₦airaland Forum

British Isis captives ‘could be handed over to Assad’
Human rights groups fear change of stance by Foreign Office might lead to executions
Mark Townsend
Sun 8 Dec 2019 04.13 EST
The Guardian

Fears are growing that the Foreign Office has paved the way for British Islamic State captives held in Syria to be handed over to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad (...)
About 10,000 Isis fighters are being detained by Kurdish forces in north-east Syria, including 2,000 foreigners and about 30 British men.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/dec/08/british-isis-captives-hand-over-to-assad-fears

THE MORNING CALL
Nathalie Yamb, political activist and executive advisor to the opposition party for freedom and democracy (LIDER), has been expelled from Ivory Coast.
AfricaNews December 3rd, 2019

This comes after her criticisms of the French presence in Africa and the use of the CFA franc currency, made at the Russia-Africa summit in Sochi in October.

LIDER president Mamadou Koulibaly, explains the situation.
https://www.africanews.com/2019/12/03/opposition-advisor-nathalie-yamb-expelled-from-ivory-coast-ivory-coast/

Torture charges against former Liberia leader's ex-wife dismissed
By Dominic Casciani
Home affairs correspondent
6 December 2019

BBC World Service

Agnes Taylor faced allegations that she conspired to use rape to torture women during the war in 1990Image caption: Agnes Taylor (far right) faced allegations that she conspired to use rape to torture women during the war in 1990

A judge in London has cut short the war crimes trial of Agnes Reeves Taylor - the ex-wife of the former Liberian president Charles Taylor - on technical grounds.

Dr Reeves-Taylor won her appeal against charges of torture, which she denies, because of a lack of evidence that the regime led by her ex-husband controlled the areas where her alleged crimes occurred.

She faced eight charges relating to Liberia's civil war in 1990, including torturing a teenage boy, forcing a pastor's wife to witness her children being shot, and facilitating the rape of captive women by soldiers.

Reeves-Taylor was ordered to be released from prison, but told she could not remain in Britain.

Charles Taylor himself is serving a life sentence in the UK for his war crimes in neighbouring Sierra Leone.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-50685426

Updates: Gunman in Pensacola air base shooting was Saudi military student, officials say

By T.S. Strickland, Ellen Nakashima, Brittany Shammas, Devlin Barrett and Hannah Knowles
December 7, 2019 at 9:34 AM EST
The Washington Post

PENSACOLA, Fla. — A Saudi military student killed three people and injured eight others in a Friday shooting at a Florida naval base that also left the gunman dead, officials say.

Ahmed Mohammed al-Shamrani was training on the Naval Air Station Pensacola when he used a handgun to open fire in a classroom at dawn, officials said, stunning a military community .

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2019/12/07/pensacola-shooting-shooter-updates/

Fugitive Indian guru establishes 'cosmic country off Ecuador'
Nithyananda, who faces charges of rape and abduction, trumpets ‘world’s purest Hindu nation’

Hannah Ellis-Petersen South Asia correspondent

Thu 5 Dec 2019 05.54 ESTLast modified on Thu 5 Dec 2019 12.20 EST
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Police escort Hindu ‘godman’ Nithyananda to a 2012 bail hearing.

A fugitive guru and self-anointed “godman” who is facing charges of abduction and rape in India has established his own island nation, reportedly off the coast of Ecuador.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/dec/05/fugitive-indian-guru-establishes-island-nation-off-ecuador

How Many Trillionaires Are In The World?
Home› Articles› Billionaire News
December 6, 2019 by Joseph Gibson

We hear about millionaires and billionaires all the time in the news and in other contexts, but have you ever noticed you never hear about what the trillionaires are up to? That's probably because, at this point in human history, trillionaires don't exist. But if the global economy and trends in wealth continue the way they have been, it's only a matter of time before someone becomes a financial trillionaire, with at least $1 trillion in financial assets.

How much is a trillion dollars? Put simply, it's a million million, which may seem like an impossible figure for even the richest people in the world to ever attain. But actually, many financial analysts agree that at some point in their lifetimes someone like Jeff Bezos or Bill Gates could see their wealth exponentially grow to the trillionaire threshold,
provided trends in wealth and the global economy continue on their present courses.

But there's another school of thought, which says that the trillionaires of the future might make their fortunes in an industry that we are barely aware of today, similar to the way Gates became a billionaire in a field – personal computing – that few knew anything about when he first began.

Some believe that the first trillionaire will make their fortune in outer space, while some, including Mark Cuban, have predicted that artificial intelligence holds the key to unknown future wealth.

Of course, barring some fantastic science-fiction scenarios that we can't even imagine the dimensions of, there are much more plausible ways for someone with a large amount of wealth to find themselves becoming the world's first trillionaire.

Take, for instance, Jeff Bezos, who in his combination of a 12-figure fortune and relative youth is as good a candidate for the title as anyone. Much of Bezos's fortune is tied up in his Amazon company stock, and Amazon's stock price would need to be somewhere in the neighborhood of almost ten times its current price to push Bezos over the line into trillionaire status. So, a lot of growth, but far from an unthinkable notion in the years and decades to come.

Bezos is also a good candidate for first trillionaire since in addition to his relative youth compared to fellow ultra-wealthy individuals like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, he hasn't shown as much zeal toward philanthropy, declining to sign on to Buffett's famous Giving Pledge imploring billionaires to agree to give away their fortunes over the course of their lifetimes.

https://www.celebritynetworth.com/articles/billionaire-news/how-many-trillionaires-are-in-the-world/?amp=1#referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com&amp_tf=From%20%251%24s

Thirty Britons believed to be among Isis fighters held in Syria
Whitehall analysis suggests there are about 2,000 foreign fighters in Kurdish jails

Dan Sabbagh
Fri 6 Dec 2019 12.29 EST
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Thirty British men are among an estimated 2,000 foreign Isis fighters being held by Kurdish forces in jails in north-east Syria, according to the latest Whitehall analysis of the threat posed by the terror group following the death of its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The foreign fighters are considered the most dangerous group of all Isis fighters held in jails – totalling around 20,000, when Iraqis and Syrians are included – and politicians are effectively being warned not to be complacent just because the terror group has lost its leader and territory this year.


The figure of 2,000 is the first official British estimate of the number of foreign fighters in custody. Among those believed to be held in Syrian Kurdish detention include Shahan Choudhury, who left London in 2014 and was interviewed by ITV in prison earlier this year, saying he had acted as a grave digger during Isis’s last phase, burying victims of the conflict – and Hamza Parvez, a former police cadet from London, who joined Isis in 2014 and appeared in online propaganda videos urging other Britons to travel and join up.

https://twt-thumbs.washtimes.com/media/image/2019/12/02/Election_2020_Democrats_Money_66596.jpg-5fe67_c0-153-3005-1905_s885x516.jpg?3cfec05388eccd681676128ef1de5b7fda452214


Bloomberg denies trying to buy White House election
2 hours ago December 6, 2019
BBC World News

Michael Bloomberg, one of the world's richest men and a candidate to take on President Donald Trump next year, has denied trying to buy the White House.

Mr Bloomberg's rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination have accused him of doing exactly that.

The ex-New York City mayor entered the race in late November with one of the largest political ad buys ever.

Despite his late entry to the race, he is currently polling fifth on 4% out of 15 candidates.

Asked to respond to the claim he was trying to buy the election, Mr Bloomberg told CBS of his rivals: "I'm doing exactly the same thing they're doing, except that I am using my own money.


"They're using somebody else's money and those other people expect something from them.


"Nobody gives you money if they don't expect something. And I don't want to be bought."

Liberal Democratic White House front-runners have been criticising Mr Bloomberg, who used to be a Republican.

Senator Elizabeth Warren recently snapped up a TV ad spot on Mr Bloomberg's own network - Bloomberg TV - accusing him of trying to buy the election to avoid paying higher taxes.


Another leading Democratic contender, Senator Bernie Sanders, last week said Mr Bloomberg was using his billions "not to buy a yacht, not to buy a fancy car, but to buy the United States".

According to Bloomberg News, its owner has spent $59m (£45m) on advertising since entering the race, relatively late in the political season.

Asked by CBS why he had changed his mind about running - after saying in September that he would not - Mr Bloomberg said the Democratic field was weak.

"I watched all the candidates," he said. "And I just thought to myself, Donald Trump would eat them up."

Mr Bloomberg also said he did not warn former Vice-President Joe Biden - another leading Democratic 2020 candidate - that he planned to enter the race.

The tycoon also said he was not trying to take Joe Biden's "job" - political pundits have said Mr Bloomberg's campaign is a sign of Mr Biden's perceived weakness.

Mr Bloomberg's net worth is $52bn, according to Forbes - 17 times more than Mr Trump.

Before setting up a mass media empire, Mr Bloomberg made his billions from data terminals widely used in the financial industry.


https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50679159

Hannah Ellis-Petersen South Asia correspondent
The Guardian
Thu 5 Dec 2019 05.54 EST


Nithyananda, who built up a huge spiritual following in India, ... on Wednesday announced he was establishing the sovereign “Republic of Kailaasa”, which would be the “world’s greatest and purest Hindu nation”.


The “cosmic country” will reportedly be established on a private island off the coast of Ecuador, purchased by some of his wealthy devotees. Applications are open for those who want to apply for citizenship and a passport, which allows for “free entry in all 11 dimensions and 14 lokas [the 14 worlds of Hinduism] including Kailaasa”.

Only practising Hindus are allowed to apply for citizenship. A donation needs to be made to Kailaasa in order to be put forward for citizenship and all passport applications will be personally approved by Nithyananda.

Kailaasa describes itself as “a nation without borders created by dispossessed Hindus from around the world who lost the right to practice Hinduism authentically in their own countries”.


https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/dec/05/fugitive-indian-guru-establishes-island-nation-off-ecuador

beresponsible:
Chinko men. They might already have a couple of spies in the Nigerian national assembly

China Wanted A Spy In Australia's Parliament, Reports Say
November 26, 20195:02 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition NPR
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NPR's Steve Inskeep talks New York Times reporter Jamie Tarabay, who's based in Sidney, about an alleged plot by a Chinese espionage ring to install an agent for Beijing in Australia's parliament.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

How exactly did China allegedly try to put a spy in Australia's Parliament? Australian authorities say China funded a candidate for office, a candidate who later turned up dead in a Melbourne hotel room. Jamie Tarabay is a correspondent for The New York Times based in Australia. She's covering this story. Hi there, Jamie.

JAMIE TARABAY: Hello, Steve.

INSKEEP: And some people will recall your voice from when you were an NPR correspondent. It's good to have you back on the air. Now, who was this man, Nick Zhao, this purported Chinese spy?

TARABAY: We don't know that much about him. What we do know, though, is that he is - he was from Melbourne in - near sort of South Australia, and he was a luxury car dealer. But he was also someone who a federal politician here described as ripe for cultivating. He was in over his head financially. He had been accused of having some sort of fraudulent activities.

And he was essentially - according to this plot, was being offered a million dollars by a Chinese intelligence group, that they would pay for his political campaign to run as the member for an electorate in Melbourne. He was a member of the Liberal Party, which is the coalition in Australia. And they really wanted him to run for a seat there and pay for his campaign and pay his way into federal parliament.

INSKEEP: Wow. Now, was it correct, then, that he approached Australian intelligence officials with this apparent plot and then mysteriously died? Is that - do I have that correct?

TARABAY: That's - yes. I mean, this is exactly what movies are made of. You know, so about a year ago, he went to ASIO, which is Australia's spy agency, and told them about this alleged approach. And he also identified the man that he said had come to him with this proposal. And then earlier this year in March, he was found dead by a cleaner in a motel room. And his death is being investigated right now because, considering all of the issues that were going on with him, it could have been anything. So no one's prepared to sort of say whether it was foul play or not.

INSKEEP: You know, I'm just thinking - Australia is a close U.S. ally. Its intelligence agency works closely with the United States. It's a neighbor of China. I can think of a lot of reasons China would want to know more about what's going on in Australia. But is this alleged plot part of a wider Chinese campaign to gain influence in Australia?

TARABAY: It certainly isn't the first time that Chinese political interference has reared its head, I guess, in Australian politics. We've had at least one sort of very famous example of a federal MP who was being basically given political donations by a very influential businessman. And really, it sort of changed his rhetoric and his political position on things like the South China Sea or, you know, the sort of the status of Taiwan in direct contravention to his own political party's platform. And, you know, eventually, it sort of came out that he had been sort of funded by this person.

So this isn't the first time, and it's likely not to be the last. It's very sort of strategic for China to position itself in this way. Australia came out with foreign interference laws a couple of years ago to really try to circumvent this. So it's definitely an issue that this country is very, very aware of.

INSKEEP: Jamie, always a pleasure talking with you.

TARABAY: Thank you, Steve.

INSKEEP: That's Jamie Tarabay of The New York Times joining us via Skype from Australia.

(SOUNDBITE OF TOR'S "VAULTS"
https://www.npr.org/2019/11/26/782867301/china-wanted-a-spy-in-australias-parliament-reports-say

BBC news Africa
December 2 , 2019
Aisha Buhari has been Nigeria's first lady for four years
Nigerian first lady Aisha Buhari's call for social media regulation has caused an uproar online.

Mrs Buhari who was speaking during the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs General Assembly and National Executive Council Meeting over the weekend said social media ought to be regulated before it gets out of hand.

The first lady compared Nigeria to China stating that with the big difference in population, Nigeria should be able to regulate social media.

"If China can control over 1.3 billion people on social media, I see no reason why Nigeria cannot attempt controlling only 180 million people," she said.

"We should either fasten our seat belt, get up and do the needful or we will all regret it very soon," she added.

Mrs Buhari's statement comes as a proposed social media bill is being deliberated in the Nigerian senate.

Nigerians online were not amused with the comparison to China with some urging the first lady to compare Chinese development and politics as well.
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-africa-47639452

U.S. Rebukes Zambia for Jailing Two Men for Homosexuality
By Taonga Clifford Mitimingi and Matthew Hill
November 29, 2019, 10:32 AM EST
Updated on November 30, 2019, 7:27 AM EST
Blomberg

Ambassador ‘horrified’ as high court gives 15-year sentence
Zambia’s foreign minister takes ‘great exception’ to remarks
The U.S. ambassador to Zambia said a high court ruling sentencing two men to 15 years in prison for homosexuality was horrifying.

Ambassador Daniel Foote urged the government to reconsider laws that punish minority groups.

was personally horrified to read yesterday about the sentencing of two men, who had a consensual relationship, which hurt absolutely no one, to 15 years imprisonment,” he said in an emailed statement Friday. “Decisions like this oppressive sentencing do untold damage to Zambia’s international reputation by demonstrating that human rights in Zambia” are “not a universal guarantee.”

The constitution stipulates that the southern African nation is Christian, and laws dating back to Britain’s colonial rule of the country that ended in 1964 forbid gay sex.

“This is the will of the Zambian people, we have to be with the people by abiding by the law,” Chanda Kasolo, permanent secretary in the ministry of information, said by phone. “We respect the opinion of the American ambassador. We have to do things the way the people want.”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-29/u-s-rebukes-zambia-for-jailing-two-men-for-homosexuality

Lucasbalo:
I bet you your lips must be Orange now from kissing the rear of the Racist Orange pig you worship. Panafrican man that loves a racist pig who think of Africa as a shiiithole. Kudos to you. The likes of Marcus Garvey must be rolling in his grave for that fake moniker you use. Would like to see your face and see the real Uncle Tom.

The CEO of Twitter and Square says he's moving to Africa for at least 3 months next year because the continent will 'define the future'
Bani Sapra Nov 27, 2019, 4:20 PM


Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter and Square, tweeted his farewell to Africa on Wednesday but announced he would return and move to the continent for at least three months in 2020.
The tech exec earlier said that he would be touring the continent in November, exploring Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa. He was in Ethiopia this week.

Dorsey is famous for his world travels and eccentric lifestyle. He was in Myanmar in December and tweeted that he did a 10-day silent vipassana meditation to celebrate his birthday.

But this month's trip seemingly has more to do with business, as Dorsey's tweets document his meetings with entrepreneurs across Africa.
Dorsey isn't the only CEO fascinated by the continent's potential. Former Alibaba Group Chairman Jack Ma was also in Ethiopia this week, where a government press release said Alibaba would work with it to establish a new trade platform.


"Sad to be leaving the continent…for now," Dorsey tweeted on Wednesday. "Africa will define the future (especially the bitcoin one!). Not sure where yet, but I'll be living here for 3-6 months mid 2020."

The bearded 43-year-old tech exec was in Ethiopia this week as part of a monthlong tour across the continent that he tweeted in October he was making. He said he would be meeting with entrepreneurs in Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa.

Dorsey is known for his world travels and sometimes eccentric practices. He said he was in Melbourne, Australia, in September, and in Myanmar in December, where he said he celebrated his birthday with a 10-day silent vipassana meditation.

Dorsey appears to have continued his vipassana practice, tweeting a picture from his third 10-day vipassana meditation in South Africa last week. But the majority of his trip appears to have been spent meeting with the tech community across the country.


Africa, much of which lacks the infrastructure of countries in the Western world, has traditionally been treated as an afterthought by many of the big tech companies.

Whether Dorsey's trip to the continent signals a change remains to be seen. But he's not the only tech bigwig traveling to Africa. Former Alibaba Group Chairman Jack Ma was also in Ethiopia this week, signing an agreement to establish a new trade platform.

https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-ceo-jack-dorsey-says-moving-to-africa-2019-11

sunboy:
What about Cameroon? Togo, Ivory Coast and Niger those are the biggest France puppets in Africa.
If you know his background story, he’s a close ally of Gadafi.. and one of the richest man in the country. Hopefully he can transform that country.

sunboy:
May God bless Patric Talon. What other francophone African countries couldn’t do...

Lucasbalo:
Now Obama's is Kenyan. You take your game from the play book of your god Trump who's a vile racist and a misogynist who cheated on all his three wives with high priced whores. Obama's a family the way the Orange Pig you idolize will never be. He's married to the same woman for over 20 years with two beautiful children unlike a worthless piece of human garbage called Trampy with five children by three different women. Panafricanist you are not. You 're a Nazi loving interloper.

Lucasbalo:
What do a so called panafricanist love about a vile racist that calls Africa a shiiithole. You ain't no Marcus Garvey.

DW News.

Benin orders EU ambassador to leave: reports
16 hours ago.
November 28, 2019.

The West African nation has reportedly moved to expel the EU ambassador, on accusations of interfering in domestic affairs. Benin has faced a crisis after a new election law excluded opposition parties.
Benin ordered EU ambassador Oliver Nette to leave the country on Wednesday, diplomatic sources told AFP news agency.

The Beninese government accused the ambassador of the European Union mission of interfering in domestic political affairs.

It reportedly gave the German-born diplomat until December 1 to leave the country.

"He has interfered too much in domestic affairs," a senior Beninese diplomat told the agency on condition of anonymity. "He constantly calls on civil society to protest against the government." Later on Wednesday, a government spokesman said that the cooperation with the EU had been "disturbed by the activities of this diplomat who has got involved in activities that we may consider subversive."

https://amp.dw.com/en/benin-orders-eu-ambassador-to-leave-reports/a-51441422#referrer=https://www.google.com