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26, October 2019

Middle East: Syria army reaches border area, deploys around Turkish zone ⁰

Syrian troops reached a key area near Turkey’s border Saturday after sending further reinforcements to the region, in what a war monitor said was its largest deployment there in years.

Syrian regime forces entered the provincial borders of the town of Ras al-Ain, state news agency SANA said.

The regime forces entered the area, which was taken by Turkish forces following a weeks-long offensive against Syria’s Kurds.

Troops also deployed along a road stretching some 30 kilometres (18 miles) south of the frontier, SANA added.

Turkey and its Syrian proxies on October 9 launched a cross-border attack against Kurdish-held areas, grabbing a 120-kilometre-long (70-mile) swathe of Syrian land along the frontier.

The incursion left hundreds dead and caused 300,000 people to flee their homes, in the latest humanitarian crisis in Syria’s brutal eight-year war.

This week, Turkey and Russia struck a deal in Sochi for more Kurdish forces to withdraw from the frontier on both sides of that Turkish-held area under the supervision of Russian and Syrian forces.

On Saturday, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said some 2,000 Syrian troops and hundreds of military vehicles were deploying around what Turkey calls its “safe zone”.

In the army’s “largest deployment” in the area in years, regime forces were being accompanied by Russia military police, the Observatory said.

Moscow has said 300 Russian military police had arrived in Syria to help ensure Kurdish forces withdraw to a line 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the border in keeping with Tuesday’s agreement.

Despite Saturday’s deployment, the Observatory said that Kurdish fighters and Ankara’s Syrian proxies traded artillery fire in the region.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Under the Sochi deal, Kurdish forces have until late Tuesday to withdraw from border areas at either end of the Turkish-held area, before joint Turkish-Russian start patrols in a 10-kilometre (six-mile) strip there.

Ankara eventually wants to set up a buffer zone on Syrian soil along the entire length of its 440-kilometre-long border, including to resettle some of the 3.6 million Syrian refugees currently in Turkey.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces has objected to some provisions of the Sochi agreement and it has so far maintained several border posts.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Saturday that Ankara would “clear terrorists” on its border if the Kurdish forces, which his country view as an offshoot of its own banned insurgency, did not withdraw by the deadline.

Source: AFP

26, October 2019

Italy: Protesters in Rome call for mayor to resign ⁰

Hundreds of people marched along the Tiber River on Saturday to demand Rome mayor Virginia Raggi resign over the state of the Italian capital.

“Raggi is turning the city into somewhere to run away from, instead of a city where people can live with dignity, work and build their future,” the Tutti per Rome (Everyone for Rome) organisation said ahead of the rally.

“The whole world pities us,” it said.

The march came a day after trade unions in Rome staged a general strike, with workers including bus drivers and garbage collectors taking a stand against the mayor and her ruling Five Star Movement administration.

The Eternal City’s streets are riddled with potholes, buses regularly catch fire and officials have warned the perennial garbage crisis constitutes a health risk, with rat control services working overtime as bins overflow near tourist sites, homes and schools.

Raggi became the capital’s first female mayor in 2016 by tapping into anger over corruption scandals — in particular the infiltration of crime families in the city’s waste management system.

In April this year she defended herself against accusations she had failed to turn the situation around, saying Rome was “under attack” from mobsters determined not to release their grip on a lucrative sector.

Source: AFP

26, October 2019

Zimbabweans stage rally calling end to ‘evil’ US, EU sanctions ⁰

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in Zimbabwe’s capital, calling on the United States and European Union to lift the “evil” sanctions they have imposed on the country’s president and several other top officials for almost two decades.

The demonstrators rallied at Harare’s Robert Mugabe Square on Friday before proceeding towards the National Sports Stadium, where President Emmerson Mnangagwa delivered an address.

They were chanting slogans like, “Down with sanctions” while carrying placards reading “Sanctions must go now” and “Anti-sanctions solidarity march.”

The president’s supporters, in white t-shirts, were also carrying placards describing the sanctions as “evil” and “weapon of mass destruction to mankind.”

The US imposed financial and travel restrictions against 85 individuals, including Mnangagwa and late former President Robert Mugabe and other members of the ruling ZANU-PF party back in 2001.

The sanctions have expanded to include 56 companies or organizations ever since.

Washington also imposed a ban on weapons exports to the African country.

In March, the US administration added to its list some military officials involved in last year’s crackdown on protesters.

The European bloc also targeted specific individuals both within the government and associated with it.

Western sanctions are ‘cancer’: Mnangagwa

During his speech on Friday, Mnangagwa described the measures as “cancer,” eating at the country’s economy.

“We know very well that the sanctions are neither smart nor targeted,” he told a large crowd.

“Their impact on our daily lives is immeasurable and the consequences are dire,” the president added.

PressTV-Zimbabweans stage mass demo against West sanctions

Zimbabweans are experiencing severe economic hardship, which is characterized by the highest inflation rate in the world.

According to figures released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), annual inflation in Zimbabwe was 300 percent in August.

Source: Presstv

26, October 2019

Biya regime rules out new dialogue to end Southern Cameroons crisis ⁰

The Biya regime has said it will not organize another dialogue to end separatist crisis in the English-speaking regions of the country.

“We do not foresee an inclusive dialogue than the historic one which has just taken place,” communication minister and government spokesman Emmanuel Rene Sadi told state media on Friday night.

His reaction came after the European Union (EU) and Cameroon opposition leader Maurice Kamto suggested that the government need to organize fresh “inclusive dialogue” with separatist leaders to end the conflict.

Sadi stressed that a national dialogue held by the country in early October was of “great success” and the government was looking forward to implementing recommendations made during the dialogue.

The EU and Cameroon opposition have criticized the dialogue for failing to include separatist leaders but Sadi said “they were invited and they did not come.”

“From what could be seen and heard here and there, it is clear that they (participants) came out satisfied and nobody to the best of our knowledge has so far dissociated himself from the conclusions of this dialogue,” Sadi said.

The national dialogue that ended on October 4 recommended that Cameroon’s English-speaking regions that have been ravaged by armed separatism since 2017 should be granted a special status with greater autonomy.

Hundreds have been killed and over 530,000 displaced internally by the conflict as separatists seek to create an independent nation in the Anglophone regions.

Source: Xinhuanet

26, October 2019

Douala: Over 200 rescued on sinking vessel ⁰

The Cameroon marine authority said Friday it has rescued over 200 passengers from their capsizing vessel in the Atlantic Ocean.

The rescued passengers mainly of African nationalities were rescued and brought at Cameroon air force base in Douala, Cameroon’s commercial capital.

Cameroon marine was still investigating what caused the vessel to capsize but passengers told reporters it likely ran out of fuel at sea in Cameroon territorial waters and was rescued after several hours by the marine and fishermen.

Witnesses said some passengers dove into the sea in an attempt to swim to safety and were rescued by local fishermen.

No deaths were reported but marine officials said they were still searching for “any missing passengers”.

Women and babies were among the rescued passengers on board the vessel that was heading to neighbouring Gabon according to Marine officials.

Source: Xinhuanet

26, October 2019

Indomitable Lions: Tagueu playing again after heart ailment ⁰

The 25-year-old returned to the field on Sunday after battling a heart condition that ruled him out of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations

Cameroon forward Joel Tagueu has described his return to football as a victory after recovering from a heart ailment.

The Cruzeiro attacker made his first appearance in over five months as a 77th-minute substitute in his side’s 2-1 victory over Corinthians in the Brazilian top-flight on Sunday.

Tagueu was dropped from Cameroon’s squad for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, a day before their campaign opener against Guinea-Bissau due to an “anomaly of an implantation of a coronary artery”.

His exclusion reduced the Indomitable Lions squad to 22 players as the country crashed out in the Round of 16 stage of the continental showpiece in Egypt.

Following his recovery from the battle against the heart problem, Tagueu described his return as a dream come true after various medical consultations.

“It’s been a very difficult moment for me. I’ve had to wait for a month to get a final decision on my situation,” Tagueu in his first public comments, per BBC Sport.

“I’ve had to consult several cardiologists across Brazil to get different opinions and I’ve been working with the best cardiologists in the country and I’m glad that everything went on well.

“Being able to play again is a victory and being able to suit up for my team is just like a dream come true.”

The 25-year-old spent last season on loan with Maritimo where he returned eight goals after 30 matches in Brazil’s Serie A.

Tagueu recalled his reaction to his omission from Cameroon’s 2019 Afcon squad and revealed how Nigeria’s Nwankwo Kanu and France’s Eric Abidal inspired his fight against the heart condition.

“I was shocked when I was dropped from the Cameroon squad for the Afcon in Egypt. But I was less anxious because the doctors were calm and said it was curable,” he added.

“But other players in the past like Kanu or Abidal have undergone surgery for other health issues and have continued playing so I’m not worried.”

Meanwhile, Cruzeiro team doctor Sergio Campolina said the club recalled the Nkongsamba-born forward because he is back in top shape after approval from two of Brazil’s most renowned cardiology institutions.

“The medical protocol with the Cameroon team is different and because recently they lost a player due to heart related complications, they decided to drop Joel,” Campolina said.

“We have assurances about Joel’s health so we’ve decided to recall him to the team and we’re happy with this decision.”

Source: Goal.com

26, October 2019

Another Bible translator murdered in his home as Southern Cameroons war rages on ⁰

A second Bible translator has been killed by suspected Fulani extremists in the civil war-ridden Anglophone region in southern Cameroon this week, a ministry source has confirmed. Bible translator Benjamin Tem was murdered in his home in the Wum region Sunday night, reports Efi Tembon, a Cameroonian activist who heads a ministry called Oasis Network for Community Transformation.

According to Tembon, who met the victim while working on a translation project in 2013, Tem served as a Scripture engagement facilitator for the Aghem Bible Translation Project, which completed a New Testament translation in the Aghem language in 2016.

Tem, 48, was also a promoter of Bible listening groups in the Wum area. He was buried on Monday and leaves behind five children.

No one has claimed responsibility Tem’s murder. However, Tembon told The Christian Post that locals have blamed Fulani radicals, saying they have been encouraged by government actors to carry out attacks against separatist-supporting farming communities in southern Cameroon.

Fulani herders in Africa have long butted heads with farmers over land rights to graze cattle.

“He was attacked last night by people suspected to be pro-government Fulani herdsmen,” Tembon told friends on Facebook. “They butchered him and cut his throat.”

Tem’s death comes two months after fellow translator Angus Fung, who also served in the Aghem Bible Translation Project in Wum, was killed in a similar fashion in his home.

According to Tembon, Fulani attackers have killed at least two dozen people and burned several houses in the Wum area alone.

“I think our authorities have actually been working with the Fulanis,” said Tembon, who regularly travels to world capitals to urge the international community to push for an end to the bloodshed and human rights abuses in Cameroon.

“There is a war of independence going on in the area and so the local population supports independence for southern Cameroon. And these attacks toward the local population is not just by Fulanis, the military is also attacking and burning homes. So the military is working hand-in-hand with the Fulanis. They have actually armed some Fulanis to help them fight the local population.”

Tembon accused the government of trying to “inject a religious aspect to the conflict.”

“[T]hey know that the Fulanis are Muslim and the local population tends to be Christians,” he said. “And so trying to create a conflict will create chaos in the area.”

According to the Joshua Project, the Aghem community in Wum is 75 percent Christian.

Since Tem’s death, residents have fled the area, much like other local populations that have come under attack. Tembon assured that “attacks are taking place far and wide” in Southern Cameroon.

“All the areas where attacks have been carried out have been deserted,” Tembon stressed. “Now the Fulanis will graze and try to take advantage of the chaos and take over the land.”

According to the United Nations, at least 700,000 people have been internally displaced in Cameroon amid the violence over the past two years.

Many in the Aghem area have either fled their villages into other bigger towns or fled out of Cameroon into Nigeria.

“In Wum, the military has killed more than the Fulanis,” Tembon said. “They have killed hundreds of people.”

In August, Fung, a 60-year-old Bible translator, was hacked to death by suspected Fulani radicals in Wum, where he and his wife were attacked in their home at night. While Fung was killed, his wife, Eveline, had her hand chopped off.

According to Tembon, Mrs. Fung left the hospital earlier this month.

“We are trying to get her to another hospital for just a checkup,” he said. “We also got some contributions, which I’m trying to send to her so she can move. We’re going to move her to a safe location after she goes for a checkup in this other hospital.”

In the spring, Tembon reported that Pastor Elijah Koh, a graduate of Cameroon Baptist Theological Seminary in Ndu, was killed during a military invasion in the Mfumte area.

The Anglophone conflict, also known as the Ambazonia War, began in 2016 when separatists demanded autonomy because they felt underrepresented by the majority-French-speaking central government. In 2017, Anglophone territories in the Northwest and Southwest declared their independence. Since then, fighting has spread across the Anglophone regions.

Church leaders in Cameroon have called for the release of Catholic humanitarian leader Paul Njokikang who was arrested on Sunday and reportedly sent to a torture camp near Bamenda.

Njokikang addressed the United Nations Security Council in April, where he detailed the horrifying humanitarian conditions amid Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis and human rights abuses carried out by the government and separatist fighters.

“Father Paul represents a moderate Anglophone voice in an increasingly polarized conflict. The international community must demand his unconditional release,” United Kingdom Parliament member David Alton said in a statement, according to Crux.

“There can be no constructive dialogue while the Biya regime undermines the work of impartial charities. The U.K. should use its influence at the U.N. and in the Commonwealth to press the Cameroon authorities to hold genuine and inclusive negotiations.”

Late last month, Muslim separatist activist Abdul Karim was arrested after he met with the Swiss Embassy. He has been charged with terrorism, financing terrorism, and secession.

However, Karim’s lawyers have filed a habeas corpus request to the Yaoundé High Court on grounds his arrest was unlawful, according to Human Rights Watch.

As for Tembon, he has not returned to his native Cameroon since he testified before U.S. Congress in 2018 about the human rights abuses being committed by the Biya government.

Source: Christian Post

26, October 2019

French FM expresses support for peace efforts in Southern Cameroons ⁰

French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian on Wednesday expressed support for ongoing peace efforts in Cameroon’s troubled English-speaking regions of Northwest and Southwest.

“This visit is coming at a time when peace and reconciliation are gaining ground in Cameroon. We also wish to accompany Cameroon in its efforts that have been going on for some time now following the major national dialogue, so that Cameroon can regain its serenity,” he said after meeting with Cameroon’s President Paul Biya here.

Le Drian is on a two-day work visit to Cameroon during which he is expected to strengthen diplomatic ties between the two countries.

“I came to express the readiness of France to add fresh impetus to strengthen the historical ties between Cameroon and France, to find new dynamics to the ties,” the French minister said.

Cameroon is facing a prolonged separatist conflict in its English-speaking regions, where separatists want to create an independent nation.

The conflict that started in 2017 has displaced over 530,000 people in the country, according to the United Nations.

The national dialogue convened by Biya recommended that greater autonomy should be given to the Anglophone regions.

Source: Xinhuanet

25, October 2019

Portugal’s first black women lawmakers take office ⁰

Members of Portugal’s new parliament took up office on Friday, among them the country’s first black women lawmakers who campaigned on promises to fight racism and inequality.

The three women, who all trace their origins to Guinea-Bissau, an impoverished former Portuguese colony in west Africa, won office in the October 6 general election when Prime Minister Antonio Costa’s Socialists were re-elected but without an absolute majority.

A total of 89 women were elected — an unprecedented number in the 230-seat parliament — following a new gender parity law requiring that 40 percent of elected lawmakers are female.

Portugal has a significant minority population from its former African colonies in Angola, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, Guinea Bissau, and Cape Verde as well as Brazil.

Campaigners complain of discrimination in areas ranging from education to housing, employment to the justice system and of a shortage of black faces in business, the media and politics, although progress has been made in recent years.

After taking office in 2015, Costa, who is of Indian descent, nominated Portugal’s first black cabinet minister, appointing Francisca Van Dunem, who was born in Angola, as justice minister.

She is keeping the post in Costa’s new cabinet which will be sworn in on Saturday.

The best known of the newcomers is Joacine Katar Moreira, 37, an anti-racism activist who moved to Portugal from Guinea-Bissau when she was just eight and headed a list of upstart eco-socialist party LIVRE, or “FREE”, winning the new formation’s first and only seat in parliament.

The others are Romualda Fernandes, a 65-year-old lawyer and migration expert who won a seat representing the Socialists and Beatriz Gomes Dias, 48, the president of anti-racism association Djass, who ran with the far-left Left Bloc party.

Djass has proposed a memorial honouring the millions of African slaves which Portuguese ships transported to the Americas. The project has become a lightning rod for debate about the country’s colonial past.

Up until now the only black person to serve as a member of parliament since Portugal returned to democracy in 1974 was a man — Helder Amaral who represented the conservative CDS party between 2002 and 2019.

Moreira, who became a Portuguese national in 2003, vowed during her victory speech to become the voice of “anti-racism” and “leftwing radical feminism” in parliament.

Thousands of people have signed an online petition demanding that she not be allowed to take up her seat because at her victory celebration, several people were seen waving flags from Guinea-Bissau instead of Portugal.

“This has always been a war for people like me,” Moreira tweeted in response to the petition.

Source: AFP

25, October 2019

CPDM Crime Syndicate: Biya calls for freeze on Douala port contract over Bollore court case ⁰

Cameroon’s president has ordered its main Douala port to suspend contract talks with Swiss firm Terminal Investment Limited (TIL) until the conclusion of a court case brought by France’s Bollore, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

TIL was chosen to renovate and manage the Atlantic port in September after Bollore, which had managed the hub since 2015, was eliminated earlier in the bidding process as it sought to renew its contract. It is contesting the decision in the Cameroonian courts.

The Oct. 23 letter from the secretary-general of the presidency asks the director-general of Douala port “to suspend works to finalize the terms of the (TIL) contract … until the final conclusion of the case.”

A photo of the letter, which is marked “Confidential Very Urgent,” has been shared widely on social media. A source at the port confirmed its authenticity. Cameroon’s government spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment.

The request coincides with an official three-day visit by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian to Cameroon to support the resolution of its long-running conflict with Anglophone separatists.

France, the former colonial power, has had a frosty relationship with Cameroon over the last year over concerns about how President Paul Biya has handled the crisis, which has cost close to 2,000 lives over the past two years.

However, French diplomats said recent discussions about granting special status to Anglophone regions and the release of hundreds of political prisoners paved the way for Le Drian’s visit.

French officials had said the trip would also focus on development of Cameroon’s Kribi port, which is operated by Bollore, French firm CMA CGM and China Harbour Engineering.

Douala, located on the Atlantic coast, is the hub for Cameroon’s exports of cocoa, oil and timber.

In September, the port said TIL had been provisionally designated the winning bidder of the contract and would take control of the port on Jan. 1, 2020. TIL did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Source: Reuters