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BREAKING: Gabon military officers claim to have seized power after election

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1 year ago

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BREAKING: Gabon military officers claim to have seized power after election

A group of senior Gabonese military officers appeared on national television in the early hours of Wednesday and said they had taken power, after the state election body announced President Ali Bongo had won a third term.

Appearing on television channel Gabon 24, the officers said they represented all security and defense forces in the Central African nation. They said the election results were canceled, all borders closed until further notice and state institutions dissolved.

Loud sounds of gunfire could be heard in the capital Libreville, a Reuters reporter said, after the television appearance.

“In the name of the Gabonese people … we have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime,” the officers said.

If successful, the coup would represent the eighth in West and Central Africa since 2020. Coups in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger have undermined democratic progress in recent years.

Last month, the military snatched power in Niger, sending shockwaves across the Sahel and sucking in global powers with strategic interests at stake.

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The announcement came just hours after the Gabonese Election Centre (CGE) said on Wednesday that Bongo had won in the presidential election with 64.27% of the vote, after a delay-plagued general election that the opposition has denounced as fraudulent.

Announcing the result in the early hours, CGE head Michel Stephane Bonda said Bongo’s main challenger, Albert Ondo Ossa, had come in second place with 30.77%. Bongo’s team have rejected Ondo Ossa’s allegations of electoral irregularities.

Tensions are running high amid fears of unrest after Saturday’s presidential, parliamentary, and legislative vote, which saw Bongo seeking to extend his family’s 56-year grip on power while the opposition pushed for change in the oil-rich but poverty-stricken Central African nation.

A lack of international observers, the suspension of some foreign broadcasts, and the authorities’ decision to cut internet service and impose a nighttime curfew nationwide after the poll has raised concerns about the transparency of the electoral process.

Bongo, 64, who succeeded his father Omar as president in 2009, had contested against 18 challengers, six of whom backed a joint nominee, former minister and university professor Albert Ondo Ossa, in an effort to narrow the race.

In 2016, the parliament building was torched when violent street protests erupted against Bongo’s contested re-election for his second term. The government shut down internet access for several days at the time.

BREAKING: Gabon military officers claim to have seized power after election

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Nigeria denies alleged plot to destabilise Niger Republic

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1 day ago

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December 21, 2024

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Nigeria denies alleged plot to destabilise Niger Republic

The Federal Government of Nigeria has refuted “in very strong terms” allegations that it is plotting to destabilise neighbouring Niger Republic.

The Nigerien authorities alleged that the Lakurawa terrorist group, with the help of foreign security forces, including Nigerian security forces, were responsible for the attack on the Niger-Benin oil pipeline on December 13, 2024, in Gaya, Dosso Region of Niger Republic.

However, Nigeria, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement on Saturday signed by its acting spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, refuted the allegation.

“The Government of Nigeria condoles with the Government of Niger over the unfortunate attack on the oil pipeline, but informs that the perpetrators were neither backed nor assisted by Nigerian authorities.

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“The Government of Nigeria is strongly committed to the fight against terrorism and will not condone or support the activities of such groups.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria also expresses very serious concern and states categorically that there are no French military troops in the northern part of the country preparing to destabilize the Government of Niger.

“These allegations are unfounded and should be discarded in their entirety,” the Statement read in part.

It also noted that the relationship between Nigeria and France had always been cordial, saying it is guided by mutual respect, dignity, and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs.

The government of Nigeria assured that it would continue to explore all peaceful means to maintain its cordial relationship with the Republic of Niger for the benefit of the people of both countries.

Nigeria denies alleged plot to destabilise Niger Republic

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Suspected witchdoctors arrested over attempt to ‘bewitch’ Zambia’s President

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2 days ago

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December 21, 2024

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Suspected witchdoctors arrested over attempt to ‘bewitch’ Zambia’s President

Two men were detained in Zambia on charges of being “witchdoctors” tasked with attempting to bewitch the president. 

The police stated they had arrested Jasten Mabulesse Candunde and Leonard Phiri in Lusaka.

“Their purported mission was to use charms to harm” President Hakainde Hichilema, according to the police statement issued on Friday.

Many individuals in the southern African country believe in and dread witches.

The police stated Mr. Candunde and Mr. Phiri were hired by Nelson Banda, MP Emmanuel “Jay Jay” Banda’s younger brother.

The MP was reportedly arrested last month in nearby Zimbabwe on robbery allegations, which he denies, but he has not been seen in public since.

He is also accused of escaping from detention in August while waiting to appear in court.

The opposition Patriotic Front (PF), led by z, has previously claimed that the charges are politically motivated.

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Emmanuel Banda, who has been an independent MP since 2021, previously worked with Lungu, who lost the presidency to Hichilema that same year.

The police stated the MP’s younger brother, Nelson, was “currently on the run” in their statement.

Mr. Candunde and Mr. Phiri face charges under Zambia’s Witchcraft Act for “possession of charms,” “professing knowledge of witchcraft,” and “cruelty to wild animals.”

The pair was found with “assorted charms,” including a live chameleon, according to the authorities.

According to the police statement, they claimed they had been given more than 2 million Zambian kwacha (£58,000; $73,000) for their “mission.”

The accused are in jail and will appear in court “soon,” according to the police, although no specific date has been set for the hearing. They have not yet responded in public to the charges.

 

Suspected witchdoctors arrested over attempt to ‘bewitch’ Zambia’s President

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South African man sentenced to six life terms for killing his relatives

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1 week ago

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December 13, 2024

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South African man sentenced to six life terms for killing his relatives
The Pietermaritzburg High Court in South Africa has sentenced a 38-year-old man, Sthembiso Nkosinathi Mthimkhulu, to six terms of life imprisonment for the m8rder of six of his relatives in February 2021 in the Nkanini area of Eshowe.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in a statement on Thursday, December 12, 2024, said that before the incident, one of Mthimkhulu’s relatives had passed away.
Mthimkhulu suspected that his uncle had practised witchcraft on this person, causing them to d!e.
Mthimkhulu planned to kill his uncle and decided to use a firearm to carry out his actions.
On 20 February 2021, Mthimkhulu drove to his uncle’s homestead where he found his uncle in the company of his (uncle’s) family.
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Mthimkhulu opened fire on them, killing six of them, including two minor children aged eight and 10 years old. He then fled the scene and was arrested after his car was tracked to Greytown, where he had gone to see a traditional healer.
In the state’s case, Advocate Mbongeni Chamane led the testimony of an eyewitness.
Further, Adv, Chamane handed in Victim Impact Statements, compiled by the deceased’s grandchildren, and facilitated by Court Preparation Officers Nokuvela Mlotshwa and Amanda Nxumalo.
In her statement, the younger child drew pictures showing her smiling before the incident and crying following the incident. The older grandchild said that her parents had died when she was very young, so her grandparents (the deceased) were like her parents. They took such good care of her, and she misses them. She said that following the incident their family is highly traumatised, and they live with fear and anxiety. In addition to the sentence, Mthimkhulu was declared unfit to possess a firearm.
The NPA commends the work done by the Prosecution and Police. It is incumbent on us to fight for justice on behalf of the victims of crime. We hope that stringent sentences like this convey our commitment to the fight against crime,” the statement added.

South African man sentenced to six life terms for killing his relatives

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