In a stunning turn of events, a left-winger could win the Democratic Party’s ranked-choice primary for mayor of New York, the United States’ largest city, home to 8.48 million people.

Zohran Mamdani (@zohrankmamdani), gained momentum through grassroots organising, viral media, and a platform focused on affordable housing and taxing the wealthy. The 33-year-old outpaced former New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo, his closest contender, who conceded the race. However, Mamdani did not meet the 50 per cent threshold, which requires a recount of votes in the ranked-choice voting system.

Born in Uganda to decolonial academic Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair, Mamdani moved to New York at the age of seven and became a US citizen in 2018. His father chose his middle name, Kwame, in honour of Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72), Ghana’s first prime minister and Pan-African icon.

Continued…….. Mamdani studied Africana Studies at Bowdoin College before working as a foreclosure prevention housing counsellor. Through that experience, he saw that the high cost of housing was the 'consequence of decades of pro-corporate policies,' leading him to win the state assembly seat in 2020.

What helped Mamdani go viral globally was his response during a recent mayoral debate in which he refused to say he'd visit Israel and only acknowledged Israel's right to exist as a country if it provided equal rights. Currently, many human rights groups refer to Israel as an apartheid state.

Mamdani has criticised Israel’s military onslaught in Gaza, condemned Israel's decision to cut electricity to Gaza and has been a longtime supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, drafting a 2023 bill seeking to prohibit New York nonprofits from supporting Israeli settler activity.

His opposition to Israel's policies comes in a city known as the largest home to Jews outside Israel. We will see how that phenomenon will play out in the general election on 4 November.

Sources
https://www.npr.org/2025/06/25/nx-s1-5444846/zohran-mamdani-nyc-mayor-race

https://lovinmalta.com/news/news-international/ugandan-born-muslim-zohran-mamdani-pulls-off-shock-win-in-nyc-mayoral-primary/

https://worldpopulationreview.com/states/new-york

https://nyassembly.gov/mem/Zohran-K-Mamdani

NATO NABS KENYA

While several African countries, especially those in the Sahel, are breaking away from Western influence and exploring new partnerships—such as Burkina Faso’s potential pivot toward BRICS and rejection of exploitative aid—Kenya, under President William Ruto, has doubled down on its Western alignment. Nowhere is this clearer than in Kenya’s controversial leadership of the US-backed police mission to Haiti. 

Despite vocal opposition from Kenyan citizens and widespread calls to decolonise the East African nation, Ruto’s government sent hundreds of Kenyan police officers to Haiti, leading a mission that remains dangerously under-resourced and unable to counter Haiti’s powerful gangs that are reportedly backed by the Haitian bourgeoisie. Critics argue that the government is risking Kenyan lives for a US imperial project, with little to show for it but mounting criticism at home and abroad.

Continued……Just looking at the anti-police protests in Kenya’s streets these past few weeks indicates the neo-colonial government’s troubles.

Yet, when Ruto realised the US was not a true partner, especially as promised support for the Haiti mission fell short, he attempted to pivot toward China, making a high-profile visit that signalled Nairobi’s search for alternatives and drew condemnation from Washington.

A year ago, we shared this skit asking what Kenya gains and what it loses by siding with the West. Today, that question remains pertinent. Kenya’s new foreign policy, approved in early 2025, claims to safeguard sovereignty and promote prosperity. Still, it remains shaped by the very pressures that have sparked unrest across the continent, namely geopolitical competition and Western economic demands.

As African nations redefine their place in the world, is Kenya being used as a pawn in global power plays? African Stream’s Wambura Mwai, Ahmed Kaballo and Erick Gavala star, respectively, as Kenya, the US-led NATO bloc and the China-Russia axis! 

Enjoy the show, and let us know if you think Kenya’s foreign policy is just old actors reading new noscripts.

Sources

https://mfa.go.ke/kenya-celebrates-historic-milestone-cabinet-approval-foreign-policy-2024

https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/investigations/2025/01/13/haiti-depth-why-kenya-led-security-mission-floundering

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/new-contingent-of-kenyan-police-joins-un-backed-mission-to-fight-gangs-in-haiti/articleshow/117990826.cms

https://peoplesdispatch.org/2025/05/30/rutos-china-pact-sparks-us-ire-kenya-stands-firm-on-defending-sovereignty/

https://www.tuko.co.ke/business-economy/economy/586127-ruto-china-kenya-gain-presidents-second-state-tour-beijing/

https://globalinitiative.net/analysis/haiti-kenya-mission-paralyzed/

https://afriquexxi.info/In-Haiti-Kenyan-police-officers-between-anger-and-powerlessness

https://nimd.org/kenyas-2024-unrest-forging-a-new-political-landscape/

https://www.tuko.co.ke/editorial/explainer/589761-trumps-power-what-kenya-stands-lose-severs-ties-nairobi-china-deals/

https://www.citizen.digital/news/us-senate-questions-kenyas-loyalty-after-ruto-china-trip-n362793

https://www.africanews.com/2025/04/23/kenya-president-ruto-arrives-in-china-for-four-day-state-visit/

https://www.kenyans.co.ke/news/93478-civil-society-criticizes-police-conduct-threatens-sue-over-haiti-mission

NGO IMPERIALISM: TOOLS OF REGIME CHANGE

On 27 December 2023, African Stream published this video about NGOs and humanitarian organisations working to destabilise countries and overthrow governments that do not align with US foreign policy. 

Now, in 2025, this topic is as important as ever, given that more has come to light regarding the nefarious activities of organisations, such as the US Agency for International Development (USAID). USAID came under public scrutiny in February 2025 when US Congressman Scott Perry publicly accused the government agency of funneling money to t*rrorist organisations, such as B*ko Haram, Al-Q*eda and the so-called ‘Islamic State.’

Continued ……. Aid organisations are generally thought of as good endeavours. Humanity in action, as it were. However, dig a little deeper, and it soon becomes clear that the primary purpose of some NGOs and humanitarian groups operating worldwide today is not to help people. Instead, it’s political, as they are tools of regime change to protect Western interests.

Sources

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKefOY_3IQ0

https://www.aei.org/events/enterprise-driven-development-a-conversation-with-us-agency-for-international-development-administrator-mark-green

DJIBOUTI INDEPENDENCE DAY

Djibouti, formerly known as French Somaliland and then as the French Territory of the Afars and Issas, gained independence 48 years ago today after decades of colonial rule.

The region, historically known as the Land of Punt, had been crucial for trade and attracted the attention of foreign powers. 

France established a foothold in the late 19th century and maintained control until the country gained independence. 

A series of referenda and political tensions between different ethnic groups marked the path to freedom. Finally, in 1977, Djibouti voted overwhelmingly to break away from France. 

Continued…….. Hassan Gouled Aptidon (1916-2006), born to Issa nomads, became the country’s first president and ruled until 1999 as an ally of France.

Despite its independence, foreign military bases occupy Djibouti, including those of the United States, France, Italy, Japan and China. It also hosts the highest number of French troops outside France, numbering 1,450 in 2019, according to the Swedish Defence Research Institute.

When Africans finally kick out foreign occupiers, Djibouti will be able to celebrate true independence, free from foreign domination and in complete control over its land.

Sources

https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/hassan-gouled-aptidon-1916-2006

https://en.majalla.com/node/288091/politics/why-do-so-many-foreign-powers-have-military-bases-djibouti?utm_source=

WHY THE CONGO’S LIBERATION MATTERS TO ALL AFRICANS

Africa’s revolutionary giants of old clearly understood that the liberation of our continent is inseparable from that of the Congo. As Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72) - Ghana’s founding father and the visionary behind the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) - famously stated: ‘The Congo is the heart of Africa, any wound inflicted upon the Congo is a wound to the whole of Africa.’ In this video, African Stream’s @sannario_ breaks down why Nkurumah’s words were not merely for poetic effect, but expressed a profound political and strategic insight that we must heed today.

Continued…….. Sources

https://discoveryalert.com.au/news/natural-resources-democratic-republic-congo-2025/

https://www.statista.com/topics/13440/mining-industry-in-the-dr-congo/

https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/democratic-republic-congo-mining-and-minerals

https://techcultureafrica.com/congo-kinshasa

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/report/beyond-critical-minerals-capitalizing-on-the-drcs-vast-opportunities/

https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/drc/overview

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/congo-eyes-us-minerals-deal-by-end-june-ft-reports-2025-05-25/

https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/violence-democratic-republic-congo

https://cgspace.cgiar.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/a73abc0c-d975-4d5e-90d2-5729e4a4a420/content

https://www.sipri.org/publications/2011/sipri-policy-papers/conflict-minerals-democratic-republic-congo-aligning-trade-and-security-interventions

https://panzifoundation.org/conflict-minerals-and-sexual-violence-in-the-drc/

https://african.business/2023/07/energy-resources/scepticism-over-grand-inga-dam-revival

https://africa-energy-portal.org/news/world-bank-targets-80b-africas-mega-inga-dam

https://debtjustice.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/The-colonial-roots-of-global-south-debt.pdf

LIFE IN SUDAN UNDER RSF OCCUPATION

Sudan's devastating proxy war is now well into its third year. It’s easy to become desensitised to the grim statistics on casualties, hunger and displacement after so much time. But it’s vital to keep reminding ourselves and the world that real people are enduring unimaginable suffering. The UN calls the Sudanese people’s plight the world's ‘worst humanitarian crisis' of the 21st century.

In this video, we speak to Sidgi Kaballo, a member of the Central Committee of the Sudanese Communist Party, who holds dual citizenship in Sudan and the United Kingdom. He chose to remain in Sudan when the war erupted in April 2023. His son, African Stream's Editor-in-Chief, Ahmed Kaballo, had arranged for his safe evacuation from the country through the British Foreign Office. Yet Sidgi declined, staying for another seven and a half months amid the deadly chaos.

Continued……. Asked why he made that choice, Sidgi, also an economist and academic, explains that he felt his duty to his fellow Sudanese was best fulfilled by staying inside the country. He provides a chilling first-hand account of life under the Emirati-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF) occupation, describing it as ‘hell’ - with rampant looting, vandalism and severe shortages of food, water and medicine.

Yet, despite the horror, Sidgi also reminisces about the communal spirit that defines Sudanese society. He recalls a pharmacist who set up a medicine station outside his home to care for those in need until supplies ran out. It was one of many such acts of solidarity.

As the conflict grinds on, we must remember that behind the headlines is a human dimension to Sudan's crisis. We mustn't lose sight of the suffering of millions of real men, women and children.

AFRICA'S NEW PAN-AFRICAN GUARD

They say respect your elders, but what happens when those elders are clinging to power, fumbling at global summits and peeing themselves on national TV, while the continent they lead suffers under the weight of neocolonialism and corruption?

This piece isn’t about age. It’s about leadership, or the outrageous lack of it.

From South Sudan’s Salva Kiir to Cameroon’s 92-year-old Paul Biya and Nigeria’s Bola Tinubu, too many of our so-called leaders are clearly out of touch, unfit or both. Meanwhile, Africa’s real hope is emerging not from old-guard politics, but from a bold, mostly young, unapologetic generation of pan-African leaders reshaping the future.

Continued……In Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Traoré is building a state gold refinery and shutting down foreign looting. In Niger, General Tchiani is reclaiming uranium mines and investing in food and energy security. Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso are creating a joint military force, a shared currency and biometric passports under the new Alliance of Sahel States. And in Senegal, President Faye is auditing resource contracts and laying the groundwork for true economic sovereignty.

This isn’t a trend, it’s a tectonic shift. A wave of pan-African self-determination is rising, confronting neocolonialism not with slogans, but with structure, sovereignty and strategy.

The message is clear: Africa’s youth are done waiting. The era of puppets and old men is ending.