Global

Pulling down statues of racists? Africa’s done it for years

In this April 9, 2015, file photo, cheering students surround a statue of British colonialist Cecil Rhodes, as it is removed from the campus at the Cape Town University, Cape Town, South Africa. New campaigns in the U.S. and Europe to pull down monuments to slave traders and colonial rulers are now following Africa’s lead.

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Abdulrahim Abby Farah: The most important Welshman you’ve never heard of

Abdulrahim Abby Farah Ian Johnson My hometown, Barry, is a remarkable place which has produced some remarkable people. Former Plaid Cymru leader, Gwynfor Evans, was named the 4th most important Welsh person of the last Millennium. The story of Gareth Jones, who wrote about Stalin’s man-made famine in the Ukraine, has recently been turned into

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As protests grow, Belgium faces its racist colonial past

Belgium (AP) — When it comes to ruthless colonialism and racism, few historical figures are more notorious than Leopold II, the Belgian king who held Congo as his personal property and may have been responsible for the deaths of millions of Congolese more than a century ago. Yet across Belgium, the monarch’s name is still

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Al-Shabaab May Look to Acquire Explosive Materials through Illicit Smuggling, Somalia Sanctions Committee Chair Warns Security Council

If the current chemicals used for Al-Shabaab’s homemade explosives become scarce, the group would shift to other sources of explosive materials or precursors, possibly through illicit smuggling, the Chair of the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolution 751 (1992) concerning Somalia said during a 9 June videoconference meeting*. Updating the Council on the Committee’s work

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Jefferson Davis statue torn down in Richmond, Virginia

Protesters tore down a statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis along Richmond, Virginia’s famed Monument Avenue on Wednesday night. The statue in the former capital of the Confederacy was toppled shortly before 11 p.m., news outlets reported. Richmond police were on the scene and videos on social media showed the monument being towed away as

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Ethiopia: Upper house of parliament elects new speaker

Aden Farah replaces Keria Ibrahim as speaker of House of Federation The upper house of Ethiopia’s parliament elected a new speaker on Wednesday. A majority of members of the House of Federation voted for Aden Farah, vice president of the Somali Regional State. He replaces Keria Ibrahim, who held the position since April 2018 and

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EU urges ceasefire, exit of foreign forces from Libya

The European Union called on all parties involved in the Libyan conflict to end military operations and engage in peace talks in a joint statement signed Tuesday by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and the foreign ministers of France, Germany and Italy. The document addresses international actors as well, urging the “withdrawal of all

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Outgoing Burundi president Nkurunziza, famed for soccer and violence, dies

Photo: Credit Reuters President Pierre Nkurunziza, a fitness enthusiast who increasingly relied on religion and repression to rule the impoverished and unstable central African nation of Burundi for 15 years, has died, the government announced on Tuesday. He leaves behind a nation dotted with the unmarked graves of his political opponents, an economy in tatters

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Iran says it will execute informant who led CIA to Soleimani

Photo: Credit Yeni Şafak An Iranian citizen who provided information to U.S. and Israeli intelligence services on the whereabouts of Iran’s slain Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani will be executed soon, Iran’s judiciary said on Tuesday. On Jan. 3, a U.S. drone strike in Iraq killed Soleimani, leader of the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force. Washington

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London’s statues from ‘bygone’ imperial past to be reviewed, mayor says

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is seen outside Downing Street, as the coronavirus outbreak continues, in London, Britain March 16, 2020. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls London mayor Sadiq Khan has ordered a review of the capital’s statues and street names after the toppling of the statue of an English slave trader by anti-racism protesters triggered a debate

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