The Big Picture:
8 January:
1988 -- British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher ends her tour of Africa in Kano, in the Moslem north of Nigeria, amid protests and demonstrations.
2005 -- It is revealed that a UN enquiry found that UN Peacekeepers in the DRC were having sex with girls as young as 13. UN Peacekeeping personnel are banned from further sexual contact with locals.
For more on 8 January.
9 January:
1973 -- The border with Zambia is closed by the Rhodesian government in an attempt to halt the insurgence of guerrillas and rebels.
2005 -- A peace deal is signed between the government of Sudan and southern rebels – it is hoped that this will bring an end to Africa's longest running civil war.
For more on 9 January.
10 January:
1975 -- President Francisco da Costa Gomes of Portugal has agreed to give independence to Angola.
1976 -- African statesmen meet in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss the state of war in Angola.
For more on 10 January.
11 January:
1970 -- As federal Nigerian troops mount their final assault on Biafran rebels, the last rebel held airstrip is put out of action.
2004 -- A state of emergency is declared in the Puntland area of Las Anod, Somalia, following a built-up of tension with neighbouring Somaliland.
For more on 11 January.
12 January:
1970 -- Biafran rebels capitulate to Nigerian authority.
1974 -- A unification treaty is signed between President Habib Ali Bourguiba of Tunisia and Colonel Muammar Muhammad Gaddafi of Libya.
For more on 12 January.
13 January:
1980 -- Joshua Nkomo is allowed to return home to Rhodesia, the first time in three years.
1991 -- The deputy leader of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Abu Iyad (Salah Khalaf), is assassinated in Tunis.
2005 -- Sir Mark Thatcher pleads guilty to charges in SA of helping to finance a coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea. He is fined $500 000.
For more on 13 January.
14 January:
1982 -- Spotter planes have located Mark Thatcher, missing for two days whilst taking part in the Paris-Dakar rally.
For more on 14 January.
