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The Holy Father celebrates mass in hospital

17, October 2026

The Holy Father celebrates mass in hospital 0

Pope Leo XIV celebrated mass on Friday at the hospital where he is recovering from a lung cancer operation, as seen in the first images of him released by the Vatican since the procedure.

The images showed the 71-year-old Chicago-born pope in front of a makeshift altar in a room on the 10th floor of the Rome hospital, dressed in a green vestment.

He appeared relaxed and in good form in the two photos released, standing with his private secretary, Peruvian priest Edgard Rimaycuna, at his side.

“He celebrated with the medical and nursing staff of Gemelli, some people who were present there, who were clearly off duty at that moment,” the Vatican press office said, adding that members of the police also joined.

“He thanked all the staff, doctors, nurses, orderlies, for their service and their closeness to people, for their care of people’s fragility, and in particular, evidently, for the care, attention, and treatment given to him in these days,” the press office said.

The pope is expected to lead the traditional Angelus prayer on Sunday, but a Vatican source would not say whether it would be from the hospital, or from the Vatican.

The Angelus prayer is traditionally recited by the pope every Sunday from the window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking St Peter’s Square, to crowds of faithful gathered below.

‘Good recovery’

Leo was admitted Tuesday to Rome’s Gemelli hospital, north of the Vatican, where he underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumour in his right lung.

Doctors have said that his recovery is progressing normally, but ongoing tests will determine the future course of his treatment.

On Thursday, his doctors said that a chest X-ray indicated “good recovery of the operated lung”.

On Friday, they said tests had shown “a steady improvement in his general condition”.

They said he was now carrying out “his normal daily activities completely independently”.

Test results to determine whether the cancer has spread are still pending.

“Morale is good, that’s obvious. And the recovery as well because the pope has been able to celebrate mass,” the Vatican source said.

The press office has not given an update to the possible timing of the pope’s discharge from hospital, repeating a doctor’s original statement that his recovery would take about a week.

Were Leo to recite the Angelus from the window of the Gemelli hospital, it would not be a first for a pope.

In February 6, 2005, 84-year-old John Paul II appeared at the hospital window while recovering from flu-related respiratory issues, as an aide beside him read out the Angelus prayer.

Pope Francis on July 11, 2021, then 84, also gave the prayer from the hospital window after surgery on his colon, telling the assembled crowd: “I am glad to be able to keep the Sunday Angelus appointment, even here.”

Also on Friday, the Vatican released a selection of letters and drawings sent by children at the hospital, including a picture of a tree “For Pope Leo”, complete with grass, sun and clouds, and a letter from an 18-year-old girl who wrote to Leo: “Better days will come for the both of us.”

A seven-year-old boy named Angelo wrote that he, too, had been on the 10th floor of the Gemelli hospital for the past 36 days for a head operation.

“My mother and I pray for you every night,” he wrote. “I hope you get well soon.”

Source:  AFP

Etoudi dismisses death rumours, says 93-year-old Biya, who has ruled since 1982, is working

17, October 2026

Etoudi dismisses death rumours, says 93-year-old Biya, who has ruled since 1982, is working 0

President Paul Biya has been declared alive and working by a senior presidential aide following renewed social media rumours claiming he had died, with the presidency dismissing the reports on Friday, October 16, 2026.

Samuel Mvondo Ayolo, director of the Civil Cabinet at the Cameroonian presidency, rejected the claim in comments to Jeune Afrique, asking, “Can you hide the death of a head of state?” He described the report as fake and said Biya was in good health and continuing to work, according to The Africa Report.

The rumour began on Thursday, October 15, when an account named “Human Rights Forum” posted on X that Biya had died. The account also claimed that political figures were discussing his replacement before an official announcement. The post attracted hundreds of thousands of views, further fuelling speculation about the president’s condition.

Mvondo Ayolo said a presidential decree published on October 15 and signed by Biya showed that the president was still carrying out official duties. He condemned the spread of false information about the president’s health and said there was no reason for concern.

Biya, 93, returned to Cameroon on August 20 after spending more than 10 weeks abroad in Geneva, Switzerland.

He left the country on June 7 for what his office described as a brief private stay in Europe. His prolonged absence raised questions about his health and ability to govern, despite repeated assurances from government officials.

Biya’s extended absence also prompted criticism from opposition figures, who questioned how state affairs were being managed while he was abroad. Opposition lawmaker Jean Michel Nintcheu urged the Constitutional Court to declare the presidency vacant, while other political figures called for greater clarity about the president’s condition.

Biya has ruled Cameroon since 1982 and began his eighth term in November 2025 following a disputed presidential election. He also served as the Prime Minister of Cameroon from June 30, 1975, to November 6, 1982

In April 2026, lawmakers approved the reintroduction of the vice-president position, amid continuing questions about succession and the transfer of power should the president become unable to govern.

The latest denial contradicts the claims circulating on social media. However, the rumours have renewed public attention on Biya’s health, his prolonged absences from Cameroon and the country’s constitutional arrangements for presidential succession.

Source: Sahara Reporters

Iran says forces fully prepared on land, sea and air

16, October 2026

Iran says forces fully prepared on land, sea and air 0

The Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Major General Mostafa Izadi, has stated that Iran’s armed forces stand fully prepared to confront any enemy on land, at sea, and in the air, stressing that the United States has suffered failure in Iraq just as it did in Afghanistan.

General Izadi on Thursday recalled the experience of the Sacred Defense, the eight-year war imposed on the Islamic Republic beginning in 1980, saying that should the enemy attack the country, Iranian forces would stand firm until the end, drive the aggressors back, and never allow them to seize even a single inch of Iranian soil.

“Today, too, we stand against the aggression of the criminal United States and the Zionist regime; and, just as in the Sacred Defense, through the self-sacrifice and resistance of the warriors of Islam, we will not permit any form of aggression against our beloved homeland,” he stated.

The senior commander affirmed that, standing alongside the Resistance Front, Iran remains committed until the very end to defending divine values, justice, and truth, and to supporting the oppressed across the region and the world.

He noted that the enemy finds itself in a precarious position and repeatedly advances new claims in an effort to mask this reality.

Highlighting Iran’s comprehensive defensive readiness, General Izadi said a formidable defensive front has been established across all domains — land, sea, air, air defense, and security — throughout the country.

“Just as the enemy suffered defeat in past conflicts, any hostile move — no matter how slight — will once again result in their failure,” he emphasized.

Referring to Iraq’s history of resistance against foreign occupation, he observed that the people of Iraq are the same people who, under the leadership of great religious scholars, once drove the British out of their country.

Major General Izadi, a veteran of the Sacred Defense who was appointed IRGC deputy commander-in-chief by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei in August 2026, has in recent statements also underscored the combat readiness of Iranian forces in southern regions, including firm control over the Strait of Hormuz.

His latest remarks come amid the formal conclusion of the long US military presence in Iraq on September 30, an outcome independent observers have described as a strategic defeat for Washington, comparable to its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, and accelerated by Iranian resistance and victories against recent US-Israeli aggressions.

He added that just as the Americans fled Afghanistan in haste, they have faced a similar situation in Iraq, expressing hope that the Iraqi people, through unity and cohesion, will safeguard their country and their values.

Trump administration aims to strip Rep. Ilhan Omar of US citizenship

15, October 2026

Trump administration aims to strip Rep. Ilhan Omar of US citizenship 0

The Trump administration is investigating Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar reportedly in an effort to build a case for stripping her of US citizenship and eventually deporting her. 

The Somali-born Minnesota Democratic congresswoman is a frequent target of criticism from US President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans.

The Department of Homeland Security is now targeting her for political reasons as part of the Trump administration’s clampdown on the opposition, according to US officials and other people familiar with the probe, cited by the Wall Street Journal.

On Monday, Homeland Security agents raided her Washington, DC home, seizing her cellphone, notebooks, personal computers and passport.

The probe is investigating the process by which the 44-year-old Omar obtained her US citizenship.

Omar’s family, who had spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya, were granted asylum status in the United States and arrived in New York City in 1995

However, it took five years before she was accepted as a US citizen at the age of 17.

The probe aims to investigate the congresswoman’s immigration history to revoke her citizenship and deport her, according to the WSJ report.

The raid takes place as approximately three weeks remains to midterm elections in which she is seeking re-election.

A dozen people, including some of Omar’s relatives, have received subpoenas for testimony before a federal grand jury in Minnesota, a person familiar with the proceedings told the WSJ.

Omar’s husband, Tim Mynett, is also under investigation as part of the probe.

In the meantime, Omar remained defiant, slamming the Trump administration for false accusations.

She described the move as an effort by the Trump administration to intimidate political opponents through smear campaign, emphasizing that she will not be silenced.

“Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement,” she wrote on the US social media platform X, confirming her safety while adding, “I will not be silenced.”

Gendarmerie officer reports death threats in Martinez Zogo Murder Trial

14, October 2026

Gendarmerie officer reports death threats in Martinez Zogo Murder Trial 0

Lieutenant Colonel Ayissi Nanga, a Cameroonian gendarmerie officer, told the Yaoundé Military Court on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, that he had received death threats since being called to testify in the trial over the murder of journalist Martinez Zogo. The officer requested protection while confirming that he remained willing to testify. The presiding judge acknowledged his statements and instructed the government prosecutor to take steps to ensure his safety.

It was shortly after 8 p.m. when Ayissi Nanga appeared before the judges. He explained that the information he possessed exposed him to risks and that he had decided to speak despite the alleged threats. Describing the dilemma he faced, he referred to a choice between the court’s anger and his own life. However, he did not identify the source of the threats or name anyone he suspected of making them. Ayissi Nanga is scheduled to testify after Lieutenant Colonel Dieudonné Bialo, whose cross-examination is still underway before the military court. Currently the deputy commander of the South Gendarmerie Legion, Ayissi Nanga headed the Mfoundi Gendarmerie Group at the time of the events in January 2023. He was involved in the initial investigation into the journalist’s murder before joining the joint police-gendarmerie commission assigned to the case.

His role on that commission has come up repeatedly during Dieudonné Bialo’s testimony. Bialo explained that he replaced Ayissi Nanga after the latter was admitted to the War College in Yaoundé. However, questioning has also focused on Ayissi Nanga’s continued participation in some of the commission’s work despite that reported replacement. The precise circumstances of the change in personnel are among the issues raised by the defense.

Ayissi Nanga’s testimony may therefore help clarify how the initial investigation was organized and conducted. However, his appearance on October 13 provided no indication of what information he intends to share with the judges or whether the threats he says he has received are connected to his involvement in the investigation. The officer spoke while the court was considering whether to adjourn the hearing. The cross-examination of Dieudonné Bialo by defendant Léopold Maxime Eko Eko, former director general of the General Directorate for External Research (DGRE), had not yet concluded. The government prosecutor wanted proceedings to continue so that the next witness could subsequently be heard. At this stage, no details have been provided in court about the security measures prosecutors will take to protect Ayissi Nanga before his testimony.

Source: Sbbc

Ambazonia People’s Liberation Authority explains motives for the new transition

14, October 2026

Ambazonia People’s Liberation Authority explains motives for the new transition 0

Fellow Ambazonians,

Dear compatriots at home and across the world,

Almost ten years have passed since the present conflict entered its most difficult and costly phase. During these years, our people have demonstrated extraordinary resilience. We have endured loss, displacement, imprisonment, destruction of communities and enormous human suffering. We have also demonstrated something that can no longer be questioned: the sovereign call of our people has survived.

But endurance alone cannot be our destination.

This policy sets out the direction of the Ambazonia People’s Liberation Authority and a Three-Year Termination Roadmap to concentrate our collective capacities on overcoming the stalemate, protecting our communities, sustaining our resilience, advancing the Southern Cameroons question internationally, and pursuing self-determination through a just negotiated process whose outcome is sanctioned by the people.

I. THE PURPOSE OF THE TRANSITION

On 22 September 2026, the Interim Government announced its reconstitution and transition into the AMBAZONIA PEOPLE’S LIBERATION AUTHORITY within the broader historical and constitutional evolution of the Ambazonian national movement. The transition is founded upon the approved Constitutional Transitional Instrument and the APLA Constitutional Institutional Framework.

The transition from the Interim Government into APLA is anchored on three fundamental movers:

TRANSITION FROM POWER TO OPERABILITY | TRANSITION FROM ENTITLEMENT TO COLLECTIVE WORK | TRANSITION FROM COMPLEXITY TO DELIVERY

This shift directs the focus of Ambazonians on one primary goal: the termination of our liberation struggle. It marks a turning point and begins a new phase in our liberation struggle.

APLA has not been conceived as a center from which our people are to be ruled, commanded or controlled. It is an instrument through which committed Ambazonians can bring their capacities together, identify where action is missing, close gaps that weaken our collective effort and move necessary work from intention to completion.

Our greatest national resource remains our people: their knowledge, competence, experience, relationships, resources and willingness to serve. These human resources become national power when they are identified, connected, coordinated and directed toward clear objectives.

This forms the basis of APLA’s Three-Year Termination ambition.

By termination, we mean bringing the struggle to a just and definitive end through the realization of self-determination in a negotiated process sanctioned by the people of Ambazonia. Such a process must preserve our political rights, protect our population, address the consequences of war, and provide credible safeguards.

Three years represents a period of concentrated national action. We will bring together our legal, diplomatic, humanitarian, political, organizational, and financial capacities to sustain our resilience, strengthen community protection, advance the claim to self-determination, and create the conditions for a just negotiated settlement sanctioned by our people.

II. BREAKING THE STALEMATE — MOVING THE STRUGGLE TOWARD TERMINATION

Fellow comrades, Southern Cameroons still does not exercise its sovereignty. Our territory remains under the military and administrative authority of Cameroun. Our people still have no independent international access through which to exercise their political personality and defend their sovereign interests. The underlying question of our decolonization at the United Nations remains unresolved, and the war born from this unresolved condition continues unabated.

We are therefore confronted with a stalemate. And that stalemate is devastating our people.

Our recent memory bears the wounds of the abduction and imprisonment of our leaders; the Ngarbuh massacre and the killing of schoolchildren in Kumba in 2020; the rape of our women and girls; the burning alive of Mammi Api; and the raids on Belo, Kwakwa, Zhoa, and other communities across Ambazonia. These events remain with the families who suffered them and the communities that carry their memory. They place a responsibility upon us to secure protection, pursue justice, and bring this conflict to a just and definitive end.

THE TIME IS RIPE TO BREAK THE STALEMATE AND MOVE THE STRUGGLE. AMBAZONIA IS READY TO END THIS WAR, BUT THE QUESTION THAT CAUSED THE WAR MUST BE RESOLVED.

III. TAKING OUR STRUGGLE TO THE WORLD

APLA is taking the struggle to the world. And that begins at the United Nations. We will demand that the United Nations confront the question at the foundation of this conflict.

WHAT BECAME OF THE SOVEREIGN RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN CAMEROONS WHEN UNITED NATIONS TRUSTEESHIP ENDED, AND HOW WILL THAT RIGHT NOW BE BROUGHT TO COMPLETION?

Article 76(b) of the United Nations Charter placed that process within an international obligation directed toward self-government or independence in accordance with the particular circumstances of the territory and the freely expressed wishes of its people. Unfortunately, that sovereign obligation was misdirected and remains unfulfilled.

APLA’s mission is to take the Southern Cameroons question back to its international foundations.

We will build relationships with governments prepared to engage seriously with the Southern Cameroons question and support a just process of self-determination, grounded in the expressed will of the people and accompanied by credible protections.

We will take our case to the British Government, to Parliament, to British institutions and to the British public, and if necessary to the British courts. We will place before them the record of Southern Cameroons, the responsibilities Britain assumed under trusteeship, the circumstances in which it withdrew and the condition in which the people it administered find themselves more than sixty years later.

Britain cannot separate itself from the consequences of a process over which it carried direct responsibility. If Britain continues to evade the Southern Cameroons question, APLA will present its case to BRICS member states, seeking practical political and economic engagement on the exercise of sovereignty and a just settlement.

APLA will also engage African governments, the African Union, and relevant continental human-rights and peace-and-security institutions.

THIS IS AN AFRICAN CONFLICT, AND AFRICA MUST BECOME PART OF ITS RESOLUTION

We will consolidate the historical and documentary record accumulated across generations of our struggle and seek a pathway toward authoritative international determination, including the possibility of taking the Southern Cameroons question before the International Court of Justice through competent international processes and the support of sovereign states.

IV. PROTECTING OUR PEOPLE — BUILDING A SAFE ROAD OUT OF WAR

Dear Ambazonians, our determination to end this war does not mean surrendering the right to lawful self-defense or withdrawing support from the protection of our communities against attacks on lives, homes, and possessions. That responsibility calls for protective measures consistent with applicable international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians and civilian property.

APLA’s Termination Roadmap and the cessation of armed confrontation must rest on credible, reciprocal, and verifiable safeguards. Our commitment to a just settlement goes together with our continuing responsibilities toward vulnerable communities.

A cessation of hostilities must be reciprocal and internationally guaranteed. Military disengagement must be simultaneous, verifiable and independently monitored. Civilians must be protected against attack, arbitrary arrest, disappearance, reprisal and political persecution. Humanitarian organizations must have safe and unhindered access to affected communities. Displaced people and refugees must be protected against forced return, and those who return must be able to do so voluntarily and safely.

APLA expresses its solidarity with Ambazonia Prisoners of War (APOWs) and Ambazonia Prisoners of Conscience (APOCs), recognizing the suffering of confinement, separation from their families, and the uncertainty endured by their loved ones. Their resilience, dedication, and sacrifice hold an honored place in our national struggle. Securing their freedom remains a central national priority. APLA will pursue their release, strengthen legal protection, and coordinate support for them and their families through its institutions, communities, and competent partners.

Throughout any future process, the rights and political claims of the people of Southern Cameroons must remain fully preserved. Participation in a ceasefire, negotiation, humanitarian arrangement, or transitional process must not be interpreted as surrendering the claim to self-determination or prejudging a settlement without the sanction of the people.

While APLA pursues the cessation of the armed confrontation through an international settlement, APLA recognizes the urgent need to act toward the extreme humanitarian situation on the ground.

APLA hereby announces the creation of SOUTHERN CAMEROONS INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN FUND in response to the grave humanitarian and social crisis produced by the ongoing war in Ambazonia. This is a major intervention dedicated exclusively to victims of the war. The humanitarian emergency in Southern Cameroons has attracted concern over serious funding gaps and inadequate international attention. APLA will seek cooperation with established humanitarian organizations, including international partners, to mobilize support for the Fund, strengthen delivery to affected people, and apply transparent, independently reviewable safeguards to its administration.

V. WOMEN — LEADERSHIP, PROTECTION AND NATIONAL TRANSFORMATION

The APLA Policy places women and youth at the centre of the equation. Ambazonian women have sustained families and communities, organized humanitarian assistance, carried our cause into public life, and exercised leadership throughout this struggle. Their contributions, including women’s participation in the massive September 22 mobilizations, must be recognized as part of our national history.

APLA will make women’s leadership an independent policy commitment. We will promote meaningful participation in decision-making, diplomacy, community mobilization, peacebuilding and national reconstruction. Protection for women and girls affected by violence and displacement, alongside opportunities for education, enterprise and economic independence, will be central to this work.

VI. YOUTH — EDUCATION, INNOVATION AND GRASSROOTS MOBILIZATION

Our young people have carried a heavy burden through disrupted education, displacement and lost opportunities. They are also a vital force for renewal. APLA will open pathways for youth leadership, peaceful grassroots mobilization, civic service, and constructive participation in our community structures.

Education, curriculum development, vocational skills, entrepreneurship, science and digital innovation will be priorities. We will bring educators, professionals and young people together to develop practical opportunities now and the capacities needed for national reconstruction. Our youth must be equipped not only to inherit a future, but to help shape it.

VII. THE THREE-YEAR TERMINATION ROADMAP

Fellow compatriots, APLA has set a three-year horizon for concentrated collective action toward self-determination and a just termination of the conflict. Its success will be measured by the capacities we organize, the responsibilities we discharge, and the progress we make.

YEAR ONE — ESTABLISH AND INTERNATIONALIZE THE CASE

APLA will consolidate the legal and historical case and the documentary record. We will coordinate expertise and community structures, strengthen accountable resource mobilization, and develop the means to sustain humanitarian assistance and civilian protection. We will pursue engagement with the United Nations, Britain, African institutions, and potential international partners as opportunities arise.

YEAR TWO — SUSTAIN NATIONAL CAPACITY AND ADVANCE INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENT

APLA will press for the Southern Cameroons question to be formally taken up within competent international institutions and for supporting states to move toward concrete initiatives.

YEAR THREE — PURSUE JUST TERMINATION AND SELF-DETERMINATION

Our legal work, diplomacy, national organization, resource mobilization, humanitarian commitments, and proposals for safeguards must converge toward self-determination through a just negotiated process sanctioned by our people.

Our objective is to create the conditions for a protected and just political settlement that gives effect to the freely expressed will of our people. The roadmap concentrates on the responsibilities and capacities that APLA and Ambazonians can organize toward that objective.

APLA will pursue a referendum through which the people of Southern Cameroons Ambazonia freely determine their political future. APLA will establish the National Referendum Commission for Southern Cameroons Ambazonia Self-Determination to prepare the legal, institutional, and practical framework for that process. Its work will address public information, inclusive participation at home and across the diaspora, participation by displaced people and refugees, independent observation, verification, and safeguards for a credible expression of the people’s will. THE REFERENDUM SHALL BE ORGANIZED BY THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN CAMEROONS AND FOR THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN CAMEROONS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THE UNITED NATIONS.

APLA will also establish the Constitution Drafting Commission of Ambazonia to prepare, through public consultation and legal expertise, a constitutional proposal protecting fundamental rights, organizing accountable government, and safeguarding the nation’s resources for present and future generations. Its consideration and adoption will rest with the people.

VIII. MOBILIZING THE NATION FOR TERMINATION

The time has come to mobilize the nation for termination. No three-year roadmap can be delivered by the APLA Secretariat or by international intervention alone. Its strength will come first from the collective capacity of Ambazonians to organize our resources, skills, institutions, and responsibilities.

THE WORK AHEAD BELONGS TO THE NATION

We need our lawyers and legal scholars. We need historians, researchers and archivists. We need diplomats and people with access to governments and international institutions. We need humanitarian professionals, economists, educators, health professionals, technologists, communicators and experts in peacebuilding and conflict resolution.

Organizations and existing initiatives also have an important place in this effort. APLA does not need to absorb every organization or replace useful work already being done. Where Ambazonians are advancing legal action, diplomacy, humanitarian assistance, documentation, advocacy or community organization, we should find the points at which our efforts can reinforce one another.

APLA’s operational responsibilities are carried through six agencies: the Diplomacy Agency, Community Mobilization Agency, Intelligence & Security Agency, Revenue Agency, Welfare Agency, and Legal Affairs Agency. Each agency has a defined mandate and works within the Secretariat’s institutional coordination framework.

INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY, FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP AND NATIONAL INITIATIVES

APLA will develop a consolidated liberation-struggle budget covering institutional coordination, lawful civilian protection, humanitarian support, legal and diplomatic work, education, documentation, and essential operational capacity. The budget will identify priorities, phases, sources of funding, controls on expenditure, and accountable reporting. It will be built around verifiable commitments and realistic implementation capacity, rather than a headline amount detached from available resources.

The Revenue Agency will coordinate financial planning and stewardship. The Council of Liberty Patrons (CLP) will bring together individuals and institutions prepared to undertake sustained, quantifiable financial commitments under a constitutional framework of guarantees applying during the liberation phase and, where lawfully established, after liberation. Unlike ordinary fundraising, the Council of Liberty Patrons participation will be structured through documented obligations, records of contribution, stewardship procedures, and clearly defined institutional recognition and safeguards. Any future entitlements will require appropriate legal authority and enforceable arrangements.

To strengthen APLA’s institutional capacity and address the substantial financial responsibilities associated with its mandate, the Welfare Agency has developed two permanent flagship initiatives: AmbaInsure and the APLA Peace, Justice & Development Fund (APLA-PJDF). These initiatives are intended to establish sustainable mechanisms for resource mobilization, relief and social protection, and long-term peace, justice, and development. Together, they will reinforce APLA’s capacity to translate institutional commitments into practical and enduring results.

These resources must be administered with transparent records, periodic reporting, and independent review. Contributions of professional service, knowledge, networks, and community organization will complement financial commitments, so that the budget becomes an instrument of implementation rather than a list of aspirations.

APLA THEREFORE SPELLS OUT ITS COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY AND NATIONAL ENGAGEMENT MEASSURES

First, the creation of the Commission on Accountability, Transparency and Integrity (CATI). CATI will be constituted as an independent institutional organ within the liberation struggle. It will examine financial stewardship, institutional conduct, transparency, and corrective accountability through proportionate procedures. APLA shall fight against corruption and irresponsible management of resources.

Second, the Legal Affairs Agency will coordinate the Ambazonia Reparations Committee, with competence to document, examine, and classify all categories of reparations. The Community Mobilization Agency will coordinate the Ambazonia Census Committee, beginning with responsible population and community documentation and developing appropriate census methods and safeguards.

Third, the Secretariat will coordinate Education Policy and Curriculum Development through collaboration with educators, specialists, community institutions, and relevant internal and external structures. Its remit will include educational continuity, teacher development, policy, and curricula suited to the needs and heritage of Ambazonia.

Fourth, the APLA Website will host Ambazonia Intellectual Space, a scholarly discovery and reference repository covering history, education, law, science, culture, and other fields. The Secretariat will coordinate this initiative through its IT & Digital and Communications & Public Information functions, with appropriate scholarly input and respect for independent research.

THIS IS A NATIONAL MISSION. AND EVERY AMBAZONIAN WHO CAN HELP MOVE IT FORWARD – HAS A PLACE IN IT.

NATIONBUILDING AND NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

APLA’s nationbuilding vision is a prosperous Ambazonia serving as an economic and commercial hub of the Gulf of Guinea. Future national development will prioritize effective public administration, reliable public services, and infrastructure connecting communities, production centers, ports, and markets.

Natural-resource policy will emphasize responsible stewardship, environmental protection, domestic processing, employment, and accountable public revenue. Agricultural transformation will develop our diverse endowments through research, improved production, storage, and processing, supporting domestic food security and a food industry capable of large-scale exportation.

Our geographical diversity and cultural heritage will underpin tourism development, conservation, and community enterprise. Hydropower and potable water development will prioritize domestic needs while pursuing the capacity to supply the wider subregion.

These priorities define the national transformation envisaged beyond the conflict. The Three-Year Termination Roadmap will advance the political conditions and preparatory work from which that future can be built. APLA shall constitute a Commission for Strategic Public Policy and National Development to develop the policies and strategic plans that will shape Ambazonia’s long-term development and give practical direction to this national vision.

IX. THE COMMITMENT BEFORE US

Fellow Ambazonians,

The transition to APLA has meaning only if it helps us move our struggle.

The Three-Year Termination Roadmap is APLA’s ENGAGEMENT FOR AMBAZONIA: a sustained undertaking to bring together our resources, skills, institutions, and communities, protect our people, strengthen our resilience, and pursue self-determination through a just negotiated process sanctioned by our people.

They deserve protection for their lives, homesteads, and possessions. They deserve justice, self-determination, and a political future sanctioned by their own freely expressed will. They deserve institutions capable of carrying these responsibilities through to completion.

We will advance the Southern Cameroons question internationally, while organizing the strength we possess at home and across our global communities. We will uphold lawful protection of civilians and support for communities facing violence. We will mobilize and steward our own resources so that our roadmap is sustained by collective capacity, not external goodwill alone.

WE ARE NOT SETTING OUT TO MANAGE AN ENDLESS CONFLICT.

WE ARE ORGANIZING TO TERMINATE IT.

Self-determination through a just negotiated process, with the outcome sanctioned by our people.

THAT IS THE DIRECTION.

THAT IS THE MISSION.

AND THAT IS THE WORK NOW BEFORE US.

The determination to bring this liberation struggle to its final conclusion cannot rest on the international community alone, nor on dialogue alone. It rests, above all, on our collective capacity to bring our resources together, harness the wealth of our endowments, and sustain the resilience required to accomplish the objectives of this three-year roadmap.

Dear people and sovereign heirs, the time has come to liberate Ambazonia. Ambazonia does not lack the means and instruments to meet this calling. Our greatest assurance lies in the inheritance we possess, the responsibilities we accept, and the collective determination with which we put them to work.

If we are truly determined to provide for Ambazonia, then WE SHALL NEVER LACK.

If we are truly committed to serve Ambazonia, then WE SHALL NEVER LACK.

And if we truly understand the inheritance we possess in Ambazonia, then WE SHALL NEVER LACK.

THANK YOU.

Pope Leo diagnosed with lung cancer after doctors successfully remove nodule

14, October 2026

Pope Leo diagnosed with lung cancer after doctors successfully remove nodule 0

Pope Leo had a lower lobe of his right lung removed during surgery on Tuesday and ‌was diagnosed with lung ⁠adenocarcinoma, a common form of ‌lung cancer, the Vatican said in ⁠a medical bulletin. The surgery was successful and the pope is expected to spend a week in hospital recovering. The 71-year-old pontiff is due to travel to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru on November 6, though the Vatican has not confirmed the operation date.

“The procedure was successfully completed, within the expected time and in the planned manner, and the Holy Father has returned to his room,” the Vatican press office said on Telegram.

The 71-year-old pontiff has lung adenocarcinoma, with tissue tests conducted during the operation confirming what doctors had suspected from preparatory examinations, the ​bulletin said.

Pope Leo arrived at hospital in Rome on Tuesday ahead of surgery to remove ​a small cancerous growth on one of his lungs, in the first major health issue of his 17-month tenure.

Leo, 71, said on Sunday that a small nodule had been ​found on a ‌check-up, was “well-contained” and had been spotted early.

He was ⁠expected to leave the Vatican for Rome’s Gemelli hospital late morning, the Vatican press office said, without specifying when ‌the actual operation would take place.

Leo, elected by the world’s cardinals ⁠in May 2025, is relatively young for a Church leader. He enjoys sports, including tennis, and is not known to be a smoker ​or to have had health issues previously.

The Vatican has said ‌his recovery is expected to take about a week. All his public events have been cancelled until October 20.

A nodule on the lung is a small, localised lesion ‌that can be benign. The American Thoracic Society says fewer than 5% of lung nodules overall prove cancerous, although ​risk rises with age, size, and other factors such as smoking.

Dr. Federico Venuto, chief of thoracic surgery at Rome’s Policlinico Umberto I hospital, said procedures to ​remove lung nodules are usually minimally invasive, and can sometimes involve use of a ​thin camera tube called a thoracoscope.

“The complication rate ​is extremely low,” he told Reuters.

The late Pope Francis, Leo’s predecessor, died at age 88 in April 2025 and ​was hospitalised several times as he grew frail in his later years.

Leo, who spoke in a firm, clear voice at his only public event on Monday, keeps a very busy schedule. He is due to make an 11-day tour of ⁠Uruguay, Argentina and Peru from November 6 to 17.

In the same address on Sunday when the ⁠pope announced his need ​for surgery, Leo pledged he would go forward with the trip.

Source: Reuters

Martinez Zogo Murder Trial: The break dance is ongoing

13, October 2026

Martinez Zogo Murder Trial: The break dance is ongoing 0

Lieutenant Colonel Dieudonné Bialo is expected to return to the Yaoundé Military Tribunal on Monday, October 12, 2026, to continue his testimony in the trial over the murder of journalist Martinez Zogo. His cross-examination, originally scheduled for October 5, was postponed at the prosecution’s request after officials said he was away on an assignment in Algeria. The decision drew objections from defense lawyers, who questioned the circumstances of his absence.

To justify the postponement, the government commissioner presented a travel authorization covering October 2–8. According to information discussed in court, the document had reportedly been issued on May 11, 2026, although prosecutors maintained that they only learned of the witness’s unavailability on the morning of October 5.

Charles Tchoungang, a lawyer for defendant Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga, questioned the document’s authenticity and opposed the postponement. He also challenged the circumstances under which an officer already scheduled to testify had been allowed to leave on an official assignment without notifying the court in advance. After hearing arguments from both sides, the tribunal adjourned proceedings until October 12 and 13.

Bialo, who heads the National Gendarmerie’s Central Judicial Investigations Service, began his testimony on September 15. He described the technical investigations conducted after Martinez Zogo disappeared, particularly the analysis of telephone records and surveillance camera footage. According to his testimony, investigators compared these records and identified a possible connection between a vehicle attributed to Lieutenant Colonel Justin Danwe and the route taken by the group involved in the journalist’s abduction.

The officer also testified that Léopold Maxime Eko Eko, former director general of the Directorate General for External Research (DGRE), had allegedly implicated Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga and Justin Danwe during questioning on January 31, 2023, identifying them as the people who ordered the operation. Bialo further stated that investigators suspected the former intelligence chief had prior knowledge of the operation. The significance of these statements remains for the court to assess, and they are central to the dispute over the defendants’ respective responsibilities.

Another sensitive issue involves a phone attributed to Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga that investigators have been unable to locate. According to Bialo, the device may have contained a video of Martinez Zogo that was shared among some of those involved in the case. However, the officer acknowledged that investigators had not found the video on any of the phones they examined.

The trial, which opened on March 25, 2024, involves 17 defendants, including intelligence officials and businessman Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga. The resumption of Bialo’s testimony will allow defense lawyers to continue questioning him about the technical evidence and statements collected during the investigation.

Source: Sbbc

139 migrants dead, more than 84 missing after boat capsizes off Djibouti

11, October 2026

139 migrants dead, more than 84 missing after boat capsizes off Djibouti 0

At least 139 migrants were killed after a boat sank off the shores of Djibouti overnight on October 8-9, a UN agency said Sunday.

An earlier statement indicated an initial toll of 109 dead including 15 children, with some 116 missing. The updated figure accounts for the discovery of a further 30 bodies, with a total of 84 individuals remaining unspoken for.

Survivors said the vessel – which was carrying 350 people from Djibouti to Yemen – capsized north of the Djibouti town of Obock, according to a statement from the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), whose teams are on the ground alongside local authorities to provide emergency aid.

“This is a devastating loss of life. Our thoughts are with the survivors and the families who have lost loved ones or remain without news of their relatives,” said Alexandre Coissac, IOM chief of mission in Djibouti, in the statement.

He said IOM teams were on the ground alongside Djiboutian authorities to provide emergency aid.

“This tragedy is a stark reminder of the dangers faced by migrants along this migration corridor as they seek economic opportunities” by trying to cross the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to Yemen and then to reach Gulf countries.

Among the bodies recovered were at least 52 men, 42 women and 15 children – nine girls and six boys – the statement said.

More than 80 people survived the shipwreck, all Ethiopian nationals.

“Poverty, insecurity and the growing impacts of climate change drive many to undertake this journey, despite mounting instability across the Middle East,” the IOM said.

Source: AFP

The Holy Father will undergo surgery for early-stage lung nodule

11, October 2026

The Holy Father will undergo surgery for early-stage lung nodule 0

Pope Leo XIV announced Sunday that he would undergo surgery “in the coming days” to remove a lung nodule that had been detected “at a very early stage”.

“The doctors believe it is advisable to intervene, and so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to have it removed,” added the 71-year-old pope after the Angelus prayer, noting that the procedure was “already scheduled for the coming days”.

Source: AFP

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