Politics
The United Nations said on Monday it plans to redeploy some 300 peacekeepers to Central African Republic from a U.N. mission in Ivory Coast in a bid to boost security ahead of the country's planned December elections and a visit by Pope Francis. The Senegalese troops from the U.N. quick reaction force in Ivory Coast would be redeployed as soon as possible for about eight weeks "in light of the ongoing tense security situation," said U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will send a letter to the U.N. Security Council requesting approval for the move.
The 15-member body is likely to give the greenlight, diplomats said. The landlocked former French colony descended into inter-religious violence some two and a half years ago after mainly Muslim Seleka rebels seized power, sparking reprisal killings by Christian anti-balaka militias. Seleka later handed power over to a transitional government under heavy international pressure. Long-delayed presidential and parliamentary elections are due to take place on Dec. 27. A U.N. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the troops from the Ivory Coast mission would likely be deployed before a planned visit by Pope Francis later this month. At least 22 people were killed in a string of raids on villages in Central African Republic last week.
The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic will also be boosted with an additional 750 troops and 140 police. The mission currently has some 9,100 peacekeepers and about 1,500 police. It does not need Security Council approval for this increase as it falls within its mandated strength. The U.N. official has said some of those reinforcements should be in place before the pope's visit.
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French fighter jets have pounded positions belonging to the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in its de facto capital, al-Raqqah, destroying a training camp and a command post in the northern Syrian city, France’s defense ministry says. “The first target destroyed was used by Daesh as a command post, recruitment center and arms and munitions depot. The second held a terrorist training camp,” a ministry statement said on Sunday, AFP reported.
Twelve warplanes, including 10 fighter bombers, dropped 20 bombs on the targets, the statement further said, adding that the jets had left from bases in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates to conduct the mission in coordination with US forces, at the head of a so-called coalition alledgedly against the Takfiris. The airborne strikes were the first since Daesh deadly terrorist attacks in Paris, which claimed the lives of 132 people and left some 350 others injured.
Daesh subsequently claimed responsibility for the attacks, threatening Paris for more, in an undated video, unless France halts airstrikes against the terrorists in Iraq and Syria. Daesh terrorists, who were initially trained by the CIA in Jordan in 2012 to destabilize the government in Damascus, now control parts of Syria and Iraq. They have been engaged in crimes against humanity in the areas under their control.
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Israel on Sunday approved the entry of some 9,000 Ethiopians known as Falash Mura who claim Jewish lineage, ending decades of debate on whether to allow their immigration despite uncertainty over their right to settle in the Jewish state. The cabinet unanimously voted in favor of allowing the last group of Falash Mura to immigrate over the next five years but their acceptance will be conditional on a successful Jewish conversion process, the Interior Ministry said. They have been waiting at transit camps in Ethiopia for years waiting for Israel's green light.
"Today we have taken an important decision, to bring to Israel within the next five years the last of the communities with links to Israel waiting in Addis Ababa and Gonder," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. Israel's "law of return" allows Jews to claim citizenship and take residency. The first Ethiopian Jews were airlifted in the 1980s and 1990s following a rabbinical creed that ruled they were descendents of the biblical Dan tribe but not all the Falash Mura have so far been allowed to settle. Some 135,000 Jews of Ethiopian descent live in Israel, whose population numbers over 8 million.
They have long complained of discrimination, racism and poverty which led to violent protests on the streets of Tel Aviv earlier this year. Ethiopian Jews have joined the ranks of legislators and the officer corps in the country's military but official figures show they lag behind other Israelis. Ethiopian households earn 35 percent less than the national average and only half of their youth receive high school diplomas, compared with 63 percent for the rest of the population.
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Four children were butchered with machetes in front of their parents and 8 girls abducted by Boko Haram militants on Thursday in the village of Achigachia in the Far North region of Cameroon. The attackers stormed Achigachia slaughtered four children aged 6 to 12 years and kidnapped eight other girls aged 10-15 years.
Our military informant who reported the incident also added that the Boko Haram fighters were going to sell these girls in Nigeria for forced marriage. Cameroon Concord also learned that two trucks carrying foodstuffs were taken away by Boko Haram militia along the Maroua-Mora highway.
The Far North region of Cameroon has suffered for more than a year, the onslaught of the Nigerian Islamic sect. Several hundreds of people have been killed during these bloody attacks attributed to Boko Haram.
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Four children were butchered with machetes in front of their parents and 8 girls abducted by Boko Haram militants on Thursday in the village of Achigachia in the Far North region of Cameroon. The attackers stormed Achigachia slaughtered four children aged 6 to 12 years and kidnapped eight other girls aged 10-15 years.
Our military informant who reported the incident also added that the Boko Haram fighters were going to sell these girls in Nigeria for forced marriage. Cameroon Concord also learned that two trucks carrying foodstuffs were taken away by Boko Haram militia along the Maroua-Mora highway.
The Far North region of Cameroon has suffered for more than a year, the onslaught of the Nigerian Islamic sect. Several hundreds of people have been killed during these bloody attacks attributed to Boko Haram.
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Nigerien opposition presidential candidate, Hama Amadou, has been arrested over child trafficking charges upon returning to the West African country from exile. Amadou was detained on Saturday when he flew back to the Nigerien capital, Niamey, over a year after he fled the country when sought by investigators probing a child trafficking network. “He was arrested on leaving the plane. Police presented him with a warrant issued for his arrest,” said lawmaker, Amadou Salah, adding that he “was led to a car [and taken] to an as yet unknown destination.” Over a dozen supporters of Amadou were also detained on Saturday morning after calling on others to welcome him at the airport, police said.
In the afternoon, clashes erupted as police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of pro-Amadou demonstrators who sought to remove a roadblock near the airport. The protesters responded by throwing stones at police forces. Amadou, a former prime minister and national assembly president, had vowed in September to return to Niger to run in the February presidential election. Last August, he left Niger for France before investigators could question him in a probe in which 30 people, including his wife, have been accused of obtaining newborn babies from neighboring Nigeria to sell them to wealthy couples in Niger.
Ahead of his return, Amadou had rejected the charges, calling on government officials to provide evidence in the case against him. “If a dossier has been put together against me by my opponents, then it is time for me to present myself to the judges so that they say what the truth is,” he said. The developments come as political tensions are running high in Niger due to extensive opposition to the election calendar drawn up by the country’s electoral commission. Opposition groups have also criticized the constitutional court, which validates candidatures and vote results, for its “allegiance” to incumbent President Mahamadou Issoufou. The first round of the presidential election is scheduled to be held on February 21, along with legislative polls.
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Subcategories
Biya Article Count: 73
# Paul Biya and his regime
Explore the political landscape of Cameroon under the rule of Paul Biya, the longest-serving president in Africa who has been in power since 1982. Our Paul Biya and his regime section examines the policies, actions, and controversies of his government, as well as the opposition movements, civil society groups, and international actors that challenge or support his leadership. You'll also find profiles, interviews, and opinions on the key figures and events that shape the political dynamics of Cameroon.
Southern Cameroons Article Count: 549
.# Southern Cameroons, Ambazonia
Learn more about the history, culture, and politics of Ambazonia, the Anglophone regions of Cameroon that have been seeking self-determination and independence from the Francophone-dominated central government. Our Southern Cameroons section covers the ongoing conflict, the humanitarian crisis, the human rights violations, and the peace efforts in the region. You'll also find stories that highlight the rich and diverse heritage, traditions, and aspirations of the Southern Cameroonian people.
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