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Africa

Mali : Roadside bomb kills French soldier

Tuesday, 30 April 2013 20:04

S M Rahat

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A French soldier has been killed in northern Mali, becoming the sixth Frenchman to die since the beginning of France's military campaign in January.

The 32-year-old soldier was killed in Boughessa on Monday during an operation aimed at securing the area by chasing anti-government fighters and destroying their logistics.

Two others were seriously wounded by the blast in the country's far north, the French defence ministry has said.

Francois Hollande, France's president, sent his condolences to the soldier's family and hailed "the determination and courage of the French forces engaged in Mali alongside Malian and [other] African forces".

The French-led campaign is helping Malian troops to push al-Qaeda linked fighters out of the country.

Paris has said about 1,000 soldiers will remain in Mali beyond this year to back up a UN force that is to replace the International Support Mission for Mali (MISMA).

The UN force of 12,600 peacekeepers, to be responsible for stabilising the north will be phased in gradually from July.

French soldier killed in northern Mali

Monday, 29 April 2013 20:30

hatef mokhtar

alt A French soldier has been killed in Mali, according to the French president's office.

A statement said the soldier - a commando from a parachute regiment - died in the far north of the West African nation.

Six French soldiers have been killed since France launched an operation in Mali in January to drive Islamist rebels from the northern desert region.

France began withdrawing some of its 4,000 troops earlier this month.

But 1,000 will remain for now to pursue al-Qaeda linked militants while other international forces concentrate on securing the main cities and roads.

Some towns and cities have been recaptured by French soldiers but a number of Islamist fighters are believed to remain in their desert hideouts in the north.

The UN recently agreed to create a 12,000-strong peacekeeping force for Mali.

It will incorporate 6,000 West African soldiers already in the country.

In the French government statement, President Francois Hollande extended his condolences to the relatives of the soldier killed and praised the determination and courage of French forces in Mali.

Uganda: No Justice for April 2011 Killings

Sunday, 28 April 2013 12:25

administrator

(Nairobi) – Police and prosecutors in Uganda have turned a blind eye to the killings of at least nine people by security forces during protests in April 2011.

Algerian leader taken to Paris after stroke

Sunday, 28 April 2013 12:11

administrator

State media report says 76-year-old President Abdelaziz Bouteflika undergoing check-up after suffering minor stroke.

Press Intimidated in Zimbabwe

Saturday, 27 April 2013 12:52

administrator

The media in Zimbabwe continue to struggle against threats and intimidation as the election approaches.

Nigerian film board bans documentary on corruption in oil industry

Wednesday, 24 April 2013 23:27

hatef mokhtar

alt A film documenting corruption in the management of oil profits has been banned in Nigeria.

“Fuelling Poverty” examines the mismanagement of Nigeria's oil wealth in the context of protests against fuel subsidy suspensions in 2012.

Produced in partnership with Open Society Initiative for West Africa(OSIWA), filmmaker Ishaya Bako told Media Rights Agenda (MRA) that the film examines “real issues, on everyday life."

Issues, it seems, that are too real for the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) to want to share. In a letter dated 8 April 2013, the NFVCB states that “Fuelling Poverty” is not permitted to be distributed, aired or exhibited, due to contents that "are highly provocative and likely to incite or encourage public disorder and undermine national security”, according to the Media Rights Agenda (MRA).

The film was released in November 2012, but was only banned when Bakosubmitted a request to show the film publically, the Associated Press reported.

In NFVCB's letter to Bako, the young filmmaker was warned that "all relevant national security agencies are on the alert" to ensure that he does not exhibit or distribute the film, said the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

South Sudan clashes: Army 'attacked Lorema hospital'

Wednesday, 24 April 2013 00:20

admin

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Five health workers have been killed when South Sudan soldiers attacked a hospital in revenge for the deaths of eight members of the security forces, the local MP has told the BBC.

David Mayo said the fighting was still going on and urged the army to be withdrawn.

Local community leaders confirm that the hospital in the village of Lorema, Eastern Equatoria state, was attacked.

But the state governor denied the reports.

Louis Obong told the BBC that no hospital had been attacked and the security situation was "normal".

An army spokesman said he was investigating the reports and any soldier who had committed abuses would face justice.

'Indiscriminate shooting'

The soldiers were deployed after eight of the governor's bodyguards were killed when they were sent to track down cattle rustlers.

The BBC's Nyambura Wambugu in South Sudan says many residents of the mountainous area around Lorema are heavily armed, including with rocket-propelled grenades, left over from the two-decade civil war against the north.

Mr Mayo said that 13 soldiers were currently being treated in hospital, in the state capital, Torit.

But he blames the soldiers for the violence, saying they opened fire indiscriminately when they arrived in Lorema, before going on to attack the hospital and set fire to local homes.

One doctor, one patient and four nurses died, he said.

Human rights groups have accused South Sudan's army, made up of former rebels, of committing numerous abuses against civilians since independence in 2011 - charges the army has strongly denied.

Our reporter says there is a long history of cattle raiding in Eastern Equatoria, as in many other parts of the country.

Cattle lie at the heart of life for many communities in the country which has hardly any banks - they represent wealth, a dowry, property and a source of food in the lean season.

A single cow can be worth hundreds of dollars depending on its colouring.