Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah wins Namibian presidential election
A mood of change has swept across the region, with parties that led their countries out of white minority or colonial rule in neighbouring South Africa and Botswana both losing their long-held political dominance.
Militarisation of Chinese foreign policy is expressed in establishment of bases in Africa
China benefits from the low priority accorded Africa by the global media and major powers. This has made it easier for the PLA to build up its military footprint in Africa without attracting attention.
Scramble for Africa’s natural resources ushers in militarisation of China’s foreign policy
China’s expanded African engagements follow its global ambitions. When FOCAC was launched in 2000, China had no peacekeepers in Africa and lagged far behind the United States and Europe in the training of African students, civilian and military professionals. Chinese security assistance was non-existent, and China was absent in African security debates.
Migrants prefer their countries despite surge in poverty, unemployment, insecurity and political crises to settling in US
Organised crime has established extensive human trafficking networks across Mexico, making the journey north through the country treacherous. Mexico is plagued by violence, with around 30,000 people murdered a year and over 100,000 people officially registered as missing.
New report says Covid didn’t cause surge in excess deaths, pandemic response did
Hospitals and medical providers imposed aggressive and experimental medical interventions on some people, including the systematic use of ventilators, experimental treatment protocols and palliative care for those who were severely ill. Others were denied access to medications like ivermectin or antibiotics.
Findings: Merck pharmaceutical’s popular asthma drug causes serious mental health issues in children and adults
The FDA also could review all available information to determine whether the risk outweighs the therapeutic benefit in kids and, if not, issue a contraindication warning that the drug shouldn’t be used in children under 18.
Biden arrives in Angola to highlight US investments in southern Africa, visit slavery museum
The US has for years built relations in Africa through trade, security and humanitarian aid. The 800-mile (1,300-kilometre) railway upgrade is a different move and has shades of China’s Belt and Road foreign infrastructure strategy in Africa and other parts of the world.
Iraq, deemed economic lung of Iran, targets high fuel oil exports this year via smuggling
In January 2023, a few months after Sudani took over, the price was lowered to $100-$150 a ton, far below the market price for exports, estimated at anywhere between $300 and $500. The lower the price of the subsidised fuel, the higher the profit margin when exporting it on the international market.
Iran and its proxies reel under US sanctions as oil smuggling network rakes in $1 billion
Iran views its neighbour and ally Iraq as an economic lung and wields considerable military, political and economic influence there through the powerful Shi’ite militias and political parties it backs. It also sources hard currency from Iraq through exports and avoids US sanctions via its banking system, Iraqi and US officials say.
French government on verge of collapse asr left, far-right no-confidence motions
The parties announced their no-confidence motions after Barnier said earlier on Monday that he would try to ram a social security bill through parliament without a vote as a last-minute concession proved insufficient to win RN’s support for the legislation.
