Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba and the fight for a united Africa
The only remains of murdered Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba—a gold-capped tooth in a blue box—was handed over to his family during a ceremony in Brussels, noted the German international newscaster. This symbolic handover of the first democratically elected leader of the now Democratic Republic of Congo, and recent visit by Belgium’s King Phillippe to the minerally rich country appeared...
Wikileaks Cablegate reveals unflattering U.S. view of African ‘client states,’ leaders
(FinalCall.com) - The fallout continues after Wikileaks began posting thousands of leaked classified U.S. embassy cables on Nov. 28. So far, only 667 of the 251,287 secret documents have been posted online and already there is international uproar consisting of praise and criticism. Wikileaks has closely protected its sources and will not discuss how the information was obtained. “It’s clear that...
The important history of ancient Sudan
KHARTOUM, Sudan—My first response after touring the Sudan National Museum in Khartoum was that it was a sin and a shame that a country as rich in history as Sudan has not invested heavily in preserving its history. I told my fellow visitor to the museum, the son of the late Sheikh Hassan Turabi, Sudan’s former attorney general, former speaker...
Proclaiming the history and legacy of Blacks in Islam
Islam’s history in Africa predates its spread in Arabia, let alone the neighboring countries of the Arabian Peninsula. Prophet Muhammad, Peace Be Upon Him, sent dozens of his companions to Abyssinia, now called Ethiopia, before the beginning of the Muslim calendar. During the first century of the Muslim calendar, Islam spread from Egypt through the Red Sea and the East...
Activists hail censure of Washington’s ‘terror war’
Report: European nations complicit in CIA abductions, secret prisons (Al Jazeera, 06-07-2006)Amnesty: Guantanamo 'the gulag of our time' (FCN, 06-08-2005)Carter: Guantanamo Prison Camp, an Embarassment for U.S. (Prensa Latina, 06-08-2005)Farrakhan calls for delegation to be sent to Guantanamo (FCN, 05-25-2005) NEW YORK (IPS/GIN) - Human rights organizations here are hailing recommendations by the United Nations Committee Against Torture that the United...
UK’s surging gas prices turning into full-blown crisis
Surging gas prices across the United Kingdom are turning into a full-blown crisis, as the government holds emergency talks amid fears more small suppliers could soon collapse. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is talking to suppliers to hear how wide-reaching the impact of increasing prices could be on companies and households, who could see energy bills jump by as much as...
Is South Africa prepared to embrace a coalition government?
As South Africans approach their upcoming national elections, scheduled for May 29—some with reservations—a plethora of critical issues loom large over the country’s political landscape. One that is getting a lot of attention is whether Africa’s most influential nation-state is possibly prepared to embrace coalition governance on a national scale. According to the South African news site Isolezwe, more...
Added fuel to the fire is escalating hostilities in the Middle East
Fears that the Gaza crisis will expand through the region are manifesting into reality as 2024 begins. The Middle East has been a powder keg of potential war for a long time, but the carnage of Palestinians by the occupier Zionist State of Israel since October 2023 lit a fuse and ignited the keg. Besides nonstop bombardment of Gaza, Israel...
UN perceived as U.S. ‘tool’
/GIN UNITED NATIONS (IPS/GIN)–The massive bomb attack on the UN compound in Baghdad on Aug. 19 was an assault on an institution that is increasingly perceived as a political mouthpiece of the United States, say some Middle East experts and U.S. academics. The suicide bombing killed Under-Secretary-General Sergio Vieira de Mello, UN chief Kofi Annan’s special representative in Iraq...
Mali’s prime minister hits out at ‘neocolonialist’ France in UN speech
Mali has censured France over its deteriorating security situation, accusing Paris of having stabbed the impoverished, though minerals-rich, Sahel country in the back with the withdrawal of French troops. Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, the new acting prime minister of Mali, made the remarks in a speech at the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept....