Africa Up Close

Continue reading for a summary of recent news stories relating to some of the most pressing issues on the continent. We draw on a wide range of respected news sources, both from Africa itself and around the world. The themes of today’s In the News post are the JKIA fire in Kenya, Egyptian and Libyan protests, politics in Niger, women’s rights in the DRC, results of Mali’s election, theft of aid supplies in Somalia, and scandal in Liberia.

Kenya: Illegal Gold Exports Linked to JKIA Blaze
Illegal gold trade involving billions of shillings between business men in Kenya, United Arab Emirates, Italy, and South Africa has been linked to last week’s fire at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). Documents in possession of the Star, including a report prepared by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) prior to the fire incident point to a major collusion between immigration officials, custom officials and police at JKIA in the illegal gold trade and money laundering. The Flying Squad in a confidential report has revealed that Sh3.4 billion has been transiting through JKIA every month in cash without any scrutiny and without the involvement of any bank or financial institution.
To read more please visit the AllAfrica site here

Egyptian Forces Storm Pro-Morsi Sit-Ins
Egyptian security forces moved on Wednesday to clear two camps in Cairo occupied by supporters of the ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, deploying armored vehicles, bulldozers, tear gas, snipers and helicopters in a sustained and bloody operation that seemed to surprise some protesters with its ferocity. Witnesses spoke of gunfire from shotguns and automatic rifles as white clouds of tear gas offset plumes of black smoke from burning tires in violence that deepened an already profound gulf in Egyptian society. Protesters arrived at field hospitals with gunshot wounds to the neck and chest. At one location, soldiers were seen firing on a lone protester lobbing rocks from a rooftop.
To read more please visit the New York Times here

Laisser la RDC sans TPI «serait une discrimination à l’égard de la femme congolaise»
Dans une déclaration, cinquante-deux personnalités féminines tirent la sonnette d’alarme concernant la condition des femmes dans la région des Grands Lacs et plaident pour l’ouverture d’un Tribunal pénal international pour la République démocratique du Congo. Les signataires estiment que l’ouverture d’un TPI est l’une des clés pour mettre fin à l’impunité et pacifier la région.
To read more please visit the RFI site here

Niger: nouveau gouvernement d’union nationale
Un gouvernement profondément remanié au Niger. Un gouvernement d’union nationale puisqu’il est élargi à certains ténors de l’opposition comme Wassalké Boukary, Alma Oumarou et Albadé Abouba. Il compte en tout 36 ministres. Le président Issoufou justifie cette décision par la nécessité par la stabilité et la sécurité du Niger dans un contexte régional marqué par la violence terroriste. C’est un gouvernement d’union nationale de large ouverture : 35 ministres au total dont 5 femmes.
To read more please visit RFI site here

UK aid supplies lost to Somali militants
Humanitarian aid supplies worth £480,000 – funded by UK taxpayers – were seized by al-Qaeda-linked militants in Somalia, it has emerged. Supplies were in warehouses captured in a raid by al-Shabab in November 2011, the Department for International Development’s (DfID) accounts reveal. DfID would not specify what those supplies included. It said all material was destroyed in the raid or later. A DfID spokesman said working in “fragile states carries inherent risk”
To read more please visit the BBC here

Keita wins Mali election after rival concedes
brahim Boubacar Keita is to become Mali’s new president after his rival conceded defeat in the second-round runoff elections. Ex-Finance Minister Soumaila Cisse said he had congratulated Keita on winning the vote and wished him good luck, the AFP news agency reported on Monday. Cisse’s concession, hours after he complained the election had been marred by fraud, will deepen optimism for Mali’s recovery. “The general feeling here is that people are actually happy that this has come to a peaceful end, and that Mali finally has a president,” he said. Keita, a former prime minister, inherits a broken nation and must still negotiate peace with northern rebels.
To read more please visit Al Jazeera English here

Liberia: Dodging Indictment? Samukai Tape Offers Twist, No Answers in Liberia Airport Saga
In the court of public opinion, the secret recording of Defense Minister Brownie Samukai is a big hit, revealing his dislike of a fellow member of the Cabinet and a top security brass allowing himself to be taped by a secret device by someone he says, he tried to help and never in his wildest dreams, thought would betray that trust. In the same court of public opinion however, many remain convinced that Ellen Corkrum, the former head of the Liberia Airport Authority and her fiancé, Melvin Johnson have cleverly managed to outsmart the government’s case by distracting the debate from the crux of the matter to one of a circus atmosphere of secretly-recorded conversations with threats of even more revelations.
To read more please visit the AllAfrica site here

Berber protesters enter Libya parliament
Members of Libya’s ethnic Berber minority have forced their way into the parliament building in Tripoli, smashing windows and destroying furniture, in a demonstration to push for greater recognition, an assembly spokesman said. The protest occurred on Tuesday during a break in a regular session at the assembly, General National Congress spokesman Omar Hmaiden said. There were no immediate reports of casualties, but Hmaiden said furniture had been smashed and some documents belonging to assembly members were missing.
To read more please visit Al Jazeera English here