Switzerland - The African Mirror

Mar

2024

Gambian ex-minister alleges racism and lies as Swiss crimes against humanity trial closes

SWITZERLAND'S first full trial of crimes against humanity concluded this week, with the defendant, a former Gambian minister accused of rape and murder, giving a defiant closing speech in which he claimed to be a victim of racism and lies. Ousman Sonko, a former interior minister of Gambia under ousted dictator Yahya Jammeh, is the highest-ranking official ever to be tried in Europe using universal jurisdiction which allows the most serious crimes to be prosecuted anywhere. During the trial in Switzerland's Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, the court heard details of the charges of rape, torture and murder allegedly committed between 2000-2016…

Dec

2023

By The African Mirror

Swiss have frozen $8.8 billion of Russian assets

WORLD

SWITZERLAND has frozen an estimated 7.7 billion Swiss francs ($8.81 billion) in financial assets belonging to Russians, the government said, under sanctions designed to punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine. The figure, a provisional estimate, represented a slight increase from the 7.5 billion francs the Swiss government said it had blocked last year after the neutral country adopted European Union sanctions. The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), the agency overseeing sanctions, said the 7.7 billion francs figure was only its latest estimate and was subject to change. It was difficult to give a precise figure due to new…

Apr

2023

By The African Mirror

Switzerland indicts former Gambian minister for crimes against humanity

NEWS

SWITZERLAND'S attorney general has filed an indictment against Gambia's former interior minister for crimes against humanity committed under former authoritarian leader Yahya Jammeh, it said in a statement. Ousman Sonko is accused of having supported, participated in and failed to prevent "systematic and generalised attacks" as part of a repressive campaign by security forces against Jammeh's opponents, the Office of the Attorney General said. Sonko's lawyer, Philippe Currat, told Reuters on Wednesday that his client disputed the charges and that some of the alleged acts occurred before articles on crimes against humanity came into force in the Swiss Criminal Code.…

Feb

2023

By The African Mirror

Liberian warlord’s trial concludes in Switzerland

NEWS

EMMA FARGE THE appeal hearings of a former Liberian rebel commander convicted of war crimes concluded in a trial that was broadened in its final stages to include crimes against humanity for the first time in Switzerland. Alieu Kosiah, who fought in the 1990s against then-President Charles Taylor's army, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in June 2021 for rape, murder and cannibalism in one of the first trials for war crimes committed in the West African country. During the three weeks of appeal hearings at the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, the defendant sought to overturn the lower court's ruling, arguing at…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Morocco makes history, carries hopes of Africa, Arab world

SPORT

MOROCCO rode a wave of passionate support and kept the World Cup dreams of the Arab world alive as they eliminated fancied Spain in a penalty shootout on Tuesday to reach the quarter-finals. In doing so, they became the first Arab nation to advance to the last eight, ensuring a breakthrough for the region in the first global tournament in the Middle East, and also became the fourth African side to go this far in World Cup history. Their victory will be seen as not only a triumph for Morocco but vindication of the controversial FIFA decision to hand Qatar the hosting…

Jul

2022

By The African Mirror

Criminal complaint filed against UBS over DRC-linked funds

NEWS

Three organisations have filed a criminal complaint to federal prosecutors in Switzerland, alleging a failure to exercise due diligence at UBS in relation to funds they say were received by an alleged associate of former Congolese president Joseph Kabila. The complaint, filed by Swiss campaign group Public Eye, alongside two other groups, relates to a possible failure to exercise due diligence regarding financial transactions within the largest Swiss bank. UBS declined to comment. The criminal complaint, filed to Switzerland's Office of the Attorney General, centres on transactions totalling $19 million they say were sent to the alleged associate's UBS accounts in…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Europe sends aid to Tunisia

COVID-19

ITALY, Spain and Switzerland have sent medical aid to Tunisia which is facing its worst health crisis since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, with a sharp rise in deaths, hospitals filled to capacity and a lack of oxygen supplies. Deaths from COVID-19 exceeded 150 per day during the past week in Tunisia, prompting countries including Qatar, Algeria, the UAE, Morocco, Turkey and Kuwait to send aid. Egypt and Saudi Arabia opened an air bridge earlier this week, sending at least 8 planes of aid. France said this week it also planned to send about one million vaccination doses and…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

Angolan tycoon’s gets his $900 million fortune

NEWS

NOAH BROWNING SWITZERLAND’S top court has ruled against a freeze on $900 million belonging to a jailed Angolan businessman, citing insufficient evidence for money laundering alleged by prosecutors. The ruling reverses part of one of the largest personal asset freezes in Swiss history, levied by prosecutors in 2018 and upheld by a court last year, though the precise amount due to be potentially unfrozen was not specified. Carlos Manuel de Sao Vicente was a key figure in Angola's oil industry, heading a group of companies called AAA International which sold insurance contracts to state oil company Sonangol over nearly two…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

Swiss agree to outlaw facial coverings in “burqa ban” vote

WORLD

MICHAEL SHIELDS A far-right proposal to ban facial coverings in Switzerland won a narrow victory in a binding referendum on Sunday instigated by the same group that organised a 2009 ban on new minarets. The measure to amend the Swiss constitution passed by a 51.2-48.8% margin, provisional official results showed. The proposal under the Swiss system of direct democracy does not mention Islam directly and also aims to stop violent street protesters from wearing masks, yet local politicians, media and campaigners have dubbed it the burqa ban. "In Switzerland, our tradition is that you show your face. That is a…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Swiss to resume flights for stranded Britons and South Africans to go home

COVID-19

SWITZERLAND will allow flights to Britain and South Africa to resume from Thursday, allowing visitors from the two countries where a new strain of coronavirus has emerged to return home for Christmas. The flight connections, which were suspended at midnight on Sunday, December 20, can temporarily resume from Thursday, December 24, the government said on Wednesday. The flights can also be used for Swiss people stranded in Britain and South Africa to return home, it added. Special protective measures will be applied to people who are still in quarantine to reduce the risk of the virus spreading. The government also…