Day: April 30, 2022

BANJUI, Rebels have killed at least six soldiers in an attack on a military outpost in southeast Central African Republic, the latest reported incident in a decade-long conflict, a local official and a hospital director have said.

Members of an alliance of armed groups known as the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC) assaulted a military camp on the outskirts of Bakouma town early on Thursday morning, said a local government official who did not wish to be named for security reasons.

Six soldiers and four rebels were killed, he said.

The attack was confirmed by the head of a hospital in the nearby city of Bangassou, also on condition of anonymity, where bodies and wounded soldiers were taken.

Mineral-rich Central African Republic has been mired in violence since a coalition of mainly Muslim Seleka rebels deposed then-President Francois Bozize in 2013, sparking reprisals from mostly Christian militias.

In recent years the army, backed by United Nations peacekeepers, Russian and Rwandan troops – has been battling CPC fighters seeking to overturn the outcome of an election in December 2020 that saw President Faustin-Archange Touadéra clinch a second term.

The UN has accused all parties of abuses including summary killings, torture, conflict-related sexual violence and the use of child fighters among others.

It has lost more than 160 peacekeepers in a conflict that has displaced more than one million people.

A Special Criminal Court set up in 2015 to prosecute war crimes committed in the country kicked off its first trial last week.

Source: Nam News Network

Manama, Bahrain national teams are gearing up for the third edition of the Gulf Games, which will be held in the state of Kuwait on May 13-31.

Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) Vice President, Chairman of Bahrain’s delegation to the 2022 Gulf Games, HH Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa the table teams, padel and swimming teams.

Bahrain Mission Director Hassan Al Khaja and his deputy Fawaz Shamsan were also present during the visit to three national teams.

The BOC Vice President was received separately by Bahrain Table Tennis Association Chairperson Shaikha Hayat bint Abdulaziz Al Khalifa, Bahrain Swimming Association Chairman Dr. Mohammed Mejbel and Shaikh Abdulla bin Rashid Al Khalifa and Bahrain Padel Association Chairman Fahd Fawzi Kanoo.

HH Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa attended parts of the training and encouraged players to executive all efforts to achieve positive results and honour the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

ADDIS ABABA, Several hundred people have been arrested following a deadly attack on Muslims in the northern Ethiopian city of Gondar, a regional official said.

More than 20 people were killed on Tuesday when heavily-armed “extremist Christians” attacked mourners at the funeral of a Muslim elder and destroyed property belonging to Muslim residents, according to a local Islamic group.

Desalegn Tassew, head of the Amhara region’s peace and security bureau, said 373 suspects had been arrested “in relation to the disturbance that happened in Gondar”, according to a statement cited by the official Amhara Media Corporation.

He also announced a ban on firearms and other weapons until all suspects were arrested.

“We are making legally accountable members of the security forces and leaders who did not assume their responsibility,” he added, without elaborating.

The cemetery where the attack occurred neighbours a mosque and church and has been the subject of an ongoing dispute between Muslims and Orthodox Christians, who are the dominant group in Ethiopia.

Amhara’s regional government said the violence erupted as people clashed over using stones from the area for burial purposes, fighting over whether the materials were being taken from the cemetery or church compound.

In Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa on Friday, Muslims staged a demonstration over the Gondar violence as they gathered for a mass iftar, the traditional sunset meal breaking the fast during the holy month of Ramadan.

“Justice for Amhara victims in Gondar,” they chanted. “We need fair justice.”

Source: Nam News Network

Madrid, In an dominating season for Real Madrid, it was only fitting that it didn’t even need its best players to win the Spanish league, reports AP.

Using its backups ahead of the Champions League semifinals, Madrid earned a record-extending 35th Spanish league title with a comfortable 4-0 home win over Espanyol on Saturday.

Rodrygo scored twice and Marco Asensio and substitute Karim Benzema added on to give Madrid its second league title in three seasons, and third in six years.

The victory gave Madrid an insurmountable lead with four rounds to go. It was 17 points in front of Sevilla, which drew with Cádiz 1-1 on Friday, and 18 points ahead of Barcelona, which hosts Mallorca on Sunday. Madrid has nine more league titles than Barcelona.

Carlo Ancelotti became the first coach to lift trophies in the top five European leagues. The Italian manager won with AC Milan in Serie A, Chelsea in the English Premier League, Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1, and Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.

Source: Bahrain News Agency