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💬 THE BIG STORY
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Chikungunya reaches the west coast as leptospirosis kills a fifth person |
Two thousand, fifty-one. That is how many chikungunya cases Mauritius has recorded since January, and the epidemic is not retreating. As of April 30, 168 cases remain active. Dr Fazil Khodabocus, Acting Director of Health, described the figures as high and warned the outbreak is gaining momentum. |
The virus has long been concentrated in Rose-Hill and Quatre-Bornes. Now it is spreading west: new clusters have emerged in Tamarin, La Gaulette, La Preneuse, and Bambous. If you live on the west coast, this is no longer someone else's problem. |
Leptospirosis claimed a fifth life on May 1. A 60-year-old gardener from Montagne Blanche, admitted to Sir Anerood Jugnauth Hospital in a critical state around April 25. Three cases remain under treatment: a 64-year-old man at Candos and 28-year-old woman at Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital. Twenty leptospirosis cases total since January. Two confirmed mpox cases are still under medical supervision at hospital. Three different diseases, one island, one very tense week for public health. |
Check your garden, empty any stagnant water, and if you have a fever with joint pain, don't wait. |
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🇲🇺 IN MAURITIUS
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Saudi Arabia cancels Hajj visas for under-15s, leaving five Mauritian teenagers stranded |
Five Mauritian teenagers had their Hajj visas cancelled without warning after Saudi authorities announced, on the evening of May 1, that pilgrims under the age of 15 would no longer be permitted to travel for this year's pilgrimage. Families had already booked flights. Departures were days away. |
Shakeel Mohamed, Minister of Housing and Lands and the government's lead on the Hajj file, confirmed the decision has caused significant distress. Since Saturday morning, he has been in direct talks with the Saudi Ministry of Hajj, a senior Saudi deputy minister, and the Saudi Ambassador to Mauritius to seek both an explanation and a resolution. As of Saturday evening, Saudi authorities had given no official reason for the policy shift. |
A pilgrimage is not a holiday booking — cancelling it days out, with no explanation, is a serious matter for these families. |
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Rs 2.1 million in drugs seized in a Labour Day raid on Goodlands |
Officers from the Anti-Drug and Smuggling Unit (ADSU) of the North, backed by the Special Patrol Team of Trou-aux-Biches, raided Cité St Claire in Goodlands at 7:40 AM on May 1 and came away with drugs estimated at over Rs 2.1 million. A suspect was arrested on the spot. |
The operation was quick and targeted, ADSU raids on public holidays are not unusual — high movement and reduced attention create cover that investigators have learned to use. |
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PM ally tipped to take the top job at Mauritius's investment board |
Who heads the Economic Development Board (EDB) next? Sources point to Rajah Ramdaursingh, a close collaborator of PM Ramgoolam and a member of the Labour Party's economic team during the last general election campaign. He would succeed Mahen Kundasamy in the role of leading the agency that courts foreign investors and shapes business policy. |
No official announcement has been made. But the name circulating in government circles is consistent, and PM Ramgoolam's team is known to prefer people with an established economic brief. |
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MCB opens mutual fund investing to anyone with a phone |
Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB) has launched a fully digital pathway for customers to invest in mutual funds without visiting a branch. Mutual funds have long been seen as complex or reserved for wealthier clients. Whether this digital shortcut genuinely broadens access will depend on how clearly the product is explained to first-time investors. |
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🗞️ SHORTS
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Drugs, gun and cash seized in Mahébourg – ADSU officers arrested a 42-year-old man at Résidence Tôle and seized synthetic drugs, a loaded firearm, and suspect cash. |
Toddler hospitalised after drinking suspect water – A 20-month-old girl from Grand-Baie was rushed to Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam hospital on the evening of May 1 after drinking water that made her ill. |
Motorbike rider, 70, dies in Plaine-Magnien – A 70-year-old motorcyclist died after a collision with a bus near the La Grotte Lane roundabout in Plaine-Magnien on May 1. |
Woman, 59, drowns at Belle-Mare – A 59-year-old woman from Forest Side, Curepipe, died after getting into difficulty while swimming at the public beach at Belle-Mare on May 1. |
Every World Cup match on DStv and Canal+ – SuperSport and DStv will broadcast all 2026 FIFA World Cup matches to subscribers across Africa, including Mauritius, via MultiChoice's Canal+ group. |
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🔢 BY THE NUMBERS
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3.5 metres – Wave heights forecast off Mauritius's western and southern coasts this Saturday, prompting authorities to warn the public against all open-sea excursions and lagoon activities. No formal heavy swell warning was issued, but the meteorological service said conditions were dangerous. |
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$8.6 billion – In expedited US military sales approved by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Israel, Qatar, Kuwait, and the UAE, bypassing the standard congressional review to rush air defence missiles and laser guidance systems to the region as the ceasefire with Iran wobbles. |
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1 – New digital platform launched by Mauritius's Ministry of Labour on 30 April — named the Labour Connect Platform — giving workers a dedicated channel to report workplace violence and harassment, debuting at a tripartite conference in Balaclava on the eve of International Workers' Day. |
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🌍 IN OUR BACKYARD
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Mali opens a treason investigation into its own army after a week of catastrophic defeats |
Mali's military court has confirmed it is investigating at least five army personnel for alleged collaboration with the jihadist and separatist forces that launched the country's worst coordinated attacks in over a decade. Three of those investigated are active-duty soldiers. First arrests have been made. |
The assault began last Saturday when al-Qaida-linked JNIM (Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin) and the Azawad Liberation Front (ALA) struck near-simultaneously — hitting Bamako's main airport, seizing the city of Kidal, and killing Defence Minister Sadio Camara. By the end of the week, ALA fighters had captured the military camp at Tessalit after government forces and their Russian allies withdrew. A court statement read on state television cited solid evidence of complicity inside the ranks. |
When a military junta starts arresting its own soldiers for treason, the stability it sold the country is gone. |
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Taiwan's president lands in Eswatini after African countries blocked his flight path |
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te arrived in Eswatini on Saturday for a diplomatic visit that had been cancelled once already, in April, after several African nations withdrew overflight permits under pressure from Beijing. Eswatini is the only country in Africa that still recognises Taiwan diplomatically — and, as a result, the only African nation without tariff-free access to China's market. |
China's foreign ministry called Lai's trip a "stowaway-style escape farce." He arrived anyway. |
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Kenya floods leave roads impassable near Nairobi |
Heavy rains have triggered flooding in Syokimau, Machakos County, just southeast of Nairobi, leaving roads impassable for residents and commuters. Kenya's seasonal rains have become more intense in recent years, with urban flooding near the capital now a recurring disruption. |
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🗺️ AROUND THE WORLD
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Trump calls his own Navy 'pirates' as the Iran standoff enters its ninth week |
US President Donald Trump publicly described his own Navy's blockade of Iranian ports as acting "like pirates," calling the seizure of Iranian ships, cargo, and oil a "very profitable" operation. Nine weeks into the US-Israeli war with Iran, no obvious exit exists. A ceasefire is nominally in place but widely seen as fragile. |
Analysts say Trump is in a bind: a full military victory looks unlikely, a negotiated exit looks politically costly, and the economic and political costs of a stalemate keep accumulating. The US Treasury has added financial pressure this week, warning shippers that paying Iranian toll fees for passage through the Strait of Hormuz risks punitive sanctions. |
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Israel seizes Gaza aid flotilla, holds 175 activists and 22 vessels |
Israeli forces intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla, a humanitarian convoy attempting to break the blockade of Gaza, seizing 22 vessels and detaining 175 activists. Most of those detained were transported to Crete; two were held in Israel for questioning. The flotilla carried medical and food supplies and had set off from international waters. |
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Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi collapses in Iranian prison |
Narges Mohammadi, the Iranian activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has been hospitalised after a cardiac crisis and two episodes of unconsciousness while in custody. Mohammadi has been imprisoned repeatedly by Iranian authorities for her women's rights work and was already in poor health before this latest emergency. Her supporters are calling for her immediate release. |
She won the Nobel Prize from a prison cell. She is still in that cell. |
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🧠 THE DEEP END
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A man from Goma is cycling 14,000km across Africa to ask for peace |
Miguel Masaisai, a cyclist from Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, set off on May 1 on a journey of nearly 14,000 kilometres through 14 African countries, from Goma to Rabat, Morocco — entirely by bicycle. He says he is carrying "the prayers, encouragement and love of the city's children." His goal: promote peace and restore hope among African youth at a time when eastern DRC remains engulfed in conflict. |
This is not his first attempt. He previously completed a 6,000km journey from Goma to Cape Town and was hospitalised from exhaustion after arriving. He trained in both Kenya and the DRC before this new departure. |
Goma to Cape Town nearly killed him. This trip is more than twice that distance. |
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