France Recalls Envoys From U.S. And Australia Over Submarine Deal

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September 18, 2021

France has recalled its ambassadors from both the United States and Australia over a trilateral security deal which sank a French-designed submarine contract with Canberra.

The rare decision taken by French President Emmanuel Macron was made due to the “exceptional gravity” of the matter, according to Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in a statement.

On Thursday, Australia said it would scrap a $40 billion deal signed in 2016 for France’s Naval Group to build a fleet of conventional submarines and would instead build at least eight nuclear-powered submarines with U.S. and British technology after striking a trilateral security partnership.

But France has called it a stab in the back and a diplomatic source in France said it was the first time Paris had recalled its own ambassadors in this way.

On Saturday morning Australia said it regretted the recall, and that it valued the relationship with France and would keep engaging with Paris on other issues.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that France was a ‘vital ally’ and that the United States would be engaged in coming days to resolve the differences.

The French foreign ministry statement made no mention of Britain, but the diplomatic source said France considered Britain had joined the deal in an opportunistic manner.

Le Drian said the deal was unacceptable and that the announcement of a new partnership with the United States meant to launch studies on a possible future cooperation on nuclear-powered submarines, constitute unacceptable behavior between allies and partners.

Defiant Junta Rejects Pressure To Let Conde Leave Guinea

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Zoe Maven

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September 18, 2021

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Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara and Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo have paid a one-day visit to Conakry to ask coup leader Mamady Doumbouya, a special forces commander, for Conde’s release.

Outtara had been hoping to leave Guinea with Conde, a senior regional government official told Reuters.

But speaking in a statement read on state TV the junta said that the former president is and remains in Guinea and that they would not yield to any pressure.

Ouattara and Akufo-Addo, representing the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), held a separate meeting with Conde at the Mohamed VI Palace in Conakry, but flew out the country on Friday evening empty-handed.

Ouattara told Radio-Télévision Guinéenne (RTG) at Conakry airport before leaving: “I met my brother Alpha Conde, who is doing well. We will remain in contact.”

On the other hand Akufo-Addo told News Men that they had a very frank and fraternal meeting with Doumbouya and his collaborators, adding that ECOWAS and Guinea are going to find the best way to move forward together.”

ECOWAS has demanded a return to constitutional rule since the special forces unit seized control of the presidential palace, detained Conde and declared itself in charge.

The bloc agreed on Thursday to freeze financial assets of the junta and their relatives and bar them from travelling. The junta has not responded.

Events in Guinea followed coups in Mali and Chad earlier this year that have raised fears of a democratic backslide in a region only just shedding its “coup-belt” reputation.

Former Algerian President Bouteflika Dies Aged 84

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Zoe Maven

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September 18, 2021

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Former President of Algeria, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, has passed away at the age of 84, according to news disclosed by the presidency and coming more than two years after Bouteflika stepped down from the post.

Bouteflika, a veteran of Algeria’s war for independence, ruled the North African country for two decades before resigning, under pressure from mass protests and the army, rejecting his plan to seek a fifth term in office.

He had rarely been seen in public before his departure since a stroke in 2013.

After Algeria gained independence in 1962, Bouteflika became the country’s first foreign minister.

He was also an influential figure in the Non-Aligned Movement that gave a global voice to Africa, Asia and Latin America.

In 1974, as a president of the U.N. General Assembly, Bouteflika invited former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to address the body – a historic step toward international recognition of the Palestinain cause.

Bouteflika also demanded China be given a seat in the United Nations and railed against apartheid rule in South Africa.

As President of Algeria, he negotiated a truce with Islamist militants that were responsible for the deaths of more than 200, 000 people, restoring peace to the country.

Bouteflika had used oil and gas revenues to soothe internal discontent, and the state he ruled became more peaceful and prosperous.

But corruption flourished and Algerians grew increasingly angry at the political and economic situation.That fuelled the mass protests that finally brought Bouteflika’s presidency to an end.

Taliban Denies Banning Afghan Girls From School – State Reasons For Delayed Resumption

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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September 18, 2021

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The Taliban have denied claims that Afghan women would be banned from secondary schools after calling on boys, but not girls, to resume education, claiming they needed to set up a “secure transportation system” for female students before allowing them back into classrooms.

The Taliban Ministry of Education ordered male students and teachers from the 6th to the 12th grade to report to their schools on Saturday. The announcement, issued on Friday, did not mention female students at all, sowing fears that girls would once again be excluded from secondary education.

When last in power between 1996 and 2001, the militant group banned women and girls from education and work and severely restricted their rights.

But speaking on Saturday, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said women will be allowed to study.

Mujahid said the Taliban was working on creating a secure transportation system for girls in grades six to 12.

Mujahid pointed out that women were being allowed to continue to study in other age groups. “We do have girls in universities continuing their education both in private and government-funded universities, but from grade 6 to 12 we are currently trying to provide a chance for them to carry on, and that’s in progress,” he said.

Afghanistan is now one of very few countries with no women in top government ranks

Taliban leaders have repeatedly promised to respect women’s rights, insisting publicly that women will play a prominent role in society and have access to education.

Militants have in some instances ordered women to leave their workplaces, and when a group of women protested the announcement of the all-male government in Kabul last week Taliban fighters beat them with whips and sticks.

While women have been allowed to continue their university education, the Taliban has mandated the segregation of genders in classrooms and said female students, lecturers and employees must wear hijabs in accordance with the group’s interpretation of Sharia law.

UNICEF chief Henrietta Fore said the organization was “deeply worried” girls would be excluded from education. “Girls cannot, and must not, be left behind. It is critical that all girls, including older girls, are able to resume their education without any further delays. For that, we need female teachers to resume teaching,” she said.

Macron’s Government Promises 6.5b Euros To Expand High-Speed Train Lines

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Angel Gimalo

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September 18, 2021

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French President Emmanuel Macron has unveiled a mock-up of the next generation of greener super high-speed trains, known in France as TGVs — four decades after the first TGV was launched.

At a presentation at Paris’ Gare de Lyon railway station, Macron played up the new train’s eco-friendly aspect.

“This decade for the TGV will be about innovation,” Macron said, adding that France must “respond to the challenge of moving around by emitting less and promoting new energy forms.”

Macron spoke in front of a full-scale model of the new TGV M. It will carry more passengers — 740 compared to the current train’s 600 — and is planned to enter service in 2024.

It will also use one fifth less electricity than the current model, while maintaining its top speed of 320 kilometers per hour (199 miles per hour).

The ceremony took place 40 years after another French president, François Mitterrand, launched his bold new gamble in technology at the same station — the first TGV, or “Train a Grande Vitesse” (Very Fast Train).

With a line speed of over 270 km/h, according to France’s SNCF railway company, that train went on to change the face of modern train travel.

It has since been emulated around the world, including recently in the U.K.’s highly anticipated HS2 project.

Macron’s government has promised 6.5 billion euros ($7.6 billion) in new investments this year to expand high-speed train lines, and boosting train use has been part of his government’s strategy to reduce emissions.

Australian Police Clash With Anti-Lockdown Protesters

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Zoe Maven

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September 18, 2021

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AUSTRALIA-HEALTH-VIRUS — Police arrest a protester during an anti-lockdown rally in Melbourne on September 18, 2021. (Photo by William WEST / AFP)

Australia’s police arrested 235 people in Melbourne and 32 in Sydney on Saturday at anti-lockdown rallies with several police officers sustaining injuries while clashing with protesters.

Police in Victoria said six officers required hospitalization while several officers were knocked to the ground and trampled, as could be seen in television footage.

Close to 700 people managed to gather in parts of Melbourne, as 2,000 officers made the city centre virtually a no-go zone, setting up checkpoints and barricades. Public transport and ride shares into the city were suspended.

In Sydney, riot squad officers, highway patrol, detectives and general duties police were also deployed to the streets, preventing large gatherings.

Australia has reportedly been grappling with an outbreak of the Delta variant of the coronavirus since mid-June, with both Sydney and Melbourne, and the capital Canberra, in strict lockdowns for weeks now.

Most of the restrictions in Victoria, New South Wales and Canberra are to remain until at least 70% of those 16 and older are fully vaccinated, which based on the current pace of inoculations could be in late October or early November.

A high rate of compliance with public health orders has helped Australia keep the number of infections relatively low, with just under 85,000 total cases and 1,145 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

The vast majority of Australians are said to support vaccinations and the public health measures, but there have been sporadic and sometimes violent protests against the management of the pandemic.

New exhibit To Mark 400th Anniversary Of Thanksgiving In Plimoth Patuxet Museums

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Angel Gimalo

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September 18, 2021

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A Massachusetts museum dedicated to the English colony of Plymouth and local indigenous tribes is opening a new exhibit to mark the 400th anniversary of Thanksgiving.

The Plimoth Patuxet Museums said the exhibit entitled “We Gather Together: Thanksgiving, Gratitude, and the Making of an American Holiday” will open Sept. 25.

The exhibit will explore the relationship between the indigenous people and English colonists to “better understand the events that led to the First Thanksgiving,” said the museum, which features a replica colonial village and reenactors in Plymouth.

It will feature rarely seen artifacts from the museum’s collection, as well as art from across the centuries tracing how the New England tradition grew and emerged as a national holiday in the 19th century, the museum said.

“Patuxet/Plymouth is the place where ancient traditions of gratitude in both Indigenous and European cultures merged,” the museum said in a statement. “‘We Gather Together’ will explore the ancient and deeply human expression of gratitude that is the bedrock of this national holiday.”

The Pokanoket tribe and their sachem Massasoit shared in three days of feasting and entertainment with English colonists in the autumn of 1621, helping inspire the holiday of gathering and giving thanks, according to the museum.

Akwa Ibom Sets To Establish College of Science & Technology

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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September 18, 2021

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Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel has announced the establishing of a College of Science and Technology that will run as an intermediary programme to prepare students into Science and bridge the gap of effective science learning preceding tertiary education.

The Governor stated this while receiving a delegation from the University of Lagos, his Alma Mata, led by the Vice-Chancellor Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe who paid him a courtesy visit at Government House, Uyo, solicited collaborations with the University of Lagos in the areas of personnel training and manpower development said the state is set to rejig the curriculum of education generally and that of Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU) through collaborative programmes and entrepreneurial courses packaged to establish students after their school year.

The Governor also indicated that plans are underway to formalize empowerment programmes at the skills acquisition centre established by the state government to create jobs for youths, calling on the University of Lagos to partner with the state in areas of manpower development and entrepreneurial courses in the centre.

Hear him, “This year we announced that we are declaring a state of emergency in the education sector beginning from the basic level, rejig the system, recruit better teachers and this is an area we want UNILAG CONSULT to handle for us. We have a whole lot of areas we will collaborate as a government, I have a department headed by youths all they do is entrepreneurial training and set up, but I see that I can formalize that and what I am doing right now is we will set up a full institution, which after the first year of studies in that school, one starts earning money”.

He thanked the delegation for the visit and promised to support the institution host the Nigeria University Games Association (NUGA).

Speaking earlier, the Vice-Chancellor University of Lagos, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, who described Governor Udom Emmanuel’s leadership as unique in the state said as an alumnus he has made the institution proud and expressed readiness to partner with the state in manpower development of the state’s tertiary institution.

Missouri Bicentennial Parade Led By 98-Year-Old World War II Nurse

By

Angel Gimalo

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September 18, 2021

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A crowd gathered Saturday in Jefferson City to celebrate the state’s bicentennial, with a World War II nurse leading the parade.

Edith Harrington waved to the crowd from a military jeep, followed by about 100 entries that highlighted the history of the Show-Me state.

The 98-year-old joined the United States Cadet Nurse Corps in 1943.

The festivities also marked the election of state officeholders in 2020, whose traditional inauguration events were delayed because of the coronavirus.

Missouri turned 200 years old last month.

Territorial residents first sought statehood in 1818 but the request became bogged down in Congress by a dispute over whether slavery should be allowed.

In March 1820, President James Monroe signed legislation known as the Missouri Compromise.

Maine was allowed into the union as a free state.Missouri was allowed to draft a constitution as a slave state, so long as no other new slave states formed north of Missouri’s southern border.

Missourians thought they had become a state, but the parties were premature.

Missouri’s first constitution, which sought to exclude free “Negros or mulattoes” from the state, prompted further opposition in Congress.

After a second compromise, Monroe signed legislation finally making Missouri the 24th state on Aug. 10, 1821.

Police Arrests Alleged Abductors; Greenfield University, Bethel Baptist Students’

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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September 18, 2021

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The Kaduna State Police Command said on Thursday that it arrested kidnappers of students of Greenfield University as well as students of the Bethel Baptist High School, all in the state.

Also in the police net are kidnappers of the 37 students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, in Igabi LGA of Kaduna State.

Both the Greenfield University and the Baptist Bethel High School are located in Chikun LGA of the state.

While parading suspects on Thursday at the Command’s Headquarters along Bida Road in the state capital, the Command’s spokesman, Mohammed Jalige, also announced the arrest of the suspected killers of 36-year-old Captain Abdulkareem Na’Allah, a pilot and son of Senator Bala Na’Allah.

Jalige said one Usman Mohammed from Bukuyum in Zamfara State was apprehended by operatives of the command in connection with the kidnap of the students of Greenfield University, Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, as well as Bethel Baptist High School, all in the state.

He said, “On the 29th August, 2021 at about 0900hrs, based on credible information, Operation Yaki Surveillance team with FIB STS Force Headquarter, Abuja, jointly raided a house along Ring Road, Asikolaye area of Kaduna, where one Usman Abubakar, ‘m’ 41 years old, a native of Adakpa village, Bukkuyum LGA of Zamfara State, a notorious kidnapper terrorising Chikun, Igabi and Giwa LGAs of Kaduna State, was arrested.

“He confessed to have kidnapped many people and collected several ransoms; he also has links with recent attacks on Greenfield University, Bethel Baptist Academy and School of Forestry Mechanisation, Mando, Kaduna.”

Speaking on the killers of Na’Allah’s son, the police spokesman noted that two of the three members of the gang that killed the pilot were in the custody of the command while one was at large.

He named one Bashir Mohammed, a neighbour of the slain pilot as principal suspect, while identifying another suspect as Nasir Salisu, also known as Uban Dana, adding that the third suspect, one Usman Kano, was at large.

Jalige explained that the three suspects conspired, broke into the house of Captain Abdulkarim and killed him before taking away his SUV vehicle and other valuables.

He added that the suspects sold the late pilot’s SUV vehicle in Republic of Niger at the cost of N1m.

Meanwhile, Jalige said operatives of the command killed one notorious bandit, while a driver and his conductor were unfortunately killed in crossfire along the Kaduna-Abuja highway.

Jalige said the incident happened in the early hours of Thursday when bandits in large numbers blocked the Kaduna-Abuja highway and shooting indiscriminately at motorists plying the road.