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International Criminal Court issues arrest warrant for Libyan commander

6, July 2018

International Criminal Court issues arrest warrant for Libyan commander 0

The International Criminal Court revealed Thursday it has issued a second arrest warrant for a Libyan military commander accused of shooting dead 10 Takfiri prisoners after a Benghazi mosque attack.

The new warrant for Mahmoud Mustafa Busayf al-Werfalli, issued Wednesday, cites “his alleged responsibility for murder as a war crime” in the Libyan conflict, the ICC said in a statement.

Despite an earlier warrant issued in August, Werfalli, a commander of the Benghazi-based al-Saiqa Brigade loyal to Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar, has remained at large.

Now ICC judges have found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Werfalli “allegedly shot dead 10 persons in front of the Bi’at al-Radwan Mosque in Benghazi” on January 24.

Almost 40 people were killed and scores injured in twin car bombings outside the mosque after evening prayers frequented by Takfiri opponents in Libya’s second city.

The first warrant accused Werfalli of the cold-blooded executions of at least 33 civilians or injured fighters in seven incidents in 2016 and 2017.

The ICC judges referred to video footage allegedly showing Werfalli personally shooting hooded and bound prisoners, or ordering a firing squad to open fire on them.

In February, Werfalli said in an unconfirmed Facebook video post that he had handed himself in to Haftar, insisting on his innocence, and justifying any executions as “sentences” against Takfiri killers.

Libya fell into chaos after the ouster of strongman Muammar Gaddafi in October 2011, with competing authorities in Tripoli and the east vying for power.

Former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi (File photo)

 

Haftar supports an administration based in the east, while the UN-backed unity government based in the capital Tripoli has struggled to assert its authority outside of the west of the country.

ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has repeatedly called for help in arresting Werfalli, as well as Gaddafi’s son, Saif al-Islam, who is also wanted on charges of war crimes.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, a son of former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi (File photo)

 

A warrant has also been issued for the arrest of former security chief Al-Tuhamy Mohamed Khaled, accused of war crimes committed in 2011.

(Source: AFP)


Southern Cameroons War: Biya implementing an aggressive and destructive policy

6, July 2018

Southern Cameroons War: Biya implementing an aggressive and destructive policy 0

President Biya is implementing an aggressive and destructive policy in Southern Cameroons. The 85 year old dictator has precipitated an armed conflict against the English speaking community of the country which is getting worse. He is pushing the Francophone dominated army against Southern Cameroonians and he is opening and maintaining military bases in Southern Cameroons and claiming that he is fighting separatists.

Senior political commentators have recently opined that Biya has smashed the 1961 Foumban agreement with West Cameroon. And he is making matters worse because of his excessive use of force. The French government of President Macron is supporting Biya in his slaughter in Ambazonia. Correspondingly, the special relationship between Biya and Buhari has massively supported the expansion of French Secret Service operations inside Nigeria. On the top of this, Biya does not have any serious plans for solving the crisis in Southern Cameroons.

A prominent traditional ruler from the Manyu constituency who spoke to Cameroon Intelligence Report but sued for anonymity said Biya is a clown with guns in his hands. And that is why CPDM militants are now realizing that Biya is a political disaster that has been around for 35 years.

Soon and very soon there is going to be a massive anti Biya movement in French Cameroun. Our chief political editor noted that Biya is dangerous. He is dangerous to the One and Indivisible Cameroon. He is dangerous to the African Union. He is dangerous to his own country-French Cameroun and he is dangerous to the world.

By Chi Prudence Asong


Giant ‘Trump Baby’ to fly over London during US president visit

5, July 2018

Giant ‘Trump Baby’ to fly over London during US president visit 0

A giant blimp depicting Donald Trump as a baby will fly over London during the US president’s visit next week after mayor Sadiq Khan approved the request, protesters behind the stunt said Thursday.

The 6-meter (19-foot) orange balloon, which shows the president wearing a nappy, will fly near parliament at a height of 30 meters between 9:30 am and 11:30 am local time.

“The mayor supports the right to peaceful protest and understands that this can take many different forms,” said a spokesperson for Khan, who has had frequent Twitter spats with the US leader.

Activist Leo Murray from the group behind the protest credited a “huge groundswell of support” for Khan’s decision, with more than 10,000 signing an online petition.

“We didn’t get off to the best start with the mayor’s office over this, who originally told us that they didn’t recognise ‘Trump Baby’ as legitimate protest,” he told Sky News.

“But following a huge groundswell of public support for our plan, it looks like City Hall has rediscovered its sense of humour. Trump Baby will fly!”

Huge protests are expected when Trump visits Britain next week, where he will meet Prime Minister Theresa May and Queen Elizabeth II.

(Source: AFP)


Nigeria: Buhari’s party splits ahead of 2019 presidential elections

5, July 2018

Nigeria: Buhari’s party splits ahead of 2019 presidential elections 0

Nigeria’s ruling party has split after a faction declared that it no longer supports the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, threatening his hopes of a securing a second term in an election due early next year.

A group of politicians who were part of the All Progressives Congress (APC) told a news conference in Abuja late on Wednesday they had formed a new faction, led by former Buhari ally Buba Galadima and called Reformed-All Progressives Congress (R-APC).

“The APC has run a rudderless, inept and incompetent government that has failed to deliver good governance to the Nigerian people,” R-APC national chairman Galadima said.

He said the faction, described as the authentic voice of the APC, has representatives in all Nigeria’s local government wards and states.

Coalition politics

Rifts within the APC could split support for Buhari within powerful patronage networks and among voters ahead of an election expected to be held in February.

Buhari, a 75-year-old former military ruler, said in April that he would seek another term. His candidacy depends on party approval, though that is usually seen as a formality for the incumbent.

Nigeria’s political parties must select their candidates for the election between Aug. 18 and Oct. 7.

Nigeria is Africa’s top oil producer and richest economy. It plays a key role in the regional fight against Islamist militants.

Galadima, who was a prominent figure in Buhari’s former CPC party and a founding member of the APC, said the R-APC would “work with like-minded political parties and groups to offer Nigeria qualitative good governance in 2019”.

Fissures within the APC, a broad coalition formed to oust Buhari’s predecessor Goodluck Jonathan rather than pursue a political ideology, have come to the fore in recent months.

Atiku Abubakar, a former Nigerian vice president, has been the most high profile figure to leave the party. Abubakar told Reuters in May that he hopes to be the main opposition party’s presidential candidate.

The split comes just over a week after the APC held its convention during which party executives were appointed, including a new national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole.

“For us, everybody is important, everybody matters. We want to run an inclusive party,” said Oshiomhole in an emailed statement on Thursday.

Antony Goldman, of Nigeria-focused PM Consulting, said Buhari had been able to defeat Jonathan in the 2015 election by drawing on sentiment among the former president’s opponents.

“There are various groups trying to do the same now, but they have yet to produce a candidate around whom that sentiment can coalesce and present a genuine challenge,” he said.

Source: Reuters


Cameroon was never ONE: The AGBAW-EBAI DEBATE

5, July 2018

Cameroon was never ONE: The AGBAW-EBAI DEBATE 0

A Referendum is now the only solution to the Anglophone crisis. To Biya and his sycophants who claim “an overwhelming majority” of Anglophones want to remain in bondage and servitude in Cameroon; to Anglophone regime apologists and fifth columnists who benefit from the crumbs served by their paymaster and see nothing wrong with the genocide against their own people; to those ass-kissing Anglophones who blame the Diaspora for inciting and financing the struggle; and to all those who believe Ambazonia independence is non-negotiable; here is my challenge. stop the senseless mayhem and bloodbath and invite the UN to come in and organize a referendum as was the case in 1961. Only Anglophones will be allowed to vote as was the case in 1961 and voting will take place ONLY in Anglophone Cameroon as was the case in 1961 and registration will be done at the village level. The results will be binding on all stakeholders. Until that happens, for “an overwhelming majority” of Anglophones, it is now freedom or death…the struggle continues

By Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai


French President Macron says Migration ‘not just a security issue,’

5, July 2018

French President Macron says Migration ‘not just a security issue,’ 0

French President Emmanuel Macron said a new vision of Africa that reflects the continent’s vitality is necessary to tackle Europe’s migration crisis in an exclusive interview Wednesday with FRANCE 24-RFI in Nigeria.

Capping a two-nation Africa tour that included an African Union summit in Mauritania and a visit to Nigeria, Macron called for a comprehensive rethink of the migration crisis that has seen millions risk their lives in recent years to reach Europe.

“Let’s look lucidly at this subject of migration. The very poor do not leave their country, they are the middle classes of emerging economies that are passing through Libya today,” said Macron, referring to the dangerous Mediterranean routes from Africa to Europe. “An overwhelming majority of those who go to sea after months, years of wandering, suffering, where do they come from? Nigeria, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Guinea. Are these countries doing less well than they were ten years ago? No. And so we have a youth who believe there is no hope in their countries.3

Speaking to Claudy Siar of FRANCE 24’s sister radio station RFI in the southern Nigerian city of Lagos, Macron admitted that migration is “one of the greatest political challenges today and the next few years because it will not stop.”

As German Chancellor Angela Merkel evaded a political crisis by striking a deal this week with her Bavarian allies to limit migrant entries, Macron noted that the issue had “plunged Europe into a moral and political crisis and it is born, it must be said, of an African crisis.”

Paying respects at ‘The Shrine’ nightclub

Macron’s interview came at the end of a three-day African tour that saw the 41-year-old French president inaugurate a cultural centre at the Alliance Française in the Nigerian commercial capital of Lagos on Wednesday.

The previous night, Macron made an unconventional stop, for a visiting head-of-state, at the New Afrika Shrine, an iconic nightclub founded by the Nigerian music legend Fela Kuti.

He also announced France’s plans to host a major cultural event featuring music, dance and fashion, titled, “Season of African Cultures 2020”.

Speaking to Siar at the Lagos Alliance Française, Macron noted that his Africa visit was not just about “big defence contacts, big mining and commercial contacts,” but also about “the ecosystem of economic and development and how to involve civil society”.

Not a land of ‘worry, immigration and terrorism’

Calling for a contemporary vision of Africa in France, Macron noted that most French people had a vision of the continent from the archaeological finds and artworks in museums and private collections. “But that is not the Africa of today,” he said, noting that the majority of French people knew little about the youth of Africa and the young artists, writers and filmmakers that made the continent a vibrant place.

As a university student, Macron did an internship in Nigeria and the Ivory Coast, a stint that familiarised him with the vibrant West African cultural scene.

The New Afrika Shrine, he noted, was familiar terrain. “I went several times to the Shrine and some other iconic places of Nigerian culture, of the Afrobeat,” he said. “I experienced even more furious evenings there than yesterday,” he joked. When questioned further, he added, “Well, look, they slightly arranged things. But there’s an energy, tremendous energy and still this strength, this vitality of a tremendous cultural project.”

That image and discourse of vitality, Macron suggested, was critical to change the vision of Africa inside the continent as well as for the African diaspora in Europe. “Yesterday at the Shrine, I seemed like the middle-aged man. If you see the artists, they’re very young. We don’t have to give the youth their place, they’ve already taken it.” That, said Macron, was essential for a fundamental rethink on both sides of the Mediterranean. “The first thing is that France should have is a different view of Africa, that Africa is not viewed as a land of worry, immigration and terrorism, but a land of vitality, of culture.”

Source:France 24


Southern Cameroonians want to see President Biya tried as a war criminal

5, July 2018

Southern Cameroonians want to see President Biya tried as a war criminal 0

President Biya should be arrested and tried as a war criminal over the killings in Southern Cameroons, according to a survey conducted by Cameroon Concord News Group.  Hundreds of Ambazonians who took part in the survey in Bamenda, Buea, Mamfe, Mundemba, Kumba, Wum, Muyuka, Tiko, Ndop and Bali said Mr. Biya is knowingly misleading international public opinion on the genocide in Southern Cameroons and should be tried as a war criminal.

The number of Ambazonians who said President Biya should be arrested and tried as a war criminal was higher among those who had served as civil servants under the CPDM regime when compared with the several hundreds of unemployed. 5% noted that once independence is gotten, Southern Cameroonians should move on and take no action against a foreign head of state.

Nearly half of the 18 to 24-year-olds said they wanted to see Mr Biya tried as a war criminal in Den Hague in Holland.  The Cameroon Concord News Group findings come as some members of the International Criminal Court noted recently that crimes against humanity were being committed in Southern Cameroons.

The Southern Cameroons crisis that has been playing out for almost two years has finally entered a critical phase. While Southern Cameroonian fighters are making huge advances, which are making a mockery of the government’s military action, the Yaoundé government is now scrambling for a peaceful resolution as it has noticed that it is dealing with a very dicey situation. The government is under enormous pressure as the killing of army soldiers becomes a daily ritual.

It is becoming clear to the government that there will never be a convincing military victory in this battle that will surely last for decades. The government is gradually coming to terms with the fact that it was a huge mistake to declare war on Southern Cameroonians who were simply complaining about a system that has reduced them to second-class citizens.

Currently, the dynamics are changing. The government’s arrogance is gradually being eroded by the determined Southern Cameroonian fighters whose actions have struck fear in the minds of many army soldiers. The government is today staring down the barrel of defeat, as its treasury continues to lose money and its soldiers feeling really despondent as they face the prospect of dying in the Rocky Mountains and dense jungles of Southern Cameroons.

Many government officials know that defeat is staring the government in the face. Many want to sue for peace, but they don’t know how to proceed as their arrogance has muddied the waters and made reconciliation challenging. The Interim Government of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia has accused Mr Biya of committing a crime of aggression by invading Southern Cameroons.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files from Sama Ernest and Kingsley Betek


Cameroon man gets 14 years for scamming Chinese girlfriend 6m yuan

5, July 2018

Cameroon man gets 14 years for scamming Chinese girlfriend 6m yuan 0

A Cameroonian man was sentenced to 14 years in prison and deportation from China after he defrauded his Chinese “girlfriend” of more than 6 million yuan ($896,000).

A woman surnamed Hu in Beijing transferred the money to her “boyfriend,”  who she met on a dating website in 2014, agreeing to support his studies, living expenses and medical care costs, before she found herself swindled, The Beijing News reported on Tuesday, referring the Cameroonian national as “Weili.”

Local police detained Weili in October 2016 after receiving a complaint from Hu, and the suspect was prosecuted in September 2017.

According to Hu, Weili claimed to be born and raised in France. Hu fell in love with him and sold her house in Beijing to meet Weili’s demands for money during their less-than-two-year relationship.

Starting in August 2014, Hu transferred money various times to Weili’s bank account. Weili defrauded money from Hu using different pretexts.

For example, he said he needed help to pay for his living expenses in Paris when he “attended” a UN global climate conference.

Hu later discovered that Weili was actually in Cameroon instead of France at the time when he claimed to attend the climate conference.

While dating Hu, Weili also lived in Beijing together with his pregnant Cameroonian girlfriend, to whom he transferred some of the money he got from Hu.

The Third Intermediate People’s Court of Beijing in 2017 sentenced Weili to 14 years in prison, fined him 140,000 yuan and ordered him deported from China.

There was no information on whether the defrauded money had been returned.

Source:ECNS.cn


Southern Cameroons Crisis: More than half a billion CFA francs ($900 000) collected from the public in Douala

5, July 2018

Southern Cameroons Crisis: More than half a billion CFA francs ($900 000) collected from the public in Douala 0

Cameroonians have donated hugely to an emergency aid fund for two anglophone regions hit by violence between separatists and government forces, the state media reported on Tuesday.
More than half a billion CFA francs ($900 000) has been collected from the public in Douala, Cameroon’s economic capital, and in the regions of Centre and South, CRTV radio said.

On June 20, the government announced plans for a 12.7 billion CFA franc emergency aid plan for the Southwest and Northwest regions, where life has been badly hit by the violence.

The money would come from “the state budget, an appeal to national solidarity and contributions from international partners,” it said. The Northwest and Southwest regions are home to most of Cameroon’s English-speakers, who account for about a fifth of a mainly French-speaking population of 22 million.

Years of resentment at perceived discrimination at the hands of the francophone majority have fuelled demands for anglophone autonomy, which last year culminated in a declaration of independence.

A government crackdown then followed, plunging the two regions into almost daily acts of violence and retribution.

A government report last week said anglophone separatists in Cameroon had killed 81 members of the security forces and more than 100 civilians, and torched at least 120 schools.

The overall toll among civilians remains unclear.

According to the International Crisis Group (ICG) think-tank, at least 120 civilians and 43 members of the security forces have been killed since the end of 2016.

The UN says 160 000 people have been internally displaced and 20, 000 have sought refuge in neighbouring Nigeria.

The presence of a large English-speaking minority dates back to the colonial period.

Cameroon, once a German colony, was divided between Britain and France after World War I.

The French colony gained independence in 1960, becoming Cameroon. The following year, the British-ruled Southern Cameroons was amalgamated into it, giving rise to the Northwest and Southwest regions.

Source: AFP



China says US ‘opening fire’ on entire world

5, July 2018

China says US ‘opening fire’ on entire world 0

China says the United States is “opening fire” on the global economy and damaging the international supply chains by imposing tariffs on products from China and other countries, as controversial US duties on Chinese goods worth tens of billions are due to come into force at midnight Thursday.

“The US measures are essentially attacking global supply and value chains. To put it simply, the US is opening fire on the entire world, including itself,” said Gao Feng, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday, referring to the American practice of protectionism.

He said Beijing would continue to assess the impact of the current trade dispute with Washington and would help firms cope with possible shocks.

Last month, US President Donald Trump announced 25-percent tariffs on $50 billion in annual Chinese imports. He said he had also directed the US Trade Representative to identify $200 billion worth of imports for additional tariffs.

Trump also stressed at the time that his administration would be identifying another $200 billion in tariffs if China retaliated the new measures.

The total of $450 billion in goods represents the lion’s share of all of China’s exports to the US.

The label of a Washington DC sweatshirt bears an American flag but says “Made in China,” at a souvenir stand in Washington, DC, the United Sates, January 14, 2011. (Photo by Reuters)

 

The US administration had originally proposed duties in April, starting with 1,333 Chinese products. After obtaining some public feedback, it omitted 515 imports from the blacklist but added 284 others.

Washington will impose duties on 818 Chinese products, worth $34 billion a year, from the original list, due to take effect on July 6. The Trump administration will not target the 284 other items — worth $16 billion — until it collects further public comments.

China, for its part, has vowed to retaliate with matching duties on US goods.

Beijing has said that Chinese tariffs on American products would come into force shortly after those of Washington do.

Trump is also involved in a similar trade tussle with Europe, Canada, Mexico, and South Korea.

China ‘will not fire the first shot’

If the US duties proceed to take effect on Friday as planned, Beijing will hit back with its own tariffs, initially on nearly $30 billion in US goods on the same day, China’s General Administration of Customs said in a statement on Thursday.

It added that China would not be the first to pull the trigger, however.

The Chinese tariffs include duties on vehicles and many agricultural and food products, such as soybeans, which will hit American farmers — normally part of Trump’s popular base — hard.

The remaining $15-billion Chinese tariffs would be imposed in the second phase and would target US crude oil, propane, and chemicals.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Gao also said that China’s foreign trade was expected to continue on an unwavering trail even though investors were afraid that a full-scale Sino-US trade conflict would deal a body blow to Chinese exports and its economy.

Back on June 14, Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), warned that the trade war sparked by unilateral US import tariffs would have no winners and that the tit-for-tat cycle of retaliation would only create “losers on both sides.”

She also added at the time that the outcome of such a trade conflict would have a “serious” economic impact on the US and global economies, including by causing inflation to speed up.


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