Bombing creates friction in U.S.-Kenyan relations
NAIROBI (IPS)–Kenyans are calling for their government to rethink its close military relationship with the United States, following last month’s terrorist attacks on Israeli interests on the Indian Ocean coast. "Kenyans should not needlessly be killed, sacrificed, and then humiliated and demeaned for the sake of a contest in which they are not central players, and for which...
Disgruntled Haiti police raid stations, free jailed comrades
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti—Masked officers who said they belonged to a disgruntled sector of the Haitian police force known as Fantom 509 stormed several police stations in Port-au-Prince on March 17, freeing jailed comrades accused of participating in an alleged coup against embattled President Jovenel Moise in February. The group of officers, along with some civilians, set a police station ablaze and...
Progress of West African nations must be forged through cooperative economics
Last month Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, in Abuja, called on member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to remove what he described as “outdated physical and psychological boundaries and other colonially-inspired differences” for the region to progress economically. Buhari, who because of the two-term limit cannot run again for a third-term in the upcoming February...
Greece: Rights experts condemn ‘racist violence’ against asylum-seekers
Greece must adopt “safe and impartial” border policies and practices and hold its law enforcement officers accountable for abuses, a group of UN Human Rights Council-appointed experts said in a statement on August 23. That’s the message from the group of eight experts, including Ashwini K.P., the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, who urged Greece on August 23 to investigate alleged violations...
Thousands of African workers kept in appalling conditions
Hoping to escape the war, death and destitution rampant in their home countries, thousands of African workers embark every year on a grueling journey to the affluent Persian Gulf countries looking for employment. The more fortunate ones will end up doing backbreaking manual labor earning a pittance, barely enough to make ends meet. Should they be unlucky, a fate worse than...
Mali vows to defend nation against French intrusions and meddling
Mali’s foreign minister has slammed France’s continued attempts to undermine the sovereignty and national security of his country, pledging that Bamako is resolved to defend itself. “The government of Mali reserves the right to exercise its right to self-defense … if France continues to undermine the sovereignty of our country and to undermine its territorial integrity and its national security,”...
Bachelet asks for $400.5 million to support full ‘agenda of rights’
UN Human Rights Chief, Michelle Bachelet, launched on Jan. 26 a $400.5 million funding appeal for 2022, urging States and private donors to support her “agenda of rights.” Presenting the Office’s (OHCHR) Annual Appeal, the high commissioner said that “amidst a period of massive global upheaval and crisis, this funding will be critical to protect, promote and uphold human rights in...
Security Council: Efforts to secure peace in Afghanistan not working
War on terror returning to its cradle (FCN, 10-23-2006)Afghanistan: 'Taliban Taking Over' (FCN, 09-06-2006)Flash Back: Taleban in Texas for talks on gas pipeline (BBC, 12-004-1997)A Timeline of Oil and Violence in Afghanistan UNITED NATIONS (FinalCall.com) - It is year six of the UN-backed NATO occupation of Afghanistan and Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon admitted in a report to the United Nations...
Thousands evacuate in worst Australian floods in a decade
BRISBANE, Australia—Tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes by March 1 and hundreds of thousands more were told to prepare to flee as parts of Australia’s southeast coast were inundated by the worst flooding in more than a decade. At least 10 people have died. New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet said there had been 1,000...
Nations of Africa demand a bigger voice, role on the global stage
If you listened to African leaders addressing the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA-78) as I did, you would have discovered a singular unanimous message of being fed up with Western powers’ dominance over global affairs. In unison, African leaders expressed dissatisfaction with living in a world that pretends present-day economic and social conditions are not connected with historical injustices. Much...