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page 19 TURKEY Attempted coup: Thousands of police suspended Turkey purged its police on Monday after rounding up thousands of soldiers in the wake of a failed military coup, and said it could reconsider its friendship with the United States unless Washington hands over a cleric Ankara blames for the putsch. The sacking of thousands […]

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TURKEY

Attempted coup: Thousands of police suspended

Turkey purged its police on Monday after rounding up thousands of soldiers in the wake of a failed military coup, and said it could reconsider its friendship with the United States unless Washington hands over a cleric Ankara blames for the putsch.

The sacking of thousands of police officers followed orders for the detention of thousands of judges and prosecutors in the aftermath of Friday night’s coup, in which more than 200 people were killed when a faction of the armed forces tried to seize power.

The swift response, including calls to reinstate the death penalty for plotters, drew concern from Western allies who said Ankara must uphold the rule of law in the country, a NATO member that is Washington’s most powerful Muslim ally.

The interior ministry said 8,777 people had been removed from their posts, including 7,899 members of the police and security forces, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Monday.

UGANDA

President opposes arms embargo on South Sudan

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni said he was opposed to a U.N. plan to impose an arms embargo on his neighbor South Sudan, saying it would weaken its army just as the country was trying to contain a resurgence of violence.

The statement from one of the region’s main powers, issued over the weekend, came after U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the Security Council to block arms sales to try and end more than two years of fighting in the world’s newest nation.

At least 272 people have died in the latest clashes between forces loyal to South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and his rival, Vice President Riek Machar.

Museveni told Ban he was against the embargo at an African Union summit in Rwanda’s capital Kigali on Saturday, officials said.

“When you impose an (arms) embargo on South Sudan you destroy the local force on which you need to build a strong integrated army,” a statement from his office read.

SAO TOME

Incumbent loses presidential election

Evaristo Carvalho has defeated the incumbent Manuel Pinto da Costa in Sao Tome and Principe’s presidential election taking 50.1% of the vote.

Mr da Costa, who won the last election in 2011 as an independent, was the country’s first president after independence from Portugal in 1975. His first period in office ended in 1991.

The new president belongs to the same party – the ADI – as Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada.

Mr Trovoada said the election of a new president “should initiate a period of stability for Sao Tome and Principe”, the Portuguese news agency is reporting.

ZIMBABWE

Govt fails to pay soldiers on time

Zimbabwe has delayed paying its soldiers for a second successive month, sources said Monday, underlining the worsening economic crisis that has triggered recent protests.

Ten days ago, President Robert Mugabe’s government was shaken by a national strike led by civil servants frustrated over several salary delays as Zimbabwe’s treasury struggles with a severe cash shortage.

The military are normally the first priority for payment due to their role in protecting the regime of Mugabe, 92. But they were not paid as scheduled last week, and last month’s salaries were paid about two week late.

“We were supposed to get our salaries last Friday but there was nothing at the bank,” a junior soldier who requested anonymity told AFP. “We do not know when we will be paid.”

Other soldiers confirmed the delay.

The cash-strapped government, which spends more than 80 percent of its revenue on wages, has resorted to staggering pay dates as it scrapes the bottom of its coffers.

US

Election: Gun ban sought at Republican convention

Cleveland police have asked Ohio’s governor to suspend open-carry gun rights during the Republican National Convention.

The request comes after three officers were shot dead in Louisiana on Sunday.

The governor said he did not have the power to suspend the law, which allows licensed gun owners to carry weapons.

Police have tightened security in Cleveland, where Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump will be confirmed as the nominee.

Among the speakers due to appear on Monday evening are Mr Trump’s wife Melania and Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, on a theme of Make America Safe Again.

The convention begins amid high tensions, a day after a man killed three police officers in Baton Rouge, prompting Mr Trump to say the country was falling apart – a claim strongly disputed by President Barack Obama.

FRANCE

Attack on Nice: PM Valls booed at commemoration

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has been booed as he attended a minute’s silence in Nice, where an attacker in a lorry killed 84 people on Thursday.

Hecklers shouted out “murderer” and “resign” at him before the minute’s silence, held across the nation.

Earlier, centre-right opposition leader Nicolas Sarkozy accused the government of failing to provide security.

Troops are to be redeployed to tourist spots as inquiries continue into the killer’s possible links to jihadists.

Mr Sarkozy, a former president, called for any foreign nationals with links to radical Islam to be expelled from France.

This was a scene that has never been seen before in France at a national act of homage: the head of government booed and called a murderer.

The angry reception that Prime Minister Manuel Valls received when he observed the minute’s silence in Nice is a stark warning of how the mood in the country has changed.

INDIA

Outrage after gang rape victim assaulted again ‘by same men’

There has been outrage in India after a student was allegedly gang-raped by five men who had also raped her three years ago.

Police are yet to make any arrests although the 21-year-old was attacked last week in Rohtak town in the northern state of Haryana.

She had been pursuing a case in court against the five men, when she was attacked on Wednesday.

The woman said she was forced inside a car and the men tried to strangle her.

She was seriously injured and left for dead in the bushes. A passerby saw her and took her to the hospital.

PAKISTAN

Cleric in honour killing probe

A prominent Muslim cleric is being investigated in connection with the murder of Pakistani social media celebrity Qandeel Baloch, police say.

Ms Baloch, a controversial figure known for her outspoken posts and suggestive photos and videos, posted selfies with Mufti Abdul Qavi last month.

He was suspended from two important councils as a result.

Ms Baloch, 26, was strangled by her brother Waseem early on Saturday in their hometown of Multan.

He admitted the apparent “honour killing”, saying it was justified.

The cleric has denied any role in the murder but says he will appear for questioning if summoned by police.

SOUTH AFRICAN

Rally driver Gugu Zulu dies on Kilimanjaro

South African rally driver Gugu Zulu has died while attempting to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.

Mr Zulu, 38, was on a Nelson Mandela-linked charity trip to raise funds to buy sanitary towels for girls.

Mr Zulu and his wife Letshego both descended Mount Kilimanjaro when he experienced breathing problems on Sunday, according to local reports.

In his last Facebook post, the three-times national rally champion posted he had flu-like symptoms.

Mr Zulu won the hearts of many South Africans with his warm spirit as a motorsport television presenter and was well-loved even by those who did not follow racing, say the BBC’s Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg.

KENYA

Police charged with murder over lawyer’s death

Four police officers have been charged with the murder of a lawyer and two others, which sparked protests against extrajudicial killings in Kenya.

The suspects pleaded not guilty but the judge ordered they remain in custody.

They face three counts of murder for the deaths of lawyer Willie Kimani, Josphat Mwenda and their driver Joseph Muiruri.

The three went missing in June after Mr Kimani filed a case against a police officer on behalf of Mr Mwenda.

A week later, decomposing bodies of the three were recovered in a river, in the outskirts on Kenya’s capital Nairobi.

Post-mortem reports said the bodies had signs of torture.