WORLD - The African Mirror

Feb

03

2024

U.N. expert tells Philippines to act on media killings, abolish anti-communist task force

WORLD

A United Nations expert urged the Philippines to do more to curb the killings of journalists and supported abolishing an anti-communism task force whose actions suppress the freedom of expression of activists. Irene Khan, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression and opinion, spent almost two weeks in the Philippines to assess the state of free speech and media rights. She described the murder of journalists as the "most egregious form of censorship". "The Philippines remains a dangerous country for journalists," Khan said, adding "Much more needs to be done to attack impunity". Citing data provided by the United…

Feb

03

2024

By The African Mirror

Iran won’t start a war but will respond to bullies, says president

WORLD

IRAN will not start a war but would "respond strongly" to anyone who tried to bully it, President Ebrahim Raisi said, a day after the U.S. said it was planning attacks on Iranian sites in Iraq and Syria. There has been mounting speculation this week about how Washington might retaliate after three U.S. soldiers were killed last Saturday in a strike on their base in Jordan by an Iranian-backed group. CBS News, citing U.S. officials, reported on Thursday that the United States had approved plans for multi-day strikes in Iraq and Syria against multiple targets, including Iranian personnel and facilities in those…

Feb

02

2024

By The African Mirror

World Court dismisses much of Ukraine’s case against Russia

WORLD

JUDGES at the top U.N. court found that Russia violated elements of a U.N. anti-terrorism treaty, but declined to rule on allegations brought by Kyiv that Moscow was responsible for the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in 2014. In the same ruling, judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found that Russia had breached an anti-discrimination treaty by failing to support Ukrainian language education in Crimea after its 2014 annexation of the peninsula. The decisions were a legal setback for Kyiv. The court rejected Ukraine's requests to order reparations for both violations and only…

Feb

02

2024

By ANDREW HAY

Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to involuntary manslaughter charge

WORLD

ACTOR Alec Baldwin pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter in the 2021 on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during filming of the Western movie "Rust" in New Mexico. Court documents showed Baldwin, 65, entered his plea as he waived his right to an arraignment nearly two weeks after a grand jury indicted the actor on Jan. 19, reviving a criminal case that had been dismissed months earlier. The Emmy-winning performer, who starred in the hit NBC television comedy "30 Rock," was allowed to remain free without posting bond under the arraignment waiver filed with the First Judicial…

Feb

02

2024

By RENEE MALTEZOU

Greek same-sex wedding bill allows couples to dream, at last

WORLD

WHEN Yolanda Kalantzi and Georgia Ampatzidou fell in love eight years ago, they said the idea of getting married was "science fiction" in deeply conservative Greece, where LGBT+ couples cannot wed or adopt. Now they have a tentative wedding date for spring, tease each other about their ballooning guest list, and are already considering outfits and flowers. The conservative government plans to submit a bill to parliament on Thursday that legalises same-sex civil marriage. The legislation is expected to pass given Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' centre-right party majority, and likely support from leftist lawmakers. If it does, it will make…

Feb

01

2024

By RANEEN SAWAFTA

Disguised Israeli forces kill 3 Palestinian militants in raid on West Bank hospital

WORLD

Israeli commandos disguised as medical workers and Muslim women burst into a hospital in the occupied West Bank and killed three Palestinian militants, one of them lying paralysed in bed, witnesses and authorities said. The Israeli military said the three militants were killed in a joint undercover operation by the army, Shin Bet security service and border police in the Ibn Sina hospital in Jenin, one of the most volatile cities in the West Bank. The military identified one of the men as Mohammad Walid Jalamna, a Hamas member who, it said, was planning an attack inspired by the Hamas-led…

Feb

01

2024

By TOM HALS

Judge voids Elon Musk’s ‘unfathomable’ $56 billion Tesla pay package

WORLD

A Delaware judge tossed out Elon Musk's record-breaking $56 billion Tesla pay package, calling the compensation granted by the EV maker's board "an unfathomable sum" that was unfair to shareholders. Shares of Tesla dropped about 2% in premarket trade, and some investors seized on the ruling in hopes it might prompt Tesla to overhaul its governance. The Tesla board has been criticized as failing to provide oversight of its combative, headline-making CEO, who has fought regulators and led several other companies at the same time. The ruling, which can be appealed, nullifies the largest pay package in corporate America. The judge found the…

Feb

01

2024

By ASIF SHAHZAD

Who is Bushra Bibi, Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan’s wife jailed for corruption?

WORLD

BUSHRA Khan, the wife of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was sentenced to 14 years in jail, is known for her spirituality. Khan, 71, has often called Bushra his spiritual leader and she is known for her devotion to Sufism, a mystical form of Islam. Born Bushra Riaz Watto, she changed her name to Khan after her marriage. Her husband and followers commonly refer to her as Bushra Bibi or Bushra Begum, titles that in Urdu denote respect. She has kept a low profile since her marriage to Khan, a former cricket hero who has been in the public eye for…

Jan

31

2024

By GIBRAN NAIYYAR PESHIMAM and ARIBA SHAHID

Pakistan court jails ex-PM Imran Khan for 10 years ahead of election

WORLD

A Pakistan court jailed Imran Khan for 10 years for leaking state secrets, the harshest sentence the popular former prime minister and cricket superstar has received and announced just days before a general election. The special court found Khan, 71, guilty of making public the contents of a secret cable sent by Pakistan's ambassador in Washington to the government in Islamabad, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said. Former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi was also sentenced to 10 years in the same case. Khan had earlier been sentenced to three years in jail in a corruption case in August, which ruled him…

Jan

31

2024

By IDREES ALI and PHIL STEWART

Pentagon says it is not seeking war with Iran after Jordan attack

WORLD

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed the U.S. would take "all necessary actions" to defend its troops after a deadly drone attack in Jordan by Iran-backed militants, even as President Joe Biden's administration stressed it was not seeking a war with Iran. The attack on Sunday killed three U.S. soldiers and wounded more than 40 troops. It was the first deadly strike against U.S. troops since the Israel-Hamas war erupted in October and marks a major escalation in tensions that have engulfed the Middle East. "Let me start with my outrage and sorrow (for) the deaths of three brave U.S. troops in…