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Biden administration backs suspending patent protections for Covid vaccines

6, May 2021

Biden administration backs suspending patent protections for Covid vaccines 0

US President Joe Biden’s administration on Wednesday announced support for a global waiver on patent protections for Covid-19 vaccines, offering hope to poor nations that have struggled to access the life-saving doses.

India, where the death toll hit a new daily record amid fears the peak is still to come, has been leading the fight within the World Trade Organization (WTO) to allow more drugmakers to manufacture the vaccines—a move pharma giants opposed.

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said that while intellectual property rights for businesses are important, Washington “supports the waiver of those protections for COVID-19 vaccines” in order to end the pandemic.

“This is a global health crisis, and the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures,” she said in a statement.

Biden had been under intense pressure to waive protections for vaccine manufacturers, especially amid criticism that rich nations were hoarding Covid-19 vaccines.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, head of the World Health Organization (WHO), called the US decision “historic” and marked “a monumental moment in the fight against COVID19.”

Tai cautioned said that negotiations “will take time given the consensus-based nature” of the WTO.

The aim “is to get as many safe and effective vaccines to as many people as fast as possible,” she said.

With supplies for Americans secured, the Biden administration will continue efforts “to expand vaccine manufacturing and distribution,” and will work to “increase the raw materials needed to produce those vaccines.”

For months the WTO has been facing calls to temporarily remove the intellectual property protections on Covid-19 vaccines, known as a TRIPS waiver in reference to the agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property.

WTO chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on Wednesday described as the “moral and economic issue of our time.”

But that notion has been fiercely opposed by pharmaceutical giants and their host countries, which insist the patents are not the main roadblocks to scaling up production, and warned the move could hamper innovation.

“A waiver is the simple but the wrong answer to what is a complex problem,” the Geneva-based International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations lobby group said, describing the US move as “disappointing.”

Tai in recent weeks has met with executives from all the major US vaccine producers—Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson—to discuss the issue.

Devastating surge

While the United States has reached the point of offering donuts and beer to vaccine holdouts, India reported 3,780 new pandemic deaths and not enough doses to inoculate its people.

India has in recent weeks endured a devastating surge in coronavirus cases, with more than 380,000 infections reported on Wednesday.

K Vijay Raghavan, the Indian government’s principal scientific advisor, said the country of 1.3 billion people had to prepare for a new wave of infections even after beating down the current wave, which has taken the country’s caseload above 20 million infections.

In an effort to boost the country’s collapsing health system, India’s reserve bank announced $6.7 billion in cheap financing for vaccine makers, hospitals and health firms.

India’s crisis has been partly fueled by a lack of vaccines. This has in turn exacerbated the global shortage as India is the world’s biggest producer of Covid shots.

In London, foreign ministers from the Group of Seven wealthy democracies committed to financially support the vaccine-sharing program, Covax.

But there was no immediate announcement on fresh funding.

Though his country is not a group member, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar was in London for the G7 talks but had to hold his meetings virtually after possible exposure to virus cases.

Vaccine inequity

The pandemic has claimed more than 3.2 million lives worldwide since it first emerged in late 2019, but many wealthy nations have made progress in suppressing the virus as mass vaccination campaigns gather steam.

More than 1.2 billion doses have been administered globally, but fewer than one percent in the least developed countries.

Vaccine shortages are not an issue in the United States, which could soon be sitting on as many as 300 million extra doses—nearly equivalent to its entire population.

Biden on Tuesday said he wanted 70 percent of US adults to have received at least one shot by the July 4 Independence Day holiday.

He also said his administration was “ready to move immediately” if regulators authorize the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds.

Experts question the wisdom of devoting limited vaccine supplies to a low-risk group instead of sharing them with high-risk groups abroad.

“Vaccinating more people in the US is not going to help us if the variants in India, Nepal and South Asia get out of control and hit our shores,” said Priya Sampathkumar, chair of Infection Prevention & Control at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

UCSF physician and epidemiologist Vinay Prasad slammed the idea of vaccinating low-risk American adolescents before 70-year-olds globally as “a terrible error.”

In the Middle East, Egypt announced a partial shutdown of malls and restaurants and called off festivities for the Muslim holidays of Eid al-Fitr to curb rising coronavirus cases.

Serbia’s president meanwhile said his country would pay each citizen around $30 to get vaccinated, in what could be the world’s first cash-for-jabs scheme.

(AFP)

Football: Chelsea knock out Madrid, setting up Champions League final against Man City

6, May 2021

Football: Chelsea knock out Madrid, setting up Champions League final against Man City 0

Chelsea set up an all-English Champions League final against Manchester City as goals from Timo Werner and Mason Mount beat Real Madrid 2-0 on Wednesday to seal a 3-1 aggregate victory at Stamford Bridge.

If anything, the scoreline flattered Madrid as the 13-time European champions had no response to Chelsea’s speed on the counter-attack.

The Blues should have ran out far more convincing winners as they toyed with the tired visitors in the second half.

However, Werner’s cushioned header into an empty net on 28 minutes after Kai Havertz’s initial effort came back off the crossbar and Mount’s tap-in five minutes from time were enough to seal their place in Istanbul on May 29.

Backed by Russian billionaire owner Roman Abramovich, Chelsea’s £220 million spending spree last summer has been rewarded with a first Champions League final since they lifted the trophy for the only time in 2012.

A return to the biggest game in club football is also the culmination of a huge turnaround in Chelsea’s fortunes since Thomas Tuchel replaced the sacked Frank Lampard in January.

Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane welcomed back captain Sergio Ramos from injury for the first time in six weeks, while Eden Hazard was handed a rare start in an injury-hit season on his return to Stamford Bridge.

But the Belgian was again a peripheral figure as Madrid’s over-reliance on Karim Benzema to provide a goal threat was exposed.

Madrid were handed a let-off when Werner swept home Ben Chilwell’s cross only to be denied by the offside flag.

Benzema needed only a half-chance to thump home his 28th goal of the season to level the tie last week in the Spanish capital and nearly moved ahead of Real legend Raul as the Champions League’s fourth highest ever goalscorer with a quick turn and shot from the edge of the box that Edouard Mendy did brilliantly to turn behind.

That was the closed Madrid came to an away goal and moments later they were behind as Werner scored just his fourth goal in his last 39 games.

N’Golo Kante and Havertz did the hard work as the French midfielder fed Havertz, whose audacious chip over Thibaut Courtois bounced invitingly off the crossbar for Werner to head into an empty net.

Chelsea have now kept 18 clean sheets in 24 games since the appointment of Tuchel turned their season around.

However, a failure to take their chances at the other end means they are still far from guaranteed a place in the Champions League next season.

That lack of a killer touch was exposed after the break as Havertz saw a free header come back off the bar before Mount blasted over with just Courtois to beat.

The former Chelsea ‘keeper, who controversially forced a move back to Spain in the summer of 2018, kept his current employers in the tie as he then saved one-on-ones with Havertz and Kante, with the Blues’ speed on the break too much for Madrid’s ageing midfield to cope with.

Tuchel was growing increasingly frustrated with his side’s inability to put the tie to bed, but could finally relax five minutes from time.

Substitute Christian Pulisic left Courtois on the floor and from his cut-back, Mount slid in to finish from close range.

Fired by Paris Saint-Germain on Christmas Eve after leading the French champions to their first ever final in this competition last season, Tuchel is headed back to the Champions League showpiece match for a second consecutive season, unlike his former club, who were beaten 4-1 on aggregate by City in the other semi-final.

(AFP)

Biya’s leadership: Cameroonian Housemaid arrested in Lebanon for $50,000 cash theft amid dollar shortage

6, May 2021

Biya’s leadership: Cameroonian Housemaid arrested in Lebanon for $50,000 cash theft amid dollar shortage 0

Lebanese police arrested a housemaid accused of stealing $50,000 in cash from her employer in a case that highlights the country’s desperate dollar shortage.

The theft is believed to be one of the largest cash robberies since the deepening economic crisis destroyed the value of the Lebanese pound and led to banks blocking dollar withdrawals.

The Cameroonian housemaid, who worked for a Lebanese employer in Beirut’s Achrafieh district, admitted stealing the money and running away on March 17, the Internal Security Forces [ISF] said.

“The amount of dollars in cash is one of the biggest, if not the biggest that has ever been stolen since the economic and dollar shortage crisis hit Lebanon in 2019,” a senior ISF officer told Arab News.

The case has also shone a light on the plight of domestic workers in Lebanon amid the economic collapse.

Most maids go to work in Lebanon so they can send dollars to their families.

In October 2019, the Lebanese Central Bank banned the withdrawal or transfer of previously deposited dollars in a bid to avoid a run on the banks. As a result, dollars became increasingly scarce.

The crisis led to many Lebanese withdrawing money from their bank accounts and hiding cash savings in their homes.

Some experts have estimated that as much as $3 billion of cash has been stashed away inside properties.

The ISF officer said there had been plenty of dollar cash thefts since 2019 but that the latest was one of the biggest.

Identifying the Cameroonian suspect as 33-year-old E.Y., the ISF said police confiscated more than $4,000 of cash and 6 million Lebanese pounds, three telegraphic transfer receipts to her home country worth $6,000 and a new smart phone.

“She was the primary suspect since she went missing instantly after her employer reported to the police,” the statement said.

She was traced to Tripoli in northern Lebanon, where she was arrested.

During questioning, she admitted that she kept part of the money hidden in a flat that she rented in Al-Bwar area outside Beirut.

She confessed that she gave $12,700 to her two friends who were also arrested. They told officers they had transferred part of the money to their families in Cameroon.

“The suspects were referred to the General Prosecution to be forwarded for trial,” the statement said.

Source: Arabnews.com

The “Anglophone Crisis” in Cameroun – Genesis, Escalation and Recommendations

6, May 2021

The “Anglophone Crisis” in Cameroun – Genesis, Escalation and Recommendations 0

The Norwegian Refugee Council for two consecutive years (2019 & 2020) has characterized the ongoing Anglophone Crisis in Cameroun as the world’s most neglected conflict. A multi-faceted crisis arising from the inability of the Anglophone and Francophone entities to co-exist as the autonomous federated states originally agreed upon in 1961, when the UN-Trusteeship territory of Southern Cameroons was granted independence by “… either joining the Federal Republic of Nigeria or La Republique du Cameroun”.

Following a plebiscite in 1961 to determine whether to join Nigeria or Cameroun, the people of Southern Cameroons voted to join French Cameroun in a relationship comprising two federated-states.  The English-speaking Southern Cameroons comprises 20% of the total population of the country. A similar arrangement between Senegal and Gambia (The Senegambia Confederation 1981-89) was scrapped based on the fundamentally different institutional traditions of the Gambia (Anglophone) and Senegal (Francophone) even though the two countries with regard to native language, religion & ethnicity, have more in common than Cameroun. Whereas Southern Cameroons entered into “a gentleman’s agreement” with la République du Cameroun, the strong relations that exist between France and its former African colonies hung over the Francophone majority, thus “nipping in the bud” any opportunity for Anglophone autonomy in the originally agreed federation before it even had an opportunity to sprout.

The current multi-faceted crisis has evolved from the initial intention of the 80% Francophone administration of Presidents Amadou Ahidjo and Paul Biya to “assimilate” the 20% Anglophone population over the 60+ years of co-existence. Anglophones, who are exceedingly passionate about their language, anglo-saxon education system, traditions, and institutions, such as the Common Law, have fought to maintain them over the years, to the point of shedding blood. Areas of dispute and deep-seated Anglophone grievances include: Politics (constitutional failure on the form of the state); Administrative Affairs (dominated almost entirely by Francophones); Economy (significant under-investment budgets for Anglophone areas compared to the rest of the country); Culture (imposition of French language on Anglophones including using non-English speaking francophone teachers in English schools); among a litany list of others. In 1972, President Amadou Ahidjo single-handedly changed the constitution, including the name of the country to “United Republic of Cameroon” and created a more strongly centralized government. The people of Southern Cameroons felt marginalized and stripped of all their autonomy.

In 1984, President Paul Biya completed the “assimilation” his predecessor started by reverting to the original name of the 80% Francophone majority country, further revised the constitution to institute a lifetime presidency, and enforced even stronger centralization and greater marginalization of Anglophones. Corruption increased in the country, crippling the economy and any complaints from Anglophones were ruthlessly dealt with. For example, the use of military tribunals and harsh prison sentences was enhanced, especially among the Anglophone minority.

In October 2016 English-speaking lawyers, students and teachers began peaceful demonstrations to protest under-representation, cultural marginalization, and the systematic “assimilation” and erosion of the Common Law and Anglophone educational system by the Francophone-dominated government. When their requests were violently repressed by the security forces, other trade unions and civil society organizations in the Anglophone regions came together and demanded a return to the federal system of Government as ordained by the UN-Trusteeship terms for the Unification of the British Southern Cameroons and the French Cameroun in 1961. Anglophones determined that having patiently watched their autonomy stripped away, they would maintain their Anglo-saxon culture under any means, even death. Like the Senegambia case in the 1980s, they were ready to end the Francophone domination and if possible, have a country of their own.

From October 2016 to October 2017, Biya’s military (the infamous BIR – Battallion d’Intervention Rapide) repeatedly used live ammunition, killing peaceful protesters, something that never happens in Francophone Cameroun. Horrendous photos and videos of the killing spree were widely circulated on social media. The people decided to defend themselves from the brutal army cracked down which occasionally included the deployment of helicopter gunships. Rather than engage the people in a political dialogue on the root causes of the crisis as prescribed by the United Nations, Paul Biya preferred to openly declare war on the Anglophone people on November 30, 2017 at the Yaoundé Nsimalen airport upon his return from the Franco-African summit in Abidjan. The regime was confident that the Anglophone rag-tag self-defense forces would be eliminated in a few weeks, and thus allotted no more than three months to the war effort, with French support. As images of students tortured and raped, villages burned down with old mothers unable to flee, circulated on social media, the regime met the full force of the people’s passion. The government intensified the military response and intermittently shut down the internet in the Anglophone regions for 94 days, to hide its atrocities. Villages emptied out as soldiers looted and burned down homes, raped women and girls, and indiscriminately shot at civilians, especially young men and boys. Significant among several foreign clergymen gunned down by the military is Rev. Charles Wesco, an American citizen.

In January 2018, the political leaders of the Anglophone struggle were abducted from Abuja, Nigeria and extradited to Yaoundé, Cameroun. Their detention in the notorious SED and subsequently in the Kondengui jail, followed by arbitrary trials, life sentences and hefty fines further fueled the struggle. The Anglophone Diaspora mobilized support for the war effort against a regime strongly determined to win militarily. The government initially issued statements that there was no Anglophone crisis but eventually bowed to pressure for mediation by staging a “grand national dialogue” (in Yaoundé from 30 September to 4 October 2019) during which a “special status” was accorded Anglophones, as Biya explained during the November 2019 Mo Ibrahim Peace Forum in Paris, after failing for years to assimilate them into the dominant French culture. Even with such pretentious overtures, the killings and atrocities have intensified and a horrendous humanitarian crisis of this most neglected conflict is now quite evident:

    • Over 100,000 Southern Cameroonians have fled to neighboring Nigeria, with numbers rising steadily as more villages are set ablaze.

    • Over 1,000,000 internally displaced (IDPs) Southern Cameroonians have sought refuge in bushes and in urban areas within the country.

    • Over 4,000 Southern Cameroonians have been arbitrarily arrested and incarcerated, particularly young men.

    • Over 20,000 Southern Cameroonian civilians have been killed by the military.

    • Over 500 villages in Southern Cameroons have been burned down by the army.

    • Schools and universities have been closed for over four years.

    • Southern Cameroons has been heavily militarized since the protests began in October 2016 with the underpaid military engaging in criminal activities and terrorizing civilians in towns and villages.

    • There are more than 5,000 seriously wounded civilians from the conflict.

    • Numerous young girls and mothers have been raped and impregnated by the military.

    • Images of summary executions and mass burials are shared daily on social media.

It is difficult to determine the exact figures of the atrocities since the government refuses to give account and denies access to humanitarian and human rights organizations. There is evidence of security forces increasingly perpetrating extrajudicial killings and burning entire villages. On the 14th of February 2020, for example, at least 22 civilians, including 14 children, were massacred by government forces in Ngarbuh in the north-west region. As recently as the 10th of January 2021, 9 other civilians including women and children were massacred in Mautu, Muyuka in the south-west region of Cameroun. The security situation in the Anglophone region has continued to deteriorate while the atrocities increase, notably are the following incidents:

  • 1-Menka – 25 May 2017 over 30 killed
Outrage In NW Over Menka-Pinyin Massacre
  • 2-Bali –  30 May 2018
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/may/30/cameroon-killings-escalate-anglophone-crisis
  • 3-Ngarbuh- 14 February 2020
https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/2020/03/03/Cameroon-Ambazonia-Ngarbuh-massacre
  • 4- Kumba- 24 October 2020
https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/11/02/cameroon-gunmen-massacre-school-children
  • 5- Mautu Massacre – January 13,2021
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cameroon-security/un-calls-for-probe-into-cameroon-army-attack-on-civilians-idUSKBN29J2DG

The outbreak of the Coronavirus Pandemic has worsened an already deplorable situation for the affected people. Despite the government’s military aggression towards civilians, Cameroun was elected in October 2018 to the Human Rights Council for the 2019-2021 term. Following a visit to Cameroun on May 6th, 2019 the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the government to hold accountable members of the security forces who commit serious human rights abuses. On May 13th, 2019, the UN Security Council (UNSC) held its first Arria Formula meeting on the humanitarian and human rights situation in Cameroun. On February 17th, 2020, UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the killings in Ngarbuh and called upon the government to hold accountable those responsible. The UN’s Special Representatives on Children and Armed Conflict, Sexual Violence in Conflict, and Violence Against Children, as well as the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, issued a joint statement on February 21st on the deplorable human rights abuses committed against civilians in the Anglophone regions of Cameroun. On June 22nd, five Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, along with two former heads of state, other eminent persons, and the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, visited Cameroun and called upon all parties to the Anglophone crisis to declare a humanitarian ceasefire amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This call has fallen on deaf ears.

The following is recommended:

•Free all Southern Cameroons Political Prisoners being held by the Biya regime.

•Allow free unfettered access to Humanitarian organizations to deliver assistance to IDPs and for Human Rights organizations to conduct a “fact finding” mission.

•Include the ongoing Anglophone crisis on the agenda of the UNSC and propose a Peacekeeping Force for the region to ensure an end to the bloodshed and the atrocities of the BIR on the Anglophone population.

•Identify a Sponsor for the Negotiations between the Government and Southern Cameroonians for a sustainable Peace Agreement.

By The Global TAKUMBENG

Southern Cameroons Crisis: US Secretary of State discusses deteriorating situation with French Minister of Foreign Affairs

5, May 2021

Southern Cameroons Crisis: US Secretary of State discusses deteriorating situation with French Minister of Foreign Affairs 0

US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken and the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian have reportedly discussed on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in London the crisis in Southern Cameroons.

A press statement made public by the US State Department noted that “the two leaders pledged their support for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Cameroon and expressed concern about the lack of movement on reforms essential to stability”.

The two top diplomats also reiterated that peace and stability in Africa is a concern for both the United States and France with particular attention to the situation in Southern Cameroons.

It is important to recall that France has always brandished the principle of non-interference in the political affairs of Cameroon to justify its attitude.

President Emmanuel Macron claimed during a visit to Nigeria that he favours the establishment of decentralization and supported this option adopted by the Yaoundé regime in an attempt to resolve the Anglophone problem. But his administration has never pressured the ruling CPDM crime syndicate to accelerate the decentralization process that was agreed and documented in the 1996 Constitution.

Under President Macron’s watchful eyes, the Yaoundé government has been on a home-burning spree over the last four years in Southern Cameroons.

Many Southern Cameroonians have been killed by trigger-happy Yaoundé government soldiers and Paris considered as a major voice in Francophone Africa has never condemned the violent method the Francophone dominated government has been employing to combat Southern Cameroons Self Defense groups, most of who operate in the jungle.

For its part, the American Congress has given the US government the go-ahead to intervene in favour of resolving the conflict. The Foreign Affairs Committee of the United States Congress introduced on 8 September 2020, Resolution 684 on the crisis in the Cameroonian regions of the North-West and South-West and was adopted on 1 January 2021.

Resolution 684 condemned the abuses committed by state security forces and armed groups in the northwest and southwest regions of Cameroon, and affirmed that the United States continues to hold the Government of Cameroon accountable for safeguarding the security and constitutional rights of all its citizens, regardless of region, religion, or political opinion. In addition, it urges all parties to the conflict in Cameroon, the Government of Cameroon, U.S. foreign relations entities, and members of the international community to take specific steps to resolve the ongoing civil conflict in Cameroon.

The U.S. Congress was also critical of France’s action in the conflict.  “…France maintains considerable interests in Cameroon, including significant economic and security cooperation, but has not sufficiently used its influence to stem atrocities committed in English-speaking regions or to support stronger international action to seek a resolution to the conflict,” Resolution 684 said.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Donald Trump: Facebook upholds decision to suspend former US president from platform

5, May 2021

Donald Trump: Facebook upholds decision to suspend former US president from platform 0

Facebook Inc’s oversight board on Wednesday upheld the company’s suspension of former U.S.  President Donald Trump but gave the company six months to determine a “proportionate response” going forward, a verdict that may chart how social media will treat rule-breaking world leaders in the future.

The company inappropriately imposed an indeterminate suspension without clear standards, the board said, requiring a company review.

The Board said Facebook should determine a response that is consistent with rules applied to other users of the platform.

“Facebook left the indefinite suspension in place and referred the entire matter to the Oversight Board, apparently hoping the board would do what it had not done,” said Michael McConnell, co-chair of the Oversight Board, during a press conference after publishing its decision on Wednesday.

McConnell added, “Indefinite penalties of this sort, do not pass the international or American smell test for clarity, consistency, and transparency.”

Facebook indefinitely blocked Trump’s access to his Facebook and Instagram accounts over concerns of further violent unrest following the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of the former president.

“We will now consider the board’s decision and determine an action that is clear and proportionate,” Nick Clegg, Facebook vice president of global affairs and communication, published in a blog entry following the decision. “In the meantime, Mr. Trump’s accounts remain suspended.”

At the time of the suspension, Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in a post that “the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great.” The company later referred the case to its recently established board, which includes academics, lawyers and rights activists, to decide whether to uphold the ban or restore Trump.

“Both of those decisions are no-win decisions for Facebook,” said Kate Klonick, an assistant law professor at St. John’s University who embedded at Facebook to follow the board’s creation. “So, offloading those to a third party, the Oversight Board, is a win for them no matter what.”

The binding verdict marks a major decision for the board, which rules on a small slice of challenging content decisions and which Facebook created as an independent body as a response to criticism over how it handles problematic material. Facebook has also asked the board to provide recommendations on how it should handle political leaders’ accounts.

Tech platforms have grappled in recent years with how to police world leaders and politicians that violate their guidelines. Facebook has come under fire both from those who think it should abandon its hands-off approach to political speech and those who saw the Trump ban as a worrying act of censorship.

Trump was permanently banned from Twitter Inc, where he has more than 88 million followers.

Trump, who has been sending out short, emailed press releases, continued to promote election misinformation in one on Monday, saying “the Fraudulent Presidential Election of 2020 will be, from this day forth, known as THE BIG LIE!”

On Tuesday, he launched a new web page to share messages that readers can then re-post to their Facebook or Twitter accounts. A senior adviser has said Trump also has plans to launch his own social media platform.

Source: REUTERS

Football: Man City trounces PSG to reach Champions League final

5, May 2021

Football: Man City trounces PSG to reach Champions League final 0

By the time Riyad Mahrez completed the counterattack that sealed Manchester City’s spot in a first Champions League final, it looked so effortless overcoming a Paris Saint-Germain lineup that lost its cool and composure.

“Then they lost their nerve and started to kick us and it was good,” Mahrez said.

It was the Paris-born winger who netted twice before PSG had Angel Di Maria sent off. City won 2-0 to eliminate last season’s finalists 4-1 on aggregate on Tuesday.

“They had the red card,” Mahrez said, “and after, it was more comfortable for us.”

It’s been anything but comfortable for City getting a shot at lifting European football’s top prize for the first time despite 13 years of lavish investment. Even reaching this semifinal required a fight in court to overturn a ban from this season’s Champions League for breaching UEFA’s financial rules.

And it’s only two weeks since the Abu Dhabi-owned team exposed itself to fresh sanctions for joining a brief, ill-fated bid to split to help form a breakaway European Super League.

Now City could win the competition it tried to leave in what could be an all-English final on May 29 in Istanbul if Chelsea overcomes Real Madrid on Wednesday. Chelsea and Madrid played to a 1-1 draw in the first leg.

“Of course, we’ve invested money in the last decade since Sheikh Mansour took over the club, but it’s not just about this,” City manager Pep Guardiola said. “If you want to think it’s just about money, it’s OK. But there is a lot of incredible things behind the scenes.”

It’s not just City that’s endured frustration in its quest to win the biggest prize in European football. Guardiola, a Champions League winner as Barcelona coach in 2009 and 2011, has been waiting a decade to return to the final. He fell short three times with Bayern Munich and has taken until his fifth season at City to even reach the semifinals.

“To reach the Champions league final is so difficult,” Guardiola said. “It’s the toughest one, but we did it.”

City is now accustomed to success — sitting on the brink of its third Premier League title in four seasons after already collecting the League Cup last month. But its only continental title came with the now-defunct European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1970.

“This club needed the final, these players needed the final,” City defender Kyle Walker said. “For these players to not be in a Champions League final is a disappointment every year.”

PSG missed out on a second shot at lifting a first European Cup after losing last season’s final to Bayern Munich, and Mauricio Pochettino’s lineup is even struggling to defend the French title.

“Disappointed and very sad,” said Pochettino, who lost the 2019 Champions League final as Tottenham manager. “We played well but we didn’t have the luck that you need in football.”

And in the clash of European football’s Gulf-funded big-spenders, it was the Qatari visitors from Paris on the backfoot quickly in Manchester.

After scoring City’s winner in Paris last week, Mahrez took only 11 minutes to score in the second leg. The move began with a long ball by defender Oleksandr Zinchenko running onto a long ball from goalkeeper Ederson.

“It’s something we work on all the time,” Mahrez said, “and today it worked good.”

Zinchenko passed to Kevin De Bruyne, whose shot was blocked by Keylor Navas but Mahrez was alert to the rebound to put the ball through the goalkeeper’s legs on a field covered in the remnants of a spring hailstorm.

Mauro Icardi was proving ineffective in a PSG attack shorn of Kylian Mbappé, who wasn’t fit enough to start and never entrusted with being deployed from the bench.

There were headers over from Marquinhos and Neymar but PSG could find no way past a defense that had Rúben Dias proving such a robust barrier.

The PSG back-line was easier to breach, which happened again in the 63rd minute. There was a surging run down the left flank by Phil Foden before a combination with De Bruyne and a cross delivered for Mahrez to sweep into the net.

“We fought to the end,” PSG midfielder Marco Verratti said. “When you play against big teams, it’s impossible to attack for 90 minutes without suffering. We have to accept that.”

The frustrations of PSG were clear, even without any crowd to create any intimidating atmosphere. The visitors finished the game with 10 men just like in the first leg after Di Maria was sent off with 20 minutes to go for kicking at Fernandinho.

PSG turned on the referee, with midfielder Ander Herrera in a post-match interview accusing Bjorn Kuipers of directing an expletive at PSG teammate Leandro Paredes. It wasn’t heard by Pochettino.

“Maybe UEFA will investigate the situation,” he said. “But now I think that is not an excuse.”

(AP)

Kenya: Cops recover gold, millions in fake dollars from Cameroonians in Ruiru

5, May 2021

Kenya: Cops recover gold, millions in fake dollars from Cameroonians in Ruiru 0

Detectives based in Ruiru Monday recovered more Sh350 million in fake US dollars and Pounds after arresting three Cameroon nationals in an operation.

The officials said they also recovered a Glock pistol and 28 rounds of 9mm calibre from the foreigners.

The suspects, Paulin Francis Proper and Njikam Omar were found to be in the country illegally while the third suspect Job Kentong, holds a refugee identity card.

In an operation conducted within BTL area in Ruiru, Kiambu County, the detectives also recovered over 250 kilograms of fake gold nuggets and gold bars.

Upon further interrogation of Paulin Francis who is the main suspect, detectives raided his house in Muthaiga North, Nairobi where the firearm was recovered.

Detailed investigations revealed that the firearm belonged to a fourth suspect Loise Kaguongo, who was holding it illegally since her firearms license had expired.

Kaguongo operates over 10 mobile money outlets and detectives believe that she is the link between the suspects and the wider criminal syndicate that is defrauding unsuspecting members of the public.

Ruiru head of DCI Justus Ombati said the fake money was in denominations of 100 dollars, 50 pounds and one thousand Kenya shilling notes.

DCI detectives have recovered over Sh350 Million in fake US dollars and Pounds, a Glock pistol and 28 rounds of ammunition in Ruiru.

Police suspect that the illegal production of fake currencies could be happening elsewhere before the fake money is transported for storage in Ruiru before it’s distributed to unsuspecting persons.

This came a day after police in Nyali, Mombasa said they also recovered fake currencies from two foreign nationals.

Police said the two Jamil Salman Abdul, 43 and Tesfawork Ermias Dogso, 30, were also found to be operating within the country illegally.

The two had 198 forged Euro notes in 100 denominations, hidden between the driver’s and co-drivers seats.

This comes just two days after police officers arrested two men found in possession of fake currencies worth Sh750 million.

The men identified as Samuel Maina and Boniface Mungai were arrested from an apartment in the Kilimani area where they had kept the fake papers in Kenyan, US and Euro bills.

The money was kept in metal boxes.

Police say they recovered chemicals and fake badges bearing names of UN, Della Rue and National Treasury and several safes.

According to police, they also recovered bags, machines, two bottles and jerrycans containing an unknown liquid, assorted documents, customs reflector jackets, stickers and stamps for various offices with their seals.

Cases

Cases of handling of fake money have in the past months been on a decrease due to police operations.

Dozens of suspects have in the past months been arrested in connection with the incidents and charged in court.

In September 2019, Sh300 million fake money was found abandoned on the roadside along Ngong Road, Nairobi.

In May 2019, nine suspects were arrested in the Kilimani area and fake Sh190 million ($1.9M) recovered from them.

This came two days after another group of seven was nabbed with fake Sh300million in a house in the same area.

Police investigations show counterfeit banknotes remain the top form of fraud for the increasingly growing mobile money and bank agents in Kenya.

In June 2017 Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) acknowledged the possibility of a transnational fake currency ring in Nairobi and the region.

CBK and other East African Community (EAC) central banks held a joint meeting with the Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (EAPCCO) in September 2016 to develop strategies for enhancing the fight against counterfeit crime, one of the emerging transnational crimes.

The bank regulator had conducted a survey in 2017 that showed 97 per cent of fraud faced by the agents involved fake notes.

The February 27, 2019 discovery of a cache of fake foreign cash amounting to Sh32 billion in a residential house in Ruiru town was the biggest incident that followed a series of similar cases in the past few years.

In June 2018, the High Court in Nairobi condemned a Niger and Cameroonian nationals to 10 years in jail for possession of an estimated Sh110 billion in counterfeit currency.

The two were also in possession of tools for making fake banknotes. The trial took two-and-a-half years, following the foreigners’ arrest in Nairobi’s Diamond Park II in 2016.

On March 19, 2019, police seized fake Sh2 billion in a safety box at Barclays Bank, Queensway branch.

On October 1, 2018, police in Nairobi recovered fake money valued at Sh1 billion. Three suspects were nabbed. The money was found in a house along Brookside drive at Brookside gardens in Westlands.

Two days later police arrested a Nigerian national in South B and seized fake US dollar bills of USD251, 400 (about Sh25.3 million).

Two suspects were arrested at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in October 2016 with fake Sh267 million euro notes of 500 bills on their way to Dubai.

Culled from The Star.Co.Ke

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Scores of Cameroon gov’t soldiers Killed in explosions in Muyuka and Batibo

4, May 2021

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Scores of Cameroon gov’t soldiers Killed in explosions in Muyuka and Batibo 0

A double bombing in the Southern Cameroons towns of Muyuka and Batibo has reportedly killed scores of Cameroon government army soldiers.

Ambazonia Restoration Force is suspected to have carried out the blast in the two locations of the North West and the South West regions.

Cameroon Intelligence Report gathered from witnesses that the Muyuka attack took place early today Tuesday 4 of May 2021 while that of Batibo followed suit after the Central Command directing troops deployed to Bamenda had turned its attention to the happenings in Fako Division.

Although the Cameroon military is maintaining a kind of deliberate silence on the death toll, witnesses at the scenes in Muyuka and Batibo say they counted at least 37 bodies.

The Southern Cameroons Interim Government with its well organized Ambazonia Restoration Force whose mission is to establish an independent state of Southern Cameroon, have stepped up guerrilla attacks recently amid a heightened offensive by the Francophone dominated Cameroon government army under the 88-year-old President Biya.

Five Cameroon government soldiers were killed and several injured and dozens missing recently when Ambazonia Restoration Forces also known as the Marines of Bambalang in the North West Region attacked a military base inside French Cameroun territory.

The Amba fighters successfully dislodged Cameroon government troops from their barracks in Menfung in the Ngalim district after a gunfight.

By Fon Lawrence

Jose Mourinho: The Special One to take over as manager of Roma next season

4, May 2021

Jose Mourinho: The Special One to take over as manager of Roma next season 0

JOSE MOURINHO TOOK just 15 days to find a new job after he was appointed Roma’s new head coach for next season.

The 58-year-old was fired from Tottenham on 19 April but will take over at the Serie A club from Paulo Fonseca for the 2021/22 campaign.

It sees a return to Italy for Mourinho following a triumphant spell with Inter Milan over a decade ago where he won the treble, including the Champions League.

However, he is unlikely to be dining at the top table next season, with the club heading out of the Europa League, trailing Mourinho’s former club Manchester United 6-2 after the semi-final first leg, and unlikely to reach Europe through their league position.

Mourinho, who endured a disappointing campaign with Spurs before his sacking six days before the Carabao Cup final, has been drawn to the Italian capital by the ambition of the club’s owners.

“After meetings with the ownership and (general manager) Tiago Pinto, I immediately understood the full extent of their ambitions for AS Roma,” he said on the club’s official website.

“It is the same ambition and drive that has always motivated me and together we want to build a winning project over the upcoming years. The incredible passion of the Roma fans convinced me to accept the job and I cannot wait to start next season.

“In the meantime, I wish Paulo Fonseca all the best and I hope the media appreciate that I will only speak further in due course. Daje Roma!”

Pinto said the Giallorossi could not miss the opportunity to appoint a manager of Mourinho’s pedigree. He said: “When Jose became available, we immediately jumped at the chance to speak with one of the greatest managers of all time.

“We were blown away by Jose’s desire to win and his passion for the game: no matter how many trophies he has won, his primary focus is always on the next one. He possesses the knowledge, experience and leadership to compete at all levels.

“We know that in order to build a successful sporting project it takes time, patience and the right people in the right positions. We are supremely confident that Jose will be the perfect coach for our project, for both our immediate and long-term future.

“Together with the vision and ambition of Dan and Ryan Friedkin, we will build the foundations of a new AS Roma.”

The Giallorossi have picked up just one point from their last four league games and sit seventh in the table, nine points behind sixth-placed city rivals Lazio with four matches remaining, prompting Fonseca’s departure.

Roma president Dan Friedkin said in a statement on the club website: “On behalf of everyone at AS Roma, we would like to thank Paulo Fonseca for the hard work and leadership shown during these two years.

“Paulo led the team through several challenges, including the Covid pandemic and a change of ownership, and he did so with generosity, fairness and great character.

“We wish him all the best in his future endeavours and we are confident that he will represent fantastic added value wherever he goes.”

Source: The 42.ie

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