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AU-Led Kinshasa Dam Talks Meet with Stalemate

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The latest round of African Union-led talks to resolve the years-long dispute over a controversial dam that Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile River has met with another stalemate.

Foreign and irrigation ministers of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia met in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the current chair of the African Union.

The talks sought to find an agreed-on approach to resume negotiations on the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam but the four days of meetings concluded without a breakthrough.

Ethiopia rejected a Sudanese proposal, backed by Egypt, to include international mediators in the talks, while Egypt’s top diplomat said they would again take the dispute to the U.N. Security Council.

Spokesperson of Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, Ahmed Hafez, said Addis Ababa rejected expanding the mediation umbrella to include the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations along with the AU.

Sudan’s Irrigation Ministry also criticized Ethiopia, saying its announced plan to add 13.5 billion cubic meters of water to the dam’s reservoir this year is a real threat which cannot be accepted.

In a brief statement posted on Facebook, Ethiopia’s foreign minister Demeke Mekonnen said his country appreciated AU efforts to resume the process to reach a win-win outcome and invited Egypt and Sudan to follow suit.

Sudan wants Ethiopia to coordinate and share data on the dam’s operation to avoid flooding and protect its own power-generating dams on the Blue Nile, the main tributary of the Nile River.

Court Ratifies Re-Election Victory Of Congo’s Sassou

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The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Congo has endorsed the re-election of President Denis Sassou Nguesso in the March 21 vote, after rejecting the opposition’s appeal.

President of the country’s highest judicial body Auguste Iloki said the Constitutional Court made the necessary rectifications and adjustments declaring Denis Sassou Nguesso, who won 88.40% of the presidential vote, elected.

He said that the appeals for annulment and postponement of the presidential election by Mathias Dzon, Jean-Jacques Serge Yhombi Opango and Christian Mozoma are deemed inadmissible.

The Appeals by these opponents against Nguesso’s landslide re-election 88.57% of the vote in the first round were filed at the end of March

At the end of March, these opponents had filed appeals against the landslide re-election in the first round of Mr. Sassou Nguesso who was credited with 88.57% of the vote, according to the provisional results.

During the election campaign, Nguesso, placed peace, youth and the development of agriculture at the top of his priorities to get out of the all-oil and import dependency.

Nguesso, aged 77 has been in power for 36 years in power and the ruling by the Constitutional Court and will be giving him a fourth term of five years as president of Congo-Brazzaville.

Australians Petition UN Against Government For ‘Right To Return Home’

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A group of Australian citizens have lodged a petition with the United Nations Human Rights Committee against their government saying they have been denied the basic human right to return home.

The group is representative of tens of thousands of people who have been stranded overseas by border closures and flight caps, some since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In February 2020 Australia imposed drastic measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus closing its external borders and caps were set to limit the number of Australians who could enter.

But one year later, these restrictions are still in place and many Australians are unable to return home despite the prime minister’s promise to have all stranded overseas citizens back by Christmas 2020.

Many say they have lost their jobs, have little savings left and are forced to take out loans to survive. Others are either sick themselves or need to care for a loved one who is seriously or terminally ill.

According to official figures from Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, at least 40,000 Australians based overseas are registered as wanting to urgently return.

The petition could damage Australia’s international standing at a time when the country has been hailed globally as a huge success story for its containment of the virus. 

U.S And Iran Hail Constructive Indirect Nuclear Talks In Vienna

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U.S and Iranian officials said initial indirect talks in Vienna on Tuesday aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear deal were constructive, with negotiations set to continue this week.

Addressing reporters in Washington, US State Department spokesman Ned Price said the talks were certainly a welcome and useful step in determining what Iran is prepared to do to return to compliance with the stringent limitations under the 2015 deal.

He added this would result in determining what the country might need to do to return to compliance herself.

Russian envoy Mikhail Ulyanov also tweeted that the initial talks were “successful” fofllowing the closed meetings of the signatories to the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action

European allies of the U.S, along with Russia and China, met in Vienna with representatives of Iran to revive the Iran nuclear deal after former president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in May 2018.

Iran has since been steadily violating restrictions set forth in the deal, like the amount of enriched uranium that it can stockpile and the level of purity to which it can be enriched.

Tehran’s moves have been calculated to pressure other signatories to do more to offset crippling US sanctions re-imposed under Trump.

Iran argues that since the US violated the deal first with its withdrawal, Washington should also take the first step by lifting sanctions.

Clear Link Between Astrazeneca Vaccine And Rare Blood Clots -EMA Official

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A senior official for the European Medicines Agency (EMA) says there is a link between AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine and very rare blood clots in the brain but the possible causes are still unknown.

in an interview published on Tuesday, Marco Cavaleri, chair of the vaccine evaluation team at the EMA, told Italian daily ‘Il Messagero’ that in his opinion it was clear there is an association of the brain blood clots with the vaccine.

However, the EMA later said in a statement that its review of the vaccine was ongoing and it expected to announce its findings on Wednesday or Thursday.

The EMA has repeatedly said the benefits of the AstraZeneca shot outweigh the risks while it has been investigating 44 reports of an extremely rare brain clotting ailment known as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis out of 9.2 million people in the European Economic Area who received the vaccine.

Meanwhile, Cavaleri said the EMA would say in its review that there is a link but was not likely to give an indication this week regarding the age of individuals to whom the AstraZeneca shot should be given.

Some countries, including France, Germany and the Netherlands, have suspending the use of the vaccine in younger people while the investigations continue.

Jordan Bans Media Coverage Of Royal Rift

Jordan on Tuesday banned all news outlets and social media users from publishing any content related to King Abdullah’s half-brother Prince Hamzah after the latter was accused of plotting to destabilise the country.

The ban on publication involves all audiovisual media and social networks, as well as the publication of all images or video clips relating to this subject on pain of legal action.

Prosecutor Hassan al-Abdallat said in a statement the move became necessary in order to keep the security services’ investigation into Prince Hamzah and the others secret.

The monarchy ruling Jordan declared it was settling the matter within the framework of the Hashemite family.

The government earlier accused Hamzah, a former crown prince who was sidelined as heir to the throne in 2004, of involvement in a conspiracy to “destabilise the kingdom’s security” and also arrested at least 16 people.

Prince Hamzah had on Saturday harshly criticised Jordan’s leaders from what he said was house arrest, but in a dramatic about-turn on Monday, pledged his loyalty to the royal family.

The palace released a signed statement in which the 41-year-old prince had changed his tone and pledged readiness to help and support His Majesty the King and his Crown Prince.

North Korea Drops Out Of Tokyo Olympics Over Covid-19

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North Korea’s sports ministry says the country will not be joining the Tokyo Olympics this year due to coronavirus concerns.

It will be the first time North Korea would miss a Summer Olympics since it boycotted Seoul in 1988 amid the Cold War and has dashed South Korean hopes that the Games would help revive stalled peace talks.

The North made its decision to pull out of Tokyo at a meeting of its Olympic committee and Sports Minister Kim Il Guk on March 25, according to a ministry statement on its website.

Tokyo Olympic organisers said they were aware of news reports on North Korea’s move and would work with other countries for the success of the Games.

The North’s withdrawal from Tokyo is also a setback for plans, agreed at a 2018 summit between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, to pursue a joint Korean bid to host the 2032 Games.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in had hoped the two countries, still technically at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, could field a combined team in Tokyo and rebuild momentum for improved relations.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula rose last month when the North resumed missile tests, although both sides said after the launches that they wanted to continue dialogue.

Israel’s President Asks Netanyahu To Form Next Government

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, received a mandate from Israel’s president to form a new government after an inconclusive election.

Under law, Netanyahu will have 28 days to do so, with a possible two-week extension before President Reuven Rivlin picks another candidate or asks parliament to choose one.

Israel’s March 23 election ended with neither a Netanyahu-led right-wing and religious bloc nor a prospective alliance of his opponents winning a parliamentary majority.

But Netanyahu received more endorsements than his challengers, leading to the president’s televised announcement giving him the nod.

He got recommendations of 52 lawmakers in the 120-member Knesset while former Finance Minister Yair Lapid of the Yesh Atid party gleaned 45 endorsements and former Defence Minister Naftali Bennett of the far-right Yamina party got seven.

Netanyahu, in power consecutively since 2009, now has to break an unprecedented political stalemate and enlisting enough allies for a governing coalition.

White House Rules Out A US Vaccine ‘Passport’

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The White House on Tuesday ruled out imposing any form of a coronavirus vaccine passport in the United States, but said private businesses were free to explore the idea.

Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that government would not now, nor will be, supporting a system that requires Americans to carry a credential.

She said there will be no federal vaccinations database and no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential.

So-called vaccine passports, showing that someone has been inoculated against Covid-19, have been touted around the world as a potentially powerful tool in safely reopening countries to mass gatherings and travel.

However, the idea has prompted widespread pushback over concerns due to potential privacy or other civil rights abuses.

Psaki said that the strongest interest comes from private businesses looking to reopen sites where “there are large swaths of people,” like in stadiums or theaters.

She said the government would issue guidance to questions that Americans have in particular around concerns about privacy, security or discrimination.”

Human Rights ‘Non-Negotiable’, EU Officials Tell Turkey’s Erdogan

Top European Union officials have met with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insisting on Ankara improving its human rights record and the rule of law before any moves to improve EU-Turkey relations.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel met with Erdogan in Ankara weeks after the Turkish leader took conciliatory steps toward the EU and European leaders agreed to increase trade and improve cooperation with Turkey on migration.

They agreed to offer Turkey new incentives despite ongoing concerns about the country’s backslide on democratic and human rights, and its energy ambitions in the Mediterranean Sea.

They however also made clear that a stable and secure environment for EU members Cyprus and Greece is another prerequisite for closer ties with Turkey.

Erdogan’s efforts at reconciliation comes after last year tensions over a decision to stop deterring migrants from crossing its border into Greece, and dispatching of Turkish research ships into waters claimed by Greece and Cyprus.

Turkey is formally a candidate for EU membership, but its bid to join the 27-nation bloc has been at a standstill.

Last month, Erdogan pulled Turkey out of a key European convention aimed at combatting violence against women, triggering criticism from EU officials.

The move was a blow to Turkey’s women’s rights movement, which says domestic violence and femicide are on the rise.