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page 41 S/AFRICA Pistorius must pay for his crime, Steenkamp’s father tells court South African Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius must pay for killing his girlfriend, her father has told a judge, breaking down in tears. He was found guilty of murdering Reeva Steenkamp after a court overturned an earlier manslaughter verdict. The sentencing hearing – […]

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S/AFRICA

Pistorius must pay for his crime, Steenkamp’s father tells court

South African Olympic athlete Oscar Pistorius must pay for killing his girlfriend, her father has told a judge, breaking down in tears.

He was found guilty of murdering Reeva Steenkamp after a court overturned an earlier manslaughter verdict.

The sentencing hearing – expected to conclude by Friday – will decide if he will face a jail term of 15 years.

Barry Steenkamp asked for photos of his daughter’s body to be made public so people could see the wounds.

Pistorius, a six-time Paralympic gold medallist whose legs were amputated below the knee as a baby, made history by becoming the first amputee sprinter to compete at the Olympics, in 2012, running on prosthetic “blades”.

NIGER

Food aid to double after fresh Boko Haram attacks

Food aid will be doubled for people uprooted by Boko Haram violence in southeast Niger after recent attacks forced 50,000 people to flee their homes, the United Nations’ World Food Program (WFP) said on Tuesday.

Boko Haram earlier this month seized the town of Bosso in Niger’s Diffa region, killing 32 soldiers in the Islamist group’s deadliest assault in the country since April last year.

The militants have recently ramped up attacks in Diffa, home to at least 250,000 uprooted Nigeriens and Nigerian refugees, and many people have been displaced several times, the WFP said.

“Many people have walked from 10 km to 40 kms (6 to 25 miles). They are arriving in a state of shock, and urgently need food, shelter, water – assistance with their most basic needs,” said Belkacem Machane, WFP Niger deputy country director, in a statement.

“They have now reached the end of their rope,” Machane said.

FRANCE

Frenchman shot video of deadly knife attack on police

A French assailant has recorded a video of an attack in which two police officials died, authorities said, as France’s leadership reeled from what the president called a new “terrorist attack”.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s (ISIL) Amaq news agency cited an unnamed source as saying an ISIL fighter carried out the late-night attack in the Paris suburb of Magnanville on Monday.

Two police officials, a man and woman who lived together, were killed. The attacker, identified as 25-year-old Larossi Abballa, was also killed, while the couple’s three-year-old child survived.

French President Francois Hollande held an emergency security meeting on Tuesday about what he said was “incontestably a terrorist act”.

TURKEY

EU envoy to Turkey resigns amid tensions over migration deal

The EU’s top diplomat in Turkey has resigned after a row with the government in Ankara over his criticism of its conduct in a landmark migrant deal.

Hansjoerg Haber came under fire for comments made last month in which he castigated the government’s implementation of the deal.

In comments made to the media on 13 May, Mr Haber, who is from Germany, said: “We have a saying ‘Start like a Turk and end like a German. But here it is the other way round’.”

His words were seen as deeply derogatory in Turkey, where ambassadors are not expected to disrespect Turkish culture.

On Tuesday, Turkey’s EU Minister Omer Celik accused Mr Haber of breaching basic rules of diplomacy by not honouring Turkey’s values and its president.

Turkish media reported that the row upset EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who reportedly put pressure on Mr Haber to resign.

EU officials say he will leave his post on 1 August and a successor will be announced soon.

KENYA

Police summon politicians over ‘hate speech’ allegations

Kenya’s police have summoned seven pro-government and opposition politicians for investigation over alleged “hate speech”, flagging growing tension more than a year before elections and after weeks of deadly protests.

Ethnic loyalties tend to trump policy matters in Kenyan politics. After a disputed election in December 2007, incitement by rival camps was blamed for stoking bloodletting between major ethnic groups that left 1,200 dead and hundreds of thousands displaced.

The 2010 constitution that sought to reshape institutions and national politics guarantees free expression but expressly outlaws ethnic incitement or “hate speech”.

Incidents of politicians drumming up support or stoking fears based on ethnic allegiances continue to pop up in recordings or speeches on the Internet, however, worrying many who fear renewed violence in the August 2017 race.

UGANDA

Tensions rise as presidential challenger tried for treason

In Uganda, tensions continue to simmer, four months after the country’s disputed presidential poll. A wave of arrests, including those of current and former military officers, followed by an armed attack on a police station in the north, have sparked concern this week as the runner-up in the vote goes on trial for treason.

Ugandan police have sought to downplay the attack late Sunday on the police station in the northern town of Gulu.

According to official reports, 10 to 12 suspects opened fire, attempting to rescue Dan Oola Odia, an official of the Uganda People’s Congress, an opposition party.

Inspector General of Police Kale Kayihura told the media not to sensationalize the incident.

“We wish to assure the country that Uganda is peaceful and stable and condemn those who quickly rush to post messages on social media after the attack exaggerating the situation, the magnitude of the incident and even giving their own version,” Kayihura said.

SYRIA

U.S.-backed forces appeal for aid for hundreds fleeing IS

U.S.-backed forces waging an offensive against the Islamic State-held city of Manbij in northern Syria appealed for international assistance for those fleeing the fighting on Tuesday as the forces tightened their encirclement of the city.

The SDF push comes at the same time as other enemies of Islamic State, including the governments of Syria and Iraq, also launched major offensives on other fronts, in what amounts to the most sustained pressure on the militants since they proclaimed their caliphate in 2014.

“In the areas we control we have tried to take care of the needs of the internally displaced persons. But we are not able to cover their needs,” Sharfan Darwish of the SDF-allied Manbij Military Council said.

“The international community must turn their attention to the people which have been liberated from Daesh (Islamic State),” he said, adding that there were no international humanitarian organizations working in the area.

ITALY

Berlusconi undergoes heart surgery

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been placed in intensive care after undergoing an operation to replace a defective heart valve.

The procedure lasted four hours, Milan’s San Raffaele hospital said, giving no further details.

But sources told Ansa news agency the operation had been a success. He is likely to take a month to recover.

Berlusconi, 79, served as prime minister four times but has since been convicted of tax fraud and bribery.

He was admitted to hospital last week after suffering a heart attack his doctor said could have killed him. He is expected to remain in intensive care for another 48 hours.

FRANCE

Labour reform protest turns violent

Protests in Paris over a French labour reform bill have turned violent, with at least 40 people injured, including 29 police officers, and 58 arrests.

At least 75,000 demonstrators had convened in the capital as the upper house of parliament debated changes to employment laws.

One of the city’s best-known attractions, the Eiffel Tower, was closed due to strike action by staff.

The new law makes it easier for employers to hire and fire workers.

It would also relax the limit on work hours.

Students and several unions organised protests across the country, part of weeks of industrial action.

Rail workers and taxi drivers are also on strike, disrupting transport.

BAHRAIN

Court suspends main opposition group

A Bahraini court has issued an order suspending the activities of the country’s main Shia opposition group on charges of “terrorism, extremism, and violence” in the kingdom.

The official Bahrain News Agency (BNA) said on Tuesday that the court was pending a verdict on dissolving the Al-Wefaq society altogether after documenting numerous violations under Bahraini laws.

Al-Wefaq was accused of creating “an environment for terrorism, extremism and violence as well as a call for foreign interference in internal national affairs,” BNA said.

The ministry of justice said the suspension was part of a drive to “combat extremism … and protect society”.