SOMERSET WEST, South Africa (AP) — The family of Oscar Pistorius has condemned allegations made in a book that new evidence exists to show that he beat girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp with a cricket bat before fatally shooting her at his home in 2013. The Pistorius family called the allegations “outrageous” and “absurd” in a statement … Continue reading
LE BOURGET, France (AP) — A series of crew failures likely caused the 2014 Air Algerie crash in Mali, air accident investigators said Friday Apr.22 , although they said they were not assigning responsibility for the disaster that killed 116 people. France’s Analysis and Investigations Bureau (BEA) says the McDonnell Douglas MD-83 went down on … Continue reading
YOLA, Nigeria (AP) — Apr. 23,”Bring Back Our Girls,” say the placards in the park and the tweets read around the world. But for thousands of girls and women who’ve escaped Boko Haram’s clutches, the message they’ve sometimes encountered at homecomings has been “Stay Away.” As U.S.-backed African governments make military advances against the Islamic … Continue reading
DALY CITY, Calif. (AP) — Haru Nomura shot a 1-under 71 in cool and breezy conditions Saturday Apr. 23, at Lake Merced and escaped a two-shot penalty to maintain a three-stroke lead in the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic. The 23-year-old Japanese player met with rules officials after the round to discuss her play from an … Continue reading
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Nearly 50 starving, dehydrated monkeys were rescued from cages at a garden nursery north of Johannesburg on Saturday Apr. 22. Spider, capuchin and squirrel monkeys were among the 49 primates taken away by the International Primate Rescue organization. The monkeys had been kept in cages for the entertainment of people coming to … Continue reading
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Papa Wemba, a musician known around the world as the king of Congolese rumba, has died following a collapse on stage during a concert, officials said. He was 66. Culture Minister Baudouin Banza Mukalay confirmed the musician’s death Sunday Apr. 23, calling it a “great loss for the country and … Continue reading
BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — The peacekeepers motioned to the teenage girl weaving through the sprawling camp in the baking afternoon sun selling bananas from a plate atop her head Wed. Apr. 20. Soon their real intentions were clear: They yanked her inside their tent and began unbuttoning their pants. Just 16 years old, … Continue reading
LONDON (AP) — Governments around the world scrambled Tuesday Apr. 5, to contain the fallout from the publication of thousands of names of rich and powerful people who conducted offshore financial activity through a Panamanian law firm. China dismissed as “groundless” reports that relatives of current and retired politicians, including President Xi Jinping, own offshore … Continue reading
BERLIN (AP) — The Latest on the publication by a coalition of media outlets of an investigation into offshore financial dealings by the rich and famous (all times local): 11:50 a.m. Germany’s justice minister is proposing setting up a national “transparency register” that would list the real beneficiaries of letter-box companies — but only those … Continue reading
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa’s parliament on Tuesday Apr. 5, debated an opposition motion to remove President Jacob Zuma because the country’s top court ruled that he had violated the constitution in a spending scandal. The debate was raucous at times but the motion was unlikely to pass because it requires a two-thirds majority for … Continue reading
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The International Criminal Court terminated the case against Kenya’s deputy president and ended his trial Tuesday Apr. 5, saying there is insufficient evidence he was involved in deadly violence that erupted after his country’s 2007 presidential elections. The presiding judge said the reason for the lack of evidence was possibly … Continue reading
CAIRO (AP) — Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham sought to reassure the Arab world Sunday Apr. 3, over the prospect of Donald Trump becoming president, saying in Cairo that Congress would continue to play a primary role in foreign policy, “regardless of what Mr. Trump says or does.” “The Congress is going to be around no … Continue reading
CAIRO (AP) — The editor of Egypt’s top state newspaper called on authorities on Sunday Apr. 3, to seriously deal with the case of an Italian student tortured and killed in Cairo, saying officials who don’t realize the gravity of the case are risking a break in Egyptian-Italian relations. In a front-page column, Al-Ahram’s Editor-in-Chief … Continue reading
NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Niger’s president has cruised to an easy re-election while his main opponent remains in France seeking medical treatment after being jailed for several months. The electoral commission released results Tuesday Mar. 22, showing that President Mahamadou Issoufou received more than 92 percent of the runoff vote. He had campaigned on his record … Continue reading
CAIRO (AP) — President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi reshuffled his government on Wednesday Mar. 23 , naming nine new ministers, including for the finance and investment portfolios, but leaving the key ministries of defense, foreign affairs and interior untouched. The reshuffle comes at a time when Egypt under el-Sissi is facing a host of daunting problems, primarily … Continue reading
CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s Interior Ministry says the death toll from a mortar attack on a checkpoint near northern Sinai’s provincial capital of el-Arish has risen to 15 policemen killed. The ministry says in a Sunday Mar. 20. statement that the dead include three officers. A Sinai-based Islamic State affiliate has claimed responsibility for the Saturday … Continue reading
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Voters in five African countries are casting ballots on Sunday Mar. 20., including four presidential elections and a constitutional referendum. Incumbents in Niger and Republic of Congo are expected to sail to re-election, while Benin’s runoff vote is less certain. Here is a brief look at the contests: ___ BENIN — … Continue reading
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The Kenyan military said Sunday its troops killed 34 fighters from the Islamic extremists of al-Shabab in clashes in Somalia. The latest fighting raises the number of militants the Kenyan army says it has killed in the past week to 53. Twenty one militants were killed in fighting in the southern … Continue reading
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The International Criminal Court convicted former Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba on Monday Mar. 21. of murder, rape and pillage for acts by his militia in the Central African Republic in 2002-03. The judgment was hailed as a landmark in the fight against impunity for sex crimes in conflict. Bemba’s … Continue reading
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — An opposition supporter was fatally shot Monday Feb. 15, in clashes with the police during a campaign event in the capital, the police and a presidential candidate said Tuesday, raising concern over the role of the security forces in tight presidential elections Thursday. Police spokesman Fred Enanga confirmed Tuesday that one civilian … Continue reading
SAFI, Morocco (AP) — As a prisoner in Guantanamo, Younis Chekkouri learned about the new group of Islamic extremists advancing through Syria and Iraq. Released after 13 years without charges, and free in his home country for the first time in two decades, the 46-year-old vows not to be among the estimated 2,000 Moroccans who … Continue reading
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — On the eve of Uganda’s presidential elections, Kampala resembles an armed camp with armored vehicles and police patrolling the capital city’s streets. President Yoweri Museveni, in power for 30 years, is facing his tightest race ever and appears to be responding with a show of military force in Kampala. His main … Continue reading
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Ugandan police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to break up a crowd of opposition supporters and briefly arrested a leading opposition candidate on Monday Feb. 15, raising tensions ahead of elections widely seen as close. Ambulances carried the injured after the police used force to break up supporters of presidential … Continue reading
BUJUMBURA, Burundi (AP) — A series of grenade blasts in Burundi’s capital killed least two people were killed and injured more than a dozen others Monday Feb. 15, witnesses said. Two of the explosions happened in an open market in the Ngagara area of Bujumbura, killing the two. Two other grenades exploded in the center … Continue reading
MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The U.S. military denies reports from residents and rebels in southwestern Somalia that a suspected U.S. drone with six missiles crashed Monday Feb. 15, in a rebel-held village in the Gedo region. Spokesman for the U.S. Africa Command, Chuck Prichard, said all their “assets in this area are accounted for and … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 