Zambia President Hichilema has been reelected for a second term

LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) — Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema has been reelected for a second five-year term, the Electoral Commission of Zambia announced early Tuesday.

He was declared the outright winner of last Thursday's presidential election without the need for a run-off, having secured 61.4% of the 5 million votes cast.

According to the commission, Hichilema won with 2,965,326 votes and his closest competitor was opposition leader Brian Mundubile, who won 1,856,217 votes, which was about 38% of the total vote.

“I therefore declare, Hichilema Hakainde S, to be president-elect of the Republic of Zambia this 18th day of August, 2026,” commission chairperson Mwangala Zaloumis said.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Hichilema welcomed the results and thanked Zambians for the reelection, but also reached out to those who voted for the opposition.

“To those citizens who preferred the ideas presented by our opponents, we hear you, and we will continue to work for you to ensure that every Zambian benefits from the development we are delivering,” he said in a statement.

There was no immediate reaction from opposition leader Mundubile.

Hichilema’s victory follows a closely watched election which saw the vote counting suspended last Friday and then restarted hours later under heightened security after the commission said there had been attacks against some polling station officials and some ballot papers had been stolen.

The government also confirmed that several leading opposition figures were arrested on the night of the elections, with the police accusing them of posing a threat to state security.

Mundubile said his home was raided by the police in what he called an attack on his life.

Thursday’s election was seen as a test of Hichilema’s economic recovery plan after the copper-rich nation was plunged into a debt crisis in 2020. Hichilema was elected in 2021 and oversaw the restructuring of Zambia’s sovereign debt while reining in inflation and stabilizing the currency.

International observers, including the European Union, said the election was largely peaceful, but said the “broader electoral process took place in an environment that limited fundamental freedoms."

“Late legal changes, legal uncertainty, and unequal campaign conditions distorted the playing field,” said Michael McNamara, chief of the EU observation mission.

In a pastoral statement, the Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops expressed concern over the deployment of the army during the vote counting

“The maintenance of order during elections is constitutionally and statutorily the responsibility of the Zambia Police Service,” the bishops said.

Magome reported from Johannesburg.

Election workers open containers of ballots as counting begins in Lusaka, Zambia, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Anita Reed)

Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema shares a light moment with journalists after casting his vote at a polling station in Lusaka, Zambia, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Anita Reed)

Election workers count ballots at a polling station in Lusaka, Zambia, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) CORRECTION: Corrects the country to Zambia instead of South Africa.

Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema casts his vote at a polling station in Lusaka, Zambia, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Anita Reed)

QUSRA, West Bank (AP) — The Palestinian American whose home in the occupied West Bank has been besieged by Israeli settlers for over a week traveled to his property on Monday to join other family members who have been defending it.

The standoff, in the village of Qusra, has seen groups of settlers surround several Palestinian houses and prevent residents from leaving. The United States has condemned the siege and the Israeli military has deployed troops it says are there to maintain order.

The siege of Palestinian homes by Israeli settlers comes as violence in the West Bank has soared in recent months. The settlers, emboldened by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing government, have ramped up attacks on Palestinian towns and villages, harassing residents and setting homes, mosques and fields ablaze.

Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed 87 Palestinians so far this year, according to Palestinian health officials. Palestinians have killed three Israelis, including two who were killed during clashes in the West Bank village of Tell last month.

As Loui Ridi, an Ohio-based owner of one of the houses, landed in Israel, settlers were still roaming near Qusra, according to video footage taken by his brother. It showed settlers driving ATVs and speaking with soldiers.

Ridi had also watched the scenes unfold from afar through his home security cameras.

“I've been watching this live for many days and now this is the second week. I can't sleep,” he told reporters at Israel’s main international airport. “I can’t let the settlers steal my house while I was watching."

He finally arrived in Qusra on Monday evening, where he first reunited with his mother and sister before moving on to his house. Ridi's brother, Qusai Abu Rida, and his teenage son had stayed inside the home to protect the property.

As Ridi waited for Israel’s military to escort him to the house, he said he believed little had changed since early last week, when the siege began.

Israel has since declared the neighborhood where Ridi’s home is located a closed military zone. But on Monday, his brother’s footage still showed soldiers interacting amicably with settlers.

“I should be able to go to my house freely, anytime I want,” he said. “It is a frustration and a nightmare for the entire family.”

__ Metz reported from Tel Aviv, Israel.

Loui Ridi, an Ohio-based Palestinian-American landlord of one of the homes besieged by Israeli settlers for over a week, greets his mother Aysha as he arrives to his parent's home upon return from the U.S., in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Loui Ridi, an Ohio-based Palestinian-American landlord of one of the homes besieged by Israeli settlers for over a week, arrives at his parent's home upon return from the U.S., in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Loui Ridi, an Ohio-based Palestinian-American landlord of one of the homes besieged by Israeli settlers for over a week, arrives at his parent's home upon his return from the U.S., in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Loui Ridi, an Ohio-based Palestinian-American landlord of one of the homes besieged by Israeli settlers for over a week, arrives at his parent's home upon return from the U.S., in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Israeli army soldiers patrol the streets of the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Israeli settlers patrol a road in front of besieged Palestinian houses, in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, south of Nablus, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)