WORLD - The African Mirror

Jul

05

2020

Trump repeats vow to defeat ‘radical left’ in July Fourth speech

WORLD

JEFF MASON, KATANGA JOHNSON and JULIA HARTE U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday vowed to defeat the "radical left," in an Independence Day speech at the White House that condemned recent protests against monuments to historical figures as attempts to destroy the United States. Trump claimed without evidence that 99% of coronavirus cases in the United States were "totally harmless." In fact, many states marked a record number of new COVID-19 cases. In Texas alone, 7,890 patients were hospitalized after 238 new admissions over the past 24 hours. Trump, who has faced criticism over his handling of the pandemic, said…

Apr

15

2022

By The African Mirror

Russia warns of nuclear, hypersonic deployment if Sweden and Finland join NATO

WORLD

GUY FAULCONBRIDGE ONE of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest allies warned NATO that if Sweden and Finland joined the U.S.-led military alliance then Russia would deploy nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles in an exclave in the heart of Europe. Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden are considering joining the NATO alliance. Finland will decide in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said that should Sweden and Finland join NATO then Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval and air forces in…

Apr

15

2022

By The African Mirror

Islamic State ‘Beatles’ cell member convicted in U.S. of beheading hostages

WORLD

JAN WOLFE A U.S. jury convicted a former British citizen for his role in a notorious Islamic State hostage-taking plot that led to the beheading of American journalists and aid workers. After a six-week trial and four hours of deliberations, a federal jury in Alexandria, Virginia, found El Shafee Elsheikh, 33, guilty on charges including lethal hostage-taking and conspiracy to commit murder. In convicting Elsheikh, the jury concluded that he was part of an Islamic State terrorist cell, nicknamed "The Beatles" for their British accents, that beheaded American hostages in Iraq and Syria. Some former hostages, released by the "Beatles"…

Apr

15

2022

By The African Mirror

Musk makes $43 billion offer for Twitter to build ‘arena for free speech’

WORLD

UDAY SAMPATH KUMAR and CHAVI MEHTA BILLIONAIRE entrepreneur Elon Musk took aim at Twitter Inc with a $43 billion cash takeover offer, with the Tesla CEO saying the social media company needs to be taken private to grow and become a platform for free speech. "I think it's very important for there to be an inclusive arena for free speech," Musk said at a TED Talk in Vancouver when asked about why he made the bid. Musk, already the San Francisco-based company's second-largest shareholder, made the bid in a letter to Twitter's board on Wednesday. The offer was made public…

Apr

14

2022

By The African Mirror

Russia says over 1,000 Ukrainian marines surrender in Mariupol

WORLD

RUSSIA'S defence ministry said that 1,026 soldiers of Ukraine's 36th Marine Brigade, including 162 officers, had surrendered in the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol. Mariupol, which has been encircled by Russian troops for weeks, has seen the fiercest fighting and the most comprehensive destruction since Russia invaded on February 24. Russian television on Wednesday broadcast clips of what it said was the surrender. In the footage, unarmed men in military fatigues were visible walking with their hands up along a grass- and tree-lined path towards masked soldiers cradling assault rifles. In one clip, four marines walked away from a…

Apr

14

2022

By The African Mirror

EXCLUSIVE: India open to additional $2 bln aid for Sri Lanka with eye on China

WORLD

SWATI BHAT and AFTAB AHMED INDIA is willing to commit up to another $2 billion in financial assistance to Sri Lanka while also supporting the island nation with food and fuel, five sources told Reuters, as New Delhi tries to regain ground lost to China in recent years. Sri Lanka, hit by its worst economic crisis since independence in 1948 and on the brink of its first debt default, has been asking friendly nations including India and China for credit lines, food and energy. The Asian giants have already committed billions of dollars in financial support. "We are definitely looking…

Apr

14

2022

By The African Mirror

Iran Guards commander says death of all US leaders would not avenge Soleimani killing

WORLD

THE killing of all American leaders would not be enough to avenge the U.S. assassination of Iran's Revolutionary Guards' top commander Qassem Soleimani two years ago, a senior Iranian Guards commander said. The United States and Iran came close to full-blown conflict in 2020 after Soleimani's killing in a U.S. drone attack at Baghdad airport and Tehran's retaliation by attacking U.S. bases in Iraq. "Martyr Soleimani was such a great character that if all American leaders are killed, this will still not avenge his assassination," a senior commander of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Mohammad Pakpour was quoted as saying by…

Apr

13

2022

By The African Mirror

Putin says peace talks with Ukraine are at dead end, goads the West

WORLD

GUY FAULCONBRIDGE PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin said peace talks with Ukraine had hit a dead end, using his first public comments on the conflict in more than a week to vow that his troops would win and to goad the West for failing to bring Moscow to heel. Addressing the war in public for the first time since Russian forces retreated from northern Ukraine after they were halted at the gates of Kyiv, Putin promised that Russia would achieve all of its "noble" aims in Ukraine. In the strongest signal to date that the war will grind on for longer, Putin…

Apr

13

2022

By The African Mirror

Philippines rescuers race to find survivors after storm wreaks havoc

WORLD

RESCUE teams in the Philippines faced a race against time in the search for 28 people missing and feared dead, after tropical storm Megi unleashed heavy rains and deadly landslides in southern and eastern areas of the country. National and local disaster agencies reported five more deaths in central and southern Philippines on Tuesday, taking the toll to 30 since the storm struck at the weekend. Megi, the first storm to hit the typhoon-prone archipelago this year, made landfall on Sunday with sustained winds of up to 65 kilometres (40 miles) per hour and gusts of up to 80 kph…

Apr

13

2022

By The African Mirror

With jury picked, Johnny Depp opens U.S. libel case against ex-wife Heard

WORLD

JAN WOLFE LAWYERS for Hollywood star Johnny Depp gave a jury an overview of his U.S. defamation case against his ex-wife Amber Heard, the latest chapter in a long-running legal fight between the two Hollywood stars. Opening statements kicked off in a Virginia courtroom in a lawsuit Depp, 58, brought against Heard, 35, for $50 million in 2018. Depp alleges Heard defamed him when she penned a December 2018 opinion piece in the Washington Post about being a survivor of domestic abuse. The article never mentioned Depp by name, but Depp's lawyer Benjamin Chew told jurors on Tuesday that it…