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[ISS] The five-day terror attack on the coastal town of Palma last month once again stressed the severity of the conflict in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province. In its fourth year, the insurgency shows no signs of dissipating and exposes Mozambique's lack of political will to address the problem. It also reveals the Southern African Development Community's (SADC) difficulties in crafting a regional response.
In May, Burundi held a presidential election which was won by Evariste Ndayishimiye, candidate of the ruling National Council for the Defense of Democracy - Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD) party.
Ndayishimiye was hurriedly sworn in after the untimely death of president Pierre Nkurunziza in June.
Rights violations continue
The Council encouraged donor countries which had suspended aid to Burundi to continue dialogue towards resumption of development assistance.
A report by a UN watchdog in September said human rights violations were still being committed in Burundi, including sexual violence and murder.
The country was plunged into a crisis in April 2015 when Ndayishimiye’s predecessor Pierre Nkurunziza decided to run for a controversial third term, which he ultimately won in July 2015.
His candidature, which was opposed by the opposition and civil society groups, resulted in a wave of protests, violence and even a failed coup in May 2015.
Hundreds of people were killed and over 300,000 fled to neighboring countries.
Egypt and France signed various declarations of intent on Tuesday in the field of transport and economic cooperation.
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sissi together with the French Prime Minister, Jean Castex held a meeting on Tuesday that was followed by signing of various agreements between the two countries.
The pact will also see both nations benefit from joint cooperation in other fields like education, security, trade and investments.
President Macron had earlier said that France will also not condition arm sale to Egypt.
The comment was in response to criticism by rights groups against what they allege are human rights violations by the Egyptian government.
Sisi who is now on his third day of visit to France has faced a backlash from Egyptian rights activists
The rights groups accused France of having \"long indulged President al-Sisi's brutal repression of any form of dissent\" and said it was \"now or never\" for Macron to stand up for human rights.
[East African] The United Nations Security Council has unanimously passed a resolution demanding an immediate 90 days' cessation of hostilities in conflict zones around the world due to the impact of the novel coronavirus.
Fifth Third Bank is making a three-year, $2.8 billion pledge to employees, customers, and communities to speed up racial equity, equality, and inclusion.
Despite uncertainties over Joe Biden’s approach to trade with China, major U.S. companies are optimistic about the business outlook under the new administration.
During a meeting of NatJOINTS and the government Task Team, SAPS were briefed on how to police the ongoing truck driver protest.
DEAR President Emmerson Mnangagwa, BY JASMINE OPPERMAN I write this article addressing you as the immediate past chairperson of the Sadc Organ on Politics, Defence and Security. Your Excellency, I also am addressing you as a neighbour to a country which has been troubled by terrorism, wherein your country Zimbabwe has interests. This year, as the insurgency in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province has intensified, calls for regional intervention have grown louder. This is more than just talk: the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) is actively exploring ways to intervene, including some kind of military response. A virtual meeting of relevant Sadc committees on June 25-26 resulted in some progress. This included, according to sources, commitment from some countries for boots on the ground, but an overall strategy has not been locked down. Your Excellency, the process of doing so is frustrated by the reluctance of some countries to get involved; practical realities, such as who will fund an intervention; and Mozambique’s determination to remain “in charge” of the situation. There is no doubt that some kind of intervention is necessary, to prevent the situation from spiralling out of control. But caution is required. Walking in blindly — without understanding the complexities at play, and without addressing some of the socio-economic factors that underpin and exacerbate the violence — could make the situation even worse. A complex insurgency Your Excellency, the insurgency in Cabo Delgado, a coastal province in northern Mozambique, began in 2017 with an attack on a police station in the town of Mocimboa da Praia. Since then, the insurgency has gone from strength to strength, even though little is known about its motivations or intent. The insurgents go by the name Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama, and have reportedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. This year, both the frequency and intensity of attacks have increased, and the insurgents have gained access to more sophisticated weaponry. They are yet to attempt to set up any kind of parallel governance structure, but are showing sufficient sophistication to take on Mozambique’s security forces directly. They have also demonstrated the ability to briefly occupy towns such as Mocimboa da Praia and Macomia. Your Excellency, the response from Mozambique’s security forces has been characterised by coercive tactics and human rights abuses, which risks entrenching local grievances against the State. This is a challenge for any potential regional intervention: a close alignment with the Mozambican State could make it difficult to earn trust among affected communities, which is essential for any kind of peacekeeping effort. A recent MediaFax report noted that the Mozambican government’s hardline response had left young men in Cabo Delgado feeling sympathetic to the insurgents; they are more likely to support the insurgency in response to human rights violations by the State than out of any ideological conviction. Your Excellency, Sadc and member countries risk implicating th
[Monitor] British and American diplomats have asked President Museveni to leverage on South Sudan leaders to hold election after the Ugandan leader proposed that only a vote can resolve the political and security impasse in Juba.
South Africa says it will participate in an SADC troika meeting with a view to assist in the development of a solution that will secure peace and continued development in Mozambique.
Just in recent weeks, fighters allied to Libya's internationally recognised Government of National Accord have made significant gains against their rivals in the Libyan National Army, led by self-proclaimed Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.
As various would-be mediators attempted to fill the leadership void - from French president Emmanuel Macron to Italy's prime minister, Giuseppe Conte - Haftar's Libyan National Army slowly consolidated its grip on large parts of the country.
When it appeared that Salamé would try to circumvent Haftar and start a national dialogue process, the Libyan National Army launched its assault on Tripoli last April with backing from Egypt, the UAE and Russia.
There was hope that Germany could parlay its neutrality to bring Libya's internationally recognised prime minister, Fayez al-Serraj, and Haftar together along with their main backers, respectively Turkey and Russia.
Given Haftar's recent declaration of military rule over the areas he controls, darker days could be ahead, especially when external powers insist on playing out their great game for the Middle East in Libya.
Self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd Bushiri is in his home country, Malawi after jumping bail in South Africa on fraud charges raising speculation that he may have escaped using President Lazarus Chakwera’s plane. But both Malawian and South African authorities have cleared Chakwera of the controversial millionaire prophet’s mysterious escape who arrived in Malawi on Wednesday. Bushiri,...
The post In SA, millionaire prophet Shepherd Bushiri wanted for fraud jumps bail, says his life under threat appeared first on Face2Face Africa.
South Africa will endure it's last 24-hours of Level 3 lockdown today, with a shift to relaxed lockdown conditions imminent. There's plenty to look out for this week.
Regional Tensions Mount
Ethiopia declared a state of emergency on Wednesday following a deadly attack by the Tigray ruling party on a federal troop camp. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has ordered a military response. The Prime Minister stated in his public address to the country, \"My dear people. Today the apostate Ethiopian has stabbed Ethiopia. What makes this attack one of the most shocking attacks is that Tigray People's Liberation Front TPLF is viewing the Ethiopian National Defence Forces as a foreign army rather than an army that has been protecting the people of Tigray for more than twenty years.\"
Ahmed also declared that Ethiopians should unite in light of the ongoing tensions between the Tigray region and the rest of the country. It was not immediately clear what form the federal military response might take, or what the state of emergency will actually entail.
Background
The TPLF dominated politics in Africa's second-most populous country for nearly three decades before Abiy came to power in 2018 on the strength of anti-government protests. Under Abiy, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize, Tigrayan leaders have complained of being unfairly targeted in corruption prosecutions, removed from top positions and broadly scapegoated for the country's woes.
Ethiopia was due to hold national elections in August, but the country's poll body ruled in March that all voting would need to be postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Lawmakers then voted to extend officials' mandates -- which would have expired in early October — but Tigrayan leaders rejected this and went ahead with regional elections in September that Abiy's government deemed illegal.
Now each side sees the other as illegitimate, and federal lawmakers have ruled Abiy's government should cut off contact with — and funding to Tigray's leadership.
In recent days tensions have also risen over who controls federal military assets in Tigray.
Mmusi Maimane has written to International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor for her to issue a démarche against Zimbabwean Ambassador to South Africa David Hamadziripi.
Mr Thabane's All Basotho Convention (ABC) has since formed a grand coalition government with the Democratic Congress (DC).
They further enjoy the support of eight other parties - Movement for Economic Change (six seats), Basotho National Party (five seats), Popular Front for Democracy (three seats) and each seat from the Basotho Congress Party, Reformed Congress of Lesotho, National Independent Party, Marematlou Freedom Party and Democratic Party of Lesotho.
And yesterday, the European Union Ambassador, Christian Manahl; United States Ambassador Rebecca Gonzales, South African High Commissioner Sello Moloto and British High Commissioner Anne Macro said they were satisfied that Lesotho's long-standing political uncertainty had come to an end.
\"The Ambassadors of the European Union and the United States of America and the High Commissioners of the Republic of South Africa and the United Kingdom note with satisfaction that the long-standing political uncertainty has come to an end with a peaceful transition towards a new coalition government,\" reads a joint statement form the diplomats.
The four heads of missions said the international community and development partners of Lesotho were looking forward to working with Dr Majoro's administration.
Multi Grammy Award-winning platinum selling artist, Lecrae, has received two 2021 Grammy Award nominations this year. The first in the category of Best Christian Contemporary Music Performance/Song for “Sunday Morning,” featuring Kirk Franklin. The song is featured on his ninth studio album, Restoration, which was released his own imprint, Reach Records on August 21, 2020. […]
The post Multi-Platinum award-winning artist, LECRAE, gets Grammy nods appeared first on Atlanta Tribune.
Sudan on Tuesday refused to sign agreements that will enable Ethiopia to start filling the waters of its $4.6 billion Renaissance Dam from July.
Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said he refused to sign the agreement with Ethiopia due to \"technical and legal issues\" bordering on the dam's environmental and social impacts.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi told the United Nations, UN, in 2019: \"While we acknowledge Ethiopia's right to development, the water of the Nile is a question of life, a matter of existence for Egypt.\"
In spite of calls in Egypt for war if Ethiopia does not stop the construction, it is uncertain what a military reaction by Egypt will be, especially when both countries have no shared borders.
First, all sides need to accept that Ethiopia has a right to use the Nile waters for its development just as Egypt did in building its Aswan High Dam whose ten-year construction was completed in 1970.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations Security Council unanimously called for a reversal of the military coup in Myanmar on Wednesday, strongly condemning the violence against peaceful protesters and calling for “utmost restraint...
[UN News] It will take a variety of different actors to confront and deal with the \"daunting challenges\" in the Sahel region, the head of UN peacekeeping told the Security Council on Monday.
From Alderwoman Milele A. Coggs, Alderwoman Chantia Lewis, Alderman Ashanti Hamilton, Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic,Alderman Cavalier Johnson, Alderwoman Nikiya Dodd, Alderman Michael J. Murphy, Alderman Khalif J. Rainey, Alderwoman JoCasta Zamarripa, Alderman Robert J. Bauman, Alderman Mark A. Borkowski, Alderman Nik Kovac and Alderman Russell W. Stamper, II January 6th, 2021 will be remembered […]
The post Flames of insurrection and victimhood lead to siege of the People’s House appeared first on Milwaukee Community Journal.
