WORLD NEWS

World News

Latest news from and about the homeland

Rwandan genocide memorial in Nyamata (Fanny Schertzer) German prosecutors have arrested a German-Rwandan national on suspicion of complicity in genocide and 25 counts of murder during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda. The suspect, identified only as Innocent S. under German privacy rules, was arrested in the central German state of Hesse on Wednesday. According to Reuters,…

Lawmakers stage walkout as Hong Kong leader warns of anarchy

Opposition lawmakers in Hong Kong disrupted proceedings and staged a walkout, as Chief Executive of Hong Kong CY Leung gave his annual address on Wednesday.

Some of the lawmakers who disrupted Leung's speech held banners calling for democracy, whilst others walked out holding yellow umbrellas – a symbol of the protests that engulfed Hong Kong late last year. Two of the lawmakers were dragged out by security guards.

Kerry pledges $250m in aid to Pakistan

US Secretary of State John Kerry announced $250 million worth of aid for emergency relief efforts in Pakistan, as he called for wider support in fighting militant groups in the region.

Speaking in Islamabad, Kerry said,
“We’ve been very clear with the highest levels of the Government of Pakistan that Pakistan has to target all militant groups, the Haqqani Network and others, that target U.S. coalition and Afghan forces and target people in Pakistan and elsewhere. And Pakistan has made it very clear that they intend to do so.”
Whilst praising the Pakistani military campaign against Islamic militants in North Waziristan, Kerry called for a wider efforts to get underway.

"All of us have a responsibility to ensure that these groups do not gain a foothold but rather are pushed back into the recesses of memory," he added. "The task is a difficult one and it is not done."

Senior LRA commander to be handed over to ICC

A senior commander from the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) who surrendered last week is to be handed over to the International Criminal Court (ICC), where he will be placed on trial, said a Ugandan army spokesperson.

Dominic Ongwen, who surrendered to the US military in the Central African Republic last week, is wanted by the ICC for crimes against humanity.

Ugandan army spokesperson Paddy Ankunda told Reuters,

Congolese protesters dispersed with tear gas

Congolese demonstrators protesting the potential extension of the current president’s tenure were violently dispersed by security forces yielding tear gas, on Monday, reports Reuters.

The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Joseph Kabila, is allegedly planning a census which, if undertaken, will delay the elections by an extra year.

Opposition leaders called for protests in Kinshasa ahead of a parliamentary debate on the proposed census.

International community ignores Boko Haram crisis says archbishop

The international community is ignoring the threat of Boko Haram militants, said a Catholic Archbishop in central Nigeria on Monday.

Archbishop of Jos, Ignatius Kaigama said the international community had to show the same spirit and resolve it had done after the attacks in France. 

Archbishop Kaigama told that BBC that the most recent attacks that have left over 2,000 civilians dead, show that the Nigerian government is unable to deal with the Boko Haram militants.

US coalition conducts 27 air strikes against Islamic State militants

The US and its allies bombarded Islamic State forces with 27 air strikes within 24 hours, the Combined Joint Task Force said on Monday.

The air raids ran from Sunday morning to Monday morning, destroying fighting positions and buildings near the city of Kobane in Syria.

A further sixteen strikes in Iraq destroyed fighting positions, vehicles and an artillery system, reports Reuters.

Suicide bombers attack north-east Nigeria

Two suicide bombers attacked a market in north-east Nigeria, in the country’s second consecutive day of attacks on civilians.

A security official told the Agence France Presse, that the bombs appeared to have been remote controlled, as the second bomber appeared to try and run out of the market after the first explosion.

“The second bomber was terrified by the explosion and she tried to dash across the road but she also exploded,” the witness said.

The no group has claimed responsibility, the attacks come amidst an offensive by Boko Haram militants in the region.

Conflicting Libya factions agree to UN facilitated talks

Libya’s conflicting factions agreed to a new round UN facilitated talks to work towards stability in the region reports Reuters.

The announcement came after the UN envoy, Bernardino Leon met factions to agree a meeting in Geneva next week.

“In order to create a conducive environment for the dialogue, Special Representative Leon has proposed to the parties to the conflict a freeze in military operations for a few days,” the UN mission said in a statement on Saturday.

A member of parliament in Tripoli said that the talks would initially be indirect as the two sides did not recognise each other.

"If there will be chance to hold direct talks, that will depend on the first round,” added Abdulqader Hwaili.

The European Union also backed the UN facilitated talks.

UN report finds ethnic cleansing but no genocidal intent in CAR

A UN report, released on Thursday, concluded that atrocities committed in the Central African Republic (CAR) amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, but said it did not find "the existence of the necessary element of genocidal intent".

"Thousands of people died as a result of the conflict. Human rights violations and abuses were committed by all parties. The Seleka coalition and the anti-balaka are also responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity," the commission of inquiry, set up by the UN Security Council in December 2013 said.

Bomb blast kills 16 in Nigeria

A bomb blast in the north-eastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri killed at least 16 people and injured 20 on Saturday, reports Reuters.

Maiduguri, the capital of the Borno state has seen several attacks from boko Haram militants, who operate within the north-eastern states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

The latest attack comes as reports suggest at least 2,000 people were killed in a Boko Haram massacre in the town of Baga last week.