WORLD - The African Mirror

Feb

19

2023

Earthquake death toll passes 46,000; desperation for signs of life

WORLD

MORE than 46,000 people have been killed in the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria and the toll is expected to soar, with some 345,000 apartments in Turkey now known to have been destroyed, and many still missing. As Turkey attempts to manage its worst modern disaster, concerns were growing over the victims of the tragedy in Syria, with the World Food Programme (WFP) pressuring authorities in the northwest to stop blocking access to the area as it seeks to help hundreds of thousands of people ravaged by earthquakes. Twelve days after the quake hit, workers from Kyrgyzstan tried to…

Feb

19

2023

By The African Mirror

Six dead as gunman goes on rampage in small Mississippi town

WORLD

MARIA ALEJANDRA CARDONA A gunman went on a rampage in a small Mississippi town, killing his ex-wife and five other people in three locations before sheriff's deputies arrested him, the county sheriff and witnesses said. The bloodshed occurred in Arkabutla, a rural hamlet of fewer than 300 people in Tate County in northern Mississippi, about 40 miles (60 km) south of Memphis, Tennessee. The gunman, identified as Richard Dale Crum, 51, was charged with first-degree murder, Tate County Sheriff Brad Lance told reporters. President Joe Biden condemned the shooting and urged Congress to enact gun control including background checks, an…

Feb

19

2023

By The African Mirror

Kim Jong Un’s daughter appears at sports event

WORLD

NORTH Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his daughter watched a sports event attended by government officials, according to state media, the first time the girl has been seen at a non-military event. The daughter, often described by state media as Kim’s “beloved child" or "respected child" has been seen alongside her father Kim at military events including earlier this month. Little is known about the girl and she has not been named in state media. South Korean intelligence officials believe she is the daughter identified as Ju Ae by former American basketball player Dennis Rodman, who spent time with Kim's…

Mar

15

2023

By The African Mirror

Exclusive: Ukraine accuses Russian snipers of abusing child, gang-raping mother

WORLD

UKRAINE has accused two Russian soldiers of sexually assaulting a four-year-old girl and gang-raping her mother at gunpoint in front of her father, as part of widespread allegations of abuse during the more than one-year-long invasion. According to Ukrainian prosecution files seen by Reuters, the incidents were among a spree of sex crimes Russian soldiers of the 15th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade committed in four homes of Brovary district near the capital Kyiv in March 2022. Russia's Defence Ministry did not respond to a request for comment. Phone numbers listed for the brigade were out of order. Two officials at…

Mar

15

2023

By The African Mirror

A new intifada? Young Palestinian fighters rise as West Bank boils

WORLD

ALI SAWAFTA and JAMES MACKENZIE BEFORE a group of young men from Aqabat Jabr refugee camp mounted a botched attack on a restaurant in Jericho popular with Israeli settlers in January, they declared allegiance to Hamas. That was a surprise to their families - and to Hamas. "They weren't members of Al Qassam until that moment," said Wael Awdat, father of Ibrahim and Rafat, two members of the group, using the name of the armed wing of Hamas. "They had a normal life. This was something personal." Their story illustrates the complex mix of spontaneous action and association between established…

Mar

15

2023

By The African Mirror

No regrets from the Iraqi who threw his shoes at Bush

WORLD

MAHER NAZEH IRAQI journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi gained fame for hurling his shoes at President George W. Bush in a news conference to show his anger at the corruption and chaos that followed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. He is still furious. "The same people who entered 20 years ago with the occupier are still ruling despite failures and corruption. The United States knows very well that it brought in pseudo politicians," he told Reuters, recounting his actions back in 2008 during the Baghdad media briefing. Bush, who was standing next to then-Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, ducked to avoid the…

Mar

14

2023

By The African Mirror

ICC expected to launch war crimes cases against Russians over Ukraine war

WORLD

ANTHONY DEUTSCH and MIKE COLLETT-WHITE THE International Criminal Court (ICC) is planning to seek the arrest of Russian officials for forcibly deporting children from Ukraine and targeting civilian infrastructure, a source said, in what would be the first international war crimes cases arising from Moscow's invasion. The source said the arrest warrants could include the crime of genocide and were expected to arrive in the "short term" if the court prosecutor's request was approved by a pre-trial judge at the Hague-based court. The office of the prosecutor at the ICC declined to comment. Russia's defence ministry did not immediately respond to…

Mar

14

2023

By The African Mirror

‘Every victim of Saddam Hussein was waiting for this moment’

WORLD

CHARLOTTE BRUNEAU SADDAM Hussein's trial in 2005, two years after he was ousted by a U.S.-led invasion, was a chance for Ali Hassan al-Haidari to avenge the execution of his brothers and others from his village who were killed by the Iraqi dictator's security forces. "Every victim of Saddam Hussein was waiting for this moment," said Haidari, one of the few people who was ready to show his face when giving testimony to the court that sent the former Iraqi strongman to the gallows. "The one oppressed during Saddam's time was now standing there and asking for the rights of the oppressed,"…

Feb

18

2023

By NIR ELIAS and ALI KUCUKGOCMEN

Rescuers pull two survivors from rubble in Turkey 11 days after earthquake

WORLD

RESCUE teams pulled two people alive from under collapsed buildings in Turkey on Friday, 11 days after an earthquake that has killed more than 43,000, left millions homeless and sparked a huge relief effort. Mosques around the world performed absentee funeral prayers for the dead in Turkey and Syria, many of whom could not receive full burial rites given the enormity of the deadliest disaster in Turkey's modern history. While some international rescue teams have left the vast quake zone, survivors were still emerging from under a multitude of flattened homes, defying all the odds. In Turkey's historic city of…

Feb

18

2023

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s naval exercise with Russia, China raises Western alarm

WORLD

CARIEN DU PLESSIS SOUTH Africa was due to launch a joint naval exercise with Russia and China, a move it is calling routine but which has fuelled domestic criticism and fears the drills will endanger important relations with Western partners. World powers are vying for influence in Africa amid deepening global tensions resulting from the war in Ukraine and an increasingly aggressive Chinese posture towards self-ruled Taiwan. Some African nations are steadfastly refusing to take sides as they seek to benefit from the diplomatic tug-o-war. But analysts said hosting the 10-day Mosi II exercise, which coincides with the one-year anniversary of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine…