Bamako, Mali | AFP | Mali’s Supreme Court has ordered the government to pay more than $48 million to a local military equipment firm, in a legal battle dating back to 2014 triggered by corruption allegations. The World Bank and IMF froze aid to Mali that year over state dealings …
Read More »France freezes assets of DR Congo general over civilian ‘massacres’
Paris, France | AFP | France has frozen the financial assets of a Congolese general placed on the UN’s sanctions list for supporting a massacre of civilians by a suspected militia in 2014 and 2015, according to a notice published Sunday. The government will freeze the “funds and financial resources” in …
Read More »UN imposes sanctions on DR Congo general for ‘massacres’
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The UN imposed sanctions on a Congolese general on Friday for supporting the massacre of civilians by a suspected militia in eastern DR Congo. General Muhindo Akili Mundos, an ally of President Joseph Kabila, is one of four names to be added on to …
Read More »UPDATE: Kitata court-martialed, could face death penalty
Kampala, Uganda | GODFREY SSALI | The patron of Boda boda 2010 association also Rubaga NRM Chairman Abdalla Kitata could face the death penalty if he is found guilty in a Uganda court-martial. Kitata and his co-accused who are mostly members of the infamous vigilante-cum-militia outfit, Boda Boda 2010 face …
Read More »14 Malian soldiers killed in attack on camp: army
Bamako, Mali | AFP | Fourteen soldiers were killed and 18 wounded on Saturday in an attack on their camp in Mali’s restive north, the army said, while military sources told AFP jihadists were responsible. Mali’s deteriorating security situation is of growing concern as Al-Qaeda-linked groups mount increasingly deadly attacks …
Read More »Snake blood, flaming bricks: Mattis gets bizarre Indonesian send off
Jakarta, Indonesia | AFP | A soldier tore apart a snake with his teeth and his comrades headbutted flaming stacks of bricks as Indonesia’s special forces treated visiting US defence secretary Jim Mattis to an unusual display on Tuesday. Mattis — whose own nickname is “Mad Dog” — seemed impressed by …
Read More »Seven Niger troops killed in Boko Haram attack
Niamey, Niger | AFP | At least seven Niger soldiers were killed and more than a dozen others wounded this week in an attack by suspected Boko Haram militants in the country’s southeast, the government said on Friday. “The provisional toll for the cowardly terror attack on Wednesday night in Toummour …
Read More »MUSEVENI: Stability is the best insurance for Uganda
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | President Yoweri Museveni has said that a country’s human resource is greater than any natural resource and must be nurtured and protected. He said this coupled with the unity and stability of our nation, is the best insurance for its people. The President was …
Read More »India to buy guns worth $553 mn for border troops
New Delhi, India | AFP | India will buy more than 160,000 guns worth $553 million for troops on its disputed, high-altitude borders, the defence ministry said Tuesday. The defence acquisition council cleared the purchase of 72,400 assault rifles and 93,895 carbines for 35 billion rupees ($553 million) in a …
Read More »Former DR Congo army chief accused of coup bid held in Gabon
Libreville, Gabon | AFP | Democratic Republic of Congo’s former military chief, who has been accused by Kinshasa of an attempted coup against President Joseph Kabila in 2011, has been arrested in Gabon, sources told AFP. “General Faustin Munene has been arrested since Wednesday, January 10… in Gabon,” said a …
Read More »