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page 41 DR CONGO Warlord Bemba jailed over war crimes Congolese ex-rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba has been jailed for 18 years following a landmark conviction at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and sexual violence. Bemba was found guilty in March of crimes committed in the neighbouring Central African Republic (CAR) in 2002 […]
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DR CONGO
Warlord Bemba jailed over war crimes
Congolese ex-rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba has been jailed for 18 years following a landmark conviction at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and sexual violence.
Bemba was found guilty in March of crimes committed in the neighbouring Central African Republic (CAR) in 2002 and 2003.
He was accused of failing to stop his rebels from killing and raping people. Bemba’s defence team have already said they will appeal against the decision.
Passing sentence at the ICC in The Hague, Judge Sylvia Steiner said Bemba had failed to exercise control over his private militia group sent into CAR, where they carried out “sadistic” rapes, murders and pillaging of “particular cruelty”.
Bemba had sent more than 1,000 fighters to the CAR to help former president Ange Felix Patasse put down an attempted coup.
The court heard that his troops committed acts of extreme violence against civilians, crimes which the judge said Jean-Pierre Bemba was made aware of but did nothing to stop.
UK
Cameron in direct appeal for Remain vote
David Cameron has urged people to think of the “hopes and dreams” of future generations in a direct appeal to them to vote to stay in the European Union.
Speaking outside No 10, the prime minister said he would not recommend a Remain vote if he didn’t feel it would make the UK safer and more prosperous.
He said: “Britain does not quit, we get involved, take a lead, make a difference and get things done.”
Vote Leave says the vote is a chance to take control of the UK’s destiny.
In a hastily arranged ten minute statement outside Downing Street, Mr Cameron strove to emphasise the momentous nature of the decision facing the British people, warning if the UK chose to leave it would be “irreversible” and Britain would be “out of Europe for good”.
EGYPT
Court quashes Red Sea islands’ transfer to Saudis
An Egyptian judge has quashed a government decision to hand back two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia.
Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi announced the return of Tiran and Sanafir islands in April, during a visit by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman.
More than 150 people were jailed in connection with protests over the deal, though many were later acquitted or had their sentences reduced on appeal.
Tuesday’s verdict is not final and could be overturned by a higher court.
Tiran and Sanafir are uninhabited islands, situated at the mouth of the Gulf of Aqaba, a strategically important part of the Red Sea that is bordered by Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
President Sisi’s decision in April to cede control of them sparked widespread unrest and criticism. King Salman had announced a multi-billion dollar aid package to Egypt from Saudi Arabia on his visit, leading some to accuse Mr Sisi of “selling” the islands.
On Tuesday, Egypt’s State Council, an administrative court which oversees lawsuits filed against the government, quashed Mr Sisi’s decision by issuing a verdict annulling a maritime borders agreement.
UNITED STATES
Senate rejects terror list gun sale restrictions
The US Senate has rejected plans to tighten gun controls, including the restriction of weapons sales to people on terrorism watch lists.
Four proposals were brought before the Senate after 49 people died in an attack on a gay nightclub in Florida.
But Democratic and Republican senators voted along party lines, blocking each other’s bills. Senators strongly disagreed about how to prevent more attacks happening in future.
The vote on stricter gun regulation was a textbook illustration of modern political dysfunction in the US Congress.
With the public firmly supporting legislative action, both sides of the partisan divide came up with their own bills, both sides largely voted only for their proposals, and in the end nothing was accomplished.
Republicans accused Democrats of giving the government the power to arbitrarily prevent Americans from exercising their constitutional right to own a firearm based on a secretive “terrorist watch list” with no judicial oversight.
Democrats charged Republicans with being more concerned with the support of the National Rifle Association than preventing the next gun-related massacre.
S/AFRICA
Rioting hits Pretoria after ANC names mayoral candidate
Protesters burned buses and barricaded roads in South Africa’s capital on Tuesday in an escalating dispute over the ruling party’s mayoral candidate for local elections in August.
The vote is expected to be closely fought and will pose a major test for the African National Congress (ANC) as it looks ahead to a 2019 presidential election in the face of a strong challenge from the opposition and an economic slowdown.
Disturbances erupted on Monday night as residents of Pretoria’s impoverished townships set vehicles and tyres on fire to block roads after the ANC’s national leadership named a mayoral candidate not nominated by its regional branches.
Rioters looted shops, torched vehicles and placed rocks and other debris across roads on Wednesday, snarling traffic and business in the capital of Africa’s most industrialized country.
The ANC leadership then named senior party member and former cabinet minister Thoko Didiza as its candidate for Tshwane, overriding regional branch members.
KENYA
Gov’t launches crackdown on foreign charity workers
Charities, or NGOs, working in Kenya risk losing their licenses if they fail to comply with new tough rules about employing foreigners.
The authorities say that, with some exceptions, foreigners should not be employed if there are Kenyans who can do the job.
The large disparity between what foreigners and Kenyans can earn has also been criticised.
It is estimated that 80,000 people work in the NGO sector in the country.
Kenya is a regional hub for NGOs, with aid agencies working in countries from Democratic Republic of Congo to South Sudan based in the country.
Charities play a large role in providing essential services in Kenya, observers say, with some running schools and clinics.
JORDAN
Car bomb near Syrian border killed 6 soldiers
Jordan said Tuesday a car bomb exploded along its border with Syria killed 6 soldiers and wounded 14 others.
The blast happened in the Rukban area where tens of thousands of people fleeing the violence in Syria have sought refuge as they try to get into Jordan.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Jordan’s army said it destroyed several other vehicles that were involved, but did not provide more details.
The United Nations has already registered more than 650,000 refugees in Jordan. The nation of 8 million people is hosting many more than that and like other countries bordering Syria has struggled to cope with the added strain of providing for so many extra people.
BELGIUM
Terror alert triggered at Brussels shopping centre
Belgian officials said a fake bomb belt, reportedly filled with salt and cookies, was found on a suspect detained in the terror operations in Brussels Monday morning.
The suspect had triggered a bomb alert at a shopping centre in the centre of the Belgian capital around 5:30 in the morning.
Prime Minister Charles Michel held an emergency meeting Tuesday morning with Belgium’s crisis centre, which coordinates security measures, according to Belgian media.
The shopping centre was closed off for investigation. Only one exit at the nearby metro stop remained open, where soldiers checked passengers’ bags and belongings.
UNITED STATES
Man charged for ‘attempting to kill’ Trump
A 19-year-old man has been charged for trying to grab a police officer’s gun at a Donald Trump rally in Las Vegas and use it to kill the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
According to a complaint filed in the US District Court in Nevada on Monday, Michael Sandford tried to disarm the officer at the June 18 rally at the Mystere Theatre in the Treasure Island Casino before being overpowered.
It said the young man, who holds a British driving licence, told a Secret Service agent after his arrest that he had driven from California to Las Vegas “to kill Trump”, and had been to a range a day earlier to learn to shoot as he had never fired a gun before.
AFGHANISTAN
Taliban kidnap two dozen on highway
Taliban on Tuesday kidnapped around two dozen people after pulling them off buses in southern Afghanistan, officials said, the latest in series of abductions on the country’s increasingly dangerous highways.
The pre-dawn incident in Washer district of Helmand province comes a day after militants killed more than 20 people, including 14 Nepali security guards, in a wave of violence across the country.
“They abducted around 25 people, all men,” the Helmand governor’s spokesman Omar Zwak said. He was unable to give a more precise figure, but added the passengers were travelling on a bus and two trucks from southern Kandahar to western Herat province.