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Opposition Senator Peter Bunting led efforts in the Senate on Friday to push back against the move by the Government to give China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) the contract to build the multibillion-dollar Montego Bay Perimeter Project....
Abiy's government and the regional one run by the Tigray People's Liberation Front each consider the other illegitimate.
\t There was no immediate word from the three AU envoys, former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former Mozambique President Joaquim Chissano and former South African President Kgalema Motlanthe. AU spokeswoman Ebba Kalondo did not say whether they can meet with TPLF leaders, something Abiy's office has rejected.
\"``Not possible,'' senior Ethiopian official Redwan Hussein said in a message to the AP. ``\"Above all, TPLF leadership is still at large.'' He called reports that the TPLF had appointed an envoy to discuss an immediate cease-fire with the international community ``masquerading.''
\t Fighting reportedly remained well outside the Tigray capital of Mekele, a densely populated city of a half-million people who have been warned by the Ethiopian government that they will be shown ``no mercy'' if they don't distance themselves from the region's leaders.
\t Tigray has been almost entirely cut off from the outside world since Nov. 4, when Abiy announced a military offensive in response to a TPLF attack on a federal army base.
That makes it difficult to verify claims about the fighting, but humanitarians have said at least hundreds of people have been killed.
\t The fighting threatens to destabilize Ethiopia, which has been described as the linchpin of the strategic Horn of Africa.
\t With transport links cut, food and other supplies are running out in Tigray, home to 6 million people, and the United Nations has asked for immediate and unimpeded access for aid.
AP
ZIMBABWE’s leader, Emmerson Mnangagwa was sworn in as President on November 24, 2017 to replace Robert Mugabe who was deposed through a military coup. November 24 marked exactly three years since the assumption of Mnangagwa as the President of Zimbabwe. The unfortunate events of November 2017 will forever be remembered as the time that Zimbabwe kissed “democracy” goodbye, with the military apparatchiks taking control in the running of the central government. While a majority of Zimbabweans wanted Mugabe to go, we became blind, and we wanted him to go by any means necessary, at the same time allowing the opportunistic Mnangagwa and his generals to hijack the people’s emotions and modelled the whole operation as a “peoples revolution”. To some, seeing the back of Mugabe signalled a “new dawn”, some called it “independence day”, while the architects of the coup coined it a “new dispensation,” a desperate tact to sanitise the unconstitutional removal of a sitting Head of State. A majority of coups in Africa have failed to produce democratic dispensations, ours was not an exception, examples being Equatorial Guinea, Uganda, Djibouti, the Republic of Congo, Mauritania, Sudan and Chad. It was clear from the onset that Operation Restore Legacy had nothing to do with the revival of the economy, ending corruption, political reforms to move Zimbabwe into a democratic order were the rule of law is respected with citizens enjoying civil liberties. In his article, Jonathan Moyo referred to seven key demands made by the military on November 16, 2017 to Mugabe through the then Commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, General Constantino Chiwenga, to justify Operation Restore Legacy. Where we so naive not to read through Chiwenga's speech to understand that the military had stepped into the internal affairs of a political party? Instead, we jubilated and in our different corners showering praises to the military which was busy violating the Constitution of the land. That is the very day that our political consciousness vanished into thin air. We were too desperate, too excited, we suspended logic and indeed it was a celebration of half time oranges before the trophy. We are in a fix and have no one to blame except ourselves as Mnangagwa and his henchmen are now in firm control of the levers of power. From the day they got into power they have been using every instrument available to close the democratic space, arrests, abductions and disappearances are now the order of the day. The new dispensation appears to be on a warpath aimed at muzzling opposition. The Constitution has literally been suspended with statutory instruments being used to maintain Zanu PF hold on power. Parliament has since been made a joke, with recalls and swearing-in of losing candidates in the 2018 elections. What a shame! The proposed amendments to the Constitution are a calculated attempt to impose a one-party State system of governance in Zimbabwe and the citizens must be alert and defend the constitution. The Judiciary is now heavily compromised, passing bi
The real endgame for President Donald Trump’s lawyers is to throw the 2020 election into the U.S. House of Representatives, where Trump would prevail, says former Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has met with African Union envoys to discuss the conflict in Tigray.
For New Yorkers Edward and Paula Baldrian, their happy place is somewhere in the Caribbean, under the roof of a Sandals Resort and amongst the staff members who they call family.
[This Day] The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday exchanged brickbats of allegations that some opposition bigwigs are planning to join the ruling party.
It was late on the first Tuesday in November, and Captain Hussen Besheir, an Ethiopian federal soldier, was on duty at a guard post outside the military camp in Dansha.
It was close to midnight when he saw headlights approaching.
Ten armed members of the Tigrayan special forces got out of the vehicle and demanded to see the camp's commander.
\"'We're not here for you',\" Hussen recalled them saying. \"'We want to talk to the leaders.'\"
Hussen refused. An argument ensued and gunfire rang out.
They were the first shots in a conflict that has since engulfed northern Ethiopia's Tigray region, killing many hundreds of people and forcing tens of thousands from their homes.
This week AFP visited the Dansha barracks, home to the Fifth Battalion of the Northern Command of the Ethiopian military, after gaining rare access to Tigray, where a near-complete communications blackout has been in place since the fighting began.
Shell casings littered the camp's grounds, and bullet holes were punched in the walls of buildings and sides of military trucks.
A metal sign at the entrance reading, \"We need to protect the constitution from anti-development forces and lead our country to renaissance,\" was so perforated with gunfire as to be almost illegible.
'Betrayal'
Hussen and others described hours-long rifle and grenade battles against fighters loyal to the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), including special forces and militiamen, joined by some federal soldiers of Tigrayan ethnicity who turned against their comrades.
Echoing a statement from Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Hussen said soldiers \"were killed in their pyjamas\", adding, \"What happened here is even worse than that.\"
\"Betrayal alone wouldn't describe the feeling that I have. These are soldiers who have been eating and drinking with us,\" he said of those former federal troops who allegedly turned their guns against them.
The government in Addis Ababa has claimed the attack on Dansha - and a simultaneous assault on another barracks in the regional capital Mekele - as justification for its military offensive in Tigray since November 4.
It points to an interview on Tigrayan media in which a prominent TPLF supporter, said a pre-emptive strike was \"imperative\".
\"Should we be waiting for them to launch attacks first? No,\" said Sekuture Getachew, in the interview, which Abiy's office has called a \"confession\".
Confrontation between Abiy and the TPLF was a long time coming. The TPLF dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly three decades until anti-government protests swept Abiy to power in 2018.
Since then the TPLF has complained of being sidelined and scapegoated for the country's woes.
The rift widened after Ethiopia postponed national elections because of the coronavirus pandemic. Tigray went ahead with its own vote, then branded Abiy an illegitimate ruler.
Ethnic forces
Tadilo Tamiru, a sergeant in the government-aligned Amhara special forces, was 50 kilometres to the south with his 170-strong unit, in a small town along the bo
… Troops, a unit composed of African Americans from New York, and a …
CHURCHES have started lobbying for a parliamentary seat to have issues affecting their constituency debated.The church representative organisations made the call in Bulawayo on Tuesday during a meeting between civic society organisations (CSOs) and Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda. BY PRAISEMORE SITHOLE CSOs and the media were drawn from Matabeleland North, South and Bulawayo province. Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) representative, Samuel Mabvundu said the church was socially conscious and should be represented in Parliament. “Over 80% of Zimbabweans are Christians and therefore there is need for representation in that regard. You find Christianity dominating in public gatherings while it is only the traditional leaders who are given room in Parliament,” Mabvundu said. “I think we also need representation from the Christianity side. We now need to change that mentality. Instead of the church standing up, we need to be there as it happens, rather than standing up later when things have fallen apart.” Another ZCC member only identified as Manjengwa said there was need for churches to have a seat in Parliament. “My issue is on people who are represented in Parliament. You spoke of chiefs, the disabled, but there is no church representatives. Where are they? You never mentioned them? Is it that you do not want them to be represented in Parliament?” Manjengwa asked. In response, Mudenda said if the church engages into politics, who would help people to turn away from sin? “You cannot serve two masters. You either serve God or Caesar, but this is not to say you cannot be a politician. What you can do is appeal to the President that of those five ministers selected by the President, one of the reverends then becomes a minister,” Mudenda said. “When one becomes the minister, he then leaves the collar. Things will not fall apart when the church is not in Parliament. Things fall apart when the church is not praying for politicians. Every Sunday, congregants have to be reminded to stop sinning, so when you are in politics this then becomes difficult.” Mudenda said it was, however, possible for a pastor to become a politician as portrayed by the Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera. Last week, Zanu PF Harare women’s league chairperson Betty Nhambu-Kaseke said there was need for the church to be fully incorporated into the National Development Strategy One launched by President Emmerson Mnangagwa. lFollow Praisemore on Twitter @TPraisemore
By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent@StacyBrownMedia Perhaps a single sobering Twitter post best summed up the state of America on the morning following an Election Night that’s far too close to call — and frustratingly so. “This was a referendum on the potential for a fundamental shift in that perspective,” Actress and […]
The post The Presidential Race Might be Too Close to Call, but the ‘Projected Winner is Racism’ appeared first on The Toledo Journal.
Nine-year-old Raje Josephs has been battling with stage four Hodgkin’s lymphoma for more than a year and is in urgent need of a life-saving bone marrow transplant after undergoing nine cycles of chemotherapy and 26 cycles of radiation. Cancer of...
… L. Fudge of Ohio, an African-American Democrat from Ohio.
Mr. Clyburn … owes a special debt to African-American voters, and that he wants …
Minister of Higher Education Blade Nzimande, on Thursday morning, announced a new NSFAS Board made up of 13 members, as well as, a new CEO.
The Patterson Family Foundation has stepped in to assist young learners of a small Hanover community by donating 30 tablets to students of the Church Hill Primary School. This private family philanthropy project is headed by former Prime Minister,...
The Ethiopian army has blocked one of the main roads leading to its border with Sudan, preventing Ethiopians fleeing the war in Tigray from reaching the neighboring country, according to refugees who arrived Thursday at the Lugdi border crossing in eastern Sudan.
\"The Ethiopian army has cut the road leading to the Sudanese border at the locality of Humera (20 km from the border) and those seeking to reach Sudan must avoid the main road and pass through the fields without being seen by soldiers,\" Tesfai Burhano, who had just arrived in Lugdi, told AFP.
On Thursday, the border post was empty and no Ethiopian soldiers were visible. An AFP reporter saw about ten refugees crossing the border while he was there.
The number of Ethiopian refugees fleeing to Sudan has dropped significantly over the past week, according to figures from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). On Wednesday, the UN agency counted 718 arrivals, compared to 3,813 on November 21.
Communications are cut in Tigray, making it difficult to verify some claims.
A Sudanese security official confirmed the drop in refugee arrivals to AFP, without giving any explanation.
Aid given to 'liberated areas'
The United Nations on Thursday said Tigray region was experiencing 'critical shortages' of food, fuel, and cash.
But Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office said on Thursday that the federal government had begun distributing food and other relief items in areas controlled by the national army.
“This humanitarian assistance will now be further reinforced with the opening of a humanitarian access route to be managed under the auspices of the Ministry of Peace”, said a statement from Abiy's office.
According to the UNHCR, 42,651 refugees have arrived in Sudan since the start of the deadly conflict in Tigray, 70% of them via Hamdayit, in the Sudanese province of Kassala, the rest via Gadarif.
Battle for Mekelle
Reports said heavy battles raged Thursday for control of Mekelle, capital of Tigray state. Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the region's governing had reportedly mobilized and armed thousands of men.
The Tigray region of northern Ethiopia has been the scene of fierce fighting since Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched a military operation there on November 4, accusing leaders of the Tigray People's Liberation Front of seeking to destabilize the federal government and of attacking two Ethiopian military bases in the region, which the Tigrayan authorities deny.
AFP
[Nation] A phone call from State House and a meeting at ODM party leader Raila Odinga's Capitol Hill office sealed the fate of beleaguered Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko, setting in motion a fresh plan to remove him from office.
Georgia Sen. David Perdue will go head-to-head with Jon Ossoff in the 2020 U.S. Senate runoff race in January. In... View Article
The post Georgia Sen. David Perdue's stock trades sparked federal inquiry appeared first on TheGrio.
WESTERN BUREAU: Everald Warmington, the minister without portfolio with responsibility for works in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, says a big effort will be made to ease the plight of farmers by rehabilitating the damaged road...
Prime Minister Andrew Holness yesterday announced that the security forces would be bolstered by the roll-out of the national reserves this Christmas season. “In our discussions yesterday (Thursday) at the National Security Council meeting, we...
