The Struggle For Freedom, Justice and Equality
Friday, December 27, 2013
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Friday, December 6, 2013
World mourns Nelson Mandela, former South African president and anti-apartheid leader | Fox News
National leaders and ordinary citizens around the world joined Thursday in mourning Nelson Mandela, who spent 27 years as a prisoner in South Africa for opposing apartheid, then emerged to become his country's first black president, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and an enduring symbol of integrity, principle and resilience.
Mandela died "peacefully" Thursday night at 95 at his home in Johannesburg, surrounded by family, according to South African President Jacob Zuma.
Zuma, dressed in black, announced Mandela's death in a nationally televised address, saying " Our nation has lost its greatest son. Our people have lost a father. Although we knew that this day would come, nothing can diminish our sense of a profound and enduring loss."
Mandela had spent almost three months in a Pretoria hospital after being admitted in June with a recurring lung infection.
Zuma said the man considered by many as the father of his nation would be accorded a full state funeral.
In Washington, President Obama called him one of the "most influential, courageous and profoundly good" people to ever have lived.
"He achieved more than could be expected of any man," an emotional Obama said, in remarks from the White House, adding: "He belongs to the ages."
Obama ordered U.S. flags to be lowered immediately to half staff until Monday evening in tribute to Mandela.
Meanwhile, South Africans gathered to celebrate Mandela's life and mourn his death.
Outside the Soweto home where he once lived, some residents sang and danced while others gathered outside his Johannesburg home, where the mood also was lively. A makeshift shrine appeared composed candles, a national flag and bouquets of flowers, along with a picture of him inscribed "Rest in peace, Madiba" -- his clan name..
Mandela, who once said, "the struggle is my life," was a beloved hero of both South Africa and the world itself. His face was instantly recognizable in virtually any country, his story famous enough that he was portrayed in movies at least four times - by Morgan Freeman ("Invictus"), Sidney Poitier ("Mandela and de Klerk"), Danny Glover ("Mandela") and Dennis Haysbert ("Goodbye Bafana").
Stamps were issued with his likeness, songs written about him, statues erected in his honor everywhere from Johannesburg to London and more than 50 universities around the world awarded him degrees. Even a species of spiders was named in his honor.
Mandela, who had been in increasingly frail health in recent years, retired from public life in 2004. He is survived by his third wife, Graca Machel, three daughters (three other children died) and multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Stamps were issued with his likeness, songs written about him, statues erected in his honor everywhere from Johannesburg to London and more than 50 universities around the world awarded him degrees. Even a species of spiders was named in his honor.
Mandela, who had been in increasingly frail health in recent years, retired from public life in 2004. He is survived by his third wife, Graca Machel, three daughters (three other children died) and multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
In one of his last public appearances, televised in May 2012, Mandela sat in an armchair with a blanket pulled over his lap at his rural home in Qunu and received a symbolic flame to mark the centenary of the African National Congress.
Ironically, the leader hailed as a symbol of peace at one point was on a U.S. terror watch list because of his affiliation with the ANC, which was designated a terrorist organization by South Africa’s apartheid government. He was finally taken off the list in 2008.
Mandela, although initially committed to non-violence, had, in fact, once been involved with the militant wing of the ANC, which was founded in association with the South African Communist Party and carried out a campaign of violence against government targets.
The man who died an anti-apartheid hero, world statesman and symbol of the strength of the human spirit was born Rolihlahla Mandela in a village near Umtata in the Transkei on July 18, 1918. Rolihlahla literally means "pulling the branch of a tree" but more colloquially, "troublemaker."
His father was primary councilor to the Acting Paramount Chief of Thembuland and after his father's death, the 9-year-old Mandela became the chief's ward. He received the English name Nelson from a primary school teacher at his mission school.
He attended the University College of Fort Hare, a prestigious residential college for blacks in South Africa, where he was expelled over a student boycott, and then ran away from home to Johannesburg to avoid an arranged marriage.
He eventually completed his bachelor's degree via correspondence courses, studied law and joined the African National Congress in 1942.
After 20 years of leading a non-violent campaign against the South African government, his philosophy switched to armed struggle. In 1964 he was sentenced to life imprisonment for plotting to overthrow the government by violence.
For 18 of his 27 years in prison, he was inmate #46664 on Robben Island, a notorious maximum security facility off Cape Town, where he became a worldwide symbol of resistance to racial oppression.
In 1982, he was moved to Pollsmoor Prison, on the nearby mainland, where he spent much of his time in solitary confinement. In 1985, President P. W. Botha offered to release him if he would renounce armed struggle but he refused, saying "only free men can negotiate. Prisoners cannot enter into contracts."
Finally released from this third prison, Victor Verster – an event broadcast internationally - on February 11, 1990 , he was elected president of the ANC in 1991.
In 1993 he and President Frederik Willem De Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and in 1994, at the age of 75, he was inaugurated as the first black president of South Africa.
Mandela served as president until 1999, when he retired and became an advocate for a number of human rights organizations and also a spokesman for the fight against AIDS. In 2001 he was treated for prostate cancer.
His philosophy of learning to love instead of hate made him one of the moral leaders of his era.
"No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion" he wrote in his autobiography.
"People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for loves comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite."
Mandela was married three times. His first wife was Evelyn Ntoko Mase, from 1944-1957, and they had four children – one son died in a car crash, one son of AIDS and one daughter as an infant.
His second wife was Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (1958-1996) and they had two daughters before divorcing. On his 80th birthday in 1998 he wed Graca Machel, widow of Samora Machel, the former Mozambican president.
But his nation was his beloved offspring as well. "My daughter Zinzi says," he once observed, "that she grew up without a father, who, when he returned, became a father of the nation...for me, there is no place like home."
His father was primary councilor to the Acting Paramount Chief of Thembuland and after his father's death, the 9-year-old Mandela became the chief's ward. He received the English name Nelson from a primary school teacher at his mission school.
He attended the University College of Fort Hare, a prestigious residential college for blacks in South Africa, where he was expelled over a student boycott, and then ran away from home to Johannesburg to avoid an arranged marriage.
He eventually completed his bachelor's degree via correspondence courses, studied law and joined the African National Congress in 1942.
After 20 years of leading a non-violent campaign against the South African government, his philosophy switched to armed struggle. In 1964 he was sentenced to life imprisonment for plotting to overthrow the government by violence.
For 18 of his 27 years in prison, he was inmate #46664 on Robben Island, a notorious maximum security facility off Cape Town, where he became a worldwide symbol of resistance to racial oppression.
In 1982, he was moved to Pollsmoor Prison, on the nearby mainland, where he spent much of his time in solitary confinement. In 1985, President P. W. Botha offered to release him if he would renounce armed struggle but he refused, saying "only free men can negotiate. Prisoners cannot enter into contracts."
Finally released from this third prison, Victor Verster – an event broadcast internationally - on February 11, 1990 , he was elected president of the ANC in 1991.
In 1993 he and President Frederik Willem De Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and in 1994, at the age of 75, he was inaugurated as the first black president of South Africa.
Mandela served as president until 1999, when he retired and became an advocate for a number of human rights organizations and also a spokesman for the fight against AIDS. In 2001 he was treated for prostate cancer.
His philosophy of learning to love instead of hate made him one of the moral leaders of his era.
"No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion" he wrote in his autobiography.
"People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for loves comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite."
Mandela was married three times. His first wife was Evelyn Ntoko Mase, from 1944-1957, and they had four children – one son died in a car crash, one son of AIDS and one daughter as an infant.
His second wife was Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (1958-1996) and they had two daughters before divorcing. On his 80th birthday in 1998 he wed Graca Machel, widow of Samora Machel, the former Mozambican president.
But his nation was his beloved offspring as well. "My daughter Zinzi says," he once observed, "that she grew up without a father, who, when he returned, became a father of the nation...for me, there is no place like home."
The Associated Press contributed to this report
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Ethiopia: Ogadeni fighters resist the Italian invasion of 1935 | martinplaut
This photograph was taken by H. V. Drees, a photographer with Acme photographs, who was with Ethiopian troops in the South of the country during the invasion of their country by Italy in 1935. He took many photographs which were used extensively by the American press.
This image carries this caption: “Lords of the desert. Desert nobels chanting their war cry as they trek across the Ogaden desert for the front. They are part of the irregular forces of Ras Nasibu, commander of the southern army.”
According to Paul Henze, Ras Nasibu, together with Ras Desta led some 80,000 men against the Italians. They were up against forces armed with tanks and mustard gas, which caused terrible casualties and their army was finally defeated. Certainly Ras Nasibu had no illusions about the odds.
As he told a western journalist who interviewed him in Harar: “We fight and die while the League (of Nations) talks. The world has had plenty of warning. They told us Mussolini was bluffing, but we knew. He is a dog. If we could only fight him man to man. But we are up against a foe who is letting loose fiendish warfare because he is angry with the Abyssinians for protecting their homes…I am convinced we must fight alone. Nevertheless we are holding the Ogaden, despite the terrible cost.”
Ras Nasibu died years later of the mustard gas he received, but not before his exploits came to the attention of the wider black community.
Ras Nasibu inspired a poem by Marcus Garvey, which opened with this verse:
A king has fallen on the field-
The field of war, but not by shot,
Nor even through a broken shield:
He died in exile-awful lot!
Ras Nasibu of Ogaden
Is he-the greatest of his tribe-
The man who led his valiant men
With Wehib Pasha at his side.
The field of war, but not by shot,
Nor even through a broken shield:
He died in exile-awful lot!
Ras Nasibu of Ogaden
Is he-the greatest of his tribe-
The man who led his valiant men
With Wehib Pasha at his side.
Below is a biography of Ras Nasibu from Wikipedia
Nasibu Emmanual was educated at the Menelik II School (Ecole Imperiale Menelik II) in Addis Ababa with his brother Wasane, where they received a Western-styleeducation. Nasibu’s early career “closely replicated his brother’s”, as Bahru Zewde points out. Like Wasane he was successively Consul in Asmara then mayor of Addis Ababa, but unlike Wasane his tenure as mayor was much longer (1922-1932).
Bahru agrees with Eshetu Assen that Nasibu was a reforming mayor, pointing out his reforms included “the registration and categorization of urban land, the institution of traffic police and sanitation guards, a ban on the custom of firing shots during festivities, the proscription of the capricious system of leba shay, the burying of the bodies of dead animals, road-building, granting loans to people building houses along the main roads so that the construction would add to the beauty of the city, the institution of night guards to curb mugging and the municipal certification of contracts.” After visiting Berlin in 1929, Nasibu made investigations into introducing a modern water supply system to Addis Ababa.
Being in command of the municipal police, which he organized along modern lines, Nasibu played a key role in the political power struggle of 1928, supporting Ras Tafari (the later Emperor Haile Selassie) against first Dejazmach Balcha Safo then againstDejazmach Abba Weqaw. In 1930, Nasibu Emmanual was appointed as the Director of the Ministry of War by Emperor Haile Selassie. He was considered by many to be un-Ethiopian because he was mission educated. He was also considered un-Ethiopian because he spoke Italian and French and because he dressed in modern European clothing and uniforms. In 1931, Nasibu Emmanual was named Dejazmachand Shumof Gurage Province and Soddo Province. In 1932, he became Shum of Bale Province.
Ras Nasibu fought on the “southern front” during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. He became the Commander-in-Chief of the Ethiopian forces on this front upon the death of Grazmach Afawarq Walda Samayat. Nasibu’s headquarters was initially atDegehabur, but later he moved to Jijiga. Nasibu specifically commanded the Ethiopian forces fighting against the forces of Italian General Rodolfo Graziani during the Battle of the Ogaden. When Graziani started the large scale use of Mustard gas on Nasibu’s men, Nasibu responded:
- “The League of Nations! We fight and die while the League talks. … If only we could fight men in the manner of men! But we are facing an invader who uses the most fiendish methods known to warfare all because he is angered that we protect our homes and land. Our lands are being laid barren by gas; our mules, sheep, and cattle are dying in the fields.”
In May 1936, Nasibu accompanied the Emperor and the Royal Court into exile. He briefly served as the leader of the Ethiopian delegation to the League of Nations inGeneva, Switzerland. He delivered two draft resolutions to the General Secretary. But, due to illness, he soon left the Royal Party. On 16 October, Nasibu Emmanual died of the sequels of exposure to mustard gas in Davos, Switzerland.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Thursday, November 28, 2013
50 000 Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia sent home | News24
Ethiopia has flown home over 50 000 citizens in Saudi Arabia after a crackdown against illegal immigrants in the oil-rich state, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
"We projected the initial number to be 10 000 but it is increasing," foreign ministry spokesperson Dina Mufti told AFP, adding that the final total once the mass airlift ends is now expected to be around 80 000.
Ethiopia started repatriating citizens living illegally in Saudi Arabia after a seven-month amnesty period to formalise their status expired on 4 November, sparking violent protests between Saudi police and Ethiopian migrants preparing to leave the country.
The Ethiopian government said three of its citizens were killed in clashes.
Dina said the government is spending $2.6m on the repatriation programme to bring citizens home, the majority women.
Ethiopia has said relations with Saudi Arabia remain "sisterly", with Dina saying the government's main priority was to bring citizens home.
"We are focussing on the repatriation... we have not evaluated that one, we have not assessed that," he said, referring to Ethio-Saudi ties.
Emotional speech
Large numbers of Ethiopians - often women seeking domestic work - travel to the Middle East each year looking for jobs.
About 200 000 women sought work abroad in 2012, according to Ethiopia's ministry of labour and social affairs.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) said many face physical and mental abuse, low pay, discrimination and poor working conditions.
Reports of mistreatment of Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia has sparked outrage in Ethiopia.
In an emotional speech this month, Ethiopia's Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom said the government was in "around the clock crisis management" mode trying to bring citizens back.
With 91 million citizens, Ethiopia is Africa's most populous country after Nigeria, but also one of the continent's poorest, with the majority of people earning less than two dollars a day.
At least 27% of women and 13% of men are unemployed, according to the ILO
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Sudanese rebels visit ICC premises - Sudan Tribune: Plural news and views on Sudan
November 21, 2013 (THE HAGUE) - The leaders of the rebel Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) on Thursday paid a courtesy visit to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and expressed willingness to collaborate with the war crimes court.
During their visit to the Netherlands, the SRF leadership visited the ICC headquarters where they met with an external relations officer from the Outreach unit. The delegation was briefed about the court functioning and it is different departments.
During a meeting with the ICC officials, the visiting delegation expressed its willingness to cooperate with the court saying they are ready to hand over any of their members including the leaders if they are accused of perpetrating any war crime.
The rebels further regretted the non-arrest of president Omer Al-Bashir in spite of the warrants issued against saying this not-arrest encourages him commit more atrocities and crimes as it was the case during the bloody repression of protesters last September.
The rebels said they will keep their efforts to mobilise the international community, rights groups and Sudanese people on the need to cooperate with the international court. They further stressed the need to carry out a, awareness and information campaign in Africa to explain the ICC mission.
The ICC issued two arrest warrants against Bashir in 2009 and 2010 for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide committed in Darfur region.
Nonetheless, last June the ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda criticised the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over its "inaction and paralysis" over Darfur cases.
Bensouda also criticised the UNSC for failing to intervene after neighbouring countries, most notably Chad, refused to arrest Bashir despite him taking several trips inside their borders.
The Sudanese rebels also attended a hearing at the court as it has started the trial of the Kenyan vice president William Ruto.
Ruto and the Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta are facing charges of crimes against humanity for their alleged role in ethnic violence in the aftermath of an election in 2007 when 1,200 people were killed.
Kenya backed by many African countries seeks to persuade the ICC’s members to accept an immediate change in the rules of the court providing that the head of states are not forced to attend trials.
The east African country also demands a longer-term amendment in the ICC’s founding treaty, the Rome Statute status banning the prosecution of heads of states.
- Photo shows the International Criminal Court in the Hague (AFP)
During their visit to the Netherlands, the SRF leadership visited the ICC headquarters where they met with an external relations officer from the Outreach unit. The delegation was briefed about the court functioning and it is different departments.
During a meeting with the ICC officials, the visiting delegation expressed its willingness to cooperate with the court saying they are ready to hand over any of their members including the leaders if they are accused of perpetrating any war crime.
The rebels further regretted the non-arrest of president Omer Al-Bashir in spite of the warrants issued against saying this not-arrest encourages him commit more atrocities and crimes as it was the case during the bloody repression of protesters last September.
The rebels said they will keep their efforts to mobilise the international community, rights groups and Sudanese people on the need to cooperate with the international court. They further stressed the need to carry out a, awareness and information campaign in Africa to explain the ICC mission.
The ICC issued two arrest warrants against Bashir in 2009 and 2010 for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide committed in Darfur region.
Nonetheless, last June the ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda criticised the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over its "inaction and paralysis" over Darfur cases.
Bensouda also criticised the UNSC for failing to intervene after neighbouring countries, most notably Chad, refused to arrest Bashir despite him taking several trips inside their borders.
The Sudanese rebels also attended a hearing at the court as it has started the trial of the Kenyan vice president William Ruto.
Ruto and the Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta are facing charges of crimes against humanity for their alleged role in ethnic violence in the aftermath of an election in 2007 when 1,200 people were killed.
Kenya backed by many African countries seeks to persuade the ICC’s members to accept an immediate change in the rules of the court providing that the head of states are not forced to attend trials.
The east African country also demands a longer-term amendment in the ICC’s founding treaty, the Rome Statute status banning the prosecution of heads of states.
Sunday, November 3, 2013
ONLF Evicts Ethiopian Army from Bantureeb village in the Godey Zone-somalilandsun
Somalilandsun- Sources close to the Ogaden regional administration confirmed to Ogadentoday Press that ONLF captured the village of Bantureed near the city of Godey in the Beercaano district.This attack took place last night according to the sources who spoke to Ogadentoday press
According to the sources, Ethiopian soldiers who are regionally known as the "Liyuu Police" were killed in the attack.
The Ethiopian government sent a lot of its troops from the city of Godey to the village and its surrounding where they began arresting both "Liyuu Police" and civilians in the area and accusing them of standing idly and doing nothing when the ONLF were present in the city and when they were taking ammunition and weapons from a weapons depot
Sources so far confirm that amongst those who were arrested include the following names. These people were given 10 years of imprisonment.
1-Nuur Daahir
2-Axmed Suldaan
3 Cumer Xassan
4 Kaamil Miyir
5 Afwaax
6.Xaliimo Qooqan
Besides them there are up to fifty other civilians who have been arrested and are awaiting sentencing.
The past few days the region has seen an increase in heavy fighting. Ogadentoday Press has can further confirm that some district leaders in Beercaano have been sentenced to at least 25 years of imprisonment.
Further details to come as soon as we obtain more information
Ethiopian Paramilitary Forces have long accused of human right abuses in Ogaden Region but Ethiopia denies the accusations.
Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen and his delegation have visited recently the area for investment.
Since 2005, Ethiopia government isolated Ogaden region from the World, Ethiopia imposed a ban all international aid and media organizations in Ogaden despite some are operating under the permit of intelligence surveillances.
Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) fighting for the self-determination of Ogaden Region in Ethiopia since 1994.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Friday, August 2, 2013
Nelson Mandela's Living Legacy | 1962 - Building ANC support in free Africa | The South African
As the ANC entered the more assertive struggle of the 1960s, Nelson Mandela – now nationally notorious among the white South African public – started to raise funds and build support among the leaders of newly-independent African countries.
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Egypt: Mohammad Mursi an author of his misfortune | GulfNews.com
‘He always acted to protect the interests of his Muslim Brotherhood, not Egypt’s’
- By Ramadan Al Sherbini, Correspondent
- Published: 13:55 July 10, 2013
- Image Credit: EPA
- A man paints anti-Mursi graffiti outside the presidential palace in Cairo last week. Mohammad Mursi and the opposition were locked in a political dispute for most of his short-lived presidency. They accused him of betraying the revolution that brought him to power.
Cairo: Mohammad Mursi’s failure to act as an inclusive president and address Egypt’s economic and social problems expedited his fall only one year after he took office, according to political experts.
“He always acted to protect the interests of his Muslim Brotherhood, not Egypt’s,” said Mohammad Al Desouki, an analyst in the state-run newspaper Al Ahram.
Al Desouki cited the Brotherhood’s angry reaction when the UAE arrested 10 Egyptians from the Brotherhood charged with setting up an anti-government clandestine organisation in the country and illegally sending money to the Islamist group in Egypt.
“In sharp contrast, Mursi and the Brotherhood lifted no finger to assist Egyptians held in other countries.”
Before his election as Egypt’s first democratically elected president Mursi had pledged, to political forces that backed him for the top post, that he would not seek to monopolise power and that he would govern with national consensus.
“He did not keep any of his promises, triggering instead divisions in Egyptian society. These splits were so serious that they drove the country to the brink of infighting,” Al Desouki told Gulf News.
“Mursi and his group sought to reshape Egypt’s identity, long based on moderation and harmony, to a country where its citizens would be judged according to their religious backgrounds, not competence.”
On July 8 last year, after taking office, Mursi ordered the reinstatement of the parliament, where Islamists had held more than two thirds of the seats. The legislature had been dissolved by the country’s top court weeks earlier.
“I think the first real nail driven in the coffin of Mursi’s presidency came in November when he issued a constitutional declaration that expanded his powers and made his decrees beyond judicial review,” said Al Desouki.
The charter incensed the judiciary and the secular opposition that accused Mursi of becoming a dictator.
Mursi and the opposition were locked in a sharp political dispute for most of his short-lived presidency. The opposition accused him of betraying the revolution that brought him to power, while his supporters charged that the opposition deliberately caused street turmoil to give a bad public impression about his administration.
Mursi’s Islamist allies surrounded the Supreme Constitutional court for nearly a month last December to prevent it from ruling on a case requesting the dissolution of the Islamist-led Shura Council, which acted as a temporary legislature.
“His leadership lacked in wisdom and rationality,” said Al Desouki, citing Mursi’s handling of Ethiopia’s decision to divert the course of the Blue Nile to build a grand hydraulic dam.
“It was a disaster to discuss such an issue, with its serious implications on the national security, live on the air,” he said, referring to a crisis meeting between Mursi and political leaders who did not notice that their suggestions to bomb and cause unrest in Ethiopia were being shown live on Egyptian state television.
Mursi was also at loggerheads with critical media whom he accused of being illegally funded and collaborating with loyalists of his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak.
In March, Mursi’s supporters besieged the state-run Media City near Cairo for several days to protest TV stations, which used to sharply criticise the Islamist leader’s policy.
In a televised address he gave on June 27, six days before the army ousted him, Mursi named and lashed out at certain business tycoons accusing them of funding a “counter-revolution” against his rule.
“He was a good listener, but did not take real positive steps because the Guidance Bureau was the one which controlled the decision-making process,” said veteran writer Sekina Fouad, referring to the Brotherhood’s influential body. Fouad was an advisor to Mursi before she quit last November to protest his decision to expand his powers.
“The bitter legacy of his presidency prompted the people to stage a revolution against him,” Fouad told the private station ON TV. “He failed to solve the daily problems of the people who suffered from shortages of petrol and electricity in an unprecedented way.”
Large numbers of disaffected Egyptians turned out on June 30, which marked Mursi’s first year in office, and demanded he step down and call early elections.
Army chief Abdul Fatah Al Sissi gave the country’s politicians, including Mursi, a 48-hour ultimatum to “respond to the people’s demands”. Two days later, the army overthrew Mursi and has since kept him in its custody in an unknown location.
“The millions took to the streets (on June 30) due to the Brotherhood’s abysmal failure in managing the country. The army just responded to the people’s wish without being interested in taking power,” said Fouad.
Mursi’s backers condemned the move as a “coup against legitimacy” and vowed open-ended protests until he is restored to power. His term was to end in 2016
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Militia kill three civilians along Kenya-Ethiopia border- - VOA
Suspected militia from Ethiopia on Thursday night killed three local people in the latest attack since the government ordered security crackdown in the restive town of Mandera,APA reports quoting Xinhua.
Regional deputy police commander, Noor Gabow confirmed the incident on Friday, saying the armed militia attacked Malkamari village near the border with Ethiopia and shot dead two men and a woman.
"The militia crossed the border from Ethiopia and started shooting arbitrarily at the villagers and in the process killed two men and a woman. They later fled probably to Ethiopia," Gabow told Xinhua by telephone on Friday.
"We have launched investigations to establish the motive behind the attack but right now we can link it to local politics," Gabow said.
The latest killings came after Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta vowed to invest more resources in the security agencies to ensure the country is stable.
Speaking in Nairobi during a meeting with the country's top security chiefs on Thursday, Kenyatta said no effort will be spared in addressing security challenges which have engulfed the East African nation in the past three weeks.
"We will ensure police officers are sufficiently facilitated to enable them perform their duties effectively and in a dignified manner," Kenyatta said.
The Kenyan leader said he has already appointed a team tasked with the responsibility of identifying immediate priorities that need to be implemented in order to make the police service more proactive.
Criminal groups armed with crude weapons have been terrorizing residents of Bungoma and Busia counties in Western Kenya in the past two weeks, resulting into the death of over civilians.
Inter-ethnic clashes have also erupted in the northern Kenya town of Mandera which borders both Somalia and Ethiopia resulting in the death of four civilians and several injuries.
The killings have caused panic as the motive behind the arbitrary attacks is unknown. But police said investigations have been launched to establish the motive behind the attacks which has affected livelihoods and ordinary activities.
The latest killing has sparked tension which had subsided in Mandera which borders Somalia and Ethiopia following inter-tribal fighting that has claimed lives in the past two weeks.
Gabow said 18 guns and 665 rounds of ammunitions were surrendered as on Thursday in the going security operation in the clash torn Mandera County.
He said the firearms which include both heavy and light weapons were handed over to the security officers voluntarily by the warring clans of Degodia and Garre communities in bid take advantage of a government amnesty to surrender illicit firearms in the public hands.
Gabow said the firearms were surrendered by the both warring clans at their respective police station in response by the government to hand over illegal weapons in the hands of the communities living in the border County, which prone to inter-clan skirmishes'.
"People are responding well to the call by the government to surrender firearms wrongly in their hands as even as the operation to flush out armed gangs causing insecurity is underway in the County," Gabow said.
Gabow said sufficient security personnel among them the paramilitary officers and Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) were deployed in the area to stop any further killings by the clan bandits.
Hostilities between the Garre and Degodia community have been building since the former lost their traditional Mandera central parliamentary seat to the latter in the last general election. Garre held the seat since independence.
Both Garre and Degodia have communal presence and have sophisticated armed militia in Ethiopia who has been used in clan fighting in the horn of Africa country.
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