Authorities in Kenya have charged four men in connection with the attack on a Nairobi shopping mall that killed at least sixty-seven people. The suspects all pleaded not guilty in a Nairobi courtroom Monday. None of the four being held is accused of being the gunman who attacked shoppers at the West Gate mall in September. But they are charged with committing the terrorist act by providing shelter to the alleged gunmen. Somali militant group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the West Gate attack.

The European Union and Word Bank are pledging more than eight billion dollars to improve living conditions in the drought-hit Sahel region of Africa. The announcement on Monday came ahead of a visit to the region by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the World Bank President Jim Yong Kim.

I'm Ray Kougell, VOA News. More on our website at VOANEWS.com.