Mosques, churches open in Ebola-hit Sierra Leone

Freetown - With Ebola rampaging through Sierra Leone, most ordinary outings are off limits -- for fear of contracting the virus that has killed more than 1 000 of their compatriots, people cannot go to school or the movies, a football game or a concert.

But they can go to the mosque or to a church.

On Sunday, several hundred people headed to the Freetown branch of the Winners Chapel megachurch, where a revivalist minister presided over services like a rock star.

Liberia punishes Ebola soldiers

Monrovia - Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has ordered four soldiers and their commanding officer to be punished for their actions during a protest over an Ebola quarantine in August, a government statement said.

One boy was shot dead and others were injured when soldiers and armed police deployed to quell a protest against a decision to quarantine in the West Point neighbourhood in the capital Monrovia following an attack on an Ebola holding centre.

The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) initially denied responsibility for the violence, but an inquiry board was later set up to investigate the incident.

Egypt jihadists seek ISIS ties

Cairo - Under increasing pressure from the military, Egypt's deadliest jihadist group pledged allegiance to the Islamic State organisation in a bid to boost recruitment and bolster its fight against the army, analysts say.

Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Partisans of Jerusalem) has waged an insurgency from its Sinai Peninsula stronghold that has killed scores of Egyptian police and soldiers since the army ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi last year.

In response, the army has launched a huge operation in Sinai targeting jihadists and last month began building a buffer zone on the border with Gaza to stem the flow of militants and weapons from the strip.

Mali due to declare 108 Ebola-free

Geneva - Mali is preparing to release 108 people from Ebola quarantine in a tentative step towards declaring it has contained an outbreak.

Mali became the sixth West African country to report a case of Ebola when a 2-year-old girl died last month, leading to an urgent search for anyone who may have been infected during her 1 200-km bus trip from Guinea to the Malian town of Kayes.

The Malian Ministry of Health is expected to confirm later on Monday that 29 people who may have had contact with her during a two-hour stopover in Bamako, along with 12 people in Kayes, can be released from a 21-day quarantine on Tuesday.

Running for Nigeria president? That'll be $132K

Lagos - Nigeria's main political parties are charging eye-watering fees from election hopefuls, in a move condemned as undemocratic and a breeding ground for high-level cronyism and corruption.

Supporters of President Goodluck Jonathan pooled their resources to stump up the 22 million naira ($132 000) to buy his nomination form from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) is asking for 27.5 million naira, forcing one prospective candidate, former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, to take out a bank loan.

For governorship posts, the PDP is asking for 11 million naira while the APC wants 10 million naira - all before anyone is even chosen to run at the elections next year.