Syria Kurds retrieve body of Russian officer from IS

Syrian Kurdish forces have retrieved the remains of a Russian special forces officer from the Islamic State jihadist group, a source on the ground told AFP on Wednesday. “The Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) managed to retrieve the body of a Russian soldier killed during the battle for Palmyra that was in the hands of IS,” the source said, without saying how.
Syrian troops recaptured the famed ancient city on March 27 in a major symbolic victory over the jihadists achieved with the support of intense Russian air strikes and special forces on the ground.
Three days earlier, Russian news agencies reported that a special forces officer had been killed while on a combat mission in the Palmyra area identifying targets for the air strikes.
The previous week, IS-linked media reported that five Russian special forces personnel had been killed near Palmyra and published pictures of what it said were their cellphones and video footage of a bloodied corpse.
But there was never any confirmation of those alleged deaths from Moscow.
The YPG, which controls a swathe of Kurdish-majority territory along the Turkish border, is regarded by Washington as the most effective fighting force against IS in Syria and has received US military support.
Moscow intervened in support of its Damascus ally in September last year and has since carried out hundreds of air strikes.
Commanders have been more tight-lipped about the presence of troops on the ground.
Russian sappers played a public role in clearing mines planted by IS in Palmyra’s UNESCO world heritage site after its recapture.
AFP correspondents also saw Russian gunners manning artillery during the battle for the city.

Civilian casualties from Boko Haram suicide attacks up in 2015

Suspected Boko Haram suicide bombings caused a massive increase in the number of civilian deaths and injuries in Nigeria last year, according to a new report published Wednesday.
Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) said the number of fatalities and injuries rose 190 percent in 2015 from the previous year, while the use of human bombs rose 167 percent in the same period.
The London-based non-profit group said the increase was part of a global trend that had seen a rise in civilian casualties from “explosive weapons” for the fourth consecutive year.
“Explosive weapons” include artillery shells, landmines, air strikes, improvised explosive devices, car bombs and suicide attacks.
The figures coincided with a warning from Nigeria’s military that Boko Haram had sabotaged farmers’ fields in the mainly rural northeast with landmines.
Of the 3,048 deaths recorded in 84 incidents in Nigeria in 2015, 2,920 were civilian casualties or 96 percent of the total, AOAV said in “Unacceptable Harm — Monitoring Explosive Violence in 2015”.
That made Nigeria the fourth worst-hit country in the world for deaths and injuries from conflict in 2015 behind Syria, Yemen and Iraq, with Afghanistan in fifth.
Boko Haram only rarely claims responsibility for attacks but no other group in the country is known to employ suicide bombers as a tactic.
– Boko Haram ‘most prolific’ –
Assuming the Islamists were behind the attacks, “then it would make them the most prolific user of suicide bombings recorded by the AOAV in 2015”, the report said.
Boko Haram has increasingly used suicide bombing in the insurgency, which began in 2009 and has claimed some 20,000 lives, since the military pushed it out of captured territory.
Young women and girls in particular have become a favoured method of inflicting maximum civilian casualties in northeast Nigeria and neighbouring countries.
AOAV said 923 civilians were killed or injured in Cameroon and Chad in 18 incidents in 2015.
Boko Haram’s use of guerrilla-style tactics has long made it difficult to combat, even though President Muhammadu Buhari maintains the group is “technically” defeated.
On Tuesday evening, the military warned the public in a statement that “fleeing remnant terrorists have laid landmines on stretches of farmland”.
“These latest tactics of the terrorists is a grand design to cause fear and panic among the farmers as well as the local populace,” it said.
Efforts were under way to “neutralise” the mines, it added, and advised people to be wary of “strange or suspicious objects” in the soil.
The warning risks complicating further the return of many of the over 2.6 million people displaced by the violence, amid concern about food shortages and post-conflict reconstruction costs.
According to the AOAV report, a total of 43,786 deaths and injuries were reported worldwide in 2015 as a result of the use of explosive weapons — up two percent from 2014.
Civilian deaths accounted for 33,307 or 76 percent of these deaths, it added. In the past five years, it has recorded a total of 188,331 deaths and injuries across the world.

Burundi govt won’t join crisis talks unless consulted

Burundi’s government on Wednesday refused to take part in stalled talks to end months of political crisis unless it was first consulted on who else was taking part.
In a statement from the president’s office broadcast over national radio and monitored in Nairobi, the government also demanded an official invitation before joining Monday’s fresh round of talks in the so-called Burundi “dialogue”.
“The Burundi government must be consulted (as) we must be in agreement on the persons who should be invited, the dates and the place,” said Willy Nyamitwe, communications officer for the presidency.
The authorities were also awaiting “an official invitation”, he added.
Burundi has been in political strife for a year, with a quarter of a million people in exile and up to 500 killed.
A regionally-mediated dialogue between all Burundians is being pushed by the international community as the best way to avoid civil war and ex Tanzania president Benjamin Mkapa last weekend announced a new round of talks for May 2 to 6 in Arusha.
The resumption of the dialogue was welcomed by the US state department in a statement late Tuesday “as the best means to restoring peace and stability to Burundi.”
It said (we) “strongly urge all stakeholders to fully participate without preconditions or red lines.”
But the government has repeatedly refused to sit at the same table as the main umbrella opposition group CRANED, including leaders who leaders are in exile, accusing them of fomenting the trouble.
Nyamitwe said on radio that “those who have attacked the lives of citizens, who hoped to overthrow institutions that were democratically elected, and others who are involved in armed insurrection in our country, cannot be summoned to this dialogue.”
The trouble erupted after President Pierre Annunziata’s controversial decision last April to run for a third term, a vote he won amid opposition boycotts in July.

Ighalo's father buried same day according to his wish

The father of footballer Jude Ighalo, Pa Paul Ighalo, who died on Monday April 25th, has been buried according to his wish. According to Family members, the 90 year old man had asked his family members not to keep his remains in the mortuary as he wants to be buried immediately after his demise.

To honor him, his family members after he was certified dead, moved his body from their family compound at number 58 Salami Street, Green Land area of Ajegunle, Lagos State to his village, Agidigbo Imadu in Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State where he was buried on the same day.

He is survived by his wife and many children. May his soul rest in peace Amen.

Photos of some of the victims in Fulani herdsmen attack in Enugu

Pictured above is one of the victims of the attack carried out by Fulani herdsmen in Nimbo community in Enugu state on Monday April 25th.

Belgium extradites Paris Terror suspect Salah Abdeslam to France to face prosecution

According to Belgian Police Authorities, Paris Terror attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam has been extradited to France to face prosecution. 26 year old Salah, who is a Belgium born French Citizen was extradited to France on Wednesday morning to face prosecution for crimes committed in France against the state in November, 2015

Abdeslam is due to appear before the investigating magistrate the same day, and would be placed in provisional custody, the Paris prosecutor's office said.

In the shoot out on March 15, prior to Salah's arrest in Belgium, Salah injured four police officers and was charged with attempted murder over his alleged role in the shootout.

Pregnant woman among 4 killed in east Ukraine

Four civilians including a pregnant woman were killed and eight others wounded early Wednesday when their cars came under mortar fire in war-torn eastern Ukraine, rebel officials said. The shelling attack occurred in the rebel-controlled village of Olenivka just 300 meters (yards) from a demarcation line separating pro-Russian rebels and government forces.
The body of a pregnant woman could be seen in the back seat of one of the damaged cars, mobile phone ringing constantly, an AFP correspondent at the scene said.
Another victim could be seen in the front seat of another car, while the remains of two other people lay in the road surrounded by shell fragments and water-filled craters.
“According to preliminary information, another eight people were injured”, rebel commander Eduard Basurin told AFP, blaming a mortar attack.
There was no immediate comment from Ukrainian military.
The attack was the latest in a fresh upsurge of violence in eastern Ukraine, which has killed at least six Ukrainian soldiers over the past week — the heaviest toll in the separatist east in nearly two months.
Around 9,200 people have died and more than 21,000 have been wounded since the revolt against Ukraine’s pro-Western leadership erupted exactly two years ago in eastern Ukraine.
A series of truce agreements have helped reduce the violence, although sporadic clashes persist and prevent the two sides from reaching a political reconciliation deal.

Man City ‘not afraid’ of Real Madrid

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini vowed that his team would play with no fear in their Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid following a 0-0 first-leg draw.
Missing the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, Madrid created the better chances in Tuesday’s game, but substitute Jese saw a header hit the bar and City goalkeeper Joe Hart produced late saves to thwart Casemiro and Pepe.
City, appearing in their first semi-final, did not work visiting goalkeeper Keylor Navas until Kevin De Bruyne found the target with a stoppage-time free-kick, but Pellegrini said that his side would show a greater cutting edge in next week’s return leg in the Spanish capital.
“I don’t think they are favourites,” said the Chilean, who was sacked after only one season as Madrid head coach in 2010.
“We have the same option as Real Madrid. Of course they have the advantage to play the first game away, so they try to manage the tempo of the game.
“After that they finish at home. But this team play away very similar to how we play at the Etihad. We had good results playing away against Paris Saint-Germain, against Dynamo Kiev and against Sevilla.
“We are not afraid to go to the Bernabeu and we will see which team plays better in that game.”
Pellegrini claimed that his side had shown the “most intent to win the game” and that Madrid had arrived at the Etihad Stadium “with a result in mind”.
His opposite number, Zinedine Zidane, contested the claim, asserting that his team “always go out to win”, but he agreed that neither side had procured an outright advantage.
“We could have scored a goal, but even with scoring a goal we would not have been sure of being in the final,” said the Frenchman, whose memorable volley against Bayer Leverkusen inspired Madrid to Champions League glory in 2002.
“I think it is still 50-50. We have got a game at home. We know what we are capable of. Right until the death it will be the same. We are going to have to work hard.”
Both teams have fitness concerns ahead of the second leg, but Zidane was upbeat about both Ronaldo, who missed out with a thigh strain, and Karim Benzema, who went off at half-time due to a knee problem.
– ‘Good old-fashioned rumble’ –
“We hope that they can both be in the second leg,” he said.
Pellegrini was more pessimistic about David Silva’s chances of gracing the Bernabeu after the Spaniard suffered a hamstring injury in a first-half challenge on Gareth Bale that earned him a booking.
“It is quite tough for him to recover in one week,” Pellegrini said. “We will have a clearer picture tomorrow.”
The City manager also expressed a measure of annoyance that his side will have a day less to recover for the return fixture due to the scheduling of their Premier League game at Southampton on Sunday.
“Unfortunately for us, we are going to have one day’s less rest than Real Madrid (who visit Real Sociedad on Saturday),” he said.
“We tried to change our game and it was impossible, so we need to play on Sunday.
“But we trust in what we are going to do and we are sure we will give all we can to arrive to the final.”
Hart was typically bullish, buoyed by two late saves that saw him thwart Casemiro and then, brilliantly, Pepe from point-blank range.
“We’ve set it up for a good, old-fashioned rumble at the Bernabeu,” said the England international.
“We are not disappointed with the result. Bring it on.”
Bale, meanwhile, backed the Bernabeu crowd to make their presence felt.
“We’re quite happy with it,” the former Tottenham Hotspur winger told BT Sport.
“We’re very, very strong at home. The crowd gets behind us. It’s going to be a difficult game, we know that, but one we’re confident about and looking forward to.”

FIFA boss wants North-South Korea friendly

FIFA President Gianni Infantino said Wednesday he was willing to try and set up a football match between North and South Korea as a way of easing hostility on the divided peninsula. On a visit to South Korea which coincided with a recent upsurge in tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang, Infantino said such a match would highlight the spirit of football as a game “beyond borders” that can unify rather than divide.
“We should bring everyone together around a football match… I’m ready to help and assist in whatever way is necessary,” Infantino told reporters.
Military tensions have been running high on the peninsula following North Korea’s nuclear test in January and a ballistic missile test staged a month later.
Cross-border relations have sunk to their lowest level in years, with almost all official communications cut off.
The two Koreas last held a friendly match in Seoul in 2005. Before that they played two consecutive games in October 1990, in Seoul and Pyongyang, under the title “Inter-Korea Unification” matches.
Sporting exchanges pretty much halted, along with other ties, as relations soured.
“Sometimes imagination can come true. Sometimes dreams can come true. These things can become a reality,” Infantino said.
The FIFA boss also defended moves to increase the number of teams participating in the World Cup to 40, beginning in 2026.
“I believe that it’s important to increase the number of teams on the World Cup because we have to be more inclusive,” he said.
“Eight more teams will be perfectly justifiable,” he said, adding he was considering six more berths for the Asia region.

Photo: The trial of eight Nigerian men charged with drug trafficking in Cambodia resumes

The trial of eight Nigerians and a Cambodian woman arrested on allegations of drug trafficking resumed at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Monday April 25, with police saying that the group worked together as team despite several of the defendants’ denials.
All eight Nigerians (pictured arriving at Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Monday)    were arrested on January 8, 2015, at three different places, while their alleged ringleader, Obieze Kenneth Uche, also known as John or Jack, is still at large. Morm Vanyong, a Cambodian woman who allegedly worked in the operation, was also arrested.

Police found drugs and scales in Uche’s apartment, and anti-drug police official Yin Panharith said the arrests were made after months of surveillance and undercover activities.

"They had a structure. Their leader is Jack, who had a Cambodian wife. Jack told all the suspects to bring drugs to the buyers by passing them through their agents, one to one," Panharith said.

Defendant Tony Chukwuonye testified on Monday that he had brought drugs from Uche to Vanyong only once, though police had accused him of doing it several times, most recently bringing her four packages of drugs and receiving almost $20,000 from her. Police also said they found two sets of scales at Chukwuonye’s house.

Judge Khy Chai also questioned defendants Okorom Nhabui Favour and Okorom Kizito Chimedu, brothers who were arrested in a church near Boeung Tompun, asking Favour why did not cooperate with the police.

"You locked the door and went upstairs for three hours until the police broke the door down. Why did you do that?"  Chai asked.

Favour responded he had been frightened by the sight of men in plain clothes with guns, but Panharith accused him and two other suspects of trying to destroy evidence.

Fellow defendant Francis Nnamdi, meanwhile, admitted to meeting Vanyong, but said he had believed the meeting was related to a community organisation he was involved with. He denied having any knowledge of the other defendants.

Four other defendants – Okarom Kizito Chimedu, Simon Maduka Ukandu, Sunday Nwa Buisi and Nna Mezie Victor – denied any involvement in the trafficking, but said they had seen each other at church.

Vanyong and the last Nigerian defendant, Izuchukwu Chukwuma, did not testify yesterday, and judge Chai said he wanted to try Vanyong separately.
The hearing will resume at an unspecified date.

Kane will be a natural replacement for Higuain, Maradona insists

Napoli will sell top goal scorer Gonzalo Higuain in the off-season, according to their former star Diego Maradona.

Higuain has scored 30 Serie A goals this season, 14 more than next-best Paulo Dybala, helping second-placed Napoli push for the league title.

However, their 1-0 loss to Roma on Monday saw their chances evaporate, with Juventus clinching a fifth-straight Scudetto with three rounds left to play.

Despite his goalscoring exploits in 2015-16, Maradona believes Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis will sell the Argentina international striker.

“I know De Laurentiis, and I think he will sell Higuain,” Maradona told Piuenne TV.

“[Higuain] gave his best to Napoli, I don’t think he can repeat this kind of form. We already saw it happen with [Ezequiel] Lavezzi.

“With the money he will earn, he will have to build a great team.”

As for who he believes should be Higuain’s replacement, Maradona pinpointed the Premier League’s top-scorer.

“It’s not easy to replace Higuain, if it was up to me, I would choose Tottenham’s [Harry] Kane,” he said.

“I don’t know how much he costs, but I would sign him.”

Government interference: FIFA may ban Egypt from Nations Cup, World Cup qualifiers

World football governing body, FIFA, has threatened to ban Egypt from all international football, including the Gabon 2017 African Nations Cup and the Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers if the country’s government did not stop further interference in the administration of the game.

Egypt defeated Nigeria 1-0 in Alexandria last month to virtually confirm their ticket for the Gabon 2017 African Nations Cup. The Pharaohs are also in the final round of the Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers.

However, if FIFA banned the Egyptians from all international competitions, the Group G ticket in the African Nations Cup qualifiers would now be a straight contest between Nigeria and Tanzania. The fourth team in the group, Chad, withdrew after the second round of matches.

According to kingfut.com, FIFA’s official warning to the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) comes in the light of Egypt’s Supreme Administrative Court ruling to dissolve the EFA board over election irregularities.

FIFA rules prohibit any government intervention as articles 13 and 17 of the FIFA statutes oblige member associations to manage their affairs independently and with no influence from third parties.

According to the letter, the EFA may face suspension in case the court decision was implemented. The EFA had already challenged the ruling and the court has set May 7 as a date for ruling in the case.

“The court decision, if implemented, would most likely be considered as an interference in the internal affairs of the EFA and the case would be brought to the highest authorities of FIFA for consideration of sanctions, including the suspension of the EFA,” the letter read.

Candidates for the EFA 2012 elections Magda El Helbawi and Hermas Radwan had dragged the EFA board to court over allegations of vote rigging during the elections. The court accepted the lawsuit in March and the verdict obligated Egypt’s Minister of Youth and Sports, Khaled Abdel-Aziz, to dissolve the EFA board headed by Gamal Allam.

Winning at Atletico all the more special for Torres

believes winning Atletico Madrid’s first ever Champions League would be an even greater feeling than lifting the World Cup.

Atletico face the might of five-time winners Bayern Munich in the first leg of their semi-final at the Vicente Calderon on Wednesday.

Torres was on the opposition side when Atletico reached the last four for the first time in 40 years two years ago and even scored for Chelsea as the Spaniards went through 3-1 on aggregate.

The 32-year-old returned to Atletico in January 2015 after a seven-year absence hoping to finally get the chance to win silverware with his boyhood club, who he captained between 2001 and 2007.

And despite winning the European Championship twice and the World Cup with Spain as well as the Champions League with Chelsea, his love for Atletico would make European success there the sweetest of his distinguished career.

“I feel very lucky to have been with great teams. The national team gave me the chance to live some incredible nights and win big titles,” said Torres.

“But for me personally nothing compares to what it would be like to do it with Atletico.”

Atletico are also in with a chance of winning La Liga for the second time in three years as they are level on points with Barcelona at the top of the table with three games to go thanks in part to Torres’s fine goalscoring run of five goals in six games.

Torres sang Atletico coach Diego Simeone’s name from the stands as the Argentine — then a dynamic midfielder — inspired the Rojiblancos to a league and cup double in the 1995-96 season.

Now Torres is determined for this Atletico side to write themselves into the club’s history books with a historic double of their own.

“We have a fantastic opportunity in front of us, a great tie against one of the big favourites without doubt,” he added.

“What we want to do is write new history. Hopefully in a week’s time we can say we have taken another step towards it.”

Bayern are also desperate to reach the final in coach Pep Guardiola’s final season in charge having fallen at the semi-final stage in the last two seasons to Spanish opposition in Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Xabi Alonso will anchor the Bayern midfield on his return to the Spanish capital after five seasons at Real Madrid, but was keen to highlight Atletico’s defensive strengths rather than those of his old Liverpool teammate Torres.

“There are facets in which they are probably the best team in the world,” said Alonso of Atletico’s remarkable 32 clean sheets this season.

“They are in the top five of teams in Europe and they deserve to be there.”

Atletico are expected to be missing one of their key defensive lynchpins, though, as Diego Godin is a major doubt due to a hamstring injury.

By contrast, Bayern’s defence could be handed a huge boost by the return of German international Jerome Boateng as he made the trip to Madrid after three months out with a groin injury.

Dollar slips ahead of US, Japan central bank meetings

The dollar weakened against its major peers Tuesday ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting as the shaky global economy weighs on hopes for a summer US rate hike, with a Bank of Japan gathering also in focus. Dealers are hoping the Fed will provide clues about the state of the world’s biggest economy as it wraps up its two-day meeting Wednesday, while first quarter growth figrues are also due for release this week.
In December, the US central bank raised interest rates for the first time in more than nine years but after the turmoil that hammered world markets in January-February, it has lowered its expectations for more increases in 2016.
“The tone of the (policy committee) statement is expected to reflect an open-minded Fed about the timing of the next tightening,” Bank of New Zealand currency strategist Jason Wong said in a commentary.
“It’s unlikely to want to close the door on a possible June tightening, so the market will be left with monitoring the data and market conditions.”
On Tuesday, the greenback weakened to 110.98 yen from 111.21 yen on Monday in New York.
The euro edged down to $1.1261 from $1.1266 in US trade, while it dipped to 124.97 yen from 125.30 yen.
Emerging market currencies retreated against the greenback as dealers looked for safer investments, with the Malaysian ringgit falling 0.8 percent and Indonesia’s rupiah down 0.2 percent.
The South Korean won, Thai baht and Singapore’s dollar also traded lower.
“Risk aversion has returned,” Philip Wee, a Singapore-based senior currency economist at DBS Group.
On Thursday, the BoJ wraps up its latest policy meeting, with dealers expecting fresh stimulus measures following this month’s deadly earthquakes that led to factory closures, threatening Japan’s already fragile economy.
The central bank shocked markets in January after it adopted a negative rate policy, effectively charging banks to store excess reserves in its vaults.

Obama announces 250 new military personnel for Syria

United States (U.S.) President Barack Obama has said he plans to send 250 more troops to Syria, a sharp increase in the number of Americans working with local Syrian forces.
“I’ve decided to increase U.S. support for local forces fighting ISIL in Syria … I’ve approved the deployment of up to 250 U.S. personnel in Syria, including special forces,” Obama said, announcing the decision after a meeting in Hanover with German Chancellor Angela Merkel
The deployment, which will increase U.S. forces in Syria to about 300, aims to accelerate the process of driving back the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS), White House adviser, Ben Rhodes, said.
Obama also said that Europe needed to take on its share of the burden to ensure collective security, adding that the Western allies could do more in the fight against ISIL.
ISIL controls the cities of Raqqa in Syria and Mosul in Iraq and is proving a potent threat abroad, claiming credit for major attacks in Paris in November and Brussels in March.
While Obama has resisted deploying U.S. troops in Syria, he initially sent 50 U.S. special operations personnel there last year.
The U.S. officials described the forces as being on a “counterterrorism” mission rather than involved in an effort to tip the scales in the war, which United Nations (UN) envoy, Staffan De Mistura, estimates has killed 400,000 people.
Obama pledged to wind down wars in the Middle East when he was first elected in 2008. However, in the latter part of his presidency, he has made decisions to keep or add to the numbers of troops deployed to conflicts in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.
The president is ending a six-day international trip that began in Riyadh, where he held talks with Gulf Arab monarchs concerned that Washington’s commitment to the Middle East had waned.

South Sudan peace on hold again as rebel chief delays return

South Sudan rebels said their commander Riek Machar would yet again fail to return on Monday to Juba as part of a floundering peace deal, this time blaming international donors.
Key international backers of the peace process are infuriated at the repeatedly delayed return, with the United States saying both sides have stalled the return of Machar, a step hoped to help end over two years of intense civil war.
Machar, who fled Juba when the war broke out in December 2013, is due to forge a unity government with his arch-rival, President Salva Kiir, returning to the post of vice-president he was sacked from months before the violence began.
He is currently at a rebel base near Ethiopia, and he would need to go across the border to fly to Juba from the nearest airport at Gambella, Ethiopia.
Rebel spokesman William Ezekiel told AFP Machar’s security force — 195 troops and the UN and US sanctioned chief of staff, Simon Gatwech Dual — were still hoped to fly Monday.
Ezekiel blamed the delay on the cancelling of flights funded by donors, who have said they must organise their own return after multiple chartered planes sent to collect the rebels left empty.
“We hope we can organise an airplane and he (Machar) can fly on Tuesday,” Ezekiel said. “The chief of staff and soldiers we hope will leave today.”
The flight for the troops was being paid for by “good Samaritans”, he said.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed and more than two million been driven from their homes in the conflict, which has reignited ethnic divisions and been characterised by gross human rights.
The United States, who along with Britain and Norway, a grouping known as the “Troika”, have provided key funding to the peace process, said both sides needed to demonstrate they are “genuinely committed” to peace.
“Despite the best efforts by South Sudan’s neighbours, the Troika, United Nations Mission in South Sudan, China, the African Union, the European Union and, most importantly, by South Sudanese advocating for peace, leaders on both sides have blocked progress,” the US State Department said late Sunday.
– ‘This doesn’t look good’ –
The British embassy in Juba said in a statement that Machar’s return was “vital” to create a unity government.
“It is now time for the parties to take over the primary responsibility of ensuring this return,” the statement read.
People on the streets of Juba appeared deeply frustrated at another delay.
“None of them seem serious,” said William Sebit, a motorbike taxi driver waiting in a long line at a filling station amid severe fuel shortages. “If today is the day they have to show they mean the agreement they signed, this doesn’t look good.”
“If we can fund a civil war, how is it possible that we can’t charter two planes from Gambella to Juba?” asked Geoffrey Duke, a South Sudanese peace activist.

Obama to stress partnership with Europe in Germany speech

US President Barack Obama will set out his vision of ties with Europe in a speech in Germany Monday, trying to set the framework for a relationship that has been less than easy throughout his leadership.
With the end of his administration in sight, Obama will emphasise the issues that Europe and America have tackled together, from Syria to global trade, from Iraq to climate change.
Obama began his presidency with Europeans revelling in Washington’s less hardline approach to foreign policy than they saw under his predecessor George W. Bush.
Since then Obama’s star has dimmed, but aides see the address as an opportunity to reflect his 2008 speech in Berlin, when as a presidential candidate he described a need for a self-sustaining partnership.
Obama has pressed NATO allies in Europe on the need to bolster their own defence operations, which still shelter under a US umbrella.
The speech in the northern German city of Hanover “will be an opportunity to discuss joint US-European efforts to confront a range of challenges, including countering ISIL, the current refugee crisis, Ukraine, and the headwinds in the global economy,” said a US official, using an alternative term for the Islamic State group (IS).
“The president will discuss the progress made on these issues over the past few years, and outline the additional work to be done moving forward.”
– More trainers in Syria –
Washington is hoping to see an increase in defence spending among NATO allies to meet a target of two percent of economic output.
This, Obama said on Sunday, was “in part to prevent wars, not necessarily to initiate them, but to be in a position where we can send a strong signal that we can meet our alliance obligations and deal with these new and rapidly emerging challenges that confront Europe as well as the world”.
Turning to Syria, Obama is to announce he will send up to 250 more troops to the country to augment the train and assist mission, according to a senior administration official.
US troops in Syria are mandated to advise and assist Syrian rebel and anti-Islamic State forces.
That announcement comes as European allies, including his host German Chancellor Angela Merkel, are scrambling to try and limit the refugee flow into Europe and the bloodshed in Syria.
But in a sign of differences, Obama felt the need to underline his longstanding opposition to establishing a safe zone in Syria, something European countries have discussed to stem the flow of migrants.
“Sadly, it is very difficult to see how it would operate short of us essentially being willing to militarily take over a big chunk of that country,” he said, ahead of talks later Monday with Merkel and the leaders of Britain, France and Italy.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told public television ARD late Sunday that the instability rocking Libya was also likely to be raised in the talks, including the key question over whether Russia should called on to play a role in bringing stability to the country.
– Trade pact this year –
While Monday’s focus is likely to be on transatlantic cooperation in trouble spots, Obama made a strong pitch for US-EU trade when he arrived in Germany on Sunday.
“Angela and I agree that the United States and the European Union need to keep moving forward with the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations,” said Obama, referring to vast EU-US trade agreement in the making which has run into strong public opposition.
He called for the agreement to be sealed before the end of the year, even though tens of thousands marched through Hanover on the eve of his visit to protest against the treaty amid fears it would erode protection for workers and consumers.
But both Obama and his host Merkel say the pact will provide a shot in the arm to Western economies.
“As you see other markets like China beginning to develop and Asia beginning to develop and Africa growing fast, we have to make sure our businesses can compete,” said Obama, before dining with prominent US and German business leaders including the heads of pharma group Merck, industrial titan ThyssenKrupp and airline Lufthansa.

Crocodile attacks sleeping Australian camper

A 19-year-old on a family camping holiday in northern Australia had a lucky escape Monday when he fought off a crocodile which bit into his foot as he slept.
The reptile struck at about 4:30am as the group slept at their campsite in the Northern Territory.
Peter Rowsell told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation he was woken by something “shaking” his right foot.
“I was sleeping in a mozzie (mosquito) net, and … I woke up and there was something shaking my foot, and I woke up and had a look and it was three to four metres long,” he said.
He said he hit the reptile “once or twice” on the head and it went back into the water. His screams woke his fellow campers who drove him to hospital, more than two hours’ drive away.
Department of Health spokeswoman Gail Liston confirmed a man was treated in Katherine Hospital after the attack in the Douglas Daly region south of Darwin.
“He was bitten on the right foot by a crocodile,” she told AFP. “He has puncture wounds.”
The man’s injuries were not life-threatening, she said.
Rowsell told the ABC he was not sure whether the crocodile was a freshwater variety or the larger and more feared saltwater type.
In January a crocodile bit off a woman’s arm in a “death roll” at a creek in a small town in neighbouring Western Australia state.
The reptiles are common in Australia’s tropical north. Numbers have increased since the introduction of protection laws in 1971, with estimates putting the Northern Territory’s population in the wild at about 100,000.
In 2015 more than 250 of them were removed from waterways around Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory, including a 4.25 metre-long (13.9 feet) male.
Despite the dangers they pose for swimmers, boaters and fishermen, the Australian government in 2014 rejected the idea of crocodile safari hunts — saying there was a danger of “cruel and inhumane” behaviour.

23 dead in Pakistan after eating poisoned sweets: officials

23 people died and dozens of others fell ill in central Pakistan after eating sweets which police suspect were tainted with pesticides.

Umar Hayat, a resident of the Karor Lal Esan area in Punjab province, bought the baked confectionery on April 17 to distribute among friends and family after the birth of his grandson.
But their celebrations turned out to be short-lived when ten people died on the same day.
“The death toll from consumption of the sweets has now risen to 23, and 52 people are still being treated at various hospitals,” local police official Munir Ahmed told AFP on Monday.
He said the dead included the baby boy’s father and seven of his uncles.
Rameez Bukhari, a senior police officer from the district, confirmed the incident, adding three people — two brothers who run the bakery and a worker — had been arrested.
The worker may have inadvertently added pesticide to the sweet mix.
“There was a pesticide shop close by which was being renovated, and the owner had left his pesticides at the bakery for safe keeping,” said Bukhari.
“A baker may have used a small packet in the sweet mixture,” he said, but added that police were awaiting for the results of laboratory testing.
Pakistan has poor food safety standards and hygiene laws are rarely implemented.

Israel frees ‘youngest Palestinian’ girl prisoner at 12

Israel freed 12-year-old Palestinian Dima al-Wawi from prison on Sunday, more than two months after jailing her for an attempted stabbing attack.
Wawi was handed over to Palestinian authorities at Tulkarem crossing point into the northern West Bank, an AFP photographer said.
She was to travel from there to her family home near Hebron in the south of the territory.
She was arrested, wearing her school uniform, on February 9 at the entrance to a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank and found to be carrying a knife.
A wave of Palestinian knife, gun or car-ramming attacks has left 28 Israelis dead since last October, with 201 Palestinians killed over the same period, most of them while carrying out attacks.
Under a plea bargain with Israeli military prosecutors, Wawi pleaded guilty to attempted murder and possession of a knife and was sentenced to four months in an Israeli prison and a further six-week suspended sentence.
“She is the youngest Palestinian girl ever imprisoned,” her lawyer Tariq Barghouth posted on Facebook.
Barghouth said that Wawi’s defence team had asked the military court for her early release and it agreed.
According to Israeli military law, minors from age 12 can be charged, uniquely in the world according to United Nations children’s agency UNICEF.
Israel is currently holding about 450 Palestinian minors, around 100 of whom are under 16.