MALI MORE THAN 70 DEAD IN TWO JIHADIST ATTACKS AGAINST SECURITY FORCES

The jihadist attacks carried out on Tuesday against a gendarmerie school and the military airport in Bamako, the capital of Mali, caused a dramatic toll of more than 70 dead and 200 injured, marking one of the deadliest attacks in recent years against Malian security forces. The Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), affiliated with Al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to a security source, the losses amounted to 77 dead and 255 injured. A confidential official document, recognized as authentic, indicates a hundred deaths, specifically mentioning 81 victims. The newspaper **Le Soir de Bamako** announced on its front page that the funerals of around fifty gendarme students will take place this Thursday.

The Malian authorities, dominated by the military junta, have not yet communicated clearly and precisely on the human scale of this tragedy, despite its exceptional nature, thus contradicting their speeches of military success. This attack seriously undermines the junta's claims about the effectiveness of its security strategy.

Failure of the Alliance of Sahel States

Tuesday's attacks come the day after the first anniversary of the Alliance of Sahel States, a coalition formed by Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, three countries led by the military following successive coups since 2020, having broken with the former French colonial power. These attacks, among the most violent ever recorded in the capital, deal a severe blow to the legitimacy of the transitional authorities, who had placed the "rise in power of the army" and the "reconquest of the territory" at the heart of their priorities.

The JNIM strike represents a major setback for these authorities, who were quick to highlight the army's successes against the terrorist threat. Two days before the attack, the transitional president welcomed the progress made in defense and security, particularly within the framework of the AES. However, the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate in the Sahel: attacks on civilians caused more than 3,000 deaths during the first six months of 2024, compared to 2,500 over the same period in 2023, according to the NGO Acled.

Heart of the targeted military system

Beyond the heavy human toll, the double attack by JNIM is also symbolically striking, targeting key military infrastructure. As Mohamed Amara, an expert in security and sociology, analyses, "by striking the gendarmerie school and the 101 air base adjacent to the airport, the terrorists have struck the heart of the military system in Bamako". According to him, an attack of this magnitude, thus exposing the vulnerabilities of the Malian security system, is unprecedented.

In addition, observers highlight the symbolic significance of the date chosen by the attackers: the attack took place on the anniversary of the national gendarmerie, and just after that of the creation of the Alliance of Sahel States. According to expert Wassim Nasr, this synchronization aims to morally weaken the Malian armed forces.

War on several fronts

For Niagalé Bagayoko, president of the African Security Sector Network research center, "the complexity of the current situation lies in the
fact that several fronts are open in Mali". The Malian army is fighting not only jihadist groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, but also armed groups from the North with autonomy claims, often also described as "terrorists" by the authorities.

These groups, mainly composed of Tuaregs, had been pushed back from their stronghold in Kidal by the Malian army and their Russian allies of Wagner, almost a year ago. However, last July, they inflicted a severe defeat on the Malian forces and Wagner in a strategic battle in Tinzaouatène, near the Algerian border.

The military seized power in Mali in two coups in 2020 and 2021, denouncing the inability of civilian authorities to restore security in the country.

They obtained the departure of the French army and the UN force, engaged in the fight against armed Islamist groups, but failed to re-establish security...




Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

HOUTHI ATTACKS IN THE RED SEA

AN EXTENSION OF THE CONFLICT

ISRAELO - PALESTINIAN ?

Since the start of the war on October 7, 2023 between Israel and Hamas, the Houthis, who control a large part of Yemen, have increased attacks in the Red Sea in order to slow down international maritime traffic there, claiming to act in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza. Proclaiming solidarity with the Palestinian people, the Houthis launched a series of attacks against commercial ships in the Red Sea, which borders Yemen.

The most spectacular attack took place on November 19, 2023, when fighters used a helicopter to kidnap the crew of a car transporter linked to an Israeli businessman. Media attention will focus on the Houthis who, buoyed by their success, will multiply their declarations: their spokesperson, Yahya Sarea, will publish numerous press releases on social networks warning the powers “linked to the Zionist entity” ( sic) of the risk now incurred by their ships cruising in the Red Sea

Although most Houthi attacks on the Red Sea have not been successful, they have forced thousands of ships to bypass this route and head towards South Africa, resulting in costs and considerable delays for maritime transport.

Israel's first ally, the United States, set up an international coalition in December to protect maritime traffic in this strategic area where 12% of world trade passes. Grouped under the banner of Operation Prosperity Guardian and under American command are the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Seychelles and Bahrain [38].

With the exception of the latter, the Arab countries, or at least the countries bordering the Red Sea such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, are among the notable absentees from this naval coalition, testifying to the reluctance of the countries of the region to take part in American military operations against an ally of Iran, moreover in the context of clashes initially triggered in retaliation for Israeli operations in the Gaza Strip.

Seizure of Iranian-made missile parts

The US military said Tuesday it had seized Iranian-made missile parts destined for Houthi rebels from a boat in the Arabian Sea, the first such seizure since the Houthis began attacks on commercial ships.

“This is the first seizure of lethal advanced conventional weapons (ACW) supplied by Iran to the Houthis since the Houthis began attacks on merchant ships in November 2023,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. US Army in a statement.

This operation, carried out on January 11, made it possible to seize weapons including “components of ballistic missiles and cruise missiles,” the press release said.

The missile parts were seized aboard a dhow, a traditional Arab sailboat, operated by a crew of 14 people. The boat was sunk, the US Army General Staff said.

This text also indicates that two American navy soldiers, missing off the Somali coast since Thursday evening, had taken part in the operation. They are two members of the Navy Seals, an elite commando force. “Intensive searches” are still underway to locate them, said Michael Kurilla, head of the American military command for the Middle East, Central and South Asia (Centcom).

The two sailors were on a mission with the United States 5th Fleet which operates in a wide area including the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Oman and parts of the Indian Ocean. Its headquarters is located in Manama, Bahrain.

Rebels' "largest attack" foiled last night

The US military announced that 18 drones and three missiles fired by the Houthis were shot down on Tuesday evening in a “complex” attack

This is, according to the British and American forces, “the largest attack” by the Houthis to date. It would also be the 26th carried out by Yemeni rebels targeting commercial maritime traffic in the Red Sea since mid-January.

“During the night” from Tuesday to Wednesday, the British ship HMS Diamond with American warships “successfully repelled (…) the Houthis supported by Iran”, wrote Minister Grant Shapps on the social network ex-Twitter). The US military had hours earlier said that 18 drones and three missiles fired by the Houthis had been shot down, as part of a "complex" attack.

Earlier, the US military's Middle East Command (Centcom) said the Houthis had "launched a complex Iranian-designed attack in the southern Red Sea using drones, anti-ship cruise missiles and an anti-ship ballistic missile.

The British Defense Minister announced Tuesday evening that another frigate, the HMS Richmond, was on its way to the Red Sea to counter “attacks” by the Houthis. That of Tuesday evening took place while the head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken is in Israel as part of a regional tour aimed, among other things, at preventing the war between Israel and Hamas from spreading.

Who are the Houthis?

The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah (or "followers of God"), are a military group that currently exercises de facto control over most of northern Yemen. Formed in the 1990s, the militia is named after its founder, Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, and follows the Zaidi branch of Shiite Islam, which makes up 20 to 30 percent of Yemen's population.

Today they control parts of northern Yemen. The turning point for the Houthi movement probably originated in the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. Inspired by the success of Hezbollah fighters, based in Lebanon and who Valiantly confronting Western forces in Iraq, the Houthis drew inspiration and support from the Lebanese group, as well as Iran, although their officials categorically deny such links.

But how did the Houthis manage to take power?

They were among the main protesters of Yemen's central government led by President A. Saleh. Faced with their growing power, Saleh launched a military campaign in 2003, supported by Saudi Arabia. Despite the apparent success of Saleh's forces in eliminating Houthi leader Hussein al-Houthi in 2004, they have repeatedly inflicted setbacks on Saleh and the Saudi army, despite billions of dollars spent by the latter.

The Yemeni civil war, which began in 2014, has seen incessant battles between the Houthis and the internationally-backed government. Since the 2011 revolution, the Houthis have struggled to oust Saleh from power, even forming an alliance with him in 2015.

However, when this alliance fell apart, the Houthis emerged as the dominant power, culminating in Saleh's assassination in December 2017.

The Houthis have also played a major role in Yemen's ongoing civil war, resulting in approximately 377,000 deaths, including many civilians. Although the southern government is internationally recognized, the Houthis have conquered much of the north of the country since seizing Sanaa in 2014. Their hold extends to the strategic port of Hudeidah, a crucial source of revenue generating up to 1 billion dollars for the Houthi government.

Access to the Red Sea?

Currently, the Houthis, numbering around 20,000 fighters, are led primarily by al-Houthi's brother, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi. He clearly announced that he would not hesitate to attack the United States and its allies. Since the Gaza war began in October, the Houthis have attempted to exploit the conflict to demonstrate their power and raise their international status.

In response to multiple attacks in the Red Sea, the United States and the United Kingdom launched their largest offensive against the Houthis since 2016. At that time, the United States struck three Houthi missile sites in response to attacks against American warships and commercial ships. This action temporarily stopped the Houthi attacks. Today, convinced of having triumphed against the Saudis and the West in Yemen, the rebels seem more determined than ever to openly defy the United States.

“The effectiveness of the naval coalition under American command and its ability to remain in a purely defensive posture will therefore prove decisive both in its success and in defusing a potential regional security escalation,” according to a specialist.




Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

NEITHER WAR NOR PEACE

SOMALILAND OR THE RESURGENCE

"OF A FROZEN CONFLICT"

The latest upheavals in the news in Nagorno-Karabakh in November 2023 brought the term “frozen conflicts” back to the forefront. Conflicts which, by their duration, their alternation between periods of truce and confrontations, are very often forgotten or neglected even though their resolution is of crucial importance for the populations concerned.

And since Monday 01/01/2024, the Somaliland conflict has resurfaced:

Ethiopia regains access to the Red Sea after an agreement with Somaliland to the detriment of Somalia which considers its sovereignty violated.

The self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland has just authorized Addis Ababa to use the port of Barbera for 50 years. Much to the dismay of Mogadishu. Somaliland, a semi-desert territory of 175,000 square kilometers whose independence (in 1991) has never been recognized by the international community, has just granted Ethiopia access to the Gulf of Aden.

The two signatories against Somalia

On the one hand, Somaliland aims to make the port of Berbera a regional maritime platform on the African shore of the Red Sea. This port is located on one of the busiest trade routes in the world, leading in particular to the Suez Canal. Additionally, Ethiopia will formally recognize the Republic of Somaliland.

On the other hand, Ethiopia, the second most populous country in Africa with 120 million inhabitants, benefited from access to an Eritrean port until the two countries went to war in 1998-2000 and she found herself without proper access to the outcome of this long conflict.

Since then, the Ethiopians have channeled most of their trade through Djibouti. But still in search of another maritime access, Ethiopia acquired 19% of the port of Berbera in 2018, as part of an agreement that has since fallen into disuse.

The agreement "will pave the way for realizing Ethiopia's aspiration to secure its access to the sea and diversify its access to seaports", according to the office of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. In addition, Addis Ababa will lease a military base on the Red Sea.

The agreement was greatly displeased in Somalia. The Mogadishu regime recalled its ambassador and denounced "a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and unity". The Somali authorities condemned this text as "illegal", denouncing an "Ethiopian aggression".

The Shebab Islamists, a group affiliated with al-Qaeda at war since 2007 against the federal government, also condemned the agreement.

Ethiopia has assured that the maritime agreement it signed with the separatist region of Somaliland does not transgress "any law", in response to the anger aroused in Somalia by this text deemed "illegal" against which residents of the capital demonstrated on Wednesday.

This “memorandum of understanding” signed on Monday has revived fears of a renewed tension between the two neighbors with historically tumultuous relations.

A region of 4.5 million people that prints its own currency, issues its passports and elects its government, Somaliland has been seeking international recognition since it proclaimed its independence in 1991, as Somalia plunged into chaos. from which she still has not emerged.

Concern for regional stability

The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad) - an East African organization of which Ethiopia and Somalia are members - expressed its "deep concern", saying it was "aware of the potential implications for regional stability".

What characterizes these “frozen conflicts” – a term that appeared in the early 1990s to define separatist rebellions and frozen conflicts in the post-Soviet area – is not only the duration of the conflict, but also the end or at least the relative weakness of direct armed clashes between the parties. A conflict which does not cease, however, since no peace treaty or political agreement has been found. At any time, clashes could resume.

Populations between war and peace

“Frozen conflicts”, because they can restart at any moment, are sources of numerous difficulties for the populations concerned who thus live neither in peace nor in war. Generally speaking, there are no more, or few, victims, but the economic situation in these territories is often catastrophic.

The Cypriot conflict has lasted for fifty years, as has that of Western Sahara. And the list of regions and countries where wars continue grows over time. Kashmir, South Ossetia, Transnistria, Crimea, Donbass, Somaliland. Faced with these conflicts, the international community seems to be struggling.

For all parties to the conflict, the cost of resuming hostilities may be greater than maintaining the status quo, understood then as a necessary evil.

Ultimately, a “frozen conflict” never truly is. “The best analogy would be a frozen river, seemingly immobile. But under the layer of ice, the current remains as strong as ever,” reported Brian Fall, a former British diplomat in Le Monde.

And faced with the media and political silence which surrounds these areas of tension, it is very often the resurgence of clashes which reminds us that the situation was, in fact, in no way resolved.




Abby Shelcore for DayNewsWorld

HUMANITARIAN TRAGEDY IN LIBYA

WITH 10,000 MISSING

AFTER THE STORM DANIEL

Terrential rains and floods this weekend have given way to scenes of devastation in eastern Libya. The heavy human toll continues to rise as bad weather caused by storm Daniel caused the collapse of two dams during the night from Sunday to Monday, south of the coastal town of Derna, now partly engulfed by the waves. Damage was also reported in Benghazi, Sousse, El Beïda and Al Marj.

“We do not have final figures” at the moment, Tamer Ramadan, head of the Libyan delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, declared Tuesday during a press briefing. “The number of missing is close to 10,000 ".

The town of Derna devastated

An eastern government employee who arrived in Derna on Tuesday says at least a quarter of the city is destroyed. Entire neighborhoods have disappeared, giving way to sticky orange mud. It was carried by the torrents of water which poured down before disappearing into the sea. The sea, which had turned the color of mud, was throwing up bodies.

“Entire neighborhoods” of Derna were swept away, Ahmed al-Mismari, a spokesman for the Syrian National Army, said Monday. More than 2,000 people were then presumed dead, a number “likely to increase massively”.

“The city of Derna is devastated and needs international intervention and the opening of a maritime corridor because all access roads to the city are cut,” Ahmed Amdourd, a member of the municipal council, called on Monday. , on social networks. Telephone and internet communications initially stopped working, before being partially restored.

Emergency help

Forty-eight hours after the tragedy, help arrived in trickles in Derna, a town which had some 100,000 inhabitants before the disaster. The stricken city is no longer totally isolated as in the first hours of the tragedy. But the aid, coming from Benghazi, must bypass the city by the southern road, which considerably lengthens the journey.

The support dispatch is slowly starting to come together. A plane carrying 14 tons of supplies, medicines, equipment, body bags and 87 members of medical and paramedical staff left Tripoli towards Benghazi, 300 km from Derna, the government of national unity led by Abdel Hamid announced on Tuesday Dbeibah.

The disinterest of international donors ?

General Khalifa Haftar, head of the army which controls the east of the country, supported by the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, also mentioned sending emergency aid. Libyan territory has been divided for several years between areas controlled by the internationally recognized government of Dbeibah, based in Tripoli, and the troops in the east of General Haftar

President Al-Sissi's Egypt announced the sending of humanitarian aid to Libya, but also to Morocco ravaged by an earthquake on Friday. Turkish rescue teams also arrived in the city on Tuesday, according to Libyan television channel Al-Masar.

“We hope to launch assistance operations as quickly as possible but our response will depend on the funds we manage to raise,” explains Ahmed Bayram, in charge of preparing the response to the crisis at the Norwegian Refugee Council. “Our main fear is the disinterest of international donors regarding the situation in Libya. »

This dramatic event is directly linked to storm Daniel. This subtropical Mediterranean cyclone hit Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria a week ago before moving towards Libya. This storm is the fault of an "omega blockage", due to the shape similar to the Greek letter Ω

A phenomenon that moves

It is characterized by an anticyclone in the center, with very high temperatures, those which plagued France for several days. On the extremities, we find significant rain and cool temperatures. The dynamics of the Iberian cold drop are impressive, explaining the torrential rains over Spain and the associated floods. The same goes for Turkey and Greece. The same phenomenon has since moved to Libya.

Libya's National Meteorological Center said the storm reached its peak in northeastern Libya on September 10, with strong winds gusting between 70 and 80 km/h at maximum. Torrential rains averaged 150 to 240mm per hour, with up to 414mm of precipitation locally, a record.

The collapse of the two water retention dams in Wadi Derna

In the stricken city, anger begins to rise. Photos are circulating showing the dilapidated condition of the two water retention dams in Wadi Derna – the wadi that runs through the town of Derna, on the east coast of the Mediterranean – which have failed. Powerful torrents then destroyed the bridges and swept away entire neighborhoods with their inhabitants on either side of the wadi, before pouring into the sea. More than the rain caused by storm Daniel, it was the water from these dams which is responsible for the destruction of part of the port city, according to specialists.

The various wars and the division of the country into two political entities since 2014 have accelerated the dilapidation of these infrastructures.



Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld

DEADLY EARTHQUAKE IN MOROCCO

MORE THAN 2900 DEATHS

Friday evening, the deadliest earthquake in the kingdom for more than sixty years left nearly 2,900 dead and devastated entire villages of earth or clay houses in a mountainous area of ​​the High Atlas, where the landslides further rendered difficult access to the affected villages. A race against time is still underway to find survivors. More than 72 hours after the tragedy, rescue operations will continue this Tuesday to try to save possible survivors, even if the chances of survival are diminishing day by day.

Tremors felt across Morocco

The earth shook in central Morocco, in the region of Marrakech, at a magnitude of 7 on the Richter scale, on the night of Friday 8 to Saturday 9 September. The epicenter of this earthquake is located southwest of the tourist city of Marrakech, 320 km south of the capital Rabat, according to the American Institute of Geophysics (USGS). The number of victims is constantly increasing, significant damage is reported. The latest report from the Moroccan authorities shows 2,862 deaths, according to the latest report from the Ministry of the Interior.

Relief diplomacy

Catherine Colonna, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced on Monday aid of 5 million euros to support NGOs, French or others, already on site. She especially denounced the "bad controversy" emerging after Morocco's choice to accept aid offered by four States (Spain, United Kingdom, Qatar, United Arab Emirates), but not that of France, nor others countries that have reached out.

Some see it as a snub inflicted on France for its very tense relations with Morocco, around questions of migration, freedom of speech, Western Sahara and Algeria. However, the kingdom has not officially refused any aid, present or future, from France, and the choice of countries called as a priority is intended to be dictated by pragmatism.

“For example, Qatar has the best dogs, the United Kingdom the best drones,” explains Abdelmalek Alaoui, president of the Moroccan Institute of Strategic Intelligence (Imis), in Rabat.

In fact, significant resources are being mobilized to come to the aid, particularly isolated villages in the High Atlas.

Because few villages were spared by the earthquake around Moulay Brahim and Taloudennt. The villages of Asni and Ouiargane are almost completely destroyed. Traditional houses, built of stone and clay, are particularly vulnerable.

Significant resources have been mobilized in these mountains to help the victims. The inhabitants had to, at first, fend for themselves, due to a lack of a passable road, then, during the night, the emergency services were finally able to access the affected area. Ouarzazate, Azilal, Chichaoua and Taroudant are the towns most most affected in the province, but the earthquake was felt as far away as Casablanca and Rabat.

Royal gendarmerie helicopters were sent to the most isolated villages. Moroccan rescuers, supported by foreign teams, are trying to speed up searches to find possible survivors and provide shelter to hundreds of families who have lost their homes.

The Moroccan Ministry of National Education announced on Monday that 530 schools and 55 boarding schools were damaged.

Seven teachers died and 39 others were injured, the minister also announced in a press release published on Instagram. Classes were suspended in 42 localities, including the provinces of Chichaoua, Taroudant and Al Haouz.

This earthquake is the strongest ever measured in Morocco, and the deadliest since the one that destroyed Agadir, on the west coast of the country, in 1960, causing nearly 15,000 victims.



Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

DOUBLE TERRORIST ATTACK IN MALI

AT LEAST 64 DEAD

At least 49 civilians and 15 soldiers were killed in two attacks, carried out on Thursday September 8, 2023 by Islamist insurgents, against a military camp and a river passenger transport boat in northeastern Mali, the government reported interim official in a statement, adding that there were also many injured.

The attackers targeted a boat allowing civilians to connect the towns of Gao and Mopti across flooded plains during the rainy season. They also attacked a military camp in the Gao region.

An Islamist group behind this attack

These two attacks were claimed by the Support Group for Islam and Muslims (GSIM or JNIM), a jihadist alliance affiliated with Al-Qaeda. The Malian shipping company indicated that the boat had been targeted by "at least three rockets fired at the engine. Several passengers threw themselves into the water as soon as the first shots were fired. The boat, named "Timbuktu", can carry 300 passengers. Soldiers were also on board.

The GSIM had announced a few weeks earlier that it was imposing a blockade on Timbuktu.

The Malian government announces in a press release "a provisional death toll of 49 civilians and 15 soldiers" and assures that around fifty insurgents were killed by the security forces. The government reports numerous injuries. Three days of national mourning have been declared.

Major axis of the Sahelian situation, the jihadist insurgency

After the coup d'état in Mali, justified among other things by the country's insecurity in the face of jihadists, and the putschists' promise to restore security, deadly attacks continue in Mali as throughout the Sahel. In Niger, according to General Abdourahamane Tiani, the military overthrew President Bazoum "because of an imminent threat which would have affected not only the Republic of Niger, but also Nigeria."

The new strongman of Niger had justified the coup d'état by "the security deterioration" in the country, undermined by the violence of jihadist groups like neighboring Mali and Burkina, also led by soldiers and who displayed their solidarity with Niamey.

Whether the origin of these movements comes from outside, precisely from “Wahhabi” Islam coming from the Persian Gulf or whether these insurgencies are linked to local demands, the various jihadist movements are strengthening themselves largely on economic bases. but also by the exploitation of local conflicts and the loss of confidence in the central State.

Then, the establishment of “proto-States” or “parallel governances” mainly in rural areas allows these movements to survive and establish themselves over the long term. They impose control on markets and local chiefdoms, collect taxes, and open Koranic schools.

This domination of populations is paradoxical, because Islamist terrorists reign in ambient terror while restoring part of social services.




Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld

PUTSCH IN GABON UNDERSTAND

THIS SERIES OF PUTSCHS IN AFRICA

Gabon has been plunged into complete uncertainty since August 30, 2023. The president of the Gabonese Election Center (CGE) announced on television the victory of President Ali Bongo with 64.27% of the votes. Then, a few minutes later, a group of soldiers appeared on Gabon 24 – whose studios are in the presidency – to announce the end of the regime in place, the cancellation of the elections and the dissolution of the institutions of the Republic. These men say they are part of the security forces. They declare that they are united within the CTRI.

According to their statement, the organization of the elections did not meet “the conditions for a transparent, credible and inclusive vote”. The putschists even speak of “truncated results”. They call on the populations for calm and serenity. Other measures announced: the dissolution of institutions, the closure of borders.

The military “coup” in Gabon against the just re-elected president, Ali Bongo, on Wednesday, brings back a worrying trend in Africa observed in recent years. West Africa is experiencing a veritable epidemic of putsches. Niger last month, Mali opened the ball in 2020 followed by Guinea in 2021 and Burkina Faso twice in 2022. Four elected presidents (Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, Alpha Condé, Roch Kaboré and Mohamed Bazoum) were dismissed by men in uniform. On a regional scale, an obvious link exists with the military and popular overthrows that occurred in five French-speaking African countries.

 The failure of postcolonial states or pseudo-democracies

The common thread that unites them is the manifest failure of postcolonial states, modeled under a marked influence of France, and having gone through two distinct historical phases: one authoritarian and another which wanted to be democratic, or more precisely, pseudo-democratic.

When the former French colonies gained independence in 1960, General de Gaulle and his "Mister Africa", Jacques Foccart, established regimes intended to maintain French influence behind the facade of sovereignty

Gabon is a caricature of this situation: Jacques Foccart personally chose Omar Bongo, the patriarch, when the first Gabonese president, Léon Mba, learned that he was suffering from cancer in 1965. At the age of 30 years, Bongo was the president's chief of staff: dubbed by Foccart, he led Gabon until his death in 2009, when his son succeeded him and retained undivided power until the recent coup . State.

France orchestrated the tricks of the authoritarian model. Subsequently, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, François Mitterrand conditioned French assistance on the democratization of regimes, but this subterfuge above all allowed yesterday's autocrats to prolong their reign. Figures such as the Bongo father and son, or Paul Biya, the irremovable president of Cameroon, illustrate these pseudo democracies. Democracies without alternation, without checks and balances, without curbs on corruption.

In the Sahel, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and now in Gabon the divorce from France or more broadly from Western supremacy. is well and truly consumed, with many influential African countries.

Internal conflicts...and populations in economic suffering

But these ongoing changes in this French-speaking part of Africa most of the time result from internal conflicts in these very nascent democracies, when they are not purely and simply confiscated at the same time as national resources by corrupt family clans. Throughout the region, there is a real discredit of the political class, a discredit largely driven by the tradition of profiteering and corruption between the influential political, commercial and military classes at the head of these states.

The case of Gabon and the Bongo dynasty is revealing. The way in which father Omar reigned for 42 years until his death in 2009, followed by the takeover of power by his son Ali with the support of France, shows to what extent the condemnations of Paris are of variable geometry. Each of Ali Bongo's elections was marred by massive fraud and bloody repression (in 2009 and 2016). Moreover, during the last elections, the Bongo government put the country under lockdown from August 26: internet and telephone communications were cut, borders closed, and a curfew imposed. The Gabonese were thus isolated and at the mercy of the government.

Another major axis of the Sahelian situation is the jihadist insurgency

In Niger, according to General Abdourahamane Tiani, quoted in the Nigerian mediation press release, the military overthrew President Bazoum "because of an imminent threat which would have affected not only the Republic of Niger, but also Nigeria". The new strongman of Niger had justified the coup d'état by "the security deterioration" in the country, undermined by the violence of jihadist groups like neighboring Mali and Burkina, also led by soldiers and who displayed their solidarity with Niamey.

Whether the origin of these movements comes from outside, precisely from “Wahhabi” Islam coming from the Persian Gulf or whether these insurgencies are linked to local demands, the various jihadist movements are strengthening themselves largely on economic bases. but also by the exploitation of local conflicts and the loss of confidence in the central State. Recruitment on the basis of theological indoctrination remains measured.

Then, the establishment of “proto-States” or “parallel governances” mainly in rural areas allows these movements to survive and establish themselves over the long term. They impose control on markets and local chiefdoms, collect taxes, and open Koranic schools. This domination of the populations is paradoxical, because they create an ambient terror while restoring part of the social services. :

“Clearance”

Each putsch of recent months has its specificities, from Mali to Niger, via Burkina and today Gabon. But there is one constant: the “dégagisme” at work which benefits the military and international powers and which makes France a collateral victim of these upheavals.

Gabonese local and national military forces then decided that it was time to take charge of their destiny and help shape the future of the country. For these new generations suffering economically, the military offers itself as saviors.

What the Gabonese people are celebrating in the streets is not the arrival of the army to power, but rather the end of a political regime which impoverished them. A country the size of Britain, with a small population, Gabon is an oil producer. But natural wealth benefits a small elite. More than 40% of residents live below the poverty line. Expectations are therefore high.

Under these conditions, observed the thinker of Cameroonian origin Achille Mbembe in Le Monde , "coups d'état appear to be the only way to bring about change, to ensure a form of alternation at the top of the State, and to accelerate the generational transition".


Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld

IN NIGER THE DEPOSITED PRESIDENT

COULD BE PROSECUTED FOR "HIGH TREASON"

The putschists announced on Sunday their intention to "prosecute" the overthrown President Mohamed Bazoum for "high treason" and "undermining the security" of the country, when there is a threat of military intervention by West African states to restore order. constitutional.

“The Nigerien government has to date gathered” the “evidence to prosecute before the competent national and international authorities the deposed president and his local and foreign accomplices, for high treason and undermining the internal and external security of Niger”, declared the Colonel-Major Amadou Abdramane, one of the members of the regime, in a press release read on national television.

Regarding the deposed president, the regime called for "questioning the sincerity of his claim to maintain that he is sequestered, even though the soldiers have never taken over his presidential residence and he still has all communication means".

The soldiers also ensure that Mohamed Bazoum "regularly receives visits from his doctor". According to an adviser to the overthrown president, a consultation took place on Saturday. "After this visit, the doctor did not raise any concerns about the state of health of the ousted president and his family members," the military added.

Mohamed Bazoum, held in his presidential residence since July 26 - the day of the coup - with his son and his wife, had declared in several media to be a "hostage", then deprived of electricity and forced to eat only rice and pasta.

Sanctions deemed "humiliating"

The regime resulting from the coup also criticizes the sanctions imposed by ECOWAS, deemed "illegal, inhuman and humiliating". These sanctions were formulated at a summit of the regional organization on July 30, accompanied by a seven-day ultimatum aimed at restoring constitutional order , under penalty of coercive action.

These restrictive measures directly affect Niger, which depends economically and energetically on foreign partners. Indeed, the sanctions go so far as to deprive the country of essential imports such as pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs and even electricity supply, the military deplored in their press release.

These statements come after the military regime welcomed a delegation of Nigerian Muslim religious leaders on Saturday, led with the agreement of Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, also head of ECOWAS, to "ease the tensions created by the prospect of a military intervention" of the organization. The timetable and terms of a possible West African military intervention have not been disclosed.

But Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, whose country will contribute to this force, said Thursday that it should be able to intervene "as soon as possible". Several neighboring countries, including the giant Nigeria, Burkina and Mali, have however already rejected the principle of their participation in an armed intervention.

According to General Abdourahamane Tiani, quoted in the Nigerian mediation press release, the military overthrew President Bazoum "because of an imminent threat which would have affected not only the Republic of Niger, but also Nigeria". The new strongman of Niger had justified the coup d'etat by "the security deterioration" in the country, undermined by the violence of jihadist groups like Mali and neighboring Burkina, also led by soldiers and who showed their solidarity with Niamey.

Important anti-jihadist device

From Mauritania to Sudan, the jihadists have succeeded in scaring away all Westerners. However, Niger has so far been the pivot of the French anti-jihadist system in the Sahel, since the forced departure of the French soldiers from Mali in the summer of 2022. The French soldiers work regularly with the Nigerien army in the context of special operations .

The latest (communicated by the Ministry of the Armed Forces), was held in May 2023. An airborne operation to take control of a building near the Malian border, in the so-called "three borders" area, crucial and dangerous in the fight against jihadism. The United States also has security interests there, insisting, at all costs, on keeping its bases in the country.

In addition to security interests, France also has economic interests.

Niger has wealth in uranium, and it is precisely on these lands that the activity of Orano (formerly Areva), a mining group, owned by the French State, has been established over the years. In addition, Orano has been carrying out a large-scale project in the country for several years: the operation of the Imouraren site.

This large-scale project is based on meticulous studies and promises uranium reserves estimated at 174,000 tons, allowing a lifespan of this mining site of approximately 43 years. During the period extending from 2005 to 2020 , Niger occupied the rank of third supplier of uranium to France, contributing up to 19% of its supplies in this material, thus placing itself behind Kazakhstan and Australia, according to data from the Euratom technical committee.

In this political imbroglio, each country plays its part, the United States for their part trying to prevent the junta from getting too close to the Burkinabé and Malian juntas, but also to the Wagner society, and therefore to Russia...




Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

THE WORRYING MISUSE OF PSYCHIATRY AGAINST HOSTILE WOMEN

TO THE ISLAMIC VEIL IN IRAN

Following the death of Mahsa Amini, killed in custody by the vice squad for wearing her veil "incorrectly" in September 2022, more and more Iranian women, particularly in Tehran, but also in provincial towns, defy power and go out in the street without a veil. Some young girls even wear short-sleeved shirts or clothes that reveal their navel.

Symbol of the transgression of Iranian women against the obligation to wear the veil, the actress Afsaneh Bayegan appeared bareheaded several times on her Instagram feed, and more recently during a public ceremony.

The Iranian power did not appreciate it. Following her refusal to submit to the clothing diktats imposed by the power, a court condemned her Afsaneh Bayegan, star of 61 years and respected figure of Iranian television. suspended for two years and forced her to undergo weekly psychological treatment in a "psychological center" for supposedly treating a supposed "mental disorder of the anti-family personality", as reported by the Fars news agency. July 19.

The case of this actress is not unique. Other Iranian judges have also diagnosed "antisocial personality disorder" in other celebrities, such as Azadeh Samadi, who was forced into weekly therapy for wearing a hat instead of a veil at a funeral.

Misappropriation of psychiatry by the justice of the mullahs

In early July, another court in Tehran sentenced a woman for breaking the veil to two months in prison and six months' treatment for what the court this time called a "contagious psychological disorder that results in sexual promiscuity".

A few days earlier, a woman caught driving without her veil was sentenced by a court in Varamin, Tehran province, to wash corpses for a month in a morgue in the capital.

The proliferation of judgments of this nature has drawn criticism from the Iranian psychiatric sector. In an open letter addressed to the head of the judiciary, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejei, the presidents of four mental health associations denounced the abusive use of psychiatry for the purpose of repression by justice. They recalled that the diagnosis of mental disorders is the competence of psychiatrists and not of judges.

The concern is all the greater as the youngest are not spared. . At the height of massive protests following the death of Mahsa Amini, Iran's education minister admitted schoolchildren were being held in "medico-psychological centers" to undergo "re-education" to prevent dissent. A decision strongly criticized by the union of Iranian teachers, who feared that these centers would become real military camps.

Towards a criminalization of unveiled women

A headlong rush that should not work out. As the first anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death approaches in September, the various services of the Iranian state apparatus seem to be embarking on a "one-upmanship" to stifle any protest, observes Azadeh Kian.

A bill presented at the end of July to the Iranian Parliament proposes to introduce even heavier penalties against these women who refuse to comply with this injunction. If this law is adopted, these women could lose their civic rights, their right to work, and be deprived of all the opportunities of daily life, deplores the researcher. would be deemed to be 'spreading anti-veiling slogans', in which case they would even risk being sentenced to death",

The death of Mahsa Amini had triggered a vast protest movement with demonstrations in several cities in October and November before declining. Several hundred people were killed and thousands arrested. Seven men were executed for their involvement in this movement. Called into question by the demonstrators, the morality police had largely disappeared from the streets in recent months before reappearing in the streets to strengthen control over women. And more and more women were going out with their heads uncovered, especially in Tehran and in the big cities.

For how much longer ?




Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

COUP IN NIGER FRANCE OUTSIDE THE SAHEL

WHICH FALLS INTO THE HAND OF THE JIHADISTS

Niger has been living in uncertainty since Wednesday, July 26, 2023. The military took power and kidnapped Mohamed Bazoum, democratically elected in 2021. General Abdourahamane Tchiani will now lead the country.

"Perfectly illegitimate": Emmanuel Macron condemned Friday from Papua New Guinea "with the greatest firmness the military coup" in progress in Niger, "dangerous" for the region, and called "for the liberation" of President Mohamed Bazoum.

"This coup d'etat is perfectly illegitimate and deeply dangerous for Nigeriens, for Niger, and for the whole region", noted the French president during a press conference. "This is why we call for the release of President Bazoum and the restoration of constitutional order," he added.

Supported by part of the population

Niger, a poor country with a history of coups, was one of France's last allies in the Sahel, a region plagued by instability, precariousness and jihadist attacks. The coup in Niamey is the third in this area since 2020, after the arrival of soldiers in power in Mali and Burkina Faso. And the French military presence seems more suspended than ever in the region. It is estimated that there are around 1,500 to 2,000 French soldiers in the country.

This Sunday, July 30, 2023, the internal crisis in Niger took another turn with a demonstration during which the French embassy in Niamey was degraded. An anti-French feeling is therefore rising in this former colony left by France in 1960.

If the military authorities in Niamey follow in the footsteps of their neighbours, an urgent request could soon be addressed to France, demanding its withdrawal from the scene. Indeed, from Thursday July 27, these putschists publicly questioned France, accusing it of having violated the closing of the borders by authorizing the landing of a military plane at the international airport of Niamey.

A few minutes earlier, the putschists had called "the population to calm" after incidents during a demonstration in Niamey organized to support them, during which Russian flags flew and anti-French slogans were chanted

France outside the Sahel...

In the short and medium term, France could therefore completely disappear from the landscape in the Sahel, thus signing the end of what has been called Françafrique in this part of the continent.

The situation in Niger seems like deja vu. After Mali and Burkina Faso, Niger, also affected by attacks linked to the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda, is the third country in the Sahel to suffer a coup since 2020. 

France also had military presences in these two countries. In August 2022, the French army left the Malian base in Gao, ending Operation Barkhane, the successor to Operation Serval launched in 2013. 

It was also at this time that the army s fell back to Niger. In January 2023, the Saber Force, the military special forces in place for 15 years in Ouagadougou, also withdrew from Burkina Faso. French military personnel in the Sahel have therefore shrunk in one year, dropping from approximately 4,500 to 2,500, including 1,500 in Niger and 1,000 in Chad.

Important anti-jihadist device

However, with 1,500 soldiers on the spot, Niger has so far been the pivot of the French anti-jihadist system in the Sahel, since the forced departure of the French soldiers from Mali in the summer of 2022.

French soldiers work regularly with the Nigerien army in the context of special operations. The latest (communicated by the Ministry of the Armed Forces), was held in May 2023. An airborne operation to take control of a building near the Malian border, in the so-called "three borders" area, crucial and dangerous in the fight against jihadism.

There is no fallback in the region. From Mauritania to Sudan, the jihadists have succeeded in scaring away all Westerners.

Moreover, before this coup, the trend was already to reduce the number of French soldiers in the Sahel and in this part of Africa. It was Emmanuel Macron's wish to withdraw troops from Gabon, Senegal or even Côte d'Ivoire. Recent events in Niger could further accelerate this trend. In addition to security interests, France also has economic interests.

Economic interests too

Economically, Niger has a relatively limited presence of French companies, with the notable exception of Orano (formerly Areva). This mining group, owned by the French state, employs nearly 900 workers in the country, mostly local nationals.

Niger has wealth in uranium, and it is precisely on these lands that Orano's activity has been established over the years.
For nearly half a century, Orano has been operating two leading mining sites in Niger, namely Somaïr, operational since 1971 (Aïr Mines Company), and Cominak, beginning its activity in 1978 (Compagnie Minière of Akuta). 

However, Cominak had to close its doors on March 31, 2021, following the depletion of its uranium resources. Nevertheless, Orano has undertaken an ambitious redevelopment project for the latter, thus remaining involved in this transition.

During the period extending from 2005 to 2020, Niger occupied the rank of third supplier of uranium to France, contributing 19% of its supplies in this material, thus placing itself behind Kazakhstan and the United States. Australia, according to data from the Euratom Technical Committee.

In addition, Orano has been carrying out a large-scale project in the country for several years: the operation of the Imouraren site.

This large-scale project is based on meticulous studies and promises uranium reserves estimated at 174,000 tons, allowing a lifespan of this mining site of approximately 43 years.

Faced with the latest events of this weekend, France threatened on Sunday to respond "immediately and intractably" to any attack against its nationals and its interests in Niger, after the rally where thousands of demonstrators in favor of the military putsch targeted its embassy in Niamey.

President Emmanuel Macron has warned that he "will not tolerate any attack against France and its interests".

"It will be up to the putschists to say who is behind them and who supports them," said Catherine Colonna, questioned about the presence of Russian flags in the demonstration.




Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

SUDAN ON THE BRINK OF ALL-OUT CIVIL WAR

UN SAYS

An air force raid on a residential area of ​​Khartoum killed dozens of civilians in Sudan on Saturday (July 8th). The bombings took place in the Dar al-Salam district, literally "the house of peace" in Arabic, in Omdurman, the northwestern suburb of Khartoum. According to the local Ministry of Health, they caused "22 dead and a large number of injured civilians".

On Facebook, the ministry posted a video showing lifeless bodies, some with torn limbs, including several of women. For their part, the Rapid Support Forces, at war with the army since April 15, denounced "the tragic loss of more than 31 lives and many wounded".

"A total lack of respect for humanitarian law and human rights"

Sudan is "on the brink of total civil war", warns the UN. The organization considers that the situation is "potentially destabilizing for the whole region". In nearly three months of war between the paramilitaries of General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo and the regular troops of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, nearly 3,000 dead have been recorded – a very underestimated toll, both the bodies strewn on the streets are inaccessible. Nearly three million Sudanese out of the 45 have been forced to leave their homes as the abuses from both sides are increasing.

Khartoum and Darfur are on the front line, but the fighting has spread to other cities in the north and south. During the first week, “two-thirds of the fighting (…) took place in cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants”, notes the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.

“Both warring forces repeatedly used explosive weapons in urban areas, causing loss of civilian life,” reports Human Rights Watch.

In some combat zones, members of the FSR turn into looters. They seize buildings, schools, businesses or health centers. Humanitarian offices and warehouses have been robbed. In Darfur, houses and markets have been set on fire.

One of the spokespersons for the UN Secretary General thus denounced "a total lack of respect for humanitarian law and human rights", particularly in Darfur, a region martyred in the 2000s, again at the heart of fighting having resumed a "ethnic dimension".

A power struggle between the two most powerful generals in Sudan.

Deadly clashes erupted as early as April 15 in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary militia led by General Hemetti.

This violence is the culmination of several months of tension between the two groups and especially their two leaders.

At the root of this situation, a power struggle between the two most powerful generals in Sudan. On the one hand, the head of the army, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who de facto leads the country. On the other, his number two, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, nicknamed "Hemetti", at the head of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF, in English), a powerful paramilitary force.

To understand this rivalry, you have to go back to April 11, 2019. On that day, dictator Omar al-Bashir was overthrown by a military coup. Al Burhan and his junta take power. Hemetti is number two in the regime. Sudan is moving towards a transfer of power to civilians, but in October 2021, the military carries out a new putsch. Al Burhan and Hemetti are maneuvering to defeat the democratic transition.

How did we get here ?

In October 2021, the two generals therefore joined forces to oust the civilians with whom they had shared power since the fall of dictator Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

“A marriage of convenience” for the putsch, explains researcher Hamid Khalafallah. "They never had a sincere partnership but common interests against civilians."

And the breaches in the sacred union quickly came to light: The leader of the Rapid Support Forces (FSR), Hemedti, repeatedly denounced the "failure" of a putsch which restored "the old regime" of Bashir, according to him. Then the conflict intensified when it was necessary to sign the conditions for the integration of his men into the regular troops, within the framework of the agreement with the civilians which was to relaunch the democratic transition.

For experts, this agreement has opened Pandora's box: by letting the military negotiate among themselves, "Hemedti has gone from the status of second to that of equal of Burhane", affirms Kholood Khair, who founded the Confluence research center Advisory in Khartoum. Feeling "more autonomous in the face of the army", Hemedti saw an opportunity to achieve "his very great political ambitions", abounds Alan Boswell, in charge of the Horn of Africa at the International Crisis Group.

The thorny question remained to be settled: how to integrate Hemetti's Rapid Support Forces into the regular army. And then who to control the soldiers ?

Who to control arms ?

Another bone of contention, the presence since the reign of Omar el-Béchir of many Islamist officers in the Sudanese army, whom General Hemedti wanted to purge. Since the October 2021 coup, the Islamist current, which already enjoyed significant support within the army, has grown stronger with the blessing of General al-Burhan. This was one of the main points of tension with General Hemedti.

The two generals have opposing positions.

The army wanted a very rapid integration, within one or two years. General Al-Burhan, supported by Egypt, and under pressure from certain Islamist cadres in the army, made the signing of the agreement conditional on the integration of the RSF into the ranks of the army, under his command.

The RSF wanted to maintain autonomy for up to ten years. Hemetti categorically refused to let his rival command his men and agreed to place his forces only under the authority of a civilian head of state, and on condition that the army be purged of its Islamist elements. This security reform, a central issue in the transfer of power to civilians, therefore set fire to the powder.

Ancient rivalry for economic power

But the rivalry between the two men is older. For years, General Hemetti's Rapid Support Forces have steadily grown in strength. Made up of 80 to 120,000 men, well equipped, well trained, this force in the form of a free electron, which did not respond to the central power, aroused discontent in the general staff of the regular army.

With the dispatch of mercenaries to Yemen and the financial windfall of smuggling gold on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, Hemetti has also become one of the richest and most powerful men in the country.

The rivalry between Al-Burhan and Hemetti is also personal. The two officers know each other well, they both operated in Darfur during the civil war in the 2000s and then during the war in Yemen. And they have been competing for several years to recover a number of resource networks since the 2019 revolution.

All of this only made matters worse over the months. With an acceleration during the political negotiations. Each camp recruited massively, particularly among the youth of Darfur, the greater western region.

For several weeks, the two opposing groups had carried out major movements, bringing men and equipment to the capital. The tension rose a notch on Thursday, April 13, when the RSF deployed around an air base in Meroe, in the north of the country. The clashes, two days later, could break out.

The conflict, transformed into a pitched battle, led to the flight of many civilians abroad: more than 600,000, including 10,000 to 20,000 people, especially women and children, crossed into neighboring Chad, according to the UN.

To attempt a way out of the crisis, the UN pleads for the proposals of Igad.

This East African bloc, to which Khartoum belongs, will bring together on Monday in Addis Ababa the heads of state or government of the four countries involved in the Sudanese dossier: Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan.




Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

MASSACRE AT THE SCHOOL OF LHUBIRIHA WITH

FORTY PUPILS KILLED WITH MACHETE OR BURNED ALIVE BY ISLAMISTS

Mpondwe High School in Uganda was attacked on the night of June 17-18 by militants from the ADF militia, which has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. We deplore the death of about forty people, including 39 to 45 students, according to the sources. Six students were kidnapped.

Army spokesman Felix Kulayigye told CNN that some were killed with machetes while others died when their dormitories burned.

“I was alerted to the attack a few minutes after 11 p.m. when cries from students were heard from our school,” the principal of Llubhira Secondary School said in remarks echoed by International Christian Concern, “J immediately contacted security but they didn't show up until after an hour when the attack was over and the rebels were coming out. So far we have counted 45 dead students

A local witness says he saw "a group of about 30 people dressed in jungle uniforms, but with their heads covered and armed to the teeth"

According to Major General Dick Olum, this officer, the attackers had detailed information about the school.

"They knew where the boys' and girls' dorms were," Dick Olum said. "That's why the rebels locked the boys' dormitory and set it on fire. The rebels didn't lock the girls' section and the girls managed to get out, but they were beaten with machetes, while 'they were running for cover, and others were shot."

"We have requested more firepower, aircraft to assist in the rescue of abductees and to locate rebel hideouts for military action," he said.

Vatican News reports the first elements of the investigation according to which the militia set fire to dormitories and several students were stabbed to death.

After the attack, the militiamen, who also abducted six people, fled towards Virunga National Park, located in Congolese territory. The border is only two kilometers from the school.

The ADF, the militia responsible for the massacre

Major General Dick Olum said intelligence had reported an ADF presence in the area at least two days before the attack, underscoring the need for an investigation.

The men responsible for the attack are part of the Islamist militia of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). This armed group was created in 1995 to overthrow the President of the Republic of Uganda Yoweri Museveni, in power since 1986.

The Allied Democratic Forces in English Allied Democratic Forces, ADF is a Ugandan armed group bringing together opposition movements to President Yoweri Museveni. The organization has since moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo where its operations are concentrated. Initially mainly composed of Islamists from the Tabligh movement, the ADF had been led since 2007 by Jamil Mukulu before his arrest in 2015. Then Musa Seka Baluku took over from its former chief of arms. According to several estimates, the ADF is composed of 300 to 600 combatants. In 2019, the militia pledged allegiance to the Islamic State

Operating largely on Congolese territory, the militia is believed to be responsible for more than 730 attacks since 2017, killing around 3,850, according to New York University and the NGO Human Rights Watch. This is not the first time that these rebels have attacked schools. Already, in 1998, the ADF had burned alive 80 students in the dormitories of the Uganda Technical Institute, in Kichwamba, near the DRC border.

Why attack Lubiriha high school?

The establishment, located in the town of Mpondwe, a Ugandan border post which manages the State's trade with the DRC, was built by a Canadian non-governmental organization, reports the “New York Times”. It opened in 2010.

According to Richard Moncrieff, expert at the International Crisis Group (ICG) interviewed by the BBC, attacking a high school is a way for the ADF to "recruit children". The Islamic group is suspected of enlisting child soldiers.




Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

HOMOSEXUALITY PUNISHABLE TO DEATH PENALTY

IN UGANDA

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Monday signed into law a controversial anti-LGBT+ law that includes stiff penalties for same-sex relationships. In this East African country where homosexuality is already illegal, "acts of homosexuality" are punishable by life imprisonment since a law dating from British colonization.

The new law introduces the concept of “aggravated homosexuality”. In other words, the sexual act between people of the same sex is now considered a crime punishable by death in case of recidivism. Another provision is of great concern to NGOs. According to the text, anyone – individual or organization – “knowingly promotes homosexuality” faces up to 20 years in prison. If it is an organization, it risks a ten-year ban. The President's enactment of the law was first announced on Twitter by Speaker of Parliament Anita Among before being confirmed by Yoweri Museveni's spokesperson.

Outcry

The vote on the bill in Parliament on March 21 sparked an international outcry. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, had denounced a “discriminatory text – probably the worst in the world of its kind”. After the announcement by the Western partners of potential economic consequences if the law were promulgated as it stands, President Yoweri Museveni had asked Ugandan parliamentarians, at the end of April, to reconsider certain provisions. Thus, in the text adopted on Monday, there is no longer any question of criminalizing the mere fact of being homosexual, nor of denouncing the practices of one's neighbor.

"The President of Uganda has today legalized state-sponsored homophobia and transphobia," said Clare Byarugaba, a Ugandan rights activist. “This is a very dark and sad day for the LGBTIQ community, our allies and all of Uganda,” she added.

But above all, on a continent where homosexuality is punishable by imprisonment in some thirty countries, activists fear the spillover effect of Ugandan law. "Why should a country criminalize part of its population based on their sexuality? I think it's very barbaric, it's primitive, and it goes back to the colonial era," said Alex Kofi Donkor, president of LGBT rights in Ghana. Ugandan [...] There have already been three proposed laws criminalizing homosexuality in the DRC.

Same-sex relationships are also considered a crime under colonial-era legislation in neighboring Kenya, whose President William Ruto recently declared homosexuality to be a Western import incompatible with “customs, traditions, Christianity and Islam.” of his nation.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights said it was "dismayed" to see this "draconian and discriminatory" bill come into force, "contrary to the Constitution and international treaties", which opens the way to " systematic violations of the rights of LGBT people”.




Garett Skyport for DayNewsWorld

DEADLY SHOOTING IN A SYNAGOGUE

IN TUNISIA

"Terrorist" attack or isolated act ?

The Tunisian authorities are investigating, Wednesday, May 10, 2023, to elucidate the circumstances of the attack carried out by a gendarme who killed three of his colleagues and two faithful in front of a synagogue on the island of Djerba, during the annual Jewish pilgrimage, before be shot.

Security forces “encircled the synagogue and secured everyone inside and around it,” according to the Interior Ministry. “Investigations are continuing to elucidate the motives for this cowardly attack,” added the ministry, refraining at this stage from mentioning a terrorist attack.

Preliminary investigation opened

Two worshipers taking part in a Jewish pilgrimage and two gendarmes were killed Tuesday evening by an agent of the Tunisian maritime guard who opened fire in front of the Ghriba synagogue on the island of Djerba, announced the Ministry of the Interior.

A police officer who was hospitalized after Tuesday's attack died of his injuries on Wednesday, according to a medical official quoted by TAP, bringing the death toll to five.

This synagogue, the oldest in Africa, had already been targeted in 2002 by a suicide truck bomb attack that killed 21 people.

"A preliminary criminal investigation has been opened," said Fethi Bakkouche, spokesperson for the court in Medenine, on which the island of Djerba depends.

The attack came in two stages as hundreds of worshipers took part in the annual Jewish Ghriba pilgrimage which was coming to an end on Tuesday evening.

A security device was deployed in the perimeter of the synagogue, closing all the roads giving access to it.

According to the Tunisian Ministry of the Interior, the gendarme who fired the shots first shot and killed one of his colleagues in the port of Djerba and seized his weapon and ammunition. He then went to the outskirts of the synagogue, about fifteen kilometers away, where he opened fire on the police who were providing security for the place, before being shot.

Two faithful, a Tunisian and a Franco-Tunisian were killed by the assailant's shots, and four others were injured and evacuated to a hospital, according to the authorities. Six gendarmes were also injured by the assailant's shots.

One of them succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday evening, according to the Interior Ministry.

Tourism affected again ?

According to organizers, more than 5,000 Jewish pilgrims, mostly from abroad, took part in the Ghriba pilgrimage this year, which resumed last year after a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Organized on the 33rd day of Passover, the Ghriba pilgrimage is at the heart of the traditions of Tunisians of the Jewish faith, who are only 1,500 – mostly settled in Djerba –, compared to 100,000 before independence in 1956.

Pilgrims also traditionally come from European countries, the United States or even Israel, but their number decreased considerably after the 2002 attack.

The attack comes as tourism is rebounding strongly in Tunisia after a sharp slowdown during the pandemic. This key sector for the economy had been seriously affected after the 2015 attacks against the Bardo museum in Tunis and a hotel in the seaside resort of Sousse, the toll of which had risen to 60 dead including 59 foreign tourists.




Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld

UNDERSTANDING DEADLY CONFRONTATIONS

IN SUDAN DUE TO RIVALRY

BETWEEN TWO GENERALS

The Sudanese capital was shaken by gunfire and air raids in the night and morning of April 21, as has been the case daily since the start of the fighting on April 15, which left "413 dead and 3,551 injured", according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO). Images of devastated Karthoum are looping on the Al-Jazeera channel.

"Our country is bleeding" -

“For Eid, our country is bleeding: destruction, desolation and the sound of bullets have taken precedence over joy,” General Burhane said. So far, like his rival, General Daglo, he had only spoken to the media and had not directly addressed the 45 million Sudanese.

Deadly clashes broke out on Saturday (April 15th) in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary militia led by General Hemetti.

This violence is not a surprise. It is the culmination of several months of tension between the two groups and especially their two leaders. At the origin of this situation, a power struggle between the two most powerful generals of Sudan. On the one hand, the head of the army, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who de facto leads the country. On the other, his number two, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, nicknamed "Hemetti", at the head of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF, in English), a powerful paramilitary force.

To understand this rivalry, you have to go back to April 11, 2019. On that day, dictator Omar al-Bashir was overthrown by a military coup. Al Burhan and his junta take power. Hemetti is number two in the regime. Sudan is moving towards a transfer of power to civilians, but in October 2021, the military carries out a new putsch. Al Burhan and Hemetti are maneuvering to defeat the democratic transition.

How did we get here ?

In October 2021, the two generals therefore joined forces to oust the civilians with whom they had shared power since the fall of dictator Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

“A marriage of convenience” for the putsch, explains researcher Hamid Khalafallah. "They never had a sincere partnership but common interests against civilians."

And the breaches in the sacred union quickly came to light: The leader of the Rapid Support Forces (FSR), Hemedti, repeatedly denounced the "failure" of a putsch which restored "the old regime" of Bashir, according to him. Then the conflict intensified when it was necessary to sign the conditions for the integration of his men into the regular troops, within the framework of the agreement with the civilians which was to relaunch the democratic transition.

For experts, this agreement has opened Pandora's box: by letting the military negotiate among themselves, "Hemedti has gone from the status of second to that of equal to Burhane", affirms Kholood Khair, who founded the Confluence research center Advisory in Khartoum. Feeling "more autonomous in the face of the army", Hemedti saw an opportunity to realize "his very great political ambitions", abounds Alan Boswell, in charge of the Horn of Africa at the International Crisis Group.

The thorny question remained to be settled: how to integrate Hemetti's Rapid Support Forces into the regular army. And then who to control the soldiers? Who to control arms?

Another bone of contention, the presence since the reign of Omar el-Bashir of numerous Islamist officers in the Sudanese army, whom General Hemedti wanted to purge. Since the October 2021 coup, the Islamist current, which already enjoyed significant support within the army, has grown stronger with the blessing of General al-Burhan. This was one of the main points of tension with General Hemedti.

The two generals have opposing positions.

The army wanted a very rapid integration, within one or two years. General Al-Burhan, supported by Egypt, and under pressure from certain Islamist cadres in the army, made the signing of the agreement conditional on the integration of the RSF into the ranks of the army, under his command.

The RSF wanted to maintain autonomy for up to ten years. Hemetti categorically refused to let his rival command his men and agreed to place his forces only under the authority of a civilian head of state, and on condition that the army be purged of its Islamist elements. This security reform, a central issue in the transfer of power to civilians, therefore set fire to the powder.

Ancient rivalry for economic power

But the rivalry between the two men is older. For years, General Hemetti's Rapid Support Forces have steadily grown in strength. Made up of 80 to 120,000 men, well equipped, well trained, this force in the form of a free electron, which did not respond to the central power, aroused discontent in the general staff of the regular army. With the dispatch of mercenaries to Yemen and the financial windfall of smuggling gold on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, Hemetti has also become one of the richest and most powerful men in the country.

The rivalry between Al-Burhan and Hemetti is also personal. The two officers know each other well, they both operated in Darfur during the civil war in the 2000s and then during the war in Yemen. And they have been competing for several years to recover a number of resource networks since the 2019 revolution.

All of this only made matters worse over the months. With an acceleration during the political negotiations. Each camp recruited massively, particularly among the youth of Darfur, the greater western region.

For several weeks, the two opposing groups had carried out major movements, bringing men and equipment to the capital. The tension rose a notch on Thursday, April 13, when the RSF deployed around an air base in Meroe, in the north of the country.

The clashes, two days later, could break out.

The conflict, transformed into a pitched battle, led to the flight of many civilians abroad: 10,000 to 20,000 people, especially women and children, went to neighboring Chad, according to the UN.





Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

EMMANUEL MACRON TOUR IN AFRICA

THE DIFFICULTY FOR FRANCE TO FIND

A POST FRANCE-AFRICA POSITION

The Elysée may well emphasize that this is at least the 15th trip to Africa by Emmanuel Macron since he became President of the Republic, the one that the President begins this Wednesday in Gabon, Angola, Congo- Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo has a special taste.

No country in the Sahel is on the program, while French troops have just left Mali and ended their mission in Burkina Faso after years of fighting terrorist groups. "This trip was therefore designed as an illustration of the President of the Republic's desire to go to the end of the change of posture and the end of the change in software that he had wished to initiate from 2017", explains the Elysée.

"Responding to a request for partnership" with "a new approach" in Africa, a major player in world issues: such is the ambition displayed by Emmanuel Macron, who presented on Monday his vision of relations with a continent where France is losing influence for the benefit of powers like China and Russia, against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.

The end of the “Françafrique” era

The red thread of his African tour was the desire to turn the page on "Françafrique" definitively, with its opaque practices and its networks of influence inherited from colonialism, and to set up a new "software", based on "the humility" and pragmatic partnerships, from environmental protection to health.

"This age of Françafrique is over," he said Thursday from Libreville, which has long embodied these excesses under the presidency of Omar Bongo.

In Gabon as elsewhere, France is a neutral interlocutor", he insisted, while the Gabonese opposition accused him of supporting President Ali Bongo Ondimba, son and successor of Omar Bongo, in the midst of election year, ruling out any risk of interference and asserting that France was now a "neutral interlocutor".

This speech comes as the French army definitively left Burkina Faso last Saturday, only a few months after having already been ejected from Mali. In several African countries, the refrain "France clears" has been taken up by the populations.

The "made in Africa" ​​in Angola

France has a long-standing presence in the oil sector in Angola, but Emmanuel Macron's visit is an opportunity to explore collaborations in other sectors, including agreements reached to strengthen the country's "climate resilience". Angolan agriculture or supporting its coffee sector. Indeed, Angola wishes to diversify its economy, which is currently totally dependent on the oil sector, and above all to guarantee its food security in a country that imports a lot. France has therefore made a commitment to the agricultural sector, in particular with aid from the French Development Agency (AFD) of 200 million euros for a climate resilience programme.

"It corresponds to the idea that I have of the economic partnership between the African continent and France", explained the French head of state in front of a hundred participants. Namely "responding to the challenges of Angola with the actors who are ours, the solutions which are ours, rather than coming and dumping ready-made solutions, and doing so by defending our interests on both sides in a respectful but determined"

It is a "food sovereignty strategy in which we believe for the African continent", consisting in "building balanced and reciprocal partnerships" and developing "'made in Africa' which must become a reference", he added. he says.

Macron's balancing act in the DRC

French President Emmanuel Macron ended up condemning Rwanda's support for M23.

Everyone must "take responsibility, including Rwanda", he said. Then further: “The open looting of the Democratic Republic of Congo must stop. Neither looting, nor balkanization, nor war, ”said Emmanuel Macron again. “France has constantly condemned the M23 and all those who support it. »

In Kinshasa, the French president above all defended the regional peace plan with the new timetable for ending the crisis, validated at the African Union summit in mid-February. Then, he mentioned the new date of the ceasefire of March 7 at noon.

If this plan fails, the head of state warned that sanctions could then be taken against those who have "responsibilities".

Finally, France announced a contribution of 34 million euros to a humanitarian air bridge to be set up by the European Union with the city of Goma.

France's African policy put to the test

Emmanuel Macron said Monday before his African tour that France was "in the middle of the ford", that Africa was no longer his "backyard" and that he wanted "to build a new balanced, reciprocal and responsible relationship". On the last day of his visit to Africa, Emmanuel Macron spoke words in the form of a declaration of love for Africa: "It's a huge continent of the future with which we have a plural history, if I can use this term, multiple, but which is a continent that I love".

While Emmanuel Macron has tried to find ways to forge a new forward-looking relationship with African countries, this ambition has sometimes come up against a political reality in which the past still has its place.

Moreover coexists in Africa a certain disinterest and a certain estrangement compared to France and what it represents.




Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld

THE CHALLENGES OF EMMANUEL MACRON'S TRIP

IN ALGERIA

The French president and his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, sealed their reconciliation on Thursday after months of diplomatic quarrels, particularly around French colonization (1830-1962).

Since his election in 2017, the French president, the first to be born after the war in Algeria, has multiplied memorial gestures, based in particular on the Stora report. On the responsibility of the French state in the death of Maurice Audin (tortured communist activist) or the assassination of lawyer Ali Boumendjel. On compensation for harkis. By proceeding with the declassification of archives over fifty years old covered by defense secrecy. But Algiers asked for more, a gesture of repentance for the 132 years of colonization. However, Emmanuel Macron then criticized the Algerian regime for exploiting the “memorial rent” around the war of independence.


The memory question

Emmanuel Macron has just reaffirmed during his arrival in Algeria on Thursday August 25, 2022 his conviction that we must look history in the face, France and Algeria have a shared history, painful but which should not prevent the two countries from to move forward together, believes the president. It is not a question of speaking of repentance for the French president but of recognition of historical truths. Emmanuel Macron went further this Friday by explaining that the search for "the truth" and "recognition" was more important than "repentance" on these issues which poison the relationship between Paris and Algiers.

“I often hear that, on the question of memory and the Franco-Algerian question, we are constantly summoned to choose between pride and repentance. Me, I want the truth, the recognition (because) otherwise we will never move forward, ”declared the French president during a press briefing in Algiers on the second day of his visit to Algeria.

Economic issues.

Although Algeria is the leading African gas exporter and supplies around 11% of the gas consumed in Europe, Mr. Macron denied that France had "gone to Canossa" to beg gas from Algeria. "France depends little on gas in its energy mix, about 20%, and in this whole, Algeria represents 8 to 9%, we are not in a dynamic where Algerian gas could change the situation". In addition, he pointed out that France had already "secured its volumes" for the winter, and "stocks are at 90%". “On the other hand, it is a very good thing that there is increased collaboration and more gas going to Italy”, he insisted, underlining the need for “European solidarity”. Since the start of 2022, Algeria has supplied Italy with 13.9 billion m3, exceeding the previously scheduled volumes by 113%. In contrast,

It is that France is no longer the number one partner of Algiers, supplanted by China. Commercial rent positions are a thing of the past. Emmanuel Macron's delegation also includes the leaders of the companies Engie and Free, even if no major contract is expected during this visit. In addition, the Élysée wishes to address Algerian youth, start-ups and SMEs during this trip.

Algeria, meanwhile, wants to take advantage of high energy prices to land big contracts and investment projects, as it has already done with Italy and Turkey. “Algeria seeks solid economic relations and a serious partnership,” an Algerian official said on condition of anonymity.

Strategic issues

Another issue, and not the least important, is the regional context. “Coordination with the Algerian authorities is essential”, in terms of security, it is estimated at the Elysée. Indeed, despite the departure of French troops from Mali, stabilizing the Sahel and containing the jihadist threat remains a priority for Europe. Algiers remains a privileged interlocutor of Mali as of Niger and has a long border with Libya. In addition, the strengthening of the traditional links of the Algerian power with Moscow, which is increasingly active in the region, also worries Paris.

In the fall, Russia will take part in a joint military exercise with the Algerian army in Algeria.




Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

 RETRAIT DE LA FORCE BARKAHNE DU MALI

 ET REORGANISATION DE LA LUTTE ANTI-DJIHADISTE  AU SAHEL

Poussés dehors par les « obstructions » de la junte au pouvoir à Bamako, la France et ses partenaires européens ont officialisé, jeudi 17 février 2022, leur retrait militaire du Mali au terme de neuf ans de lutte antijihadiste menée par Paris. « Nous ne pouvons pas rester engagés militairement aux côtés d’autorités de fait dont nous ne partageons ni la stratégie, ni les objectifs cachés », a justifié le président français, assurant que la France continuerait dans la région « à jouer un rôle fédérateur ». Dans la foulée de cette annonce, Emmanuel Macron a en effet déclaré en conférence de presse que des militaires européens participant au groupement de forces spéciales Takuba « seront repositionnés aux côtés des forces armées nigériennes dans la région frontalière du Mali ».

Quitter le Mali, où les conditions de la lutte antiterroriste ne sont plus réunies, pour mieux rester au Sahel et s’adapter aux évolutions de la menace djihadiste en Afrique de l’Ouest,  dangers’étendant vers les pays côtiers d’Afrique de l’Ouest, tel est le nouvel enjeu.

Pourquoi ce retrait des troupes ?

Malgré des victoires tactiques, le terrain n'a jamais été véritablement repris par l'État malien et ses forces armées. Facteur aggravant, le gouvernement malien a été renversé lors d'un double coup d'Etat en 2020 et en 2021, aboutissant à l'arrivée au pouvoir d'une junte qui refuse d'organiser des élections avant plusieurs années et qui surfe sur un sentiment antifrançais croissant dans la région. Mises au ban par les Etats ouest-africains, les autorités maliennes fustigent la présence militaire occidentale sur leur sol et font désormais appel, selon les Européens, aux mercenaires russes de la société Wagner.

Redéploiement des forces

Le redéploiement envisagé a été présenté jeudi 17 février à l’Elysée par Emmanuel Macron, aux côtés des chefs d’Etat sénégalais et ghanéen, Macky Sall et Nana Akufo-Addo, ainsi que du président du Conseil européen, Charles Michel, juste avant un sommet entre pays européens et africains à Bruxelles. « La lutte contre le terrorisme dans le Sahel ne saurait être l’affaire des seuls Etats africains », a souligné son homologue sénégalais.

Le Mali était au cœur du dispositif antiterroriste français et européen au Sahel. Ce départ du pays force donc Paris à accélérer cette réorganisation dans d'autres pays de la région menacés par la contagion jihadiste, notamment dans le golfe de Guinée.

« Les bases de Gossi, de Ménaka et de Gao vont fermer », a précisé ce jeudi en conférence de presse Emmanuel Macron. Une fermeture qui prendra de « 4 à 6 mois ». D'ici là, « nous maintiendrons nos missions de soutien au profit de la Minusma », la Mission des Nations unies au Mali, promet-il.

Outre un possible renforcement de sa présence au Niger voisin, qui héberge déjà une base aérienne française et 800 militaires, Paris ambitionne de proposer ses services à d'autres pays d'Afrique de l'Ouest (Côte d'Ivoire, Sénégal, Bénin...) pour les aider à contrer la propagation du jihadisme vers le golfe de Guinée.

Encore 2 500 à 3 000 soldats français au Sahel après le retrait du Mali.

Quelque 2 500 à 3 000 soldats français resteront déployés au Sahel au terme de leur retrait du Mali d'ici environ six mois, a précisé jeudi l'état-major des armées françaises. Actuellement, 4 600 militaires français sont déployés dans la bande saharo-sahélienne dont 2 400 au Mali.

Un sommet Europe-Afrique pour « changer la donne ».

L’Union européenne et l’Union africaine se réunissent jeudi et vendredi à Bruxelles pour un sommet visant à « changer la donne » de leurs relations, a déclaré Paris. Quarante des 55 dirigeants membres de l'Union africaine doivent retrouver leurs homologues de l'UE pour définir ce nouveau partenariat.

« Si l'Afrique ne réussit pas, l'Europe échouera, les nationalismes triompheront, les conflits migratoires se multiplieront, et les herses se redresseront », a lancé Emmanuel Macron mercredi soir devant des dirigeants européens et africains. « L'Afrique a une contribution inédite à apporter au reste du monde dans les années qui viennent », a-t-il estimé.




Garett Skyport pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

QUITTER LE MALI EN REPENSANT LA STRATEGIE

 DE DEFENSE DE LA FRANCE DANS LE SAHEL

Face à la détérioration de la relation politique avec Bamako, la France se prépare à un départ forcé de ses soldats du pays et réfléchit à une réorganisation sécuritaire, de concert avec les Européens, pour ériger un cordon sanitaire autour du Mali. Paris et les contributeurs européens de Takuba envisagent de plus en plus sérieusement de se retirer totalement du Malir tout en menant une lutte active contre ces groupes djihadistes et leurs affiliés pour éviter qu’un sanctuaire ne s’installe durablement au cœur du Sahel. L’Élysée a donné quelques précisions à ce sujet.

« D’ici deux à trois semaines », c’est l’échéance indiquée par l’Élysée pour l’annonce d’une décision, dont le principe semble presque déjà acté : « Là où les conditions ne sont pas réunies, il ne faut pas rester », explique un diplomate cité dans la presse française.

Peut-on en effet maintenir l’envoi et les pertes inéluctables de forces armées dans un Mali chaotique dont Jean-Yves Le Drian considère la junte militaire « illégitime » et prenant « des mesures irresponsables » ?

Après l’expulsion des soldats danois de la force Takuba et celle de l’ambassadeur de France ou encore les propos acerbes des dirigeants politiques maliens, français et européens par médias interposés, sans parler des accusations réciproques de mensonge autour de la présence de miliciens russes du groupe Wagner, la tension n’a jamais été aussi forte entre Bamako, Paris et les autres partenaires militaires européens qui interviennent dans le pays.

Les responsables français n’emploient plus que le mot « junte », ajoutant les qualificatifs « illégitime » et « irresponsable », pour désigner les autorités de transition au Mali. « L’argument de la junte, qui réclame cinq ans de plus au pouvoir pour assurer la sécurité ne tient pas », a ainsi expliqué le ministre des Affaires étrangères, Jean-Yves Le Drian, dans la dernière édition du JDD. Ce changement de sémantique date du deuxième coup d’Etat du colonel Goïta, en mai dernier, moment où il a limogé le Président et le Premier ministre civils, les deux principales personnalités sur lesquelles s’appuyait Paris dans sa relation politique

Depuis l’adoption des sanctions économiques en novembre, les autorités maliennes ont, à leur tour, durci le ton à l'égard de Paris. Elles ont d’abord contesté certains survols de leur territoire par la Minusma, la force onusienne, et par les aéronefs français. Elles ont ensuite demandé la révision de l’accord de défense qui lie le Mali à la France, avant de contraindre un détachement danois, qui venait rejoindre la force européenne Takuba, à quitter leur pays.

« Au Mali, la posture de fermeté, affichée par des partenaires importants comme la France, a eu pour effet de renforcer les relations des autorités de transition avec des partenaires alternatifs, comme la Russie », estime une note de l’ONG Crisis Group. Le rôle de la Russie est en effet loin d’être négligeable. Déjà actif en Syrie, en Libye et en Centrafrique, le groupe de paramilitaires Wagner fondé par un proche de Poutine ne cesse depuis décembre dernier de monter en puissance au Mali.


Vers un repli dans les pays voisins ? Le Niger fortement sollicité.

Actuellement, un retrait total du Mali de la force française Barkhane et de la force européenne Takuba est donc sur la table. Les soldats actuellement basés à Ménaka, Gossi, ou encore Gao, la principale base française au Mali, pourraient se replier dans les pays voisins.

Si la France s'est fait à l'idée qu'elle devait quitter le Mali, elle veut cependant continuer de combattre les djihadistes. Un départ du Mali renforcerait aussi le risque de contagion terroriste aux pays de la région, un scénario redouté par ces derniers.

Différents scenarii sur plusieurs mois

D’ores et déjà, Français et Européens réfléchissent à ériger un cordon sanitaire autour du Mali. Le Niger a vocation à devenir le centre de gravité de la présence française dans la bande sahélo-saharienne. Ce pays accueille déjà le Groupement tactique désert dans le cadre du partenariat militaire de combat. Des pays comme la Côte d’Ivoire et le Sénégal pourraient aussi accueillir d’avantages d’effectifs français. La ministre française des Armées, Florence Parly, s’est d’ailleurs rendu à Niamey mercredi 4 février 2022 au soir pour évoquer avec le président Mohamed Bazoum les différentes options envisageables.

La réduction des effectifs au sol et le renforcement des opérations aériennes, notamment à l’aide de drones, font aussi partie des pistes d’adaptation du dispositif de lutte anti-terroriste au Sahel.

Et plutôt que de recréer une grosse base à l’extérieur du Mali, Paris souhaite accompagner les armées locales par des contingents plus légers. L’opération Takuba, qui rassemblait 750 soldats des forces spéciales de 10 pays européens, va elle aussi se redéployer par petits groupes dans des pays qui en feraient la demande. Quelles que soient les hypothèses retenues, ces manœuvres militaires dans la région s’échelonneront sur plusieurs mois.

Si l’action militaire française, et européenne dans le même mouvement, devrait rester présente au Sahel, elle pourrait également s’étendre à d’autres pays où la menace terroriste progresse. La Côte d’Ivoire, le Togo, le Bénin ou le Sénégal seraient ainsi demandeurs d’un appui supplémentaire, selon les propos tenus par l’Élysée.

« Nouveaux acteurs ».

Le dernier coup d’État militaire au Burkina Faso fragilise encore un dispositif français dans une Afrique de l’Ouest nourrie par des bataillons de trolls et d’activistes anti-français.

« Au Burkina Faso, nous avons condamné ce coup d’Etat et nous souhaitons que l’intégrité du président Kaboré soit préservée, confiait Jean-Yves Le Drian au JDD. Il n’empêche que le colonel Damiba veut poursuivre la lutte contre le terrorisme au sein du G5 Sahel et il importe que les nouveaux acteurs au Burkina entament une transition rapide. »

La condamnation de principe du putsch, en vertu du respect de l’ordre constitutionnel, s’accompagne d’une main tendue aux autorités de transition qui ne sont pas affublées du qualificatif de « junte ».

Selon Crisis Group, les Occidentaux pourront difficilement s’appuyer « sur l’approche rigide mise en place suite au coup d’Etat au Mali » sous peine de connaître les mêmes déboires. L’armée française n’a aucune intention de plier bagage et souhaite poursuivre son partenariat militaire avec les « nouveaux acteurs ». Dimanche, l’état-major de l’armée française a communiqué sur l’opération Laabingol, réalisé entre le 16 et le 23 janvier, aux côtés des forces de défense burkinabè à la demande du président déchu, Roch Kaboré.

 Paris a notamment fourni du renseignement et apporté un important appui aérien, notamment via la flotte de Barkhane, avec le recours à une patrouille d’hélicoptères d’attaque Tigre. Bilan : une soixantaine de terroristes neutralisés. « Nous maintenons le dialogue avec les autorités de transition à travers la mission de défense à Ouagadougou, conclut un officier français. Si elles nous présentent une nouvelle demande de coopération opérationnelle, on l'étudiera. Si on peut et on veut faire, on fera. »

L’heure est donc venue de clarifier collectivement la situation, tout en restant engagé au Sahel contre le terrorisme.

« Au prix de la remise en cause de nos propres mythes, elle consiste à reconnaître lucidement les limites de notre puissance et à en tirer les conséquences pratiques, en tentant d’inventer une nouvelle politique étrangère. », selon un confrère.




Garett Skyport pour DayNewsWorld

CLIMATE WARMING THREATENED

100 MILLION VERY POOR IN AFRICA

More than 100 million extremely poor people are threatened by accelerating global warming in Africa, where scarce glaciers are expected to be gone by the 2040s, the UN said on Tuesday.

"Imminent change"

In a report on the state of the climate in Africa published less than two weeks before the opening of COP 26 in Glasgow, the UN highlights Africa's disproportionate vulnerability and stresses that climate change has contributed to worsen food insecurity, poverty and population displacement on the continent last year.

“By 2030, it is estimated that up to 118 million extremely poor people (that is, living on less than $ 1.90 a day) will be exposed to drought, flooding and extreme heat in Africa if adequate measures are not taken, ”said African Union (AU) Commission Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, in the report's foreword. .

"In sub-Saharan Africa, climate change could lead to an additional 3% drop in gross domestic product by 2050," she added.

This report, coordinated by the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO), is the result of collaboration with the AU Commission, the Economic Commission for Africa and various international and regional scientific organizations and Nations. united.

Threatened glaciers

“During the year 2020, climate indicators in Africa have been characterized by a continuous increase in temperatures, an acceleration in sea level rise, extreme weather and climate phenomena, such as floods, landslides and droughts, and the associated devastating impacts, ”said WMO Secretary General Petteri Taalas in the foreword.

"The rapid melting of the last glaciers in East Africa, which is expected to be complete in the near future, alerts us to an imminent and irreversible change in the Earth system," he said. it belongs.

African glaciers are too small to serve as important reservoirs of water, but they are of major tourist and scientific importance. Only three mountains in Africa are covered with glaciers: the Mount Kenya Massif (Kenya), the Rwenzori Mountains (Uganda) and Mount Kilimanjaro (Tanzania).

Develop alert systems

To prepare for the intensification of high-impact hazardous climate phenomena, WMO calls on Africa to invest in hydrometeorological infrastructure and early warning systems.

The organization believes that the rapid implementation of adaptation strategies in Africa will boost economic development and generate more jobs to support economic recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic,

and calls for promoting a “sustainable and green recovery” of the continent.



Abby Shelcore for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

MORT DE BOUTEFLIKA ANCIEN PRESIDENT

 DE L'ALGERIE

L'ex-président algérien Abdelaziz Bouteflika est mort vendredi 18 septembre 2021 à l'âge de 84 ans et sera inhumé dimanche. Il avait dirigé le pays pendant vingt ans, entre 1999 et 2019, et avait été chassé du pouvoir après des manifestations massives.

Il rêvait de finir ses jours au pouvoir. Mais celui qui aura eu le règne le plus long de toute l’histoire de l’Algérie indépendante. 

20 ans après l’indépendance, il est mort en reclus dans sa résidence d’Alger ce vendredi, à 84 ans, deux ans après avoir été chassé par la rue.

Lâché par l’État-major, sous la pression du « Hirak » mouvement de contestation populaire , Abdelaziz Bouteflika, avait été contraint de démissionner le 2 avril 2019 alors qu’il tentait encore de briguer un cinquième mandat.

Depuis celui que les Algériens appelaient familièrement « Boutef » était resté retranché dans la solitude dans sa résidence médicalisée de Zeralda, à l'ouest d'Alger, alors que ses proches étaient poursuivis en justice pour des accusations de corruption.

Le quatrième mandat de Bouteflika s'était déroulé sur fond de dégringolade des prix du pétrole pour une économie très dépendante des hydrocarbures. Les caisses étaient vides et il n'était plus possible d'acheter la paix sociale, comme en 2011 quand le Printemps arabe avait balayé la région.

Au-delà des difficultés économiques enfle surtout la frustration d'une population outrée du symbole que représente ce président mutique et paralysé depuis son AVC en 2013. Jusqu'à l'avènement spectaculaire du Hirak, mouvement pluriel, non violent et sans leadership.

« Je suis l'Algérie tout entière ».

Né le 2 mars 1937 à Oujda (Maroc), dans une famille originaire de la région de Tlemcen (nord-ouest), Bouteflika rejoint dès 19 ans l'Armée de libération nationale (ALN) qui combat la puissance coloniale française.

A l'indépendance en 1962, il est, à 25 ans, ministre des Sports et du Tourisme, avant d'hériter un an plus tard du portefeuille convoité de la diplomatie, qu'il conserve jusqu'en 1979, une époque où l'Algérie s'affiche en leader du « tiers-monde ».

En 1965, il soutient le coup d'Etat de Houari Boumédiène, alors ministre de la Défense, qui s'empare du pouvoir en déposant le président Ahmed Ben Bella.S 'affirmant comme le dauphin de Boumédiène  « le père qu'il n'a pas eu », dira ce dernier, qui décède en 1978, il est pourtant écarté de la succession par l'armée puis de la scène politique sur fond d'accusations de malversations.

Il s'exile à Dubaï et Genève.C'est pourtant l'armée qui l'impose en 1999 comme candidat à la présidentielle: il l'emporte après le retrait de ses adversaires qui dénoncent des fraudes.

«Je suis l'Algérie tout entière », lance alors en arrivant au pouvoir celui dont le destin se confond avec l'histoire contemporaine de son pays.

Sa priorité: rétablir la paix en Algérie, plongée dans la guerre civile depuis 1992 contre une guérilla islamiste (quelque 200.000 morts en dix ans, officiellement). Deux lois d'amnistie, en 1999 et 2005, convainquent nombre d'islamistes de déposer les armes. Accusé par ses détracteurs d'être une marionnette de l'armée, Bouteflika travaille à desserrer l'emprise de la puissante institution.Promettant qu'il ne sera pas un « trois quarts de président », il devient tout puissant.

Elu pour la première fois en 1999, constamment réélu au premier tour avec plus de 80% des voix en 2004, 2009 et 2014, le cinquième mandat semblait acquis aux yeux du régime.

Mais six semaines de mobilisation massive du Hirak -du jamais vu en Algérie- avaient poussé le patron de l'armée à l'époque, le général Ahmed Gaid Salah, un de ses fidèles, à obtenir sa démission.

« Toute sa vie, Abdelaziz Bouteflika a été animé par deux obsessions: conquérir le pouvoir et le garder à tout prix. Il voulait faire un cinquième mandat en dépit du fait qu'il était malade et impotent »,assure le journaliste algérien Farid Alilat dans une biographie Bouteflika, l'histoire secrète.

Bouteflika est considéré comme l'artisan de la réconciliation nationale qui a permis de rétablir la paix en Algérie, plongée dans la guerre civile depuis 1992 contre une guérilla islamiste qui a fait quelque 200.000 morts en dix ans selon le bilan officiel.




Larry Ricky pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

LEGISLATIVES AU MAROC

DEFAITE CINGLANTE DES ISLAMISTES AU POUVOIR

Les Marocains ont voté mercredi lors d’élections générales dont les principaux enjeux étaient d’une part l’avenir du parti islamiste PJD, à la tête du gouvernement depuis une décennie, et d’autre part la participation. Le parti islamiste à la tête du gouvernement au Maroc depuis une décennie a subi une véritable déroute au profit de partis considérés comme proches du palais royal lors des élections législatives, mercredi, selon des résultats provisoires annoncés jeudi 9 septembre 2021 au matin. Il est passé de 125 sièges dans l’assemblée sortante à 12, a indiqué le ministre de l’Intérieur Abdelouafi Laftit, durant un point presse.

Le Parti justice et développement sortant n'est même pas dans le trio de tête après les législatives d'hier, mercredi 8 septembre. Il arrive loin derrière ses principaux rivaux, le Rassemblement national des indépendants (RNI), le Parti Authenticité et modernité (PAM), tous deux de tendance libérale, et le Parti de l’Istiqlal (PI, centre droit), qui remportent respectivement 97, 82 et 78 sièges (sur 395). Les résultats définitifs devraient être connus jeudi. Aucun parti ne remporte à lui seul la majorité absolue au Parlement marocain. Il faudra donc des alliances et une coalition gouvernementale.

Le RNI vainqueur

C'est inévitablement une page qui se tourne au Maroc. Puisque du parti majoritaire aux législatives est issu le Premier ministre nommé par le roi. Le vainqueur, selon les chiffres annoncés par le ministère de l'Intérieur, c'est le RNI, parti du ministre de l'Agriculture, Aziz Akhannouche, l'une des plus grandes fortunes du Royaume et décrit comme proche du palais.

Le RNI appartient à la coalition gouvernementale. Il a pu ainsi défendre à la fois son bilan au gouvernement et notamment, la bonne gestion de la crise Covid par ses ministres . Et le PAM, principale formation de l’opposition, a été fondé par l’actuel conseiller royal Fouad Ali El Himma, en 2008, avant qu’il n’en démissionne en 2011. Plus ancien parti du Maroc, le parti de l’Istiqlal (Indépendance), de centre droit, fait un retour remarqué avec un gain de 32 sièges.

Pourquoi une telle défaite du PJD ?

L’ampleur de la défaite des islamistes est inattendue dans la mesure où, malgré l’absence de sondages, médias et analystes pensaient que le PJD jouerait encore les premières places. Longtemps cantonné dans l’opposition, le PJD espérait briguer un troisième mandat consécutif à la tête du gouvernement. Il avait remporté un succès électoral historique après les protestations du « Mouvement du 20 février » – version marocaine du Printemps arabe de 2011 – qui réclamait la fin de « la corruption et du despotisme ». Les commentateurs parlent d’un « séisme électoral », « d’un recul d’une ampleur inattendue » pour un PJD qui n’a pas réussi à défendre son bilan.

Le PJD avait obtenu la primature (le poste de premier ministre) à l’issue du scrutin de la fin 2011, tenu dans la foulée du « Mouvement du 20 février », la version marocaine des « printemps arabes » que la monarchie était parvenue à canaliser à travers une révision constitutionnelle d’inspiration libérale. Cinq ans plus tard, il maintenait son statut de premier parti du royaume sans pour autant obtenir de majorité absolue, contraint dès lors à négocier une nouvelle fois une coalition avec les formations soutenues par le palais...

Le premier ministre, Saad-Eddine Al-Othmanifut , issu du parti islamiste, avait dû cependant accepter non seulement la normalisation, en décembre 2020, des relations avec Israël, le Maroc devenant ainsi le quatrième pays arabe (après les Emirats arabes unis, Bahreïn et le Soudan) à reconnaître cette année-là l’Etat hébreu mais également l’adoption en 2019 d’une loi renforçant la place du français dans l’enseignement public, notamment dans les matières scientifiques, et ce à rebours des anciennes politiques d’arabisation.

Privé des ministères régaliens, confiés à des proches du roi, le parti n’a jamais pu réellement peser sur les orientations stratégiques du gouvernement. De plus le nouveau calcul du quotient électoral (désormais rapporté au nombre d’inscrits et non plus des votants) n'a pas joué en faveur du parti islamiste. Le PJD a donc souffert du désenchantement d’une frange de son électorat, même s’il conserve un socle historique hérité d’un vieil enracinement, notamment dans les villes

Participation en hausse et proportionnelle

C’est la première fois depuis la tenue des premières élections au Maroc en 1960 que la répartition des sièges à la Chambre des représentants est calculée sur la base du nombre d’électeurs inscrits et non des votants. Ce nouveau mode de calcul a fortement handicapé les grands partis, au profit des « petites » formations. Seul le PJD s’y est opposé, s’estimant « lésé ».

Même si les résultats définitifs doivent encore être confirmés ce jeudi, on sait déjà que la participation a fortement pesé, puisqu’elle a atteint 50,18 % au niveau national, selon le ministère de l’Intérieur. Le taux de participation avait plafonné à 43 % lors des précédentes législatives en 2016, mais c’est la première fois que les quelque 18 millions d’électeurs choisissaient leurs 395 députés le même jour que leurs représentants communaux et régionaux. Une première qui a contribué à réduire l’abstention.

Ce rendez-vous électoral survient dans un environnement régional sensible dominé par la rupture des relations diplomatiques avec l’Algérie, et des relations crispées avec certains pays européens (notamment l’Espagne et l’Allemagne) autour du dossier du Sahara occidental. Il s’inscrit aussi dans un contexte interne marqué par un tournant sécuritaire du régime, ainsi que l’illustrent les multiples procès intentés ces deux dernières années contre des journalistes et intellectuels critiques.

Des formations jugées proches du roi

Désormais, il revient au monarque de nommer un chef du gouvernement, issu du parti arrivé en tête du scrutin législatif, qui sera chargé de former un exécutif pour un mandat de cinq ans. Il succédera au secrétaire général du PJD, Saad-Eddine El Othmani. Le plus dur commencera alors pour les partis politiques, car ils devront négocier pour adopter « un pacte » afin de mettre en œuvre ce programme. En 2011, le Maroc avait adopté une nouvelle Constitution qui accordait de larges prérogatives au Parlement et au gouvernement.

Toutefois, les décisions et les orientations dans des secteurs clés continuent d’émaner d’initiatives du roi.




Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld

57 ELEPHANTS SOLD BY NAMIBIA

Namibia announced on Wednesday August 11, 2021 that it had sold a third of the 170 elephants it has put up for sale. This semi-arid and sparsely populated country has nearly 28,000 pachyderms, according to official estimates and the government resorted to the sale after it was criticized for shooting elephants in order to control their overpopulation, under the pressure of the drought. and territorial conflicts with humans.

Namibia's environment ministry said in a statement that it “successfully sold 57 of the 170 elephants that were tendered in December 2020”.

The government raised 5.9 million Namibian dollars (340,000 euros) from this sale. Forty-two elephants will be exported to destinations that have not been disclosed. Environment ministry spokesman Romeo Muyunda attributed the low level of sales to buyers' financial means and conditions of sale.

“It's an auction, so buying and selling is done by chance, there is no guarantee neither for the seller nor for the potential buyers,” he said.

Some potential customers may have backed down because “there has been a lot of negative publicity surrounding this sale,” he added.

Namibia announced on Wednesday that it had sold 57 elephants in an attempt to reduce the population of these mammals under pressure from drought and land disputes with humans. A total of 170 elephants were the subject of a call for tenders launched in December 2020.

The government thus collected 5.9 million Namibian dollars (400,000 dollars) thanks to this sale. Forty-two elephants will be exported to destinations the government has not disclosed.



Simon Freeman for DayNewsWorld

STAINLESS STEEL ADVANCED TALIBANS

IN AFGHANISTAN

The Taliban are continuing their inexorable advance, consolidating their position in northern Afghanistan. Insurgents seized on Sunday, September 9, 2021 most of the large city of Kunduz, 300 kilometers north of Kabul, and Sar-e-Pul, 400 kilometers further west. They also took possession of the city of Taloqan, in the northeast of the country.

The defense ministry said government troops were trying to take back crucial areas of Kunduz.

"The capture of Kunduz is really important, because it will [allow] the release of a large number of Taliban fighters who can then be mobilized in other places in the North", underlined Ibraheem Thurial Bahiss, consultant of the International Crisis Group.


The city of 270,000 inhabitants, which had already fallen into the hands of the insurgents in 2015 and 2016, is a strategic crossroads in northern Afghanistan, between Kabul and Tajikistan. At the end of June, the Taliban had taken control of the districts surrounding Kunduz and of the important border post of Shir Khan Bandar, border of Tajikistan, a nerve center for economic relations with Central Asia.

The capture of Kunduz would be the main military success of the Taliban since the beginning of their offensive in May, launched in favor of the withdrawal of international forces, which must be fully completed by August 31. After having seized vast rural territories without meeting much resistance, they concentrate their efforts since the beginning of August on the big cities, encircling several provincial capitals.

Kabul's inability to hold the north of the country could prove decisive for the government's chances of survival. Northern Afghanistan has always been seen as an anti-Taliban stronghold, where resistance to them was greatest when they came to power in the 1990s.

The United States has stepped up its airstrikes, recognized Commander Nicole Ferrara, spokesperson for the central command of the American army: “The American forces have carried out several airstrikes in recent days to defend our Afghan partners. " , He said on Saturday..




Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

FAMINE OF CHILDREN IN MADAGASCAR

Half a million children under five will suffer from acute malnutrition in exceptionally drought-stricken southern Madagascar, the World Food Program (WFP) and Unicef warned on Monday, July 26, 2021.

Children suffering from acute malnutrition will be four times more numerous, compared to the previous assessment in October 2020, warn these UN agencies in a statement, with "irreversible consequences for their growth and development"

“What is currently happening in southern Madagascar is heartbreaking, we cannot turn our backs on these children,” said Moumini Ouedraogo, WFP representative in Madagascar, calling for “redouble efforts” to raise the necessary funds. .

More than a million Malagasy affected

More than 1.14 million Malagasy people, in a vast area like Bulgaria or Cuba (111,200 km2), suffer from hunger.

Some 14,000 Malagasy have already reached level five, the “disaster phase, when people have nothing to eat” and this number could double by October.

The hardest hit region, around Ambovombe-Androy, where global acute malnutrition reaches 27%, "risks experiencing famine if urgent measures are not taken," the statement further warns. However, it is impossible to give a quantified assessment of the number of victims, the authorities not communicating on the subject.

Leather as food

When begging and food waste are no longer enough, many residents are reduced to eating scraps of leather donated by sandal makers

A video by Gail Borgia, a Madagascan journalist, showing a family feeding on zebu skin touched the web. “Message to our dear and handsome president: do you know that some inhabitants eat the soles of zebu leather sandals (yes you read that correctly) because they are starving? They collect the waste from the shoemakers and cook them in water and salt. Or grill them, but it's very, very hard to swallow. I thought I had hit rock bottom but here we are still digging. It is real and it is in 2021. I go from astonishment to astonishment… ”, she wrote on Facebook.

Immediately these images which were broadcast in the newspapers of France24 and TV5Monde were contested by the executive. The governor of the region of Androy, like the former director of communication of the Presidency, Rinah Rakotomanga, denounced a rude manipulation, writes Madagascar-Tribune.

Devastation linked to global warming

The main cause of famine and food problems affecting Madagascar is linked to local climatic conditions. The scarcity of rains for four years has made farming almost impossible. In addition, sandstorms have turned large areas of exploitable land into wasteland. This devastation, linked to global warming according to the UN, is causing the worst drought in 40 years, deplores Amnesty International.

"Three consecutive years of drought have seriously damaged harvests and access to food, in a context today marked by the Covid-19 pandemic", also underlines the organization Doctors Without Borders, which intervenes in the country. "Drastic drops in production of the order of 40 to 60% compared to the average of the last five years" have affected the main crops of the island such as rice, maize or cassava, recalled on April 30 the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The scarcity of staple foods in the markets is also causing prices to soar, UN agencies point out, recalling that they have been working with the government since last year to deal with this famine.

The lack of infrastructure involved

This human catastrophe is aggravated by "weak health structures and limited access to water". Particularly serious this year, the famine phenomenon is indeed not new in Madagascar. The Big Island has known at least 16 food crises since 1896. Beyond the climatic conditions, it is also the isolation of many villages in the south of the country that worsens the situation. Some hamlets are "a day's walk" from the nearest health center, denounces in particular Doctors of the World. A large plan of "141 major projects"was presented by the President of the Republic, Andry Rajoelina, and includes work in the sectors of agriculture and access to water. He also announced on Twitter on July 21 the signing of four agreements with the World Bank. Among the funds allocated to the island, nearly 170 million euros are dedicated to the development of road infrastructure to get the villages out of isolation.

Initially, the populations will thus be able to access international aid more easily.



Simon Freeman for DayNewsWorld

POLITICAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH CRISIS

IN TUNISIA

“We are going through the most delicate moments in the history of Tunisia”. It is with these words that the President of Tunisia, Kaïs Saïed justified Friday evening July 23, his takeover of the country, by granting himself the executive power. "According to the Constitution, I took decisions that the situation requires in order to save Tunisia, the State and the Tunisian people," said the head of state, sparking a wave of enthusiasm in the streets of Tunis and in several major cities of the country.The President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed, also decided on Sunday July 25 to freeze the activities of the Parliament, and thanked the Prime Minister, Hichem Mechichi. Kaïs Saïed thus takes the head of the executive power "with the help of a government" of which he will be in charge of the composition, he specified. He also recovers the head of the national prosecution.

Article 80 of the Tunisian constitution

By regaining control of the executive, the presidency ensures that it is working in accordance with the law. It uses article 80 of the Tunisian constitution, which provides for this possibility in the event of "imminent danger" to "the nation or the security or independence of the country". “Kaïs Saïed indicated that he had activated article 80 of the Constitution, according to which the president can take the necessary measures in the event of imminent danger threatening the institutions and the nation”, decrypts Aude-Annabelle Canesse, researcher specializing in Tunisia within of the CNRS.

Arm wrestling with Ennahdha: "a coup"?

These measures, which should be published in the form of a decree, however, immediately angered the parliamentary Ennahdha party. The party close to the Islamists, Ennahdha, in fact, does not mince words after the presidential announcements. "What Saïed did is a coup that the activists of the Ennahdha party and the Tunisian people will be able to fight," assured on Facebook, according to comments reported by the daily La Presse de Tunisie, the president of Parliament, Rached Ghannouchi. He also criticizes Kais Saied for not having consulted him before taking such a decision, contrary to what Article 80 of the Constitution provides.

As of Monday morning, clashes erupted in front of the Tunisian Parliament between supporters of the president and those of the Islamist-inspired formation. Rached Ghannouchi began a sit-in in front of the chamber on Monday morning, along with his vice-president, and several other deputies from the Ennahdha party, said La Presse de Tunisie. They wanted to enter Parliament, but were prevented from doing so by the army, deployed on site.

A condition has not been met

Full powers may be granted to the President after consultation with the Head of Government, the President of the Assembly of People's Representatives and after having informed the Constitutional Court. A condition that was not respected, notes the academic. And for good reason: no leader has been informed. Above all, "the Constitutional Court has still not been created", she recalls. "While we cannot speak directly of a Coup d'Etat, these decisions do not send very positive signals for democracy," she slips.

A young democracy looking for itself

By activating article 80 of the Constitution, Kais Saied wants to end the instability in the country and the permanent political blockage. The disagreements between the President of the Republic and the President of the Parliament paralyzed the management of the country and the public authorities. Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi was not appointed until September 2020, making him the third head of government in less than a year.

If the 2019 presidential election sees the victory of Kaïs Saïed, an independent and rather progressive candidate, elected with more than 72% of the votes, the legislative elections do not make it possible to constitute an absolute majority. "It is this lack of a clear political majority that has fueled the institutional blockage," explains Béligh Nabli, associate researcher at the Center for International Research (Ceri) of Sciences Po.

"The issue is really to know who actually exercises power within a regime whose nature is quite complex, in particular because the Constitution is recent, the democracy young", continues Béligh Nabli.

Indeed, the current Tunisian regime has only been in place since 2011 after the autocratic ex-president Ben Ali was ousted from power during the Jasmine revolution. The current Constitution is even more recent, adopted in 2014. It provides for a mixed parliamentary system, in which the President of the Republic has only limited prerogatives, mainly in the areas of diplomacy and security. This twist therefore shakes the young Tunisian democracy. With this event, the young democracy is looking for itself, "to know if the Tunisian political regime is rather presidential or parliamentary", analyzes Béligh Nabli.

The political crisis, consequence of the health crisis

The decisions of Kaïs Saïed come after large-scale demonstrations that enamelled the country on Sunday, the feast of the Republic. On Sunday, Tunisians, exasperated by power struggles and the government's contested management of the social and health crisis, took to the streets despite the curfew in Tunis and several other cities. The premises and symbols of the Ennahdha party were targeted by the demonstrators.

The discontent is also linked to the lack of anticipation and coordination of the executive in the face of the health crisis, leaving Tunisia short of oxygen.

The country, which in 2020 had very few cases of Covid-19, now has the highest death rate in Africa and the Arab world, according to the World Health Organization. With nearly 18,000 deaths for 12 million inhabitants, the pandemic causes 150 to 200 deaths per day and suffocates an already fragile health system. So much so that international donations have multiplied in recent days. The country has known three different health ministers since the start of the health crisis.

So many difficulties that President Kaïs Saïd now intends to face, by posing as the sole guarantor of executive power.




Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

COVID A VERY CONCERNING OUTBREAK OF CASES

IN AFRICA

The trajectory of Covid cases in Africa is "very, very worrying," said the WHO emergency manager on Friday, with the spread of more contagious variants and a dangerously low vaccination rate.

According to data collected by the WHO, there were 116,500 new infections in Africa during the week ended June 13, 25,500 more than the previous week.

Dr Ryan pointed out that seen as a whole the continent did not look so badly off, accounting for just over 5% of new cases recorded worldwide last week and 2.2% of deaths. But in some countries infections have doubled and they are on the rise by more than 50% in others. The third wave of Covid-19 cases "is amplifying and accelerating" in Africa with the variants, had already alerted Thursday the office of the World Health Organization (WHO) on the continent, calling for an increase in the supply of vaccines.

Stronger impact

Like Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Director for Africa, Dr Ryan pointed out that the continent is much more vulnerable because it has received so few anti-Covid vaccines, when Europe or the States United have high immunization rates that allow them to return to more normal lives with dramatic declines in infections and deaths.

1% of vaccinated

“The stark reality is that in an area with multiple variants that are more contagious and potentially have a stronger impact, we have left large parts of the population and vulnerable populations in Africa deprived of vaccine protection, while health systems are already fragile, ”said Dr Ryan. "This is the result of an unfair distribution of vaccines."

This is particularly true for Africa where only 1% of the population is fully immunized. Africa had so far been hit less hard by the pandemic than other regions but that does not mean that this will remain the case.

"It is totally premature to think that the next wave in Africa will be just a short rain and not a storm," the doctor said. "I think we have to take what's going on in Africa very, very seriously ".




Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

HISTORY OF FRANCO-TCHADIAN FRIENDSHIP

EMMANUEL MACRON AT THE OBSEQUES

FROM PRESIDENT IDRISS DEBY

The image may look very "Françafrique", as the Parisian underlines it, Emmanuel Macron will attend this Friday morning in N'Djamena, with the Minister of the Quai d'Orsay Jean-Yves Le Drian, at the funeral of the "Marshal of Chad" , President Idriss Déby Itno, killed in action against the rebels of the Fact in the north of the country, then on the scene of the fighting to command the armed forces. I “Idriss Déby, a“ warrior ”had defeated the powerful army of Libyan colonel Gaddafi with his Toyota pick-ups, and overthrew the uncontrollable President Hissène Habré. No French president of the Fifth has ever failed this essential ally in Africa ”.

This professional soldier had just been re-elected for a sixth term at the head of Chad during the presidential election of April 11. He had received 79.32% of the vote according to the provisional official results released on April 19, while his injury had not yet been made public. A plebiscite, while nearly 65% ​​of voters had gone to the polls.

An operation at the border with Libya

Idriss Déby was seriously injured when he went to direct himself, at the age of 68, the fighting of his army in the north of the country against a column of rebels infiltrated, as often, from Libya, several hundred kilometers from N'Djamena . It was there that he was shot, earlier in the weekend. “He took the lead in the heroic fight against the terrorist hordes from Libya. He was wounded during the clashes and died once he was repatriated to N'Djamena ”, detailed on state television the army spokesman, General Azem Bermandoa Agouna. On April 19, Chadian forces claimed to have killed 300 rebels in fighting at the border. Five soldiers had lost their lives there.

A transition ensured by his son

After the death of Chadian President Idriss Déby Itno, who ruled his country for 30 years with an iron fist, his son General Mahamat Idriss Déby is the new strongman of Chad: he takes the head of a military junta and concentrates all the powers. Mahamat Idriss Déby, a young general of the Chadian army aged 37, dissolved the National Assembly and the government. He now occupies the functions of "President of the Republic, Head of State and Supreme Head of the Armed Forces" according to the transitional charter. This 37-year-old four-star general, who has proven himself at the head of the contingentChadian deployed in 2013 in Mali to support the French military intervention "Serval", had been appointed by his father to head the General Directorate of Security Services of State Institutions (DGSSIE), heir to the presidential guard, the best equipped and best organized elite corps in the Chadian army.

"This nevertheless reflects a certain continuity, since it is a military leader who succeeds another soldier, who is more from the same family", reacts Caroline Roussy, researcher at the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (Iris) . And to continue: "What really happened? We have very little information on the circumstances of his death. The transition was resolved extremely quickly, along with the announcement of his death. We can ask ourselves questions. "

For many opponents who have always been repressed by Idriss Déby's regime, this seizure of power is, however, nothing more than a “coup d'état”.

"An institutional coup" for the opposition

Voices are already rising from the ranks of the opposition but also from the army to demand the organization of a national and inclusive dialogue.

About thirty Chadian opposition parties denounced Wednesday "an institutional coup", and called "for the establishment of a transition led by civilians (...) through an inclusive dialogue". The opposition also called for "not to obey the illegal, illegitimate and irregular decisions taken by the Military Transition Committee, in particular the transition charter and the curfew".

Threats are therefore hanging over the new strongman of the regime from all sides. A Zaghawa, like his father. A career soldier, like his father. Young, of course. But Idriss Déby himself came to power at the age of 38, at the head of a rebellion.

With the death of Chadian President Idriss Déby Itno on Tuesday, France loses a pillar of the fight against terrorism in the Sahel. While Chad is the largest contributor to the allied G5-Sahel force, specialists fear that its military commitments will be called into question as Paris plans to gradually reduce its military footprint in the region.

“France is losing an essential ally”.

It is with these words that the French Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, reacted to the death of the Chadian President, Idriss Déby Itno, on Tuesday, April 20.

The man, who ruled the country with an iron fist for thirty years, was a solid partner of Westerners, Paris in the lead, in the fight against jihadism in the Sahel. Military cooperation between France and Chad is old. The French army has been present there almost permanently since the country's independence in 1960.

The future of Operation Barkhane at stake

Chad is thus the first country to support France in the Sahel for the operation “Serval”, launched the same year to stop the advance of jihadist groups towards the south of Mali, which then became “Barkhane”. A dangerous destabilization of the country for the region, would be a nightmare scenario for France too. The future of Operation Barkhane, whose CP is based in N'Djamena, would be at stake. At the beginning of the year, Chad sent a battalion of 1,200 very seasoned soldiers alongside the Barkhane force against the jihadists. in the “three borders” region (Mali-Niger-Burkina Faso).

“Chad is therefore a strategic lock between very unstable areas, Libya, Sudan, the Central African Republic, the Sahel, Boko Haram, etc., lists a soldier close to the issue. Idriss Déby has always been personally and actively involved in these crises ”.

"A strategic lock between very unstable areas"

Chad is also one of the pillars of the G5-Sahel joint force - also made up of Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger - a military coalition that has supported the French military since 2017. On its own, the country provides nearly a third of the armed forces, 1,850 soldiers out of the 6,000 deployed. It is also the only G5 Sahel country to have deployed a battalion outside its national borders, in Niger, in the so-called “three borders” region known to serve as a refuge for Sahelian jihadist groups. In addition to its involvement in the G5-Sahel, the country provides the second largest contingent within the United Nations Mission in Mali (Minusma). The Chadian army a driving force against the jihadist threat

Idriss Déby had made the Chadian army a driving force against the jihadist threat in the Sahel and Lake Chad region. And for Nigeria, a giant of 200 million inhabitants, his death could have serious consequences in the fight against Boko Haram and against the Islamic State group in West Africa (Iswap). If Chad sinks into chaos, it will have direct consequences for Nigeria and Niger. Chad under Déby has been a bulwark against the influx of terrorists from the Sahel to the Lake Chad region. A period of worrying uncertainty begins with the sudden disappearance of Idriss Déby.

"A period of floating"

However, these all-out military commitments could be called into question with the death of President Déby, experts note. The death of the Chadian president risks “introducing uncertainty,” says Yvan Guichaoua, researcher at the University of Kent.

The succession to the head of power in Chad and the fight against rebels from the north will also have a direct impact on security in the Lake Chad region. "It is almost certain that we will see a battle of succession" in N'Djamena, notes the Nigerian risk consultancy firm SBM Intelligence in a report published this week: "This means that the insurgents will have plenty of time to consolidate their base. on the lake and will be able to move around the area to attack the Nigerian army.

The country's stability threatened

On Tuesday, the CMT made a good commitment to organize “free and democratic” elections, but at the end of a “transition period” of eighteen months. This council brings together, in addition to Mahamat Déby Itno, the base of the old system, ie fifteen generals in all. Speaking on state television, the army spokesman, General Azem Bermandoa Agouna, promised that "new republican institutions will be put in place at the end of the transition by the organization of free elections. , democratic and transparent ”.

Will the new strongman of Chad have the leisure to lead this transition to the end? How will he manage to maintain the unity of a system that was already cracking despite the authority and charisma of his father? The resurgence of old rebellions and the appearance of new groups threaten the stability of the country.

Especially since the Front for Alternation and Concord in Chad (FACT), after announcing the day before that his men had operated a tactical withdrawal, the leader of the rebellion Mahamat Mahdi Ali announced that he was marching on the capital city.

"If the constitutional order had been respected, we would have stopped and been ready to discuss.

But there, all the institutions were dissolved and we do not recognize the military council that was put in place. A succession ensured by the son of Déby, it is white bonnet and white bonnet ".



Garett Skyport for DayNewsWorld

IN JORDAN WAVE OF ARRESTS

ON THE BACKGROUND OF THE STRUGGLE FOR POWER

According to the "Washington Post", Prince Hamza was under house arrest after the discovery of a "complex and far-reaching conspiracy" against King Abdullah II.

This plot "included at least one other member of the royal family as well as tribal chiefs and members of the country's security department," added the American daily, citing a senior official in a Middle Eastern intelligence service. East.

In a statement, the Jordanian chief of staff, General Youssef Huneiti, had specified that Prince Hamza had been "called to stop activities that could be used to undermine the stability and security of the kingdom" but had denied his arrest.

The state-run Petra news agency said authorities had arrested a former king's adviser, Bassem Awadallah, and an unknown number of others on “security concerns”. “No one is above the law. Jordan's security and stability come first, ”General Huneiti wrote in the statement. "All the measures that have been taken have been taken within the framework of the law and after a thorough investigation," he added.

A "slander"

The former crown prince and half-brother of King Abdullah II of Jordan, Prince Hamza Ben Hussein, announced that he had been "under house arrest" in his palace in Amman, after being accused by the army of activities against "The security of the kingdom".

In a video transmitted to the BBC by his lawyer, Prince Hamza denied having taken part in a conspiracy and accused the authorities of his country of "corruption" and "incompetence". His mother, Queen Noor, fourth and last wife of the former King Hussein, who died in 1999, denounced on Twitter, Sunday, a "slander" and affirmed "to pray that truth and justice prevail for all innocent victims ”of these arrests.

"I am not part of any plot or any evil organization", defended the prince in the video, regretting that it is no longer possible, according to him, to express his opinion or to criticize the authorities " without being intimidated, harassed or threatened ”. The Jordanian power thinks that "its personal interests , its financial interests, its corruption is more important than the life, the dignity and the future of the ten million people who live here", again accused Prince Hamza.

Stripped of its title

Hamza is the eldest son of King Hussein and his American wife, Queen Noor, née Lisa Halaby. In accordance with the wishes of his father, who died in 1999, he was appointed crown prince when Abdullah became king. But in 2004, Abdallah stripped it of the title and gave it to his eldest son Hussein.

Two allies of Jordan quickly lent their support to King Abdullah II on Saturday.

"King Abdullah is a key partner of the United States, and he has our full support," said US State Department spokesman Ned Price. In Saudi Arabia, the royal palace also tweeted its “full support (…) for the decisions and measures taken by King Abdullah II and Crown Prince Hussein to safeguard security and stability” in the country.

Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have given their support in very similar terms. The wealthy Gulf countries are important partners of Jordan, which depends heavily on international aid. In addition, Egypt expressed its "total solidarity and its support for the Jordanian Hashemite kingdom represented by his majesty Abdallah II", according to the spokesperson of the presidency, Bassem Rady.

The prince's house arrest and arrests took place a few days before the celebration of the kingdom's centenary.

On April 11, 1921, King Abdullah, ruler of the new state of Transjordan, formed his first government, after the creation of the emirate in March 1921, alongside Palestine during the British Mandate.



Garett Skyport for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

TERRORISME AU MOZAMBIQUE

  PALMA TOMBEE AUX MAINS DES DJIHADISTES

La petite ville de Palma, dans le Nord, est tombée aux mains des djihadistes du groupe Al-Shebab, après plusieurs jours d’affrontements avec l’armée.

Depuis samedi, l'extrême nord du Mozambique a basculé.

La ville portuaire de Palma est tombée aux mains d'un groupe djihadiste connu sous le nom de Ahlu Sunna wal Jamaa, ou

« Al-Shebab » ( c'est-à-dire « les jeunes » en arabe).

Cela fait trois ans que cette guérilla djihadiste met sous pression cette région frontalière avec la Tanzanie avec une montée en puissance.

Depuis août 2020, elle contrôle déjà le port stratégique de Mocimboa da Praia, crucial pour l'arrivée du matériel nécessaire aux installations gazières et qui n'a jamais été repris par les militaires mozambicains en dépit de plusieurs tentatives, ces djihadistes sont désormais maîtres d'une bonne partie de la zone côtière.

Violence inouïe et décapitations

L’attaque contre Palma cette ville du bord de l’océan Indien avait débuté mercredi 24 mars 2021. Mercredi, les groupes armés ont lancé une attaque d'envergure contre Palma, simultanément sur trois fronts, le jour même où Total annonçait la reprise des travaux du site d'exploitation gazière, censé être opérationnel en 2024. La ville est tombée entre leurs mains samedi, après trois jours de combats. Le nombre de victimes parmi les civils et les combattants reste inconnu.

Lundi 29 mars au matin, la ville de Palma était toujours plongée dans la violence de l' attaque des militants du groupe djihadiste Ahlu Sunna wal Jamaa, appelés « Al-Chabab ». Au soir du sixième jour de cette attaque, dimanche, le bilan devait déjà se monter à « plusieurs dizaines de victimes », selon un porte-parole de l’armée mozambicaine. Des témoins ont raconté à l'ONG Human Rights Watch qu'ils ont tiré « tous azimuts sur les gens et les bâtiments », laissant une traînée de corps dans les rues.

Un bilan incertain, des milliers d'habitants en fuite

Ce lundi 29 mars, plusieurs agences de l'ONU se sont réunies dans la matinée pour coordonner leurs efforts et organiser le transport vers des zones sûres de milliers de civils ayant fui la ville pour se réfugier dans les forêts et plages environnantes. Mais aussi, en masse, vers le site gazier piloté par Total. Selon une source participant aux opérations d'évacuation, il y aurait entre 6 000 et 10 000 personnes réfugiées à l'intérieur du site ou demandant à l'être, une situation compliquée à gérer d'autant que les travaux de la construction du site gazier, censé être opérationnel en 2024, sont à l'arrêt depuis plusieurs mois.

Les Shebabs terrorisent le nord du Mozambique

Tout a commencé en octobre 2017. Ce jour-là, une trentaine d'hommes armés lancent un raid à l'aube contre trois postes de police à Mocimboa da Praia, ville portuaire de la province de Cabo Delgado, frontalière de la Tanzanie, et à majorité musulmane. C'est le début d'une sanglante guérilla djihadiste qui continue à ravager la province, forçant à ce jour plus de 670 000 personnes à quitter leur foyer, selon l'ONU, et faisant au moins 2 600 morts, dont plus de la moitié de civils, selon l'ONG Acled.

Le mouvement serait né vers 2007, autour d'un groupe baptisé Ansaru-Sunna, qui construit de nouvelles mosquées adoptant un islam rigoriste, selon Éric Morier-Genoud, professeur d'histoire africaine à Belfast. Les autorités locales sous-estiment alors leur capacité de nuisance, qui se nourrit aussi des déçus de l'exportation gazière offshore, qui avant même d'avoir commencé, chasse des habitants de leurs villages et de leurs zones de pêche.Aujourd'hui, la péninsule d'Afungi, centre névralgique des installations gazières représentent l'un des plus gros investissements en Afrique auquel participe notamment le groupe français Total.

Les dirigeants de ces rebelles, surnommés localement « al-shebab », restent un mystère. Mais ils ont fait allégeance au groupe État islamique en 2019. Ils ont incendié de nombreux villages, après les avoir pillés, et pratiquent la décapitation à grande échelle pour terroriser la population. Ils enlèvent aussi jeunes gens et femmes pour grossir leurs rangs. Ils contrôlent une bonne partie de la zone côtière, y compris le port de Mocimboa da Praia, pris en août 2020.

Une armée débordée

Faiblement équipée et peu entraînée, l'armée a d'abord semblé dépassée, dans ce pays d'Afrique australe indépendant du Portugal depuis 1975. Le Mozambique a réussi sa transition démocratique il y a près de 30 ans, à l'issue d'une longue et sanglante guerre civile qui a duré une quinzaine d'années et fait un million de morts, jusqu'à un accord de paix en 1992.

Des milliers de soldats ont été déployés, aboutissant à une accalmie ces derniers mois, mais aussi à la préparation de nouvelles attaques. Les militaires sont « faiblement équipés », commentait Sergio Chichava, de l'université Eduardo Mondlane, à Maputo, et ils s'appuient sur « des armes d'un autre âge ». Washington a annoncé mi-mars l'envoi de forces spéciales américaines pour deux mois de formation. Les autorités ont fait appel à une société militaire privée sud-africaine, Dyck Advisory Group (DAG), pour appuyer les forces de sécurité mozambicaines, qui seraient aussi discrètement épaulées par des mercenaires russes, selon des observateurs.

L'organisation État islamique a revendiqué lundi 29 mars, par le biais de son agence de propagande, l'attaque des derniers jours contre la ville de Palma, dans le nord du Mozambique, a annoncé le service de surveillance des sites Internet islamistes Site.

La prise de la ville de Palma par des terroristes islamistes samedi démontre l'ampleur des défis sécuritaires qui attendent le Mozambique.




Alize Marion pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

LE CANAL DE SUEZ BLOQUE

PAR LE PORTE-CONTENEUR « EVER GIVEN »

L’« Ever-Given », battant pavillon panaméen, s’est mis mardi 23 mars 2021 en travers sur le canal de Suez, voie d’eau essentielle au commerce entre l’Asie et l’Europe. Le porte-conteneurs bloquait encore jeudi 25 mars 2021 au matin l’une des routes commerciales les plus empruntées au monde.Venant de Chine, le navire Ever Given faisait route vers les Pays-Bas mercredi.

L’Autorité du canal de Suez (SCA) a déclaré que le navire avait perdu le contrôle à cause de vents violents atteignant 74 km/h et d’une tempête de sable, courante en Egypte à cette époque de l’année.Selon Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), la compagnie basée à Singapour qui assure la gestion technique du navire, les 25 membres d’équipage sont sains et saufs. Aucune pollution ni dommage sur la cargaison du navire n’ont été signalés.

Et l’opération de déblocage pourrait prendre des semaines.

La société japonaise Shoei Kisen Kaisha, propriétaire du porte-conteneurs, a annoncé ce jeudi qu’elle travaillait avec les autorités du canal pour la remise à flot, mais que l’opération était « extrêmement difficile ». . Selon son exploitant, la compagnie de transport taïwanaise Evergreen Marine Corp, L’Ever-Given, qui se rendait de Yantian, en Chine, à Rotterdam, est un des géants des mers, avec ses 400 mètres de longueur, haut comme un immeuble de 20 étages, et une largeur de 59 mètres transportant quelque 22 000 containers de 20 pieds. Certains experts pensent qu’il faudra décharger les 20.000 conteneurs qu’il transporte pour pouvoir débloquer le navire.

Huit remorqueurs sont engagés dans la course contre la montre pour déplacer le navire de 400 mètres de long, explique le Guardian. Des dragues nettoient le sable et la boue autour du navire, a déclaré Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, directeur technique de l’Ever Given. Des creuseurs sur la berge ont également creusé la partie avant.

Le canal de Suez dans le commerce maritime

Inauguré en 1869, le canal a depuis connu plusieurs phases d’agrandissement et de modernisation afin d’accompagner les évolutions du commerce maritime. En 2015, le président égyptien, Abdel Fattah Al-Sissi, avait inauguré un élargissement du canal moyennant 8 milliards de dollars d’investissement, faisant gagner six heures sur le temps de trajet. Trait d’union entre l’Asie et l’Europe, il permet de réduire drastiquement les distances commerciales : 6.000 km de moins entre Singapour et Rotterdam par exemple, soit une à deux semaines de temps de trajet gagné, par rapport au contournement de l’Afrique.

Dix jours supplémentaires

La seule possibilité pour relier l’Europe à l’Asie ou au Moyen-Orient consiste à mettre le cap vers Bonne-Espérance, à la pointe sud de l’Afrique, soit un détour d’environ 9 000 km et une dizaine de jours de voyage supplémentaires. Le blocage du canal de Suez risque de ralentir un commerce maritime déjà en sous-capacité pour répondre à la demande, avec des prix du fret qui ont été multipliés par 6 ou 8 en quelques mois. Ce point de passage stratégique concentre à lui seul entre 10 % et 12 % du volume du commerce mondial chaque année, un chiffre qui suit la hausse des échanges commerciaux entre l’Asie et l’Europe. En 2019, environ 50 navires par jour sont passés par cette voie, représentant près d’un tiers du trafic mondial de porte-conteneurs.

Selon les décomptes de l’agence Clipper Data, plus de 70 navires attendaient mercredi soir de pouvoir passer par le canal de 193 kilomètres de long qui relie la mer Rouge à la mer Méditerranée. Ils seraient 165 selon la revue Lloyd’s List, spécialisée dans le transport maritime.

Les cours du pétrole ont bondi de presque 6 % dans la seule journée de mercredi, portés par les craintes sur l’approvisionnement en or noir. Selon une note de l’agence américaine de l’énergie datant de juillet 2019, 9 % des produits pétroliers transportés en mer transitent par le canal de Suez et l’oléoduc Sumed, situé à proximité

.« Le canal de Suez prend de l’importance pour le transport de produits pétroliers depuis la Russie et les Etats-Unis vers l’Asie », notait l’agence gouvernementale américaine en 2019.




Paul Emison pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

LE SENEGAL UN PAYS SOUS TENSION

Ousmane Sonko, dont l’arrestation et l’inculpation avaient mis le feu aux poudres, a été placé lundi sous contrôle judiciaire et remis en liberté.

Mais le principal opposant au président Macky Sall est toujours sous le coup d’une accusation de viols qu’il dément, accusant à son tour le pouvoir de vouloir l’empêcher de se représenter à la présidentielle de 2024.

La justice sénégalaise a donc lâché du lest en libérant sous caution Ousmane Sonko, le principal opposant au président Macky Sall.

Mais le pays reste sous tension.

Scènes de guérilla urbaine dans de nombreux quartiers de Dakar mais aussi dans d’autres villes du pays, sièges de médias accusés de proximité avec le pouvoir saccagés, magasins pillés, stations-services détruites, voitures calcinées depuis plusieurs jours… L’expression inouïe d’une violence si rare habituellement révèle de multiples malaises dans un pays habituellement considéré comme un îlot de stabilité en Afrique de l'Ouest.

Depuis des mois, il y a un ras-le-bol généralisé dans la société sénégalaise. Le chômage des jeunes atteint des sommets, l'économie du pays a été très durement touché par le coronavirus. Les émeutes sont le résultat de toutes ces colères mises bout à bout.

Après plusieurs jours de colère violente, plusieurs morts et une mobilisation anti-régime qui dépasse l'affaire Sonko, le Mouvement de défense de la démocratie (M2D) au Sénégal appelle à suspendre les manifestations. Le mouvement regroupe des partis d’opposition, dont le Pastef d’Ousmane Sonko, ainsi que des mouvements comme Y’en a Marre.

Le M2D souhaite donc une pause avant d'en dire plus sur la suite. Un appel à suspendre les manifestations prévues jusqu’à demain. Le mouvement doit tenir une conférence de presse à 17h au siège du parti Pastef pour se prononcer sur « la suite de la lutte ».

Dans son communiqué, le mouvement ne précise pas les raisons de cet appel à suspendre la mobilisation, mais il annonce qu’il réaffirmera « ses exigences dont la libération immédiate, et sans conditions de tous les prisonniers politiques ».

Le mouvement annoncera aussi « un nouveau mot d’ordre concernant la date, le lieu et la forme des prochaines manifestations ».

C'est un nouveau développement, alors que lundi Ousmane Sonko avait appelé à poursuivre la mobilisation de manière pacifique. Dans sa déclaration, l’opposant s’en est pris au président Macky Sall, qu’il accuse d’avoir « trahi le peuple sénégalais ». Pour lui, le chef de l’État « n’est plus légitime » pour diriger le pays. « La révolution est en marche [...], la peur a changé de camp », disait-il. Et il a appelé le chef de l’État à clarifier ses intentions pour la prochaine présidentielle de 2024, à lever le doute sur une éventuelle candidature à un 3e mandat.

Un « appel au calme et à la retenue » du président Sall

Le président Macky Sall s’est, lui aussi, exprimé dans la soirée. Sa déclaration était très attendue après les troubles de ces derniers jours. Il a lancé un « appel au calme et à la retenue ». Dans un message à la Nation diffusé à la télévision nationale d’un peu plus de dix minutes, le chef de l’État a plaidé pour l’apaisement, « le dialogue et la concertation ». Il assure avoir « compris [...] les inquiétudes et préoccupations des jeunes ».

« La colère exprimée ces derniers jours est aussi liée à l’impact d’une crise économique aggravée par la pandémie de Covid-19 », a dit le chef de l’État.

Il promet une réorientation budgétaire pour répondre aux besoins de la jeunesse en matière de formation et d’emploi.




Garett Skyport pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

TROIS SOLDATS FRANCAIS TUES EN OPERATION

AU MALI

Trois soldats français ont été tués en opération au Mali lundi, alors que leur véhicule blindé a été atteint par un engin explosif dans la région de Hombori, a annoncé l'Elysée. L'explosion n'a laissé aucune chance aux soldats. Ces mines artisanales se déclenchent sous la pression d'un véhicule ou par télécommande.

Les décès de ces trois soldats appartenant au 1er régiment de chasseurs de Thierville-sur-Meuse (Meuse) portent à 47 le nombre de soldats français tués dans l'opération Serval.

Il s'agit du brigadier-chef Tanerii Mauri, du chasseur de 1ère classe Quentin Pauchet et du chasseur de 1ère classe Dorian Issakhanian.

Dans un communiqué, le Président de la République Emmanuel Macron a fait part de sa « très grande émotion ».ll a salué « avec le plus grand respect la mémoire de ces militaires, morts pour la France dans l'accomplissement de leur mission ». Il « exprime son entière confiance aux militaires français déployés au Sahel, salue leur courage et rappelle la détermination de la France à poursuivre la lutte contre le terrorisme ».

Composée de 5100 hommes, la force Barkhane opère depuis 2014. Son objectif est de permettre aux forces armées du Sahel de faire face à la menace djihadiste.

Le nord du Mali était tombé en mars-avril 2012 sous la coupe de groupes jihadistes liés à Al-Qaïda, à la faveur de la déroute de l'armée face à la rébellion à dominante touareg, d'abord alliée à ces groupes, qui l'ont ensuite évincée.

Les jihadistes en ont été en grande partie chassés ou dispersés à la suite du lancement en janvier 2013, à l'initiative de la France, d'une intervention militaire, qui se poursuit toujours.

Cependant les violences jihadistes ont non seulement persisté, mais se sont propagées du nord vers le centre du Mali, puis au Burkina Faso et au Niger voisins, se mêlant souvent à des conflits intercommunautaires ayant fait des centaines de morts.




Britney Delsey pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

QUEL BILAN

DIX ANS APRES LES PRINTEMPS ARABES ?

Il y a dix ans, le monde arabe allait vivre une série de révoltes populaires improbables, un puissant souffle de liberté qui dura des mois, avant des lendemains qui déchantent. Popularisés et référencés dans les livres d'histoire sous le nom de « Printemps arabes », les soulèvements de la fin d'année 2010 ont conduit à des résultats disparates, souvent décevants.

De la Tunisie au Yémen en passant par l'Égypte, la Libye ou la Syrie, les manifestations populaires, massives, ont été suivies au mieux de réformes précaires, au pire d'un retour à un ordre autoritaire, voire à d'interminables conflits armés.

Malgré ces revers, la flamme de ce mouvement pro-démocratie ne s'est pas éteinte, comme en témoigne la deuxième série de soulèvements huit ans plus tard au Soudan, en Algérie, en Irak, au Liban.

L'acte désespéré de Mohamed Bouazizi

Le 17 décembre 2010, le suicide d'un petit vendeur ambulant de Tunis déclenchait le Printemps arabe, une vague de révolte inattendue et sans précédent en Afrique du Nord et au Moyen-Orient.

Tout commence le 17 décembre 2010, lorsqu'un jeune vendeur ambulant, Mohamed Bouazizi, excédé par le harcèlement policier, s'immole par le feu devant le gouvernorat de la petite ville défavorisée de Sidi Bouzid, dans le centre de la Tunisie.

Le geste de ce jeune diplômé n'est pas une première, mais son acte désespéré libère une rage jamais vue en Tunisie. Son sort tragique se répand sur les réseaux sociaux naissants. Mohamed Bouazizi décède de ses blessures le 4 janvier 2011, alors que la contestation contre le régime du président tunisien Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, au pouvoir depuis vingt-trois ans, s'est étendue comme une traînée de poudre.

Dix jours plus tard, Ben Ali devient le premier despote arabe contraint de fuir sous la pression de la rue. Exilé en Arabie saoudite, il y mourra dans l'indifférence en 2019. Dans les semaines suivant sa chute, des manifestations pro-démocratie éclatent en Égypte, en Libye, au Yémen...

À partir du 25 janvier, la rage exprimée dans les rues du Caire, la plus grande ville arabe, donne au phénomène le nom de « Printemps arabe ». Le monde regarde, interloqué, tandis que des centaines de milliers de personnes défilent pour exiger le départ du président Hosni Moubarak, au pouvoir depuis 1981.

L'espoir et l'euphorie renvoyés par ces images relayées en boucle sur les chaînes d'informations chassent un temps le fatalisme de la vie politique du Moyen-Orient.

« Dégage! »

D'inspiration tunisienne, une interjection – « Dégage! » (« irhal »!) – et un slogan – « Le peuple veut la chute du régime » (« Al-chaab yourid iskat al-nidham ») – déferlent un peu partout, renforçant le sentiment d'une destinée régionale commune.

Poussées par une soudaine colère devant le chômage, la corruption, la kleptocratie, le coût de la vie, puis, s'enhardissant, l'absence de libertés personnelles et civiles, des foules immenses ont attaqué, et parfois emporté aux cris de « Dégage » et « le peuple veut la chute du régime », des pouvoirs « militaro-mafiosés ».

Ces paroles résument le puissant désir de changement et de liberté parmi des dizaines de millions d'Arabes. C'est le cri d'une génération qui ignorait jusque-là ses propres capacités. Érigé en incantation à force d'être répété, il libère un temps les peuples de leurs peurs.Un nouveau paradigme émerge au Moyen-Orient, basé sur une prise de conscience collective que les tyrans ne sont pas invincibles et que les changements peuvent venir de l'intérieur, et pas seulement du jeu géopolitique mondial.

Ce « printemps arabe », en allusion, notamment, au « printemps des peuples » européens de 1848, a obtenu en deux mois, pacifiquement et avec l'appui in extremis de l'armée, la chute des présidents Ben Ali, en Tunisie, et Hosni Moubarak , en Egypte . Puis une insurrection a suscité la répression sanglante du régime de Mouammar Kadhafi, suscitant l'intervention des armées britannique et française et l'élimination du recordman de longévité des tyrans du globe.Par effet domino, la révolte s'est propagée au Yémen, où le président Ali Abdallah Saleh est tombé fin 2011, et en Syrie.

La contestation a toutefois à peine effleuré les autres pays arabes, l'Algérie, « vaccinée » par le souvenir de la guerre civile, le Maroc ou la Jordanie, qui ont su accorder à temps des concessions politiques mineures, la Mauritanie, le Soudan, qui ont réprimé les manifestations. L'Arabie saoudite a « acheté » la contestation avec l'argent du pétrole et sauvé, manu militari, le régime de Bahreïn.

« Hiver arabe »

Mais le « Printemps » tant attendu fera long feu. Le retour de flamme a été redoutable dans les cinq pays où le « printemps » a clairement visé le renversement du régime, sans doute en raison du manque de tradition démocratique ou d' Etat de droit de la région. Sans oublier le poids des baronnies ethniques et du religieux.

Cette expression a en tout cas vite donné lieu à une expression inverse, mise en avant dans l'ouvrage de l'Américain Noah Feldman :  « Arab Winter » (« L'hiver arabe »). À l'exception de la Tunisie, le vide créé par la chute de régimes vilipendés n'a pas été comblé par les réformes démocratiques réclamées par la rue. Pire, il a parfois donné lieu à des conflits armés.

Ces printemps arabes ont abouti à une seule transition démocratique, en Tunisie ; une révolution sans transition en Libye ; un putschiste contre-révolutionnaire en Égypte ; une transition avortée au Yémen ; et une guerre civile de liquidation en Syrie.

En Égypte, l'élection en 2012 de Mohamed Morsi, un islamiste dont le programme se heurte à l'opposition farouche d'une partie des contestataires, ouvre la voie à son renversement, l'année suivante, par l'armée. Et à une répression sanglante.Le maréchal Abdel Fattah al-Sissi rétablit un régime au moins aussi autoritaire que celui de Moubarak, s'érigeant en rempart contre l'islamisme sous l'œil bienveillant d'un Occident déboussolé et dépassé.

En Libye, les révolutionnaires se sont divisés en une myriade de groupes dans un pays plus que jamais fragmenté et sujet aux ingérences étrangères. Le Yémen, pays le plus pauvre de la péninsule arabique, s'est engouffré dans un conflit civil aux ramifications régionales.

Mais la tombe du Printemps arabe restera la Syrie, où les manifestations pro-démocratie ont mué en un impitoyable conflit avec plus de 380 000 morts et des millions de déplacés. Ici, la tournure des événements et l'inaction internationale ouvrent les portes d'un autre enfer : la répression sans fin, la haine confessionnelle qui se répand, un terreau où les jihadistes de Syrie et d'ailleurs prospèrent. L'expansion des jihadistes atteint son point d'orgue avec la proclamation en 2014 par le groupe État islamique (EI) d'un « califat » à cheval entre la Syrie et l'Irak, presque aussi vaste que la Grande-Bretagne.

Implication des Occidentaux et antiterrorisme

Sont impliqués désormais à divers titres dans le conflit libyen les Occidentaux, l'Egypte, les Emirats arabes unis, la Turquie et la Russie, tandis qu'en Syrie sont intervenues militairement, plus ou moins franchement, absolument toutes les puissances régionales et les grandes puissances mondiales, sauf la Chine. Ces guerres civiles ont aussi favorisé des flux de réfugiés vers l'Europe à l'origine d'une crise migratoire depuis 2015.

De plus la violence extrême des exactions, propagées sur les réseaux sociaux, la capacité de l'EI à attirer des milliers de combattants d'Europe et d'ailleurs et les vagues d'attentats dans le monde entier ont fini d'éteindre en Occident le regard enthousiaste des débuts.

L'attention du monde se focalise sur la lutte antiterroriste plutôt que sur la fin de régimes autocratiques qui ne tardent pas opportunément à se présenter, de nouveau, comme le dernier rempart contre l'islamisme radical.

La Tunisie, « exception du phénomène régional qu'elle a engendré »

À ce titre, la « Révolution du jasmin » en Tunisie, bien que tourmentée, reste l'histoire à succès. L'effusion de sang et les profondes divisions y ont été contenues, le mouvement d'inspiration islamiste Ennahdha, principale force politique du pays, a privilégié le consensus pour mener la transition. « Contrastant avec l'échec en Égypte et le désastre en Syrie, la Tunisie apparaît comme l'exception du phénomène régional qu'elle a engendré », écrit Noah Feldman dans L'hiver arabe.

Mais, là aussi, l'histoire reste inachevée et pour les 11 millions de Tunisiens, les dividendes de la révolte ne sont pas au rendez-vous. Ben Ali est parti, le pays est resté debout, mais la situation économique, un des principaux catalyseurs de la révolte, reste médiocre

Deuxième vague de manifestations en 2018 et la belle surprise du Soudan

Depuis 2018, une deuxième vague de manifestations contre les pouvoirs en place au Soudan, en Algérie, en Irak et au Liban a ravivé les espoirs et semblé prouver la pérennité de l'esprit de 2011 au sein de la jeunesse arabe.

Certes, il a fallu presque dix ans d'infusion après le Printemps arabe, durant lequel des tentatives de contestation avaient été vite réprimées, pour que le Soudan ne renverse à son tour son dictateur, Omar el-Bechir, à la tête d'un régime islamiste depuis trente ans. Mais le résultat, après six mois de désobéissance civile ponctuée par un coup d'Etat semble, pour l'instant, à la hauteur de l'attente. Le gouvernement issu des événements du printemps 2019 mi-civil mi-militaire, assure une transition convaincante sur le plan politique, malgré quelques déceptions et manifestations. Washington a retiré, lundi, le pays de la liste de ceux soutenant le terrorisme.

Des pays, non touchés en 2011, sont loin d’avoir épuisé leurs dynamiques révolutionnaires.

La jeunesse est en effet une génération qui a vécu une expérience humaine unique, qui a appris que libertés individuelle et collective étaient étroitement liées, et revendique une souveraineté populaire.

Elle ne se laissera plus jamais faire, et même dans les pays où l’on a l’impression que plus rien ne se passe, ça bouillonne sous la chape de plomb.




Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld

OPERATION BARKHANE

MORE THAN 50 DJIHADISTS KILLED IN MALI

A major operation has just taken place in Mali against terrorism.

As revealed on Monday by the French Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, who met in Bamako with the Malian transitional authorities, more than 50 jihadists were killed on October 30, 2020, during an operation led by the Barkhane force near the Burkinabe border.

Four jihadists were also taken prisoner and equipment and weapons were confiscated.

"This action, which is an action of opportunity, deals a significant blow to a terrorist group affiliated with Al Kaida, a katiba (fighting unit, editor's note) of Ansarul Islam, near the border with Burkina Faso", detailed the minister.

According to her, the French army spotted a large column of combatants on motorcycles, who “then grouped together and hid under the trees. Barkhane immediately started the operation ”.

This action is part of a campaign led by Operation Barkhane since the beginning of October in the so-called “three borders” area, between Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

Composed of 5,100 men, the Barkhane force has been operating since 2014. Its objective is to enable the armed forces of the Sahel to face the jihadist threat.




Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

QUE DEVIENNENT LES OTAGES SOPHIE PETRONIN ET SOUMAILA CISSE AU MALI

 AVEC LA LIBERATION DE DJIHADISTES ?

Le porte-parole du gouvernement a refusé de commenter les rumeurs d’une libération prochaine de l’otage bordelaise, évoquant un sujet « extrêmement sensible ».

Un développement significatif semblait en effet se profiler ce mardi 6 octobre au Mali dans les efforts pour la libération de la dernière otage française dans le monde, Sophie Pétronin, et celle de l’une des plus hautes personnalités politiques maliennes, Soumaïla Cissé.

La Bordelaise Sophie Pétronin a été enlevée le 24 décembre 2016 par des hommes armés à Gao (nord du Mali), où elle dirigeait depuis des années une organisation d’aide à l’enfance. Elle est supposée avoir été retenue, avec Soumaïla Cissé, ancien ministre, candidat à la présidentielle et chef de l’opposition au Mali, par des groupes islamistes armés liés à Al-Qaïda.

La dernière otage française dans le monde, Sophie Pétronin, et celle de l’une des plus hautes personnalités politiques maliennes, Soumaïla Cissé, seraient imminentes. La famille de Sophie Pétronin a annoncé tard ce mardi 6 octobre sa libération. Mais les autorités françaises n’avaient toujours pas confirmé l’information ce mercredi.

Plus d’une centaine de djihadistes ont été libérés de prison au Mali depuis ce week-end pour obtenir la libération des otages. Le fils de Sophie Pétronin, Sébastien Chadaud, arrivé mardi à Bamako, demeure sans nouvelle.

Une trentaine de jihadistes ont encore été sortis de prison lundi 5 et mardi 6 octobre, après plus d’une centaine pendant le week-end, en relation avec les tentatives pour obtenir la libération de Sophie Pétronin et Soumaïla Cissé, qui seraient détenus par des islamistes armés, ont indiqué des sources proches des tractations s’exprimant sous le couvert de l’anonymat compte tenu de la sensibilité du dossier.

Les autorités françaises et maliennes observent un silence total sur les mouvements qui seraient en cours.

Sophie Pétronin est apparue dans des vidéos diffusées en 2017 et 2018 par le Groupe de soutien à l’islam et aux musulmans (GSIM), alliance de groupes jihadistes affiliée à Al-Qaïda. La dernière où on la voit autrement qu’en photo, publiée mi-juin 2018, la montre très fatiguée, le visage émacié, en appelant au président français Emmanuel Macron. Dans un document ultérieur, une photo la montre alitée. Les images de l’otage n’ont cessé d’alarmer la famille qui la disait malade et craignait pour sa vie. Les proches se sont mobilisés sans désemparer pour sa libération, pressant à différentes reprises le président Emmanuel Macron et le gouvernement français ne pas oublier Sophie Pétronin et d’accepter de négocier avec les ravisseurs. Emmanuel Macron a assuré plusieurs fois que les services français travaillaient à sa libération « sans relâche », mais dans la discrétion.

Soumaïla Cissé, pour sa part, deuxième à trois reprises de l’élection présidentielle, a été kidnappé le 25 mars alors qu’il était en campagne législative dans la région de Tombouctou (nord-ouest). À défaut de preuve formelle, les soupçons pèsent sur le groupe jihadiste d’Amadou Koufa, actif dans le centre du Mali et affilié à Al-Qaïda.

Soumaïla Cissé est la personnalité nationale la plus éminente kidnappée au Mali depuis que les rébellions indépendantistes et jihadistes de 2012 ont plongé le pays dans une crise sécuritaire profonde.

Formation d'un gouvernement et sanctions levées au Mali

La spirale des violences a causé, avec les tensions intercommunautaires, des milliers de morts civils et militaires, malgré le déploiement de forces françaises et internationales, et s’est propagée au Burkino Faso et au Niger voisins.

Le sort de Soumaïla Cissé a constitué un des cris de ralliement de la contestation de plusieurs mois contre l’ancien président Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta. Ce dernier a fini par être renversé par un putsch le 18 août. Les colonels qui l’ont déposé contrôlent la transition politique qu’ils ont eux-mêmes organisée et qui doit ramener les civils au pouvoir sous 18 mois.

Après la formation d’un gouvernement lundi, dans lequel les militaires conservent des postes stratégiques, les Etats ouest-africains ont salué mardi les « avancées notables vers la normalisation constitutionnelle » et décidé de lever les sanctions qu’ils avaient imposées au Mali après le coup d’État.

Au moins huit autres otages occidentaux resteraient détenus au Sahel.




Alize Marion pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

COUP D'ETAT MILITAIRE  ET  DEMISSION

DU PRESIDENT DANS UN MALI EN PROIE

A UNE INSTABILITE CHRONIQUE

Après des mois de troubles, la catastrophe redoutée est survenue. Au Mali, la mutinerie de militaires s'est transformée mardi en coup d'Etat militaire, amenant le président Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (IBK), au pouvoir depuis 2013, à annoncer sa démission

Au Mali, la mutinerie qui a éclaté mardi matin dans la garnison de Kati, à la sortie de la capitale Bamako, s'est muée en putsch. Après avoir pris le contrôle de leur camp, les mutins se sont ensuite dirigés en convoi vers le centre de la capitale, acclamés par des manifestants. La situation a basculé après l'arrestation en fin d'après-midi du président Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, en compagnie de son Premier ministre Boubou Cissé. Emmené dans le camp militaire, « IBK » est apparu vers minuit sur la télévision publique ORTM pour annoncer sa démission, celle de son gouvernement et la dissolution de l'Assemblée nationale. « Et avec toutes les conséquences de droit : la dissolution de l’Assemblée nationale et celle du gouvernement », ajoute-t-il. Dans ces conditions extraordinaires, le chef de l'Etat déchu a toutefois tenu à « remercier le peuple malien de son accompagnement au long de ces longues années et la chaleur de son affection ».

Les militaires qui ont pris le pouvoir ont affirmé vouloir mettre en place une « transition politique civile ». Les militaires assurent que « tous les accords passés seront respectés »" , réaffirmant leur attachement au processus d’Alger, l’accord de paix signé en 2015 entre Bamako et les groupes armés du nord du pays.Ces événements interviennent alors que le pays traverse une grave crise politique depuis plusieurs mois

Un mouvement de contestation né des élections du printemps.

Le coup d'Etat au Mali et l'arrestation du président ont été unanimement condamnés par la communauté internationale, de l'ONU à la Communauté des Etats ouest-africains en passant par la France, qui a déployé 5.100 militaires au Sahel - et en particulier dans ce pays - dans le cadre de l'opération antidjihadiste Barkhane.

Le Mali en proie à une instabilité institutionnelle chronique

La démission d'Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta est la conclusion de la contestation née des élections du printemps. Organisées en mars-avril malgré l'épidémie liée au coronavirus, les législatives ont offert une victoire en demi-teinte au camp présidentiel, sorti affaibli du scrutin. Le contexte était alors déjà lourd puisque le chef de l'opposition, Soumaïla Cissé, a été enlevé juste avant le premier tour. La situation s'est envenimée avec l’invalidation d’une trentaine de résultats des législatives de mars-avril par la Cour constitutionnelle, dont une dizaine en faveur de la majorité du président Keïta.

Une manifestation très suivie le 5 juin a contribué à lancer le mouvement de contestation, emmené par une coalition hétéroclite d'opposants, de responsables religieux et de personnalités de la société civile : c’est le Mouvement du 5 juin-Rassemblement des Forces patriotiques du Mali (M5-RFP), qui mène depuis juin la plus importante contestation du pouvoir depuis le coup d’État de 2012.Le week-end du 10 juillet, une manifestation à l’appel du Mouvement du 5 juin avait dégénéré en trois jours de troubles meurtriers.

IBK se voyait plus largement reprocher son impuissance face à l'insécurité du pays, son marasme économique, et des pratiques de corruption et de népotisme liées à sa gouvernance. La crise politique s'est ensuite accentuée ces deux derniers mois, malgré des gestes d'ouverture du président menacé. Des troubles civils ont fait en juillet plusieurs morts et la médiation menée cet été par l'ex-président nigérian Goodluck Jonathan n'a rien changé à la volonté des manifestants de réclamer le départ du dirigeant.

Le Mali cible d'attaques djihadistes récurrentes.

Le Mali est en outre confronté depuis des années aux attaques jihadistes, auxquelles se mêlent des heurts intercommunautaires. Le pays africain, indépendant de la France depuis 1960, est familier des coups d'Etat. Son premier président, Modibo Keïta, a été renversé en 1968 par le militaire Moussa Traoré, renversé à son tour en 1991 par Amadou Toumani Touré dit  « ATT ». Ce dernier, une fois revenu au pouvoir après une transition démocratique, fut lui-même destitué en 2012 par le putsch du capitaine Amadou Haya Sanogo, peu après l'offensive de rebelles dans le Nord du pays qui ont fini par être évincés par des groupes djihadistes. IBK, lui, était au pouvoir depuis la présidentielle de 2013, après la reprise du territoire par les forces françaises lors de l'opération Serval.

Depuis, la situation s'est détériorée sur le plan sécuritaire. Malgré l'appui français de la force Barkhane, l'armée malienne a subi des défaites face à des groupes touareg et arabes et a été victime de nouvelles attaques djihadistes. Les attentats se sont multipliés dans le pays, revendiqués par une nouvelle coalition terroriste appelée « Groupe de soutien à l'islam et aux musulmans » (GSIM) ou son concurrent, l'État islamique dans le Grand Sahara. Du nord du Mali les violences se sont déplacées vers le centre du pays et ont débordé au Burkina Faso et au Niger. C'est au nom du « chaos, de l'anarchie et de l'insécurité »que le porte-parole des militaires putschistes, Ismaël Wagué, a notamment justifié la nuit dernière le renversement du pouvoir malien.

Ce chef d'état-major adjoint de l'armée de l'air a assuré que la junte ne « tenait pas au pouvoir » mais « à la stabilité du pays » et promettait d'organiser de nouvelles élections générales dans des « délais raisonnables »

Le coup d'Etat a été unanimement condamné. A la demande de la France et du Niger, qui préside actuellement la Cedeao, le Conseil de sécurité de l’ONU doit se réunir en urgence, mercredi 19 août, pour examiner la situation au Mali.




Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

HUIT MORTS DONT PLUSIEURS FRANCAIS

DANS UN ATTENTAT AU NIGER

Huit personnes, dont plusieurs Français membres d'une ONG, sont mortes lors d'une attaque au Niger. Selon une source proche des services de l'environnement nigériens, l’attaque est survenue ce dimanche 9 août 2020 à 11h30 heure locale.

Les victimes ont été tuées par des hommes armés venus à motos dans la zone de Kouré au Niger. La plupart ont été abattues par balles et une femme qui a réussi à s'enfuir a été rattrapée et égorgée.

Un chargeur vidé de ses cartouches a été retrouvé sur place. Selon nos informations, des militaires de Barkhane, la force française chargée de lutter contre les djihadistes au Sahel, se rendaient sur place dimanche dans la soirée en appui aux autorités locales.

Plusieurs salariés de l'ONG Acted

L'ONG Acted a indiqué dans la soirée que « plusieurs salariés » avaient été tués. Avec 800 collaborateurs, cette ONG, qui se charge du « dernier kilomètre dans l'aide humanitaire ».

Une zone touristique réputée

La région de Kouré constitue une attraction touristique du Niger depuis une vingtaine d'années, quand un petit troupeau de girafes peralta, une espèce disparue du reste de la planète, fuyant braconniers et prédateurs, s'y est installé. La zone figure en orange sur la carte émise par le ministère français des Affaires étrangères. Les déplacements y sont « déconseillés, sauf raison impérative ».

Un conseil de défense se tiendra mardi matin « sous l'autorité du président de la République ». mmanuel Macron a dénoncé, dimanche 9 août, « l'attaque meurtrière qui a lâchement frappé un groupe de travailleurs humanitaires » au Niger.

Le président de la République a affirmé que « tous les moyens » seront mis en œuvre pour « élucider » les circonstances de cet « attentat » L'attaque s'est produite dans la région de Kouré à une cinquantaine de kilomètres de la capitale du pays, Niamey, selon l'Elysée.

Le centre du Sahel est touché par les violences djihadistes, souvent entremêlées à des conflits intercommunautaires, qui ont fait 4 000 morts au Mali, au Niger et au Burkina Faso en 2019, selon l’ONU.

Le chef de l'Etat, qui s'est entretenu avec son homologue nigérien Mahamadou Issoufou, a ajouté  que  « leur détermination à poursuivre la lutte en commun contre les groupes terroristes au Sahel » demeurait « intacte ».




Alize Marion pour DayNewsWorld

There are no translations available.

DES MILLIONS D'ENFANTS

AU BORD DE LA FAMINE AU YEMEN

Des millions d’enfants au Yémen risquent de se retrouver « au bord de la famine » en raison du manque d’aide dans le pays en guerre, où l’épidémie de Covid-19 se propage, alerte l’Unicef ce vendredi 26 juin.

Pour l'organisation, la crise humanitaire dans ce pays pauvre de la péninsule arabique, est la pire au monde. Le nombre d’enfants mal nourris pourrait atteindre 2,4 millions d’ici la fin de l’année, soit une hausse de 20 %. Dans le même temps, le taux de mortalité parmi les enfants de moins de cinq ans pour des « causes évitables » pourrait aussi augmenter. De plus 3 millions d’enfants et leurs proches pourraient ne plus avoir accès à l’eau au Yémen, pays aux infrastructures et au système de santé déjà dévastés par le conflit.

L’Unicef appelle à une intervention d'urgence

En l’absence d’une intervention d’urgence, « la communauté internationale enverra un message signifiant que la vie des enfants dans une nation dévastée par les conflits, les maladies et l’effondrement économique, n’a tout simplement pas d’importance », a regretté Sara Beysolow Nyanti, représentante de l’Unicef au Yémen.

L’organisation a réclamé une aide de 461 millions de dollars (près de 411 millions d’euros) pour son action humanitaire au Yémen et 53 millions de dollars (plus de 47 millions d’euros) supplémentaires pour lutter contre le Covid-19 dans ce pays. Malgré l’urgence, seuls 39 % du premier montant et 10 % du second ont été récoltés à ce jour, selon l’Unicef qui pousse la sonnette d’alarme sur la réduction de ses programmes sur le terrain.

Déclenché il y a plus de cinq ans, la guerre au Yémen oppose le pouvoir, appuyé par l’Arabie saoudite, aux rebelles Houthis, soutenus par l’Iran.

Le conflit a fait des dizaines de milliers de morts, la plupart des civils, selon les organisations humanitaires. Plus de trois millions de civils vivent dans des camps de déplacés.




Boby Dean pour DayNewsWorld


73 MILLION AFRICANS

AT THE EDGE OF FAMINE IN 2019

HOW MUCH IN 2020 AFTER CORONAVIRUS ?

The past year, it is Africa that has paid the highest price, with 73 million people affected by famine, according to a UN report released Tuesday, April 21, 2020, which fears that the pandemic Covid- 19 is not an aggravating factor.

73 million people affected by famine

Among the countries whose population is most widely affected by the scourge of famine, South Sudan (61%), Yemen (53%), Afghanistan (37%), but also Syria, Ethiopia , the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan and the northern part of Nigeria.

The number of people at risk of starvation in West Africa could almost triple in three months and affect 50 million people in August, against 17 million in June, alerted Tuesday the non-governmental organization (NGO) Oxfam.

Regional conflicts in particular continue to cause high levels of acute food insecurity "in the Lake Chad basin and the center of the Sahel".

This food insecurity will be compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic. The coronavirus has indeed gradually taken root in Africa, with more than 15,000 cases and 800 deaths recorded on the continent.

However, the countries affected by these food crises have

"a very limited or nonexistent capacity to cope with both the health and economic consequences" of the Covid-19 pandemic, the report specifies.

The impact that the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus could have is likely to hit the vulnerable communities in the poorest countries of the world hard.


Limited capacity to deal with the consequences of coronavirus

To contain the spread of the virus, some African countries have applied a form of containment. Monday April 2 Nigeria extended the confinement for two weeks to Abuja, the federal capital, and Lagos, the most populous city in Africa with 20 million inhabitants. Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Niger have confined their capitals. Kenya has isolated Nairobi from the rest of the country and imposed a night curfew. However in all these cities, millions of people depend on the informal economy to survive and live in slums. 60% of the inhabitants of Nairobi for example live in slums.

The populations therefore have difficulty accessing food markets, and they are facing the start of a rise in prices and a decrease in the availability of certain basic foodstuffs, consequences of the confinements or curfews put in place, of the closure borders and insecurity in certain areas.

Whatever the different types of containment, "containment is impossible to implement and is untenable in most of Africa," argues Jakkie Cilliers, expert at the Institute for Security Studies. You condemn people to choose between starving or getting sick. "

Overwhelming figures for West Africa alone

Some 50 million people are at risk of hunger in West Africa due to the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic added to the problems of drought and insecurity in the region, warned the NGO Oxfam Tuesday April 21.

The number of people in food crisis could more than double in three months, to 50 million in August against 17 million in June, according to Oxfam, which quotes estimates from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) .

Even if some African states have taken social measures - by distributing food, water for free ...
the challenge can only be met on a continent largely dependent on international donors with the help of the latter....



Kelly Donaldson for DayNewsWorld

AT LEAST 24 DEAD IN THE DJIHADIST ATTACK OF A PROTESTANT CHURCH

At least 24 people were killed in the attack on a Protestant church on Sunday February 16, 2020 in a village in northern Burkina Faso. 18 victims were also injured, others abducted.

A new jihadist attack on Sunday February 16, 2020 in a Protestant church in Pansi, a village in northern Burkina Faso, killed 24 people, including the church pastor. A Protestant church in the village of Pansi was attacked on Sunday .

At least 24 people have been killed including the pastor of the church announced the governor of the Sahel region, Colonel Salfo Kaboré.

The latter explained that there were also 18 wounded and "abducted people", adding that this was a provisional assessment. The attack was carried out by an armed terrorist group, according to a security source.

Twenty attackers

The attackers were in their twenties and separated the men and women before attacking the church, according to the mayor of the neighboring commune of Boundoré.

"The wounded were evacuated to Sebba and Dori for appropriate care and the deceased carried to the ground on the same day by the survivors, spontaneously helped by the inhabitants of neighboring villages," added Colonel Salfo Kaboré.

4000 dead last year

Jihadist attacks on churches or Christian clerics have multiplied in recent months in Burkina. On February 10, a jihadist group burst into the town of Sebba, also in northern Burkina Faso, before kidnapping seven people from a pastor's home.

Three days later, five people including the pastor were found dead, while the other two, women, were found safe and sound, according to the governor

In this country bordering Mali and Niger, they have left around 750 dead and 600,000 displaced since 2015, the daily said. In 2019, jihadist attacks in these three countries left 4,000 dead according to the UN .




Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

36 CIVILIANS KILLED IN A TERRORIST ATTACK

IN BURKINA FASO

The horror occurred again in Burkina Faso with the death of 36 civilians in a terrorist attack. The assault took place on a market.

Thirty-six civilians were killed Monday in an attack on villages in northern Burkina Faso, authorities said on Tuesday (January 21st).

"The Burkinabe government has learned with dismay and indignation at the death of 36 Burkinabés in the province of Sanmatenga, following a terrorist attack," said Minister of Communication Remis Fulgance Dandjinou in a press release.

"On Monday January 20, 2020, an armed terrorist group broke into the Nagraogo market, killed 32 of our fellow citizens there, burned the market and, in its fall, killed four others in the village of Alamou. This attack also left three people injured. "

The president, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, decreed a “national mourning of forty-eight hours going from Wednesday January 22 to Thursday January 23”

Faced with these "repeated attacks" against the populations, the government launched a call for "frank collaboration with the defense and security forces and the strengthening of solidarity between Burkinabés".

Also, the Parliament unanimously adopted a law on Tuesday January 21, 2020 allowing the recruitment of local volunteers to support the fight against jihadists. The idea was launched by President Kaboré in November 2019, after the attack on a convoy of a Canadian mining company, which had killed 38 people, in the East.

Burkina Faso, bordering Mali and Niger, is facing jihadist attacks, which have left more than 750 dead and 560,000 displaced since 2015.

According to the United Nations, jihadist attacks in Mali, Niger and Burkina killed 4,000 people in 2019.

Security experts presented a draft new security policy for the country to President Kaboré on Monday.

The French Minister of Armies, Florence Parly, announced on Monday in Bamako, Mali, new military operations to come in the so-called three-border area (Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger), where France and its allies are concentrating their efforts against jihadist expansion.

Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

THE BERLIN SUMMIT ON LIBYA EAST

A LITTLE STEP FORWARD

The Berlin summit, which brought together Sunday January 19 delegations from eleven states and four international organizations - United Nations (UN), European Union (EU), Arab League and African Union (AU) -, concluded with the adoption of a joint declaration opening a hope of appeasement.

The document calls for a "permanent cease-fire" in Libya, to "refrain from any interference in the armed conflict" and to relaunch the "political process" shattered by the Marshal's attack on Tripoli in April 2019 dissident Khalifa Haftar .

Finally, respecting the UN arms embargo, no longer interfering in Libya's internal affairs, this is what the 11 leaders participating in the Berlin conference finally promised. The important thing for Angela Merkel was to finally speak with one voice to support the precarious truce between the two opposing forces in Libya: "We have received the commitment of all participants, they will no longer provide any support to Libya, and should also stop all operations while the ceasefire lasts. Said the Chancellor.

But it is indeed "a small step forward" for Germany, "a very useful conference" for Russia.

"For a sustainable cease-fire"

Fayez al-Sarraj, the head of the government of national unity recognized by the UN in Tripoli, and his rival who controls the eastern Libyan, Marshal Khalifa Haftar, are fighting to take effective control of this oil-rich country and in gas.

If they have not met physically, the two Libyan headliners present in Berlin, Faïez Sarraj, the head of government of "national agreement" (GAN) based in Tripoli, and Khalifa Haftar based in the region of Benghazi ( est), they were both present in Berlin.

Marshal Haftar met Emmanuel Macron who is concerned about the dispatch of pro-Turkish Syrian militiamen and Turkish soldiers in support of Fayez al-Sarraj whom Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also met.

A new military committee »

The two rivals, however, agreed to form a committee to work in the coming days in Geneva to establish a permanent ceasefire, as explained by the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov:

"The new military committee, made up of five representatives from Sarraj and Haftar, will develop, under the supervision of the United Nations, concrete confidence-building measures that will make the ceasefire sustainable. "

The conflict ravaging Libya

Libya has never been able to find stability since the death of General Gaddafi in 2011. In the past nine months, some 280 civilians and more than 2,000 combatants have been killed, according to the UN. Nearly 150,000 Libyans have been forced to flee the fighting.

Between the recent arrival on the ground of Turkish soldiers, the suspected presence of Russian mercenaries and the continuous influx of weapons delivered by several states, the international community fears that the conflict will escalate in this country plunged into chaos since 2011.

No politician has managed to take control of the country since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Two men go to war: Marshal Haftar, the head of the "Libyan National Army" (ANL) controls the east of the country and part of southern Libya.

Supported by Egypt and the allies of Saudi Arabia, it has been trying for months to seize Tripoli, in order to dislodge Fayez al-Sarraj, the Prime Minister recognized by the UN.

On the ground, clashes between the two camps are reported almost daily. And the Haftar camp has blocked Libyan oil exports , the country's only real source of income, on the eve of the Berlin summit.

In this context, Fayez al-Sarraj asked Berlin to send an "international military force" under the aegis of the UN to his country.

Several leaders, including heads of government from Italy and the UK, have said they are open to the idea of ​​sending an international mission, or even a force, to help guarantee a cease-fire.

The number one objective of this summit under the aegis of the UN was to put an end to multiple foreign interference in this state where the clashes are fueled by appetites around its large oil reserves, regional political rivalries and games influence. And relaunch the peace process to prevent Libya from becoming a "second Syria". Objective met even if uncertainties remain.

"We had no illusions about the difficulty of the path we have embarked on," admitted Angela Merkel.

Abby Shelcore for DayNewsWorld

IN ALGERIA THE PRESIDENT HAS PENALTY ELECTED

CONTESTED BY THE STREET

Nearly ten months of a massive and unprecedented popular protest having won President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the Algerians voted on Thursday for his successor.

Abdelmadjid Tebboune, 74, was elected president in the first round of the election on Thursday, December 12, 2019 in Algeria with 58.15% of the vote, according to preliminary results announced on Friday by Mohamed Charfi, the president of the National Authority independent of elections (ANIE).

Presented as the preferred candidate of the army, the septuagenarian, former close to the deposed president, won after a vote marked by a record abstention.

The participation rate was indeed 41.13%, the lowest of all the pluralist presidential elections in the country's history.

There will be no second round in Algeria.

A 74-year-old president.

Abdelmadjid Tebboune was presented by the Algerian press as the favorite and the preferred candidate of the army. Of the five candidates in the running, all born in the house of the regime, he passed for the closest to the strong man of the country, the general of the army Ahmed Gaïd Salah and Bouteflika. But the former Prime Minister sought to get rid of this image and presented himself as the "candidate of the people".

"Your mandate is a born dead mandate. "

In the afternoon, a demonstration against the newly elected president began in downtown Algiers. The latter reacted, saying he wanted to "reach out" to "Hirak", the unprecedented popular protest movement that has been shaking Algeria for almost ten months. But the demonstrators marched en masse, after Friday prayers, to reject this ballot, chanting that "the vote is rigged, your elections do not concern us and your president will not govern us".

The protesters continue to demand the end of the “system” in charge since independence, in 1962, and the departure of all the former supporters or collaborators of the 20 years of presidency Bouteflika.

Boby Dean for DayNewsWorld

54 DEATH IN TERRORIST ATTACK IN MALI

On Friday, November 1, 2019, the Malian army suffered heavy losses in the jihadist attack on one of its military camps in the north-east of the country.

The provisional balance sheet records 54 deaths, including one civilian. Reinforcements were dispatched near the border with Niger to track down the attackers.

Fifty-three Malian soldiers and a civilian were killed Friday, November 1, in a "terrorist attack" against a military camp in Indelimane, near the border with Niger, announced Mali's Minister of Communication Yaya Sangaré on Twitter. This attack has not been claimed.

With the attack on Friday, the Malian army suffers one of its heaviest losses for several years.

Forty soldiers were killed in two jihadist attacks on September 30 in Boulkessy and October 1 Mondoro, localities in the south of the country, near Burkina Faso, according to a report of a Defense Ministry official, according to several sources had been undervalued.

"The situation is under control. Raking and the process of identifying the bodies are continuing, "added the minister, reporting" ten survivors "and" significant material damage "in the locality of Ansongo, in the sector of Menaka (South-East) .

The Malian government announced on Friday night that it "condemned" this "terrorist attack that killed, wounded many and material damage on the side of the National Defense and Security Forces," according to a statement "Reinforcements have were dispatched to secure the area and track down the attackers, "added Bamako, without giving details of them. Malian soldiers are also reported missing.

Northern Mali had fallen in March-April 2012 under the guise of jihadist groups linked to al-Qaeda, thanks to the defeat of the army against the rebellion dominant Tuareg, first allied with these groups, which then ousted him.

The jihadists were largely driven out or dispersed following the launch in January 2013, at the initiative of France, of a military intervention, which continues.

However, jihadist violence not only persisted, but spread from north to central Mali, then to neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger, often intermingling with inter-communal conflicts that left hundreds dead.

Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld

KAIS SAIED CONSERVATIVE AT THE HEAD OF TUNISIA

Kaïs Saïed winner of the presidential election against Nabil Karoui according to unfinalized figures, with 72% of the vote.

A lawyer known for his societal conservatism but with still vague intentions, 61-year-old Kaïs Saïed came out ahead of his opponent, businessman Nabil Karoui, who was prosecuted for tax evasion.

He had already led the first round on September 15, with 18.4% of the vote, after a low-cost campaign on his own money.

At the announcement of the first results the winner thanked "the young people who opened a new page of history", in front of his supporters gathered in a hotel in the center of Tunis. "We will try to build a new Tunisia," he said, "I know the extent of responsibility," he said.

An atypical politician

Born on February 22nd, 1958 in a family originating from Beni Khiar on the east coast of Tunisia, son of an official of the municipality and a mother educated but remained at home, he grew up in Rades, suburb of the middle class in the south of Tunis. He does all his studies in Tunisian public education.

Graduated at the age of 28 at the International Academy of Constitutional Law in Tunis, he was assistant professor in Sousse (center-east), where he briefly headed a public law department. From 1999 until 2018, he teaches at the Faculty of Legal and Political Sciences of Tunis. He retired from the public university in 2018. A specialist in constitutional law, he made himself known to the general public by commenting on the 2014 constitution of the young Tunisian democracy on television sets.

Without any experience of power and without party, this austere man owes his meteoric rise to the rejection by the Tunisians of the system and the ruling class and not to his electoral platform.

No political program

Indeed Kaïs Saïed did not present any electoral program. But he is for a participatory democracy: he intends to give, through local assemblies , reverse governance that would make the ground a democratic place of proposals, to the detriment of Parliament. To do this, it would have to amend the Constitution with the support of part of Parliament.

In addition, he is known for his socially conservative positions that have earned him accusations of fundamentalism. But his political speech is not based on any religious references. And he promised not to come back on newly acquired rights by women

The one nicknamed Robocop for his chopped debit will have for first challenge to widen the restricted circle of his collaborators, currently composed of a handful of passionate followers, but without experience of power.

Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld

LEGISLATIVES IN TUNISIA PARTI ISLAMISTE

ENNAHDA IN HEAD AND LIBERATION OF NABIL KAROUI

Presidential candidate Nabil Karoui, accused with his brother Ghazi for money laundering and tax evasion, was released four days before the second round, while at the same time, the official results confirm a halftone victory. Islamists in the legislative.

The political landscape remains more fragmented than ever. According to the official preliminary results announced Wednesday, October 9 evening by the Independent Higher Authority for the elections (Isie), the Islamist-inspired party Ennahda has won the legislative elections on Sunday winning 52 seats out of 217. But he will not be able to form a single government, placing itself very far from the required majority of 109 votes.

Errahma is led by a controversial imam, Said Jaziri, known for his preaching and his radio, Koran Karim, which is widely listened to even though it is broadcasting illegally. Ennahda leader Rached Ghannouchi was elected deputy in Tunis. In second place, Nabil Karoui's party, Qalb Tounes, created in June, returns to Parliament with 38 seats.

The Social Democrat Party Attayar ("Democratic Stream") of human rights activist Mohammed Abbou won 22 seats. Karama, an Islamo-populist movement recently formed by a lawyer known to have defended suspected Salafists Seifeddine Makhlouf, won 21 seats.

The Free Destour Party of anti-Islamist lawyer Abir Moussi won 17 seats. Candidate disappointed in the presidential election, Mrs. Moussi, who defended the regime of ousted president Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, is elected deputy of Tunis.

Results that only confirm the fragmentation of Parliament and augur hard negotiations for the formation of a government.

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

HOUSE OF HORROR IN NIGERIA

MORE THAN 300 BOYS TORTURES

IN A CORANIC SCHOOL

Police in Kaduna, northern Nigeria, discovered more than 300 boys in

"Different nationalities", including minors, victims of torture and rape in a so-called Islamic teaching center.

It was a raid conducted Thursday evening in a house in the Rigasa district that led to the discovery of boys between 8 and 18 years old living in

"Inhuman and degrading conditions under the guise of teaching them the Qur'an and straightening them," said Kaduna State Police spokesman Yakubu Sabo.

The owner of the establishment and his six assistants were arrested, he said.

"We found about 100 students, including children as young as nine years old, chained in a small room, with the goal of correcting and empowering them," said Sabo, adding that many of them wore lacerations on the body.

"The victims have been abused. Some of them said they were raped by their teachers, "added Sabo. The police also found a "torture chamber" where students were hung up on chains and beaten when teachers thought they had done something wrong.

«Correction houses»

The police raid was launched following repeated complaints from neighbors who suspected that something was wrong inside the school.

The school was opened about ten years ago. It housed petty criminals or drug users that their families brought to get them back on track.

Northern Nigeria, which is predominantly Muslim, hosts a large number of more or less formal "correctional homes" providing strict religious education in the absence of public facilities to take care of young people on their own.

Kelly Donaldson for DayNewsWorld

ANTI-SISSI PROTEST IN EGYPT

For the second day in a row, demonstrators defied Egyptian power. Protesters demanding the departure of President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi gathered on the night of Saturday 21 to Sunday 22 October in Suez before being dispersed by the police.

"Sissi go away," chanted the demonstrators, "we will not leave, it is he who must leave". However, there were only a few hundred on the streets, opposition demonstrations being banned in Egypt since the military coup in 2013. There would have been a little more than 70 arrests.

It was at the call of an Egyptian businessman Mohamed Aly, in exile in Spain that they took to the streets, Cairo, and other cities of the country including Suez and Alexandria. This contractor in the construction sector has published several viral videos since early September calling for the overthrow of Sissi and military, which he accuses of corruption. Mohamed Aly, called Saturday for a "march of a million" of people for Friday, September 27.

The president has denied all these allegations: "These are lies and they are meant to break the will of the Egyptians and make them lose all hope and confidence in themselves". Abdel Fattah al-Sissi regularly prides himself on leading a safe and stable country, unlike other countries in the region, such as neighboring Libya. However, jihadists are active in some parts of the country, as in the Sinai Peninsula.

Egypt lives under a state of emergency. The regime leads a fierce crackdown on the opposition, imprisoning Islamists, activists or bloggers.

Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

DEATH OF TUNISIAN DICTATOR BEN ALI

The ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, 83, head of Tunisia from 1987 to 2011, died Thursday, September 19, 2019 in Saudi Arabia, where he lived in exile since the revolution of 2011, said the Tunisian Ministry Foreign Affairs. "We had confirmation of his death 30 minutes ago," added the ministry, without further details.

A week before his death, he was admitted to the hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. His family announced that his body must be transported to Mecca on Friday, where his burial will take place.

More than two decades of repressive power

He succeeded the father of independence, Habib Bourguiba, in 1987 "by a medical stroke" to spend twenty-three years in power, without sharing, before being swept away in January 2011 by the Jasmine Revolution. He fled, on January 14, 2011, in incredible conditions, to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he had lived since in exile with his family.

In the early 1990s, the leader of Carthage announced he discovered the existence of an "Islamist conspiracy" to seize power through violence. This career soldier trained partly in France (Saint-Cyr) and in the United States then quickly establishes an ultra-repressive regime. The arrests begin in the ranks of Ennahdha. Huge trials are organized. Torture is systematized in the offices of the Ministry of the Interior. With the support of the police apparatus any dispute is stifled, the press and the unions muzzled.

During twenty-three years of an authoritarian regime he will maintain excellent relations with Western countries that appreciate his economic results (10 million tourists, 6% growth) and his fight against Islamism.

To the repressive regime introduced by the rais is added the monopolization of the wealth of the country by the family.

Capitalization of the country's wealth by the clan

In second marriage, the president married Leïla Trabelsi, a former hairdresser of twenty-one years younger. Then begins an era of corruption and nepotism, the beautiful family handing over wealth of the country with impunity and placing relatives in key positions. Banks, telecoms, tourism, etc. partly pass into the hands of the beautiful family, the Trabelsi, the Ben Ali, the Materi. The World Bank will estimate the hijacking of 5 billion euros, with nearly a quarter of private sector profits going into the pockets of Ben Ali clans.

If the coast of Tunisia enjoys a certain prosperity thanks to tourism, the situation in the interior of the country deteriorates the mining basin not benefitting from the economic consequences of this success. In 2008, riots broke out, violently repressed. It is the beginning of a gear that will be fatal to Ben Ali who, reelected in 2009 with 90% of the vote, does not meet the expectations of the population.

Immolation of Mohammed Bouazizi and protest movement

On December 17, 2010, Mohamed Bouazizi, a 26-year-old unemployed student, set himself on fire in front of the headquarters of Sidi Bouzid governorate, a small town in the center of the country because the police just confiscated the fruits and vegetables he he was selling to support his family on the grounds that he did not have a permit. What is lived as an unbearable humiliation. This desperate gesture will lead to the uprising of his compatriots and lead to the fall of Ben Ali.

A wave of protest sweeps across the country to Tunis where on January 14, 2011, 50,000 people are massed in front of the Ministry of the Interior. At 5:40 pm, the presidential plane takes off. On board, the president, his wife and their children who go into exile in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

In 2018, after trials in absentia for "intentional homicide", "abuse of power" or "embezzlement", he was sentenced in absentia to multiple prison terms, including several in perpetuity.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

TWO CANDIDATES ANTI-SYSTEMS QUALIFIED AT THE SECOND TOUR IN TUNISIA

Jailed businessman Nabil Karoui and independent academic Kais Saied, two "anti - system" candidates, said Sunday night they qualified for Tunisia 's second round of presidential elections based on two convergent polls.

Kaïs Saïed comes first in the first round of the Tunisian presidential election with 19% of the vote, announced Monday the Elections Authority (Isie), ahead of Nabil Karoui by 4 points. The elbow-shaped candidate of the Islamist-inspired party Ennahdha, Abdelfattah Mourou comes third with 11 to 12%, far ahead of the Prime Minister Youssef Chahed, located between 7 and 8% according to these polls

"We hope that he will be released tomorrow and that he can campaign fairly," Nabil Karoui's wife, Salwa Smaoui, told reporters before reading a letter written by her husband.

"We hope for this second round that the injustice stops and that the electoral competition is fair to both candidates, with full respect for the Constitution, laws and the will of citizens and voters," she said. read.

A campaign around the rejection of elites

Seven million voters were called Sunday to go to the polls for the first round of the presidential election, disputed by 26 candidates, which took place amid a serious economic and social crisis.

The participation was 45.02% according to figures still provisional of Isie, a low rate compared to 64% recorded during the first round of the presidential election of 2014 which shows the disaffection of the population towards the policies and more precisely a rejection of traditional political elites.

Kaïs Saïed and Nabil Karoui both campaigned on the rejection of political elites.

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

RETURN ON THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF ZIMBABWE

ROBERT MUGABE

Former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe died in Singapore on Friday, September 6th, at the age of 95.

"It is with great sadness that I announce the death of Zimbabwe's founding father and former President Robert Mugabe," said Emmerson Mnangagwa, the country's current president.

Why during his reign of thirty-seven years, until his fall in 2017, did this man go from being a liberating hero to being a ruthless despot ?

Robert Mugabe, ousted in 2017, was the last of the giants of his generation - after Nelson Mendela or Tanzanian president Julius Nyerere - to be alive. But it is alone and isolated that he died, far from his African land, in a hospital room in Singapore.

From hero of independence to despot

For the one who was the liberator of his colonized country then called Rhodesia, white and segregationist, also embodies the tyrant who led and shaped his country with an iron fist during his reign of thirty-seven years and precipitated the economic ruin of his country: "the leader of Zimbabwe has turned the former breadbasket of southern Africa into a land of violence and misery."

This hero of independence proclaimed in 1980 had made a bet, in the name of the unity of the people, of the policy of reconciliation. "You were my enemies yesterday, you are now my friends," assured the former guerrilla leader, even giving key ministerial positions to whites and allowing even their leader, Ian Smith, to stay. in the country.

In a short time the country then knows a better economic being. Seduced by Marxism, Africa's oldest leader discovers politics at the University of Fort Hare that he applies with the construction of schools, health centers and new housing for the black majority.

But that is without counting with its implacable political repression against the opponents, the authoritarian drift, the electoral frauds and especially its violent agrarian reform which precipitates the ruin of the economy. In 1985, liquidity is lacking, 90% of Zimbabweans are unemployed, civil servants are no longer paid. The country is sinking into misery, corruption and instability.

A pariah on the international scene obsessed with power

The one who up to then embodied the success of Africa for Westerners, then joined the ranks of pariahs banned from the international scene.

The president of Zimbabwe, released by the army, his party, Zanu-PF, and the street, is pushed to resign on November 21, 2017. He is then 93 years old.

"Mugabe has remained in power by (...) crushing his opponents, violating justice, trampling on the right to property, cracking down on the independent press and rigging elections," says his biographer Martin Meredith.

In December 2016, he had been elected presidential candidate of 2018 by his party. He had promised to wish his "100 years" to power, but he died before.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

SILENT EXTINCTION OF GIRAFFE IN AFRICA

Does the "silent extinction" of giraffes threaten the African continent ?

At the continental scale, the population of these mammals has indeed decreased by about 40% between 1985 and 2015, to reach 98,000 individuals, according to figures compiled by the International Union for the Protection of Nature (IUCN) .


However, the NGO identifies distinct regional dynamics.

In Somalia, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic, for example, conflicts encourage poaching and make it almost impossible to study and protect giraffes.

In eastern Africa, the crawling giraffe - one of four major species of giraffe - has lost about 60% of its individuals. The Nubian Giraffe, meanwhile, has experienced a tragic decline of 97% while in Central Africa, the giraffe population of Kordofan has decreased by 85%.

Only southern Africa is experiencing an increase in the number of giraffes.

The giraffe is an animal that arouses little interest among researchers, its gradual extinction risk going unnoticed !

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

HISTORIC AGREEMENT IN SUDAN

BETWEEN MILITARY AND CIVILIANS

The ruling military and the leaders of the Sudanese protest sealed a historic agreement this Saturday, paving the way for a transfer of power to civilians. A ceremony was held Saturday afternoon in Khartoum on the banks of the Nile for the signing of documents that define the 39 months of transition to come.

With this signing, Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, number two of the Military Council, and Ahmed Al-Rabie, representative of the Alliance for Freedom and Change (ALC) and spearhead of the challenge, thus open the way to a transfer of power to civilians.

The agreement reached in early August ended nearly eight months of an unprecedented protest that led to the fall of President Omar al-Bashir on April 11, after 30 years in power, before turning against the generals. of the Transitional Military Council that has taken over.

"Civil power"

Concluded through a mediation by Ethiopia and the African Union, this agreement was greeted with relief from both sides as protesters celebrated the victory of their "revolution".

The early stages of the transition should follow the signing with the announcement Sunday of the composition of the majority sovereign council made up of civilians who must lead the transition. On Thursday, the Alliance for Freedom and Change (ALC), the spearhead of the protest, appointed Abdallah Hamdok, a former UN economist, to become prime minister. The Sovereign Council must announce Tuesday if he confirms it to this post.

Limit the power of the military elite

Elections are scheduled for 2022. The military is a minority in the 11 members of the Sovereign Council which must govern 40 million Sudanese, even if it will first be led by a general for 21 months. And if the Ministers of the Interior and Defense will be chosen by the military.

The first stages of the transition should follow the signing with the announcement on Sunday of the composition of the Sovereign Council in majority consisting of civilians (6 civilians against 5 military) who must lead the transition. Thursday, August 15, the Alliance for Freedom and Change (ALC), the spearhead of the challenge, has appointed Abdallah Hamdok, a former economist of the United Nations (UN), to become prime minister. The Sovereign Council must announce Tuesday if he confirms it to this post. Mr. Hamdok will then have the daunting task of raising the economy of the country that collapsed after the secession of the South in 2011, depriving it of three quarters of its oil reserves.

Elections are scheduled for 2022.

If the military is a minority in the Sovereign Council (11 members) which is to govern 40 million Sudanese, it will be first led by a general for twenty-one months. And the ministers of the interior and the defense will be chosen by the military.

"The biggest challenge for the government will be the dismantling of the Islamist [informal entities] that have taken control of all state institutions and key sectors of the economy," said Rosalind Marsden of Chatham House think tank established in London.

A historic agreement in a country devastated by thirty years of calamitous management and an authoritarian and corrupt power based on the Islamic legal code.

Jaimie Potts for DayNewsWorld

EBOLA IN THE DRC A GLOBAL HEALTH EMERGENCY

More than 1800 deaths. It's been a year since the north-eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is plagued by the tenth Ebola epidemic in the country, by far the worst. But one year after the return of the virus in the DRC, the epidemiological situation seems out of control.

The epicenters have indeed moved from North Kivu to Ituri to multiply on several fronts. Until then, Goma, the capital of North Kivu in eastern DRC, had been spared Ebola but four cases were recently diagnosed in Goma. The haemorrhagic fever killed 1,737 people in one year in eastern DRC and the cumulative number of cases is 2,578, of which 2,484 are confirmed and 94 are probable, according to the bulletin of the Ministry of the Interior dated Sunday, July 21, 2019.

Global health emergency

"It is time for the world to take note of the situation and redouble efforts," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO). The United Nations (UN) agency, which coordinates the Riposte, the coordination structure of the fight against Ebola, in support of the Congolese authorities, ended up decree, July 17, the state of health emergency world.

But the activities of the structure in charge of the fight against the epidemic face two major challenges: the attacks of armed groups and the mistrust of part of the population fueled by the lack of resources implemented.

"The most important challenge is to avoid any interruption of the Riposte by attacks by armed groups," insists David Gressly, UN coordinator for emergency response to Ebola.

The mistrust of the population

Added to this is the mistrust of some of the people who perceive the Riposte as an instrument of contested political power in Kinshasa.

At the outbreak of the epidemic, the teams sent by the Congolese Ministry of Health and the WHO have in fact preferred local elected officials to community structures and the political elite to customary chiefdoms, often more influential. A strategy that turned out to be a big mistake.

"The Riposte (...) gave the impression of being politicized," said Rachel Sweet, a researcher at Harvard University, which has been a major obstacle and has favored instrumentalizations by local politicians, the spread rumors and incitement to violence. "

Disagreements about health policy were also added. A second "experimental" vaccine produced by a Belgian laboratory would have been used, according to the retired health minister, Dr Oly Ilunga. For now, only the vaccine, also experimental, Merck US laboratory is used.

In addition, the lack of vaccines and opaque management of dose reserves by WHO have been denounced.

A new care strategy adopted by the new president

To remedy the lack of effectiveness of the fight against Ebola led by the Ministry of Health, the new president, Felix Tshisekedi, has adopted a new strategy by entrusting the management of the Riposte to a committee of experts led by Professor Jean -Jacques Muyembe Tamfum, who co-discovered the Ebola virus in 1976. This renowned scientist aims to overcome this epidemic in "three to four months".

Ebola haemorrhagic fever is a concern in Africa in the Great Lakes. Identified in 1976 in the DRC, it appeared in December 2013 in southern Guinea and marked the beginning of a deadly epidemic, with some 11,000 deaths in March 2015 also affecting Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The World Bank, aware of the "health emergency" has just announced the award of 300 million dollars (271 million euros) for this new phase of fight against Ebola.

Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld

TUNISIAN PRESIDENT HONORS KEY MAN OF DEMOCRATIC TRANSITION

Several days of national mourning were decreed in Tunisia after the announcement of the death of President Beji Caid Essebsi. Beji Caid Essebsi, the first directly elected head of state since the 2011 revolution, died Thursday, July 25 at the age of 92. Béji Caïd Essebsi must be buried alongside his family members in the Djellaz cemetery, 25 km from the Carthage Palace he occupied since 2014.

National funerals are scheduled this Saturday in the presence of several heads of state. Around the world, tributes are multiplying to commend the role played by this president, the first Tunisian president democratically elected by universal suffrage in 2014. The boss of the UN Antonio Guterres has praised his role "determining to lead the country and the head of European diplomacy, Federica Mogherini, lamented the loss of one of the "most competent and persevering" Tunisian leaders [...]. Berlin, Rome, Rabat and several Gulf monarchies also paid tribute to him. Algeria declared mourning for three days, as did Mauritania. Donald Trump paid tribute to Béji Caïd Essebsi's "phenomenal leadership". "President Caid Essebsi was an indefatigable defender of the Tunisian people," the US president said in a White House statement.

"A phenomenal leadership," according to Donald Trump.

Beji Caid Essebsi played a key role in the democratic transition initiated by Tunisia in 2011 after the fall of Ben Ali. The power-sharing agreement it had made between his party, Nidaa Tounes, and the Islamists in Ennahda helped to stabilize the political situation and avoid the autocratic drift seen in other countries affected by the "spring Arabic ". This bet of reconciliation with the Islamists will have avoided the country the chaos experienced by other "Arab Spring". If he saved Tunisia from the rise of extremes, Essebsi, however, was unable to deepen the democratic project dreamed of by the protagonists of the 2011 revolution. And although he reiterated that the rights of the man were one of the gains of the young democracy, the Tunisian president bore badly the criticisms coming in particular from certain media. Moreover, the dynastic drift of the presidential power, which saw him soften the ambitions of his son Hafedh, has also been controversial. The "Sheik" failed to complete his project of equal inheritance between men and women. President Béji Caïd Essebsi died a few months before the end of his term in December.

The future of Tunisia

Upon the announcement of the death of the president, the head of Parliament, Mohamed Ennaceur, 85 years, was sworn in to act in accordance with the Constitution. It provides that this interim does not exceed 90 days, ie until the end of October. Tunisia is thus preparing to undergo an acceleration of its electoral calendar, the legal term of the five-year term of Mr. Essebsi having been initially fixed in mid-November. Legislative elections, another equally sensitive deadline, are scheduled for 6 October. The electoral autumn promises to be loaded for Tunisians. The stakes of this new political cycle - the second presidential and third legislative elections since 2011 - are crucial. It is that of the rooting of democracy in this country of North Africa, both pioneer and sole survivor of the wave of the "Arab Spring" of 2011 . Many Tunisians have emphasized this rapid transition as their country is the only one of the Arab states affected by the 2011 protests to continue on the path of democratization.

However, there are still many challenges to Tunisia, such as jihadist attacks, clan fighting and economic wait-and-seeism.

The democratic transition remains fragile in this pioneer Arab spring even if, according to some analysts, the death of the president should not cause political upheaval in Tunisia.

Garett Skyport for DayNewsWorld

TOWARDS THE END OF THE SUDANESE SPRING ?

A small history

After months of peaceful protests, the Sudanese protest is now being violently repressed. On June 3, more than 100 civilians, according to the opposition, were killed in an assault by order of the military.

For many, this coup could mark the end of the "Sudanese Spring". But opposition and protesters want to keep up the pressure for a transfer of power to civilians.

Since the bloody dispersal of Sudanese protesters' sit-in in front of army headquarters in Khartoum on 3 June, 118 people have been killed and more than 500 wounded, according to the opposition. But the protesters intend to keep the pressure on the generals in power.

The Transitional Military Council has been in power since the April 11 dismissal of President Omar al-Bashir by the army, under pressure from the protest movement launched on 19 December in a climate of acute economic crisis.

A blocked political process between military and civilians

The protest calls for a transfer of power to a civilian government. Negotiations have been suspended since May 20 due to differences over the composition of a new body that would be responsible for leading the transition for three years.

After the fall of Omar al-Bashir, protesters maintained a sit-in installed since April 6 in front of army headquarters to demand the transfer of power to civilians. Both sides then began discussions on the transition period but failed to agree.

Born in December of anger against the tripling of the price of bread, the dispute quickly took a political turn.

The standoff took a bloody turn with the violent dispersion of the sit-in in Khartoum on June 3. After four days of repression, and despite the mediation of Mr. Ahmed, the protest launched on Sunday a civil disobedience movement.

Suppression of the sit-in and 118 dead

The announcement of the resumption of negotiations comes as the leaders of the protest had announced Monday night that they will soon publish the composition of their own governing body with a Prime Minister.

She also intervenes the day after the announcement of the visit this week of the US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, Tibor Nagy. The State Department said the envoy would call "at the end of attacks against civilians".

According to a committee of doctors close to the protest, 118 people have died and more than 500 have been wounded since then, the majority in the dispersal of the sit-in. The authorities estimate 61 deaths, including 49 by "live ammunition" in Khartoum. On Tuesday, vehicles equipped with Rapid Support Forces (RSF) machine guns - paramilitaries accused of disputing the spread of the sit-in and the crackdown that followed - continued to patrol in several districts of the capital, mostly deserts.

Meanwhile, nine people were killed on Monday in al-Dalij village in western Darfur, a region wounded since 2003 by a civil war, according to a committee of doctors who blame Janjaweed militias for atrocities in the country. the region. The RSFs are considered by the protest and by experts as a "new version" of the Janjawid.

Resumption of negotiations

The Sudanese opposition and the Transitional Military Council (TMC) have agreed to resume talks on the formation of a new administration, Ethiopian mediator Mahmoud Dirir said Tuesday after more than three days of near-paralysis in Khartoum, the capital of Somalia. country.

The Sudanese protest has indeed agreed to end the civil disobedience movement launched after the start of a deadly crackdown and resume discussions with the military in power to find a way out of the crisis.

The Alliance for Freedom and Change (ALC), the spearhead of the protest, immediately called on the Sudanese to "get back to work on Wednesday," after more than three days of near-paralysis in the capital.

UN Security Council condemns violence

"The ALC agreed to end the civil disobedience movement from today" and "the two sides agreed to resume the talks soon," Drir said Tuesday.

In a statement, Council members called for the immediate end of violence against civilians and stressed the importance of respect for human rights.

George Clooney, very committed to Darfur

In an editorial co-signed with human rights activist John Prendergast and published in Politico, US actor George Clooney urged the international community to track dirty money from Sudan in the hope that the military will change its attitude towards events.

Jaimie Potts for DayNewsWorld

DOUBLE TERRORIST ATTACK  IN TUNIS

The explosions took place in the late morning minutes apart. Both suicide attacks were directed against the police.

Two suicide attacks were perpetrated on Thursday, June 27 at midday in Tunis.

A car was the target of an attack on Thursday afternoon on Avenue Bourguiba, the main artery of Tunis. The kamikaze targeted the police, said a police officer on the spot. According to the authorities, three policemen and two civilians were injured.

Body pieces littered the roadway around a police car on Bourguiba Avenue, the capital's main avenue, near the old town.

A little later, it was reported that a second attack targeted a barracks of the National Guard, in the neighborhood of Al Karjani four wounded.

At the end of October, Tunis had already been hit by a suicide bombing.

Already on the avenue Bourguiba, an artery very popular with passers-by and tourists.

A woman in her thirties had activated an explosive charge that she was transporting, approaching again this time a group of police officers. Twenty people were injured, including five civilians.

Tunisia, which relies heavily on tourism, has raised its security measures since a series of attacks in 2015, including the attack on the museum of Bardo where 21 people were killed, and in the resort of Sousse, which killed 38 people.

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

MOHAMED BEN SALMAN INVESTIGATED IN THE KILLING OF JOURNALIST JAMAL KHASHOGGI

BY UN INVESTIGATION

UN investigators announced Wednesday (June 19th) to have credible evidence of the involvement of Crown Prince Mohamed Ben Salmane and other top Saudi officials in the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Exiled to the United States, where he wrote regularly for the Washington Post, the journalist was last seen on October 2, 2018 while entering the Saudi Consulate General in Istanbul, Turkey.

After initially denying the murder, Riyadh has put forward several contradictory versions and now claims that Jamal Khashoggi was killed in an operation not authorized by the authorities.

But a UN report invalidates this latest version of the monarchy.

In a six-month report, UN Special Rapporteur Agnès Callamard said that "Mr. Khashoggi was the victim of a deliberate, premeditated execution of an extrajudicial execution of which State of Saudi Arabia is responsible under international human rights law ".

Call to "open a criminal investigation"

"There is credible evidence, warranting further investigation, of the individual responsibility of senior Saudi officials, including the Crown Prince," she adds.

Sufficient evidence exists to open an investigation into the responsibility of senior Saudi officials, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in the Khashoggi case, according to UN human rights expert

The rapporteur cautioned against "the disproportionate importance attached to the identification of the perpetrator", stressing that justice should not only establish the responsibility of the physical perpetrator. Eleven suspects have been arrested in Saudi Arabia to answer for the murder of the journalist. But a judicial inquiry "also aims, if not primarily, at identifying those persons who, in the context of the commission of a violation, have abused or failed to fulfill the responsibilities of their position of authority," argues the rapporteur. Special Report of the United Nations in its report.

The UN expert therefore calls on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to "open a follow-up criminal investigation into the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi in order to establish solid files on each of the alleged perpetrators".

The head of the UN "should itself be able to open a follow-up international criminal investigation without a state having to intervene," she notes.

Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

INTERCOMMUNITY MASSACRE IN MALI

Sobame Da attack on Sunday night marks the acceleration of a completely uncontrolled cycle of communal vengeance. At least 95 people were killed in the night from Sunday to Monday in a Dogon village in central Mali. An entire Dogon village was razed with rare cruelty by unidentified gunmen. A new tragedy in this region plagued by violence, two and a half months after a massacre of 160 Peuls.

Intercommunity revenge

The death toll is still unclear: in the afternoon of Monday, the government said in a statement a provisional record of 95 deaths.

For its part, the association of Dogon hunters Dan Nan Ambassagou "(Monday) noted with indignation the barbaric and ignoble attack on the village of Sobane" and "condemns with the utmost energy this intolerable terrorist and genocidal act" "

Zones under the guise of jihadist groups

In a statement released Monday, the Malian government suspected those attackers of being terrorists, before ensuring that "all measures will be taken to stop and punish the perpetrators of this carnage". Security reinforcements have been deployed to try to find the perpetrators of this umpteenth killings. The Ministry of Justice announced Monday night, the opening of an investigation, led by the prosecutor of the judicial center specializing in the fight against terrorism.

"It is not a cycle of revenge, of vendetta, that this country must be led," said ORTM public television president Malian, in Switzerland for the centenary of the International Labor Organization (ILO), announcing that he was shortening his stay. "IBK" (his initials) instead called for a "reunion" between Malians, "which alone will allow us to rebound and allow our nation to survive. Because we are in question of survival, "he said.

State powerlessness

For the head of the UN Mission in Mali (Minusma), this drama illustrates the impotence of the Malian state to prevent inter-ethnic clashes on its soil. "In response, a coordinated UN mission was put with the support of the Malian authorities, and the UN organization is mobilized in Mali to provide humanitarian assistance to assist those affected, and the mission received air support this morning, in coordination with Malian authorities, in order to avoid future attacks. ", according to the United Nations, June 20, 2019.

A meeting on troop contributors to the Minusma is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon at the United Nations, which the Security Council is expected to decide on June 27 on the mandate of the force. The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, recommends that it not be reduced, despite calls from the United States.

Since the emergence in 2015 in central Mali of the jihadist group of the preacher Amadou Koufa, recruiting primarily among the Fulani, traditionally breeders, the clashes between the community and the Bambara and Dogon ethnic groups, mainly engaged in agriculture, have increased. created their "self-defense groups". Since 2015, this violence has spread from the north to the center of the country, and sometimes to the south. They are concentrated mainly in the center, often mixed with inter-communal conflicts, a phenomenon that is also experienced by neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger.

Northern Mali had fallen in March-April 2012 under the guise of jihadist groups but entire areas are beyond the control of the Malian, French and UN forces, despite the signing in 2015 of a peace agreement meant to isolate definitively the jihadists, whose application accumulates delays.

The violence culminated on March 23 with the massacre at Ogossagou, near the Burkinabè border, of some 160 Peul villagers by suspected members of Dogon hunter groups.

Violations of human rights

Since January 2018, the Human Rights and Protection Division of the UN Mission in Mali (Minusma) has documented 91 human rights violations committed by traditional hunters against civilian members of the population peule, in the regions of Mopti and Ségou, having made at least 488 dead and 110 wounded, said May 16 the Minusma during a scrum.

Conversely, armed self-defense groups in the Fulani community committed 67 human rights violations against the civilian population in the Mopti region in the same period, causing 63 deaths and 19 injuries, the report said.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

CONVICTIONS TO DEATH FRENCH DJIHADISTS IN IRAQ

Bagdad has already sentenced more than 500 IS foreigners - men and women - some of whom have been sentenced to death, but none have so far been executed.

In a statement on Monday, the Foreign Ministry said that "adults detained in Iraq must be tried by the Iraqi judiciary, as soon as it declares itself competent. France respects the sovereignty of the Iraqi authorities ".

Refusal of any return and judgment in France of affiliates to the EI

France refuses any return and judgment in France of its nationals affiliated to Daesh, as repeated the Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday morning on France Inter:

"These terrorists, because they are terrorists who attacked us, who were also death-sowers in Iraq, must be judged where they committed their crimes. "

A court in Baghdad sentenced Yassine Sakkam to death on Wednesday for belonging to the jihadist Islamic State (IS) group, bringing to seven the number of French to have received in four days of capital punishment in that country. Yassine Sakkam was arrested in Syria and then transferred in January to Iraq with a group of 10 suspected French jihadists.

Six of them have been sentenced to death since Sunday for joining IS. Brahim Nejara, 33, accused by French intelligence of having facilitated the sending of jihadists to Syria, and Karam El Harchaoui, who will be 32, were sentenced to death on Tuesday by a court in Baghdad. On Sunday and Monday, Kévin Gonot, Leonard Lopez, Salim Machou and Mustapha Merzoughi were also sentenced to death by hanging. The list of French convicts for belonging to the jihadist organization could therefore lengthen.

This series of verdicts reopens the debate on the thorny issue of foreign jihadists: if the return - and judgment - of its nationals affiliated to the IS is not envisaged, France however refuses, at the same time, the penalty of death.

"Constant" opposition to the death penalty

Also the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Monday to "take the necessary steps" with the Iraqi authorities after the conviction of three French to the death penalty. On Tuesday, France said it "multiplied (steps) to avoid the death penalty" to these nationals, while Paris has long campaigned for the abolition of the death penalty in the world.

For Jean-Yves Le Drian, French Minister of Foreign Affairs, it is important to oppose in principle the death penalty, without jeopardizing the Iraqi justice or its legitimacy to judge the French.

"There are two principles, which are not contradictory. The first is that these terrorists there - because they are terrorists, who attacked us and who were also sowers of death in Iraq - must be judged where they committed their crimes. [...] [The second is that], we are totally opposed to the death penalty and we say it. [...]

We multiply the steps to avoid the death penalty to these four French, "said Jean-Yves le Drian, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tuesday morning on France Inter

All have 30 days to appeal.

The convicts have 30 days to appeal, and the French lawyer Leonard Lopez has already announced that he would.

According to Iraqi law, anyone who has joined a "terrorist" organization - whether or not they have fought - is punishable by death.

Human rights defenders also denounce "real risks of torture" and "no guarantee for fair trials" in Iraq, the 12th most corrupt country in the world according to the NGO Transparency International.

In Iraq, it is the Iraqi judicial sovereignty that prevails and not the French laws ...

Delicate diplomatic imbroglio .....!

Garett Skyport for DayNewsWorld

LIBERATION OF FRENCH HOSTAGES OF BENIN AND DEATH OF TWO COMMANDOS MARINE

Four hostages held in the Sahel, including two French, one American and one South Korean, were released during an operation conducted Thursday night by French forces. Emmanuel Macron "welcomes the release of four hostages in the Sahel, including our two compatriots, Patrick Picque and Laurent Lassimouillas, abducted May 1 in Benin," said the French presidency in a statement. "In addition to the two French hostages, a US citizen and a South Korean national have also been released. The disappearances of the American and the South Korean had never been made public. Even European security sources in the Sahel were unaware.

But two petty officers were killed during the operation.

Two members of the French Special Forces died during the operation conducted on Thursday night in northern Burkina Faso

"This release was achieved through a military operation, led by the French forces in the night of Thursday to Friday, in northern Burkina Faso," continues the Elysee.

"During this one, two soldiers died in battle, the master Cédric de Pierrepont and the master Alain Bertoncello, both petty officers in the command of the special operations. "

Both belonged to the Hubert commando, specialized in counterterrorism, the release of hostages and underwater action with swimmers. The commando, belonging to one of the seven of the Navy, was based in Paris. Saint-Mandrier, in the Var ,. Four kidnappers were also killed during the assault.

US support for intelligence

This operation "was made possible by the mobilization of the means of Barkhane, the implication of the Burkinabé forces and the American support in intelligence", indicated the chief of staff of the armies, the general François Lecointre. "These factors were essential for the success of the operation, ensuring responsiveness as soon as the announcement of the disappearance of the two Frenchmen, the availability of resources and the overall coherence of the operation," he said. he in a statement.

The two Frenchmen had disappeared last May 1st during a safari in the park of the Pendjari, then being in the North West of Benin, on a sector disadvised by the Quai d'Orsay.

It should be remembered that this region is regularly targeted by jihadist groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) organization. The two French were taken hostage and, in transit in Burkina Faso, were to be taken to Mali by their captors.

Jihadist group Katiba Macina

The kidnappers belonged to Katiba Macina, a jihadist group active in central Mali whose leader Amadou Koufa has become in recent years a figure of jihadism in Mali and by extension in the Sahel. It catalyzes the frustrations of the young people of his region, mainly from the Fulani community, frustrations exploited for the global jihadist project. Aged sixty years and from the city of Niafunké, he became since January 2015 the spearhead of the Islamist insurgency in central Mali, where 2018 more than 500 civilians were killed according to the United Nations .

In a video of November 8, 2018 he accuses France of sending "his dogs in the Macina", but, above all, his message is for the first time clearly intended to rally to the jihadist cause, well beyond his region , the Peuls "massacred because they raised the flag of Islam". "I appeal to the Fulani, wherever they are: in Senegal, Mali, Niger, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon," he intimates.

Florence Parly, the Minister of the Armed Forces, recalled that "the terrorists who attack France and the French must know that we will spare no effort to hunt them down and fight them".

At the beginning of next week, the Head of State will preside at the Invalides, a ceremony of national homage to the two naval commandos killed in the operation.

Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

POURQUOI  LA CONTESTATION CONTINUE- T-ELLE APRES LE COUP D'ETAT AU SOUDAN ?

Omar el-Béchir est tombé. Le président soudanais de 75 ans a été destitué par l’armée après plus de trois mois de manifestations contre son pouvoir.

El-Béchir se trouve d’après le ministre de la Défense « en lieu sûr »; ce militaire avait lui-même renversé le pouvoir en place en 1989 en devenant  colonel pour s' autoproclamer président de la République en 1993 avant de se faire élire en 1996 puis en 2010  Le voilà à son tour victime d’un coup d’état militaire…

Mohammed Atta Al-Mawla, le chef des puissants services de renseignement (NISS), vient lui de démissionner, lui qui a organisé la répression du mouvement qui a fait 49 morts.

Mais les organisateurs de la contestation ont rapidement exhorté les militaires à « transférer le pouvoir à un gouvernement civil de transition ».

Et face au sit-in qui continuait ,« nous allons continuer le sit-in devant le QG de l’armée et dans d’autres villes », ont prévenu les contestataires, les militaires ont promis de que le conseil de transition militaire a été mis en place pour une durée de deux ans.

Les Soudanais ne voudraient pas que les militaires leur confisquent une fois encore leur contestation.

Devant le Conseil de sécurité de l’ONU, l’ambassadeur du Soudan, Yasir Abdelsalam, a aussi dû dissiper les craintes de la communauté internationale.

Le conseil militaire « se contentera d’être le garant d’un gouvernement civil », a-t-il dit, vendredi. Il a en outre ajouté que la période de transition pourrait « être réduite en fonction des développements sur le terrain et de l’accord des parties prenantes ».

« Nous ouvrirons un dialogue avec les partis politiques pour examiner comment gérer le Soudan. Il y aura un gouvernement civil et nous n’interviendrons pas dans sa composition. ».

Mais comment le Soudan en est-il arrivé là ?

Trente années de gestion calamiteuse du pays ont fait s’effondrer un régime autoritaire et corrompu sans partis et basé sur un nouveau code légal islamique qui a affecté 70% de son budget à la guerre. Et le triplement du prix du pain a fait la suite !!

Alize Marion pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

COUP D'ETAT MILITAIRE AU SOUDAN

Le prix du pain aura eu raison du président Béchir.

Voilà que depuis plus de trois mois maintenant les Soudanais se révoltent contre le régime du dictateur Béchir. La contestation a démarré après la décision du gouvernement de tripler le prix du pain le 19 décembre suite à un programme d'austérité imposé par le FMI.

La mobilisation s’est ensuite muée en mouvement de protestation contre le régime lui-même, des milliers de Soudanais réclamant le départ du président.

Omar el-Béchir, qui a tenté de réprimer la contestation par la force, a instauré à partir du 22 février l’état d’urgence à l’échelle nationale. 49 personnes sont mortes.

Depuis samedi 6 avril les manifestants ont organisé un si-in devant le siège de l'armée.

Le président Omar Al-Bachir, qui dirigeait le Soudan d’une main de fer depuis trente ans, a été renversé jeudi 11 avril par un coup d’Etat de l’armée et a été remplacé par un « conseil militaire de transition » qui entend diriger le pays pendant deux ans.

« J’annonce, en tant que ministre de la défense, la chute du régime et le placement en détention dans un lieu sûr de son chef », a déclaré dans une annonce très attendue à la télévision d’Etat, le ministre de la défense, Awad Ahmed Ibn Auf. Le couvre-feu a été décrété ce jour par le « conseil militaire de transition ». Un cessez-le-feu a aussi été annoncé à travers le pays, notamment dans les Etats en proie aux rébellions comme le Darfour.

Si les meneurs de la contestation ont obtenu le départ d’Omar Al-Bachir, ils ont, en revanche, rejeté la décision de l’armée de créer un « conseil militaire » pour mener une transition qui s’annonce particulièrement longue : deux ans.

« Le régime a mené un coup d’Etat militaire en présentant encore les mêmes visages (…) contre lesquels notre peuple s’est élevé », a réagi, dans un communiqué, la Déclaration pour la liberté et le changement, tout en appelant le « peuple à continuer son sit-in devant le QG de l’armée et à travers le pays ».

Mercredi, Washington avait exhorté le pouvoir « à respecter les droits de tous les Soudanais à exprimer leurs doléances pacifiquement ».

Les Etats-Unis et les cinq pays européens membres du Conseil de sécurité de l’ONU – France, Royaume-Uni, Allemagne, Belgique et Pologne – ont demandé une réunion d’urgence du Conseil de sécurité sur le Soudan. La session devrait se dérouler vendredi.

« Si l’armée marginalise la rue, le pire est à craindre », a réagi un observateur.

Jenny Chase pour DayNewsWorld

SPOTLIGHT ON BENJAMIN NETANYAHOU WINNER OF LEGISLATIVE IN ISRAEL

The outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is the winner of the legislative elections and is on the way to a fifth term after counting almost all votes.

97% of the ballots would credit Netanyahu's party with as many seats (35) as Benny Gantz's Blue-white (center-right) list.

"The people of Israel have given me their trust for the fifth time, and greater trust," said the outgoing prime minister who promised "a fifth time, and greater confidence."

He promised a "right-wing government" and has already approached the leaders of other right-wing parties to form a coalition government. They "almost all" gave him their support, he assured.

In such a configuration, President Reuven Rivlin will probably entrust Mr. Netanyahu with the task of forming a coalition government.

Candidates neck and neck.

Netanyahu, 69, who has been in power for ten years, will sign a new coup by winning elections widely presented as a referendum on his person.

Indeed he is under the indictment for corruption so that the legal troubles could catch him in the first months of a new mandate.

At Blue-white headquarters in Tel-Aviv, Gantz, a political novice, also claimed victory "It's a historic day, more than a million people voted for us," proclaimed M Gantz in front of his supporters. "The president must entrust us with the task of forming the next government because we are the most important party," he said before promising to be "the prime minister of all".

Some 6.3 million voters were expected to elect their 120 deputies and decide whether the invincible "Bibi," worshiped by some, hated by others, would continue his long reign or whether the hour of change had come with the new came to lightning rise of this former paratrooper that is Benniz Gantz.

Until the end both candidates were at cut elbow and about two hours before the deadline, MM. Netanyahu and Gantz still frantically defeating their troops.

On the other hand, as expected, the left receives a terrible snub so much that one of the Labor leaders, Shelly Yachimovich, said she was "in shock". We knew the left in a bad position: the Zionist Union was indeed dissolved, and the Labor Party presented itself again under its own colors, but not so much. The decline of the party is such that he would get only six seats in the Knesset.

As for Mr Netanyahu, if President Rivlin renews it, it would delight in July the record of longevity as Prime Minister to the historic David Ben Gurion.

But, very quickly, Mr. Netanyahu may again find himself entangled in a corruption scandal even if he claims his innocence and denounces relentlessly a "witch hunt".

In February, the Attorney General announced his intention to charge him with corruption, fraud and breach of trust in three cases of donations received from billionaires, exchanges of good practices between rulers and bosses, and attempts to collusion with the press. He even set July 10 as the deadline for a last chance hearing before deciding to charge him.

In the face of Mr. Netanyahu, 59-year-old Gantz, armed with former parachutist and former chief of staff, campaigned on taking the current head of government as his "The mere idea that a prime minister can exercise power when an indictment is brought against him seems ridiculous to me, it will not happen," Gantz said in January. "I have my own hands, I owe nothing to anyone and my government will show zero tolerance for any form of corruption," he said. Failing to propose a radical political change, Benny Gantz has therefore especially bet on the lassitude of Israelis vis-à-vis the one who has led them for ten years.

"No to peace"

The ideological and political domination of the right was confirmed at the end of a campaign of rare violence, without any real debate.

During this tough campaign Benjamin Netanyahu has indeed prevailed in his strong man, his diplomatic success, his proximity to President Donald Trump and continued economic growth. As in 2015, Benyamin Netanyahu completed it by positioning himself more to the right than ever, to mobilize his camp and encourage the useful vote in favor of the Likud. He thus declared himself ready, in defiance of a broad international consensus, to annex Israeli settlements in the West Bank, from a broad international consensus, to annex Israeli settlements in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied for over fifty years by Israel. "A Palestinian state would put our existence in danger," he told Channel 12 News on April 6. "I will extend [Israel's] sovereignty, but I do not distinguish between blocks of settlements and those that are isolated, because each settlement is Israeli. "

Politically speaking, Benny Gantz is located in the center-right of the Israeli political spectrum with less radical positions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict than his opponent ...

Commenting on Israel's exit polls, Saeb Erekat, a senior Palestinian official, said the Israelis had said "no to peace and yes to occupation" in the Palestinian territories.

In any case, the formation of a coalition will probably never be so complicated since 1961 !!

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

POACHER TRAMPLED TO DEAD BY AN ELEPHANT AND EATEN BY LIONS

An elephant trampled a poacher to death in a South African nature reserve before his remains were devoured by a herd of lions that swallowed everything except his skull and his trousers.

A man who was trying to poach a rhinoceros for
recovering the horn of the large mammal, in Kruger National Park, South Africa, was crushed by an elephant before being devoured by a band of hungry lions who left only his skull and his pants, reports The Daily Mail.

The accident occurred on Tuesday, April 2 in Kruger National Park.

Three of the victim's friends fled after the tragedy. They called his family who contacted the park administration. The search for the remains of the poacher has found only his skull and his pants.

A family of lions apparently devoured his body.

"Entering Kruger National Park illegally and walking is not wise, there are many dangers, and this incident is proof of that," said Glenn Phillips, chief executive officer of the reserve.

Local police arrested three of the man's accomplices with two shotguns and ammunition.

The three men are charged with possession of firearms and ammunition without a license, poaching and trespassing.

An investigation has been opened into the death of their accomplice.

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

WHAT SCENARIOS AFTER THE RESIGNATION OF PRESIDENT BOUTEFLIKA ?

The President of the Republic of Algeria has informed the Constitutional Council of his resignation "as of today," Algerian official media reported on Tuesday (April 2nd).

"I have the honor to formally notify you of my decision to terminate the mandate I perform as President of the Republic, from today, Tuesday, Radjab 1440, corresponding to 2 April 2019," he wrote in a statement. letter he sent to the Constitutional Council, published by the Algerian official APS news agency.

This decision that I take in my soul and conscience is intended to contribute to the appeasement of the hearts and minds of my compatriots, to enable them to project together Algeria towards the better future to which they legitimately aspire. "

While he had already given up, under the pressure of the street in March, to seek a fifth term and announced the postponement sine die of the presidential election, these announcements were not enough to calm the dispute.

During this period the "Bouteflika" clan, however, was trying to save the day.

The Bouteflika clan had indeed accepted Monday, April 1 to cede power, promising a departure from the head of state before the 28th of the month, end date of his term.

But Saïd, the brother, tried to buy time, a process widely used by the Algerian government, proposing to the former President of the Republic Liamine Zéroual to ensure the transition in case of resignation.

An approach little appreciated by the chief of staff of the army so that General Gaïd Salah denounced Tuesday, April 2 "stubbornness and the deviousness of certain individuals at the head of the country".

These individuals are "concerned only with the preservation of their narrow personal interests," he added, in what appears to be an attack on President Bouteflika's close entourage.

With the resignation of the Algerian president, opens a period of 90 days during which a presidential election must be organized.

The president of the Council of Nations, Abdelkader Ben Salah, a close friend of Abdelaziz Bouteflika, will take the interim. The current and new Prime Minister, Noureddine Bedoui, is a former Minister of the Interior. The two will be able to get along with General Gaïd Salah. Indeed, the military, who put pressure on Bouteflika to resign, remains the only undisputed institution in Algeria. It acts as guarantor to keep a calm atmosphere during this transition period,

But the resignation of Bouteflika does not mean the end of the Algerian revolt.

If the announcement Monday night is experienced as a "good news", it is not enough for the Algerian youth on the street for a month. They call at the end of the "system", and not just the resignation of Bouteflika.

For the moment, opposition candidates are not scrambling to formalize their candidacy. Rachid Nekkaz, the anti-Bouteflika candidate, has been more discreet in recent days.

The opponent to Bouteflika Ali Benfis who had given up the election originally scheduled for April 28, could return to the game. The lawyer and human rights activist Mustapha Bouchachi has for his part advantage of being rather supported by the street.

However, it is now necessary to take into account a new arbitrator: the Algerian citizens did not say either their last word.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

THE RESIGNATION OF PRESIDENT BOUTEFLIKA

CLOSE

After the army is the turn of the party RND, main ally of the Algerian president, to claim in a statement released Wednesday, March 27, the resignation of the latter. The announcement, made by former Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia, comes after the statement by the army chief of staff, who asked the Constitutional Council to declare President Bouteflika unfit for the job.

Indeed, the military no longer seem to support Abdelaziz Bouteflika at the head of Algeria. Ahmed Gaid Salah, the chief of staff of the army loyal to the Algerian president so far, asked Tuesday, March 26, 2019 to initiate the procedure provided by Article 102 of the Constitution, when the President of the Republic

"Because of serious and lasting illness, it is totally impossible to perform his duties".

Weakened since 2013 by the after-effects of stroke, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been facing unprecedented protests for more than a month.

Admittedly, he has given up a fifth term, but has postponed indefinitely the date of the presidential election, originally scheduled for April 18, after the drafting of a new constitution. He would remain in power after April 28, the end of his term.

But civil society demands above all a rapid change. And clearly within the army, soldiers and officers were not ready to turn against the people what seems to have understood the general so far most loyal to President Bouteflika.

"It becomes necessary, even imperative, to adopt a solution to get out of the crisis, which responds to the legitimate demands of the Algerian people, and which guarantees the respect of the provisions of the Constitution and the maintenance of the sovereignty of the State," said General Ahmed Gaïd Salah, also vice-minister of defense, in a speech broadcast on national television.

But in any case the distancing of the army vis-à-vis President Bouteflika means a consensus at the top of the state to avoid a violent break.

Indeed if the procedure is initiated, the president of the Council of the Nation will then take the interim for 45 days. And if the president is declared unfit at the end of this period, the "vacancy" of power is declared. The interim then continues for a maximum of 90 days, during which a presidential election is organized.

"Only the quick passage to an election will renew the institutions," according to constitutionalist Fatiha Benabbou.

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

MASSACRE MEURTRIER DANS UN VILLAGE PEUL

AU MALI

Village dévasté : Des corps sans tête, d’autres jetés au fond d’un puits et des amas de chaires noires, brûlées vives. Au moins 134 civils ont été massacrés à Ogossagou dans le centre du pays par des miliciens.

Selon les Nations unies, au moins 134 personnes ont été massacrées et une cinquantaine d’autres blessées, dans ce village largement habité par des civils appartenant à l’ethnie peule.

Selon l’association de défense des Peuls Tabital Pulaaku, la majorité était des femmes et des enfants.

Beaucoup avaient trouvé refuge dans ce village après avoir déjà fui d’autres affrontements intercommunautaires qui ont fait plus de 500 morts en 2018 dans le centre du Mali, selon l’ONU.

Depuis l'apparition il y a quatre ans dans le centre du Mali du groupe djihadiste du prédicateur Amadou Koufa, recrutant prioritairement parmi les Peuls, traditionnellement éleveurs, les affrontements se multiplient entre cette communauté et les ethnies bambara et dogon, pratiquant essentiellement l'agriculture.

Au delà de litiges terriens qui opposent ces communautés, la spirale des violence revêt de plus en plus un caractère ethnique. De plus, la zone est un terrain d’action privilégié des groupes terroristes, au Mali.

Les Dogons ont créé, en contre partie, leurs propres « groupes d'autodéfense », dont l'association « Dan Nan Ambassagou » qui serait à l'origine du génocide.

En conséquence le président Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta a prononcé « la dissolution de l'association 'Dan Nan Ambassagou' pour dire clairement aux uns et aux autres que la protection des populations restera le monopole de l'Etat », a expliqué le Premier ministre Soumeylou Boubeye Maïga.

Le gouvernement a également annoncé le remplacement des chefs d'état-major des armées, de l'armée de terre et de l'armée de l'air.

Avec ce limogeage d’une rare ampleur l'Etat tente de reprendre la main sur les milices armées au lendemain du massacre de plus de 130 Peuls dans le centre du pays, l'attaque la plus meurtrière qu'ait connue le Mali depuis au moins six ans.

Alyson Braxton pour DayNewsWorld

BOUTEFLIKA OU D'UNE CONCESSION SYMBOLIQUE A UNE REPRISE EN MAIN DU POUVOIR

It was the protesters claim for several weeks. Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, faced for the past two weeks with an unprecedented challenge in 20 years of power, announced Monday, March 11 to waive a fifth term and the postponement sine die of the presidential scheduled on April 18.

For the first time since the beginning of the protest movement, Abdelaziz Bouteflika appeared on Algerian television.

In a long message to the nation, he said the presidential will take place "in the extension of a national conference" to reform the political system and develop a draft Constitution by the end of 2019.

The news was initially welcomed with joy. It thus meets one of the main demands of popular mobilization.

But by pledging "to hand over the duties and prerogatives of the President of the Republic to the successor that the Algerian people will freely elected," Abdelaziz Bouteflika implicitly indicates that he will remain head of state at the end of his mandate on April 28, 2019.

"There will be no fifth term and it was never discussed for me, my state of health and my age not assigning me as an ultimate duty to the Algerian people that the contribution to the foundation of the foundations of 'a new republic', says Abdelaziz Bouteflika in this text.

The relief has quickly given way to doubts, as shown by the headlines of major Algerian newspapers: "Bouteflika extends the fourth term" (El Khabar), "Bouteflika will leave, the system will wait! "(El Watan)," Bouteflika offers Algerians a "transition" managed by the power "(TSA). The proposals offer him by postponing the presidential election a lengthening of the current presidential term, beyond the term provided by the Constitution, which allows him to organize his exit.

Thus power plays its all-round game and today uses solutions that it had envisaged even before the crisis to remain master of the calendar and the modalities of evolution of the political system.

Difficult to see in these latest announcements an executive releasing ballast to the protesters. Attendism, on the contrary, appears to be the last bastion of a discredited regime.

In fact through a symbolically important concession, the power tries to regain control. The demonstrations continue.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

BOUTEFLIKA UNDER PERMANENT VITAL THREAT

AND THE SUBSTANCE OF ALGERIAN REVOLUTION

Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been hospitalized in Switzerland for about ten days. The daily Tribune de Genève obtained information on the state of health of the 82-year-old Algerian president, candidate for his own succession.

The Geneva patient would be "under permanent threat of life".

"Weakened, Bouteflika is" under permanent threat of life, "announces the Tribune de Genève on Wednesday, March 6. According to the Swiss daily, the Algerian president, treated at the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG) for ten days," suffers from neurological and respiratory problems.

"The head of state is 'under permanent threat of life' because of the degradation of his neurological reflexes.

He does not suffer from any lethal harm in the short term, but it is an old man who is struggling to recover from the consequences of his 2013 stroke.

Because it is because of the HUG's expertise in neurology that Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been there since February 24th. "

The Swiss newspaper reports that the situation of the 82-year-old patient has deteriorated dangerously in recent years.

"From a state of fragility but allowing a more or less normal life, he has turned into a patient whose condition is very precarious and requires constant care. "

The conditions are met to organize the April 18 presidential, however assured Wednesday the Algerian authorities, despite the unprecedented challenge raised by the candidacy for a fifth term of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

However, according to the foreign daily, former minister Ali Benouari said that no doctor wants to issue a certificate attesting that the Algerian president is able to represent himself. Bouteflika, 82, severely disabled that he is now suffering from a stroke in 2013. He has been hospitalized in Switzerland for more than ten days for officially "periodic medical examinations" and we do not know the date of his return to Algeria.

Despite language disorders and a worrying health situation, Bouteflika is in the running for a fifth term after filing his candidacy Sunday night.

The presidential election on April 18 against and against all

Algerian authorities went from their couplet in favor of the presidential elections of April 18th.

The presidential election will be held "in accordance with the Constitution, under the conditions of transparency, serenity and tranquility," said Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel, on the sidelines of a ministerial council of the Arab League in Cairo.

The army and security forces are "resolutely committed to guarantee" the security of the presidential election, to allow Algerians to vote "in a climate of serenity, tranquility and stability," said Wednesday the leader said staff of the Algerian army, General Ahmed Gaïd Salah who "seems to abandon the belligerent tone he used until then to talk about the political situation in Algeria," noted the French daily El Watan, his counterpart Freedom evoking "a speech of appeasement".

And yet the camp Bouteflika seems to crack gradually in recent days before the extent of the challenge of Algerian students in the street.

The "fifth term" front is cracking

In a statement, the powerful National Mujahideen Organization (NOM, which brings together the veterans of the war of independence), traditional support of his comrade in arms Mr. Bouteflika, has provided unexpected support to the challenge. The NOM denounces in a statement institutions "not up to the aspirations of the people" and "an unnatural alliance between influential members of power" and people "who were opened the doors to take control of the public money ".

On Monday, Sid Ahmed Ferroukhi, a former minister and deputy of the National Liberation Front (FLN) announced his resignation from his mandate and his departure from the party chaired by Bouteflika.

Resignations have also been announced by various media in the Forum of entrepreneurs (FCE), employers' organization led by Ali Haddad, deemed close to the Bouteflika clan.

Even the General Union of Algerian Workers (UGTA), a union totally in the service of the fifth term by its secretary-general, Abdelmadjid Sidi-Said, is experiencing defections and calls to support popular protest.

These reversals are a sign that the abandonment of the option of Bouteflika's candidacy is beginning to be considered within the regime.

The Algerians' challenge a "peaceful revolutionary situation"

Since February 22, protesters have unveiled the image of a people full of determination. Since February 22, the largest protest movement of the last two decades in Algeria has pushed tens of thousands of people on the streets to express their opposition to a fifth term of Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

The day of mobilization promises to be strong Friday, coinciding with the celebration of the International Day of Women's Rights.

Lawyer Mokrane Ait Larbi, a respected human rights activist, said the country was living a "peaceful revolutionary situation."

"This historic phase can not achieve the break through the electoral path, whose fraud has already begun in the Constitutional Council, and before the national and international opinion," he said.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

SOUTH AFRICA UNDER THE SHOCK

A STAR IS BEING BEAT

A video published by a South African singer showing the young woman repeatedly beaten by a man in a room sparked a shockwave on Monday in South Africa, where the government and police denounced the scourge of violence against women. women.

On the night of Sunday to Monday, Bongekile Simelane, of his stage name Babes Wodumo, posted on his Instagram account a video where a man shirtless and in boxer shorts.

The video, which has since been removed from the account, has become viral on social networks, causing an avalanche of outraged reactions from the fans of the singer, but also the South African authorities.

Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa said he was "absolutely horrified".

"The South African government will never tolerate gender-based violence. [...]

We call on all South Africans to isolate the culprits, to fight and put an end to gender-based violence with the same zeal as we have fought against racism, "he added, saying that the author of the blows was the singer's companion, the musician Mampintsha.

On Twitter, the South African government said there was "no excuse for the violence. People can only help if they know. Speak. [...] # Stop the Violence Made to Women ".

The police study the video in question to "establish and verify the identity" of the man and woman who appear there.

In a tweet published Monday afternoon, Babes Wodumo, singer of gqom (mix of African traditional percussion and house music), explained not being able to "respond" immediately to interviews, because it is "still very shocked.

South Africa is plagued by high crime.

Last year, more than 20,000 people were murdered, 57 per day.

Women are particularly vulnerable.

In November, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said that "we must end the rapes and feminicides that are never prosecuted.

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

ALGERIAN YOUTH IN THE STREET

AGAINST BOUTEFLIKA

Is the revolution going on in Algeria ?

Algerian youth is in the street.

Mass protests took place Friday, higher than last week, throughout the country but the Algerian power remains inflexible.

Abdelaziz Bouteflika must officially apply for a 5th term Sunday.

Although the rallies were generally peaceful, the situation escalated in the evening on the outskirts of the presidential palace in Algiers. The clashes left 56 injured among police and seven among protesters, police said, quoted by national television

Slogans hostile to power have been chanted with shouts of "Power assassin".

The police carried out 45 arrests during the day, including five people who tried to enter the hotel El Djazaïr, said the television, quoting a statement from the Directorate General of National Security (DGSN).

Demonstrations took place in nearly two-thirds of the wilayas (prefectures) in the north of the country, the most populous region. According to security sources, other rallies were held without incident including in Oran and Constantine, second and third cities of the country.

Amnesty International on Thursday urged security forces to "refrain from excessive or unnecessary force to disperse peaceful protesters".

Some observers fear that the support of the Head of State will use the strong way to avoid an election campaign marked by the physical absence of Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Campaign director Abdelmalek Sellal, who had led the three previous successful campaigns (2004, 2009, 2014) of candidate Bouteflika, has been sacked.

He is replaced by the current Minister of Transport, Abdelghani Zaalene, simply indicates the APS.

"His dismissal could be a first response" to the dispute that agitated Algeria for over a week and directly targets Abdelaziz Bouteflika, but it may be a bit short, "commented an observer.

Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld

MUHAMMADU BUHARI PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA

Muhammadu Buhari was re-elected President in Nigeria.

The Independent National Electoral Commission of Nigeria announced, on the night of Tuesday 26 to Wednesday 27 February, the name of the winner. Outgoing Head of State Muhammadu Buhari of the Congress of Progressives (APC) was re-elected for a second four-year term as head of the most populous country in Africa.

At 76, the retired general won 56% of the vote, against 41% for his main opponent, Atiku Abubakar.

During the campaign, former General Buhari (76), who had led the country in the 1980s, did not deny the shortcomings of his mandate.

"It has not been a long, quiet river," he said, asking his compatriots to consider "the important progress" made by his government and to give him the opportunity to complete the projects, particularly in terms of anti-corruption, security and economic. Outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari has promised to take his country to a higher level and do better if he is re-elected.

"We are determined to deepen the work that we started during this first term so that the assets and resources of the nation continue to be organized and used in a way that serves the Nigerian citizen," said the outgoing president at the meeting. his campaign. But at 76, his health raised many questions while he was hospitalized several times in London.

An economically poor country despite its hydrocarbon resources.

Indeed the economy of the most populous country in Africa is very badly in point. The crisis caused by the vertiginous drop in hydrocarbon prices in 2015, on which the Nigerian economy depends, has had a lasting impact on the country. Growth was only 1.9% in 2018, remaining at a lower rate than population growth in a country where unemployment affects a quarter of the labor force, and even more than half of 15-35 year olds .

In this country of some 190 million inhabitants - whose population is expected to double by 2050 - this sluggish growth, against a backdrop of high inflation, can not stop the spiral of extreme poverty. According to the World Bank, Nigeria is surpassing India to become the country with the largest number of people living on less than $ 1.90 a day. The recovery of the economy will inevitably go through a diversification of activities to stop this spiral of poverty ...

Security challenges with the threat of Boko Haram and land conflicts.

In addition to the economic challenge, security was a major theme of the February 23 presidential campaign. Determined in the victory of Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 a former general who led, with an iron fist, a military regime in the 80s, security will still dominate the agenda of the next mandate, particularly with the rise of community clashes in with the ever-present terrorist threat of Boko Haram.

Muhammadu Buhari had indeed promised to stop the jihadist insurgency Boko Haram that has killed more than 20,000 and 2.6 million displaced since 2009.

But in the north-east of the country Boko Haram group remains a real threat to the security of the population, even if in four years, Boko Haram has given a little ground against the government of Buhari. The terrorist group has increased in 2018 attacks and suicide bombings in several cities in the north-east. In particular, the kidnapping, at the end of February, of more than a hundred girls in a boarding school in Dapchi (Yobe State) and the double bombing of May 1 that killed nearly a hundred victims in Mubi. In March2018 the Nigerian administration has armored US 414 million euros, including surveillance planes and attack, to quell the jihadists.

In addition to Boko Haram, there are other conflicts in Nigeria that need to be addressed, such as pro-Biafra separatist tensions challenging the Abuja authority that still persist in the Southeast, and the old land dispute between nomadic herders and sedentary farmers.

There are many deadly clashes between farmers and pastoralists, particularly in the states of Benue, Taraba, Nasarawa, Plateau and Kogi. Farmers are accused by farmers of ransacking their farms. But to this grievance is added a dimension of identity between the predominantly Muslim breeders and the mostly Christian farmers.

By 2018, Muslim herders reportedly massacred two priests and sixteen Catholic faithful in a church in the central Benue state. The following day, in retaliation, eleven Muslims were lynched in the capital of the state of Benue. The bishops of the states of Benue and Nassarawa had denounced, in a statement, "a clear program of Islamization of the Nigerian central belt" whose goal is "to hit Christians".

In the first economy of Africa the challenges to be met by the new head of state, President Buhari, are immense. Deteriorating corruption, restoring security and carrying out the promised economic reforms are the stakes of President Buhari's new mandate.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

ALGERIA CONTESTATAIRE FACING A PROBABLE REELECTION OF ABDELAZIZ BOUTEFLIKA

Algeria took to the streets to protest against the announced re - election of Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

More than a hundred thousand people found themselves in the capital on Friday at the initiative of the movement Mouwatana (opposition).

And there have been marches organized throughout the country, from Oran to Annaba through Kabylia and southern cities, bringing together, according to human rights associations, nearly 800,000 protesters.

The reason :

the refusal to see Abdelaziz Bouteflika run for a fifth term on 18 April 2019 while Mouad Bouchareb, coordinator of the FLN, compared the head of state to a prophet.

"God sent Bouteflika in 1999 to reform the Algerian nation and give it the place it has," he said recently.

The opposition parties praised the mobilization, within the Socialist Forces Front (FFS) or the MSP (Islamist, Muslim Brotherhood trend), including the leader Abderrazak Rachid Nekkaz.

A. Rachid Nekkaz is a Potential Candidate for Algeria's Next Presidential Election

"Candidate of youth and change".

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

DUEL OF TWO SEPTUAGENARIES FOR THE PRESIDENTIAL IN NIGERIA

COLOSSE AT THE FOOT OF CLAY

Return of the elections to February 23rd.

The Nigerian presidential election scheduled for Saturday, February 16 was postponed to February 23 by the Independent National Electoral Commission of Nigeria (INEC). The INEC has decided to postpone for a week the general elections (presidential and legislative) scheduled for Saturday, February 16, arguing of logistical problems after an emergency meeting in the night from Friday to Saturday. the holding of free, fair and credible elections, organizing the ballot as agreed was no longer possible, "told the press Mahmood Yakubu, president of the INEC.

The most populous country in Africa, the continent's largest oil producer, the main African economy in the neck and neck with South Africa, Nigeria remains a colossus with clay feet.

The challenges facing the winner of the presidential election on Saturday, February 23 will be gigantic. The election is expected to split the incumbent president, Muhammadu Buhari, and the wealthy businessman Atiku Abubakar, leader of the opposition and former vice president (1999-2007) .72 other candidates are vying for the presidential election.

The duel of two septuagenarian Buhari (76 years), outgoing president, and the businessman Atiku Abubakar.

During the campaign, former General Buhari (76), who had led the country in the 1980s, did not deny the shortcomings of his mandate.

"It has not been a long, quiet river," he said, asking his compatriots to consider "the important progress" made by his government and to give him the opportunity to complete the projects, particularly in terms of anti-corruption, security and economic. Outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari has promised to take his country to a higher level and do better if he is re-elected.

"We are determined to deepen the work that we started during this first term so that the assets and resources of the nation continue to be organized and used in a way that serves the Nigerian citizen," said the outgoing president at the meeting. his campaign. But at 76, his health raised many questions while he was hospitalized several times in London.

The main competitor of President Buhari, who comes from the former ruling party, the PDP, disputes the record. The businessman Atiku Abubakar, who will thus seek for the fourth time the supreme magistracy in his last "Address to the Nation", has violently taken the current president, treating his presidency as "disaster". For him, President Buhari has failed in his policy of securing the country and its economic results are disappointing as its anti-corruption policy called "witch hunt against opponents."

It promises the recovery of the country's economy and an effective fight against corruption by favoring the return of funds diverted into public funds through an "amnesty".

Whoever wins this election, the challenges the winner will face are immense.

An economically poor country despite its hydrocarbon resources.

Indeed the economy of the most populous country in Africa is very badly in point. The crisis caused by the vertiginous drop in hydrocarbon prices in 2015, on which the Nigerian economy depends, has had a lasting impact on the country. Growth was only 1.9% in 2018, remaining at a lower rate than population growth in a country where unemployment affects a quarter of the labor force, and even more than half of 15-35 year olds .

In this country of some 190 million inhabitants - whose population is expected to double by 2050 - this sluggish growth, against a backdrop of high inflation, can not stop the spiral of extreme poverty. According to the World Bank, Nigeria is surpassing India to become the country with the largest number of people living on less than $ 1.90 a day. The recovery of the economy will inevitably go through a diversification of activities to stop this spiral of poverty ...

Security challenges with the threat of Boko Haram and land conflicts.

In addition to the economic challenge, security was a major theme of the February 23 presidential campaign. Determining Muhammadu Buhari's victory in 2015 as a former general who led a military regime with a military hand in the 1980s, security will still dominate the agenda of the next mandate, particularly with the rise of communal clashes. in addition to the ever-present terrorist threat of Boko Haram.

Muhammadu Buhari had indeed promised to stop the jihadist insurgency Boko Haram that has killed more than 20,000 and 2.6 million displaced since 2009.

But in the north-east of the country Boko Haram group remains a real threat to the security of the population, even if in four years, Boko Haram has given a little ground against the government of Buhari. The terrorist group has increased in 2018 attacks and suicide bombings in several cities in the north-east. In particular, the kidnapping, at the end of February, of more than a hundred girls in a boarding school in Dapchi (Yobe State) and the double bombing of May 1 that killed nearly a hundred victims in Mubi. In March2018, the Nigerian administration acquired US armament for 414 million euros, including surveillance planes and attack, to suppress the jihadists ...

In addition to Boko Haram, there are other conflicts in Nigeria that need to be addressed, such as pro-Biafra separatist tensions challenging the Abuja authority that still persist in the Southeast, and the old land dispute between nomadic herders and sedentary farmers.

There are many deadly clashes between farmers and pastoralists, particularly in the states of Benue, Taraba, Nasarawa, Plateau and Kogi. Farmers are accused by farmers of ransacking their farms. But to this grievance is added a dimension of identity between the predominantly Muslim breeders and the mostly Christian farmers.

By 2018, Muslim herders reportedly massacred two priests and sixteen Catholic faithful in a church in the central Benue state. The following day, in retaliation, eleven Muslims were lynched in the capital of the state of Benue. The bishops of the states of Benue and Nassarawa had denounced, in a statement, "a clear program of Islamization of the Nigerian central belt" whose goal is "to hit Christians".

In the first economy of Africa the challenges to be met by the new head of state will be immense like the presidential election postponed because of security and logistical problems.

All eyes are now on President APC's Buhari and his main opponent, Atiku Abubakar, of the PDP, the ballot between the two northern men, Muslims, looking very tight.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

BOUTEFLIKA TOWARDS A FIFTH MANDATE

IN ALGERIA

End of the false suspense: Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is officially a presidential candidate on 18 April.

No television appearance, or even radio message but a simple "message to the Nation" to official Sunday, February 10 the presidential candidacy of Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in power for two decades in Algeria.

Despite his age and health problems, the outgoing Algerian president will seek a fifth term.

Nailed in a wheelchair by a stroke since 2013, Abdelaziz Bouteflika is ahead of criticism of his state of health:

"Of course, I do not have the same physical strength as before, something that I have never hidden from our people. But the unwavering desire to serve the homeland has never left me and it allows me to transcend the constraints related to the health problems that everyone may face one day. ".

The National Liberation Front (FLN), in power since the country's independence, has designated it as its candidate, as the three other parties of the alliance have already done: the Prime Minister's National Democratic Rally (RND) Ahmed Ouyahia, the Rally of Hope of Algeria (TAJ) and the Algerian People's Movement (MPA).

Behind this weakened president, there would be a whole entourage pushing to keep him in power. First of all, a family clan with its two brothers at the heart of the system, Said Bouteflika being a transmission belt with the army, but also an economic ruling caste ; For pro-Bouteflika, the president guarantees the stability of the country as a bulwark against fundamentalism in view of the situation in Libya, Syria or Egypt.

Abdelaziz Bouteflika was also the architect of the return to peace in Algeria after ten years of bloody civil war. While he took advantage of the rise in oil prices between 2004 and 2014 to launch extensive infrastructure programs and de-leveraging the country, his fourth term was marked by the fall in oil prices that hit the economy hard. ultra-dependent country of oil. One-third of young people under 25 are unemployed.

All the austerity measures taken in recent years to cope with the fall in the price of a barrel of oil have been abandoned. Recruitment in the public service has been revived. Young business creators financially supported by the state who have not repaid their credit will not be prosecuted. The Ministry of the Mujahideen (veterans) has announced up to 100% increase on pensions paid to those who suffer from chronic diseases. The president announced a "national conference" open to the opposition and intended to give birth to institutional, economic and social reforms.

In opposition, some candidates seek to negotiate an alliance for a single bid against Bouteflika. For those who do not let themselves be tempted by the call for an outright boycott of the polls, the negotiations are already well underway to know who will try to embody the wave of "Everything but Bouteflika" that rises in the Algerian youth on the networks social.

Two opponents are already in the running. Abderrazak Makri, head of the largest Islamist Islamist Movement for Peace (MSP), and retired general Ali Ghediri, unknown to the public, have announced their intention to run for office while Ali Benflis, former prime minister of Bouteflika and his main opponent, has not yet said if he would show up.

Systematically reelected in the first round with more than 80% of the vote, the head of state again this time as the favorite of the vote but abstention may be strong .

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP OF FRANCE

WITH EGYPT

DESPITE THE AUTHORIZED DRIFT OF ALISIS ?

Emmanuel Macron flew to Egypt on Sunday and will stay there until Tuesday. Accompanied by a delegation of personalities and several ministers, including Jean-Yves Le Drian, the president makes a trip "to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries," says the Elysee. With his counterpart Marshal Al-Sissi, he should talk about contracts and security, but also human rights.

Culture and Archeology


On the first day, President Macron began his visit Sunday with a stopover at Abu Simbel Temple, one of the country's iconic archaeological sites. Beyond a French tradition of Egyptology that goes back to Champollion, France hopes today to be entrusted with new missions of excavations or enhancement of ancient sites, such as that of Saqqara, south of Cairo. It also seeks to participate in the future Grand Egyptian Museum of Guizeh and the renovation of the famous archaeological museum located in the center of Cairo since the nineteenth century.

On the second day of his visit to Egypt on Monday, Emmanuel Macron is greeted in Cairo at the presidential palace by his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fatah al-Sisi for a one-to-one interview.

Economic contracts

The program: the signing of thirty agreements and commercial contracts, for "a few hundred million euros", according to the French Presidency. About fifty French patrons are part of the trip. Contracts cover sectors as varied as transport, renewable energies, health or agrifood

Strategic partnership.

The two presidents will also talk about defense and security with the fight against terrorism. Among the emblematic contracts is that of Rafale fighter planes of which 2 4 copies were delivered to Egypt. has become the third largest arms sales customer for France. Negotiations are underway for the acquisition of 12 others, but no contract should be announced during this trip, they say behind the scenes.

Paris supports Egypt as a strategic partner, seeing the most populous country in the Arab world as a center of stability in the Middle East, despite strong criticism from NGOs about the Egyptian authorities' failure to respect human rights. Emmanuel Macron, despite the authoritarian drift of the Egyptian president, does not want to break any form of cooperation that would lead Egypt to Russia or other powers, on the contrary.

Human rights

Several NGOs, including Amnesty and Human Rights Watch (HRW), have therefore stepped up to "suspend the suspension of any French sale of weapons that could be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international law".

They called on Monday Emmanuel Macron to "deliver a strong speech on the catastrophic situation of human rights" in Egypt, "demanding the release of all prisoners unjustly detained". In October 2017 Emmanuel Macron had received the Egyptian president in Paris, despite the criticism of NGOs. At that time the French president had refused to "give lessons" to his counterpart on the issue of human rights. However, Sunday evening in an interview with the French press in Cairo, President Macron said he would speak "more openly" of this sensitive issue during his visit. According to the French president, "things have gotten worse since October 2017"

As a result, he promised to express himself "in a more determined manner, including openly (...) because I think it is the interest of President Sissi and Egyptian stability".

A visit that aims to diversify the French commercial offer, which remains "too low" according to Emmanuel Macron, France being only the 11th partner of Egypt, third market in Africa and to "tighten the links" between two countries.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

FELIX TSHISEKEDI PRESIDENT OF CONGO ALTERNANCE OR CONTINUITY OF POWER

A new era is opening up in the DRC. The opponent Felix Tshisekedi officially became, Thursday, January 24, the fifth president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He succeeds Joseph Kabila, who leaves power after eighteen years at the helm of the country.

This political alternation is the first in Congolese history to be done without violence in a country marked by two coups (1965 and 1997), two assassinations of leaders (Patrice Lumumba, in 1961, and Laurent-Désiré Kabila, in 2001), and two wars.

But this election is contested by Martin Fayulu, another opponent of Kabila, who denounced an "electoral coup" orchestrated by Mr. Kabila with the complicity of Mr. Tshisekedi.

If the African heads of state of South Africa, Kenya, Burundi and Tanzania have welcomed, on Sunday, the election of Mr. Tshisekedi, others have delayed including two of the nine neighbors of the DRC, Angola and Congo.

The African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU), in a joint statement, "took note" of the outcome of this contested election. As for the United States, they said they were ready to work with the new president.

A "political coalition agreement"

For a peaceful alternation, Mr. Kabila, a 47-year-old senator, encouraged "political leaders" to favor a

"Coalition" rather than "cohabitation". Thus the pro-Tshisekedi and pro-Kabila have signed a "political coalition agreement" and "power sharing" which provides that the regal ministries (diplomacy, defense, domestic) return to the elected president's political family.

The National Assembly is acquired by President Kabila with 337 seats out of 500, so that Mr. Tshisekedi will have to choose a prime minister in this majority. Nehemiah Mwilanya Wilondja, the President Kabila's chief of staff, or Albert Yuma, a Congolese boss, is being approached for the post. The army is also largely shaped by outgoing power.
Formal deadlines, however, should help to establish the government.

Towards "a reconciled Congo"

Felix Thisekedi is committed to reforming justice, fighting corruption, poverty, tax evasion and improving respect for human rights. In his inaugural speech, the new president promised to release all "political prisoners".

He also assured that he would improve respect for human rights in the country.

"Under our mandate, we will ensure that every citizen respects the exercise of their fundamental rights. We are committed to banning all forms of discrimination, "he said.

The new government will take over a mineral-rich country, but 70% of the 80 million people live below the poverty line, according to the IMF.

Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

THE NEW GOVERNMENT OF

THE PRESIDENT OF MADAGASCAR ANDRY RAJOELINA

With error or omission we are fortunate to announce that the new government of President Andry Rajoelina has just been formed in Madagascar.

Recall that after a transfer of power that was made between two elected presidents, Hery Rajaonarimampianina and Andry Rajoelina, which represents the obvious illustration of a democratic transfer of power, in respect of republican values.

In his address to the nation in front of thousands of Malagasy people attending the ceremony, Andry Rajoelina promised to fill in five years the economic backlog accumulated by the country since its independence in 1960

"From now on, the Malagasy will always be victorious but not conquered every time in the economy, in the social sector, in the cultural sector, in all sectors. This is my priority, " said Andry Rajoelina just after being sworn in as president of Madagascar.

President Andry Rajoelina also announced the creation of industries in the six provinces of the country to equalize development across Madagascar.

Since the energy sector is an obstacle preventing entrepreneurs from investing in the provinces, he promised to double electricity production during his tenure and sell it at a low price to the public.

"We are going to create a solar panel manufacturing company to bring light to every family," he said. "We will double the cultivated land in five years so that Madagascar imports more rice, but exports it in five years" .

"We will create a new city to ease congestion in the capital Antananarivo. Work will begin this year 2019. This city will be the pride of the Malagasy, because it will be the most modern city of the Indian Ocean. All the ministerial offices will be transferred there . "

President Andry Rajoelina chose as prime minister is Christian Ntsay.

To foreign affairs is appointed Foreign Minister Naina Andriantsitohaina post all the more important as it must weave links with the whole world.

Another important seat Minister of Economy Richard Randriamandrato and Minister of Spatial Planning and Public Works Hajo Andrianainarivelo and Minister of Industry, Heritage and Crafts Landisoa Rakotomalala to sit the future of Madagascar.

Then and are named:

Minister of National Defense Gal de Div Leo Jean Richard Rakotonirina
Minister of Justice Jacques Randrianasolo
Ministry of the Interior Tiana Harivelo Razafimahefa
Public Security Comptroller General Rafanomezantsoa Rafanomezantsoa
Secretary of State for the Gendarmerie Ravalomanana Richard

Minister of Energy, Water, and Hydrocarbons: Vonjy Andrianjaka
Minister of Transport, Tourism and Meteorology: Joël Randriamandranto
Minister of Higher Education Madeleine Felicite Fienena

Minister of the Environment and Sustainable Development: Alexandre Georget
Minister of Communication and Culture Lalatiana Andriatongarivo Rakotondrazafy
Minister of Youth and Sports: Tinoka Roberto.
Minister of Post, Telecommunications, and Digital Development MPTDN Christian Ramarolahy
Ministry of Population Irma Lucien Naharimamy


If the task that awaits this new government team to lead the great project of President Andry Rajoelina is important, the judicious choice of a team of people of value should help to advance in the right track Madagascar, which as we recall , at such an important potential

Luc T. for DayNewsWorld

NEAR 100 DEATHS IN MURATRIAN ATTACK IN AFGHANISTAN

A car bomb exploded at a military base in the Afghan province of Maidan Wardak, 50 kilometers south of the capital, on Monday (January 21st). The record is very heavy and remains tentative, with more than 100 members of Afghan security forces killed according to a senior official of the Ministry of the Interior. The attack was claimed by the Taliban.

An Afghan army transport vehicle, a stolen and "explosive filled" Humvee, first detonated at the entrance to the intelligence training center in Maidan Shar, the provincial capital. from Wardak,

"Then three men in a vehicle following the Humvee entered the camp," said Abdul Wahid Akbarzai, a member of the Provincial Council.

"A second vehicle, full of explosives, was also discovered, and it was neutralized," he added. The three attackers, who wore intelligence uniforms, were quickly killed. But "a building partially collapsed after the strong explosion" the majority of deaths occurred, which caused the majority of deaths, said the head of the Provincial Council.

Taliban attacks have proliferated in recent months in an attempt to oust the pro-Western government in power in Kabul. They come as the US special envoy for peace, Zalmay Khalilzad, has just completed a regional tour that brought him to China, India, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Taliban also announced on Monday that it has met with US officials in Qatar, where they have a political bureau. Discussions were to continue on Tuesday, they added.

No confirmation of this interview from the United States. The last confirmed meeting between the two parties dates back to the end of 2018 in Abu Dhabi.

While the United States wants the Taliban to engage in talks with the Afghan government, they have always refused, saying it is "a puppet" of Washington.

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

ICC LAYING LAURENT GBAGBO SUSPENDED

The release of the former Ivorian President, acquitted by the International Criminal Court, was suspended after the prosecution appealed.

Former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo, acquitted on Tuesday, January 15 of charges of crimes against humanity, will remain in detention until a new hearing on February 1, announced Friday the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC ).

"The detention of Mr. Laurent Gbagbo and Mr. Charles Blé Goudé will be held pending consideration of the appeal," decided the judges by majority.

The two men were tried since 2016 in The Hague for crimes against humanity and war crimes, including killings, rape and persecution, during the post-election violence in Côte d'Ivoire, while Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept his defeat facing his rival Alassane Ouattara, the current Ivorian president.

Facts that cover the post-election crisis period in Côte d'Ivoire between November 2010 and April 2011.

Violence that has killed more than 3,000 people in five months.

Laurent Gbagbo is the first former head of state to be handed over to the ICC.

Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

AT LEAST 14 DEATHS IN ISLAMIST ATTACK

A NAIROBI IN KENYA

Kenyan security forces on Wednesday morning ended an attack by Somali Islamists Shebab against a Nairobi hotel complex after a siege of nearly twenty hours. The provisional balance is 14 deaths.

"I can confirm that the security operation at (complex) Dusit was completed about an hour ago and that all the terrorists have been eliminated," Kenyatta said at a press conference. also stating that "at this moment, we have confirmation that fourteen innocent lives have been lost (...), others have been wounded".

For its part, a source at the morgue has that fifteen remains were recorded including 11 Kenyans, an American, a British. Police sources also reported at least 15 deaths. However, the authorities do not specify the total number of jihadists who participated in the operation. CCTV footage from the Kenyan media shows four men armed with automatic weapons and grenades moving slowly through the complex. At least one jihadist blew himself up at the beginning of the attack.

A police source said that two attackers were killed on Wednesday morning after an extended shootout. "They both wore red scarves on their foreheads and cartridges were tied around their chest (...) they each had an AK-47".

"Coordinated Attack" and claimed by the Shebabs

As early as Tuesday, Somali Islamist Shebabs claimed responsibility for the attack. Its modus operandi is reminiscent of other operations of the movement in Mogadishu in recent months: a bomb explodes and in the process, a commando enters the institution. This "coordinated attack" of the DusitD2 complex began with a loud explosion heard more than five kilometers away, followed by heavy fire.

Tuesday's attack in Nairobi took place three years to the day after that of the Kenyan military base in El Adde, southern Somalia.

Kenya has already been the target of large-scale jihadist attacks. On August 7, 1998, an al-Qaeda-claimed attack on the US Embassy in Nairobi left 213 dead and 5,000 injured. Since the October 2011 engagement of the Kenyan army in Somalia to fight al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab, the country has been hit hard. After the Westgate attack on September 21, 2013, which killed nearly 70 people, a commando shot 148 people in Garissa University (east), most of them students, on April 2, 2015.

While the Shebab, who were expelled from Mogadishu in 2011, have lost most of their strongholds, they still control large areas of the country from which they carry out guerrilla operations and suicide bombings.

They vowed the loss of the Somali government, backed by the international community and by the 20,000-strong force of the African Union's Somalia force (Amisom), to which Kenya is contributing.

In addition, Kenya, a country with a long porous border with Somalia, is exposed to shebabs that form cells there.

Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld

MADAGASCAR ANDRY RAJOELINA
OFFICIALLY ELECTED HEAD OF STATE

As we had predicted, it is the best candidate who has been elected.

Our call for support to candidate Andry Rajoelina who presented a clear and quality project and was the only one able to move Madagascar forward to a promising future, seems to have been heard.

Daynewsworld that day was read by nearly 1,792,924 Malagasy readers on 9,625,532 readers in other countries of the world the day of the release of our article on the choices for Madagascar.

Our article concerning the best possible choice for the Malagasy people, the electoral program in support, concluded unequivocally that the right choice was the candidate Andry Rajoelina.

We would also like to thank Bernard Belair Council to the National Assembly of Madagascar, fervent support of Andry Rajoelina from the very beginning, who helped us in the logical choice for the interest of the Malagasy people.

It is therefore with hope for Madagascar that we announce that Andry Rajoelina has become the new president of the Malagasy Republic.  The High Constitutional Court validated the victory announced by the electoral commission on December 27th. The Malagasy High Constitutional Court (HCC) validated, on January 8, 2019, the victory of the former head of state Andry Rajoelina in the presidential election last month, rejecting all requests for annulment for fraud of his rival Marc Ravalomanana.

The 305 applications that had been filed with the HCC - including 214 by Marc Ravalomanana's camp, notably for "massive fraud" - were all rejected.

"Is declared elected President of the Republic Andry Rajoelina," said the president of the HCC, Jean-Eric Rakotoarisoa.

On 27 December, the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) of Madagascar announced the clear victory of Andry Rajoelina, 44, with 55.66% of the votes in the second round played on December 19, against 44.34% in his predecessor at the helm of the country.

But his rival Marc Ravalomanana, 69, had immediately seized the HCC arguing that "massive fraud" while foreign observers, those of the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU) in particular, have to the opposite claimed to have observed no significant irregularities in the ballot.

It is a very heavy task that awaits the winner of the presidential election who promised to lift Madagascar out of poverty.

More than two-thirds of the population lives on less than $ 2 a day.

Yet Madagascar has tremendous potential that could enable it to become a rich country with a very comfortable income population.

The entire international community joins us in wishing the new President Andry Rajoelina the success of his project by offering Madagascar a better and prosperous life.....

Luc T. for DayNewsWorld

ATTEMPT TO GO TO GABON

When Gabonese President Ali Bongo is hospitalized in Morocco, soldiers took control of the state media Monday morning and announced the establishment of a "National Council of Restoration". They were arrested, according to the government.

These soldiers read on state radio a message that a "National Council of restoration" had been set up in Gabon in the absence of President Ali Bongo recovering in Morocco after suffering a stroke. cerebral end of October

They were three soldiers on Monday morning on national radio. A Lieutenant of the Republican Guard, Lieutenant Ondo Obiang Kelly, read the statement proclaiming himself beforehand "President of the Patriotic Movement of Youth of the Gabonese Defense and Security Forces (MPJFDS)".

These greenest social berets said they were disappointed by the message delivered to the nation on December 31 by President Ali Bongo.

"The message of the head of the nation to close the debate on his health has rather raised doubts about his ability to assume the office of President of the Republic. "

To Lieutenant Ondo Obiang Kelly to emphasize that "the long-awaited day has arrived when the army has decided to stand alongside its people in order to save Gabon from chaos". The movement "asks all young people of the defense and security forces and all Gabonese youth to join us," said the military announcing the establishment of this "National Council of Restoration." "We can not leave the homeland," he said, judging the institutions "illegitimate and illegal".

Since then, the security forces have been deployed in the capital and they will remain in the next days to maintain order, reassured Guy-Bertrand Mapangou.

"The calm has returned, the situation is under control," said government spokesman Guy-Bertrand Mapangou. "An assault was given by the police on the building RTG and most leaders were arrested. ". On the commando of five soldiers who had taken control of the national radio and television and called for an uprising. "Four have been arrested, one is on the run," the spokesman added.

This first coup attempt in the history of this republic in the oil-laden basement comes as President Ali Bongo has been absent from the country for more than two months. On October 24, 2018, the president, in power since 1967, had suffered a stroke in Saudi Arabia where he was treated for more than a month before being transferred to Rabat. He is still recovering. For two months, the official communication has been very rare about the health of the head of state which has fueled the wildest rumors.

Ali Bongo had reappeared on national television for the December 31 holiday and put an end to rumors about his death, but did not fully reassure his state of health

.

Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

DEATH ATTACK IN SOMALIA

A double car bomb attack on Saturday (December 22nd) killed at least 16 people and injured at least 10 people in Mogadishu, the Somali capital. Committed near the presidential palace, this attack was claimed by Somali Islamists Shabab who said in a statement to have targeted "a security checkpoint that protected the presidential palace," it was learned from police sources.

London-based Somalia-based TV Universal TV said three of its staff members died in the bombing, including Somali and British journalist Awil Dahir.

The first explosion took place at a checkpoint next to the National Theater, located some 500 meters from the presidential palace while the second, more powerful blast hit a nearby junction a few minutes later. A senior government official in the Banadir region including Mogadishu was reportedly injured.

This double attack was claimed by al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab Islamists who swore the loss of the Somali government backed by the international community and the 20,000-strong Amisom. .

Shebab were expelled from Mogadishu in 2011 before losing most of their strongholds. But they still control large rural areas from which they carry out guerrilla operations and suicide bombings, including in the capital, against government, security or civilian objectives.

The deadliest attack in Somalia's history occurred on October 14, 2017, killing 512 people in Hodan district, a busy shopping district in Mogadishu.

If this attack has not been claimed, there is no doubt for the authorities that the shebab are behind this attack.

Alize Marion for DayNewsWorld

ALGERIA BEATIFICATION OF TIBHIRINE MONKS

On Saturday, seven monks from Tibhirine are beatified in the Santa Cruz chapel in Oran, along with twelve other Catholic monks, including Bishop Pierre Claverie, who were also victims of Islamist terrorist violence in Algeria in the 1990s.

These religious refused to leave the country after decolonization and then during the decade of blood that hit the country. In 1993 Algeria plunged into the terror of a civil war that makes 150,000 to 200,000 dead.

The Islamist GIA is sowing terror and, on Christmas Eve, an emir asks the monks to leave the country. Their lives are in danger, but the religious decide to stay. Two years later, in 1966, seven of the nine Trappist monks of the Tibhirine community are kidnapped and murdered by the GIA.

This idea of ​​their official recognition by the Church sprang up about twenty years ago and in January of this year, the Pope signed the decree by which they were officially recognized as martyrs. As is the tradition of the Catholic Church, his blessed are celebrated where they lived.

It is a historic event for Algeria, for Christians living there as for the universal Church. "It is very rare that a beatification takes place so soon after the death of the people concerned and just as new that it affects a memory that is still so sensitive twenty years later," admitted Bishop Jean-Paul Vesco, when a recent conference organized at the Center Pierre Claverie, in Oran, in front of an Algerian public. In the name of "civil harmony" and national unity, this "black decade" of civil war is still taboo.

The decision of the Algerian authorities and in particular the Minister of Religious Affairs, Mohamed Aissa, to welcome the celebration is fraught with meaning. It testifies to a form of recognition for Algerians converted to Protestantism, a recognition of the Amazigh (Berber) identity of Algeria and pleads for a plural Algeria.

Through this exceptional beatification, a first in the land of Islam is also shown that men and women of the church were killed alongside Muslims who rejected radicalization and violence .

This exceptional beatification marks a step forward in interreligious dialogue.

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

WAR AND FAMINE IN YEMEN NEAR 150 DEATHS

Washington et Londres ont demandé instamment que viennent le temps de la négociation au Yémen, alors que l'offensive à Hodeida a fait près de 150 morts ce dimanche. Ce bilan a été donné alors que les rebelles Houthis, soutenus par l'Iran , opposent une farouche résistance à la progression des forces progouvernementales appuyées par l'Arabie saoudite, a admis une source militaire loyaliste.

La ville portuaire de Hodeida sous des combats meurtriers

Des combats particulièrement meurtriers continuent ce lundi dans la ville portuaire de Hodeida, dans l'ouest du Yémen, au moment où Washington et Londres accentuent la pression sur l'Arabie saoudite pour que la coalition qu'elle commande dans ce pays cesse rapidement les hostilités. L'Arabie saoudite sunnite a pris en effet la tête d'une coalition militaire pour affronter la rébellion houthi qui avait a pris le contrôle d'une partie du Yémen. Cette une guerre qui divise la région a fait plus de 8750 morts, depuis mars 2015. L'Iran chiite ,de son côté, soutient militairement le soulèvement houthi. Soumis à un blocus imposé par Ryad, qui héberge le chef de l'État Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi en exil, le Yémen est confronté à la « pire crise humanitaire du monde », selon l'ONU. Pendant ce temps, la menace djihadiste s'est étendue, entre la concurrence d'Al-Qaïda dans la péninsule arabique (Aqpa) et de Daech.

Près de 600 morts depuis le mois de juin.

L'offensive lancée en juin s'est nettement intensifiée depuis le 1er novembre avec un bilan d'au moins 592 morts jusqu'ici (460 rebelles, 125 loyalistes et 7 civils), selon des sources militaires et des médecins.

Au moins 110 rebelles, 32 loyalistes et sept civils ont été tués ces dernières 24 heures dans les affrontements, dont certains se déroulent dans des quartiers résidentiels, ont indiqué lundi des sources militaires et hospitalières.

Hodeida, qui se situe sur la mer Rouge, revêt une importance stratégique  constituant le point d'entrée de plus des trois-quarts des importations et de l'aide humanitaire internationale dans le pays en guerre.

Le temps de la négociation a donc sonné

L'Arabie saoudite avait déjà essuyé de vives critiques pour les dommages collatéraux causés par les frappes aériennes faisant des centaines de victimes civiles. De plus le royaume sunnite est sorti considérablement ternie par l'affaire Jamal Khashoggi , du nom de ce journaliste assassiné le 2 octobre au consulat saoudien à Istanbul.

Le chef de la diplomatie américaine Mike Pompeo et son homologue britannique Jeremy Hunt ont estimé que le temps de la négociation était venu pour le Yémen.

, également ministre de la Défense, Mike Pompeo a explicitement appelé à « la fin des hostilités » au Yémen lors d'un entretien dimanche avec le prince héritier saoudien Mohammed ben Salmane. Il a exigeant que que « toutes les parties viennent à la table pour négocier une solution pacifique au conflit »

Sous la pression du Congrès, l'administration américaine de Donald Trump a confirmé que la coalition sous commandement saoudien au Yémen allait désormais effectuer elle-même le ravitaillement en vol de ses avions, assuré jusqu'ici par les Etats-Unis.

Pour le ministre britannique Jeremy Hunt, reçu lundi en Arabie saoudite, le conflit yéménite a connu un coût humain « incalculable » et sa résolution passe par une solution « politique ».

Le Yémen est le théâtre de la pire crise humanitaire au monde, rappelle régulièrement l'ONU, la famine guettant 14 millions de civils.

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

MALAGASY PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

THE RETURN OF REVENENTS

A few days after the presidential election in Madagascar, the former president of the Transition, Andry Rajoelina is ahead of his rival, Marc Ravalomanana, according to the still partial results published by the independent national electoral commission (CENI).

With 7,597 polling stations processed, of the 24,852 polling stations in the country, 30.57%, Andry Rajoelina still leads with 40.87% of the vote, followed by Marc Ravalomanana, 35.99%.

The outgoing President Henry Rajaonarimampianina meanwhile, collects 07.01% of the vote.

Marc Ravalomanana, 68, and Andry Rajoelina, 44, are wealthy businessmen, two former heads of state engaged in an endless battle.

The first was overthrown in 2009 after demonstrations organized by the second.

In the capital, Antananarivo, the protests turned to riot and were repressed in the blood.

Rajoelina, supported by the army, then took the lead of a "High Authority of Transition" which led the country for four years "a coup" denounced as a coup by the international community.

In 2013, for the sake of appeasement, the two rivals were banned from running in the presidential election.

This is the first time they have clashed at the polls.

If no one exceeds the 50% mark, a second round is planned to decide between the two leading candidates on December 19th.

Voting irregularities were reported that were denied by the Electoral Commission. Observers from the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU) insisted Friday that claims will be "only" by the way legal.

This large island in the Indian Ocean, regularly destabilized by political and post-electoral crises since its independence from France in 1960, could perhaps experience stability after this presidential election.


Alyson  Braxton for DayNewsWorld

 

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN MADAGASCAR

The Malagasy elect this Wednesday their president for the first round of the presidential election. Three former heads of state are among the favorites in this country of turbulent political history.

Polling stations opened shortly after 06:00 (0300 GMT) in the capital.

The Malagasy Ministry of the Interior said this Wednesday, shortly before noon, that the participation rate is close to 40%.

If thirty-six candidates are in the running, including four former presidents, former prime ministers, a very popular singer or two pastors.

The campaign was dominated by the last three heads of state:

Marc Ravalomanana (2002-2009), Andry Rajoelina (2009-2014) and Hery Rajaonarimampianina (2014-2018) .

The latter also resigned in September to be able to run again, in accordance with the Malagasy Constitution requiring a president who presents himself to his own estate to resign 60 days before the first round.

The new interim head of state is Rivo Rakotovao to ensure neutrality of the state during the election period.

High-profile meetings were held by these three candidates during the campaign in a country plagued by poverty and corruption. The polls close at 17:00 (14:00 GMT).

If no candidate wins in the first round, the first two will meet for a second round on December 19, 2018.

An election that serves as a test in this customary Indian Ocean island of post-election and political crises.


Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

 

A WOMAN PRESIDENT IN ETHIOPIA

For the first time, a woman is president in Ethiopia.

Ethiopian parliamentarians on Thursday (October 25th) unanimously announced, for the first time, a woman, Sahle-Work Zewde, the country's president, after the resignation of the man who until now held this essentially honorary post.

The career diplomat becomes the fourth head of state in Ethiopia. The adoption of the 1995 Constitution provides that a President may be elected for a maximum of two six-year terms.

This diplomat has a long career behind her: ambassador to France, to Djibouti, Senegal, then permanent representative of Ethiopia to the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD), to obtain the post of special representative of the secretary General of the United Nations (UN), Antonio Guterres, to the African Union (AU).

She has been President of Ethiopia since October 25, an honorary function, but one that gives women a platform.

"In a patriarchal society like ours, the appointment of a woman as head of state is not only a sign for the future but trivializes the role of women as leaders in public life," he said. elsewhere claimed on Twitter Fitsum Arega, the chief of staff of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

both Houses of Parliament first endorsed the resignation of President Mulatu Teshome, who had held this position since 2013 and resigned one year before the end of his term without providing any explanation.

For the observers this resignation would result from ongoing negotiations between the four parties forming the ruling coalition, the Revolutionary Democratic Front of the Ethiopian People (EPRDF).

If the President of Ethiopia is officially the Head of State, his responsibilities are essentially symbolic and honorary. Indeed, the prime minister, who represents the country in particular at major international summits, holds most of the power. In April, the EPRDF chose Abiy Ahmed as the new prime minister, for the first time from the largest ethnic group in the country, the Oromo.

A vast program of reforms is at work with the release of dissidents, the opening of democratic space and peace with neighboring Eritrea. He recently appointed a new government, in which half of the positions are held by women.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed nicknamed the "messiah" has continued to show his willingness to reform the country of 104 million inhabitants, on the edge of the precipice at the beginning of the year.


Britney Delsey for DayNewsWorld

 

ERITREA ETHIOPIA FINALLY

PEACE AFTER DECADES OF CONFLICT

"The state of war that existed between the two countries has come to an end. A new era of peace and friendship is opening up" . This is proclaimed by the President of Eritrea Issaias Afeworki and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, signed on 9 July 2018 in Asmara.

The conflict between the two countries was born from the annexation in 1962, of Eritrea (former Italian colony, then English) until then "autonomous entity" federated to Ethiopia, by the Emperor Haile Selassie.

Eritrea was only able to regain its independence in May 1993, after thirty years of war, an open war by the Independents of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (FPLE).

Despite a seemingly peaceful separation, the two neighbors remained at odds over monetary, trade and border issues, each claiming several border regions including Baden, Tsorona, Zalambessa and En Bure.

Until 1998, however, the two countries remained close allies, while closely monitoring their new common border, the route of which had not immediately given full satisfaction to the two belligerents.

And it is for a problem of border that Eritrea, engaged in May 1998 a new conflict ... For some square kilometers of deserts?

The two countries have since engaged in a fratricidal war.

A first peace agreement was signed in June 2000. This first peace agreement provided for the creation of a 25-km-wide security zone within Eritrea under United Nations control (UNMEE). ); but Eritrea continued to occupy the locality of Baden, which will be at the heart of the new conflict.

The independence of Eritrea had simultaneously lost Ethiopia's unique Red Sea front, Eritrea having reclaimed the ports of Massawa and Assab. For 20 years Ethiopia has been landlocked, forcing the country, which overnight had had to move its boats from Assad to Djibouti, to pass through almost all of its imports and exports through the corridor leading to the French colony, which is one of the most expensive corridors in the world. According to Serge Tiran, Ethiopia's representative of Massida Logistics Company, the 100 million inhabitants of a country 30% larger than France have been forced to stock up on a "departmental" road. France, barely drivable. The return trip between the two capitals still takes, currently, 8 days in the best of cases.

Since 1998, the two countries have been in periodic clashes, until the Ethiopian government decides in June 2018, to implement the Algiers agreement of 12 December 2000. It is to the new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed that this policy is due to the outstretched hand (Abiy Ahmed is the first Orano in office since 1991, he succeeded Haïlemariam Desalegn, resigned since February 2018).

Thanks to the gesture of Abiy Ahmed, a wind of appeasement has just blown on this region of the Horn of Africa .

Eritrea for its part was the most under-appreciated country in Africa. Recently, Europeans know a little more about the country, with Eritrea being one of the most represented countries among migrants trying to reach Europe.

Eritrea is led by dictator Isaias Afwerki, a trained engineer who was elected in 1995 after a referendum, presenting himself "very evangelically" as "the shepherd of the people". Isaias Afwerki has become over the years a fierce dictator, despite his discretion and his African style "new style" , modern and open. Under his leadership, Eritrea has become an open-air concentration camp of 5 million people where all are hungry and enslaved.

But Bill Clinton's White House pinched it for him then, imagining that because he had eaten in the UN bowl, he was going to set up a reformist, social-democratic "Swedish-style" regime?

Clinton's teams had simply forgotten that it had been formed by the Beijing Mao, supporters of a single regime and surveillance by everyone, with a muzzled press and deprived of its freedoms.

For many years, the regime practiced torture and set up a conscription regime for men aged 16 to 40 who were forced to give their lives to the state. Eritrea, the world's most closed country, is still on the list of rogue states!

These are the main reasons why nearly 400 000 Eritreans have fled their country to Europe.

Now, the time is now business in Eritrea as in Ethiopia.

For a few years now, under the pressure of globalization, Ethiopia, where wages are very low, has been transformed into a weaving and clothing workshop (Decathlon has settled there). Ethiopia, which is experiencing double-digit growth, desperately needed access to the Red Sea.

The Horn of Africa has become in recent years a cornucopia ... The real-political has done the rest ...

On September 16, 2018, Ethiopia and Eritrea signed an agreement consolidating their reconciliation. This agreement was signed in Jeddah, in the presence of King Salman of Arabia and his son Crown Prince Mohamed Ben Salman and the Secretary General of the United Nations.

The details of this agreement between the two countries are not yet known; but it has already resulted in the reopening of embassies, the re-establishment of airlines, new commercial relations, telephone lines and border posts.

"A wind of hope has just blown on the Horn of Africa" has just welcomed the new Secretary General of the UN (since January 2017) Antonio Guterres.

This geopolitical evolution fully satisfies, moreover, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The Saudi Foreign Minister has just declared that "this latest peace agreement will contribute to strengthening the security and stability of the region" which is in dire need of it!

It is known that Saudi Arabia and the Arab Emirates have in the strategic port of Assad for their operations in Yemen, which is why they have greatly contributed to this historic rapprochement.

Their short and medium-term interests are indeed obvious: dozens of ships transit through Bâb el Mandeb, the strategic strait that separates the Arabian Peninsula from the Horn of Africa.

Will this be enough to completely pacify the Region and especially the Greater Middle East knowing that the war continues in Yemen, that Daesh seems to be reborn from the ashes, that the conflict in Syria is not completely over and that Iran threatens to close the Strait of Ormuz ...

To be continued….

Clara Mitchell for DayNewsWorld

 

MADAGASCAR LE PRESIDENT PAR INTERIM

RIVO RAKOTOVAO

In Madagascar, they are 36 candidates to take part in the November 7 presidential election. The handover between former President Hery Rajaonarimampianina and the new interim head of state Rivo Rakotovao took place on Monday.

The former head of state has indeed resigned Friday to comply with the Constitution of Madagascar requiring a president who presents himself to his own estate resigns 60 days before the first round.

A first round fixed on November 7th.

On Tuesday the interim president responded to criticism of his proximity to the former head of state, which would prevent him from ensuring state neutrality during the election period.

Rivo Rakotovao was a member of the HVM party of the former head of state but said he was no longer a member of Hery Rajaonarimampianina's party for ten days. If his resignation as head of the HVM, a month and a half ago, had been publicized, this time his final departure from the party was done in all discretion. "Of course, there are suspicions, because everyone knows my choice as a citizen, but it is there that we must make the difference. Now, I am at a level of responsibility where I must fulfill my mission while respecting the Republic, " said the acting president to RFI. His neutrality: his "acts will justify it," he says.

Still, since June it's a consensus government that has been put in place. The national unity government includes ministers from the two major opposition parties MAPAR and TIM.

. "There is a government of consensus so even in the Council of Ministers there will be people who will not have the same political tendencies as me," said this close to the former head of state.

The resignation is seen as a positive signal for peaceful elections, yet some are contesting the date of the election.

Eight candidates in fact, out of the thirty-six in the running for the presidential election, demand a postponement of the election. The best known of them is the former head of state, Didier Ratsiraka. Former Prime Minister Olivier Mahafaly and the Speaker of the National Assembly, Jean Max Rakotomamonjy are also on the list.

A resolution was signed at the home of Admiral Didier Ratsiraka, requesting the cancellation of the poll and the establishment of a Transition. The reasons for this disagreement on the date of the election are of a political nature:

1 ° The current political climate does not lend itself to it

2 ° The illegality of the decision of the High Constitutional Court of 25th May to demand the establishment of a consensus government is denounced.

3 ° The organization of a national conference with a view to reaching a political agreement is also advanced.

One of them has also filed with the Council of State a request for annulment of the decree of convocation of the voters. The institution must decide on this request on Tuesday.

While these eight candidates require a postponement, the twenty-eight others are not of this opinion. The two big competitors of Hery Rajaonarimampianina in particular, Andry Rajoelina and Marc Ravalomanana are in favor of this election of November 7th.

Of the 36 candidates running for the presidential election on 7 November, four of them are already attracting attention: the outgoing president, Hery Rajaonarimampianina, candidate for his own succession, and his three predecessors: Andry Rajoelina ( 2009-2013), Marc Ravalomanana (2002-2009) and Didier Ratsiraka (1975-1993 then 1997-2002).

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

 

VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS

85 SAFE CHILDREN IN SUDAN

" The diversity of nationalities among the people rescued (Sudan, South Sudan, Chad, Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Niger, Ed) shows how much trafficking in human beings and trafficking in human beings is a truly transnational problem, which requires a coordinated international response , " said Tim Morris, Interpol's executive director of police services.

Twenty-five children were saved from human trafficking Interpol said Monday that a human smuggling ring was dismantled in late August in Sudan.

A human smuggling ring was dismantled at the end of August in Khartoum, Sudan, saving 94 people, including 85 children, some of whom were working in illegal gold mines, Interpol said on Monday.

Thanks to "Operation Sawiyan", which took place from 26 to 30 August, 12 women and two men were arrested during a widespread crackdown by the local police, with the support of Interpol. "Several hotspots" of the city such as the international airport, and open pit gold mines in the east, were targeted, said in its statement the International Criminal Police Organization, headquartered in Lyon. .

Police arrested fourteen people involved in illegal immigration, child labor and forced begging.

" The diversity of nationalities among the people rescued (Sudan, South Sudan, Chad, Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Niger, Ed) shows how much trafficking in human beings and trafficking in human beings is a truly transnational problem, which requires a coordinated international response , " said Tim Morris, Interpol's executive director of police services, quoted in the text.

Many of the minor victims of the network were working in illegally mined gold mines, "in extreme conditions", "children, some aged" as young as 10 years "" handling dangerous chemicals such as mercury or cyanide.

200 police officers were mobilized for the operation of various services, including those of the fight against human trafficking, child protection and the local branch of Interpol

Twenty thousand dollars (17,325 euros) were also seized during the operation, some of which could correspond to "the payment of a ransom" after the abduction of a migrant, who is part of the victims of the dismantled network, according to the same source.


A transnational criminal group has been dismantled as there are others trafficking human beings including children. It is a "real transnational problem".
Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

 

ELEPHANT KILLER FOR THEIR IVORY AU BOTSWANA

"This is the worst poaching episode in Africa I have ever been informed of," said the representative of the NGO Elephants Without Borders.

At least 90 elephants have been found dead, their ivory tusks methodically torn in recent weeks in Botswana, victims of one of the most deadly poaching waves recently recorded on the African continent.

Most were killed by "heavy bullets," according to Chase, near watering holes in the famed Okavango Delta Reserve in northern Botswana.

Stuck between Zambia and South Africa, Botswana is home to Africa's largest elephant population, estimated at 135,000 animals in 2015.

Has the country been the scene of a massive killing of pachyderms?

This is denounced by the NGO Elephants Without Borders with its macabre counting during an aerial census of the country's pachyderm population conducted with the Botswana Ministry of Wildlife and National Parks.

The killings came a few weeks after the controversial decision by the Gaborone authorities to disarm their "rangers" specialized in anti-poaching. Until May, his "rangers" were heavily armed and allowed to shoot poachers.

But last May, the government of the new president Mokgweetsi Masisi, in place since the previous month, ordered the disarmament of these units.

Tourism Minister Tshekedi Khama confirmed the extent of the massacre and said he was "very concerned, very worried".

"We have been spared by poachers for a long time, we now realize how sophisticated they are. (...) Unfortunately, we sometimes learn our lessons in the worst way. "

The wealth of wildlife in this small country has made it a sanctuary popular safari lovers and one of the poles of development of its economy protected by an anti-poaching arsenal hitherto considered exemplary. Until May, his rangers were heavily armed and allowed to shoot poachers. Should we rearm them?

And also consider putting GPS collars on pachyderms as in Gabon?

According to Mike Chase, the authors of this wave of poaching come from neighboring countries like Angola and Zambia where elephants have virtually disappeared because of poaching.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) estimates that the lucrative ivory trade has reduced the number of elephants from 415,000 to 111,000 over the last decade in Africa.

His studies reveal that about 30 000 pachyderms are poached every year.

Jenny Chase for DayNewsWorld

 

PRESIDENTIAL CHALLENGE AWARDED BY EMMERSON MNANGAGWA IN ZIMBABWE

Emmerson Mnangagwa outgoing leader and former right arm of Robert Mugabe, won the presidential election with 50.8% of the vote, announced Friday,
August 3, the electoral commission.

The victory was announced in a climate of high tension;

Victory of Emmerson Mnangagwa .

Elected in the first round of the presidential election, Mnangagwa was ahead of opposition leader Nelson Chamisa, who won 44.3 percent of the vote, commission chair Priscilla Chigumba told a news conference. in Harare. organized in a tense atmosphere as the army patrols the capital.

"As a result, Emmerson Mnangagwa Dambudzo of the ZANU-PF party is declared President-Elect of the Republic of Zimbabwe, effective August 3," said Election Commission Chair Priscilla Chigumba, with some cheers. Indeed because of tense climate the army patrols the streets in Harare.

Emmerson Mnangagwa, 75, to salute "a fresh start" while from calling to unity. "Let us unite in peace, unity and love and together we build a new Zimbabwe for all," he said on his Twitter account.

Challenging results and violence

But the opposition immediately rejected his victory, announcing that she was going to go to court.

Figures that challenge the opposition. Six people were killed in Zimbabwe, where on Wednesday the army cracked down on an opposition demonstration denouncing fraud in the general elections, according to a new police report released on Thursday.

"The results are wrong, (...) we reject them, we will denounce the whole process in court," said Morgan Komichi, spokesman for Nelson Chamisa's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

An opposition demonstration on Wednesday was repressed by the army with live ammunition. The demonstrators denounced frauds in the electoral process. Six demonstrators died. These historic general elections, which were to mark a turning point in the history of the country, where the elections were regularly tainted by fraud and violence turned to drama.

President Mnangagwa had promised free, peaceful and transparent elections in the hope of attracting new Western investors to his country on the brink of bankruptcy, and Zimbabweans had gone to the polls peacefully.

At the announcement of the results in the night from Thursday to Friday, the streets of the capital Harare and the stronghold of Bulawayo opposition (south) were deserted. Only soldiers and police were visible.

The United Kingdom, the former colonial power of Zimbabwe, has asked Harare to withdraw the army from the streets of the capital. The Commonwealth has "categorically denounced the excessive use of force against unarmed civilians".

Attempt to appease

President Mnangagwa called Thursday morning for appeasement, saying he wants to resolve "peaceful differences" with the opposition. He also said he had been in talks with Nelson Chamisa to try to "defuse" the crisis.

Emmerson Mnangagwa, who succeeded Robert Mugabe following a military coup, forced him to resign. Robert Mugabe had led the country with an iron fist for thirty-seven years. Emmerson Mnangagwa, nicknamed "the crocodile", has just entrusted several military key positions in his government ...

"We have all been naive, including the international community , " said Ibbo Mandaza, an analyst with the Harare-based Southern African Political and Economic Series (SAPES).

"We refused to call a coup and the international community was naive to think that the elections would be free and fair under a military government," he added.


Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

 

AFTER MUGABE ELECTIONS IN ZIMBABWE

In a country where the unemployment rate is around 90%, the inhabitants voted for the first time freely. With the hope of turning the page on Mugabe decades.

They elect the first Zimbabwean president in the country's history who is not named Robert Mugabe. The 94-year-old has led the country since independence before being overthrown by an army coup in November 2017,

In fact, the general elections held on Sunday are the first since the fall of Robert Mugabe, who led the country for thirty-seven years.

His departure last November gave rise to hope for change among the population. More than 5.5 million voters registered to vote. At 94, the former strongman has still not digested his forced resignation with the help of the army.

No support from Mugabe to the candidate of his party:

Opposition leader in Zimbabwe Nelson Chamisa did not wait until the results were announced to announce his victory.

The opposition leader in Zimbabwe claims, Tuesday, July 31, " a brilliant victory" in the general elections held the day before in the country.

"We have done remarkably well (...) and we are ready to form the next government," he wrote in English on Twitter, in support of * a vote count of 10,000 polling stations.

Before the election, Robert Mugabe implied that he would vote for Nelson Chamisa, a long-time opponent, rather than Emmerson Mnangagwa, the current head of state and his party's candidate, Zanu-PF.

Two favorites out of 23 contenders

Emmerson Mnangagwa, Mugabe's close friend who fell out of favor, took power with the support of the military. He promised to reform the country from top to bottom just like his main rival, the opponent Nelson Chamisa.

For the first time, an election campaign in Zimbabwe took place in relative calm. . The main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), has indeed been able to organize meetings, more and more important.

23 candidates ran in the presidential election, and more than one hundred political parties take part in the legislative elections.

Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

 

HIGH RISK PRESIDENTIALS IN MALI

E read in 2013 after the French intervention to chase Islamists, President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita (IBK) is a candidate for his own succession and even favorite, while the country is still plagued by terrorist acts and community tensions. A great instability raises fears overflows on this day of the first round of elections, the army was deployed to avoid clashes, the government has been funding television advertising spots for several days to call the population to calm. This is to say the state of tension in which is plunged Mali.

Safety issues first and foremost:

To allow for the holding of the vote in most of the country, more than 30,000 members of the security forces, national and foreign, are mobilized, according to the Ministry of Homeland Security. In terms of security, "today it can be said that the minimum conditions are likely to be met," said Mahamat Saleh Annadif, head of the UN mission in the country (Minusma), on UN radio in Mali, Mikado FM, while calling to remain "vigilant".

Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, 73, elected in 2013 and head of the "Rally for Mali", puts his mandate at stake despite a disputed record. Indeed insecurity has increased in the country and the economic situation is far from satisfactory.

But it is above all the security issue that is at the heart of tensions and hurts. In addition to the suspicions of fraud on the part of the presidential camp, the jihadist threat in the north of the country - which was taken by radical Islamists by France in 2013 - is growing. On the last day of campaign on Friday, the jihadists were invited to the debate by the leader of the main jihadist alliance of the Sahel, linked to al-Qaeda, the Malian Touareg Iyad Ag Ghaly, leader of one of the Islamist groups that had seized the entire north of the country in 2012 . "These elections are nothing but the pursuit of a mirage and our people will only harvest illusions, as they have become accustomed to," said in a video the head of the support group for and Muslims

Community tensions have been exacerbated in recent years in this vast landlocked country of West Africa, counting about twenty ethnic groups. Insecurity has also undermined the center of the country. And IBK is widely criticized for not being offensive enough on the subject of insecurity. That is why the main opposition leader, Soumaïla Cissé, promised to bring "peace" back to the center of the country and hopes to capitalize on security issues.

"Barkhane will not be eternal":

Moreover, Mali lives on a drip of foreign military aid to maintain fragile stability. The French operation Barkhane is more than 4,500 soldiers tricolor distributed in the Sahel to fight against the jihadist threat, mainly in Mali. If IBK prevails, the international community fears that it will do more than under its first mandate. Jean-Yves Le Drian, prime contractor of the French intervention in 2013 when he led the Defense, signified his impatience.

France and its partners do not want a status quo that would mean an extension of their presence. "Barkhane will be there as long as it takes but will not be eternal," says one to the Ministry of Armies, which by forming local armies, ultimately wants to "create the conditions" of his departure. The creation of the G5 Sahel in 2014, a coordination framework for five countries in the region to fight against terrorism, must also enable African countries to take charge of the situation.

Two favorites out of 24 candidates:

In any case, Malians are waiting for the president-elect (or re-elected) on security. More than eight million inhabitants of this vast landlocked country of West Africa, counting about twenty ethnic groups, are called to the polls to renew the president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta or to elect one of its 23 competitors, whose head of the opposition, Soumaïla Cissé, and only one woman, Djeneba N'Diaye.

They vote Sunday, July 29 for a presidential election that will weigh on the fate of the peace agreement of 2015 and, beyond, on the entire Sahel, still facing the jihadist threat despite five years of international military interventions.

The official results will be known by Friday at the latest, before a possible second round on August 12.

No less than 24 candidates !! Has the time for revenge for Soumaïla Cissé sounded? Largely beaten (nearly 78% of the vote) by Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta in 2013, the opposition leader, 68 years, this time hopes that the climate of insecurity will encourage Malians to get rid of a socialist president considered too passive . But 24 candidates - of which only one woman - will separate the votes. Among them, many former ministers of the head of state, which says a lot about the ferocity of the campaign even if the outgoing president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, and the leader of the opposition, Soumaïla Cissé, are given favorites

Since the advent of democracy in 1992, less than one out of every two Malians has moved in five presidential polls. The last election, in 2013, was however particularly followed, in a post-coup context that had shaken the Republic, a few weeks after the outbreak of the war in the north of the country.

The participation rate is traditionally low, significantly lower than 50%, in the first round of the presidential election in this country known also for its cultural influence.


Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

 

WHEN BOKO HARAM IS GIRLS

AS HUMAN BOMBS IN NIGERIA


The jihadist group Boko Haram did not hesitate to turn six girls between seven and ten years into human bombs to commit a double suicide bombing on the night of Saturday, June 16 to Sunday, June 17, in Damboa, Nigeria.

"It was discovered that the suicide attacks were perpetrated by six girls " and their heads were torn off at the scene by rescuers.

They were between 7 and 10 years old , a local government official said on condition of anonymity.

The jihadists then targeted the crowd that had gathered at the site of the attacks with grenades, causing more casualties.

Two suicide bombers had previously activated their explosive charge in the neighborhoods of Shuwari and Abachari in Damboa, killing six residents.

At least 31 people have been killed. The balance is likely to increase, many injured being in serious condition.

"31 people were killed and several others wounded," said local militia member Babakura Kolo.

The attacks targeted people who had just celebrated the Eid el-Fitr festival marking the end of Ramadan.

For nine years, the Islamist insurgency has killed more than 20,000 people in the region. It stretches from northeastern Nigeria to Niger, Chad and Cameroon, creating a serious humanitarian crisis. The conflict has displaced about 2.6 million people in Nigeria.

Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

 

41 DEATH AFTER BREAK

A DAM IN KENYA

 

On Wednesday around 9 pm, the Patel private dam in Solai commune, located near the town of Nakuru (about 160 km north of Nairobi) broke down and its waters swept through the modest homes of this rural area.

All night long, rescue services, led by the Kenyan Red Cross, have been hard at work to shelter the survivors and recover the victims.

Houses were washed away after a dam broke 150 km north of Nairobi on May 10, 2018.

At least 41 people, including 20 children, have died as a result of Wednesday's break-up of a dam in central Kenya.

The survivors described the muddy waters carrying their homes "hell on earth".

The country, coming out of an acute drought. Since March and the beginning of the rainy season the country is subject to heavy rainfall leading to floods causing the death of some 170 people.

Carl Delsey for DayNewsWorld

MADACASCAR JUSTICE CANCELS

PART OF THE ELECTORAL LAWS


Malagasy justice has annulled part of the electoral laws challenged by the opposition, which considers that they benefit the regime.

Since April 21, many supporters of the opposition occupy every day the place of 13-May, in the heart of Antananarivo demanding the resignation of the head of state.

The political crisis started on April 21st. An opposition demonstration, banned by the authorities, then degenerated into serious clashes with the police.

The confrontation had left at least two dead and sixteen wounded in the ranks of the protesters, accusing the police of having opened fire with live ammunition. Authorities reported a death toll of five.

The Malagasy High Constitutional Court has finally invalidated Friday a part of the electoral laws contested in the street by the opposition.

However, it decided to continue its mobilization against President Hery Rajaonarimampianina. Magistrates have ruled "non-compliant" to the Constitution several provisions of the texts recently voted by Parliament, on the revision of electoral lists, the duration of campaigns, the use of single ballots or conditions necessary for the candidacy for the presidency.

At seven months of the presidential and legislative polls announced for the end of the year, they accuse him of having changed the rules of the electoral game to his benefit.

For Opposition MP Hanitriniaina Razafimanantsoa "this is a first victory for change" , but no question of suspending the sling, she was eager to add.

"The road continues for change, with the resignation of the government", launched the elected

For its part, the leader of the presidential party HVM has glimpsed in the High Court ruling the imminent end of the movement.

"No review of the article is required, there are just reservations," he said.

The economic slump that marks the record of President Rajaonarimampianina is violently criticized and the social movement is not ready to stop in one of the poorest countries in the world.

Elected in 2013, Hery Rajaonarimampianina has not yet announced whether he will run for a second term.

The two main opposition leaders, former presidents Marc Ravalomanana (2002-2009) and Andry Rajoelina (2009-2014), are already ready to embark on the battle.

Andrew Preston pour DayNewsWorld

20 DEATH DURING A HOUTHI MARRIAGE

OR THE HUMANITARIAN DISASTER IN YEMEN


As a reminder of the evidence of war and famine in Yemen: An air raid killed at least 20 people at a wedding, according to the rescuers. The Houthi rebels, who control the region, attributed the strikes to the Saudi-led coalition operating in Yemen. The injured were admitted to a hospital in the provincial capital, said in a tweet Doctors Without Borders that supports this institution.

The conflict, entering its fourth year, provoked "the most serious humanitarian crisis in the world" NGOs in the field mainly accuse Riyadh of the ongoing massacre. Why this deafening silence of the international community?

MBS of war of Saudi Arabia.

"More than twenty-two million Yemenis now need some form of humanitarian aid, of which sixteen million do not have access to safe drinking water, while 8.4 million are in danger of starvation." Three figures intolerable United Nations.

Since March 2015, the country has been in a merciless war between the Houthi rebels, backed by Tehran and the central authority, backed by a military coalition led by Riyadh in Operation Saudi Arabia's "Storm of Firmness".

In early April, ten human rights and humanitarian organizations, including Human Rights Watch, Action Against Hunger and Amnesty International, sounded the alarm: they called in a letter to French President Emmanuel Macron for him. ask to put pressure on the prince inherit Saudi Mohammed ben Salmane visiting Paris from 8 to 10 April.

"Put an end to the illegal attacks against civilians in Yemen and lift the blockade that hinders the delivery of humanitarian aid" is a request that can not be more humanitarian.

"Often portrayed as a reformer, King Salman's son plays a major role as Defense Minister in the war in Yemen," the NGOs said;

According to the NGO consortium, citing the Yemen Data Project, "Yemen has suffered more than 16,000 air strikes since March 2015 - the equivalent of a bombing every ninety minutes - while more than a third these attacks targeted non-military positions. "

"For three years, 6,100 civilians have been killed and 9,683 wounded"

Humanitarian disaster and famine

Diphtheria is back and the country suffered in 2017 the worst cholera epidemic in modern history. The humanitarian catastrophe is even worse since the blockade of ports and airports imposed by Saudi Arabia

A report by the NGO International Rescue Committee (IRC), "They die of Boms, We die of need: impact of collapsing public health systems in Yemen", points out that "more Yemenis have died from deprivation of health products and services. basis only because of the fighting. The de facto blockade imposed since last November by Riyadh has further stifled a country of which 85% of health needs are imported.

Nearly one million cases of cholera according to the organization.

According to the IRC, a Yemeni child under the age of five dies "every ten minutes because of the lack of preventive treatment," while "520,000 pregnant women do not have access to health services and 462,000 children suffer from acute malnutrition, a figure that has increased by 200% since the beginning of the war, "says the report.

NGOs work in extremely precarious conditions, with drug and food supplies facing administrative and logistical problems despite the two billion aid pledged by the UN this year ...

A International Rescue Committee in its report to directly accuse the United States and the United Kingdom of supporting Saudi Arabia in its "devastating war" against the country


Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

OF DEATHERS IN MADAGASCAR

Opposition to the Malagasy government called for demonstrations against the new electoral law on 21 April. In Madagascar, the opposition MPs tried to defy a ban on demonstrations this Saturday, April 21, 2018 in Antananarivo against the new electoral laws.

The police chief of the capital and the head of the region considered that it was an illegal act.

The rally quickly swung into violent clashes with the police. The protest was banned by local authorities on Tuesday, and police fired tear gas at protesters who responded by throwing stones. Nearly a thousand men had been deployed to contain several thousand demonstrators. There was a lot of stone throwing in response to tear gas and sound grenades but also to rubber bullets.

It was not until around noon that the security forces used their weapons to fire in the air with live ammunition. Exceeded by the situation about forty soldiers found refuge between the walls of the town hall before being exfiltrés.

The police are armed for some of them with firearms. They move through the streets of the Malagasy capital in pick-ups and motorbikes to keep the crowd angry. This morning, the clashes between the police lasted more than three hours.

According to a provisional assessment given by the head of the HJRA hospital in Antananarivo, the clashes have so far killed four demonstrators, including two children, and about 20 wounded evacuated on one side as well as on the other. 'other.

The opposition, for its part, considers that it has the authorization issued by the Urban Commune of Antananarivo, led by the wife of the former president Ravalomanana.

"We will not stop there," warned the party MP TIM Hanitra Razasmanantsoa, ​​considered in recent days as the spokesman for the opposition.

The MP has also arrested the President of the Republic, currently outside the country. Hanitra Razasmanantsoa asked Hery Rajaonarimampianina to stay where he is and not to return for the good of the country and its people.

Opposition protests against "scandalous adoption of three election laws" in early April by Parliament.

New electoral laws in question

It is a fight against the electoral laws passed last April 4 which is at the origin of these movements of anger. One of them provides for the ineligibility of candidates already sentenced. The parties of the two former presidents, the TIM of Ravalomanana and the Mapar of Rajoelina and their 73 deputies contest this vote which would exclude their leader.

Corrupt acts to buy the votes of parliamentarians were reported by the opposition. The High Court must validate in the coming weeks these new provisions.






Alyson Braxton for DayNewsWorld

THE FUNERALS OF WINNIE MANDELA

REMPARING AGAINST APARTHEID UNTIL ITS DEATH

The coffin of "Mama Winnie" , covered with the South African flag, left his home in Soweto on Saturday morning.

Thousands paid tribute on Saturday in the South African township of Soweto to Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, the popular heroine in the struggle against apartheid.

After ten days of national mourning in memory of "Mama Winnie", "the Mother of the Nation" , passed away on April 2 at age 81, held the ceremony held in the Orlando stadium.

"It's my mother who kept alive the memory of my father" Nelson Mandela during his 27 years of detention before he became president in 1994, recalled his eldest daughter, Zenani Mandela-Dlamini.

She's the one who "kept her name on people's lips, who kept her memory in people's hearts ," she added as many wrestling songs were sung in the black-and-white stage.

Her daughter did not fail to "violently" attack those who wanted to "demonize" her mother's image as she fought and "triumphed" over " one of the most powerful and cruel regimes of the century. latest".

"Why not do the same for her male counterparts and remind the world of the many crimes they committed before being called saints," she rightly denounced. The path of Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela, known as "Winnie" , is inseparable from the first black president of South Africa.

While Winnie Mandela has been implicated in the abuses by her "Mandela United Football Club" , and sentenced to two years in prison suspended and fined for kidnapping four young men in 1988, she It remains a "bulwark" against apartheid and has "shown the way in the most difficult times," recalled South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

She remained "revolutionary" until her death, "she was never bought," said in turn Julius Malema, leader of the party of the radical left of the Fighters for Economic Freedom (EFF).

"Rock" unshakable, "a heroine".

Andrew Preston for DayNewsWorld

REELECTION WITHOUT SURPRISE OF AL-SISSI

TO THE EGYPTIAN PRESIDENCY


Some 60 million Egyptian voters, out of nearly 100 million inhabitants of the most populous country in the Arab world, were called to ballot on 26, 27 and 28 March.

And it is no surprise, with over 90% of the votes, that incumbent President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, 63, won the presidential election, according to preliminary estimates released on Thursday (March 29th) by the state press. . The only other candidate, Moussa Mostafa Moussa, won about 3% of the vote.

An expected victory since he faced only one opponent, Moussa Mostafa Moussa, unknown to the general public and supporter of the head of state! The other potential candidates had been imprisoned or strongly dissuaded from reporting. The re-election of Al-Sissi in this new poll held from Monday to Wednesday does not surprise any observer.

Even though Moussa Mostafa Moussa defended himself from being in the running to avoid a plebiscite of the incumbent president, the fact remains that the serious candidates had been ousted from the race. What in a TV interview, the president had felt regrettable !! .

"I would have liked to have one, two, three or 10 of the best candidates," he said.

However, the turnout around 40% shows the lack of interest in the election among the population despite the threat of fines for non-voters. Millions of very active young people during the 2011 revolution were disappointed by the authoritarian drift of power and did not go to the polls. NGOs blatantly accused the authorities of human rights violations, such as enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and unlawful detentions.

Abdel Fattah al-Sissi already felt in 2014 that "talking about freedoms" should not take precedence over "national security". Terrorism remains a great threat in the country. Attacks have increased in recent years and ISIS is fiercely opposed to regime forces in Sinai. Not only were many policemen and soldiers killed in these attacks, but ISIS also targeted civilians, including the Coptic religious minority, who paid a heavy price in 2017.

On February 9, Operation "Sinai 2018" was launched to eradicate jihadist strongholds that have raged for five years. To date, the campaign, which has killed more than 100 of the jihadists but also at least 20 in the army, continues. But the IS cells in the rest of the country have not all been dissolved far from it ..

In addition to the terrorist threat still present in Egypt, the economic crisis persists. Despite the introduction of a reform program, initiated with $ 12 billion in assistance from the International Monetary Fund, Egypt is still facing the economic crisis it has suffered since the 2011 uprisings. a slight improvement compared to 2014, the standard of living of the population remains at the lowest with prices that have tripled affecting the Egyptian households hard. Moreover, the economy can not absorb the 700,000 more and more educated young people who arrive every year on the job market.

Only positive note: the country has recently enjoyed the improvement of tourism after years of slump. In 2017, 8.3 million visitors visited the country.

Faced with economic difficulties and the persistence of security troubles Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, who has ruled with an iron fist since the dismissal in 2013 of his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi, must overcome two challenges: get out of the economic impasse and curb the terrorist threat.


Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

LIBERATION OF 76 YOUNG GIRLS REMOVED BY

BOKO HARAM

On 19 February, 110 girls between the ages of 10 and 18 were abducted from their homes at the girls' school in Dapchi, northern Nigeria, by suspected Boko Haram fighters affiliated with the Islamic State group.

76 girls were released on Wednesday and dropped off at their school by their kidnappers after a month of captivity with Boko Haram.

"The girls were taken back into nine vehicles and dropped in front of the school around 8:00 am [this Wednesday, March 21, ed]," says Bashir Manzo, the leader of an association helping parents of abducted children.

They were "not accompanied by any security forces," he adds, adding that "their captors just dropped them off and left without talking to anyone."

They "let us go, they told us to go directly to the house and not to the military, because they would say that they were the ones who saved us , " says a girl Aisha who says they do not have not been abused.

But several girls have died on the day of the kidnapping and the Nigerian authorities are currently doing a precise count

Five girls reportedly dead on kidnapping day, according to Aisha

The Nigerian presidency announced on Twitter that "the details about the release of Dapchi's daughters will be made available in a timely manner," adding that "girls are currently in the hands of intelligence services (DSS)" .

This sudden release raises many questions. It comes in the aftermath of Amnesty International's accusations that the Nigerian army was informed of the fighters' movements just before the mass kidnapping but did not react in time.

Recall that this is not the first kidnapping in Nigeria: the abductions of Dapchi echo those of Chibok in April 2014, where more than 200 high school girls had been abducted. While some of them have since escaped or been released as a result of negotiations with the government, more than 100 remain untraceable.

Experts believe that ransomed and released prisoners, in exchange for the release of a hundred high school girls from Chibok, were able to motivate Boko Haram to commit a new mass kidnapping in Dapchi despite the denial of the authorities. "No ransom was paid to release the schoolgirls," said the government.

Some raise suspicions of ransom. "This release is amazing enough not to raise a lot of questions, especially on the payment of ransoms," says Yan St-Pierre, expert counterterrorism of the Mosecom (Modern Security Consulting Group) also highlighting that the girls of Dapchi are not the first hostages to have been released this year.

"If that's what happened, the Nigerian government had to pay a large sum to speed up the process and avoid another Chibok."


Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld

MALI THE CANADIAN MISSION: THE OPPOSITION

DRAFT THE NECESSITY TO INTERVENE

Conservative defense critic Jais Bezan questions the government's decision to send peacekeepers to Mali.

Informed source reports that Canada will deploy aircraft as part of the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali

James Bezan says "the government decision raises more questions than it answers."

James Bezan asks whether "this decision was made in the national interest of Canada"

The response force could remain in Mali for up to 12 months.

Canada had only 43 Blue Helmets in December, the lowest number in a long time!

James Bezan states that "the Conservatives want Canada to be more involved in peacekeeping missions, including in Ukraine."

Yet these missions must take into account the national interest, and the troops must be equipped to deal with terrorist acts

" Mali looks like Afghanistan. How can peace be maintained in a country struggling with rebellions, terrorism, state failure, and whether it is in Canada's national interest? Do Liberals Have Nostalgia for Blue Helmets? "

In April 2013 The UN intervened in Mali as part of its mission named MINUSMA after France and the African Union rejected the Islamist rebels in the north of the country.

In November at the Vancouver Summit, Justin Trudeau and his government had entrusted helicopters and transport planes for United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations, as well as a rapid reaction force from the United Nations. 200 soldiers

While the goal of peacekeeping operations is to create and expand safe areas, they must also allow humanitarian workers to be relatively safe to access populations.

It has become dangerous for a humanitarian organization to work outside large cities like Bamako because of armed rival factions.

Canada's arrival in this conflict comes late, "but not too late," Canada's allies are exhausted so it seems necessary to implement a system of rotation on active implantation for each country to take a part of responsibilities.


Steve McQuillan for DayNewsWorld

TERRORIST ATTACK IN BURKINA FASO AND

ALWAYS NO CLAIM

On Friday 2 March, attacks targeted the French embassy in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, as well as the staff of the Burkinabe armed forces.

Several hours after the start of the attack, the government reported on an interim report of eight dead among Burkinabe police and more than 80 wounded.

According to the Burkinabe government, at least eight attackers and eight law enforcement personnel were killed.

"A little more than 80 injured were taken care of. Of these 80 wounded, a dozen have fairly severe injuries and among these twelve, three are considered serious, " said the Minister of Communication, Rémi Dandjinou, making a new assessment at 19 hours.

Thirty deaths: here is the record of the two attacks perpetrated this Friday in downtown Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, targeting on the one hand the embassy of France but also the staff of the Burkinabe army. For now, the local authorities are still trying to establish who is at the origin of these deadly attacks, which have not yet been claimed.

In Paris, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that no French national had been killed or wounded

The staff was hit by a car bomb, said Friday evening, the Minister of Security, Clement Sawadogo. "The vehicle was full of explosives, the load was huge" and caused "huge damage". "There was a meeting on the G5 Sahel".

Clement Sawadogo, the Minister of Security, said a military meeting for the creation of the multinational anti-jihadist force G5-Sahel, which includes Mali, Burkina, Niger, Chad and Mauritania, was "maybe " aimed. He added that the balance sheet could have been much heavier, the room initially planned for this meeting having been "literally destroyed by the explosion".

The French special forces of the "Saber" operation, based in Ouagadougou, have come to reinforce "The French forces in Burkina intervened in support of the action of the Burkinabe army, they did not take part directly in the "Action," said the spokesman of the staff of the French army, Colonel Patrick Steiger. French helicopters flew over the capital.

"Our country was once again the target this Friday of dark forces," denounced late Friday the president of Burkina Faso Roch Marc Christian Kaboré while the country is since 2015 the target of jihadist attacks that had never reached such a level organization.

The government condemned "cowardly and cowardly acts , " while urging "the people to keep calm and collaborate with the defense and security forces . "

In the early evening, French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed the "full commitment of France" in the Sahel. "Everything suggests that these are terrorist groups," said Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian earlier on LCI, recalling France's determination "to fight relentlessly against these terrorist groups who want to destabilize the Sahel.

"A flagrant investigation was opened for attempted murders in connection with a terrorist and criminal terrorist criminal conspiracy organization , " said Paris prosecutor's office, competent because the attack targeted nationals and French interests . The investigations were entrusted to the Directorate-General of Internal Services (DGSI) and to the police officers of the Counter-Terrorism Sub-Directorate (SDAT).

For journalist Antoine Glaser interwieved Saturday 3 on RTL, specialist in Africa, this attack was very clearly targeting France. "The other attacks, in January 2016 and August 2017, targeted cafés, restaurants, expatriates, attacking a French embassy in Africa, the message is clear," says the author of the book Arrogant as a Frenchman in Africa, published by Fayard in 2016.

"It is an act of reprisal" , vis-à-vis France, whose armed troops are present in Mali and Niger neighboring Burkina Faso to fight against terrorism in the Sahel.

Joanne Courbet for DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

L'ARMEE RETROUVE QUELQUES JEUNES FILLES ENLEVEES PAR BOKO HARAM

« Certaines » des jeunes filles portées disparues après l'attaque, lundi, d'un internat du village de Dapchi, dans le Yobe, ont été retrouvées et mises en sécurité par les forces nigérianes, a assuré jeudi Abdullahi Bego, porte-parole du gouverneur de l'Etat.

Des combattants de Boko Haram, lourdement armés, avaient mené lundi 19 février une attaque dans l'école de jeunes filles à Dapchi dans le nord-est du Nigeria.

La plupart des élèves et les professeurs de la Girls Science Secondary School, un internat, s'étaient enfuis en brousse pour dans la crainte d'être enlevés par les combattants.

Mais mercredi ,111 lycéennes étaient toujours portées disparues sur un total de 926 élèves.

« Huit cent quinze étudiantes sont rentrées » à l’internat pour filles de Dapchi sur un total de 926 élèves, les autres étant toujours « manquantes », a déclaré Abdulmaliki Sumonu .

Le président Muahammadu Buhari a ordonné à l'armée « de prendre immédiatement les choses en main » et de « l'informer de l'évolution de la situation », a déclaré mercredi à Abuja le ministre de l'Information, Lai Mohammed, à l'issue d'un conseil des ministres.

Beaucoup craignent de revivre le scénario de Chibock où 276 lycéennes avaient été enlevées par le groupe djihadiste en 2014.

On ne connaît pas les véritables motivations des assaillants à Dapchi, les insurgés ayant également pillé sur leur passage des magasins pour des vivres et du matériel.

Les rumeurs de paiement de rançons en échange des lycéennes de Chibok libérées pourraient inciter le groupe jihadiste à commettre d'autres enlèvements, prévient Amaechi Nwokolo, analyste pour le Roman Institute for International Studies à Abuja.

Toujours est-il que le kidnapping fait partie des méthodes pour Boko Haram pour maintenir la pression sur la population.

Le groupe de Booko Haram sème la terreur depuis 2009 dans le nord-est du Nigeria ayant fait plus de 20 000 morts et 2,6 millions de déplacés.

Andrew Preston pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

LA TUNISIE

FACE AU SEPTIEME ANNIVERSAIRE

DU JASMIN FANE

La Tunisie a vécu dimanche le septième anniversaire de sa révolution dans un contexte de vive tension sociale : les troubles sociaux récents en sont une preuve. La semaine dernière, des manifestations pacifiques et des émeutes nocturnes ont secoué plusieurs villes. Des milliers de Tunisiens descendent dans la rue pour critiquer la loi de finances qui prévoit notamment la hausse de la TVA.

La coalition de partis de gauche l'UGTT a été accusée par le chef du gouvernement Youssef Chahed d'être responsable des derniers troubles, lors desquels quelque 803 personnes soupçonnées de violence, de vol et de pillage ont été arrêtées, selon le ministère de l'Intérieur.

Or la pauvreté, le chômage, et la corruption à l'origine de la chute de la dictature de Ben Ali après 23 ans de règne sans partage sont les mêmes maux dénoncés aujourd'hui...

La révolution tunisienne avait été déclenchée par l'immolation par le feu le 17 décembre 2010 à Sidi Bouzid -une ville dans l'arrière-pays déshérité- du vendeur ambulant Mohamed Bouazizi, excédé par la pauvreté . Sous la pression populaire, Ben Ali avait pris la fuite le 14 janvier. Ce soulèvement avait fait 338 morts.

Cet anniversaire du Printemps arabe donne donc l'occasion pour le collectif Fech Nestannew ("qu'est-ce qu'on attend?") d'exiger une nouvelle fois la suppression de la loi de finances qui cristallise l'exaspération de la population sur la cherté de la vie. La convergence s'est faite entre les manifestants et l'UGTT, le principal ­syndicat du pays, ainsi qu'avec le Front populaire, une coalition de partis d'opposition de gauche qui ont eux aussi, battu le pavé.

En difficulté financière, notamment après la crise du secteur touristique liée à une série d'attentats jihadistes en 2015, la Tunisie a obtenu un prêt de 2,4 milliards d'euros sur quatre ans du Fonds monétaire international (FMI). En échange, elle s'est engagée à une réduction de son déficit public et à des réformes économiques. Pas de quoi rassurer les Tunisiens sur leur pouvoir d'achat !Sept ans après le départ de Ben Ali en exil en Arabie saoudite les Tunisiens estiment avoir gagné en liberté mais perdu en niveau de vie.

Malgré le succès relatif de sa transition démocratique, la Tunisie, surtout depuis les attentats, vit dans la morosité économique et sociale.

Samedi, soucieux d’étouffer une trop forte mobilisation dimanche, le gouvernement a promis un plan d'action social pour plus de 120.000 bénéficiaires. Il prévoit une aide à l'accès à la propriété pour les familles pauvres, des mesures visant à assurer "une couverture médicale pour tous" et une augmentation de l'allocation sociale en faveur des familles nécessiteuses. Il coûtera plus de 70 millions de dinars (23,5 millions d'euros), selon les autorités.

Presque au même moment, le plus vieux dirigeant élu de la planète en exercice a décidé de reprendre la main. Le président de la République présidait une réunion avec les chefs des partis au pouvoir. L'élargissement du gouvernement d'union nationale aux partis de gauche a été évoqué.

Dimanche le président Béji Caïd Essebsi a décidé de marquer l’événement en se rendant dans le quartier populaire d’Ettadhamen, en banlieue de Tunis, où des heurts violents nocturnes ont opposé des jeunes contestataires aux forces de sécurité ces derniers jours. "La révolution de la liberté et de la dignité (...) a essentiellement été menée par les jeunes" et "il faut que nous nous occupions (...) de ce quartier populaire et défavorisé", a déclaré le président Béji Caïd Essebsi, 91 ans, qui était resté silencieux jusqu'à aujourd’hui dans son palais de Carthage.

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

DES TROUBLES SOCIAUX EN TUNISIE

La Tunisie est entrée dans une phase de turbulences sociales alimentées par des mesures d'austérité, sept ans après la révolution.

A la suite de mobilisations pacifiques contre l’austérité, des heurts entre manifestants et forces de l’ordre ont eu lieu dans plusieurs villes du pays.

La hausse de la TVA entrée en vigueur au 1er janvier dans le cadre d'un budget d'austérité a fait sortir dans la rue des gens mécontents de la pauvreté.

Une manifestation à l'appel de plusieurs organisations de la société civile s'est déroulée sans incident mardi dans le centre de la capitale Tunis.

"Nos revendications sont les suivantes :

suspendre la loi de finances 2018, revenir aux prix initiaux des denrées et embaucher une personne de chaque famille pauvre", a assuré Hamza Nasri, membre de la campagne "Fech Nestannew" (Qu'est-ce qu'on attend, ndlr) lancée pour protester contre les hausses de prix.

Mais des échauffourées ont eu lieu en Tunisie mardi soir entre manifestants et forces de l'ordre, au lendemain de la mort d'un homme présenté par des manifestants comme un martyr tué par la police.Le ministère de l'Intérieur a démenti que cet homme ait été tué par la police, assurant qu'il ne portait aucune marque de violence.

Des jeunes sont descendus dans la rue par centaines à Tebourba, à 30 km à l'ouest de Tunis , Kasserine, Jelma ,d'où est partie en décembre 2010 la contestation sociale marquant le début des Printemps arabes.

La rapidité de la contagion de ces derniers jours a toutefois un caractère inquiétant.

Plus de 200 personnes ont été arrêtées et des dizaines ont été blessées, a indiqué le porte parole du ministère de l'Intérieur Khlifa Chiban

Les manifestations ont été émaillées parfois de scènes de pillage de magasins dans un contexte social dégradé :le rebond de l’inflation – 6,4 % en glissement annuel – ajouté aux effets ravageurs d’un taux de chômage de 15 % dont 30 % pour la catégorie des jeunes diplômés de l’enseignement supérieur ne peuvent qu'envenimer la situation .

Sept ans après la révolution de 2011, qui avait renversé la dictature de Ben Ali en 2011 n'a pas permis à la Tunisie un décollage économique malgré la transition démocratique qui avait fait la fierté du pays

Comment apaiser l’actuelle tension sociale ?

La perspective des élections municipales prévues en mai, premier scrutin local depuis 2011, devrait ajouter à la volatilité du paysage politique en attisant de nouvelles concurrences, y compris au sein de la coalition gouvernementale.

Confronté à la baisse de la fréquentation touristique et des investissements étrangers après les attentats, le gouvernement tunisien dit n'avoir d'autre solution que ces hausses de prix pour tenter de réduire le déficit public et satisfaire aux exigences des partenaires financiers de Tunis, Fonds monétaire international (FMI) en tête.

Ce dernier a négocié l'an dernier une ligne de crédit de 2,8 milliards de dollars en échange de réformes économiques.

L'opposition accuse le gouvernement conduit de Youssef Chahed de cibler injustement les pauvres et les classes moyennes par ces mesures d'austérité.

Le Premier ministre a pour sa part lancé un appel au calme et annonce une amélioration de la conjoncture économique pour cette année.

"Les gens doivent comprendre que la situation est exceptionnelle et que notre pays est confronté à des difficultés, mais nous pensons que 2018 sera la dernière année difficile pour les Tunisiens", a-t-il dit

D'ailleurs l'agitation sociale, notamment dans les régions de l’intérieur – historiquement défavorisées par rapport au littoral –, n'avait pas cessé comme l'ont montré les poussées de fièvre de janvier 2016 ou du printemps 2017.

Une fois de plus les mesures d'austérité montrent leurs limites...

Alyson Braxton  pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

ATTENTAT DANS UNE EGLISE COPTE

AU CAIRE BILAN NEUF MORTS

Selon le ministère égyptien de l'Intérieur, l'assaillant, un jihadiste recherché pour des attaques contre la police, a été blessé et arrêté.

Neuf personnes ont été tuées vendredi au sud du Caire dans une attaque contre une église menée par un homme armé, a indiqué un responsable au ministère de la Santé.

L'État islamique a revendiqué cet attentat via son agence de propagande Amaq.

Les coptes, pour l'immense majorité orthodoxes, constituent la communauté chrétienne la plus nombreuse du Moyen-Orient et l'une des plus anciennes représentant 10% des 96 millions d'habitants.

Les chrétiens d'Egypte, les coptes, ont été visés par plusieurs attaques cette année, la plupart revendiquées par le groupe djihadiste Etat islamique. L'assaillant armé a également blessé cinq gardes de sécurité , selon des responsables de la police.

L'assaillant a ouvert le feu à l'extérieur de l'église voulant donné l'assaut au bâtiment avant d'être abattu par la police, ont précisé des responsables.

Ces derniers ont dit être à la recherche d'un possible autre assaillant en fuite . Selon le ministère égyptien de l'Intérieur, l'assaillant, un jihadiste recherché pour des attaques contre la police, a été blessé et arrêté.

Depuis décembre 2016, des dizaines de chrétiens, essentiellement des Coptes, ont été tués dans des attentats contre des églises ou des attaques ciblées Le 11 décembre 2016, au Caire, un attentat suicide contre l'église copte Saint-Pierre et Saint-Paul, avait fait 29 morts.

L'attentat, qui avait eu lieu en pleine célébration, avait été revendiqué par l'EI.

En avril 2017, 45 personnes ont été tuées dans deux attaques suicide revendiquées par l'EI en pleine célébration des Rameaux à Alexandrie, deuxième ville du pays, et Tanta, dans le nord de l'Egypte.

En mai, le groupe djihadiste avait revendiqué une attaque contre un bus de pèlerins coptes : 28 mort avait été recensés.

Le groupe Etat islamique a revendiqué vendredi l'attaque contre une église copte de la banlieue du Caire en Egypte, ainsi que l'attaque contre un supermarché de Saint-Pétersbourg en Russie.«Un groupe de combattants dépendant de l'Etat islamique a mené l'attaque contre l'église Saint-Mina»ane, a affirmé l'organisation extrémiste dans ce communiqué.

L'EI a également revendiqué l'attaque qui a fait 13 blessés mercredi dans un supermarché de Saint-Pétersbourg en Russie, selon un autre communiqué diffusé par son organe de propagande Amaq. «L'attaque qui a visé un centre commercial à Saint-Pétersbourg avant-hier (mercredi) a été menée par un groupe dépendant de l'Etat islamique», indique le communiqué.

Le président russe Vladimir Poutine a qualifié cette explosion d'«acte terroriste».

Larry Ricky pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

LE DAUPHIN DE FEU NELSON MANDELA

A LA TETE DE L'ANC

Cyril Ramaphosa est depuis hier le nouveau chef de l’ANC et incarne l’espoir de redressement du parti du Congrès national africain (ANC), au terme d’un vote très serré.

Il hérite d’un parti miné par les luttes intestines, après la gestion jugée désastreuse chef de l'Etat Jacob Zuma à la tête de l'ANC et qui tient les rênes de l'Afrique du Sud depuis la fin du régime ségrégationniste de l'apartheid en 1994.

Le nouveau chef de l’ANC doit désormais mener la campagne pour les prochaines élections générales de 2019.

Un véritable défi : en effet confronté à la désaffection de son électorat et la corruption, le parti pourrait perdre sa majorité au Parlement et ce pour la première fois depuis la transition démocratique.

De plus la victoire sur le fil de Cyril Ramaphosa ayant échoué à obtenir la majorité au sein de la nouvelle direction de l'ANC, lui laisse peu de latitude pour lutter contre la corruption et pour la relance l'économie d'ici aux élections de 2019.

Toutefois même si première puissance économique du continent africainest confronté à un taux de chômage de 27,7 % et une croissance molle, sa victoire lui a valu des réactions favorables du côté des marchés.

Même si le départ de Jacob Zuma de la présidence du pays ,terni par de nombreux scandales, n'est envisageable qu'au terme d'un accord négocié qui pourrait inclure une immunité, la victoire de l'ancien syndicaliste reconverti en homme d'affaire multimillionnaire pourrait améliorer la confiance des investisseurs.

Le dauphin de feu Nelson Mandela a en effet fait de la reprise économique et de la lutte contre la corruption ses thèmes de campagne !

Il lui faudra utiliser avec efficacité du temps pour reconstruire" avant les élections générales de 2019 la réputation de l'ANC . En raison du mode de scrutin en Afrique du Sud, le président doit en effet conserver la confiance de sa formation...

Cyril Ramaphosa est désormais bien placé pour devenir le président du pays en 2019.

Personnage clé de la transition démocratique, il a présidé l’assemblée constituante et dirigé la rédaction de la nouvelle constitution, adoptée en 1996. Nelson Mandela en fait son dauphin, en le considérant, d’après ses mémoires, comme « l’un des plus doués de sa génération ».En 1997, il subissant néanmoins le premier grand revers de sa carrière, lorsque les caciques de l’ANC lui préfèrent Thabo Mbeki dans la course pour la tête du parti, il quitte la politique pour se reconvertir dans les affaires après la chute du régime de l’apartheid. ..

Demain mercredi il devrait donner le ton de son nouveau mandat mercredi, lors de son discours de clôture du congrès.

Britney Delsey pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

MACRON EN DONNEUR DE LECONS AU BURKINA ET CHANGEMENT DE LOGICIEL DANS LA POLITIQUE ENVERS L'AFRIQUE

L'arrivée lundi soir au Burkina d'Emmanuel Macron n'a pas été sans heurt puisque deux heures avant son arrivée une grenade a été lancée contre un véhicule de soldats français dans le nord de Ouagadougou sans atteindre leur cible mais en blessant trois civils.

Puis mardi ambiance également tendue à l'extérieur de l'université où des dizaines de manifestants ont dressé des barricades sur l'avenue de l'université de Ouagadougou scandant des slogans tels que « À bas l'exploitation de l'Afrique par l'Occident .

Les jeunes Burkinabè réclament en effet la fin du « pillage des ressources » par des entreprises françaises, du franc CFA arrimé à l'euro et de la présence militaire française.

C'est que la France après avoir été une puissance coloniale, entretient désormais une coopération militaire active avec les autorités du Burkina depuis l'accession à l'indépendance du territoire de la Haute-Volta en 1960.

Emmanuel Macron entend donc convaincre une jeunesse africaine de plus en plus hostile à la présence française sur le continent, sur fond de menace terroriste au Sahel. Des militaires des forces spéciales françaises, basés à Ouagadougou, sont intervenues lors de l'attentat de janvier 2016 (30 morts) lorsque des djihadistes avaient ouvert le feu sur des terrasses du centre-ville et celui d' août (19 morts).

Le président français a d'ailleurs voulu tourner une page de l'histoire que lui-même n'a pas connue en reconnaissant que « les crimes de la colonisation européenne sont incontestables » tout en rappelant aussi « des grandes choses et des histoires heureuses » dans ce passé. Un petit coup de repentance, une fois de plus … Bref : C'est «un passé qui doit passer.».

Il a appelé à une « relation nouvelle » dans un discours- fleuve de près de trois heures devant un parterre de 800 étudiants triés sur le volet.

Si Emmanuel Macron a martelé qu'il n’était pas venu « dire à l’Afrique ce qu’elle doit faire » il a cependant décliné toute une série de conseils appuyés.

1°Sur la démographie

« Quand vous avez une croissance démographique durablement supérieure à la croissance économique, vous n’arrivez jamais à lutter contre la pauvreté », a-t-il insisté.

« La démographie ça ne se décrète pas mais avec 7, 8 ou 9 enfants par femme, êtes-vous sûrs que c’est le choix de cette jeune femme ? Je veux être sûr que partout en Afrique ce soit bien le choix pour cette jeune fille ou femme. Cela m’a poussé à faire de l’égalité femmes-hommes la grande cause de mon mandat. »

Sur l’éducation des femmes

Emmanuel Macron a prôné l’émancipation des femmes africaines devant les étudiants burkinabés. Il veut que « partout en Afrique une jeune fille puisse avoir le choix de ne pas être mariée à 13 ou 14 ans ». « Je serai aux côtés des dirigeants africains qui feront le choix de la scolarisation obligatoire des jeunes filles », a-t-il ajouté,souhaitant que des programmes de bourses scolaires financés par la France « soient donnés en priorité à des jeunes filles ».

3°Sur le terrorisme

Emmanuel Macron a aussi dénoncé « l’obscurantisme religieux », « menace bien plus redoutable parfois que le terrorisme car massive, diffuse, quotidienne, qui s’immisce dans les foyers, les campus ». « Nous ne pouvons plus accepter que des puissances financent des fondations ou des écoles qui nourrissent l’obscurantisme ou le terrorisme. Ce sera l’enjeu de la conférence sur le financement du terrorisme à Paris l’an prochain », a-t-il affirmé.

4°Sur les migrants en Libye

Le président français Emmanuel Macron a annoncé qu'il voulait frapper les passeurs qui exploitent les migrants en Libye . Emmanuel Macron a également annoncé qu'il allait « proposer une initiative euro-africaine » pour « frapper les organisations criminelles et les réseaux de passeurs » qui exploitent les migrants subsahariens en Libye. Il a également annoncé « un soutien massif à l'évacuation des personnes en danger » en Libye, qualifiant de « crime contre l'humanité » la vente de migrants comme esclaves. Mais rappelons aussi que la France soutient financièrement les pays qui gardent les migrants pour endiguer l'exode vers l'Europe...

Puis débat avec les étudiants burkinabés, parfois houleux. Jupiter a finalement demandé à la jeunesse africaine de prendre son avenir en main.

Alizé Marion pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

VERS UNE TRANSITION DEMOCATIQUE AU ZIMBABWE OU LE RETOUR D'UN NOUVEAU DESPOTE?

L'ancien vice-président Emmerson Mnangagwa a été investi président par intérim, dès vendredi, après la démission, mardi, du despote Robert Mugabe de 93 ans

Emmerson Mnangagwa a prêté serment vendredi devant plusieurs milliers de personnes réunies dans un stade à Harare. Il succède à Robert Mugabe, qui a été poussé à démissionner après 37 ans de règne autoritaire et sans partage.

«Moi, Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, jure qu'en tant que président de la République du Zimbabwe, je serai loyal à la République du Zimbabwe et obéirai, soutiendrai et défendrai la Constitution et les lois du Zimbabwe», a déclaré vendredi matin le nouveau président dans un stade comble de la banlieue de Harare.

Dans son discours d'investiture le Président Emmerson Mnangagwa a fait montre de tourner la page des trente-sept ans du règne de Robert Mugabe, 93ans, le plus vieux dirigeant de la planète.

C'est un discours rassurant et consensuel qu'a prononcé le nouveau président zimbabwéen, vendredi, devant plus de 60 000 personnes euphoriques promettant d’être le « serviteur du peuple ».

Il a voulu se démarquer de l’ancien président tout en lui rendant hommage en le qualifiant de « père de la nation ».

La relance de l'économie reste sa priorité absolue.

En effet les attentes sont immenses pour les 16 millions de Zimbabwéen d'un pays ruiné par la corruption et par des réformes dévastatrices. Avec un taux de chômage à 90 %, les Zimbabwéens vivent de petits boulots dans une économie informelle. D'autres ont émigré, souvent chez le géant sud-africain voisin.

Pas étonnant que les promesses économiques aient été placées au premier plan. Il a promis qu'il indemniserait les fermiers blancs expulsés manu militari de leurs propriétés au début des années 2000, s'est par ailleurs engagé à protéger les investissements étrangers et à renouer avec la communauté internationale.

« Nous allons créer des emplois pour notre jeunesse et réduire la pauvreté pour toute la population", a lancé M. Ngangagwa, "les actes de corruption doivent cesser sur le champ".

Lors de son discours, il a également assuré que les élections prévues en 2018 auraient bien lieu. Le principal parti d'opposition, le Mouvement pour le changement démocratique (MDC),qui d'ailleurs n'a pas été invité à l'investiture, plaide pour un gouvernement d'union nationale jusqu'aux élections et pose ses conditions.

« Des dispositions concrètes doivent être prises pour garantir des élections libres et équitables.

C'est bien de le dire, mais il faut des actions, souligne le secrétaire général du principal parti d'opposition, le MDC, Douglas Mwanzora. Ce dernier exige également que l'armée ne fasse pas partie du processus électoral,laquelle,selon lui, a eu l'habitude d'intervenir dans dans la vie politique du pays.

. «  Mais le plus important, c'est que nous souhaitons que ces élections soient organisées sous la houlette des Nations unies. La SADC doit être impliquée. L'Union africaine aussi ainsi que les autres organisations internationales. A ce moment-là, nous pourrons avoir des élections libres et justes et nous pourrons à nouveau avoir un pouvoir légitime. » conclut Douglas Mwanzora.

Malgré son discours conciliateur, le nouveau maître du Zimbabwe suscitent toutefois des interrogations, à l'intérieur de son pays comme à l'étranger rappelant son passé sombre et sa réputation d'exécuteur des basses œuvres de l'ex-président Mugabe. Aussi le chef du MDC Morgan Tsvangirai. a-t-il confié qu'il espérait que Emmerson Mnangagwa qui s'est présenté en «serviteur» du pays « évitera de tomber dans la tentation de garder seul le pouvoir».

De plus plusieurs ONG ont rappelé le lourd bilan du régime: «des dizaines de milliers de personnes ont été torturées, ont disparu ou ont été tuées», selon Amnesty International. Le cacique du régime surnommé le «crocodile» n' a-t-il pas été associé à toutes ses politiques répressives depuis l'indépendance du pays en 1980 ?

L'état de grâce pourrait ne pas durer longtemps pour l'ancien vice-président qui fait figure de continuateur du régime. «Personne ne veut d'une transition qui verrait un tyran non élu remplacé par un autre», résumait déjà la semaine dernière le ministre des Affaires étrangères britannique Boris Johnson

.Espérons que le nouveau président du pays par intérim va conduire son pays vers une transition démocratique.

«S'il veut être jugé positivement, il va devoir mener des politiques qui ébranlent les structures de pouvoir de la Zanu-PF, en introduisant un vrai pluralisme politique et en séparant le parti et l'État», selon Piers Pigou, consultant d'International Crisis Group en Afrique australe.

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

CARNAGE DANS UN ATTENTAT EN EGYPTE

AU MOINS 235 MORTS

ET RAID AERIEN EN REPRESAILLES

L’attaque a eu lieu  dans le village de Bir al-Abed, à 40 kilomètres

d’Al Arich, la capitale de la province du Nord-Sinaï.

Les assaillants ont déclenché une explosion avant d’ouvrir le feu sur les fidèles.

Au moins 235 personnes ont été tuées et 133 blessées, vendredi à la mi-journée dans l’attaque d’une mosquée dans le nord du Sinaï égyptien.

Parmi les fidèles se trouvaient des conscrits de l’armée.

Selon la chaîne d'information panarabe Al Arabia et plusieurs sources locales certains des fidèles étaient des musulmans soufis, lesquels sont considérés par l'État islamique et d'autres groupes islamistes radicaux comme des apostats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Depuis 2013 et la destitution par l'armée du président islamiste élu Mohamed  Morsi, l'Égypte est le théâtre d'attaques et d'attentats menés par des groupes islamistes contre les forces de sécurité égyptiennes dans plusieurs régions du pays.

Abdel Fattah Al-Sissi, a promis de répliquer avec une « force brutale » à cet attentat, bien que l 'Egypte aient du mal à contrôler la péninsule du Sinaï.

Le nord du Sinaï est particulièrement touché. La branche de l'Etat Islamique y est particulièrement active.

Après cette attaque, qui n'a pas été revendiquée, le président égyptien, Abdel Fattah al Sissi, a convoqué un conseil ministériel restreint. Trois jours de deuil national ont été décrétés.

L'armée égyptienne a mené vendredi des raids aériens de représailles dans le nord du Sinaï après l'attaque d'une mosquée qui a fait 235 morts, a-t-on appris auprès de témoins et de responsables des services de sécurité. Les frappes aériennes se concentrent sur plusieurs zones montagneuses autour de la commune de Bir al Abed, où l'attaque s'est produite et où les insurgés islamistes se retrancheraien

. Un peu plus tôt, le président Abdel Fattah al-Sissi avait promis de répondre avec une "force brutale" à cette attaque, qui n'a pas encore été revendiquée.

"Les forces armées et la police vengeront nos martyrs et ramèneront la sécurité et la stabilité avec force très prochainement", avait-il déclaré lors d'un discours télévisé.

Paul Emison pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

EMMERSON MNANGAGWA

BIENTOT A LA TETE D'UN ETAT RUINE

Emmerson Mnangagwa va ,vendredi, prendre la tête d’un Etat ruiné.

Après un bref exil, l’instigateur de la chute de Robert Mugabe, son ex-vice-président Emmerson Mnangagwa, prend la tête d’un Etat ruiné.

Ancien ministre de Robert Mugabe, Emmerson Mnangagwa, 75 ans, est considéré par la communauté internationale

"comme plus ouvert aux réformes", souligne la société d'analyse économique BMI Research.,Nous avons plus de raison d'être optimiste sur un retour du Zimbabwe auprès des investisseurs internationaux au cours des deux prochaines années", ajoute dans une note BMI, ne croyant toutefois pas possible de résoudre la crise financière dès 2018.

L'arrivée au pouvoir d'Emmerson Mnangagwa, qui sera investi vendredi président, suscite déjà d 'enormes espoirs dans un pays à la une croissance atone, l'inflation rampante et au chômage de masse.

M. Mnangagwa a promis mercredi, dans son premier discours depuis sa désignation, de s'attaquer à ces problèmes. "Nous voulons la croissance de notre économie, nous voulons des emplois", a-t-il lancé .

Longtemps pourtant, le Zimbabwe le fut un modèle de réussite en Afrique, au point d'être surnommé le "grenier à blé" du continent.

En effet ,à son arrivée au pouvoir en 1980, Robert Mugabe avait mis sur pied un système d'éducation et de santé solide tout en ménageant les intérêts de la minorité blanche pour stabiliser le pays.Les lois dites "d'indigénisation" avaient été votées en 2007 pour contraindre les entreprises étrangères à céder la majorité de leurs parts à des investisseurs locaux mais n'ayant pas abouti pleinement , les investisseurs étaient restés frileux.

Le temps presse pour une relance économique.Un défi de taille pour le futur Président.

"Si le pays s'effondre, les militaires ne seront pas payés et il y aura un risque de nouveau coup d'Etat", relève l'analyste Derek Matyszak de l'Institut pour les études de sécurité (ISS).

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

DEMISSION DE ROBERT MUGABE

AU ZWIMBABWE

APRES 37 ANS DE POUVOIR

Le président du Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe, âgé de 93 ans, a annoncé sa démission dans une lettre remise au Parlement, mardi 21 novembre, et lue par Jacob Mudenda, président de la Chambre.

Chef Il était en résidence surveillée depuis l'intervention de l'armée, mercredi dernier, mais refusait de céder le pouvoir qu'il exerçait depuis l'indépendance, en 1980.

Cette annonce intervient alors que le Parlement a ouvert sa séance consacrée à l'examen d'une demande de destitution du président, après trente-sept ans au pouvoir.

 

"J'ai choisi volontairement de démissionner", assure Robert Mugabe. "

Cette décision a été motivée par (...) mon désir d'assurer un transfert du pouvoir sans problème, pacifique et non violent", a-t-il détaillé dans sa lettre.

Dans un communiqué diffusé dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi 22 novembre, le président de l’exécutif de l’Union africaine, le Tchadien Moussa Faki Mahamat, s’est félicité de la décision du président zimbabwéen Robert Mugabe. L’organisation « reconnaît que le peuple zimbabwéen a exprimé le souhait d’un transfert de pouvoir pacifique de telle sorte que l’avenir démocratique du pays soit sauvegardé », souligne ce communiqué. La décision de M. Mugabe « restera dans l’'histoire comme l’acte d’un véritable homme d’Etat, qui ne peut que renforcer l ’héritage politique du président Mugabe », poursuit le communiqué de l’UA.

Carl Delsey pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

AU MOINS CINQUANTE MORTS

DANS UN ATTENTAT-SUICIDE

AU NIGERIA

 

Au moins 50 personnes ont été tuées mardi dans un attentat-suicide attribué au groupe jihadiste Boko Haram qui a frappé une mosquée de Mubi, un des plus meurtriers perpétré dans le nord-est du Nigeria depuis des mois .

Le bilan provisoire pourrait s'alourdir.

L'explosion a été perpétrée kamikaze, un adolescent, durant les prières du matin à la mosquée de Madina à Mubi, ville frontalière du Cameroun à environ 200 km au nord de la capitale de l'Etat d'Adamawa, Yola.

Si l'attentat n'a pas été revendiqué tout porte à penser que Boko Haram menant régulièrement des attaques contre des villages et des attentats-suicides en est l'instigateur.

Depuis huit ans le groupe terroriste multiplie les attentats qui ont fait au moins 20.000 morts et 2,6 millions de déplacés dans le nord-est du Nigeria.

C'est l'attentat le plus meurtrier perpétré dans la région du nord-est depuis une embuscade tendue en juillet contre un convoi transportant les membres d'une mission de prospection pétrolière dans l'Etat voisin du Borno, qui avait fait 70 morts.

Boko Haram conserve toute sa capacité de nuisance restant une organisation extrêmement puissante qui continue à semer la terreur pour tenter d'établir un califat islamique.

Les attaques jihadistes se concentrent depuis quelques temps dans la région frontalière du Cameroun.

La région, frontalière du Cameroun, est proche des monts de Mandara, où Boko Haram abrite d'ailleurs plusieurs camps.

 

L’Etat d’Adamawa, touché par les violences au pic de l’insurrection en 2014-2015, avait connu un progressif et fragile retour au calme, en comparaison avec l’Etat voisin du Borno, épicentre du conflit, qui n’a connu aucun répit. Ces dernières semaines, pourtant, les attaques djihadistes ont repris.

Paul Emison pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

LE PRESIDENT DU ZIMBABWE ROBERT MUGABE POUSSE A LA DEMISSION

PAR LA RUE ET SON PROPRE PARTI

Le Zimbabwe a connu samedi l'une des plus grandes manifestations jamais organisées depuis l'indépendance et l'arrivée au pouvoir de Robert Mugabe en 1980. Des dizaines de milliers de personnes ont manifesté samedi dans les rues d'Harare pour exiger le départ du président Mugabe. "Trop c'est trop, Mugabe doit partir", "Repose en paix Mugabe", "Non à la dynastie Mugabe", proclamaient des affiches brandies par des manifestants dans une ambiance festive.

Une manifestation historique : elle a rassemblé des Zimbabwéens très divers comme des ministres, des proches du parti au pouvoir, ainsi que des membres de l'opposition, des noirs et la minorité blanche issue de la colonisation britanniques, tous unis contre le président Robert Mugabe.

Le président zimbabwéen Robert Mugabe a été lâché par ses plus fidèles alliés.

La manifestation en effet a été organisée, cette fois, à l’appel des vétérans (l’Association des vétérans de la guerre de libération nationale du Zimbabwe), pour féliciter les militaires d’avoir chassé du pouvoir celui qu’ils ont passé tant de temps à défendre. Et même l’opposition s’est associée à la manœuvre.

Promise Mkwananzi, le chef des activistes de tajamuka, groupuscule qui, au cours des mois écoulés, continuait de manifester dans la rue sporadiquement s'est également engagé dans dans ce mouvement apparemment contre-nature

Le comité central de la ZANU-PF, le parti de Robert Mugabe, doit se réunir ce dimanche 19 novembre au matin à Harare. En effet après la consultation des cellules provinciales, la plus haute instance du parti au pouvoir devrait décider de limoger Robert Mugabe. Politiquement, à partir du moment où Robert Mugabe n'est plus membre de la ZANU-PF, les députés n'ont plus à suivre ses mots d'ordre lors des votes aux assemblées

. A 93 ans, le plus vieux chef d'Etat en exercice de la planète se retrouve de plus en plus isolé, abandonné par ses alliés les plus précieux: après l'armée et les anciens combattants, neuf des dix sections régionales de la Zanu-PF l'ont à leur tour lâché vendredi soir et ont demandé son départ.

Reste un président seul, sans majorité parlementaire, un scénario qui mène tout droit vers l'impasse politique. De plus selon la Constitution les députés ont la possibilité de lancer une procédure « d'impeachment », c'est à dire de destitution avec les deux tiers du Parlement pour démettre un président de ses fonctions .Or la ZANU-PF est très largement majoritaire.

Dimanche, le comité central du parti doit se réunir pour décider de son sort.

Le héros de l'indépendance, âgé de 93 ans, quant à lui, doit rencontrer dimanche l'état-major de l'armée qui l'a placé en résidence surveillée, au lendemain de manifestations massives pour sa démission.Les négociations entre Robert Mugabe et l'armée, engagées jeudi, vont donc se poursuivre dimanche, a annoncé la ZBC. Le président, qui s'accroche pour l'instant au pouvoir, a accepté de rencontrer l'état-major de l'armée, pour la deuxième fois depuis le début du coup de force militaire.

LL'étau se resserre donc sur le président, qui s'accroche pour l'instant au pouvoir.

Le nom d'Emmerson Mnangagwa, surnommé le "crocodile", circule désormais pour prendre la direction d'une éventuelle transition politique.

Le MDC, le Mouvement pour le changement démocratique, principale formation d'opposition se dit prêt, à participer à la transition démocratique. Le MDC de Morgan Tsvangirai avait d'ailleurs été invité par la ZANU-PF à se joindre au cortège samedi, selon Douglas Mwonzara, secrétaire général du MDC pour appuyer son action. Seul, le parti au pouvoir n'aurait pas assez de légitimité...

Reste à construire la suite.

Une fois le président démissionné ou déchu, un gouvernement d'unité nationale pourrait être mis en place. Le vice-président, Emmerson Mnangagwa, est pressenti pour en prendre la tête.

Un scénario que ne rejette pas le MDC qui tient cependant à certaines conditions. « S'il s'agit de monsieur Munangagwa, oui, nous travaillerons avec lui lors de la transition, car c'est ce que veut la loi. Mais ce gouvernement ne doit pas être factice. Il faut un gouvernement qui s'attaque directement à la pauvreté et à la crise économique, et surtout qui prépare des élections libres et honnêtes », a expliqué Douglas Mwonzara.

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

COUP D'ETAT AU ZIMBABWE ET GUERRE DE SUCCESSION

Des blindés de l'armée du Zimbabwe contrôlaient ce mercredi matin à Harare les accès au Parlement, au siège du parti au pouvoir et aux bureaux où le président Robert Mugabe, a pour habitude de recevoir son gouvernement.

Juste avant l’aube, à Hararé, le général Sibusiso Moyo, porte-parole des Forces de défense du Zimbabwe (ZDF), est apparu à la télévision nationale pour annoncer la nouvelle suivante: « Ce que les ZDF sont en train de faire est de ramener le calme dans une situation politique, sociale et économique en train de dégénérer dans le pays, qui, si cela n’est pas fait, va se terminer en conflit violent. »

Coup d'Etat ? Des officiers de l'armée du Zimbabwe ont annoncé leur intervention dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi pour éliminer des "criminels" proches du président Robert Mugabe qui règne sans partage sur le pays depuis son indépendance depuis 1980 et ont démenti toute tentative de coup d'Etat

Dans le message lu à la télévision nationale, le général Sibusiso Moyo a affirmé que l'armée n'avait pas mené de "coup d'Etat contre le gouvernement".

Les militaires ont pris donc pris le pouvoir dans la nuit au Zimbabwe et mis en détention le plus vieil président du monde président Robert Mugabe, 93 ans. Ils affirment que lui et sa famille sont « en sécurité ». « Nous assurons à la Nation que son Excellence le président [...] et sa famille sont sains et saufs et que leur sécurité est garantie », a-t-il également ajouté. L'armée pourrait "intervenir" si la "purge" ne cessait pas au sein du parti présidentiel avait mis en garde devant la presse le chef d'état-major, le général Constantino Chiwenga

En effet l'entrée en scène de l'armée intervient en pleine crise ouverte entre le Président Robert Mugabe et le chef de l'armée après le limogeage la semaine dernière du vice-président du pays Emmerson Mnangagwa, le dauphin présumé jusqu'à présent.

L'ancien vice-président Mnangagwa, 75 ans, a été démis de ses fonctions et s'est exilé après un bras de fer avec la première dame, Grace Mugabe, 52 ans.

La deuxième épouse du président , de quarante ans de moins, aurait tenté d'empoisonner Emmerson Mnangagwa. Face à cette accusation elle a exigé son éviction ce qu'elle a obtenue. Il y a trois ans la vice-présidente Joice Mujuru, avait été évincée du pouvoir également à la demande de la femme du président, figure très controversée et ambitieuse. Dans les milieux bien informés, on évoque en effet l’hypothèse d’une abdication potentielle du chef de l’Etat dans les prochains mois alors qu'il est investi par la Zanu-PF pour la présidentielle de 2018, malgré son grand âge et sa santé fragile. Et ce en faveur de son épouse Grace Mugabe.

Figure controversée, cette dernière dirige la puissante Ligue des femmes de la Zanu-PF. Elle compte de nombreux opposants au sein du parti au pouvoir et du gouvernement. Mais avec le limogeage de Emmerson Mnangagwa, elle se retrouve en position idéale pour succéder à son époux.

Cette crise « marque une nouvelle étape alarmante dans la course à la succession » de Mugabe, selon le spécialiste politique Alex Magaisa.

Alize Marion pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

NOUVEL ATTENTAT EN SOMALIE

Au moins 25 personnes sont mortes dans l'attaque menée par un commando de militants islamistes shebab contre un hôtel de la capitale somalienne. L'assaut avait débuté samedi soir et s'est terminé dimanche après douze heures de siège.

Deux véhicules piégés ont explosé à Mogadiscio à proximité d’un hôtel samedi en fin d’après-midi près de l’hôtel Nasa Hablod avant que cinq hommes armés ne prennent d’assaut l’hôtel, fréquenté par de nombreux hauts responsables de la capitale .

"Une voiture piégée a explosé à l'entrée de l'hôtel Nasa Hablod et des coups de feu ont suivi. Nous n'avons pas les détails, mais cela ressemble à une attaque coordonnée. Un minibus piégé a aussi explosé à un carrefour proche", a déclaré un responsable de la police, Ibrahim Mohamed.

Cette nouvelle attaque survient moins de deux semaines après le terrible attentat qui avait fait 358 morts ,226 blessés et 57 disparus.

Le président somalien, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, dit « Farmajo », a condamné cette attaque dans un communiqué : «  De telles atrocités ne nous dissuaderont jamais, ni ne nous décourageront de combattre les terroristes ».

« Les forces de sécurité ont secouru un certain nombre de personnes depuis [samedi] », a précisé M. Ibrahim porte-parole du gouvernement Plusieurs responsables gouvernementaux, dont des ministres, font partie des personnes secourues.

Le groupe islamiste des shebab, affilié à Al-Qaeda, a revendiqué les explosions ainsi que l'assaut de l'hôtel Nasa Hablod, selon un site pro-shebab, citant radio Andalous, la station des shebab.

"Les combattants moujahidine sont à l'intérieur de l'hôtel Nasa Hablod 2, où logent de hauts responsables apostats", a indiqué le site.

Les militants islamistes shebab ont pour habitude de faire exploser des véhicules piégés à l'entrée d'hôtels ou de bâtiments publics, avant de lancer un commando à l'intérieur pour faire le maximum de victimes.

Les shebab qui ont certes été chassés de Mogadiscio en août 2011, veulent faire tomber l'actuel gouvernement soutenu par la communauté internationale et par les 22 000 hommes de la force de l’Union africaine (Amisom). Malgré la perte de l’essentiel de leurs bastions , de vastes zones rurales sont encore sous leur contrôle. Et de là ils continuent leurs opérations de guérilla et commettent des attentats suicides, souvent dans la capitale, et contre des bases militaires, somaliennes ou étrangères.

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

REPORT DES ELECTIONS PRESIDENDIELLES DANS QUATRE COMTES DU KENYA

La nouvelle présidentielle organisée après l'invalidation par la justice de la réélection du président sortant Uhuru Kenyatta en août a dégénéré dans la violence jeudi si bien qu'elle a du être reportée dans les bastions de l'opposition à l’ouest du pays à mardi dernier délai.

Huit personnes ont été tuées par balles depuis jeudi, portant à au moins 48 le nombre de morts depuis l'élection invalidée du 8 août.

Le report des opérations de vote a lieu dans quatre comtés (Homa Bay, Kisumu, Migori et Siaya) sur les 47 que compte le pays.

Les opérations de dépouillement de la Commission électorale (IEBC) se déroulent en pleine crise politique.

Le résultat du scrutin ne semble faire aucun doute :

Uhuru Kenyatta, 56 ans, devrait être déclaré vainqueur sur un score dépassant les 90 % mais avec une faible participation estimée à 35 %.

Si tel est le cas, ce taux serait de loin le plus bas depuis les premières élections multipartites dans le pays en 1992 si bien que l'opposition emmenée par Odinga trois fois candidat malheureux à la présidence (1997, 2007, 2013) pourrait remettre en question la légitimité du président élu.

La lutte historique de pouvoir entre leurs deux tribus Kikuyu pour Kenyatta et Luo pour Odinga-entre autres révèle l'échec de la démocratie dans un des pays les plus corrompus de l'Afrique.

Alyson Braxton pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

PLUS DE 300 MORTS DANS LE PLUS MEURTRIER ATTENTAT EN SOMALIE

L'explosion qui a frappé la capitale somalienne devient le pire attentat de l'histoire en Somalie.

«C'est une attaque horrible menée par les Chebab sur des civils innocents, qui ne visait pas des responsables gouvernementaux somaliens spécifiques.

Cela montre combien ces éléments violents sont sans pitié, pour viser sans distinction des gens innocents qui ne faisaient que s'occuper de leurs affaires», a déclaré dimanche le président somalien Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed., deux

L’attentat n'a ,toujours pas été revendiqué mais selon toute vraisemblance il a été  mené par le groupe Al-Chabab (affilié à Al-Qaida)

La capitale somalienne, frappée samedi 14 octobre dans l’après-midi par deux attentats au camion piégé, offre une vision d’apocalypse. Le bilan ne cesse de s'alourdir : 300 morts annoncés ce matin sans compter les centaines de blessés. « Nous avons confirmation que 300 personnes sont mortes. Ce bilan va s’alourdir », a indiqué lundi le chef des services ambulanciers de la ville.

Dans l’attentat de samedi, deux camions piégés et bourrés d’explosifs militaires mais aussi sans doute des composants chimiques inflammables, introuvables en Somalie ont explosé dans des quartiers populeux pour faire un maximum de victimes.

L’attaque terroriste a ciblé l’intersection « Kilomètre 5 » un quartier très fréquenté de la capitale qui abrite bâtiments officiels, hôtels et restaurants et immeubles d'habitation .

Une deuxième explosion a eu lieu deux heures plus tard environ dans la médina.

La Somalie qui a connu 25 ans de guerre civile se sent impuissante face à la montée en puissance des Chababs ,affilié à Al-Qaida malgré l'élection au mois de février du très populaire président Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed ancien réfugié aux Etats-Unis, dit « Farmajo » .

Les djihadistes de Somalie malgré leur expulsion de Mogadiscio en 2011 et quelques revers en province contrôlent toujours une grande partie du territoire somalien. La sécurité n'est toujours pas rétablie à Mogadiscio.Le président Farmajo a décrété un deuil national de trois jours, après cet attentat considéré par les Somaliens comme le pire de l'histoire de leur pays.

« Les Etats-Unis condamnent dans les termes les plus forts l'attaque terroriste qui a tué et blessé des centaines (de personnes) à Mogadiscio le 14 octobre», selon un communiqué du Département d'Etat. «Face à cet acte insensé et lâche, les Etats-Unis continueront de se tenir aux côtés du gouvernement somalien, de son peuple et de nos alliés pour combattre le terrorisme et soutenir leurs efforts pour parvenir à la paix, à la sécurité et à la prospérité».

La Turquie a envoyé de l'aide médicale à Mogadiscio et prenden charge des personnes blessées par l'attentat, selon le porte-parole du président Erdogan. «Sur instruction de notre président, un avion ambulance militaire est en route aujourd'hui (dimanche) pour apporter de l'aide médicale et emmener les blessés en Turquie», a tweeté dans l'après-midi Ibrahim Kalin, porte-parole du président turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan .

Mais face à la menace croissante, Africains comme Occidentaux ne savent comment y faire face efficacement. L’Amisom, forte de 22 000 hommes, manquant de moyens et de logistique a même été pillée par les djihadistes qui se sont fournis en armes.

Elle est de toute façon appelée à partir prochainement sans laisser une armée nationale somalienne capable de prendre la relève. C'est le chaos qui règne dans cet Etat failli dépassé par les chebabs.

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

FACE AU REFUS DU GOUVERNEMENT BIRMAN DU CESSEZ-LE-FEU PROCLAME PAR LES REBELLES ROHINGYA POUR UN MOIS

L'ONU DENONCE UN NETTOYAGE ETHNIQUE

Fin août les rebelles rohingya, équipés de machettes et couteaux, avaient attaquées des postes de police dans l’Etat de Rakhine, en Birmanie, ayant pour conséquence une vague de répression de la part de l’armée et l’exode de près de 300 000 membres de la minorité musulmane.

Face à l'ampleur de l'exode et les atrocités commises semble-t-il, des deux côtés, les rebelles ont déclaré dimanche 10 septembre un cessez-le-feu unilatéral d’un mois , appelant l'armée à en faire autant.

« L’Armée du salut des Rohingya de l’Arakan [ARSA] déclare l’arrêt temporaire de ses opérations militaires offensives », a déclaré le groupe rebelle dans un communiqué publié sur Twitter.

La nébuleuse des groupes rohingyas impliqués dans les violences n'est pas très claire. Se détache un groupe, l'Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), qui assure mener l'insurrection depuis les montagnes de la zone de May Yu, dans le nord de l'Etat Rakhine.

La minorité rohingya accuse l'armée birmane et des bouddhistes extrémistes de ce pays à majorité bouddhiste d'être responsables des violences alors que le gouvernement birman

L'ARSA, plus connu localement sous le nom Harakah al-Yaqin ("Mouvement de la foi" en arabe), dit vouloir permettre à l'aide humanitaire de pouvoir intervenir, la région étant interdite d'accès pour les organisations internationales.

Mais Rangoun rejette le cessez-le-feu des rebelles refusant de «négocier avec les terroristes». «Notre politique n'est pas de négocier avec les terroristes», dit un porte-parole de la dirigeante birmane Aung San Suu Kyi sur Twitter.

Face à l’afflux de 300000 rohinghya au Bangladesh dans des conditions déplorables le haut-commissaire de l'ONU aux droits de l'homme Zeid Ra'ad Al-Hussein a jugé lundi 11 septembre que le traitement de la minorité musulmane rohingya par la Birmanie s'apparente à un « exemple classique de nettoyage ethnique » d'autant que la la Birmanie n'a pas autorisé les experts à se rendre sur place. A l'ouverture de la 36e session du Conseil à Genève, Zeid Ra'ad Al-Hussein a déclaré :" Traités comme des étrangers en Birmanie, un pays à plus de 90% bouddhiste, les Rohingyas sont apatrides même si certains vivent dans le pays depuis des générations".

Depuis l'attaques de plusieurs poste des police fin août par l'ARSA , la répression de l'armée birmane ne cesse pas . Cette "opération [...] est clairement disproportionnée et sans égard pour les principes fondamentaux du droit international", a affirmé le haut-commissaire. Et d'ajouter :

"Nous avons reçu de multiples rapports et des images satellites montrant des forces de sécurité et des milices locales brûlant des villages rohingyas, et des informations cohérentes faisant étant d'exécutions extrajudiciaires, y compris de tirs sur des civils en fuite."

Des milliers de personnes seraient toujours en fuite, cachées dans les forêts ou sur des collines du côté birman, sans vivres ni eau. Au Bangladesh de dénoncer également le minage de la zone frontalière entre les deux pays qui blesse grièvement les Rohingyas fuyant la violence.

"J'appelle le gouvernement à mettre un terme à son opération militaire cruelle" et aux "discriminations généralisées" dont souffrent les Rohingyas manifestant sa ferme volonté d'enquêter sur "toutes les violations", a dit Zeid Ra'ad Al-Hussei

Joanne Courbet pour DayNewsWorld
There are no translations available.

UNE PREMIERE EN AFRIQUE

ANNULATION PAR LA COUR SUPREME

DE L'ELECTION PRESIDENTIELLE AU KENYA

La stupeur domine au sein du clan de Uhuru Kenyatta, après l'invalidation, vendredi 1er septembre, de la réélection du 8 août du président sortant élu avec 54,27% des voix , par la Cour suprême.En raison « d’illégalités et d’irrégularités », Uhuru Kenyatta « n’a pas été élu et déclaré président de manière valide », a déclaré le juge président David Maraga.

La décision plus que inattendue, a été rendue à la majorité, deux juges sur un total de sept - dont un absent pour cause de maladie - ayant exprimé des opinions dissidentes.

L'annonce de la victoire de M. Kenyatta s'était accompagnée de manifestations et d'émeutes violemment réprimées par la police, dans lesquelles au moins 21 personnes, dont un bébé et une fillette de neuf ans, avaient été tuées.

Raila Odinga, n'ayant obtenu que 44,47% des voix avait dénoncé des fraudes.

De nombreuses voix s’étaient élevées pour demander à Raila Odinga de contester le résultat du scrutin devant les tribunaux, et non dans la rue .

Pourtant, Raila Odinga avait refusé dans un premier temps de saisir la justice pour contester les résultats du scrutin du 8 août.

Les violences interethniques de 2007 consécutives à un autre vote présidentiel qui avaient fait plus de 1 200 morts et 600 000 déplacés étaient resté gravées dans les mémoires.

Mais l’impact des discussions au sein de la coalition Nasa avec le sénateur James Orengo et le candidat à la vice-présidence, Kalonzo Musyoka, ont pesé pour porter l’affaire devant la justice dix jours plus tard, le 18 août.

Après deux semaines d’auditions et de délibérations, les juges ont donc tranché ce vendredi matin par l'annulation de l 'élection.