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During campaigning, demonstrations were banned or violently dispersed, prompting concern from rights groups who have said authorities have cracked down on dissent.
Nationwide protests have taken place since October 7 despite the disbanding of the controversial Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) police unit.
The demonstrators have been accused of attacking police stations and personnel.
The rallies which are mostly attended by young people have become avenues to vent against corruption and unemployment.
Rights groups say at least 15 people have been killed the demonstrations began in early October.
AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine is not perfect, but will have a big impact on the pandemic, its chief executive predicted on Thursday, as the drugmaker pledged to double output by April and the African Union gave its backing for the shot. The two-dose inosculation, developed with Oxford University, has been hailed as a “vaccine for the world” because it is cheaper and easier to distribute than some rivals. But its rapid approval in Europe and elsewhere has been clouded by doubts over its most effective dosage and interval between doses. Data at the weekend also showed it was less effective against a fast-spreading variant of the virus in South Africa, prompting the country to pause rollout of the shot, and the company has also been embroiled in a row with the European Union over supply delays. “Is it perfect? No it’s not perfect, but it’s great. Who else is making 100 million doses in February?” CEO Pascal Soriot said on a conference call about the vaccine. “We’re going to save thousands of lives and that’s why we come to work everyday.” Soriot said the company aimed to produce 200 million doses per month by April, double this month’s level as it scrambles to ramp up output to meet demand as the world tries to tame a pandemic that has killed 2.35 million. That would put the company on track to make 1.8 billion doses between April and December if that level remained unchanged. The company has set a target to produce 3 billion doses this year, with India’s Serum Institute making much of that aimed at poorer nations. On Wednesday, the company enlisted Germany’s IDT Biologika as a contract manufacturer. AstraZeneca said it expected much-anticipated data from the U.S. trial of the vaccine before the end of March, and that it was confident the shot offered relatively good protection against severe disease and death for the South African variant. Its disappointing results were against milder cases. However, after rising to become Britain’s most valuable company last summer, the company has now slipped to sixth, in a move some analysts attribute to doubts over the vaccine. “In a year or two we will look back and everybody will realise we made a big impact,” Soriot said. AstraZeneca’s shares were up 0.95% in afternoon trade, pairing some earlier gains, after the company forecast a pick up in earnings growth this year on strong demand for its cancer and other new therapies. It has pledged not to make any money from its COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic. It has been a tumultuous week for the drugmaker after South Africa put on hold giving the shot to its citizens, choosing one developed by its U.S. rival Johnson & Johnson instead. That came after the trial data raised concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine’s effectiveness on mild symptoms from the more infectious 501Y.V2 variant of the virus dominant in South Africa, which has spread to 41 nations around the world. Despite that blow, the World Health Organization endorsed the British vaccine on Wednesday and the African Union (AU) said it would target its use in countries tha
Hundreds of Ethiopians gathered Thursday to donate blood for troops fighting in the northern Tigray region, as officials tried to rally support for a week-old conflict Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said was going his way.
The government also announced that police had arrested 150 people in the capital suspected of trying to carry out \"terror attacks\" on the orders of Tigray's ruling party.
Prime Minister Abiy blames the Tigray ruling party for a conflict that analysts fear could spiral into a protracted civil war.
Hundreds have died and thousands have fled the country since Abiy, last year's Nobel Peace Prize winner, sent troops and warplanes into Tigray last week after a months-long feud with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).
Abiy said the TPLF -- which dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly three decades before he took office in 2018 -- had crossed a \"red line\" and attacked two federal military bases, which the party denies.
Thursday's blood drive was organised by the office of Addis Ababa Mayor Adanech Abebe, who claimed the population was unified against the TPLF while donating blood herself.
\"The aim of this blood donation is to express our respect for our army,\" she told journalists as a nurse drew blood from her left arm.
\"The attack done by TPLF to our army is shameful for Ethiopia. Never happened in our history. We want to condemn this.\"
Tigray has been under a communications blackout since the military operation was launched on November 4, making it difficult to verify the situation on the ground as both sides make conflicting claims.
In a Facebook post Thursday, Abiy said government forces had \"liberated\" the western zone of Tigray -- made up of six zones, plus the capital and surrounds.
Abiy also accused TPLF-aligned fighters of \"cruelty\", saying that when the army took control of the town of Sheraro they \"found bodies of executed defence force personnel whose hands and feet were tied\". There was no immediate reaction from the TPLF.
Under Abiy, Tigray's leaders have complained of being unfairly targeted in corruption prosecutions and removed from top positions.
Tensions soared as Tigray defiantly held its own elections in September, insisting Abiy was an illegitimate leader after national polls were postponed due to the coronavirus.
-'Rule of law'-
The conflict has seen multiple rounds of airstrikes targeting arms and fuel depots along with heavy fighting in western Tigray.
The UN said Wednesday some 11,000 Ethiopians had sought refuge in neighbouring Sudan, and Ethiopia has acknowledged some of its troops at one point retreated into neighbouring Eritrea, highlighting the conflict's potential to draw in the wider Horn of Africa region.
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, quoted by state news agency SUNA as he hosted Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh, on Wednesday called for a \"stop to the fighting as soon as possible\" and a return to the negotiating table.
The African Union has also called for an immediate stop to fighting and for dialogue, as internationa
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Many articles and statistics show that African-American … at least two African-American teachers. African-American teachers have a … the opportunities that African-American students receive. The …
[HRW] Johannesburg -- Independent, Thorough Investigation Needed
[Shabait] Asmara, 08 December 2020 - An Eritrean Delegation led by Ambassador Araia Desta, Permanent Representative of Eritrea to African Union and UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), participated at the 21st AU Executive Ministerial Council meeting as well as at the two extraordinary sessions of the African Union Assembly held on 2, 5 and 6 December consecutively.
[SAnews.gov.za] African Union (AU) Chairperson President Cyril Ramaphosa will today chair the second mid-year coordination meeting between the AU, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), Regional Mechanisms (RMs) and Member States.
Country receives 200,000 jabs from state-owned Chinese manufacturer, with 600 000 expected to arrive next month.
[New Times] As African countries kick off trading under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, President Paul Kagame has welcomed the latest development.
[This Day] The government of Estonia has invited the Chairman of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria and Heirs Holdings, Mr. Tony Elumelu, as one of the panelists in an online cross-continental hackathon titled: \"EU-Africa: The Post Crisis Journey.\"
Police violence has a long history in the United States and remains a pervasive problem to this day. As recent research by Human Rights Watch has shown, it is inextricably linked to deep and persisting racial inequities and economic class divisions. For reform efforts to be meaningful and effective, they need to address those societal conditions.
[HRW] Geneva -- Follow Up Universal Periodic Review with Concrete Action
The Al Hol refugee camp in Syria and others are home to several T&T detainees after the fall of the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group. One woman (name unknown) has now written to Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley appealing for the state to bring her and her five children home.
Presidents from five West African countries are stepping up efforts to end a crisis in Mali which threatens to topple the President of that troubled country. The five regional leaders, Malian government officials and members [...]
Watch BET UK on Sky 173, Virgin 184 Freesat 140
[East African] The death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis earlier this year sparked a global protest movement for racial justice in America. Under the banner of Black Lives Matter, protesters marched in New York, London, Cape Town, Berlin, and other cities around the world.
[The Herald] In his address to the extraordinary AU summit on Sunday themed \"Silencing the Guns\", President Mnangagwa outlined a multi-pronged approach to resolve conflict and deal with threats from gangs of terrorists or criminals.
[Nation] Kenyan Journalist Yassin Juma has refuted claims that he opted to stay in Ethiopia, where he was arrested and detained for 49 days on several charges.
Seven-time Olympian Seiko Hashimoto has been appointed as the president of the Tokyo 2020 organising committee after the resignation of Yoshiro Mori.
[Capital FM] Nairobi -- ODM Leader Raila Odinga is urging President Uhuru Kenyatta to consult widely before making a decision on the Chief Justice David Maraga's advice to dissolve Parliament over the two-thirds gender rule.
“These books portray people in ways that are hurtful.”
[The Exchange] The African Development Bank's Board of Directors approved $27.33 million in grants to help the African Union (AU) to mobilize a continental response to control the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.
