Connect with us

Foreign

UN says humanitarian aid delivery still on in Niger

Published

9 months ago

on

Un

 

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Niger says aid continues to be delivered to people in need amid the uneasy situation in the country.

UN Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, Farhan Haq said this at a news conference in New York on Tuesday.

“Last week, we and our partners carried out some 200 humanitarian field missions.

“Food distributions are underway in Diffa, in the east of the country, which hosts internally displaced people, refugees and returnees.

“Humanitarian agencies are also preparing to distribute cash,’’ he said.

The spokesperson added that the secretary-general was concerned over the continued detention of President Mohamed Bazoum, the health and well-being of all those detained, and the failure so far to restore constitutional order in Niger.

He reiterated his full support to the ongoing mediation efforts by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Answering a question on the diplomatic mission and humanitarian access to Niger, he said they were separate issues.

He, however, noted that whereas there was need for humanitarian operations to be carried out on the one hand, on the other hand, there was the diplomatic mission – about the political process.

“On the humanitarian side, the secretary-general calls for safe and unhindered access for the UN in the country, as well as the need to guarantee the continued operation of our humanitarian air services to allow the safe passage of humanitarian goods and services into Niger.

“So that’s what we’re pushing for on that side. On the political side, our Special Representative, Leonardo Santos Simão, is currently in Abuja, Nigeria, where he’s actively engaging with relevant stakeholders.

 

“This is part of our ongoing efforts to seek a peaceful resolution to the crisis, and he will participate in the extraordinary summit on Niger this Thursday that has been announced by ECOWAS.,’’ he said.

Related Topics:

Foreign

3 teens arrested in Germany for allegedly plotting terror attack

Published

1 week ago

on

April 12, 2024

By

 

German authorities have arrested three teenagers aged 15 and 16 on suspicion of plotting a deadly Islamist terrorist attack in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, prosecutors said on Friday.

The state’s Central Office for the Prosecution of Terrorism (ZenTer NRW) sought an arrest warrant for the teenagers over the Easter holiday.

They were suspected of plotting a terrorist attack in accordance with the aims and ideology of (extremist militia organisation) Islamic State.

The detained suspects are a 15-year-old girl from Dusseldorf, a 16-year-old girl from the Märkischer Kreis district and a 15-year-old boy from the Soest district, located about 100 kilometres to the east of Dusseldorf.

A fourth suspect has reportedly been identified in the south-western German state of Baden-Württemberg, and the local court there has issued an arrest warrant.

According to the investigators, the teenagers are accused of having agreed to commit murder and manslaughter.

This is in conjunction with the preparation of a serious act of violence endangering the state.

 

The presumption of innocence applied in all stages of the proceedings.

Security sources told newsmen that the young people had formed a chat group, but had not drawn up a concrete attack plan for a particular time and place.

However, sources said the cities of Dortmund, Dusseldorf and Cologne were discussed as targets, and attacks with knives and Molotov cocktails on people in churches or police officers in police stations had been considered.

The sources said authorities had also conducted searches as part of the investigation.

A machete and a dagger were seized in Dusseldorf, but no evidence of the construction of incendiary devices was discovered.

Sources said the father of the Dusseldorf suspect had already attracted attention from authorities in the past because he had allegedly collected donations for the Islamic State.

The investigators declined to reveal how the suspected terrorists were tracked down, but said that foreign intelligence agencies “did not play a role.”

Continue Reading

Foreign

Putin Registers As Candidate For Russia’s Next Presidential Election

Published

3 months ago

on

January 30, 2024

By

 

Russia on Monday officially recognised Vladimir Putin as a candidate for the presidential elections in March, a vote that he is all but certain to win.

The 71-year-old has led Russia since the turn of the century, winning four presidential ballots and briefly serving as prime minister in a system where opposition has become virtually non-existent.

The Central Election Commission said it had registered Putin, who nominated himself, as well as right-wing firebrand and Putin-loyalist Leonid Slutsky as candidates for the vote.

The election will be held over a three-day period from March 15 to 17, a move that Kremlin critics have argued makes guaranteeing transparency more difficult.

 

Following a controversial constitutional reform in 2020, Putin could stay in power until at least 2036.

Rights groups say that previous elections have been marred by irregularities and that independent observers are likely to be barred from monitoring the vote.

While Putin is not expected to face any real competition, liberal challenger Boris Nadezhdin has passed the threshold of signatures to be registered as a candidate.

However, it is still unclear if he will be allowed to run, and the Kremlin has said it does not consider him to be a serious rival.

Continue Reading

Facebook

Trending