Burundi security forces accused of violent repression
Burundi security forces accused of violent repression Burundi security forces accused of violent repression The security forces in Burundi systematically killed dozens of people during violent repression that took place in the capital Bujumbura on 11 December, Amnesty International says. It says that some of the scores of people who died during the single bloodiest […]
Burundi security forces accused of violent repression
Burundi security forces accused of violent repression
The security forces in Burundi systematically killed dozens of people during violent repression that took place in the capital Bujumbura on 11 December, Amnesty International says.
It says that some of the scores of people who died during the single bloodiest day of Burundi’s “escalating crisis” were killed extra-judicially.
At least 87 people were killed, including eight security force members.
But it said soon after the violence on 11 December that those killed were responsible for attacks on government installations.
Unrest has blighted Burundi since an attempted coup in May and protests over President Pierre Nkurunziza’s continued rule.
The attempt to overthrow the president followed his decision to seek a third term in office, which he won in a disputed election in July.
Ethnic conflict between Hutus and Tutsis which began in Burundi in the early 1990s claimed an estimated 300,000 lives.
“The violent repression that took place on 11 December represented a dramatic escalation in scale and intensity from previous security operations,” the Amnesty report says.
“But the modus operandi of the operations – involving extrajudicial executions, systematic looting and theft, arbitrary arrests and targeting of perceived political opposition strongholds – was not qualitatively different from past practice,” the report added.
Report: One million migrants reached Europe in 2015
By Abdullateef Salau with Agency report
The number of migrants and refugees crossing into Europe by land and sea this year has passed one million, UN refugee agency and the International Organization for Migration, say.
In a joint release, UNHCR and IOM say the number of refugees and migrants who have made the dangerous Mediterranean Sea crossing to Europe is nearly five times higher than last. In 2014, nearly 220,000 people fled to Europe.
More than 800,000 migrants crossed the sea from Turkey to Greece, majority of them are from war torn Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. The report says 3,695 migrants have drowned this year or remain missing.
The symbolic milestone was passed on Monday, with the total for land and sea reaching more than 1,006,000. The figure covers entries via six European Union nations – Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Malta and Cyprus.
Most of the migrants who died – 2,889 – were making the sea crossing between North Africa and Italy, while more than 700 died in the Aegean crossing to Greece from Turkey. Only 3.5% of migrants made a land journey to Greece or Bulgaria via Turkey.
However, IOM Director General William Lacy Swing said: “We know migration is inevitable, it’s necessary and it’s desirable.
“But it’s not enough to count the number of those arriving, or the nearly 4,000 this year reported missing or drowned. We must also act.
“Migration must be legal, safe and secure for all-both for the migrants themselves and the countries that will become their new home.”
CAR approves New Constitution
Voters in the Central African Republic have overwhelmingly backed a constitutional referendum aimed at ending nearly three years of political instability.
Election officials Monday said provisional results show that 93 percent of voters were in favor of the new constitution, which would limit the president to two five-year terms, cut the power of the military and ensure religious freedom.
Election officials, however, said that turnout was only 38 percent in the December 13 vote.
The election was marred by sporadic violence, with the Red Cross reporting that five people were killed and at least 20 others injured on election day as supporters and opponents of the referendum traded gunfire in the capital, Bangui. The violence prompted United Nations peacekeepers to intervene and bolster security.
Unrest also was said to have disrupted voting in the north of the country.
The referendum is a prelude to national elections that are planned for December 27.
Deputy FM: 10 Iranian Hajj victims still missing
Ten Iranian Hajj victims are still missing, Deputy Foreign Minister for Consular, Parliamentary and Expatriates Affairs Hassan Qashqavi said yesterday.
Latest developments regarding Mina catastrophe, particularly the legal aspects of the tragedy have been discussed in the parliament (Majlis) National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, he added.
The official said that 10 Iranian pilgrims are still missing and Iran will continue its efforts to return back corpses of the buried victims.
The Mina tragedy took place during this year’s Hajj rituals when two large masses of pilgrims fused at a crossroads in Mina, a few kilometers east of the holy city of Mecca, on their way to participate in the symbolic stoning of Satan ritual in Jamarat.
Saudi Arabia claims nearly 770 people were killed in the incident, but officials with Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization say about 4,700 people, including 464 Iranians, lost their lives in the tragic event.
The number of the Iranian fatalities exceeds that of other countries.
Iran has criticized Saudi Arabia for failing to responsibly carry out its duties during Hajj, saying Riyadh’s incompetence in handling safety at the rituals caused the deadly incident.
UN: Syria Peace Talks Planned for January
The head of the U.N.’s office in Geneva said Tuesday the world body intends to host Syrian peace talks there next month.
Michael Moller told reporters an exact date had not yet been set, but that the target is sometime at the end of January.
Geneva was the site of two rounds of U.N.-brokered peace talks early last year between President Bashar al-Assad’s government and rebels who have been fighting him since March of 2011.
Those negotiations ended with little progress, and momentum for a peace deal evaporated while the conflict became more complex with the addition of Islamic State (IS) militants seizing large portions of eastern Syria.
In recent months the push for peace has been renewed, including several international meetings bringing together world powers with a commitment to get the warring sides talking again.
The U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution last week expressing support for a Syrian-led political process, facilitated by the U.N., with the goal of establishing a transitional government in six months and holding elections in 18 months.
Ghana bans first class travel for public officials
Ghana’s President John Mahama has banned public officials from first class air travel in a renewed effort to cut wasteful spending as the West African nation implements an IMF aid deal to revive state finances, the government said on Tuesday.
Ghana is preparing to hold presidential and parliamentary elections next year and, with the opposition accusing government ministers of inflating contract sums, inappropriate spending will likely be a top campaign issue.
The presidency issued the directive this week asking all ministers and other top officials to avoid “unwarranted” foreign trips on the public purse, Communications Minister Edward Omane Boamah said.
India passes tough new law for serious juvenile crimes
The Indian parliament has passed a bill which allows juveniles between 16 and 18 years of age to be tried as adults for serious crimes like rape or murder.
At present, those under 18 can be sentenced to a maximum of three years in a reform facility.
The move to change the law gathered momentum after the youngest convict in the notorious 2012 Delhi gang rape was recently released from detention.
On Tuesday, the Juvenile Justice Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha – the upper house of the parliament. The bill was approved by the Lok Sabha – the lower house – in May.
It will now have to be signed by the president to become law – which, correspondents say, is a mere formality.
The new law will not apply to the youngest 2012 rapist, but it will be used in future cases involving juvenile offenders above 16 years.
Authorities say the number of juvenile crimes have been increasing – last year, 38,565 cases were registered, including many cases of rapes, murders and acid attacks.
Iraqi Troops Battle Islamic State in Ramadi
Iraqi troops battled Tuesday in the center of Ramadi in a fierce push to reclaim the city from Islamic State (IS) militants.
Sabah al-Numani, a spokesman for Iraq’s counterterrorism service, said the fighting was happening in neighborhoods surrounding a government complex with support from the air force. Iraqi troops are removing roadside bombs as they try to push forward.
Coalition warplanes have carried out airstrikes on IS targets on the outskirts of the city.
The loss of Ramadi in May was a major setback for the Iraqi government and the army. The effort to retake the city, located 100 kilometers west of the capital, Baghdad, has taken months with fighting on the outskirts and work to cut off militant supply lines running into Ramadi.
The operation to recapture the city was launched in earnest last month