Burkina Faso, Iran, China

Today's three stories you should know

Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso’s government said it has foiled a plot to assassinate the country’s military leader Capt. Ibrahim Traoré. A plan to kill the hugely popular Traoré was hatched by Lt. Col. Paul Henri Damiba, who Traoré overthrew in September 2022, according to Security Minister Mahamadou Sana. The government accused neighboring Ivory Coast of helping to fund the plot, which it said involved killing several other military and civilian leaders. Ivory Coast has yet to comment. Traoré, whose public railing against Western imperialism has quickly earned him a strong following across Africa, has faced at least two other coup attempts.

More from BBC here.

Iran

Iran’s judiciary has warned anti-government protesters that there will be "no leniency for those who help the enemy against the Islamic Republic," as the country faces its largest wave of demonstrations for three years. Top judge Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei accused Israel and the U.S. of fomenting the unrest from afar. According to U.S.-based opposition group HRANA, at least 36 people have been killed and more than 2,000 detained. The protests began last month in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, led by shopkeepers hit hard by a plummeting currency, before spreading across the country and widening to include issues such as sky-high inflation caused by Western sanctions and mismanagement.

More from DW here.

China

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has begun his annual Africa tour, which includes visits to Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania and Lesotho. Beijing, the world's largest bilateral lender, has become increasingly influential on the continent over the last decade, sometimes at the expense of Western powers, but faces growing competition from the European Union to finance infrastructure projects in cash-strapped countries. China will be looking to secure shipping routes and supply lines, and to expand its exports into countries with fast-growing consumer markets such as Ethiopia, where the IMF forecasts growth of 7.2% this year.

More from Reuters here.