the Italian artist Salvo (Salvatore Mangione) in 2001.

All Protocol Observed Welcome to Issue 239 of The Continent Macron is back in Africa: energetic, ambitious, and still trying to convince the world Paris is relevant. Meanwhile, in Mayotte — legally France, geographically Africa — asylum seekers wait for la République to notice them. bit.ly/239_TC

Gift link - www.nytimes.com/2026/05/09/o...

Actual elections. Must be nice.

Relatives of, sanctioned individuals and entities linked to RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, aka Hemedti, have amassed a £17.7m property portfolio in Dubai

I first reported on H.I.V. in Zambia in 2002, when no one had treatment in sub-Saharan Africa. I saw hospitals where gaunt, dying patients packed the corridors. But Zambia — bolstered by international donors and the U.S. PEPFAR program — turned the tide www.nytimes.com/2026/04/25/h...

my latest books cartoon for @theguardian.com

And of course, once again I want to read all of these.

The global food crisis unleashed by the war - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT

Loud warplanes are back #beirut

Happy Birthday to Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and a massive thank you to her for inventing rock and roll She was born on March 20th, 1915

Today's quick update [Mar 12]: - 13 people reported killed in SAF drone strike on fuel market in Adekong, near the Sudan-Chad border. - RSF shelling continues in Dilling, S. Kordofan. - SAF drone strikes reported in Nyala, S. Darfur & Sileya, W. Darfur. #KeepEyesOnSudan

Baking soda?

This is what peak male performance looks like

One of my favorite things about Ramadan is its emphasis on giving and empathy for others. In what's become a 7 year old tradition, every day of Ramadan, I'll be spotlighting a single charity or cause--some international, some US-based. Follow along with #30Days30Causes & send recommendations too!

Pretty chuffed to have a non-fiction piece in the latest edition of Door is a Jar. It’s strange to write silly autobiographical stories with all of this going on [gestures wildly at the world], but maybe sometimes the surprising frivolity of a family chest freezer is needed. Who can say?!

My grandmother’s home, the family home, the home I spent nearly every Sunday in for over 3 decades, the home I lived in as a teenager, that my grandparents bought in 1965 when Ghobeiri still had orchards, the house my aunt inherited & in which my cousins grew up, is gone. No one was home, thank god

I want to read every single book on the list. 2026 Climate Fiction Prize longlist announced - The Climate Fiction Prize climatefictionprize.co.uk

Entertaining, fascinating and informative

A closer look. John Wilson (1922-2015) Father and Child Reading, 1985 Bronze maquette (model) for sculpture at Roxbury Community College

Completed a series of new collage/illustrations using original photographs of Green Book locations in Los Angeles.

Today's quick update [Feb 4]: - Sudan Doctors Network: 1 person killed and 8 others injured after RSF drone strike on a hospital in Kadugli, South Kordofan. - Clashes between SAF and RSF/SPLM-N (Alhilu) reported south of Alkurmuk, Blue Nile State. #KeepEyesOnSudan

Reminder that "jaywalking" was literally made up by american car manufacturers to shift the blame for accidents from drivers to pedestrians. "Jay" was a slang term meaning "idiot" or "rube".

Soul jazz is where it's at.

“Syria’s army says it will renew attacks against a Kurdish-majority district of Aleppo where clashes have raged this week, after Kurdish groups rejected Damascus’s ceasefire terms that demanded their fighters withdraw from the city” www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

Mashhad, Iran

I'm always fascinated by the story behind the making of any map, and this set of war damage maps, completed within six months of the end of the war, is extraordinary in that regard. Here's Ueno Rokurō, then president of the Japan Chikei Company, who oversaw its creation:

Thing I learned today: “duck tape” is a far older term than “duct tape.” It used to be made with cotton duck. “Duct tape” is a combination of people trying to make sense, and its association with post war use in HVAC systems. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duct_tape

Today's quick update [Dec 4]: - Sudan Doctors Network: 9 people killed in RSF/SPLM-N (Alhilu) drone attack on kindergarten and hospital in Kalogi, South Kordofan. - SAF airstrikes on RSF positions in Nyala, South Darfur. #KeepEyesOnSudan

‘You cannot learn or grow while trying to appear as if you have everything figured out. You cannot talk to God by trying to avoid doing something wrong. Perfection is stagnation.’ www.nytimes.com/2025/11/29/o...? Gift Link.

I once asked a bookseller at a large indie store how many people would have to buy a book for it to get the attention of the store buyer and cause an additional order and they said: Three.

An honor and dream come true to perform alongside Yo-Yo Ma, presented by Celebrity Series at Boston Symphony Hall. 💜 🎼Ave Maria (Bach/Gounod)

ICYMI: Books from African authors and authors of African descent to look forward to in 2025 (Updated) hararereview.wordpress.com/2025/01/04/b...

In vernacular British English, any noun can be used as an insult if it feels right. Just looking around my immediate surroundings, 'you teacup' and 'you plant pot' work, but 'you subwoofer' and 'you mousepad' don't. Same with pastries: donut works, cheese lattice doesn't. Nobody knows why.

Such a good piece, and vitally important.

Today we head to the aisle of Skye. On our trip we hadn’t planned to go but weather and ferries caused us to make different plans. Noticed this from the hotel

This got to me. Haunting and beautifully written. news.mongabay.com/2025/10/in-m...

Some thoughts on AI + literacy in East Africa, with thanks to @africasacountry.bsky.social

Etel Adnan.

Deadwood is not dead

I made this video 4 days ago. As of today, Elfashir has completely run out of food, and the earthen barriers RSF have been building around the city are now complete. Oh, and RSF drones struck a town in Khartoum State and another in Northern State. In case anyone gaf. #KeepEyesOnSudan

Data from the Office of National Statistics shows Londoners are less likely to be violent crime victims (26.4 offences per 1,000 pop) than the rest of England & Wales (31.9 offences). Violent crime has fallen in every London borough in the past year.

Looking through the back catalogue @noemamag.com and found this fascinating + gorgeous piece by @olliemilman.bsky.social - well worth your time: www.noemamag.com/the-cult-of-...

- Per a report by Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab, RSF has nearly completed building walls around the besieged city. - The berms now stretch "for over 68km around Elfashir, leaving only a 3-4km gap before the city is fully enclosed". (Sudan Tribune) #KeepEyesOnSudan

Karel Martens ∘ Dutch graphic designer and educator known for innovative typography, minimalist aesthetic, and experimental printmaking techniques, '60s...'90s.

This is brillaint, up the Choristers www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Heavy rains and floods have been wreaking havoc on communities across #Sudan. Climate change + war + already fragile infrastructure (further destroyed by war) = disastrous, deadly combination. #KeepEyesOnSudan