Month: April 2024

At least 5 people have died while crossing the English Channel, according to French media, hours after the U.K. approved the migrant deportation bill.

The Voix du Nord newspaper said the bodies were discovered at the Wimereaux beach in northern France on Tuesday. The rescue operation is ongoing and helicopters and boats have been deployed, according to the regional newspaper.

About 100 migrants have been rescued and placed aboard a French navy ship. They will be taken to the port of Boulogne, the paper said.

This came only hours after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s latest effort to send some migrants on a one-way ticket to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament. Human rights groups have described the legislation as cruel.

The U.K. government plans to deport some of those who enter the country illegally as a deterrent to migrants who risk their lives in leaky, inflatable boats in hopes that they will be able to claim asylum once they reach Britain.

Vehicles were stranded on Sunday in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, as the devastating toll of heavy rains and floods in Kenya continues to mount.

Since mid-March, 35 people have died in floods that have affected over 100,000 individuals, according to the UN, citing figures from the Red Cross in its latest update.

Floods have been reported in residential areas of Nairobi as rivers overflowed on Sunday evening.

Motorists could be seen driving and wading through the waters that filled the city.

The Kenyan government agency responsible for roads warned Nairobi residents to avoid flooded highways, including the one leading to the coastal city of Mombasa.

Those living along the Nairobi River are urged to relocate to higher ground.

At least 40,265 people are displaced in 21 out of the country’s 47 counties.

Floods and mudslides have also been reported in western Kenya.

In the northern region, a passenger bus was swept away by floodwaters on a bridge earlier in April, with 51 passengers rescued.

The Kenya Meteorological Service forecasts that rainfall will peak this week.

People in Burundi are struggling to cope with flooding after months of heavy rains, with hundreds of thousands being displaced and many homes and schools damaged.

The relentless rain has resulted in the level of water in Lake Tanganyika rising considerably, causing chaos for communities living along its shores.

Lake Tanganyika’s rising waters have invaded the port of Bujumbura, Burundi’s economic capital, disrupting business there and elsewhere in the country

“The economic impacts are starting to weigh heavily. But why these floods? It must be said that they are associated with the climate changes that are affecting Burundi, like other countries in the region,” says Jean-Marie Sabushimike, a disaster management expert and professor of geography at Burundi University.

While climate change is the trigger, the impact of the flooding is exacerbated by poor land-use planning “that does not take into account areas at very high risk of flooding,” he said.

The United Nations estimates that, since September, over 200,000 people have been displaced by flooding as a consequence of the El Nino weather phenomenon.

Many people are living in difficult situations as the water has destroyed infrastructure, flooded fields, and impacted livelihoods.

“Since last year, the rain and the water levels have been rising here. Little by little, the land is getting waterlogged. Now, it has reached this level and we have never seen it this bad. It’s terrible,” says flood victim, Joachim Ntirampeba.

With forecasts predicting above normal rainfall until May, the government has appealed to the international community for financial assistance to deal with the impact of flooding.

“We are asking our development partners to combine efforts with the state of Burundi to help all people affected by these disasters,” said Interior Minister Martin Niteretse.

Kenya’s government has sent a team to probe a helicopter crash that claimed the life of military chief Gen Francis Ogolla and nine others.

The incident occurred shortly after takeoff in the country’s northwest, with Gen Ogolla among the 12 occupants.

The deceased were flown to Nairobi, while two survivors receive medical attention. President William Ruto declares three days of national mourning, lamenting the loss as a “moment of great sadness.”

Gen Ogolla, appointed Chief of Defence Forces in April last year, is hailed as a dedicated officer who served his country with valor.

The crash victims include high-ranking military personnel, with Brig Swale Saidi, Col Duncan Keittany, and others among the casualties.

The African Union Commission expresses condolences to Kenya, as the officers were on a mission to address banditry in the North Rift region.

This tragedy echoes a similar incident in June 2021, where 10 soldiers perished in a helicopter crash near Nairobi.

Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa granted clemency to more than 4,000 prisoners, including some who were on death row, in an independence day amnesty on Thursday.

Zimbabwe marked 44 years of independence from white minority rule, which ended in 1980 after a bloody bush war. The country’s name was changed from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe.

The presidential amnesty, the second in less than a year, benefits female, older and juvenile inmates, the terminally ill and some who were originally sentenced to death.

Those once on death row but who had their sentences commuted to life terms in previous clemency orders or through court appeals are to be freed provided they have been in prison for at least 20 years, according to the clemency order, which was announced Wednesday and due to take effect on Thursday.

All female prisoners who had served at least a third of their sentence by independence day are being freed, as are juvenile inmates who have served the same period.

Prisoners age 60 and older who have served one tenth of their sentences will also be released. Mnangagwa also pardoned the blind and others with disabilities who have served a third of their sentence.

The prisoners are being released in batches across the country.

However, those jailed for “specified” offenses that include sexual offenses, robbery, public violence, unlawful possession of firearms, human trafficking and theft or vandalism of electricity and telecommunications infrastructure won’t benefit from the amnesty.

All death row prisoners who have been in jail for at least 10 years had their sentences commuted to life in prison under the amnesty.

Zimbabwe has more than 60 inmates on death row. It wasn’t immediately clear how many of those had their sentences commuted to life under the amnesty.

Zimbabwe is one of more than a dozen countries in Africa and more than 50 across the world that have the death penalty, although the country’s last hanging was in 2005. Mnangagwa says he supports abolishing the death penalty, a move which was backed by the Cabinet in February and is now awaiting approval from Parliament.

Mnangagwa freed more than 4,000 prisoners in another clemency order last May aimed at de-congesting the southern African nation’s overcrowded prisons, where conditions are usually harsh. At the time, Zimbabwe had about 22,000 prisoners crammed into prisons with a capacity of 17,000.

Nigerian chess master Tunde Onakoya is making waves in New York’s Times Square as he attempts a record-breaking chess marathon.

His goal is to play for 58 consecutive hours and raise $1m (£805,000) for charity, specifically for chess education among children. With hundreds of supporters, including Nigerian Afrobeats star Davido, cheering him on, Onakoya is fueled by the support of his community, both in New York and back home in Nigeria.

In Lagos, Nigeria’s Vice-President Kashim Shettima and Lagos state governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu are among those rallying behind Onakoya, hailing him as a symbol of Nigerian excellence. On Twitch, viewers from Nigeria and beyond are watching as he strives to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.

As of 03:00 New York time (07:00 GMT) on Friday, Onakoya had played for 39 hours and raised over $42,000. Confident in his progress, he aims to continue until at least 20:00 New York time on Friday, surpassing the current record of 56 hours, nine minutes, and 37 seconds.

Chess holds a special significance for Onakoya, who credits the game with rescuing him from poverty in Lagos’s slums. Through his NGO, Chess in Slums Africa, and his involvement with The Gift of Chess, he is dedicated to providing chess education and opportunities to underserved communities, aiming to distribute one million chess sets by 2030.

The European Union said it would impose new sanctions on Iran following its retaliatory attack against Israel on Saturday night.

The missile and drone attack followed Israel’s bombing of Iran’s embassy in Syria’s capital, killing 8 people including elite army officers.

There were no casualties in Iran’s attack.

European Council President Charles Michel said overnight on Thursday the measures would serve as a “clear signal” to Iran.

In a statement released after the first day of their summit in Brussels, which also focused on the war in Ukraine and ways to boost the bloc’s economic competitiveness, the leaders warned that the EU “will take further restrictive measures against Iran, notably in relation to unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy used the summit to remind the leaders that his country still badly needs support to combat Russia’s invasion.

Zelenskyy asked for more air defences, including Patriot missile systems.

His message was heard.

Michel said it is “very important that we deliver on our promises, and I can reassure you that all the stakeholders, all the actors, they are doing everything possible to speed up, to make more efforts.”

Michel, who chaired the summit, said that Zelenskyy had asked the Europeans to help convince the U.S. to speed up the delivery of arms and funding for Ukraine’s war-battered economy.