Category: LATEST NEWS

Part of Kenya’s parliament building was on fire Tuesday as thousands of protesters against a new finance bill entered and legislators fled, in the most direct assault on the government in decades. Journalists saw at least three bodies outside the complex where police had opened fire.

The protesters had demanded that legislators vote against the controversial bill imposing new taxes on a country where frustrations over the high cost of living have simmered for years.

The protesters outmaneuvered police to enter parliament shortly after legislators voted to pass the bill. Lawmakers fled through a tunnel, but protesters allowed opposition legislators who voted against the bill to walk out of the besieged building.

The office of the Nairobi governor, a member of the ruling party, also was on fire. The office is located near parliament. Police water cannons were being used to extinguish the fire.

Protesters could be heard shouting, “We’re coming for every politician.”

Police officers also fired live ammunition and threw tear-gas canisters at protesters who sought treatment at a medical tent set up at a church near the parliament complex.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission shared a video of officers shooting at protesters and said they would be held to account.

Two people died in similar protests last week.

The Kenya Law Society President Faith Odhiambo said Tuesday that 50 Kenyans, including her personal assistant, had been “abducted” by people believed to be police officers.

Some of those missing included those who were vocal in the demonstrations and were taken away from their homes, workplaces and public spaces ahead of Tuesday’s protests, according to civil society groups.

Police officials did not immediately return calls seeking comment. Parliament Speaker Moses Wetangula had directed the inspector general of police to provide information on the whereabouts of those the opposition said were abducted.

President William Ruto was outside the capital attending an African Union retreat. On Sunday, he said he was proud of the young people who had come out to exercise their democratic duty and said he would engage the youth on their concerns.

During a briefing with graduates of military and law enforcement schools in Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his willingness to engage in discussions regarding security matters with NATO-member countries.

“Recently, at the meeting with the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I outlined our vision on the work to create equal and indivisible security in Eurasia. We are ready for a broad international discussion of these key vital issues, both with our colleagues in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, the CIS, the Eurasian Economic Community, BRICS, and other international associations, European and NATO states, among others, naturally, at the time when they are ready for this.”

In addition, Putin pledged to enhance the nuclear capabilities of his nation and equip the military with state-of-the-art weaponry.

“We will prioritize increasing the supply to the troops on the front line of various types of unmanned aircraft systems, armoured vehicles, high-precision weapons, strike aircraft, enemy detection, counter-battery systems, control and communications systems,” he said.

Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov spoke after Putin and also hailed Russian troops.

“Russian military personnel honourably fulfil their military duty, effectively defend national interests, and resolutely fight the followers of Nazi ideology,” he said.

For celebrities, politicians, influencers and others visiting Israel, no trip is complete without a visit to towns and villages near the border with Gaza.

This is a new kind of tourism that has emerged in the country in the months since a raid by Palestinian fighters on October 7.

Jerry Seinfeld, Elon Musk, Michael Douglas, former presidential candidate Nikki Haley, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are a few who have visited, at times posing for photos in front of burned-out homes.

For visiting dignitaries and VIPs, trips to Israel have long included stops at famous religious or cultural sites, such as the Western Wall, Masada, the Sea of Galilee or the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the national Holocaust memorial, Yad Vashem.

The visits to the battered kibbutzim and border towns are the latest way to rebuild wobbly support with allies abroad.

The visits are also meant to revive the tourism sector hit hard by the war in Gaza. According to figures from Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, around 180,000 tourists visited Israel in Q4 of 2023, down from 930,000 tourists in Q4 of 2022, indicating an 81.5% decline.

Hamas fighters killed around 1,200 people as they rampaged through southern Israel, and kidnapped around 250.

Health officials in Gaza say more than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war that followed.

Many of the kibbutzim and towns that experienced the worst destruction are closed to the public, accessible only via organized tours like those for dignitaries or celebrities, or by invitation from a resident.

Other parts of southern Israel are open to the public and encouraging visitors – both foreigners and Israelis from elsewhere.

The city of Sderot runs “resilience tours,” connecting groups with survivors who share their memories of Oct. 7 or highlight cultural or culinary offerings.

In contrast to the hardest-hit kibbutzim like Nir Oz, most of Sderot’s residents have returned.

South of Sderot, the site of the Nova music festival has become a pilgrimage site for hundreds of visitors per day.

Photos of victims are arranged around what had been the main stage.

Loved ones have left candles, sculptures, photos and other mementos.

In a eucalyptus grove near the site, an organization called “Triumph of the Spirit” offers virtual reality tours of three kibbutzim.

The tours are currently only open to soldiers on official educational visits, but an English version will be available in the coming weeks for international tourists.

Tourism accounts for about 3% of Israel’s economy and provides direct jobs to around 200,000 people. Fears of a regional escalation have dampened hopes of a revival for the sector in 2024.

The first NBA Basketball school in Africa will launch in January 2025 in Egypt.

The New Era Education, a Cairo-based educational services and school management company, and NBA Africa made the announcement.

The NBA Basketball School will be located at Uppingham School Cairo, in New Giza.

Amadou Gallo Fall was in France, Sunday for the Quai 54, a streetball tournament.

The president of the Basketball Africa League reiterated the NBA’s ambition to train African prospects and grow the game on the continent.

“We want to continue to also develop top talents on the continent through the partnership we have for example with the NBA academy we have a Elevate program that is producing elite talent,” Fall said.

“We want to make sure that the talents continue to lay in the league. And also attract top global talents and we want to make sure that Africa doesn’t only just remain a place where talents is always reported we want to build value in the talents on the continent and at the same time being able to retain some talents on the continent”.

The NBA Basketball School is destined for Uppingham School youth ages 5-18. It will build on the US league’s previous initiatives in Cairo, including the last three Basketball Africa League Nile Conference group phases, Jr.

. Since 2017, NBA Basketball Schools have been launched in Australia, Brazil, China, the Dominican Republic, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Lithuania, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Uruguay.

NBA Africa is an affiliate of the US National Basketball Association (NBA)

The trip by Congolese President Denis Sassou Nguesso comes less than a month after Russia’s foreign affairs minister Sergei Lavrov made a stop in the central African country.

Sassou Nguesso is expected to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladmir Putin.

The two leaders will hold discussions on the economy, trade, energy as well as security cooperation.

This is Sassou Nguesso’s second trip to Russia in less than a year. Last July, he traveled to Saint Petersburg to attend the Russia-Africa summit.

Brazaville is one of Moscow’s staunchest allies in Africa. Russian companies maintain a presence in the country’s oil, mining and military sector.

Russia has worked to bolster ties with African countries in a bid to counter western sanctions and isolation over the war in Ukraine.

Most African nations have adopted a neutral stance on the conflict, calling instead for a ceasefire and peace talks.

World leaders, health groups, and pharmaceutical firms announced $1.2 billion in funding to produce vaccines in Africa, at the Global Forum for Vaccine Sovereignty and Innovation in Paris on Thursday.

The Covid-19 pandemic exposed gaping global inequalities in access to vaccines, including in Africa which is facing numerous health crises.

Speaking at the gathering, French President Emmanuel Macron said the African Vaccine Manufacturing Accelerator would be “an essential step towards a genuine African vaccine market”.

“Africa produces only two per cent of the vaccines it uses and the goal that we have set is that by 2040, that production is increased to sixty per cent,” he said.

A recent resurgence of cholera in many parts of Africa has highlighted the need for more local vaccine producers.

“More than four years ago Covid strongly disrupted our health systems and endangered our vaccination programmes that were pushed into the background because of the necessity to fight the pandemic,” Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, told delegates.

“According to the UNICEF report of 2021, at the height of the pandemic, 23 million children didn’t receive the basic vaccines necessary to their normal development.”

Also at the forum, the Gavi vaccine alliance, which helps distribute jabs for more than 20 different diseases to poorer countries, announced it is hoping to raise $9 billion for its vaccine programmes.

It was one of the organiser of the forum.

Gavi says the project aims to make up to $1 billion available over the next 10 years to help boost Africa’s manufacturing base, to improve global vaccines markets and preparedness and response to pandemics and disease outbreaks.

The Geneva-based alliance says the accelerator will inject funds into manufacturers in Africa once they hit supply and regulatory milestones, with an aim to use market forces to drive down prices and encourage investment upstream.

Officials say the project will explore issues like technology transfer — which has been resisted by some Western countries with powerful pharmaceutical companies  as well as the possible creation of a African medicines agency and tackling regulatory hurdles faced in Africa’s patchwork of legal systems.

One of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s bodyguards has been arrested following alleged bets on the date of Britain’s national elections, made before they were announced, authorities said Wednesday.

The Metropolitan Police said an officer from the Royalty and Specialist Protection Command was arrested on Monday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The arrest took place after the Gambling Commission contacted police. The commission, which regulates the gaming industry, confirmed it was investigating “the possibility of violations relating to the date of the election” .

On May 22, Mr Sunak announced that the general election would be held on July 4. The date was a closely guarded secret and the announcement took many in Mr Sunak’s Conservative Party by surprise. Most of them thought the elections would take place in the fall.

Betting is a popular activity in the United Kingdom , with bookmakers offering odds on everything from sport to elections to literary prize winners. It is a criminal offense to cheat by acting on inside information.

The arrested officer has been released on bail pending further investigation and has been relieved of duty while law enforcement conducts its own investigation. The officer has not been named. British police generally do not identify suspects before they are charged.

Last week, Sunak aide and parliamentary re-election candidate Craig Williams admitted he was under investigation by the Gambling Commission for placing a 100-pound ($128) bet. on the July elections before the date was announced.

Mr Williams said the regulator was carrying out “routine investigations and I confirm that I will co-operate fully with them” . “I don’t want to be a distraction to the campaign, I should have thought about what this could mean ,” he said.

Niger’s military government has revoked the operating licence of French nuclear fuel producer, Orano, at one of the world’s biggest uranium mines, the company said on Thursday.

The decision has highlighted tensions between the junta, which came to power in a coup in July last year, and the former colonial power, France.

The military seized control of Niger on the pledge of cutting ties with the West, vowing to review mining concessions in the country, and ordering the withdrawal of Western troops.

Orano said it has been told to leave the Imouraren mine in northern Niger, which sits on an estimated 200,000 tonnes of uranium that is vital for producing nuclear energy.

Mining was due to have started at the site in 2015, but development was halted after the collapse in world uranium prices in the wake of the 2011 Japanese nuclear disaster.

Following years of delays, Niger had warned the licence would lapse on 19 June unless work resumed at the site.

Thursday’s decision by the Nigerien junta comes “despite the resumption of activities on site, pursuant to the expectations they had expressed,” Orano said in a statement.

In a letter to the company dated 20 June, seen by the Associated Press, the Nigerien mining ministry said Orano’s exploitation plan “did not meet our expectations”.

As a result, the mine has been “returned to the public domain” and exempted from all contractual rights, the letter said.

Since coming to power, the junta has been reducing its ties to France.

After expelling Paris’ ambassador, Niger in December ordered the departure of French troops deployed to fight Islamist militants in the region.

The junta has been establishing closer links to Russia.

Orano, which has been operating in Niger for over 50 years, said it was “willing to keep all channels of communication open” with the military authorities.

But it added that it reserved the right to take legal action against the withdrawal of the operating licence in a national or international court.