
Macron to visit UK as Starmer eyes 'reset' with EU
Talks will focus on aid to Ukraine, joint efforts to halt illegal migration crossing the Channel, and strengthening defence cooperation between the two countries. "This is the first state visit to the United Kingdom by a European Union head of state since Brexit," the Elysee Palace said. "And, especially, the first since Prime Minister Starmer signalled what he called a 'reset' of relations between the United Kingdom and Europe,", it added. The king will host Macron and his wife for a state banquet at his Windsor Castle residence, west of London, where the couple will also stay. — AFP
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Observer
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- Observer
Nairobi tense as police block protesters
NAIROBI: Police blocked roads and heavily deployed in the deserted streets of Kenya's usually bustling capital on Monday to prevent gatherings to mark annual pro-democracy rallies after recent demonstrations descended into violent clashes. Many people appeared to be staying home rather than attend the so-called Saba Saba Day (meaning Seven Seven) marches to commemorate on July 7, 1990, when Kenyans rose up to demand a return to multi-party democracy after years of autocratic rule by then-president Daniel arap Moi. Around midday, journalists saw running battles with a group of anti-riot police who fired teargas at a small gathering of around 50 young men, with some of the crowd throwing rocks at officers. Young Kenyans, frustrated over economic stagnation, corruption and police brutality, are once again engaging in protests that have degenerated into looting and violence, leaving dozens dead and thousands of businesses destroyed. Protesters accuse the authorities of paying armed vandals to discredit their movement, while the government has compared the demonstrations to an "attempted coup". On Monday, the streets of central Nairobi were quiet after police mounted roadblocks on the main roads, restricting entry to areas that were the epicentre of previous rallies. Many businesses were closed for the day. On Sunday, men, some armed with sticks, forced their way into the compound of the Kenyan Human Rights Commission during a press conference calling for an end to "enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings". The previous demonstration on June 25 — intended to mark the peak of last year's deadly anti-government rallies — turned violent and left 19 people dead, according to rights groups. Police made hundreds of arrests. — AFP


Observer
an hour ago
- Observer
Israel attempted to assassinate him, says Iran president
TEHRAN: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in an interview released on Monday that Israel, which last month fought a 12-day war with Iran, had attempted to assassinate him. The remarks came less than a month after Israel launched its unprecedented June 13 bombing campaign against Iran, killing top military commanders and nuclear scientists. "They did try, yes. They acted accordingly, but they failed," Pezeshkian told US media figure Tucker Carlson in response to a question on whether he believed Israel had tried to kill him. "It was not the United States that was behind the attempt on my life. It was Israel. I was in a meeting... they tried to bombard the area in which we were holding that meeting," he said, in apparent reference to an alleged assassination attempt during the recent war. During the interview with Carlson, Pezeshkian accused Netanyahu of pursuing his "own agenda" of "forever wars" in the Middle East, and urged the United States not to be dragged into it. "The US adminstration should refrain from getting involved in a war that is not America's war, it is Netanyahu's war," he said. — AFP


Muscat Daily
4 hours ago
- Muscat Daily
South Africa police clash over political murder probes
Johannesburg, SA – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa's focus at the BRICS summit in Brazil was jolted back home on Sunday after a top police officer made allegations implicating the country's police minister. Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi accused Police Minister Senzo Mchunu and other senior officials of interfering in investigations into political assassinations to shield politically connected people. Mkhwanazi, who oversees police operations in KwaZulu-Natal province and previously served as acting national police commissioner, also accused other officials of obstructing police work against organised crime. Mchunu has denied the allegations as 'insinuations made without evidence or due processes', the AFP news agency reported. Ramaphosa described the matter as one of 'grave national security concern' and said it was 'receiving the highest priority attention'. 'It is vital that the integrity of the country's security services is safeguarded and that the rule of law is affirmed,' the president said in a statement late on Sunday. Ramaphosa urged to act Politicians across the political spectrum have called on the president to take action. The Democratic Alliance (DA), the second-largest party in Ramaphosa's governing coalition, has called for an urgent debate in Parliament on corruption in the South African Police Service (SAPS). 'Our country will never win against violent crime, and our streets will never be safe, until the SAPS has robust integrity management inside and out,' said the DA's Ian Cameron, who also chairs Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Police. Another lawmaker on the committee, David Skosana of the uMkhonto weSizwe party, urged Mkhwanazi to lay charges against Mchunu within 24 hours. The Economic Freedom Fighters called for the immediate suspension of Mchunu and Deputy National Police Commissioner for Crime Detection Lt. Gen. Shadrack Sibiya, who has also been implicated. The Inkatha Freedom Party, whose deputy chief whip in Parliament, Khethamabala Sithole, was shot dead in what appeared to be a political killing in May, wants the president to appoint an independent commission of inquiry. 'The collective integrity of the SAPS has been alleged to be wholly compromised, and the country has every reason to be worried,' the party said. South Africa's crime rate South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world. A report released last year by the Switzerland-based Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime documented a 108% increase in targeted killings, particularly political killings at the local municipal level, over the past decade. In 2018, SAPS formed a task team to focus on political killings. The team has investigated more than 600 cases, arrested 436 suspects, and recovered 156 firearms, at least 55 of which were linked to political crimes, according to the Daily Maverick , a local media outlet. At the end of last year, Mchunu requested that the unit be disbanded. When that did not happen, the unit's dockets containing information on political killings were seized, effectively freezing investigations. Mkhwanazi said Mchunu shut down the task team because it had uncovered links between drug cartels, politicians, police, and prosecutors, the Mail&Guardian newspaper reported. 'All these statements made by him in public require an urgent, thorough and transparent investigation, on a proper platform,' Mchunu said. DW