NEWS - The African Mirror

Mar

01

2021

History-maker Okonjo-Iweala “ready to go”

NEWS

EMMA FARGE THE World Trade Organization's first female and first African director-general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala began work today, ending a six-month leadership void at the global trade watchdog. After a long campaign that was derailed in the late stages by a Trump administration veto, the 66-year-old Nigerian was finally confirmed as boss last month, pledging to "forget business as usual" at the body which is struggling to strike new deals and whose arbitration functions are paralysed. "It feels great. I am coming into one of the most important institutions in the world and we have a lot of work to do.…

Mar

02

2021

By The African Mirror

Anguish for families of 300 abducted Nigerian girls

NEWS

SEAN SANNI and AFOLABI SOTUNDE RELATIVES of more than 300 girls abducted by gunmen from their boarding school in northwest Nigeria endured an agonising wait for news amid rumours that they had been released, while security forces continued their search. An armed gang kidnapped 317 girls from the Government Girls Science Secondary School in the town of Jangebe, in Zamfara state, at around 1 a.m. on Friday. Two Reuters' correspondents saw a heavy military presence in state capital Gusau on Sunday, with army trucks moving in convoy and police checkpoints on major roads. Zamfara police have worked alongside the army…

Mar

01

2021

By The African Mirror

U.S. calls on AU to exert pressure Tigray

NEWS

PHIL STEWART U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on the African Union and other international partners to help address a deepening crisis in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region as he condemned alleged atrocities in fighting there. Blinken's statement suggested growing frustration with the response so far from Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea to what America's top diplomat described as a "worsening humanitarian crisis." His remarks came a day after Amnesty International released a report accusing Eritrean forces of killing hundreds of civilians in Tigray in a 24-hour period last year, an incident it described as a potential crime against humanity.…

Mar

01

2021

By The African Mirror

At least two killed in skirmish at Chad opposition candidate’s house

NEWS

AT least two people were killed after security forces went to arrest Chad's opposition candidate Yaya Dillo at his home yesterday, Dillo and the government said. Dillo, who plans to run against President Idriss Deby in a presidential election in April, told Reuters he was attacked at home by members of the presidential guard and that five family members were killed, including his mother. The government said in a statement that security forces went to Dillo's home to arrest him after he refused to respond to two judicial mandates and were met with armed resistance. It did not say what…

Mar

01

2021

By The African Mirror

Russian warship arrives in Sudanese

NEWS

A Russian warship, the Admiral Grigorovich frigate, entered the Sudanese port where Russia plans to set up a naval base, Russia's Interfax news agency reported yesterday, citing a statement from the Russian fleet. It was the first Russian warship to enter Port Sudan, the statement said, according to Interfax. Russian President Vladimir Putin in November approved the creation of a Russian naval facility in Sudan capable of mooring nuclear-powered surface vessels.

Mar

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Magufuli hailed by African heads of states

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER LOVED at home, criticised by the west and hailed by leaders some Africans states. That is the legacy of the late Tanzanian President John Pombe Magufuli who died six days ago from heart failure. There has been an overwhelming outpouring of public grief by thousands of emotional Tanzanians, who have lined the streets and filled stadiums where they went to view and pay their last respects to a president who was popularly known as “The Bulldozer”. Magufuli has been labelled a COVID-19 denialist after he rejected measures such as lockdowns and instead called for prayers to deal…

Mar

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Congo presidential candidate dies

NEWS

HEREWARD HOLLAND THE main opposition candidate in Congo Republic's presidential election, Guy Brice Parfait Kolelas, has died while being evacuated for medical treatment, aides said yesterday, as early results from Sunday's vote showed the incumbent in the lead. Kolelas's election campaign had said on Sunday that the 61-year-old former minister was in hospital with COVID-19, which prevented him from casting his own vote. Kolelas had been seen as President Denis Sassou Nguesso's strongest challenger, although diplomats and analysts said there was little doubt the incumbent would win and extend his 36-year rule. Full results are not expected until later this…

Mar

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Niger’s top court confirms Bazoum

NEWS

NIGER’S top court has confirmed Mohamed Bazoum's victory in last month's presidential run-off, allowing the ruling party candidate to be sworn into office next month. Bazoum's inauguration on April 2 will mark the West African country's first transfer of power from one democratically-elected leader to another. President Mahamadou Issoufou is stepping down after two five-year terms. The constitutional court credited Bazoum, a former interior minister, with 55.66% of votes, ahead of former president Mahamane Ousmane, who had 44.34%. The court said in a statement it had cancelled the results from 73 polling stations, without saying why. That very slightly reduced…

Mar

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Four Kenyan policemen to face murder trial

NEWS

FOUR Kenyan policemen will stand trial for murder after a judge ruled yesterday that they have a case to answer in the death of British aristocrat Alex Monson, who died in their custody in 2012. "The accused should tell the court what happened since the deceased was arrested in good health," High Court Judge Erick Ogolla ruled. The policemen - Naftali Chege, Charles Wangombe Munyiri, Baraka Bulima and John Pamba - were accused of killing 28-year-old Monson, son of Nicholas, the 12th Baron Monson, and heir to a family estate in Lincolnshire, in eastern England. Monson was found dead in…

Mar

23

2021

By The African Mirror

EU slaps sanctions on Eritrea

NEWS

THE European Union has imposed sanctions on Eritrea over human rights violations and blacklisted the country's National Security Office which is tasked with intelligence gathering, arrests and interrogations. At the beginning of March, the United Nations said Eritrean troops were operating throughout Ethiopia's northern Tigray region and reports suggested they were responsible for atrocities. "The National Security Office is responsible for serious human rights violations in Eritrea, in particular arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances of persons and torture," the EU said after foreign ministers of the 27-nation bloc agreed the measures. The sanctions mean an asset freeze in the…