DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The president of Somalia, a country plagued by violence from Islamic militants, said Tuesday that al-Qaida and the Islamic State group constitute the same “evil force” and must be confronted in the wake of the attacks on Paris. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud knows the danger extremist groups pose. He … Continue reading
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria’s leader has ordered the arrest of the former president’s national security adviser for allegedly stealing billions of dollars meant to buy weapons to fight Boko Haram Islamic extremists rampaging across northeast Nigeria. “Thousands of needless Nigerian deaths would have been avoided” if the money had been properly spent, Femi Adesina, … Continue reading
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The eight suspected poachers stood under a tree, apparently unaware they were being tracked by 10 rangers from Congo’s Garamba National Park. But as the rangers approached, gunfire rang out from the tall grass nearby, where other heavily armed men were hidden. The dragnet swiftly turned into a desperate fight for survival. … Continue reading
BUJUMBURA, Burundi (AP) — At least nine people were killed in an overnight attack at a bar in the latest violence in Burundi’s capital, witnesses said Sunday, as security forces went door-to-door to disarm civilians in neighborhoods seen as opposition strongholds. Residents found seven bloodied bodies lying on the floor after gunshots were heard Saturday … Continue reading
CAIRO (AP) — International passengers departing Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh continued to line up for flights on Sunday, as the first of three teams of Russian inspectors was dispatched to the country to examine airport security following the Oct. 31 airline disaster. The Russian flight’s crash in the Sinai Peninsula that killed … Continue reading
LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Africa’s biggest telecommunications company is locked in a nasty battle in powerful Nigeria, with billions of dollars at stake. MTN Nigeria, MTN Group’s subsidiary here, was fined $5.2 billion for failing to meet an August deadline to deactivate 5.2 million unregistered cellphone SIM cards — considered a security threat with Nigeria … Continue reading
DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (AP) — Five Cabinet members from Tanzania’s ruling party have lost their parliamentary seats, according to partial results released Tuesday by the country’s election commission. They lost to candidates representing an opposition alliance of four parties including Chadema, the main opposition party. Results for the presidential election are trickling in and … Continue reading
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara easily won re-election in the first vote since a disputed poll five years ago sparked violence that killed thousands in the West African economic powerhouse, the electoral commission announced early Wednesday. Ouattara received nearly 84 percent of Sunday’s vote, trouncing the opposition, according to results … Continue reading
ZANZIBAR, Tanzania (AP) — The political future of Zanzibar, a semiautonomous archipelago off the cost of Tanzania, was thrown into doubt Wednesday when its election commission chief nullified results of an election that the opposition claimed it had won. The results were scrapped because of several issues, Jecha Salim announced without saying when new elections … Continue reading
BRAZZAVILLE, Republic of Congo (AP) — Voters in Republic of Congo cast their ballots Sunday on a constitutional referendum that if approved will allow the country’s longtime president to seek yet another term in office. Under the current rules, President Denis Sassou N’Guesso is barred from seeking re-election because he is already 71 and … Continue reading
Elections were being held in nine countries around the world on Sunday. Here’s a look at what’s at stake: — ARGENTINA: Argentines chose between continuity versus a financial overhaul when they voted for the successor to President Cristina Fernandez, a polarizing leader who dominated national politics for 12 years. Her chosen successor, Daniel Scioli, the … Continue reading
BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — Even before the film’s release, Hollywood director Michael Bay’s new action movie is stirring controversy among government officials and residents of Benghazi, Libya’s second-largest city and the birthplace of the uprising against longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. The film, “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi,” depicts the events of the … Continue reading
SOMERSET WEST, South Africa (AP) — The mother of Oscar Pistorius’ slain girlfriend on Wednesday delivered the speech her daughter wrote and had planned to give at a South African school on the day she was killed by the Olympic athlete. June Steenkamp went back to Reeva Steenkamp’s old high school in their home town … Continue reading
CAIRO (AP) — A mix of voters’ apathy and frustration characterized elections held Sunday for Egypt’s first legislature in more than three years, a chamber widely expected to be compliant with the policies of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi who, as military chief, ousted the country’s first freely elected leader before he was elected to office himself … Continue reading
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — The Burkina Faso general who took power after last month’s coup has been charged with crimes against humanity, the military prosecutor said Friday, adding that 23 others have also been charged in the coup. Gen. Gilbert Diendere had already been charged with 10 other counts earlier this month, including attacking … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 