Cabinet Secretary Criticised Over Sentiments About Rising Crime Rate

Cabinet Secretary in charge of Interior and Coordination of National Government Joseph Ole Lenku’s sentiments for branding retired disciplined forces officers as criminals due to rising incidences of armed robberies has come under sharp criticism from retired officers organizations.

The retired officers from the disciplined forces now want Lenku to apologize over his utterances.

Speaking on Thursday at a press conference in Nakuru, Col Dickson Swegenyi, the executive director of Global Veterans for Peace (GLOVEPA) termed Lenku's utterances as unfortunate.

“Lenku’s words that branded the retired forces officers as criminals due to the rising cases of insecurity across the country are not acceptable,” said Swegenyi.

Swegenyi further added that retired members of the disciplined forces have played a great role in the community through various organizations and needed to be respected.

Nigeria: Cameroon Turns Blind Eye for Extremists

Officials in Nigeria battling an Islamic uprising are accusing Cameroon's security forces of allowing extremists to flee across the border.

Deputy Governor Zannah Umar Mustapha of Nigeria's Borno state says Cameroonian authorities habitually refuse to either arrest or chase militants fleeing after attacks in Nigeria.

At a meeting on Wednesday with army officials, Mustapha called for a stronger military on the porous borders.

Cameroonian Governor Fonka Awa Augustine of the Far North region neighbouring Nigeria has said he is puzzled by such complaints.

He said Cameroon is "in full collaboration" with Nigeria and has "stepped up" co-operation since a French priest was kidnapped last week in northern Cameroon by suspected Nigerian militants and transported into Nigeria.

Read More At: http://www.news24.co.ke/Africa/News/Nigeria-Cameroon-not-helping-fight-extremists-20131121-2

White supremacists jailed for Mandela murder plot

A South African court Tuesday sentenced members of a white extremist militia accused of plotting to kill former president Nelson Mandela after a trial that lasted ten years. The apartheid loyalists received jail terms ranging from five to 35 years.

Al Qaeda-linked group claims murder of journalists

© Photo: RFI

Mauritanian news agency Sahara Medias said Wednesday that it has received a message from Al Qaeda-linked militant group AQIM claiming responsibility for the murder of RFI journalists Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon, killed in Mali on Saturday.

Kidal, a lawless outpost in Mali's desert north

Kidal, the northern Malian town where two French journalists were abducted and murdered on Saturday, is a remote and volatile outpost where neither French nor UN troops, let alone Malian forces, are truly in control.

China backs African bid to suspend ICC Kenya case

China on Monday threw its weight behind an African bid to suspend an International Criminal Court crimes against humanity case against Kenya’s president.

It said the “dignity” of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto had to be respected by the UN Security Council and the ICC.

African nations have circulated a draft Security Council resolution which would call for ICC charges against Kenyatta and Ruto to be deferred for one year.

The campaign has already been backed by Russia, which like China is not an ICC member.

The Security Council should “actively and positively” support the demand made by the African Union and Kenya, China’s UN ambassador Liu Jieyi told a press conference.

Fugitive terror suspect suing Britain over torture claim

A Somali-born terror suspect who escaped the surveillance of British authorities by donning a burqa was suing the government for alleged torture before he fled, it emerged on Thursday.

Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed cut off his electronic tag and slipped out of a London mosque wearing the woman’s garment last Friday. Anti-terror police have now launched a manhunt.

The 27-year-old, who is believed to have fought for Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab militants, is seeking damages from the government over claims he was tortured in Somaliland in 2011, London’s High Court heard.

He and another man, referred to as “CF”, allege that British authorities were complicit in their torture by authorities in Somaliland, a breakaway region to the north of Somalia.

Mohamed was referred to in court papers only as “MA” but his anonymity was lifted following his disappearance.