Bangkok, Thailand | AFP | A Thai man who felt slighted by his in-laws shot dead six family members including his two young children at a New Year’s Eve party before turning the gun on himself, police said Tuesday. The mass shooting took place 10 minutes after midnight as Sucheep …
Read More »S.Africa launches minimum wage ahead of election
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa introduced its first minimum wage on Tuesday, with President Cyril Ramaphosa saying millions of workers would be better paid as he readies for a tricky election in May with the national economy struggling for growth. Trade unions have been split over whether …
Read More »Western powers urge DR Congo to restore Internet
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Leading western powers on Tuesday called on the Democratic Republic of Congo to restore internet access, which operators say was cut on government orders a day earlier following presidential elections. They also backed a request by the main Congolese election monitoring organisations to have …
Read More »Sudan’s Bashir forms panel to probe protest violence
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir ordered authorities Tuesday to set up a committee to investigate violence during anti-government protests, even as a range of political groups called for a “new regime” in the country. At least 19 people have been killed and hundreds wounded in protests …
Read More »Arsenal bounce back to rout feeble Fulham
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Arsenal responded to their thrashing by Liverpool in the best possible manner reeling off a routine 4-1 humbling of struggling Fulham in their Premier League clash on Tuesday. Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka had set Arsenal on their way with his fourth goal of the …
Read More »Iran TV boss fired over Jackie Chan sex scene
Tehran, Iran | AFP | A regional boss of Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB has been fired after inadvertently letting a Jackie Chan sex scene slip through its tight censorship rules, local media reported on Monday. Viewers on Iran’s Kish Island were shocked when their local TV station showed the martial …
Read More »S.Africa arrests Mozambique’s ex-finance minister for extradition to US
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | A former finance minister of Mozambique, who approved secret loans that plunged the country into a crisis, has been arrested in South Africa awaiting extradition to the United States, police said Monday. Manuel Chang, 63, was “arrested on Saturday for… USA extradition”, national police …
Read More »Police deploy in Sudan capital as protesters plan march
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Riot police deployed in key squares of Sudan’s capital Monday as protesters planned to march on President Omar al-Bashir’s palace calling for him to “step down” following deadly anti-government protests. Bashir has instructed police to abstain from using excessive force against the demonstrators after 19 …
Read More »Tense DR Congo counts vote in presidential poll
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday began counting ballots from a presidential election marked by delays and fears of violence and vote-rigging, straining hopes for its first-ever peaceful transfer of power. Sunday’s elections went ahead after two years of delays and sporadic clashes …
Read More »World Bank Year in Review: 2018 in 14 Charts
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | As 2018 comes to an end, extreme poverty is at the lowest level in recorded history but is expected to become increasingly concentrated in one region. A record number of people have been forcibly displaced from their homes, and an influential new report confirms we’re …
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