Blast kills three Kenyan soldiers on road near Somali border
The al Qaeda-linked Islamist group al Shabaab said on its website at least two Kenyan soldiers were killed and others wounded in a blast that targeted a convoy in a similar area on Tuesday, but it did not directly claim responsibility.
The patrol hit an improvised explosive device (IED) on Tuesday morning on the road between Sankuri and Kiunga, a coastal town 12km from the Somali border, the army said.
"Regrettably, three gallant soldiers succumbed to their injuries. These soldiers paid the ultimate sacrifice," the Kenya Defence Forces said in a statement released late on Tuesday.
Al Shabaab controls large swathes of southern and central Somalia and frequently makes cross-border attacks on military and civilian targets, which security analysts say are aimed at pressuring Kenya into withdrawing its troops from peacekeeping missions in Somalia.
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Eyewitness News
15 hours ago
- Eyewitness News
France's top court annuls arrest warrant against Syria's Assad
PARIS - France's highest court Friday annulled a French arrest warrant against Syria's ex-president Bashar al-Assad - issued before his ouster - over 2013 deadly chemical attacks. The Court of Cassation ruled there were no exceptions to presidential immunity, even for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. But its presiding judge, Christophe Soulard, added that, as Assad was no longer president after an Islamist-led group toppled him in December, "new arrest warrants can have been, or can be, issued against him" and as such the investigation into the case could continue. Human rights advocates had hoped the court would rule that immunity did not apply because of the severity of the allegations, which would have set a major precedent in international law towards holding accused war criminals to account. They said that, in this regard, it was a missed opportunity. "This ruling represents a setback for the global fight against impunity for the most serious crimes under international law," said Mazen Darwish, the head of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression, a civil party to the case. French authorities issued the warrant against Assad in November 2023 over his alleged role in the chain of command for a sarin gas attack that killed more than 1,000 people, according to US intelligence, on August 4 and 5, 2013 in Adra and Douma outside Damascus. Assad is accused of complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity in the case. Syrian authorities at the time denied involvement and blamed rebels. UNIVERSAL JURISDICTION The French judiciary tackled the case under the principle of universal jurisdiction, whereby a court may prosecute individuals for serious crimes committed in other countries. An investigation - based on testimonies of survivors and military defectors, as well as photos and video footage - led to warrants for the arrest of Assad, his brother Maher who headed an elite army unit, and two generals. Public prosecutors approved three of the warrants, but issued an appeal against the one targeting Assad, arguing he should have immunity as a head of state. The Paris Court of Appeal in June last year however upheld it, and prosecutors again appealed. But in December, Assad's circumstances changed. He and his family fled to Russia, according to Russian authorities, after Islamist-led fighters seized power from him. In January, French investigating magistrates issued a second arrest warrant against Assad for suspected complicity in war crimes for a bombing in the Syrian city of Deraa in 2017 that killed a French-Syrian civilian. 'GREAT VICTORY' The Court of Cassation said Assad's so-called "personal immunity", granted because of his office, meant he could not be targeted by arrest warrants until his ouster. But it ruled that "functional immunity", which is granted to people who perform certain functions of state, could be lifted in the case of accusations of severe crimes. Thus it upheld the French judiciary's indictment in another case against ex-governor of the Central Bank of Syria and former finance minister, Adib Mayaleh. He has been accused of complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity over alleged funding of the Assad government during Syria's civil war. Mayaleh obtained French nationality in 1993, and goes by the name Andre Mayard on his French passport. Darwish, the Syrian lawyer, said that part of the court's ruling was however a "great victory". "It establishes the principle that no agent of a foreign state, regardless of the position they hold, can invoke their immunity when international crimes are at stake," he said. Syria's war has killed more than half a million people and displaced millions from their homes since its eruption in 2011 with the then-government's brutal crackdown on anti-Assad protests. Assad's fall on 8 December 2024 ended his family's five-decade rule.
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
Withdrawal of CFO secondment for Free State official amid Gupta-linked fraud case
A senior Free State provincial government official has had her secondment as the acting chief financial officer of the troubled Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality withdrawn as she is facing fraud charges relating to a R25 million contract awarded to the Gupta-linked Nulane Investments by the province's Agriculture Department. Image: Twitter / @SAPoliceService The secondment of a senior Free State provincial government official among the accused in the R25 million fraud case involving Gupta-linked Nulane Investments as Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality acting chief financial officer (CFO) has been withdrawn. Free State Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) and Human Settlements MEC Saki Mokoena had initially seconded the department's deputy director-general responsible for its specialised support, advice, and intervention unit Seipati Silvia Dhlamini. Earlier this month, Mokoena seconded Dhlamini as the municipality has been without a CFO for months after the contract of Matholase Mazinyo expired in March and was not renewed. Free State Cogta and Human Settlements Department spokesperson, Zimasa Mbewu, said Mokoena has withdrawn the secondment of Dhlamini, and Thuso Ronald Marumo, formerly CFO of the Moqhaka Local Municipality in Kroonstad, has been seconded to be Maluti-A-Phofung acting CFO. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Dhlamini is accused number three in the Nulane matter and was the CFO of the provincial Agriculture Department when the company was awarded the R25m contract to conduct due diligence and feasibility studies into the R334m Vrede Diary Farm Project, part of the broader Mohoma Mobung Programme, run by Indian company Estina on behalf of the department. She has been charged with unlawfully and intentionally, and with common purpose, committing fraud. In April 2023, the Free State High Court withdrew charges against Dhlamini and her co-accused, but last month, the Supreme Court of Appeal ordered they be retried for the same offences they were acquitted of as if they had not previously been arraigned, tried, and acquitted but provided that a different judge presides over the trial. Dhlamini is charged with businessman Iqbal Sharma and his company Nulane Investments, former heads of the Free State Agriculture Department, Peter Thabethe and Limakatso Moorosi, Ronica Ragavan, who represented the fugitive Gupta family's Islandsite Investments, and Dinesh Patel, who is Sharma's brother-in-law and a Nulane Investments representative. During a council meeting in April, assets manager Tsietsi Moremi was appointed acting CFO for a period of three months or until a new permanent CFO was appointed, whichever came first. However, the following month, the council rescinded its resolution and delegated Malekula Melato, the controversial mayor of the troubled municipality, to request Mokoena to second a suitable person to act in the position until a suitable candidate has been appointed. Even before the rescission of Moremi's temporary appointment, in April, Maluti-a-Phofung Municipal Manager Advocate Motsoahae Mofokeng then informed staff in a directive that all the powers of the CFO were recalled and now in his office. 'This is informed by the fact that certain due diligence processes have to be carried out before (the) letter of appointment is dispatched. 'All managers in the finance department should thus report directly to the municipal manager's office forthwith until the said acting CFO receives an appointment letter,' Mofokeng wrote on April 4. In correspondence addressed to Melato dated July 10, Mokoena said he was only in a position to grant the request for a suitably skilled, competent, and qualified candidate in terms of Municipal System Amendment Act 03 of 2022, on such conditions as prescribed, to act in the advertised position until such time as a suitable candidate has been appointed. Mokoena set out a number of conditions including a process plan with timelines on filling of the vacant post of CFO and a provision that all additional cost associated with the secondment such as compensation of the seconded official, an allowance and compensation while on secondment for subsistence and travel etc. are borne by the municipality. Additionally, the secondment must be by agreement, which must stipulate the duration and party responsible for costs. 'The agreement must further include terms of reference, which outline that a person seconded must account to the municipal manager, report in writing at least once a month to the relevant seconding authority with regard to the key performance areas relevant to the position together with the development and implementation of any municipal institutional recovery plan for which the seconded official is responsible,' demanded Mokoena. He said he was seconding Dhlamini and requested Melato to engage Speaker Mandlenkosi Dlamini in order to convene a council meeting on the seconded candidate to allow council to consider the appointment of the seconded candidate and table the conditions for the position of CFO. Mokoena also asked the municipality to forward a signed council resolution in terms of Municipal System Amendment Act appointing the seconded candidates to act in the relevant position after the secondment. Melato was also asked to provide regular progress reports in writing to the relevant seconding authority with regard to the filling of the post and the development and implementation of any municipal institutional recovery plan for which the seconded official is responsible. Mofokeng did not respond to requests for comment.
Daily Maverick
2 days ago
- Daily Maverick
Imprisoned activist MPs in Eswatini highlight a growing crisis of civic freedoms across Africa
Mduduzi Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube's ongoing imprisonment is more than a national tragedy. It is a warning about a dangerous continent-wide trend of unchecked state repression. This month marks four years since Eswatini's pro-democracy activists and former members of parliament, Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube, were arrested — and one year since they were sentenced under the country's notorious Suppression of Terrorism Act for calling for democratic reform. During the June 2021 pro-democracy protests in Eswatini, Mabuza and Dube exercised their constitutional mandate by raising alarm over the unrest, calling for national dialogue and participating in the demonstrations. Rather than heeding calls for dialogue put forward by a number of people, including civil society actors, elders and leaders across the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region, King Mswati ultimately rejected dialogue in favour of brute force. In response to their activism, the Eswatini authorities subjected Mabuza and Dube to irregular trials and harsh sentences, sending a chilling message to others in the pro-democracy movement. Four years later, they remain behind bars, a harsh reflection of how easily democratic ideals are betrayed when the world looks away. To push for their release, Civicus added Mabuza and Dube to its flagship Stand As My Witness campaign. Inspired by the global movement to free Nelson Mandela, Stand As My Witness mobilises people around the world to draw attention to jailed human rights defenders and demand their release. Like Mandela, Mabuza and Dube have been imprisoned for daring to speak out against injustice. But Mabuza and Dube's ongoing imprisonment is more than a national tragedy. It is a warning about a dangerous continent-wide trend of unchecked state repression. Across Africa, from Eswatini to Algeria, Senegal to Tanzania, speaking truth to power is increasingly treated as a criminal offence. More and more, opposition leaders like Mabuza and Dube, as well as whistle-blowers and civil society voices, are under threat. A continental crisis East Africa may be the epicentre of this crisis. Last month, Kenyan blogger Albert Ojwang died in police custody after being arrested for allegedly defaming a senior police official. Likewise, Rose Njeri, a young software developer, was arrested and charged under cybercrime laws for building a tool that enabled citizens to submit objections to a controversial finance Bill. In neighbouring Uganda, 11 environmental activists were arrested on 23 April for peacefully marching to deliver a letter to KCB Bank, which supports the controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline. Meanwhile, Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu remains in detention following his April 2025 arrest for agitating for democratic reform. He faces spurious charges of treason, an offence that carries the death penalty in Tanzania. In West Africa, Senegalese pro-democracy organiser Alioune Sané of the Y'en a Marre movement was arrested in late 2023 and released only early this year. In North Africa, Egyptian human rights lawyer Hoda Abdel Moneim — who is part of the Stand As My Witness campaign — languishes behind bars. So does Tunisian humanitarian worker Mustapha Jemmali, who authorities detained on spurious financial charges, widely seen as retaliation for his refugee advocacy. Concern is not enough These arrests form a broader trend of shrinking civic space in Africa. The Civicus Monitor, which tracks civic freedoms globally, reports that more than 90% of Africans now live in countries where civic space is restricted, repressed or closed. The global response? Far too often: diplomatic silence, performative concern, or reactive statements after the damage is done. Media coverage is frequently short-lived and quickly forgotten. But concern alone is no longer sufficient, not when elected members of parliament are behind bars for doing their jobs, and not when ordinary people are arrested for taking to the streets to voice dissent. If repression is becoming the norm, then our solidarity must rise to meet this moment. It must move beyond symbolic declarations to coordinated and sustained action. Fortunately, we know that international pressure and solidarity work. The Stand As My Witness campaign, as part of sustained global advocacy, has helped contribute to the release of 31 people globally so far, like Algerian human rights defenders Zakaria Hannache and Kamira Nait Said, Burundian journalist Floriane Irangabiye, and Zimbabwean union leader Obert Masaraure. Knowing that international advocacy can lead to someone's release is why we keep pushing, and why we encourage others to join us. Together, we can make a difference for Mabuza and Dube in Eswatini. Time to act on Eswatini Securing Mabuza and Dube's freedom requires serious global action. Eswatini is due to undergo its next Universal Periodic Review at the UN in 2026, so global voices should begin raising the alarm now to shape that process and demand the immediate and unconditional release of Mabuza and Dube. African institutions, particularly the African Union and the regional blocs, must rise to the occasion. They need to act decisively when member states violate democratic norms. Multilateral pressure cannot be reserved for coups alone — the slow suffocation of dissent warrants equal urgency. To that end, SADC leaders should encourage King Mswati to return to dialogue. Donor countries and diplomatic partners must also centre civic space in bilateral relations. 'Quiet diplomacy' has too often been a cover for inaction. Governments that imprison critics while accepting development aid must be held to higher standards. Recent responses to Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Act offer a glimpse of what stronger accountability can look like. The United States removed Uganda from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), imposed visa bans on officials and redirected millions in development assistance. The World Bank suspended new funding to the country. This kind of accountability must become the norm, not the exception, especially when dissidents and elected officials are jailed with impunity. Protect civil society Further, donors must support and protect local civil society. These organisations are often the only line of defence for activists, journalists and political prisoners. They provide legal aid, they document abuses and raise awareness, yet many are underfunded, under threat, and increasingly operating in fear. Finally, people around the world must raise their voices and push their leaders to act for Mabuza and Dube. People power works, but only if we use it. After all, international pressure to release Nelson Mandela did not come from nowhere. It was the result of sustained advocacy around the world at the grassroots level. Mabuza and Dube need the same. Indeed, Mandela's legacy is not only about freedom once won, it is about defending that freedom wherever it is at risk. Today, that risk is acute. Mandela once said: 'To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.' By that measure, Mabuza and Dube's ongoing detention is not just a local injustice, it is a mirror of our continent's broader retreat from democratic values. Their story challenges all of us: to speak louder, act sooner, and stand in true solidarity with those behind bars for defending rights we too often take for granted. It is a test of conscience, one we are dismally failing. We still have time to choose differently. To stand as their witness. And to prove that solidarity is more than sentiment, it is action. DM Kgalalelo Gaebee is a communications and advocacy professional working on human rights and civic space across Africa and globally. Dr Paul Mulindwa is Civicus's advocacy and campaigns officer – Africa lead, bringing more than two decades of experience in peacebuilding, governance and humanitarian programmes across Africa. He has a PhD in Governance and International Relations from the University of Johannesburg.
