WORLD - The African Mirror

Apr

2021

Obama ‘appalled by heartbreaking’ Myanmar violence

FORMER U.S. President Barack Obama, who championed engagement with Myanmar's military while in office to promote democratic change, said he was "appalled by heartbreaking violence" it had used against civilians after retaking power in a coup. In a rare statement, Obama said he supported efforts by the Biden administration and like-minded countries to impose costs on Myanmar's generals. "The military's illegitimate and brutal effort to impose its will after a decade of greater freedoms will clearly never be accepted by the people and should not be accepted by the wider world," Obama said in the statement posted on Twitter. "Myanmar's…

Apr

2021

By The African Mirror

Lawyers say Andrew Brown Jr. hit with ‘kill shot’ to head

WORLD

LAWYERS for the family of a Black man killed by sheriff's deputies in North Carolina during an attempted arrest said yesterday that an independent autopsy showed he died from a 'kill shot' to his head as he tried to drive away. Andrew Brown Jr., 42, was struck with multiple bullets in the arm before the fatal shot to his head, lawyers for the family told a news conference held to release the findings of an independent autopsy. "It was a kill shot to the back of the head," said Ben Crump, one of the attorneys. The fatal shooting of Brown…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Biden G7, NATO to-do list: unite allies, fight autocracy, attack COVID-19

WORLD

US President Joe Biden's meeting with leaders of the G7 leading industrial economies in an English seaside village this week will usher in a new focus on rallying U.S. allies against common adversaries - the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia and China. New COVID-19 variants and rising death tolls in some countries will loom large during the gathering from Friday to Sunday, alongside climate change, strengthening global supply chains and ensuring the West maintains its technological edge over China, the world's second-largest economy. Biden, a Democrat, vowed to rebuild relations with allies after four rocky years under former President Donald Trump, who…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Google agrees to change some ad practices after French watchdog imposes fine

WORLD

MATHIEU ROSEMAIN ALPHABET’S Google agreed to make changes to some of its widely-used online advertising services under a settlement with France's antitrust watchdog released yesterday. The authority also fined the Mountain View, California-based company 220 million euros ($267.48 million) after a probe found it abused its market power in the intricate ad business online, where some its tools have become almost essential for large publishers. "The decision to sanction Google is of particular significance because it's the first decision in the world focusing on the complex algorithmic auction processes on which the online ad business relies," said France's antitrust chief…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

36 killed in Pakistani train crash

WORLD

GIBRAN NAIYYAR PESHIMAM and MUBASHER BUKHARI A train in Pakistan smashed into derailed carriages of another train on Monday, killing at least 36 people, government officials said, in the latest accident to highlight the perilous state of a more-than-165-year-old railway system. The death toll was likely to rise as rescuers struggled to reach people trapped in several mangled compartments strewn across the tracks in the southern province of Sindh. A Pakistan Railways spokesman said at least 33 bodies had been taken to hospitals, among them two railway officials. More than 100 people were injured, he told Reuters. Police officer Umar…

Apr

2021

By The African Mirror

India sends army to help hospitals hit by COVID-19 as countries promise aid

WORLD

SHILPA JAMKHANDIKAR and NEHA ARORA India ordered its armed forces yesterday to help tackle surging new coronavirus infections that are overwhelming hospitals, as countries including Britain, Germany and the United States pledged to send urgent medical aid. In a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat said oxygen would be released to hospitals from armed forces reserves and retired medical military personnel would join COVID-19 health facilities. And where possible, military medical infrastructure will be made available to civilians, a government statement said, as new coronavirus infections hit a record peak for a…

Apr

2021

By The African Mirror

Winning director Zhao makes Oscars history, but honor censored in China

WORLD

DANIEL TROTTA CHLOE Zhao made history as the first Asian woman and second woman ever to win best director at the Academy Awards, but her big moment was blacked out from live television in her native China. Zhao, 39, cemented her reputation as one of the most acclaimed directors in film with "Nomadland," the story of financially stretched van dwellers that also won best picture and captured a best actress Oscar for Frances McDormand. It was the first Oscar for Zhao, who cast real-life nomads alongside McDormand to show the lives of older Americans who travel from job to job…

Apr

2021

By The African Mirror

Spanish tourism minister receives red-stained knife, follows death threats to others

WORLD

SPANISH Tourism Minister Reyes Maroto has revealed that she has received a knife covered in red stains by post, days after senior security officials and a left-wing party leader were sent death threats. The ministry released a photo showing a small, wood-handled folding knife with a series of red stains running up the blade. "This is serious...We should be concerned as I'm not a controversial person," said Maroto, a socialist who has served as minister of industry, trade and tourism since 2018. "It gives us more strength to defend democracy...Hatred and threats will not silence us," she told reporters outside…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Bangladesh arrests sex trafficking suspects who lured women on TikTok

WORLD

NAIMUL KARIM POLICE in Bangladesh have arrested seven suspected members of a sex trafficking gang that used video-sharing app TikTok to contact and lure young women and girls before selling them for sex in neighbouring India, an official said on Friday. A video of a Bangladeshi woman being tortured and sexually assaulted went viral on social media last week, prompting the investigation by police, who said the traffickers had enticed the women with promises of well-paid jobs across the border. "These girls are mostly from lower-income groups. They are told they'll become stars in India. They are also promised jobs…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

In Venezuela, an account of a kidnapping renews focus on violence against women

WORLD

VIVIAN SEQUERA and MIRCELY GUANIPA In 2001, Linda Lopez was kidnapped and held for almost four months in a Caracas apartment, where she was repeatedly raped and tortured. Now, she has released a book about her experience and her years-long battle to bring the case to trial in a system that she says still fails Venezuelan women. The release of the book co-written by Lopez, a lawyer, and Luisa Kislinger, a Venezuelan writer and activist, has revived debate about violence against women and girls in Venezuela, which activists says is often overshadowed by the country's humanitarian and economic crisis. Venezuela…