KENYAN President William Ruto on Thursday named Charles Muriu Kahariri as defence chief after the death of his predecessor in a helicopter crash. He replaces Francis Omondi Ogolla who was among 10 military officers killed when their chopper went down in a remote area of northwestern Kenya on April 18. Kahariri had previously served as deputy to Ogolla, 62, who had been Chief of Defence Forces for a year and was about to mark 40 years of military service. A former Kenya Navy deputy commander, Kahariri joined the Kenya Defence Forces in April 1987, rising through the ranks during “his…
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THE US is still engaged with Niger and Chad, despite withdrawing troops from the countries, the head of the US Africa Command has told the BBC. On Wednesday, dozens of US troops left Chad after the country’s military leaders raised concerns over their presence ahead of the 6 May elections. Gen Michael Langley told the BBC it was a “temporary repositioning” of troops. Last month, US troops left neighbouring Niger after being ordered out by the country’s junta. Russian military instructors have arrived in Niger as part of a new agreement with the military leaders. Several other military-led countries in…
THE Manchester United loanee breezed past Paris St-Germain defenders time and time again as Borussia Dortmund took a slender 1-0 advantage in the Champions League semi-final first leg and left many Man Utd fans asking why their club could not get the best out of the forward. The 24-year-old had completed more dribbles by half-time in front of Dortmund’s raucous ‘Yellow Wall’ on Wednesday than he managed in any of his 58 appearances in the Premier League as he showed signs of being the player United paid Dortmund £73m for in July 2021. His high-profile move to Old Trafford saw…
UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says Israel “impeded” and “denied” a significant number of aid missions to north Gaza in April, and that despite the opening of new aid crossing, six months of starvation cannot be ended without a consistent supply of aid. The Beit Hanoon (Erez) crossing, the Gaza Strip’s northern border crossing with Israel, has been opened for the first time since October 7, admitting a convoy of 31 aid trucks from Jordan. Meanwhile, Fifty-seven US House Democrats have signed an open letter calling for President Joe Biden’s administration to take every possible measure to…
FOR 98-year-old Lidiia Lomikovska, Russia’s invasion is worse than the Second World War, which she also lived through. She’s learnt to trust her instincts. It’s why when Russian forces entered her home village of Ocheretyne in eastern Ukraine, she and her family decided it was time to go. However, under heavy shelling, Lidiia soon became separated from her relatives, so started walking west in her slippers. “I took a stick and a plank of wood [for support] and made my way,” she told the BBC. “My legs were carrying me somehow; I wasn’t carrying them!” She would end up walking…
GHANA’s Asante King on Wednesday displayed for the first time dozens of royal artefacts looted during colonial rule, after they were returned by British museums on a long-term loan as part of his silver jubilee celebrations. The British Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum earlier this year agreed to give back 32 gold and silver treasures pillaged by British military forces from Asante leader Asantehene’s court during the 19th-century Anglo-Asante Wars. They include the sword of the state known as Mpomponsuo and the gold badges of officials authorised to purify the king’s soul. The collection also features a gold…
NEARLY a hundred tourists are among people marooned after rivers overflowed in Kenya’s famed Maasai Mara wildlife reserve following a heavy downpour, a local administrator said Wednesday. Torrential rains, amplified by the El Nino weather pattern, have lashed much of the East African country and destroyed roads, bridges and other infrastructure. “Approximately 100 or more tourists” were stranded in more than a dozen lodges and camps, Narok West sub-county administrator Stephen Nakola told AFP. “That is the preliminary number as of now because some of the camps are inaccessible,” he said. The world-famous Maasai Mara, in southwestern Kenya, is a…
SUPER Falcons’ Chiamaka Nnadozie has clinched the best goalkeeper award in the French women’s league. The Nigerian defeated Olympique Lyon’s Christiane Endler and Paris Saint-Germain’s Katarzyna Kiedryznek to claim the prize on Monday night. She was also named in the team of the season, capping off a thrilling night for the 23-year-old shot-stopper. An excited Chiamaka took to social media to express happiness over the feat, thanking her teammates and coaches. “Excited to have won the French D1 Arkema Goalkeeper of the Year. A big thanks to everyone who voted for me and also a special appreciation to my coaches…
PRIME Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has renewed his promise that Israel will launch a ground assault on Rafah in southern Gaza amid shaky ongoing truce talks to reach a ceasefire deal. Netanyahu on Tuesday said Israel will destroy Hamas’ battalions there “with or without a deal” to achieve “total victory” in the nearly seven-month war. Israel and Hamas are negotiating a potential ceasefire agreement and an exchange of hostages held by Palestinian groups in Gaza for prisoners held in Israeli jails. “The idea that we will stop the war before achieving all of its goals is out of the question. We…
THOUSANDS of people have been evacuated and flights disrupted after Indonesia’s Mount Ruang erupted again, sending thick clouds of ash more than 5km (3 miles) into the sky. Officials said the volcano in the archipelago’s North Sulawesi province erupted at least three times on Tuesday, prompting fears debris might fall into the sea and cause a tsunami. Footage shared by Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency (BNPB) showed strikes of lightning flashing above Ruang’s crater as fiery red clouds of lava and rocks were thrown into the air. The agency said that all 843 residents living on Ruang Island, where the volcano…
STATE TV in Mali says a senior Islamic State commander who had a $5m (£4m) US bounty on his head has been killed by a force including troops from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Abu Huzaifa had been linked to several high-profile raids in the Sahel region. This included a 2017 attack which killed four American soldiers and several troops from Niger. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have all suffered from relentless attacks by jihadist fighters. All three countries are under military rule and have been developing close links with Russia while cutting ties with Western allies including the US.…
BRITAIN on Tuesday imposed sanctions on several Ugandan politicians, including the speaker of the East African country’s parliament, following claims of corruption. London said it was the first time its new “global anti-corruption sanctions regime” had been used on individuals facing corruption claims in Uganda, and that it was part of a worldwide crackdown. Anita Among, the speaker of the Ugandan parliament, was one of three people targeted with the UK travel bans and asset freezes. The other two — Mary Goretti Kitutu and Agnes Nandutu — were previously ministers responsible for Uganda’s isolated and impoverished border region of Karamoja.…
ENGLAND may have no Premier League clubs left in the Champions League but two of the country’s biggest stars will go head to head for a place in the competition’s final. Three Lions captain Harry Kane has been prolific for Bayern Munich despite the German giants failing to win the Bundesliga for the first time in 12 years. Jude Bellingham, meanwhile, has lit up the Bernabeu during his debut season at Real Madrid. England boss Gareth Southgate will no doubt be among the keenest of observers when the pair meet in the first leg in Munich on Tuesday. Both men…
ISRAELI airstrikes killed at least 40 Palestinians on Monday, with more than half of the dead in the southern Gaza city of Rafah where bombs hit three houses, medics said, as Hamas leaders arrived in Cairo for a new round of truce talks. In Gaza City, in the north of the Gaza Strip, Israeli warplanes struck two houses, killing at least six people and wounding several others, health officials said. With nightfall, an Israeli air strike on a house in the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza Strip killed three Palestinians, including a local journalist, medics and Hamas media said.…
THE first members of a far-right group that allegedly plotted to attack the German parliament and overthrow the government will go on trial in Stuttgart on Monday. Nine suspected participants in the coup plot will take the stand in the first set of proceedings to open in the sprawling court case, split among three courts in three cities. The suspects are accused of having participated in the “military arm” of the organisation led by the minor aristocrat and businessman Prince Heinrich XIII Reuss. The alleged plot is the most high-profile recent case of far-right violence, which officials say has grown…
SOUTH Africa’s scandal-hit ex-president Jacob Zuma has made a surprise comeback by running in May’s elections against his former party, the ruling African National Congress (ANC). Zuma, the fourth president of democratic South Africa between 2009 and 2018, was forced from office under a slew of graft allegations. He is still facing trial on corruption charges. In 2021, he was briefly jailed for contempt of court after refusing to appear before a corruption inquiry. Sentenced to 15 months, Zuma spent only two months behind bars. He was released initially for health reasons, after which President Cyril Ramaphosa commuted his sentence.…
THE European Union (EU) says it will restrict visa provisions for Ethiopian nationals because of the lack of cooperation from the government to take back citizens who overstay illegally. In a statement released on Monday, the EU council said it would no longer issue multiple entry visas to Ethiopians. It added that it would also stop waiving the visa fee for Ethiopian holders of diplomatic and service passports. The visa processing would extend from 15 days to 45 days, the EU said. Ethiopian authorities are yet to comment on the matter. The move comes after the EU concluded that “cooperation…
PARIS St-Germain have won their third consecutive Ligue 1 title after second-placed Monaco fell to a 3-2 defeat against Lyon. PSG are 12 points clear and cannot be caught with just three games remaining. Malick Fofana scored the winner for Lyon on Sunday, with the 19-year-old slotting home from close range late on. PSG had the chance to seal the title with victory on Saturday but could only manage a draw against relegation-threatened Le Havre. It is PSG’s 12th Ligue 1 title and their 10th in the past 11 years. Luis Enrique’s side will now turn their attentions to winning…
PALESTINIAN President Mahmoud Abbas says the US is the only country that can stop Israel from attacking Rafah, the southern Gaza city where more than a million people are taking refuge. Mr Abbas, who runs parts of the occupied West Bank, said any attack could see Palestinians flee Gaza. Israel has consistently vowed to carry out an offensive in Rafah. US President Joe Biden “reiterated his clear position” on Rafah to Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu in a call on Sunday. The US has repeatedly said it cannot support a large-scale Israeli military operation in Rafah without seeing a credible plan…
THE Duke of Sussex will return to the UK in just over a week for a ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games. Prince Harry will attend the thanksgiving service at St Paul’s Cathedral, London, on 8 May. The prince will give a reading during the service, while actor Damian Lewis will recite a poem. Prince Harry was last seen in the UK in February for a brief visit to see King Charles after his cancer diagnosis. It is the first major event he will have attended in the UK for some time. The prince launched the Invictus…