IGIHE

Author: Théophile Niyitegeka

  • Gaza-Israel border shut after Mazen Faqha killing

    {Hamas closes northern Gaza crossing ‘until further notice’, as it reflects on Mazen Faqha’s killing, blamed on Israel.}

    Hamas authorities have shut the Gaza border with Israel after the killing of a senior commander, which Hamas blamed on “Israel and its collaborators”.

    The rare measure reflected Hamas’ shock after the killing of Mazen Faqha , who was found shot dead at the entrance of his Gaza City home late on Friday.

    Hamas Interior Ministry spokesman Iyad al-Bozum on Sunday announced (Arabic) that the Beit Hanoun checkpoint, which faces the Israeli crossing of Erez in the north of the Gaza Strip, would be closed until further notice.

    “In light of the humanitarian situation, only the residents of Gaza with humanitarian cases will be allowed to return to Gaza via the Beit Hanoun checkpoint,” Bozum said.

    Hamas’ foreign ministry clarified in a press release on Monday that it would allow the families of prisoners, people seeking medical care, women, and all males under the age of 15 and over the age of 45 to exit Gaza through the Beit Hanoun checkpoint.

    Hamas security services are investigating the circumstances of Faqha’s killing.

    Bozum called on Gaza’s citizens and media to be responsible in dealing with the event and not to circulate rumours about the incident.

    Mahmoud al-Zahar, a senior Hamas official, told Al Jazeera that Hamas will not announce how it plans to respond to the assassination, but the “blood of our people will not go in vain, especially in a crime this big”.

    On whether the group plans to respond militarily, al-Zahar said, “This is a security issue that we cannot disclose. But for sure, the Israeli entity will be punished and deterred.”

    Hamas, the group that rules Gaza, said Faqha was shot four times in the head with a silenced gun. The group said that Israel and its “collaborators” were responsible for the killing.

    “No one would benefit from this crime except the Zionist enemy and not to mention, the Zionist enemy announced in all of its media that the leader, Mazen Faqha, is on the top of the wanted list,” senior Hamas official Salah al-Bardawil told Al Jazeera.

    “The Palestinian resistance has its methods and the capacity to respond,” al-Bardawil said.

    “The punishment will be of the same nature as the attack. The matter is now in the resistance movement’s hands,” he added.

    READ MORE: Hamas blames Israel after Mazen Faqha assassination

    Faqha, 38, was a senior Hamas official in the Israeli-occupied West Bank when he was jailed by Israel in 2003 for planning attacks against Israelis.

    He was sentenced to nine life terms but was released into the Gaza Strip as one of more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners that Israel let go in exchange for soldier Gilad Shalit.

    Shalit was held in the coastal enclave after being seized in a cross-border raid in 2006.

    An Israeli military spokeswoman declined to comment on the assassination in the Hamas-run Palestinian coastal enclave, which has been under Israeli blockade since 2006.

    The Islamic Jihad movement said Faqha’s assassination marked the beginning of “a new offensive” by Israel against the Palestinian resistance, and that the resistance had the right to respond and defend itself.

    Thousands poured into the streets of Gaza for the funeral of Mazen Faqha

    Source:Al Jazeera

  • Uber stops self-driving cars test programmme after Arizona crash

    {Uber has grounded its fleet of self-driving cars pending an investigation into the crash of an Uber autonomous vehicle in Arizona, a spokesperson for the car-hailing service said on Sunday.}

    No one was seriously injured in the accident which occurred on Friday in Tempe, Arizona while the vehicle was in self-driving mode, the company said.

    “We are continuing to look into this incident and can confirm we had no backseat passengers in the vehicle,” the Uber spokesperson said.

    The accident occurred when the other vehicle “failed to yield” while making a left turn, Tempe police spokeswoman Josie Montenegros said.

    “The vehicles collided causing the autonomous vehicle to roll onto its side. There were no serious injuries,” she said.

    Self-driving Uber vehicles always have a driver who can take over the controls at any time.

    Montenegro said it was uncertain whether the Uber driver was controlling the vehicle at the time of the collision.

    The company grounded its self-driving vehicles in Arizona after the accident and then followed up pulling them off the road in Pittsburg and San Francisco, the two other locations where it operates self-driving vehicles, the company said.

    Uber has been dogged by problems in recent weeks, including the sudden, unexplained resignation of company President Jeff Jones, allegations of sexual harassment, and a lawsuit filed by Google alleging Uber stole trade secrets.

    A number of executives have left the company in recent weeks, including Uber president, Jeff Jones, as troubles have mounted.

    Advocates of self-driving cars say that they can cut down on deadly traffic accidents by eliminating human error.

    But there have been accidents, including a fatality in Florida in May when a truck struck a speeding Tesla that was on autopilot.

    An investigation found no safety-related defects with the autopilot system, but concluded that the driver may have had time to avert the crash if he had been paying closer attention.

    Source:Al Jazeera

  • Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny detained in Moscow rally

    {The coordinated protests called by opposition leader Alexei Navalny are some of the largest in Russia since 2011-12.}

    Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and dozens of others have been arrested as thousands of people across Russia defied bans on rallies to protest against government corruption.

    The demonstrations on Sunday were organised by Navalny, a Kremlin critic and anti-corruption campaigner, who urged people to take to the streets to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

    “Don’t try to fight for me,” Navalny wrote on Twitter after police in Moscow put him in a minibus, urging people to stay with the rally. “Our issue today is the fight against corruption.”

    Navalny called for the protests after publishing a detailed report this month accusing Medvedev of controlling a property empire through a shadowy network of non-profit organisations.

    Medvedev, who has so far made no comments on the claims, is accused of amassing a private collection of mansions, yachts and vineyards. As the alleged luxuries include a house for raising ducks, many of the placards in the protests showed mocking images of yellow toy ducks.

    The protests, which attracted crowds of hundreds or thousands in most sizeable Russian cities, were the largest coordinated outpourings of dissatisfaction in Russia since mass protests in 2011-2012.

    Navalny’s website had previously said that more than 80 towns and cities across Russia would hold protests on Sunday and that authorities had not sanctioned the majority of the rallies.

    Al Jazeera’s Rory Challands, reporting from Moscow, said the “big story” of the day was the number of demonstrations taking place across Russia.

    “That is rare,” he said. “This suggest that Alexei Navalny’s anti-corruption message is really resonating at the moment in Russia, in a way that more generalised anti-government messages don’t.

    “When people feel like the politicians above them are cheating them, that it seems is when Russians get angry and stand up and do something.”

    Russian authorities had warned Navalny’s supporters on Friday not to attend the rally because the event had not been sanctioned by the city administration.

    The Russian constitution allows public gatherings but recent laws have criminalised protests not authorised by city authorities, who frequently refuse to grant permission for rallies by Kremlin critics.

    In the far eastern city of Vladivostok, a Reuters news agency reporter saw the arrest of at least 30 protesters at an unsanctioned rally drawing hundreds of young people to a square near the city’s railway station.

    The arrests started after protesters unfurled banners reading “Corruption steals our future” and “The prime minister should answer”.

    The protesters then marched to a police station to demand that those arrested be freed.

    Hundreds also rallied in the city of Yekaterinburg in the industrial Urals region.

    Witnesses said at least four people holding banners were arrested on the city’s Labour Square, where opposition protesters, nationalists and supporters of the pro-Kremlin United Russia party gathered.

    Police said 500 to 700 people had gathered on Labour Square but did not confirm that there had been any detentions.

    “Corruption affects every person. The fight against corruption can unite all people irrespective of their convictions,” 20-year-old student Ivan told Reuters, asking that his last name not be published.

    Some demonstrators have protested with their faces painted green, a reference to a recent attack on Navalny when an assailant threw a green anti-septic liquid in his face.

    In February, a Russian court found Navalny guilty in a retrial of a 2013 fraud case, which barred him from running for president next year.

    Judge Alexei Vtyurin handed down a five-year suspended prison sentence and a fine of about $8,500 to Navalny for embezzling timber worth about $500,000.

    Navalny, 40, pledged to appeal against the “politically motivated” ruling and continue with his plans of challenging President Vladimir Putin in the forthcoming presidential elections, even though the Russian law bars anyone convicted of a crime from running for a public office for 10 years.

    Source:Al Jazeera

  • South Sudan ambush leaves six aid workers dead, UN says

    {Six aid workers have been killed in an ambush in South Sudan, the UN says, in the deadliest single incident for humanitarians since the country’s civil war began.}

    The “heinous murder” occurred on Saturday, said Eugene Owusu, the UN’s humanitarian chief in South Sudan.

    The UN did not say who the victims were or what aid agency they worked for.

    They were traveling between Juba, the capital, and the town of Pibor.

    At least 79 aid workers have been killed in South Sudan since the conflict started in December 2013, the UN says.

    “These attacks against aid workers and aid assets are utterly reprehensible,” said Mr Owusu. “They not only put the lives of aid workers at risk, they also threaten the lives of thousands of South Sudanese who rely on our assistance for their survival.”

    He called on “all those in positions of power” to stop such attacks and end “the impunity that has prevailed”.

    Two other attacks have targeted aid workers this month, according to the UN. A humanitarian convoy was attacked while responding to a cholera outbreak in Yirol East on 14 March, with one health worker and one patient killed.

    On 10 March, local staff of an international aid organisation were detained by armed rebels during fighting in Mayendit town for four days before being released.

    A man-made famine has been declared in some areas of South Sudan, and the UN says around 7.5m people are in need of humanitarian assistance.

    Ethnic violence has dominated the crisis in South Sudan, which became an independent nation in 2011. The civil war began as a dispute between the Dinka President Salva Kiir, and former Vice-President Riek Machar who is Nuer.

    On Thursday, UN peacekeepers protected up to 1,000 civilians in Pibor who feared they would be attacked after earlier clashes between different clans.

    South Sudan is in a state of crisis after more than three years of civil war

    Source:BBC

  • Egypt convicts 56 over migrant boat sinking that killed 200

    {An Egyptian court has sentenced 56 people to prison over the capsizing of a migrant boat that killed more than 200 people in September.}

    They were given sentences of up to 14 years, and the convictions included murder, manslaughter and negligence.

    The boat was bound for Italy when it sank eight miles (12km) off the Egyptian port city of Rosetta.

    Some 450 migrants were estimated to have been crowded aboard, including around 100 trapped in its hold.

    There were 163 survivors, mostly Egyptian. Syrian, Sudanese, Eritrean and Somali migrants had also been on board.

    Survivors said the boat had been kept off the coast for five days before departure, so that more migrants could be brought aboard.

    The boat capsized after a final group of some 150 people were brought onto the vessel, they said.

    A total of 57 people were charged, but one woman was acquitted. The lesser charges included not using sufficient rescue equipment, endangering lives, receiving money from the victims, hiding suspects from authorities, and using a vessel without a licence.

    Of the 5,096 refugees and migrants reported dead or missing at sea last year, 90% travelled along the Mediterranean sea route to Italy, according to the UN’s refugee agency.

    Survivors of the wreck described overcrowding on board

    Source:BBC

  • KDF raid Al-Shabaab bases, kill 31 terrorists

    {Kenyan soldiers have killed 31 Al-Shabaab terrorists after raiding their base in Baadhade, Somalia.}

    Eleven AK-47 riffles, four improvised explosives, communication equipment, food and military uniforms were seized.

    Also seized at the bases used as command and logistics centres in Jubbaland district were 634 bullets and two anti-tank machine guns, military spokesman Joseph Owuoth has confirmed.

    The raids on Sunday were carried out by ground troops supported by helicopter gunships.

    “Following the operation, other Al-Shabaab fighters fled with injuries. Two Al-Shabaab vehicles were destroyed,” said Col Owouth.

    “The intelligence-led operation was executed by air and ground assets. Ground troops were supported by attack helicopters and artillery fire to access the bases 17 kilometres from Sarira near Hola Wajeer,” added Col Owouth.

    More than 4,000 Kenyan troops are deployed in what is called sector 2 in Somalia but have been carrying out operations in other areas that are not manned, whenever Al-Shabaab militants set up camps there.

    Other sectors are occupied by forces from Ethiopia, Uganda, Burundi and Djibouti.

    Kenya first deployed soldiers in Somalia in October 2011 in Operation Linda Nchi before they were absorbed into the United Nations-backed African Union Mission in Somalia or Amisom the following year.

    Al-Shabaab has over the years attracted foreign fighters especially after it merged with Al-Qaeda.

    Source:Daily Nation

  • DRC coach blasts referees over Kenya defeat

    {DRC feel that they could have beaten Kenya at Machakos County Stadium.
    }

    DR Congo head coach Florent Ibenge has registered his disappointment with the manner in which referees handled their friendly match against Kenya on Sunday at Machakos Stadium.

    The Leopards were defeated 2-1 by Harambee Stars courtesy of Michael Olunga’s brace but Ibenge feels that centre referee Davis Omweno denied his side open goals.

    Harambee Stars shine again

    He cites an incident in the 24th minute when Aboud Omar cleared a goal-bound ball and another one in injury time when Gael Kakuta scored but the goal was disallowed.

    “Referees have spoilt the game. We were denied penalties. We were denied goals. Look at when Kenya’s defender headed the ball while he was inside the goal line and you see, we were denied. Look at the last minutes of the match. We scored a clear goal but what happened? We were denied. All in all, we don’t care whether we lost or not; ours is to focus on quality of the game.”

    Omweno was being assisted by compatriots Oliver Omondi, Joshua Achilla and Andrew Juma as 1St Assistant referee, 2nd Assistant referee and Reserve referee respectively.

    Source:Goal

  • World Cross Country: Kenya, Ethiopia win first two gold medals of the day

    {Favourites Kenya won gold in the Mixed Relay in the first race of the 42nd edition of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.}

    The Kenyan team, for whom 1500m star Asbel Kiprop ran the anchor leg, barely looked in trouble under the scorching heat of Kololo airstrip despite Beatrice Chepkoech crossing the line only eight seconds ahead of Ethiopia superstar Genzebe Dibaba.

    Uganda’s team of Winnie Nanyondo, Geofrey Ruto, Dorcus Ajok and Ronald Musagala came in fourth ahead of Bahrain and Morocco to narrowly miss out on the medal bracket.

    Guest of honour President Museveni, who opened the Games earlier, handed out medals to Kenya, Ethiopia and Turkey.

    The Championships have attracted over 500 athletes from 59 countries.

    An official hoists the Ugandan flag at the kick-off of the World Cross Country Championship at Kololo Independence ground in the capital, Kampala.

    Team Kenya celebrating after their mixed relays win

    Source:Daily Monitor

  • Kenya:Police arrest three over robbery, kidnapping

    {A police officer was among those arrested Sunday after a kidnapping and robbery went wrong in Rongai, Nakuru County.}

    Administration Police Constable Joseph Kiragu Ng’ang’a, 33, who is based at a Daadab AP camp, was arrested in the company of Mr Kenneth Michuki Mwangi, 27, and Mr Joseph Munyaka Njuki, 33, after a man was kidnapped from his home and robbed of cash.

    The incident was reported at Solai Police Station by Mr Stephen Ndirangu.

    Mr Ndirangu narrated that he was sitting with his father Richard Mwangi Kamau in their house when a Nissan saloon car bearing registration number KCE 953U entered their homestead.

    The five occupants then bundled his father into the car and drove off. He immediately reported to the area chief, who circulated the details of the vehicle.

    Mr Kamau was later dumped at Munyinyi after he had been robbed of Sh100,000.

    According to a police report seen by the Nation, Mr Kamau then walked to Subukia Police Station where he reported the matter.

    Police officers then lay an ambush in the Solai-Maji Tamu area and accosted the vehicle’s occupants, who refused to stop and instead shot at the officers.

    During the gunfire exchange, one of the occupants, Mr Paul Kimotho Gitimu, was injured and was later confirmed dead at Bahati Sub-County Hospital.

    One suspect, however, managed to escape with his weapon.

    Police recovered from the scene a certificate of appointment of the AP officer, as well as eight spent cartridges from an AK-47 rifle and a bullet head belonging to the same. They also recovered a pair of handcuffs and five mobile phones.

    The Independent Police Oversight Authority (Ipoa) has been investigating police officers on such matters and a few have been convicted of crimes.

    Source:Daily Nation

  • Tanzania:JPM dismisses Mineral Ministry’s PS

    {President John Magufuli yesterday revoked the appointment of Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Energy and Minerals, Prof Justin Ntalikwa.}

    The Directorate of Presidential Communications however did not give the reason behind the dismissal of Prof Ntalikwa who has served in the position for over a year.

    He has been shown the exit door few days after President Magufuli made an impromptu visit to the Dar es Salaam port where he witnessed containers full of mineral sand for export against his ban early this month.

    After the ban, the president directed Energy and Minerals Minister Professor Sospeter Muhongo to fully enforce the sanction.

    Signed by the Director of the Presidential Communications, Mr Gerson Msigwa, the statement said the vacant post would be filled later.

    Source:Daily News