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Ethiopia’s month-long war in its northern Tigray region has severely hampered efforts to fight one of Africa’s worst coronavirus outbreaks,... View Article
The post Ethiopia’s conflict stokes humanitarian and virus crisis: 'I think the war is worse' appeared first on TheGrio.
He replaces Debretsion Gebremichael, whose immunity from prosecution was removed Thursday.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International said Thursday that scores of civilians were killed in a \"massacre\" in the Tigray region, that witnesses blamed on forces backing the local ruling party.
The \"massacre\" is the first reported incident of large-scale civilian fatalities in a week-old conflict between the regional ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize.
\"Amnesty International can today confirm... that scores, and likely hundreds, of people were stabbed or hacked to death in Mai-Kadra (May Cadera) town in the southwest of Ethiopia's Tigray Region on the night of 9 November,\" the rights group said in a report.
Amnesty said it had \"digitally verified gruesome photographs and videos of bodies strewn across the town or being carried away on stretchers.\"
The dead \"had gaping wounds that appear to have been inflicted by sharp weapons such as knives and machetes,\" Amnesty said, citing witness accounts.
Witnesses said the attack was carried out by TPLF-aligned forces after a defeat at the hands of the Ethiopian military, though Amnesty said it \"has not been able to confirm who was responsible for the killings\".
It nonetheless called on TPLF commanders and officials to \"make clear to their forces and their supporters that deliberate attacks on civilians are absolutely prohibited and constitute war crimes\".
Abiy ordered military operations in Tigray on November 4, saying they were prompted by a TPLF attack on federal military camps -- a claim the party denies.
The region has been under a communications blackout ever since, making it difficult to verify competing claims on the ground.
Abiy said Thursday his army had made major gains in western Tigray.
Thousands of Ethiopians have fled across the border into neighboring Sudan, and the UN is sounding the alarm about a humanitarian crisis in Tigray.
BY RICHARD MUPONDE MDC Alliance vice-president and lawyer Tendai Biti was yesterday arrested and charged with assault for calling a Russian national Tatiana Aleshina an “idiot” after an altercation at the Harare Magistrate Court. Biti was involved in an exchange of words with the Russian at the Harare Magistrates Court on November 30. Aleshina is involved in a property dispute with one of Biti’s clients. The firebrand politician has, however, denied wrongdoing, but admits calling Aleshina an “idiot”. He insists there was no physical confrontation. Aleshina has also filed a complaint with the Law Society of Zimbabwe Gender Commission against Biti labelling her an idiot. Biti tweeted: “I have been stuck at CID Law and Order since 11am being charged with the most spurious, the most desperate of all charges. “It is said I called someone an idiot and that is said to be an assault. No amount of harassment will prevent us from fighting and exposing corruption. They want to detain me overnight, so be it.” Police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi yesterday confirmed Biti's arrest for allegedly verbally abusing and assaulting the Russian. “He is charged with (verbal) assault,” he said. MDC Alliance spokesperson Fadzai Mahere also confirmed the arrest. “It is true he has been arrested and detained by the Harare Central Police Criminal Investigation Department Law and Order on a spurious charge of assault,” Mahere said. “His crime is unearthing a corruption scandal concerning the Harare Airport land deal involving complainant, Aleshina and business men (name not supplied) linked to Mnangagwa. Biti didn’t assault.” In a statement, the MDC Alliance said: “Biti’s only crime is unearthing a corruption scandal concerning the Harare Airport Road land deal involving the complainant, Russian national Tatiana Aleshina, and businessmen linked to (President) Emmerson Mnangagwa. Biti didn’t assault her.” The Russian woman reportedly has very close links with President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his right hand man July Moyo in airport land deal. Mnangagwa, according to reports, is entangled in a messy secret agreement that gives millionaire Ken Sharpe’s Augur Investments unusual immunity from litigation on disputed vast tracts of land he acquired through the Airport Road construction project in which he is a signatory as a witness. Aleshina reportedly signed a deed of settlement with July Moyo on 28 May 2019 on behalf of Augur Invstments. The agreement for the construction of the 20km Airport Road, also known as the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Expressway, which was not completed, was signed in 2008 between Harare City Council and Augur, although the project was later taken over by the government. Follow Richard on Twitter @muponderichard
Four people have been killed and three injured in a collision on the N4 highway in Mpumalanga, paramedics say.
By BILL BARROW Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — President Donald Trump's first political rally since losing his reelection bid is ostensibly to urge support for the Republican incumbents in Georgia's two runoffs that will decide which party controls the Senate at the start of Joe Biden's administration. But the question remains whether Trump will really try to help his party or use the Saturday night event in Valdosta to amplify his conspiratorial and debunked theories of electoral fraud. Republicans are worried that if Trump does the latter, their voters will think the system is rigged and decide to sit out […]
The post At Georgia Senate rally, Trump can help his party or himself appeared first on Black News Channel.
IN THE early hours of November 4, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) attacked the...
The post Ethiopian National Defense Forces Base comes under attack appeared first on Voice Online.
[New Times] Collaborative action in the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area will support rebuilding of African economies following disruption by the Covid-19 pandemic and strengthen resilience to future shocks, President Paul Kagame has said.
Hospitals across the United States are being put under immense pressure as the nation continues to hit record levels of new Covid-19 cases, adding more than 1 million new cases in the first five days of December. 'We're seeing day-by-day increasing numbers of patients with Covid-19, both those who are a little bit sick and those who are really sick,' […]
[East African] The East African region is bracing itself for a second wave of a desert locust upsurge after efforts to control their breeding in Somalia, Ethiopia and Yemen failed.
Tesla has shared its diversity reports which reveal that Black employees make up 10 percent of their workforce while only... View Article
The post Black people hold only 4% of leadership roles at Tesla appeared first on TheGrio.
Video footage taken from the ground shows aggressive boos from the stands as the players took the knee, prompting criticism from ex-players including Lineker, Trevor Sinclair and Greg Halford
[FEEEDS] Washington, DC -- President-elect Biden's nomination of Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield sends a strong message that the incoming administration is serious about re-engaging the world not only with strong policy leadership and national security skills, but also ensuring that America acts in line with its core values when working with our partners.
San Antonio Spurs player DeMar DeRozan confronted and chased an intruder out of his Los Angeles home after the man... View Article
The post DeMar DeRozan confronts home intruder, chases him off appeared first on TheGrio.
By PAN PYLAS and RAF CASERT Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Post-Brexit trade discussions between the European Union and the U.K. will resume on Sunday following a pause in negotiations in light of their inability to bridge an array of differences, Britain's prime minister and the head of the EU's executive branch said. In a joint statement Saturday following a phone call between them, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said 'a further effort' should be undertaken by their respective negotiating teams to assess whether the 'significant differences' can be resolved. In their […]
The post Crunch UK-EU talks on post-Brexit ties to resume Sunday appeared first on Black News Channel.
FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube last week delivered the 2021 national budget. It was a clear budget on the path the country is taking — neoliberalism — and further squeezing of the poor working class and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) at the same time creating socialism for the rich. Paidamoyo Muzulu It is important to define two terms in the introduction – neoliberalism and socialism for the rich. Neoliberalism is an economic concept popularised by economist Milton Friedman of the Chicago School of Economics. At its basic form, neoliberalism is about free market economics — markets (capital) knows best. Socialism for the rich is a term that came into wider use during the 2008/9 economic global recession. Governments across the world bailed out struggling banks and large corporations so that they would not collapse yet the same governments are criticised for providing social safety nets for the poor and vulnerable. Ncube marked the path Zimbabwe will pursue to prosperity — Vision 2030 — creating an upper middle-class economy with a per capita income of above US$4 000. This is a grand vision. The vision is supported by increasing and aggressive revenue collection. It is hinged on taxing what all along has become known as the invisible economy — informal sector. First was the introduction of the 2% intermediate mobile money transfer tax. In the second wave for taxes, Ncube increased the presumptive tax to on average $10 000 per month for saloons, general dealer shops and bars and nightclubs. Landlords housing informal businesses are also to act as Zimbabwe Revenue Authority agents to collect the equivalent of US$30 per month levy for a cubicle. The new tax regime does not affect big business. Tax brackets for big businesses have remained flat. In addition, they received a bailout and tax breaks for their operations. Big businesses are still to fully utilise the $18 billion COVID-19 fund. Those in tourism can still bring in buses/coaches without paying import duty. In simple terms, Ncube is saying to SMES formalise or close shop; or else I will make it very difficult for you to operate by a multiplicity of taxes. The Emmerson Mnangagwa-led administration is certain that Zimbabwe will farm itself out of poverty. To that end, each year since 2015 has set aside money for Command Agriculture, a military co-ordinated production of maize, soya beans and wheat. Billions of dollars have been released for the project, but there is very little to show for it five years down the lane. Zimbabwe has dilly-dallied with agriculture support for resettled farmers since 2008, but with very minimal returns. Former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor Gideon Gono in quasi-fiscal operations extended a US$200 million Farm Mechanisation Programme for agriculture support. Machinery such as tractors, combine harvesters, ploughs, boom sprays, harrows and trailers were distributed like confetti to politically connected A2 farmers. The machinery was never put to good use and the debt was assumed by the State through the RBZ Debt Assumption
Take a look at these holiday cocktails that are full of spice and everything nice.
On Thursday, December 10 at 6 pm CT, the MSR will live stream a special edition of MSR Forefront showcasing Black business portal and local businesses with the MN Black Chamber of Commerce.
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WHEN President Emmerson Mnangagwa came into office through a military-assisted transition, he immediately called his government a Second Republic or New Dispensation. It is critical to have an appreciation of what a dispensation or republic is. With that in mind, I have two or three key interventions that I would like to make as we try to unpack what all this means to the ordinary citizen. A dispensation is something new, a distinctive arrangement of governance. This means new faces have been brought at the forefront. It could also imply a new approach to doing government business. Where there was corruption, poor performance, there is now a robust mechanism to protect the public good. In the Zimbabwe case, Mnangagwa's government is made up of the bulk of ministers who served government since independence with a few coming along the way. The approaches and the system remains as it was — insensitive and unresponsive to the citizens' needs and rights. The pace of reform is not as fast as anticipated. The new system of governance prevailing now is not yet instilling confidence in the citizenry that it is caring, responsive and passionate about serving the citizens' interests. What makes the system to be weaker is that ministers say a lot of things, but when it comes to implementation, there is a snail's pace. Things are bad, but the government could lessen the burden by being more sincere, realistic and stop pretending to be nice. It is better to be lied to by a known liar than to be lied to by a person over-emphasising that they are honest and good for the people. As said above, it is futile to say Zimbabwe is under a new dispensation. It is still the same old story.
The African Union (AU) has called on the leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo to preserve \"peace and stability\" on the eve of an announced intervention by the president in the midst of a political crisis, a few days after a UN call for dialogue.
Visiting Thursday and Friday in Kinshasa, the chairman of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahama, said in a statement that he \"had exchanges\" with the head of state Felix Tshisekedi and his predecessor Joseph Kabila.
On Sunday, Tshisekedi is expected to announce his \"long-awaited decisions\" according to his spokesman, to get out of the crisis within the coalition.
The AU chief \"called on the whole (class) of Congolese politicians to work resolutely and sincerely to establish national harmony and preserve peace and stability.
On Saturday, about a hundred deputies wanted to submit petitions to the Assembly asking for the resignation of the pro-Kabila president of the lower house, Jeanine Mabunda, and her office.
\"All offices are closed,\" said a UDPS member of parliament, Léon Mubikayi.
Deputies claim that the petitions were signed by a majority of them (more than 250).
The pro-Kabila FCC claims a majority of more than 300 MPs out of 500 in the Assembly.
In addition, former President Kabila did not go as announced in Lubumbashi (south-east) on Saturday.
He was prevented from travelling, according to his supporters, without official confirmation.
\"Forbidding Joseph Kabila to travel (...) is a pure and simple violation of his constitutional rights,\" reacted the human rights lawyer, Jean-Claude Katende.
\"I remain concerned about the political tensions within the ruling coalition,\" wrote UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres a few days ago. \"I call on all stakeholders to resolve their differences through dialogue, in accordance with the Constitution,\" he said.
Proclaimed winner of the elections, Tshisekedi rose to power since January 2019 under a secret coalition agreement with his predecessor, who kept the majority in parliament.
For us to rest now would be as disastrously careless as an athletic team celebrating its stellar performance during the first period of play and then not showing up for the remainder of the game.
Black farmers markets grow in North Carolina
The post Black farmers markets grow in North Carolina appeared first on WS Chronicle.
Driven by a desire to help the less fortunate, Jamaica-born restaurant owner, Patrick Livingston, has been using his charity Arms of Hope to provide hot meals for the people of Lake Worth Beach in West Palm Beach, Florida, free of cost. The 57-year...
Yankuba Kai-Samba: 5 December 2020: Sierra Leone is in a bigger mess now than ever. Don't fall for the party political jamboree that took place in the capital Freetown this week, with up to 50 Russian donated rubbish collection trucks in a convoy, parading the streets and accompanying the president on his visit to various…
[Addis Fortune] For Grave Rights Concerns, Truth Should not be Casualty of Conflict
