tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80866302024-03-08T02:09:38.680+00:00CONGO WATCHIngrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.comBlogger501125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-58216807086741195042023-10-30T21:25:00.001+00:002023-10-30T21:25:59.627+00:00UN: Nearly 7 million people are now internally displaced in the DRC due to escalating violence<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The UN says nearly seven million people are now internally displaced within the Democratic Republic of Congo due to escalating violence. <br> According to the UN, the DRC is facing one of the world's biggest displacement and humanitarian crises. <a href="https://t.co/kvR4jg7itm">https://t.co/kvR4jg7itm</a> <a href="https://t.co/zv8oE9Kap5">pic.twitter.com/zv8oE9Kap5</a></p>— BBC News Africa (@BBCAfrica) <a href="https://twitter.com/BBCAfrica/status/1718961412574417086?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 30, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-47081832950637469892023-06-22T18:58:00.001+00:002023-06-22T18:58:14.493+00:00 UK imposes sanctions on Syrian and Congolese officials accused of sexual violence<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Report at Financial Times - <a href="http://FT.com">FT.com<br /></a>Dated Monday 19 June 2023 - excerpt:</span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">UK imposes sanctions on Syrian and Congolese officials accused of sexual violence</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Four men given travel bans and have assets frozen in effort to stamp out use of rape as a weapon of war.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Full story: <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/db7c82cc-a48e-4751-b862-96c9abf0669b">https://www.ft.com/content/db7c82cc-a48e-4751-b862-96c9abf0669b</a></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">[Ends]</span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-45268348135688787002023-06-19T00:10:00.002+00:002023-06-19T00:16:46.217+00:00One million civilians flee east DR Congo in surging attacks, IOM says<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(251, 2, 128);"><span style="font-family: verdana;">"Across the country, over 26 million people need humanitarian aid from a population of around 100 million," the IOM said. </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(251, 2, 128); font-family: verdana;">Read more.</span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(251, 2, 128);"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Report at The EastAfrican - <a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/one-million-civilians-flee-congo-as-attacks-surge-4273798">theeastafrican.co.ke</a></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">By AFP (Agence France-Presse) </span><a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/author-profiles/afp-1367538"><span style="color: black; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">More by this Author</span></a></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Dated Sunday 18 June 2023 - full copy:<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">One million civilians flee east DR Congo in surging attacks, IOM says</span></b></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy9z__YnP64dtt68UjQbi0tOTvYrxGql_-2PF9VAK4dpNRS2noPpdbmsKbmEK6V9_e527xMzk_-89h9zsMZSYRKjARu8u5KfAn2Gug7s-P_4U31NxwYrL5FHWiMp1tEMUdVSgn8crzsvxb1v6N-bxN-I4wamD_BrZTTsa3pI9UhXzScj5t5Q/s1160/Image%2019-06-2023%20at%2000.32.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="1160" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy9z__YnP64dtt68UjQbi0tOTvYrxGql_-2PF9VAK4dpNRS2noPpdbmsKbmEK6V9_e527xMzk_-89h9zsMZSYRKjARu8u5KfAn2Gug7s-P_4U31NxwYrL5FHWiMp1tEMUdVSgn8crzsvxb1v6N-bxN-I4wamD_BrZTTsa3pI9UhXzScj5t5Q/w400-h225/Image%2019-06-2023%20at%2000.32.jpeg" width="400" /></a></span></div><p></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">People displaced by war between M23 rebels and DRC army war flee towards the city of Goma in North Kivu Province on November 15, 2022. PHOTO | ALEXIS HUGUET | AFP</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Almost one million people have fled their homes in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo so far this year, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said on Thursday.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"A surge in attacks on civilians by non-state armed groups has newly displaced close to one million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since January," the IOM said in a statement.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"An estimated 6.1 million people are internally displaced in the DRC, a 17 percent increase from October 2022," it added.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"As the conflict intensifies, the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate, and millions are facing acute food insecurity as well as other critical needs," the UN agency said.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"Since the beginning of the year armed attacks against civilians in the eastern Kivu and Ituri regions have resulted in loss of life, massive population displacements and growing instability," the organisation stressed.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"Across the country, over 26 million people need humanitarian aid from a population of around 100 million," the IOM said.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">In the early hours of Monday, at least 46 people, half of them children, were killed in a militia attack on a camp for displaced people in Ituri province, security analysts and a local community leader said.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">That attack was blamed on the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo (Codeco) militia, which claims to protect the Lendu community from rival ethnic group, the Hema.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"This tragedy also resulted in the renewed displacement of over 7,800 people from the site, destruction of shelter and personal belongings," the IOM said.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">"IOM condemns this heinous violation of international humanitarian law and recalls that attacks against civilians may constitute war crimes," it added.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">On Thursday the International Criminal Court in The Hague announced it will examine allegations of war crimes by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo's volatile east, after Kinshasa made a new formal referral to the tribunal.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Kinshasa has accused the M23 rebel group of attacks in the DRC's mineral-rich North Kivu, and says Rwanda is backing the Tutsi-led militia. Kigali denies any involvement in the violence.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Armed groups have plagued much of the eastern DRC for three decades, a legacy of regional wars that flared in the 1990s and 2000s.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><b>Related</b><a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/12-killed-in-east-dr-congo-militia-attack-4264050"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><br />
12 killed in east DR Congo militia attack </span></a></span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/congo-army-m23-rebels-trade-blame-as-ceasefire-fails-to-hold-4236482"><span style="color: black; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Congo army, M23 trade blame for ceasefire violation </span></a></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/children-among-46-killed-in-attack-in-east-dr-congo-4267556"><span style="color: black; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Children among 46 killed in attack in east DRC</span></a></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/mass-graves-found-in-east-congo-village-4270230"><span style="color: black; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">HRW: Mass graves found in east DR Congo village</span></a></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">View original: <a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/one-million-civilians-flee-congo-as-attacks-surge-4273798">https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/one-million-civilians-flee-congo-as-attacks-surge-4273798</a></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">[Ends]</span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-29668510719449213332023-06-18T16:05:00.000+00:002023-06-18T16:05:02.111+00:00ICC Prosecutor's statement on referral by DRC<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Statement of the Prosecutor of the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ICC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ICC</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KarimAAKhanKC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#KarimAAKhanKC</a>, on the referral by the Democratic Republic of the Congo regarding the situation in its territory ⤵️ <a href="https://t.co/U5tgSENiq0">https://t.co/U5tgSENiq0</a></p>— Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) <a href="https://twitter.com/IntlCrimCourt/status/1669332253120376832?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>[Ends]<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-64057566534371886192021-11-19T12:42:00.002+00:002021-11-19T12:42:40.783+00:00BREAKING: Africa's Biggest-Ever Leak, Dirty Millions Stashed in Washington DC Real Estate<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: inherit;">NOTE from Congo Watch Editor: Thanks to <i>The Sentry</i> in Washington DC for sending me their report, copied here in full.</span></span></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></span></b></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><b><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">BREAKING: ‘CONGO HOLD-UP’</span></i></b></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Africa’s Biggest-Ever Data Leak Reveals Dirty Millions Stashed in Washington DC Real Estate </span></b></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">November 19, 2021 (Washington, DC) – Red flags for corruption, money laundering, and other financial crimes were ignored as millions of dollars linked to the former president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) traveled through a maze of business transactions and were stashed in quiet residential neighborhoods surrounding the US capital Washington, DC, according to a new investigative report by The Sentry, “<a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUYUVzsUGL-2FYs-2F5FiLbXeug8RlxQjLMTo5AvEfPv3ibUni4XcwSgpp2i2-2BAWHD4N-2FPQ-3D-3DUIgP_WbiLCh74zCr7As8lymLfzmvGbUmHyknmw9t1-2FbWjQLjxvlz4Ruo-2FuoaZM1HYA6U-2FZEh2sWLJ9B53FSHkFYX0YyElC3LuBMX0ynxYe186P6TjUPoViolnKlukNg6iScdtJTsdegvWli3pnos4Gj0A0sd6m-2FK2Zo86xPTQVWYcBMfmol6eBM9iUasswS5bzLwQD3Fl8HcSo4z5nIO-2BxakEARQISrrwIxnWwbfC7IAzP-2F4oCKOZiZIBAc5r2rVaGa49EZLTZpGW2ny5fAeq0eN2gc-2BORHFvwitk1ZB7TQ-2FFrVnxAhjmZA8GJbe-2F3xQb472XK9QAU4PcaTHfdn3ZO3soejgbqEQ02bzgIIItmJASxhk-3D"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue;">Embezzled Empire</span></a>.” </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">The Sentry’s revelations come today in the first wave of “<a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUXq6sYgirvs6XbJJ0PrgiuU-3DzImh_WbiLCh74zCr7As8lymLfzmvGbUmHyknmw9t1-2FbWjQLjxvlz4Ruo-2FuoaZM1HYA6U-2FZEh2sWLJ9B53FSHkFYX0YyElC3LuBMX0ynxYe186P6TjUPoViolnKlukNg6iScdtJTsdegvWli3pnos4Gj0A0sd6m-2FK2Zo86xPTQVWYcBMfmol6eBM9iUasswS5bzLwQD3Fl8HcSo4z5nIO-2BxakEAS6vzTek1d4kYFspc-2BxCmSrTZlxGEr0MKX8WaqijMTxuHWTahv016l464hUbnqRp-2B-2FsejMBFFoE4TkoxCn0XlDOL0DUjZrRAT-2BCdPRDmpi4yQ70pCsrapWs-2BaYkrU9ImW0ZUK-2Baihe-2F-2F5MXryWZJAG8-3D"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: #0000e9;">Congo Hold-up</span></a>,” a series of investigative reports by an international consortium of non-profit organizations and media outlets. The millions of leaked bank records obtained by the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF) and the French news group Mediapart and shared with The Sentry and other consortium partners by PPLAAF and European Investigative Collaborations (EIC) represent the largest confidential data leak in African history.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Michelle Kendler-Kretsch, Investigator at The Sentry</b>, said: “The Congo Hold-up leak is the clearest evidence to date of the powerful combination of tools the Kabila family had their fingertips to embezzle public funds, including a bank and a maze of companies all under their control. How the former president’s brother purchased millions of dollars’ worth of real estate in the US and South Africa, it appears in part using funds diverted from the Congolese government, is only one of many scandals now being revealed using this massive trove of leaked bank statements, emails, contracts, bills, and corporate records. This level of detail offers an unparalleled view of the previously-secret machinery used to plunder Congolese public funds.”</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>John Prendergast, Co-Founder of The Sentry</b>, said: “Rarely is the world afforded such a clear and comprehensive view into the ways a state can be captured -- every theft of public money, backroom deal, and shell company, and every failure along the way to stop the chain of illicit transactions. With this magnitude of evidence in the Congo Hold-up leak, there should be no delay in bringing the corrupt perpetrators, their accomplices, and international enablers to justice.”</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">At a time of political turmoil, Francis Selemani, the brother of former DRC president Joseph Kabila, funneled steadily more money into real estate investments abroad, especially in the US. The Sentry’s investigation reveals how Selemani’s nine-year tenure in a senior management position at BGFIBank DRC gave the Kabila family and their allies access to a financial institution they could use to launder the proceeds of corruption. Oversight of BGFIBank DRC’s activities was badly deficient, as the bank’s own internal audit found, enabling the Kabila family to circulate funds clandestinely throughout their business network.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Justyna Gudzowska, Director of Illicit Finance Policy at The Sentry</b>, said: "When the brother of a notoriously corrupt ruler is able to launder millions of dollars into real estate just a stone's throw from the US capital, it's high time to close the loopholes that allow this type of activity to flourish. The real estate industry has been far too happy to turn a blind eye to dirty money stolen from the world's poorest countries, and the exemption for real estate professionals in the US anti-money laundering framework should be revoked without delay." </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>J.R. Mailey, Director of Investigations at The Sentry</b>, said: “The Congo Hold-up leak is a paper trail of 3.5 million documents that leads to one central conclusion: banks are the arteries of a kleptocracy. They provide a place to park looted state assets, a vessel for paying and receiving bribes, a veil to disguise the origin and destination of illicit funds, and a conduit for stashing money in property abroad. The investigations published as part of this consortium provide a glimpse into how one of the world’s poorest countries has hemorrhaged untold wealth—but they also provide governments, law enforcement agencies, and financial institutions with the evidence needed to take meaningful action. The findings should prompt prosecutions, sanctions, asset seizures, hefty fines, and an overhaul of several countries’ anti-money laundering regimes.”</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">In the US, the full spectrum of anti-money laundering requirements only covers some of the professionals involved in a real estate transaction. Real estate professionals can provide valuable financial intelligence on possible illicit motives but are subject to fewer government reporting requirements than financial institutions.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Selected excerpts from The Sentry’s report:</span></b></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Although President Joseph Kabila’s final term as head of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was set to end in December 2016, he clung to power and delayed elections for another two years. While the eyes of many observers were fixed on the election stalling tactics in Kinshasa, Kabila’s brother Francis Selemani purchased numerous luxury homes in the United States and South Africa, it appears at least in part using funds diverted from the Congolese government. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- At the time, Selemani was managing director of BGFIBank DRC, the Congolese subsidiary of Gabon-based BGFIBank Group.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Selemani and the Kabila family used a network of companies and the bank they controlled to misappropriate public funds, transferring millions abroad and purchasing millions of dollars in foreign real estate.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Because many of Selemani’s real estate acquisitions were all-cash purchases, he was able to avoid the standard due diligence performed in connection with bank financing—due diligence that might have raised questions about the source of his wealth. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Selemani and the Kabila family moved substantial sums through BGFIBank DRC with little to no resistance. Among the most problematic transactions, according to an internal audit at BGFIBank DRC, were multimillion-dollar transfers involving an obscure company called Sud Oil.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Among the bank records in the Congo Hold-up leak are documents revealing that between 2015 and 2018, Sud Oil sent more than $12 million to accounts and companies owned or controlled by Selemani. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Investigations by The Sentry, Congo Research Group, and other members of the Congo Hold-up consortium show that Sud Oil received at least $85 million in funds from a range of Congolese government institutions, including the Central Bank of Congo, the DRC’s permanent mission to the United Nations in New York, the Congolese state-owned mining company Gécamines, and the country’s electoral commission. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Selemani purchased 17 properties for a total of $6.6 million in the affluent suburbs of Washington, DC, and Johannesburg, South Africa. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- The Sentry identified a range of irregularities, misrepresentations, and inconsistencies in transactions connected to bank accounts held by Selemani and his companies that are red flags for money laundering and other financial crimes. Funds received from public institutions lacked justification, and the sources of funding for some transfers were misrepresented.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Selemani and his companies received almost $3 million in US and South African bank accounts for which the wire transfers bore apparently inaccurate details.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- Selemani used corporate vehicles that obscured his identity as the owner of all but one of the 17 real estate purchases discovered by The Sentry. Selemani had originally purchased nine properties in his own name, but he then transferred ownership to a commercial company and to trusts he controlled, including by selling them to his own company, in a series of operations that is a red flag for money laundering through real estate. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Key recommendations</b> (complete recommendations in the <a href="https://u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=4tNED-2FM8iDZJQyQ53jATUYUVzsUGL-2FYs-2F5FiLbXeug8RlxQjLMTo5AvEfPv3ibUni4XcwSgpp2i2-2BAWHD4N-2FPQ-3D-3DLtX4_WbiLCh74zCr7As8lymLfzmvGbUmHyknmw9t1-2FbWjQLjxvlz4Ruo-2FuoaZM1HYA6U-2FZEh2sWLJ9B53FSHkFYX0YyElC3LuBMX0ynxYe186P6TjUPoViolnKlukNg6iScdtJTsdegvWli3pnos4Gj0A0sd6m-2FK2Zo86xPTQVWYcBMfmol6eBM9iUasswS5bzLwQD3Fl8HcSo4z5nIO-2BxakEAQCNua1972Ud9fLlp3yvXuRr7LQoptpi2MUmxF5qLki-2B22RHrczqp-2FtuBueIbh-2B52emvYghbD4WtqBjh-2FCTQ4GKGGDA2-2BvVzDV6xv2U1Xz6OLq9DOM8wFInMr6E0bZHvxB0KQZBLTQLzk61Y8vO-2FPfM-3D"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue;">report</span></a>): </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- <b>Open an investigation into these real estate purchases</b>. Authorities in the United States and South Africa should investigate the source of funds used by Selemani and his relatives to buy properties in their respective countries. If appropriate, they should pursue legal mechanisms to forfeit and seize properties purchased with the proceeds of corruption or other illicit means.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- <b>Conduct a thorough internal investigation. </b>Any financial institution that has engaged in a correspondent banking relationship with BGFIBank DRC or processed transactions involving the bank should conduct a thorough internal investigation to ascertain whether it has participated in violations of law or contravened internal policies. The investigation should include a review of the financial institution’s internal controls around anti-money laundering (AML) and anti-corruption compliance. Appropriate remedial action should be implemented immediately.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- <b>Ensure that the US and South African real estate sectors comply with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) customer due diligence standards.</b> The US Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) should require real estate agents and other professionals involved in real estate transactions, such as lawyers, to maintain AML programs, file suspicious activity reports, and comply with other record-keeping and reporting requirements, including the identification of beneficial ownership information and source of funds. South Africa’s Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) should vigorously enforce the 2017 additions to the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA) that put these requirements in place. FinCEN and the FIC should provide training and testing to ensure compliance with established standards. </span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">- <b>Issue a public advisory on the money laundering risks in real estate.</b> FinCEN should issue an updated public advisory to US financial institutions warning of the risks for money laundering through real estate, including the involvement of family members of politically exposed persons (PEPs) highlighted in this report. FinCEN should also expand and make permanent the geographic targeting order (GTO) program to cover all real estate purchases, regardless of location in the US.</span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #0000e9; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1a1718; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Read the full report: </b><a href="https://thesentry.org/reports/embezzled-empire"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: #0000e9;">https://thesentry.org/reports/embezzled-empire</span></a></span></span></p><p style="color: #1a1718; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Visit the Congo Hold-up coalition hub: </b><a href="https://congoholdup.com/"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: #0000e9;">https://congoholdup.com</span></a></span></span></p><p style="color: #262626; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p style="color: #1a1718; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>For media inquiries or interview requests</b>, please contact: </span></span></p><p style="color: #1a1718; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Greg Hittelman, Director of Communications, +1 310 717 0606, <a href="mailto:gh@thesentry.org"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: #4200a5;">gh@thesentry.org</span></a></span></span></p><p style="color: #1a1718; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">About The Sentry</span></b></span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a1718; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 15px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">The Sentry is an investigative and policy team that follows the dirty money connected to African war criminals and transnational war profiteers and seeks to shut those benefiting from violence out of the international financial system. By disrupting the cost-benefit calculations of those who hijack governments for self-enrichment, we seek to counter the main drivers of conflict and create new leverage for peace, human rights, and good governance. The Sentry is composed of financial investigators, international human rights lawyers, and regional experts, as well as former law enforcement agents, intelligence officers, policymakers, investigative journalists, and banking professionals. Co-founded by George Clooney and John Prendergast, The Sentry is a strategic partner of the Clooney Foundation for Justice.</span></span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-10051903454913762792020-03-01T02:16:00.001+00:002020-03-01T02:16:26.827+00:00Rare monkey photographed in Congo's newest national park, Ntokou-Pikounda<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><b>Rare monkey photographed in Congo's newest national park, Ntokou-Pikounda</b></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">By <a href="http://www.wcs.org/">Wildlife Conservation Society</a></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Dated 16 April 2015</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZLFNiYpI7bX6v86hSNlCyDXHSbZBtn1hC4gD9XFQ8_zTMeT5th0vr8VLp1ViDuX2rUojn5_3vHD6dHgZHrbrUiSM39LsDDluNna4EedSOYui61eGbEXDd65Cy1hq6PTjOCwZ/s1600/raremonkeyph.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZLFNiYpI7bX6v86hSNlCyDXHSbZBtn1hC4gD9XFQ8_zTMeT5th0vr8VLp1ViDuX2rUojn5_3vHD6dHgZHrbrUiSM39LsDDluNna4EedSOYui61eGbEXDd65Cy1hq6PTjOCwZ/s400/raremonkeyph.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Photo: The first photograph ever taken of Bouvier's red colobus (an adult female and infant). The image was taken in the Republic of Congo's Ntokou-Pikounda National Park in early March [2015]. Credit: Lieven Devreese</span></div>
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View Original: <a href="https://phys.org/news/2015-04-rare-monkey-congo-national-ntokou-pikounda.html"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">https://phys.org/news/2015-04-rare-monkey-congo-national-ntokou-pikounda.html</span></a></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-10178190128825245742019-09-09T23:30:00.000+00:002019-09-09T23:30:00.387+00:00DR Congo: 3000+ Ebola cases, 2000 deaths<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Press Release from <a href="https://africa-newsroom.com/press/source/world-health-organization-who"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-kerning: none;">World Health Organization (WHO)</span></a></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Dated Friday 06 September 2019</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; background-color: white;"><b>WHO and partners to help the Government boost health facility defences against Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">At least 155 health care workers have been infected with the Ebola virus disease since the beginning of this tenth outbreak</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">GENEVA, Switzerland, September 6, 2019/ -- To strengthen health practitioners’ proficiency in preventing the spread of Ebola virus disease in health facilities, the Commission for Prevention and Biosecurity of the Ministry of Health of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) launched on 5 September a guideline and training package on infection prevention and control that targets at least 3 000 nurses, doctors and other health care workers.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">During the current Ebola outbreak, working in or transiting through health facilities present a high risk of exposure to the virus. With the ongoing heightened attention to equipping health facilities with Ebola-specific response units, the Government of the DRC is intent on covering all potential weak points by training staff on infection prevention, using standard guidelines recently revised by a team of technical specialists from the Health Ministry, the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children’s Fund and the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The ongoing tenth outbreak of Ebola in the DRC, which passed its one-year mark on 1 August, is the country’s worst. The number of confirmed and suspected cases have passed 3 000, with the number of deaths exceeding 2 000.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">As of 25 August, nearly 18% of the total cases registered were hospital-acquired infections. At least 155 health care workers have been infected with the Ebola virus disease since the beginning of this tenth outbreak.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">WHO is supporting the Commission for Prevention and Biosecurity in boosting infection prevention and hygiene training.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">“I salute the progress being made in saving lives from Ebola virus disease,” said WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, “But the situation remains critical, and a number of challenges remain. As part of our commitment to strengthening the health system of the DRC, we want to ensure that health facilities are not contributing to the spread of infectious diseases and this includes Ebola.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">With funding from the United States Agency for International Development, the UK Department for International Development and the World Bank, the training package provides a standardized approach to practices and procedures for health facilities and integrates measures related to water management, sanitation and hygiene, which are essential for preventing the spread of infectious disease.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The guidelines and training package will be rolled out over the next three months, beginning in Goma and targeting health care workers and other actors involved in primary response. This will enforce the universal application of infection prevention and control standards throughout the health care chain.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The revised guidelines will not only improve the infection prevention and control measures for Ebola but also serve as a broader health systems strengthening tool for preventing the spread of other infectious diseases within health facilities.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The training course and application of the prescribed standards will be monitored over the coming year in order to evaluate their effectiveness and possible impact on health facility-acquired Ebola virus disease.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">SOURCE: </span><span style="background-color: white;">World Health Organization (WHO)</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">View original: <a href="https://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/who-and-partners-to-help-the-government-boost-health-facility-defences-against-ebola-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo?lang=en"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">https://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/who-and-partners-to-help-the-government-boost-health-facility-defences-against-ebola-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo?lang=en</span></a></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-56164353968628275432019-09-08T23:30:00.000+00:002019-09-08T23:30:09.392+00:00South Sudan: Ebola Preparedness (July 2019)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px;">From United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px;">Dated 01 August 2019</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>South Sudan: Ebola Preparedness Dashboard (July 2019)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">SITUATION UPDATE</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; background-color: #fff2cc;">At the end of July a total of 2,699 Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) cases had been reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with 1,782 deaths (case fatality rate of 67 per cent). </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The risk of EVD spreading to South Sudan remained very high but there were no confirmed cases. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Eleven alerts were reported and verified during the month, with results of laboratory testing using GeneXpert available within 48 hours.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Progress towards targets under the National EVD Preparedness Plan continued. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The number of border points of entry providing screening reached 32, with over 304,000 primary screenings and over 300 secondary screenings conducted. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Some 180 frontline workers from 8 organisations across the Yei area were vaccinated.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; background-color: #fff2cc;">Preventive messages were broadcast through more than 2,300 radio spots, while over 400 key community influencers were engaged. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The number of trained and equipped safe and dignified burial teams increased to 13. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">While additional funding contributions were under consideration, preparedness efforts remained underfunded with U$10.7 million still to be secured against planned requirements.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">INFOGRAPHIC</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-kerning: none;">from <a href="https://reliefweb.int/organization/who"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">World Health Organization</span></a>, <a href="https://reliefweb.int/organization/govt-south-sudan"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Government of the Republic of South Sudan</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Published on 23 Aug 2019 —</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/south-sudan/infographic/south-sudan-ebola-preparedness-dashboard-july-2019">View Original</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #dfecec; font-kerning: none; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/ss_201908023_evd_preparedness_dashboard_july.pdf">Download PDF (1.58 MB)<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black;">SOURCE</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">:<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><a href="https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/south-sudan/infographic/south-sudan-ebola-preparedness-dashboard-july-2019">https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/south-sudan/infographic/south-sudan-ebola-preparedness-dashboard-july-2019</a></span></span></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-8548985943335869062019-09-06T23:30:00.000+00:002019-09-06T23:30:17.778+00:00South Sudan: Dispels fears of Ebola outbreak<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px;">Article from Radio Tamazuj.org</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Dated 07 July 2019 - Juba, South Sudan</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><b>South Sudan dispels fears of Ebola outbreak</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">File photo: WHO Uganda</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">South Sudan’s Ministry of Health has dispelled fears of an Ebola outbreak following a confirmed case in Aliwara, in the eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), some 70 kilometers from the border.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Addressing reporters in Juba on Friday, the undersecretary in the health ministry, Makur Matur Koriom said South Sudan is safe from the Ebola virus.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">"I would like to take the opportunity to assure the South Sudanese people and residents in this country that so far there is no Ebola in South Sudan," he said.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">"We responded quickly and the national taskforce convened on that day and immediately informed the taskforce and our partners in Yei about the developments in the DRC," he added.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Meanwhile, World Health Organization (WHO) officer in charge of health emergencies in South Sudan, Guracha Guyo said they are committed to improve Ebola preparedness mechanisms in the country.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">"All of us are committed to support the government in its endeavor to make sure that the Ebola virus will be prevented from coming to South Sudan," he said.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">According to the WHO official, more than 700 frontline healthcare workers have been provided with Ebola vaccines in Yei River State.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">South Sudan suffered Ebola outbreak in 2004 after WHO reported 20 cases, including five deaths, from Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF) in Yambio.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Ebola is a rare but deadly virus that causes fever, body aches, and diarrhea, and sometimes bleeding inside and outside the body.</span></div>
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SOURCE: <span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: #0000e9;"><a href="https://radiotamazuj.org/en/news/article/south-sudan-dispels-fears-of-ebola-outbreak">https://radiotamazuj.org/en/news/article/south-sudan-dispels-fears-of-ebola-outbreak</a></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivNPS3_nck4iokuD4Txl_zVfc1hyZga8OdAin3W73RRx_Zm_vnUdP9aCIwzRllepwqUJ_xZCMIxc6r_YeDHOcJpnj3g95z_goKwEXFYq8uSmcLIl8kXWtdf07i1xk8raAFhIHe/s1600/ap_congo_ebola_17June19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="1420" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivNPS3_nck4iokuD4Txl_zVfc1hyZga8OdAin3W73RRx_Zm_vnUdP9aCIwzRllepwqUJ_xZCMIxc6r_YeDHOcJpnj3g95z_goKwEXFYq8uSmcLIl8kXWtdf07i1xk8raAFhIHe/s400/ap_congo_ebola_17June19.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Photo: A worker from the World Health Organisation decontaminates the doorway of a house on a plot where two cases of Ebola were found, in the village of Mabalako, in eastern Congo, 17 June 2019.</span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-49848895831999065372019-09-06T19:42:00.001+00:002019-09-06T19:43:49.178+00:00South Sudan: On alert for Ebola virus<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Article from Voice of America News.com</div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">By DIMO SILVA AURELIO </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Dated 4 July 2019</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>South Sudan on High Alert for Ebola Virus</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN - South Sudan’s health officials are ramping up efforts to prevent the deadly Ebola virus from entering the country following a confirmed case some 70 kilometers from the border, in the northern Democratic Republic of Congo.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Dr. Pinyi Nyimol, South Sudan's director general for disease control and emergency response services, said the health ministry has sent seven personnel to the Yei River state, which borders Congo. "The aim is to strengthen the surveillance and preparedness for Ebola,” Nyimol told VOA's South Sudan in Focus.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">“We are more worried because it is coming nearer because people are moving, so anybody, a contact can cross to South Sudan and the only thing we can do is to enhance our surveillance and screening and also to alert our health care workers about this and anybody coming, they have to start with traveling history and ask whether this person has been in DRC or not,” Nyimol said.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Photo: Ebola case reported not far from South Sudan border. Authorities have confirmed an Ebola case just 70 kilometres (43 miles) from Congo's border with South Sudan</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The case was registered Tuesday in Ariwara, a trading center. The person, a 40-year-old woman, had traveled some 500 kilometers from Beni, in Congo's North Kivu province, according to Congolese officials.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">North Kivu is an epicenter of the Ebola outbreak that has killed more than 1,500 people. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Nyimol says it is the first confirmed case close to the South Sudan-DRC border since the outbreak erupted last August in eastern Congo.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">He said for the last six months, South Sudan has been under high alert and increased its surveillance response at several border screening centers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">“We have points of entry doing screening at the high-risk states, we have Ebola treatment unit here in Juba and there is a laboratory and we have an ambulance ready for any suspect and there are trained staff and if there is a suspected case at Juba International Airport, it can be collected and taken for investigation; the same [is true] at the Juba Nimule border entry,” said Nyimol.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">A number of people from the DRC cross into South Sudan’s Yei River State on a daily basis, according to South Sudanese health officials.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The Ebola virus is a deadly disease that affects humans and non-human primates. Symptoms include unexplained bleeding, high fever, severe headache, muscle pain, weakness, and vomiting. The virus is spread through body fluids, such as the blood of an infected person.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #141a21;">SOURCE: </span><a href="https://www.voanews.com/africa/south-sudan-focus/south-sudan-high-alert-ebola-virus"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">https://www.voanews.com/africa/south-sudan-focus/south-sudan-high-alert-ebola-virus</span></span></a></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-81080972940355784802019-08-26T11:12:00.003+00:002019-08-26T11:12:38.794+00:00Canada sending plane to Uganda to help UN peacekeeping mission in Congo and S.Sudan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">THE UN</span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"> </span><span style="text-align: left;">Security Council extended the mandate of the more than 18,000-strong peacekeeping mission in Congo — the UN's biggest and most expensive, with a budget over US$1.1 billion — until Dec. 20 with a priority mandate of protecting civilians and supporting "the stabilization and strengthening of state institutions." Read more below.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Article from The Canadian Press</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">By AMY SMART</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Dated 15 August 2019 - 12:16 PM</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Canada sending plane to Uganda to help with peacekeeping in Africa</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Photo: Minister of National Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa, Monday, April 8, 2019. Sajjan is to announce today that a Canadian Forces Hercules transport plane will be sent to Uganda to take part in a United Nations peacekeeping mission. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">VANCOUVER - A Canadian Forces Hercules plane will be sent to Uganda to take part in a United Nations peacekeeping mission during the next 12 months, transporting troops, equipment and supplies to Congo and South Sudan.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan says the aircraft will be supported by as many as 25 Canadian Armed Forces personnel and it will be used up to five days a month to help the UN mission operating from Entebbe.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">In late 2017, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised the UN that Canada would send the plane.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">It was one of three promises he made when Canada hosted a major peacekeeping summit in Vancouver.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Only one of the promises had been fulfilled, and that was the deployment of a unit of helicopters and military personnel to help with medical evacuations in Mali.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Trudeau also promised the UN a 200-strong "quick reaction force," but Canada has yet to register it in a UN database, which means it has not been formally offered.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">In making the announcement on Thursday, Sajjan said Canada committed to a time frame of five years to deploy military resources to support UN peacekeeping missions.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Sajjan said in a statement the plane "will play an important role in helping supply military and police personnel on UN peace operations in the region, with critical resources."</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The federal Liberals campaigned in the last election on a promise to renew Canada's commitment and role in peacekeeping in a major way, but have since been accused of not living up to the spirit of that pledge.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The government insists it is committed to peacekeeping, as evidenced by its decision to extend the mission in Mali by one month, which came after pressure from the UN and some of Canada's allies.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said adding a plane to the UN mission in Entebbe "is an excellent example of the smart pledges that Canada will continue to support so we can fill critical gaps in UN peacekeeping."</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #fff0c1; font-kerning: none;">The Security Council extended the mandate of the more than 18,000-strong peacekeeping mission in Congo — the UN's biggest and most expensive, with a budget over US$1.1 billion — until Dec. 20 with a priority mandate of protecting civilians and supporting "the stabilization and strengthening of state institutions."</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Earlier this year, President Felix Tshisekedi succeeded Joseph Kabila, who governed the largely impoverished but mineral-rich central African country for 18 years.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">A fact sheet released last month by the U.S.-based Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project said there have been nearly 790 "organized political violence events" in more than 420 locations since Tshisekedi's inauguration on Jan. 24. There were nearly 1,900 conflict-related fatalities reported in these events, including over 760 deaths from violence targeting civilians, it said.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The peacekeeping mission to a disputed area of Sudan and South Sudan dates to 2011. Both Sudan and South Sudan claim ownership of the oil-rich Abyei area.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">News from © The Canadian Press, 2019</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black;">SOURCE</span><span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">:</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"> <span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><a href="https://infotel.ca/newsitem/cda-peacekeeping/cp34164754">https://infotel.ca/newsitem/cda-peacekeeping/cp34164754</a></span></span></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-87360985427002334652019-08-24T14:21:00.001+00:002019-08-24T14:21:28.564+00:00Sudan, S. Sudan, Rwanda, DRC, Congo: Scheme in Uganda partner dogs with war survivors to help overcome trauma & PTSD<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Note from Congo Watch Editor: Please stop and watch this short powerful BBC film about Ugandan war survivors being partnered with comfort dogs. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">I have spent a lifetime seeking and promoting practical ways to help people suffering poverty, homelessness and trauma. More here below. Here is the film.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Ugandan war survivors partnered with therapy dogs</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">'If it wasn't for him, I'd be dead'</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">A scheme in Uganda partner dogs with war survivors to help them overcome trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><iframe frameborder="0" height="500" src="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/embed/p07l873s/49409125" width="400"></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Filda was abducted as a child and forced into the LRA rebel army in Uganda, where she witnessed terrible atrocities. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">As part of a scheme called The Comfort Dog Project, Filda has been partnered with a dog who was abandoned as a puppy.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The two are now helping each other heal, along with many others like them.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #252525;">A film by </span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Amelia Martyn-Hemphill</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525;"> for <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-48623037"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: #0000e9;">100 Women</span></a></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Uganda’s Comfort Dog Project</b></span></div>
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<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The Comfort Dog Project, an NGO, helps transform the region's stray and unwanted dogs into healing therapy animals for former child soldiers and survivors of war struggling with PTSD, trauma and depression</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">A dog that has suffered should be able to help someone who has gone through trauma</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Dogs can help people rehabilitate their psychological condition</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">So that they have the company, gain confidence and also overcome depression</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Francis, the founder of the project trained as a psychologist and set up The Comfort Dog Project in 2015 to help people recover from mental health conditions</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">During the 5 month therapy programme the Comfort Dog Guardians learn to train and care for their dogs</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The group also undergoes extensive trauma counselling to help them process their past experiences</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">But it is still a challenge for the project to gain acceptance</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">In Northern Uganda people use dogs for hunting, guarding homes and also they look at dogs as useless </span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Even though Uganda's Ministry of Health estimates about 70% of people in Northern Uganda have been traumatically affected by the war there's still stigma around mental health services</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">People think the moment you go to mental health you are already mentally disorientated, you cannot be helped</span></li>
<li style="color: #101010; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">But attitudes in the community are starting to change, as part of her recovery Filda is with veterinary outreach and educates people on dog training, animal rights and welfare </span></li>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black;">To visit the above BBC film click here: <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-49409125/ugandan-war-survivors-partnered-with-therapy-dogs"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-49409125/ugandan-war-survivors-partnered-with-therapy-dogs</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Note from Congo Watch Editor: In addition to being a lifelong anti-poverty campaigner, I have spent the past 20 years researching cannabinoid therapy to help people, particularly peacekeepers, military personnel, former child soldiers and other survivors of war struggling with PTSD, trauma and depression.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Certain cannabinoids could help people with PTSD. Better still, such a therapy could be partnered with comfort dogs. If anyone reading this can think of the best ways I could help Sudanese, Ugandan and Congolese people with PTSD to be partnered with a therapy dog please contact me at ingridj.jones@btinternet.com. Thanks.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>THE COMFORT DOG PROJECT</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://thebigfixuganda.org/the-comfort-dog-project.html">http://thebigfixuganda.org/the-comfort-dog-project.html<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Give a War Trauma Survivor a Comfort Dog</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">$500 sponsors a dog placement</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">$25 sponsors a weekly training class for the Comfort Dog Project</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>COMFORT DOG</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Dogs have a profound effect on our ability to heal from emotional trauma. The Comfort Dog Project pairs formerly homeless/neglected dogs with war survivors suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Psycho-social counseling is coupled with dog companionship and training to create a supportive bond. For $500, you can help to rehabilitate a dog, place that dog with a war survivor, and enable them to go through our 5 month training program to receive certification as a Comfort Dog.</span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-72481601540348450262019-07-09T09:01:00.002+00:002019-07-09T09:01:56.661+00:00BBC film DR Congo: Everything you need to know<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">It's one of the world's most mineral rich nations, so why are its people among the planet's poorest?</span><span style="background-color: white; text-indent: -36px;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ht2RJQ6v1iU" width="560"></iframe></span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvhPRRiwI1_p4OBsY0yz6mg" style="background-color: white;">BBC News Africa</a></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The Democratic Republic of Congo should be one of the wealthiest countries in the world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The BBC's Africa Editor Fergal Keane looks at what went wrong.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Producers: Charlotte Pamment and Piers Scholfield</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Graphics: Ian Paul Joyce</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black;">Published on 22 Dec 2018</span></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-74298830930374522992019-06-18T13:19:00.001+00:002019-06-18T13:20:24.571+00:00DR Congo has an estimated 4.5 million internally displaced people<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Press Release from UNHCR </span>June 18, 2019</div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The UN Refugee Agency</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Massive displacement reported in north-eastern DRC amid new violence</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><i>People are fleeing attacks and counter attacks in Djugu Territory with reports of both communities forming self-defense groups and being involved in revenge killings</i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">JUBA, South Sudan, June 18, 2019/ -- <i>This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Violence in north-eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is reported to have displaced more than 300,000 since early June. The situation in Ituri Province has deteriorated since the middle of last week, with multiple attacks involving the Hema and Lendu groups.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Inter-ethnic attacks between the two communities had already led to widespread displacement in late 2017 and early 2018, but the situation had calmed.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Large-scale displacement is reported in three of Ituri’s five administrative territories: Djugu, Mahagi and Irumu. People are fleeing attacks and counter attacks in Djugu Territory, with reports of both communities forming self-defense groups and being involved in revenge killings.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">The estimates have been received from local sources in 125 locations. UNHCR and other humanitarian actors do not at present have access to most of the affected areas.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, fears this escalation could engulf large parts of the province. We are gravely concerned for the safety of civilians after receiving reports of killings, kidnappings, maiming and sexual violence being unleashed against people.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">The majority of the displaced have sought shelter with the host communities. Some 30,000 arrived in existing displacement sites where conditions were already dire, with many needs including shelter and health.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Military operations are currently reported to be underway in Djugu territory to bring the situation under control.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">UNHCR with its partners is working with the authorities to get a clearer picture as the displaced are in urgent need of shelter, basic household items and food. People are now sleeping in the open or in public buildings, with the biggest concentration of displaced people being 10,000 sleeping in or near the church in Drodro, Djugu Territory, without any viable assistance.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">Nearly 20,000 people have reached Ituri’s provincial capital, Bunia. Efforts are underway to identify suitable sites around the city. Many more people are trying to get to the relative safety of sites near Bunia but are reportedly blocked by armed youth from both ethnic groups. Others are trying to cross Lake Albert to Uganda.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">The humanitarian response is already over-stretched in this part of DRC with a series of other emergencies in the north-eastern region, and volatile security situation with little funding being available. Just south of Ituri, in North Kivu province, UNHCR has recently began an emergency response for nearly 100,000 displaced people in Nobili, near the border with Uganda.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">DRC has an estimated 4.5 million internally displaced people. New displacement has been observed lately primarily in the eastern provinces, including Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><i>Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).</i></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">SOURCE: </span>United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)</div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><a href="https://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/massive-displacement-reported-in-northeastern-drc-amid-new-violence?lang=en"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">https://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/massive-displacement-reported-in-northeastern-drc-amid-new-violence?lang=en</span></a></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-77528738259219829792019-04-17T04:40:00.005+00:002019-04-17T12:24:12.812+00:00Sudan Coup Crisis - Uganda willing to offer Bashir asylum<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<li style="background-color: white; font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Sudan Coup Crisis: </b></li>
<li style="background-color: white; font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>UN chief appoints Nicholas Haysom to help African Union mediation in Sudan</b></li>
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<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">From Voice of America</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">By Margaret Besheer</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Tuesday April 16, 2019 5:45 PM </span></li>
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<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The U.N. secretary-general has appointed special adviser Nicholas Haysom to support the African Union's mediation efforts in Sudan, where the military ousted longtime President Omar al-Bashir last week.</span></li>
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<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">"He is being put at disposal of the African Union, which we understand will be engaged in some mediation capacity between the transitional council in Khartoum and various parts of Sudanese society," U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters Tuesday. "Mr. Haysom will be there to support them in whatever way he can."</span></li>
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<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">He said that U.N. chief António Guterres had spoken Monday with Moussa Faki Mahamat, the chair of the African Union Commission, and told him that Haysom would be available.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">"The secretary-general is very attached to his partnership with the African Union and he will do whatever he can to support their efforts," Dujarric said.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Haysom was most recently the U.N.'s top man in Somalia, but was expelled after four months by the Somali federal government, after he tried to intervene on behalf of a former al-Shabab leader who sought to take part in elections but was banned by Somalia's electoral commission.</span></li>
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<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Haysom, a South African lawyer, was previously the U.N. special envoy for Sudan and South Sudan and was head of the U.N. mission in Afghanistan.</span></li>
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<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The African Union Peace and Security Council issued a strong statement Monday condemning the military takeover in Sudan as an unconstitutional change of government, and demanding the military hand over power to a transitional civilian-led political authority within 15 days.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Failure to do so, the AU warned, would result in Sudan's suspension from participation in all African Union activities until constitutional order is restored.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Sudan's General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, head of the Rapid Support Forces, is sworn-in as the appointed deputy of Sudan's Transitional Military Council, standing before the head of transitional council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Meanwhile, in Khartoum Tuesday, the country's new military ruler, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, fired the country's top prosecutor in an apparent concession to demonstrators' demands.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Protest leaders have called for the new ruling military council to be dissolved and replaced by a civilian one, in the wake of the military coup that ousted President al-Bashir last week.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Mohamed Naji, a senior leader of the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA) — the main group behind months of protests against al-Bashir — said the group wants to see a civic council formed that includes representatives from the army.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">On Sunday, Sudan's military council said it would name a civilian prime minister and cabinet minister to help run the country but would not name a civilian to the office of the president. A military spokesman also said the council would not stop the demonstrations that are continuing.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The SPA has called for more demonstrations until its demands are met.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">The protests began Dec. 19, with demonstrators accusing al-Bashir's government of economic mismanagement that sparked skyrocketing food prices, and fuel and foreign currency shortages.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">Al-Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in connection with atrocities in the western region of Darfur. However, the military leaders have said he will not be turned over to the ICC, but will instead be tried in Sudan.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"></li>
<li style="color: #0000e9; font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: black;">Source: <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/un-chief-appoints-adviser-to-help-au-mediation-in-sudan/4878727.html"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;">https://www.voanews.com/a/un-chief-appoints-adviser-to-help-au-mediation-in-sudan/4878727.html</span></a></span></li>
<li style="font-family: times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">- - -</span></li>
</ul>
<div style="color: #00000d; font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none; font-size: x-small;"><b>Uganda willing to offer Al-Bashir asylum</b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">VIDEO report posted today on this blog’s sister site <a href="https://ugandawatch.blogspot.com/2019/04/sudan-coup-crisis-uganda-willing-to.html"><span style="color: red; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><b>UGANDA WATCH</b></span></a>:</span></div>
<div style="color: #00000d; font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">From SABC Digital News</span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">P</span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;">ublished on Google’s YouTube, Tuesday 16 April 2019</span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">Here is a copy of a written report by SABC posted with the video:</span></div>
<div style="font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">“The government of Uganda says it is willing to consider granting asylum to deposed Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir. It says, this in appreciation for his role in the South-Sudan peace deal. Uganda's State Minister for foreign affairs Henry Okello Oryem, said on Tuesday in Kampala, that if al-Bashir applied for asylum in Uganda his government could consider the matter. We are now joined LIVE for more on this story by Correspondent Michale Baleke from Kampala, Uganda.”</span></div>
<div style="font-family: verdana; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">Click here to view the video: <a href="https://youtu.be/CLHWaD87WtU"><span style="color: #0000e3; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">https://youtu.be/CLHWaD87WtU</span></a></span></div>
<div style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is funded in whole or in part by the South African government. <span style="color: #0000e9; font-family: "verdana"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_African_Broadcasting_Corporation">Wikipedia</a></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small;">- - -</span></div>
<div style="font-family: helvetica; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white;">The above post is from this blog’s main site <span style="color: red;"><b>SUDAN WATCH </b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white;">[ </span><a href="https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/" style="background-color: white;">https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com </a><span style="background-color: white;">]</span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-30120928092992405332013-07-26T16:10:00.000+00:002013-07-26T16:10:07.117+00:00Violence in DR Congo and Great Lakes region gets all-out attention from the UN Security Council<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Report by DipoNews.com dated Thursday, 25 July 2013:<br />
<blockquote>
<b>Violence in the DRC and Great Lakes region gets all-out attention from the UNSC</b><br /><br />The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been the topic of multiple United Nations Security Council (UNSC)'s meetings this month: On July 11, Under-Secretary-General of Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous introduced the latest UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) report; on July 19, the Group of Experts (GoE) sent its interim report to the DRC Sanctions Committee; and on July 22, Azerbaijani Ambassador Agshin Mehdiyev and Chair of this Committee presented his conclusions to the UNSC.<br /><br />The upsurge in violence in the DRC and the Great Lakes region between the UN/Congolese troops and several armed groups including the March 23 Movement (M23), the Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR), the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF-NALU) and the Mayi Mayi Kata-Katanga prompted a UNSC ministerial on July 25 whose presidential statement reiterated the international community's support for the implementation of the commitments under the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework agreed on February 24.<br /><br />UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (see his remarks and report), the President of the World Bank Group, Jim Yong Kim, and Mr. Ban's Special Envoy for the Great Lakes region, Mary Robinson, briefed the UNSC on their trip to the DRC, Rwanda and Uganda on May 22-24. The <span style="background-color: yellow;">UNSC welcomed the announcement made by the World Bank of USD 1 bn in planned funding for development projects in the Great Lakes </span>region and commended "the personal diplomatic engagement" of SG Ban and reaffirmed its strong support to Mrs Robinson who was encouraged "to lead, coordinate and assess" the implementation of national and regional commitments under the PSC Framework in view of the next meeting of the "11+4" Regional Oversight Mechanism scheduled for September.<br /><br />The meeting took place amid growing fears voiced by humanitarian organizations about a possible UN-led military offensive which could make the humanitarian situation worse. The diplomats focused on Resolution 2098 and the further implementation of the decision to create a 3,000-strong intervention brigade as part of the MONUSCO. Also, the regional oversight mechanism of the PSC Framework held its first meeting in Addis Ababa on May 26 and welcomed the establishment of a technical support committee to define regional benchmark, several days after the M23 carried out attacks in the Mutaho area, in the vicinity of Goma.<br /><br />Additional attacks targeted the Congolese army on July 11 in Kamango and the MONUSCO on July 14 along the Muba-Kamango axis at the initiative of the ADF-NALU, which resulted in several casualties and prompted over 60,000 refugees to flee to neighboring Uganda. Besides, the UNSC took note that hundreds of M23 combatants, including individuals listed by the UN sanctions regime concerning the DRC, fled from the DRC into Rwanda on March 18, however appreciating the initial steps swiftly taken by the government of Rwanda to handle this situation.<br /><br />Once again, the UNSC demanded that all the armed groups cease immediately all forms of violence and fully disband and disarm. According to French Minister delegate for development Pascal Canfin, "these attacks severely compromised regional and international efforts to find a lasting solution to the crisis in the Great Lakes region," that's why France and other countries have urged the "swift implementation" of the MONUSCO intervention brigade. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Read more</b><br />Renewed fears on DRC's stability as M23 advances towards Goma, civilians flee to Uganda<br />Rwanda and South Korea (ROK) increase bilateral cooperation, sign one Development agreement </blockquote>
Click on the links at source: <br />
<a href="http://www.diplonews.com/intro/2013/20130726_UNSCFocusOnDRC.php">http://www.diplonews.com/intro/2013/20130726_UNSCFocusOnDRC.php</a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-71777405682976187002013-07-23T19:59:00.000+00:002013-07-24T21:05:51.349+00:00DR Congo: Heavy fighting has resumed between the Congolese army and the M23 armed group in the Mutaho-Kibati area, near Goma, in N. Kivu Province<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
HEAVY fighting has resumed between the Congolese army and the M23 armed group in the Mutaho-Kibati area, near Goma, in N. Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Excerpt from 22 July 2013 Daily Press Briefing by the UN's Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo [MONUSCO] reports that heavy fighting has resumed between the Congolese army and the M23 [23 March Movement] armed group in the Mutaho-Kibati area, near Goma, in North Kivu Province. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The Mission, MONUSCO, adds that after exchanging intermittent fire over the weekend, both sides are now using small arms, mortars and rockets. The Mission reiterates its call for restraint and its peacekeepers in the area remain on high alert.</blockquote>
Source: <a href="http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2013/db130722.doc.htm">http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2013/db130722.doc.htm</a><br />
- - -<br />
<br />
<b>Further Reading</b><br />
<br />
<b>Sudan files complaint to AU against Uganda's support for rebels </b> <br />
KHARTOUM,
Sudan - 20 July 2013 (Xinhua) -- Sudan has filed a complaint to the
African Union (AU) against Uganda over its support for rebel insurgency
against Khartoum, Almeghar Alsyasi daily reported Saturday. The
paper quoted Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Rahamtalla Mohamed Osman
as saying that the Sudanese government "is waiting for the AU's response
to its complaint."<br />
Full story at <i>Uganda Watch</i> Sunday 21 July 2013:<br />
<a href="http://ugandawatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/sudan-files-complaint-to-au-against.html">http://ugandawatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/sudan-files-complaint-to-au-against.html</a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
- - -<br />
<br />
<b>URGENT:
South Sudan army says it and UN unable to protect civilians in Jonglei
State. Western powers are worried the violence will escalate into full
civil war. (UPDATE 1: Added YouTube video link)</b><br />
Full story at <i>Sudan Watch</i>, Thursday 18 July 2013:<br />
<a href="http://sudanwatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/urgent-south-sudan-army-says-it-and-un.html">http://sudanwatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/urgent-south-sudan-army-says-it-and-un.html</a><br />
<b>- - - </b><br />
<br />
<b>DR Congo: Over 30,000 Congolese flee rebel attacks to Uganda: UN</b><br />
KAMPALA,
Uganda (AFP) 13 July 2013 – More than 30,000 refugees from eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo fleeing a rebel attack on the town of
Kamango have arrived in neighbouring Uganda, UN officials said on
Saturday...<br />
Full story at <i>Congo Watch</i>, Monday 22 July 2013:<br />
<a href="http://congowatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/dr-congo-over-30000-congolese-flee.html">http://congowatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/dr-congo-over-30000-congolese-flee.html</a><br />
- - -<br />
<br />
<b>CAR: Communiqué of the AU PSC on the situation in the CAR</b><br />
Communiqué
of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), at its
386th meeting on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR)
[Last Updated on Friday 19 July 2013]: The Peace and Security Council
of the African Union (AU), at its 386th meeting held on 19 July 2013,
adopted the following decision on the situation in the Central African
Republic (CAR)...<br />
Full story at: <i>Congo Watch</i>, Friday 19 July 2013<br />
<a href="http://congowatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/car-communique-of-au-psc-on-situation.html">http://congowatch.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/car-communique-of-au-psc-on-situation.html</a><br />
- - -</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-24965877244259087762013-07-22T20:02:00.000+00:002013-07-24T20:03:28.569+00:00DR Congo: Over 30,000 Congolese flee rebel attacks to Uganda: UN<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Report by AFP dated 13 July 2013, reprinted by Fox News.com: <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Over 30,000 Congolese flee rebel attacks to Uganda: UN</b><br />
<br />
KAMPALA, Uganda (AFP) 13 July 2013 – More than 30,000 refugees from eastern Democratic Republic of Congo fleeing a rebel attack on the town of Kamango have arrived in neighbouring Uganda, UN officials said on Saturday.<br />
<br />
Streams of refugees have crossed the border into western Uganda's Bundibugyo district since the attack on Thursday.<br />
<br />
United Nations refugee agency official Karen Ringuette said that as of late Friday, more than 30,000 had entered Uganda, updating a previous tally of at least 23,000.<br />
<br />
So far, there had been no further updates of numbers arrived on Saturday, Ringuette added.<br />
<br />
The town of Kamango in the northernmost part of North Kivu province was attacked and briefly occupied Thursday by a Ugandan-led rebel group, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).<br />
<br />
Ugandan army spokesman Paddy Ankunda said Saturday that troops have been sent to reinforce positions along the border with Congo.<br />
<br />
"We have deployed enough forces on our common border to ensure these terrorists (ADF) do not cross the line, because Uganda is their target," Ankunda told AFP.<br />
<br />
"We are in contact with Congolese army and the situation is getting back to normal, but people have continued to enter Uganda fearing the rebels will kill them."<br />
<br />
The ADF was formed in the mid-1990s in the Rwenzori mountains in western Uganda, close to the DR Congo border.<br />
<br />
Part of the ADF is now based in DR Congo after Ugandan government forces attacked their bases two years ago.<br />
<br />
Photo: A mother carries her baby at Rwamwanja refugee camp in western Uganda on February 28, 2013. More than 30,000 refugees from eastern Democratic Republic of Congo fleeing a rebel attack on the town of Kamango have arrived in neighbouring Uganda, UN officials have said. (AFP/File) </blockquote>
Source: <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/07/13/over-30000-congolese-flee-rebel-attacks-to-uganda-un/">http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/07/13/over-30000-congolese-flee-rebel-attacks-to-uganda-un/</a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-12998617368539539602013-07-19T20:11:00.000+00:002013-07-24T20:12:16.440+00:00CAR: Communiqué of the AU PSC on the situation in the CAR<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Communiqué of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), at its 386th meeting on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) [Last Updated on Friday 19 July 2013]:<br />
<blockquote>
<b>The Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), at its 386th meeting held on 19 July 2013, adopted the following decision on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR)</b><br /><br />Council,<br /><br />1. Takes note of the report of the Chairperson of the Commission on the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) [PSC/PR/2(CCCLXXXV)], as well as of the statement made by the Commissioner for Peace and Security. Council also takes note of the statements made by the Representatives of Rwanda, the Secretariat of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the United Nations, the European Union, France, United-Kingdom and the United States of America;<br /><br />2. Recalls its previous communiqués and press statements on the situation in the CAR, especially communiqué PSC/PR/COMM/1.(CCCLXXX) adopted at its 380th meeting held on 17 June 2013, in which Council supported, in principle, the establishment of an International Support Mission in Central Africa (AFISM-CAR) for the period of the transition as articulated in the Roadmap;<br /><br />3. Expresses deep concern at the prevailing social, economic and humanitarian situation in CAR;<br /><br />4. Welcomes the initiatives taken by the Commission in follow-up to communiqué PSC/PR/COMM/1.(CCCLXXX) and commends, in this regard, the conclusions of the technical meeting held in Addis Ababa from 2 to 5 July 2013 , which resulted in an agreement on the draft Concept of Operations for the AFISM-CAR;<br /><br />5. Welcomes further the successful holding of the second meeting of the International Contact Group on the CAR (ICG-CAR), and appeals to all stakeholders to work towards the effective implementation of its conclusions;<br /><br />6. Decides, on the basis of the concept of operations, annexed to the report of the Chairperson of the Commission, to authorize the deployment, for an initial period of six months, of AFISM-CAR, which will have a total strength of 3 652, including 3 500 uniformed personnel (2,475 for the military component and 1,025 for the police component) and 152 civilians, the nucleus of which will be constituted by the contingents currently serving in MICOPAX, in order to contribute to: (i) the protection of civilians and the restoration of security and public order, through the implementation of appropriate measures; (ii) the stabilization of the country and the restoration of the authority of the central Government; (iii) the reform and restructuring of the defense and security sector; and (iv) the creation of conditions conducive for the provision of humanitarian assistance to population in need;<br /><br />7. Requests the Commission to continue its consultations with the General Secretariat of ECCAS in order to finalize all aspects of the transition from the MICOPAX to AFISM-CAR, which will take effect from 1 August 2013;<br /><br />8. Urges the United Nations Security Council, the European Union (EU) through the Africa Peace Facility, and bilateral partners to lend their full support to the AU and ECCAS to facilitate the transformation of MICOPAX into AFISM-CAR and the effective functioning of AFISM-CAR through the provision of the necessary financial, logistical and technical support;<br /><br />9. Requests the Chairperson of the Commission to forward this communiqué and the attached CONOPS to the UN Secretary-General for their circulation to the Security Council for appropriate action;<br /><br />10. Reiterates its call for the mobilization of humanitarian and socio-economic assistance that is commensurate with the problems facing the CAR. In this regard, Council stresses the urgency of the speedy operationalization of the Trust Fund agreed to during the inaugural meeting of the ICG-RCA, held in Brazzaville on 3 May 2013;<br /><br />11. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter. </blockquote>
<br />
Source: <a href="http://www.peaceau.org/en/article/communique-of-the-peace-and-security-council-of-the-african-union-au-at-its-386th-meeting-on-the-situation-in-the-central-african-republic-car">http://www.peaceau.org/en/article/communique-of-the-peace-and-security-council-of-the-african-union-au-at-its-386th-meeting-on-the-situation-in-the-central-african-republic-car</a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-55080746579920154052013-03-25T03:09:00.002+00:002013-03-25T15:25:36.335+00:00Central African Republic: Seleka rebel coalition take capital Bangui - 170,000 displaced in CAR and others fleeing to Chad and DR Congo - CAR President Bozize is said to have fled to DR Congo (UPDATE 1: CAR president flees to Cameroon)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
ACCORDING to the below copied report from Sky News, the president of the Central African Republic (CAR) has fled to neighbouring Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) as the Seleka rebel coalition seizes the CAR's capital city
Bangui: France announced on Sunday afternoon (24 March) it would be sending
another 350 troops to CAR to join the 250 already there. It is expected that the extra troops may be redeployed from Mali, where
France has been fighting an Islamist insurgency. The French have called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the deteriorating situation. Note that the report ends by saying: "CAR regularly languishes closes to the bottom of the lists of the
world's poorest countries despite extensive deposits of uranium, crude
oil, gold and diamonds".<br />
<br />
Also, according to the below copied report from BBC News, a Paris-based rebel spokesman Eric Massi told AFP news agency that the rebels had secured Bangui and military camps and were deploying across the capital "to launch security operations and prevent looting". But Amy Martin of the UN's humanitarian agency, OCHA, told the BBC World Service that looting was happening - and more than 170,000 estimated to have been displaced within CAR and others fleeing to Chad and the DRC. South African peacekeepers in CAR to support government troops suffered casualties but failed to stop the rebel advance. Observers say CAR's President Francois Bozize kept his army weak because he was afraid of a military coup. He came to power himself in a coup in 2003. CAR, which has a population of about 4.5 million, has been hit by a series of rebellions since independence from France in 1960.<br />
<br />
Report from SKY News, published on Sunday, 24 March 2013; 1:21pm UK. Copy in full:<br />
<b>Central African Republic: Rebels Take Capital</b><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><b>The President of the poor but resource-rich central African state is forced to flee as the Seleka rebel coalition seizes Bangui. </b></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><b>Rebels in the Central African Republic have taken control of the capital and forced the president to flee, according to sources.</b></li>
</ul>
The Seleka rebel coalition said it had seized Bangui and that President Francois Bozize had escaped to neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.<br />
<br />
There was no independent confirmation, but the account was confirmed by government officials on Sunday morning.<br />
<br />
Eric Massi, a spokesman for Seleka, told Reuters by telephone from Paris: "The palace has just fallen. We have the palace."<br />
<br />
Presidency spokesman Gaston Mackouzangba confirmed: "The rebels control the town. I hope there will not be any reprisals."<br />
<br />
France announced on Sunday afternoon it would be sending another 350 troops to the country to join the 250 already there.<br />
<br />
The rebels fought their way to the northern suburbs of the riverside capital late on Saturday before an overnight lull in the fighting.<br />
<br />
Residents said heavy weapons fire erupted across the city around 8am local time (0700 GMT) on Sunday.<br />
<br />
Colonel Djouma Narkoyo, a Seleka spokesman in Bangui, told the AFP newswire the rebels were planning to move on to the national radio station where rebel leader Michel Djotodia would make an address.<br />
Col Narkoyo said: "Today will be decisive. We call on our brothers in FACA (the Central African army) to lay down their arms."<br />
<br />
Seleka had seized several towns across Central African Republic (CAR) in December but stopped their advance and signed a peace accord with the government. <br />
<br />
A week ago, the two-month-old peace deal collapsed as the rebels in the notoriously unstable but resource-rich former French colony ignored a call for talks to avoid a "bloodbath".<br />
<br />
The conflict sent terrified residents of Bangui fleeing into the surrounding countryside.<br />
<br />
One witness told AFP: "We heard gunfire everywhere in the city centre. It was chaos. Everyone started running in all directions."<br />
<br />
Paris-based rebel spokesman Eric Massi said the rebel leadership was urging its forces on the ground to refrain from "looting or score-settling with the local population".<br />
<br />
The French have called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the deteriorating situation.<br />
<br />
France has not issued an evacuation order, but its estimated 1,250 nationals in the country were advised to stay at home.<br />
<br />
It is expected that the 350 extra troops being sent to join the 250 French troops already in the country may be redeployed from Mali, where France has been fighting an Islamist insurgency.<br />
<br />
The UN Security Council on Friday voiced strong concern about the rebel advances "and their humanitarian consequences" amid reports of widespread summary executions, rapes, torture and the use of children in conflict.<br />
<br />
CAR regularly languishes closes to the bottom of the lists of the world's poorest countries despite extensive deposits of uranium, crude oil, gold and diamonds.<br />
Source: <a href="http://news.sky.com/story/1069096/central-african-republic-rebels-take-capital">http://news.sky.com/story/1069096/central-african-republic-rebels-take-capital</a><br />
- - -<br />
<br />
Report from BBC News, published on Sunday, 24 March 2013; 4:09pm UK. Copy in full: <br />
<br />
<b>Central African Republic: President Bozize flees Bangui</b><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Rebels are reported to have seized the presidential palace</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Francois Bozize came to power in a coup in 2003</li>
</ul>
Rebels in the Central African Republic have taken the capital, Bangui, after President Francois Bozize fled.<br />
<br />
Witnesses reported gunfire as the Seleka rebel coalition took the presidential palace, followed by chaos and looting in the city centre.<br />
<br />
Mr Bozize arrived with his family in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a Congolese official said.<br />
<br />
The rebels, involved in an on-off rebellion since December, say Mr Bozize failed to honour a peace deal.<br />
<br />
On Sunday, witnesses and government officials confirmed that they had taken control of Bangui.<br />
<br />
South African peacekeepers in CAR to support government troops suffered casualties but failed to stop the rebel advance.<br />
<br />
Justin Kombo Moustapha, secretary-general of Seleka, appealed for calm and called on citizens to "welcome the revolutionary forces of Seleka".<br />
<br />
"Central African Republic has just opened a new page in its history," he said in a statement.<br />
<br />
<b>'Common future'</b><br />
<br />
Nelson Ndjadder of Seleka's CPSK faction said the country should now move into a transition towards democratic elections.<br />
<br />
"With the taking of Bangui and the departure of Bozize, the main objective of our struggle has been realised," he said.<br />
<br />
"Central Africans must meet around a table to decide the path for their common future."<br />
<br />
A Paris-based rebel spokesman Eric Massi told AFP news agency that the rebels had secured Bangui and military camps and were deploying across the capital "to launch security operations and prevent looting".<br />
<br />
But Amy Martin of the UN's humanitarian agency, OCHA, told the BBC World Service that looting was happening.<br />
<br />
"The situation in town is chaotic in the sense than communities are looting properties, private properties, even a paediatric hospital we understand has been looted," she said.<br />
<br />
"Our main concern right now is at the community level, with the looting and the possible tensions between various ethnic groups." <br />
<br />
South African troops retreated to their barracks and were seeking safe passage to the airport, Ms Martin said.<br />
<br />
She added that Bangui been without power since Saturday, and that this meant water had also been cut.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="color: black;">She also said the situation in the interior thought to be worse than in the capital, </span>more than 170,000 estimated to have been displaced within the country and others fleeing to Chad and the Democratic Republic of Congo.</span><br />
<br />
DR Congo government spokesman Lambert Mende said Mr Bozize's wife, children and other relatives had fled to the Congolese town of Zongo.<br />
<br />
Mr Bozize also travelled to Zongo, from where he was expected to be moved with his family to the district capital of Gemena, a Congolese official told the BBC.<br />
<br />
UN officials said 26,000 people had arrived in Zongo from CAR, and the numbers were rapidly increasing.<br />
<br />
<b>UN concern</b><br />
<br />
Former colonial power France has called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.<br />
<br />
It has sent 350 soldiers to ensure the security of its citizens, a senior official told AFP, bringing the total number of French troops in CAR to nearly 600.<br />
<br />
"I call upon all sides to show the greatest restraint," said French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, urging French nationals to stay at home.<br />
<br />
The UN Security Council voiced concern about the rebel advance on Friday, amid reports of killings, rapes and torture.<br />
<br />
The rebels joined a power-sharing government in January after talks brokered by regional leaders to end a rebellion they launched last year.<br />
<br />
But the deal quickly collapsed, with the rebels saying their demands, including the release of political prisoners, had not been met.<br />
<br />
Observers say Mr Bozize kept the army weak because he was afraid of a military coup.<br />
<br />
He came to power himself in a coup in 2003.<br />
<br />
CAR, which has a population of about 4.5 million, has been hit by a series of rebellions since independence from France in 1960.<br />
<br />
It is one of the poorest countries in Africa, despite its considerable mineral resources.<br />
<b><br />Related Stories</b><br />
<br />
<b>CAR rebels 'enter capital Bangui'</b><br />
23 March 2013, BBC Africa<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21913926">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21913926</a><br />
<br />
<b>Longing for peace</b><br />
12 January 2013, BBC Africa<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20984886">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20984886</a><br />
<br />
<b>Q&A: CAR rebellion</b><br />
11 January 2013, BBC Africa<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20798007">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20798007</a><br />
<br />
From other news sites:<br />
<br />
Jakarta Post: <b>C. African Republic president flees rebel attack </b><br />
12 hrs ago [Sunday, 24 March 2013]<br />
<a href="http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z8437359425&z=1600249594">http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z8437359425&z=1600249594</a><br />
<br />
Yahoo! UK and Ireland<b> (</b>AFP<b>)</b>: <b>C.African rebels vow to respect peace deal</b><br />
12 hrs ago [Sunday, 24 March 2013]<br />
<a href="http://uk.news.yahoo.com/central-africa-rebels-seize-presidential-palace-094455671.html#KTdWWhs">http://uk.news.yahoo.com/central-africa-rebels-seize-presidential-palace-094455671.html#KTdWWhs</a><br />
<br />
Reuters UK UPDATE 2: <b>C.African Republic capital falls to rebels, Bozize flees</b><br />
13 hrs ago [Sunday, 24 March 2013]<br />
<a href="http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z8437252270&z=1600249365">http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?z8437252270&z=1600249365</a><br />
<br />
Guardian.co.uk: <b>Central African Republic president flees as rebels enter Bangui</b><br />
13 hrs ago [Sunday, 24 March 2013]<br />
<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/24/central-african-republic-president-flees">http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/24/central-african-republic-president-flees</a><br />
<br />
Telegraph: <b>Central African rebels call for president to leave as they enter capital </b><br />
29 hrs ago [Saturday, 23 March 2013 - Agence France-Presse in Bangui]<br />
<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/centralafricanrepublic/9950334/Central-African-rebels-call-for-president-to-leave-as-they-enter-capital.html">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/centralafricanrepublic/9950334/Central-African-rebels-call-for-president-to-leave-as-they-enter-capital.html</a><br />
<br />
Source: <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21915901">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21915901</a><br />
- - -<br />
<b>UPDATE 1 </b>on<b> </b>Monday, 25 March 2013; 3:15pm UK:<br />
<br />
<b>C. African Republic president flees to Cameroon </b><br />
YAOUNDE,
Cameroon (Associated Press) - The president of CAR fled to neighboring
Cameroon on Monday, as the rebels who overthrew him began squabbling who
would now lead the impoverished nation long wracked by rebellions.
The government of Cameroon confirmed Monday [25 March] that Bozize is
seeking "temporary" refuge there before leaving for another unspecified
country. Full story at: <a href="http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/story/21782944/c-african-rebel-consider-me-head-of-state">http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/story/21782944/c-african-rebel-consider-me-head-of-state</a><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Situation in the Central African Republic</b><br />
WASHINGTON, 25 March 2013/(APO)/ - US Department of State Press Statement: <a href="http://appablog.wordpress.com/2013/03/25/situation-in-the-central-african-republic-2/">http://appablog.wordpress.com/2013/03/25/situation-in-the-central-african-republic-2/</a><br />
<br />
<b>Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General on the situation in the Central African Republic </b><br />
NEW
YORK, 25 March 2013/ (APO)/ – The Secretary-General condemns the
unconstitutional seizure of power that took place in the Central African
Republic (CAR) on 24 March 2013 and calls for the swift restoration of
constitutional order. He reiterates that the Libreville Agreements,
negotiated by the Heads of States and Government of the Economic
Community of Central African States (ECCAS), remain the most viable
framework to ensure durable peace and stability in the country. Full
story at: <a href="http://appablog.wordpress.com/2013/03/25/statement-attributable-to-the-spokesperson-for-the-secretary-general-on-the-situation-in-the-central-african-republic/">http://appablog.wordpress.com/2013/03/25/statement-attributable-to-the-spokesperson-for-the-secretary-general-on-the-situation-in-the-central-african-republic/</a><br />
- - -<br />
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-53380751770569722552010-12-03T15:05:00.007+00:002010-12-03T16:16:22.291+00:00DR Congo/Rwanda: FDLR in nuclear materials deals - FDLR rebels keeping unsold Uranium –says UNACCORDING to the below copied reports, a United Nations Investigative Report in the DR of Congo has unearthed information that the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels possess large portions of deadly Uranium, which they have since failed to sell.<br /><br />The report, released by UN investigators, this week, indicates that the FDLR rebels, mainly Ex-FAR genocidal forces, are stuck with hundreds of kilograms of Uranium, a mineral used to make nuclear weapons.<br /><br />UN experts revealed that the FDLR rebels discovered a deposit of precious minerals, which included six 70-kg canisters of uranium in Walikale territory of eastern DRC, after a tip-off by local chiefs.<br /><br />Full story below.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Rwanda: FDLR in Nuclear Material Deals</span><br />Source: The New Times - www.newtimes.co.rw<br />Author: Edmund Kagire<br />Date: Thursday, 02 December 2010<br />Reprinted at <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201012020231.html">allafrica.com</a><blockquote>(Kigali) — A United Nations Investigative Report in the DRC has unearthed information that the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels possess large portions of the deadly Uranium, which they have since failed to sell.<br /><br />The report, released by UN investigators, this week, indicates that the FDLR rebels, mainly Ex-FAR genocidal forces, are stuck with hundreds of kilograms of Uranium, a mineral used to make nuclear weapons, which they have failed to sell for the last 2 years.<br /><br />According to the report, the rebels have been trying to sell the deadly mineral on the black market.<br /><br />UN experts revealed that the FDLR rebels discovered a deposit of precious minerals, which included six 70-kg canisters of uranium in Walikale territory of eastern DRC, after a tip-off by local chiefs.<br /><br />The minerals were found in 2008 in a hidden underground vault.<br /><br />The UN investigators say Sylvestre Mudacumura, the FDLR High Commander General tried to sell the Uranium through "his long-time business associate, Evariste Shamamba, of Établissement Namukaya".<br /><br />"Établissement Namukaya subsequently held the canister for over a year without finding a buyer, and it was eventually returned to a pastor living in Kalehe," reads the report released Monday to the UN Security Council.<br /><br />The investigators describe the material as "un-enriched uranium" - meaning it cannot be used to make nuclear bombs in its current form. The amount would not be enough to create even a small amount of fissile material, said the UN team.<br /><br />Since the FDLR - through their contacts could not find a buyer for more than a year, they gave up, suggesting they are still in possession of some of the mineral.<br /><br />The report also noted that joint Rwanda-DR Congo military operations have pushed the rebels out of the known mines, but the rebels have moved into mines in far rural areas.<br /><br />The UN experts said they had given Interpol details of the attempted trade as well as the International Atomic Energy Agency, which has been monitoring illicit traffic from DRCs Katanga Province, where there are Uranium deposits.</blockquote>- - -<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">FDLR rebels keeping unsold Uranium –says UN</span><br />Source: Rwanda News Agency (RNA) - <a href="http://rnanews.com/regional/4511-fdlr-rebels-keeping-unsold-uranium-says-un-/">rnanews.com</a><br />Author: RNA Reporters<br />Date: Tuesday, 30 November 2010; 11:19. Copy in full:<blockquote> <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/vIvn98RyoH076jjPbVAWPM31gExHNkRliScWyxJpv8w?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOFJkifTPW84OQC1T-b5uuBP3u-hlnCVgApzsM-AhodfRqXaBOf0Fr2XVZoJ9vSESA3pVwMAWpTMdmHtd6CsvyloJpY9BFx2qK41V79GqiZztlwxEW55PRrURX3XxMXbGGoYDH/s400/sms%20message-uranium.jpg" height="400" width="368" /></a><br /><br />Text message from Établissement Namukaya agent wishing to sell alleged uranium on behalf of the FDLR rebels. This same company also sells minerals for Congolese soldiers - using Kigali, Bujumbura and Kampala as the transit routes (Courtesy photo)<br /><br />Kigali: Rwandan FDLR rebels are keeping hundreds of kilograms of Uranium – a mineral used to make atomic weapons, for which they have failed to get a buyer for two years now, according to UN investigators.<br /><br />Subscribe to read more...</blockquote>- - -<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" border-collapse: collapse; line-height: 15px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; font-family:arial, sans-serif;font-size:small;"><h3 class="r" style="font-weight: normal; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; display: inline; "><a href="http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=news&cd=3&ved=0CDIQqQIwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.diariocolatino.com%2Fes%2F20101201%2Fperspectivas%2F86968%2F&rct=j&q=FDLR%20in%20Nuclear%20Material%20Deals&ei=-Q35TITrKI2JhQeu3M2UCQ&usg=AFQjCNEQWQPN6kxumN2tupDsctA7L-OsLw" class="l" style="color: rgb(34, 0, 193); cursor: pointer; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Wikileaks desnuda la política exterior de EEUU: revelan esfuerzos </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">...</span></b></a></h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><button class="ws" title="" style="background-image: url(http://www.google.co.uk/images/nav_logo29.png); background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; cursor: pointer; display: inline; margin-right: 3px; height: 14px; vertical-align: 0px; width: 14px; margin-left: 5px; opacity: 1; background-position: -129px -70px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; "></button><br /></span><span class="f" style="color: rgb(118, 118, 118); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">El Diario CoLatino</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span class="hpn" style="color: rgb(118, 118, 118); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">-</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span class="f" style="color: rgb(118, 118, 118); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2 days ago</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Se trata de un </span><em style="font-weight: bold; font-style: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">material</span></em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> que aporta novedades relevantes sobre el manejo de asuntos de gran repercusión mundial, como el programa </span><em style="font-weight: bold; font-style: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">nuclear</span></em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> de Irán, </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">...</span></b></div></span><br />- - -<br /><br />Click on <span style="font-weight:bold;">FDLR </span>label here below to view previous reports.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-48687637126656663762010-12-02T01:05:00.024+00:002010-12-02T21:12:43.388+00:00UN sanctions 4 FDLR leaders in DR Congo - Congo Siasa blog is back - New UN Group of Experts Report is out<a href="http://usun.state.gov/briefing/statements/2010/152251.htm">Press Release from the Permanent Missions to the UN of France, the UK, and the US on the Designation for Sanctions of Four Additional Individuals in the DRC</a><br />Source: United States Mission to the United Nations - usun.state.gov<br />New York, NY<br />Wednesday, 01 December 2010<blockquote>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<br /><br />The Permanent Missions to the United Nations of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States submitted to the Security Council’s Committee established pursuant to Resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo, three FDLR leaders and one individual responsible for targeting children in situations of armed conflict, to be added to the list of individuals and entities subject to a worldwide travel ban and asset freeze.<br /><br />These four individuals are: Gaston IYAMUREMYE, Félicien NSANZUBUKIRE, Innocent ZIMURINDA and Leodomir MUGARAGU.<br />Members of the Committee agreed on 1 December 2010 that these four individuals be placed on the Committee’s list of designees for DRC sanctions.<br /><br />These designations demonstrate the international community’s continued determination to fight against those who oppose the disarmament of rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and those responsible for the recruitment of children and serious human rights abuses.<br /><br />The UN sanctions regime for DRC was renewed for a further 12 months on 29 November 2010 through the adoption of UNSCR 1952. As part of their work the Group of Experts have developed a clear set of due diligence guidelines for the minerals supply chain in eastern DRC. These guidelines, which the Security Council supported taking forward in SCR 1952, will help avoid financing further conflict in eastern DRC.<br /><br />The Permanent Missions to the United Nations of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States will continue to work with members of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Sanctions Committee to identify the individuals and entities that meet the criteria in Resolution 1857 (2008).<br /><br />Background<br />The UN Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo is responsible for monitoring UN Member State implementation of the sanctions in place in the DRC. The Committee comprises all 15 members of the Security Council, and was authorized by Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1596 (2005) to list individuals and entities for an assets freeze and travel ban. The Committee decided on 1 December 2010 to list the four individuals named below, whose actions have undermined stability in the DRC. Their designation follows a request to the Committee from the Governments of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States.<br /><br />Those now under UNSC sanctions as a result of the Committee’s action today include:<br /><br />1. Gaston IYAMUREMYE, born in 1948 in Musanze District (Northern Province), Rwanda. According to multiple sources, including the UNSC DRC Sanctions Committee’s Group of Experts, Gaston Iyamuremye is considered a core member of the FDLR military and political leadership and has become the group’s president. Gaston Iyamuremye also ran Ignace Murwanashyaka’s (previous President of the FDLR) office in Kibua, DRC until December 2009.<br /><br />2. Félicien NSANZUBUKIRE, born in 1967 in Murama, Kinyinya, Rubungo, Kigali, Rwanda. Félicien Nsanzubukire has been a member of the FDLR since at least 1994 and operating in eastern DRC since October 1998. The UNSC DRC Sanction Committee’s Group of Experts reports that Félicien Nsanzubukire supervised and coordinated the trafficking of ammunition and weapons between at least November 2008 and April 2009 from the United Republic of Tanzania, via Lake Tanganyika, to FDLR units based in the Uvira and Fizi areas of South Kivu.<br /><br />3. Innocent ZIMURINDA, born in 1975 or on September 1, 1972 , in Ngungu, Masisi Territory, North Kivu Province, DRC. Lt Col Innocent Zimurinda was an officer in the Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple (CNDP) which was integrated into the Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC) in early 2009.<br /><br />According to multiple sources, Lt Col Innocent Zimurinda, in his capacity as one of the commanders of the FARDC 231st Brigade, gave orders that resulted in the massacre of over 100 Rwandan refugees, mostly women and children, during an April 2009 military operation in the Shalio area.<br /><br />The UNSC DRC Sanctions Committee’s Group of Experts reported that Lt Col Innocent Zimurinda was witnessed first hand refusing to release three children from his command in Kalehe, on August 29, 2009.<br /><br />According to multiple sources, Lt Col Innocent Zimurinda, prior to the CNDP’s integration into FARDC, participated in a November 2008 CNDP operation that resulted in the massacre of 89 civilians, including women and children, in the region of Kiwanja.<br /><br />In March 2010, 51 human rights groups working in eastern DRC posted a complaint online alleging that Lt Col Innocent Zimurinda was responsible for multiple human rights abuses involving the murder of numerous civilians, including women and children, between February 2007 and August 2007. Lt Col Innocent Zimurinda has also been accused in the same complaint to be responsible for the rape of a large number of women and girls.<br /><br />According to a May 21, 2010, statement by the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict, Innocent Zimurinda has been involved in the arbitrary execution of child soldiers, including during operation Kimia II. According to the same statement, he denied access by the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC) to screen troops for minors. According to the UNSC DRC Sanctions Committee’s Group of Experts, Lt Col Zimurinda holds direct and command responsibility for child recruitment and for maintaining children within troops under his command.<br /><br />4. Leodomir MUGARAGU, born in 1954 or 1953, in Kigali, Rwanda or Rushashi (Northern Province), Rwanda. According to open-source and official reporting, Leodomir Mugaragu is the Chief of Staff of the Forces Combattantes Abucunguzi/Combatant Force for the Liberation of Rwanda (FOCA), the FDLR’s armed wing. According to official reporting, Mugaragu is a senior planner for FDLR’s military operations in the eastern DRC.<br /><br />###<br /><br />PRN: 2010/303</blockquote>- - -<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">CONGO SIASA BLOG IS BACK!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">New UN Group of Experts Report is Out</span><br />Source: Congo Siasa - congosiasa.blogspot.com<br />Date: Wednesday, 01 December 2010<br />Excerpt:<blockquote>Congo Siasa is back, just in time for the new UN Group of Experts' report. It's a great report, chock full of useful information on the situation in the Kivus, and I'll have an exclusive interview with members of the Group here in a few days. For now, some of the highlights of the 190 page document: ... </blockquote>Read more at <a href="http://congosiasa.blogspot.com/2010/12/new-un-group-of-experts-report-is-out.html">congosiasa.blogspot.com</a> authored by Jason Stearns. Here is a copy of Jason's <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/11454449854081540397">Blogger profile</a>:<blockquote>I have been working on the conflict in the DR Congo for the past nine years, most recently as the Coordinator of the United Nations Group of Experts on the Congo (2008). I have also worked for Heritiers de la Justice, a local human rights NGO (2001), the UN peacekeeping mission MONUC (2002-2004) and the International Crisis Group (2004-2007). A book I wrote on the conflict, Dancing in the Glory of Monsters, is due to be published soon. I am currently getting my PhD at Yale University.</blockquote><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-83051547600012826322010-12-01T17:17:00.016+00:002010-12-01T20:31:32.908+00:00Chad army routs CPJP rebels in CAR border garrison town Birao - European Union pledges 50 billion euros to Africa's developmentCHAD'S military repelled rebels from a key border town in northern Central African Republic this week, days after the rebel fighters seized it, officials in both countries said today, Wednesday 01 December.<br /><br />The African Union said the flare-up in fighting around the town of Birao in recent days had killed several civilians and threatened to complicate preparations for much-delayed elections in CAR, now due in January.<br /><br />"We affirm that the Chadian army has exercised its right of pursuit by destroying the remaining mercenaries... in the town of Birao," Chad's Army Chief of Staff, General Djionadji, told a news conference late on Tuesday.<br /><br />A spokesman for the CPJP rebel group said Chadian helicopters and tanks crossed the border from Chad to bombard the town and that rebel fighters retreated on Tuesday.<br /><br />"We simply evacuated the town because the civilian population, including women and children, were in the process of being killed," CPJP spokesman and commander Issene Abdoulaye told Reuters by telephone.<br /><br />Full story below.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ptinews.com/news/1157721_Chad-army-routs-rebels-in-Central-African-Republic-">Chad army routs rebels in Central African Republic</a><br />Source: (AP) / Press Trust of India - www.ptinews.com<br />Date: Wednesday, 01 December 2010 by Staff Writer 17:40 HRS IST<blockquote>N'Djamena (Chad), Dec 1 (AP) - Chad's army says it has entered the northwest part of neighbouring Central African Republic and pushed out a group of rebels that had attempted to take a town there.<br /><br />The army chief said late yesterday that soldiers crossed the border to the town of Birao which was occupied by rebels from the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace movement. The army says no children or women were killed in the short operation, but did not give details on combatant deaths.<br /><br />The rebels had entered the town last week.<br /><br />Chad and the Central African Republic are both impoverished central African nations grappling with the spillover from violence in Sudan's Darfur province.</blockquote>- - -<br /><br /><a href="http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE6B00H020101201">Chad army repels rebels in CAR border town</a><br />Source: Reuters Africa - af.reuters.com<br />Date: Wednesday, 01 December 2010 3:52pm GMT<blockquote>N'DJAMENA (Reuters) - Chad's military repelled rebels from a key border town in northern Central African Republic this week, days after the rebel fighters seized it, officials in both countries said on Wednesday.<br /><br />The African Union said the flare-up in fighting around the town of Birao in recent days had killed several civilians and threatened to complicate preparations for much-delayed elections in CAR, now due in January.<br /><br />"We affirm that the Chadian army has exercised its right of pursuit by destroying the remaining mercenaries... in the town of Birao," Chad's Army Chief of Staff, General Djionadji, told a news conference late on Tuesday.<br /><br />A spokesman for the CPJP rebel group said Chadian helicopters and tanks crossed the border from Chad to bombard the town and that rebel fighters retreated on Tuesday.<br /><br />"We simply evacuated the town because the civilian population, including women and children, were in the process of being killed," CPJP spokesman and commander Issene Abdoulaye told Reuters by telephone.<br /><br />Djionadji denied women and children were killed in the raid. No details of casualties were available.<br /><br />The CPJP rebels, who unlike other rebel groups in CAR have not signed peace accords with President Francois Bozize, seized Birao last week and said they were targeting the capital Bangui far to the south.<br /><br />A Chad-based U.N. peacekeeping force had handed control of Birao over to state authorities on November 15 as its mission to protect civilians in the two countries comes to an end.<br /><br />AU President Jean Ping condemned the fighting and called on politicians to work to ensure presidential and legislative elections due in January are not derailed.<br /><br />Rebel clashes and problems over funding in the former French colony have delayed elections three times already, leaving Bozize in power beyond his initial mandate which ended in June.<br /><br />Central African Republic is rich in minerals but has been caught up in the conflicts of neighbouring Chad, Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo.</blockquote>- - -<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Further Reading</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/01/AR2010120101255.html">Chad army routs rebels in Central African Republic</a><br />Washington Post - Wed, 01 Dec 2010<br /><br /><a href="http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/MCOI-8BQHQJ?OpenDocument">Central African Republic: Security remains fragile ahead of UN troop withdrawal and presidential election</a><br />Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre; Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)<br />Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at ReliefWeb<br /><br /><a href="http://www.rnw.nl/international-justice/article/bemba%E2%80%99s-soldiers-raped-and-killed-central-african-republic">"Bemba's soldiers raped and killed in the Central African Republic" </a><br />Radio Netherlands - Wed, 01 Dec 2010<br /><br /><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-11890278">Bokassa rehabilitated by Central African Republic </a><br />BBC News - Wed, 01 Dec 2010<br /><br /><a href="http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2010/db101130.doc.htm">UN - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General</a><br />www.un.org - Tues, 30 Nov 2010 / Reprinted at ISRIA. Excerpt:<blockquote>Question: And also, in Central African Republic, I want… it seems that maybe the Government has taken back control of… but there is this garrison town of Birao that MINURCAT [United Nations Mission in Chad and the Central African Republic] used to somehow have a presence in, that they handed back to the Government on 15 November, it was reported to be overrun by rebels. What’s going to be… One, is there any kind of update, whether from OCHA or otherwise, on what’s the status of that town? And what’s going to be the UN’s ongoing role, if any, in that part of CAR which seems to be -- the civilians are being displaced and rebels are taking and untaking towns?<br /><br />Acting Deputy Spokesperson: Well, on that, the only thing I’d have to share with you is to reiterate the points made by the Secretary-General in his recent statement, in which he condemned the recent attack on the town of Birao by rebels of the “Convention des patriotes pour la justice et la paix” (CPJP). And he calls on all concerned to exercise maximum restraint to ensure the safety of civilians, as efforts are being made by the national authorities to restore normalcy, and ensure peace and reconciliation among all the parties concerned.</blockquote><a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201012010616.html">Africa: European Union Pledges 50 Billion Euros to Africa's Development</a><br />Liberia Government (Monrovia) - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at AllAfrica.com<br /><br /><a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201012010964.html">Africa/EU Reinforce Partnership</a><br />Cameroon Tribune by Richard Kwang Kometa<br />Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at AllAfrica.com<br /><br /><a href="http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/tripoli-declaration-economic-ties-revived">Tripoli Declaration: economic ties revived</a><br />Radio Netherlands by Ruben Koops - Wed, 01 Dec 2010<br /><br /><a href="http://appablog.wordpress.com/2010/12/01/tripoli-declaration-3rd-africa-eu-summit/">Tripoli Declaration / 3rd Africa EU Summit</a><br />European Council - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted by APO. Excerpt:<blockquote>On Sudan, we emphasise the urgency and importance of ensuring that all elements of the CPA, including those concerning Abyei, South Kordofan and Blue Nile, are implemented in a timely, peaceful and credible manner, in particular the referendum on South Sudan whose results should be accepted by all.<br /><br />Furthermore, we encourage all parties to progress with the post referendum issues. In this context, we welcome the leadership of the AU in close cooperation with the UN as well as the support provided by the AUHIP led by President Mbeki, and by IGAD. We welcome in particular the progress made and agreements reached on the framework regarding outstanding CPA issues. Our cooperation will continue to build on our common values and goals in pursuit of good governance, democracy and the rule of law. We firmly condemn all<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#CC0000;">unconstitutional changes of governments</span> which, alongside bad governance, are one of the main causes of instability.</blockquote><a href="http://www.isria.com/pages/1_December_2010_73.php">Saudi Arabia - Deputy Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Sends Cable of Congratulations to President of Central African Republic</a><br />Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at ISRIA<br /><br /><a href="http://new.mmegi.bw/index.php?sid=1&aid=6964&dir=2010/December/Wednesday1">Sudan boycotts Africa-EU summit</a><br />Sapa-AFP - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at Mmegi<br /><br /><a href="http://www.canadaeast.com/rss/article/1332475">International war crimes court urges Central African Republic to arrest Sudan's al-Bashir</a><br />AP - Wed, 01 Dec 2010, 8:09 am ET /Reprinted at www.canadaeast.com<br /><br /><a href="http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/356073,republic-arrest-bashir-visit.html">ICC asks Central African Republic to arrest Bashir on visit</a><br />DPA - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 8:22 am ET /Reprinted at EARTHtimes.org<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/central-african-republic-must-arrest-omar-al-bashir-during-visit-2010-12-01">Central African Republic must arrest Omar al-Bashir during visit</a><br />Amnesty International - Wed Dec 1, 7:48 am ET<br /><br /><a href="http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/356092,icc-pressure-summary.html">Sudan's Bashir cancels CAR trip amid ICC pressure - Summary</a><br />DPA - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at EARTHtimes.org<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-12-01-african-union-backs-sudans-bashir">African Union backs Sudan's Bashir</a><br />Mail & Guardian - Wed, 01 Dec 2010<br /><br /><a href="http://www.forexyard.com/en/news/Key-political-risks-to-watch-in-Congo-2010-12-01T115237Z-FACTBOX">Key political risks to watch in Congo-FACTBOX </a><br />Reuters by Katrina Manson- Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted by Forexyard<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-38210307039281847662010-11-26T15:08:00.007+00:002010-11-26T15:24:57.198+00:00Meet the Arrow Boys, the South Sudanese tribal militia that is the last line of defence against Ugandan rebel group LRA<a href="http://www.smh.com.au/world/boys-to-men-as-sudanese-villagers-take-on-lords-resistance-army-20101126-18alb.html">Boys to men as Sudanese villagers take on Lord's Resistance Army</a><br />Source: The Sydney Morning Herald - www.smh.com.au<br />Author: Jason Koutsoukis<br />Date: Saturday, 27 November 2010<br /><br /><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/_qDNGkCi3lAuamWdBfBPmM31gExHNkRliScWyxJpv8w?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-PM1KTSTfOXvFpsCoMuJPWjHdKEh5qb_P8hvcLNSHqOLvxXCKijvY0mgZsE8sO42TyGioMft-bRIrVgCwVKTVvsVHU2tj0egL3UEzUD9nvKnM3cG1LdWlMDRAMmFKbCrFnVJ-/s400/arrow-420x0.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Photo: Protecting their families ... the Arrow Boys Samuel Manese 2nd from left and Deputy Chief Acquila Daniel 4th from right at rear, use an array of weapons against the insurgents. Photo: Kate Geraghty<blockquote>(KASSIA, Sudan) - Meet the Arrow Boys, the South Sudanese tribal militia that is the last line of defence against Africa's most feared insurgent gang - the Lord's Resistance Army.<br /><br />Granting rare media access to the Herald in the tiny jungle outpost of Kassia, less than 40 kilometres north of the Congo border, the local Arrow Boys chief, Samuel Manase, said the savagery of the attacks by the LRA was difficult to comprehend.<br /><br />''They last attacked this village in September,'' Mr Manase said. ''They killed two people and tried to abduct three children but we succeeded in rescuing the children.''<br /><br />He said the death toll in Kassia from the LRA this year was about 20. ''They kill in different ways. Sometimes people are shot dead, other times men are surrounded by a circle of LRA members beaten to death with clubs. Earlier this year I saw men here being chopped up with pangas [machetes].''<br /><br />Comprised mostly of men in their teens and early 20s, the Arrow Boys were founded in the South Sudanese state of Western Equatoria last year and employ an unconventional arsenal that includes bows and arrows, spears, even poison darts, in their attempts to fend off LRA attacks.<br /><br />''We use whatever weapons we can make from the materials here in the forest,'' Mr Manase said. ''We receive some assistance from the government of South Sudan in the form of small arms but it is very little.<br /><br />''In the last LRA attack in September, it was the wild bees. As they tried to enter Kassia the LRA disturbed several large nests and then the bees set upon them.''<br /><br />Chased out of Uganda in 2005, the LRA has since marauded through the jungles of South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic in search of refuge from the Uganda People's Defence Force.<br /><br />The LRA chief, Joseph Kony, is now thought to be hiding out in southern Darfur under the auspices of the national government of Sudan, which is opposed to South Sudan's likely secession from Khartoum in a referendum scheduled for January 9.<br /><br />Kony, 49, is wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, and styles himself as a Christian ''prophet'' whose mission is to turn Uganda into a theocracy ruled by the Ten Commandments.<br /><br />Now the LRA is little more than a gang of bandits, with little, if any, real political motive, engaged in a battle for survival.<br /><br />The Arrow Boys deputy commander in Kassia, Aquila Daniel, said the LRA attacked without warning. ''Their only motive plunder,'' he said. ''They take our food, and they take any other possessions we have including women and children.''<br /><br />In the event of an attack, an alarm is sounded to mobilise the Arrow Boys.<br /><br />''We are here hiding in the trees, waiting. The boys have little training; they only want to protect their families,'' Mr Daniel said.<br /><br />''It is difficult to know how many of the LRA we kill because whenever an LRA member falls, the others in the group are under orders to bring back their bodies to their camp, whatever the cost.<br /><br />''So occasionally we find traces of blood in the grass, we hope it is evidence that we have killed one of them, but we have never been able to claim a body.''<br /><br />Emmanuel Samuel, 10, joined the arrow boys in July when he heard the LRA were in the area.<br /><br />''The village elders told me to stay in the village but I wanted to follow my father,'' Emmanuel said.''I have fired my weapon [a bow and arrow] just once.<br /><br />''No, I was not afraid because my mother and father were there fighting alongside me.''<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Kate Geraghty travelled to Sudan courtesy of Doctors Without Borders</span></blockquote><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8086630.post-40188278899624221682010-11-25T15:59:00.004+00:002010-11-25T16:10:57.838+00:00US reveals plan to disarm LRA fightersUS President Barack Obama presents strategy to combat Lord's Resistance Army rebels and their leader Joseph Kony in central Africa<br /><br /><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/25/us-plan-disarm-rebels-central-africa">US reveals plan to disarm LRA fighters</a><br />Source: guardian.co.uk by Xan Rice in Nairobi <br />Date: Thursday 25 November 2010 13.12 GMT<br /><br /><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/WI5f-AaTpbCdhocwiYdjnc31gExHNkRliScWyxJpv8w?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkTM9MUcOMgpDOLx0lrFUH0I_dESlgQ36SsfRjzKV3pS1eCajB5mVR5YSJpvwxqIlXCgxRJOye13_U9ICGs0SBR96CUldqF9RlNPUWkxOpQsHRZV_f6Tg_F4ZrauSquAwKWZUU/s400/kony2.jpg" height="240" width="400" /></a><br /><br />The Lord's Resistance army leader, Joseph Kony, pictured in 2006. Photograph: Stuart Price/AP<blockquote>The US government yesterday revealed a plan to disarm Lord's Resistance Army fighters in central Africa and capture or kill their leader, Joseph Kony.<br /><br />Barack Obama presented a strategy document to Congress designed to "mitigate and eliminate" the threat to civilians posed by one of the world's longest-running and most brutal insurgencies.<br /><br />While they are unlikely to result in US troops being directly involved in combat operations, the proposed measures should strengthen local military efforts against the LRA and have been welcomed by international human rights groups.<br /><br />The rebels emerged in northern Uganda 24 years ago with devastating consequences for the local population. In recent years, they have exported their terror to the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan and Central African Republic.<br /><br />More than 2,300 people in these countries have been killed by LRA fighters over the past two years, with 400,000 civilians forced to flee their homes.<br /><br />At least 3,000 men, women and children have been abducted – the rebels' primary form of conscription.<br /><br />Obama's announcement followed the passing of a bill in May that requires the US to support multilateral efforts to subdue the LRA.<br /><br />The four main objectives of the new plan are to increase protection for civilians, encourage rebel defections, improve humanitarian access and "apprehend or remove from the battlefield Joseph Kony and senior commanders", according to a letter sent to congressmen.<br /><br />The strategy is a more formal and official version of the one employed by the US for the past two years after it took the lead among western countries in trying to end the rebellion.<br /><br />In December 2008, the US military provided intelligence and financial support to the Ugandan-led Operation Lightning Thunder, which flushed LRA fighters from their main hideout in Congo, Garamba National Park.<br /><br />But rebel leaders including Kony – who claims to have messianic powers – escaped the ground and air assault and immediately embarked on a series of massacres in remote villages.<br /><br />The strategy document said the US had spent more than $23m (£14.5m) on support for the Ugandan military since then, but added that more money was needed.<br /><br />But ending the insurgency is likely to be extremely difficult, even with more cash and commitment. It was a task that proved beyond the Ugandan military when the LRA operated there for 20 years, and the rebel fighters have proved equally comfortable in countries to the east.<br /><br />The US-based Enough Project warned in a recent report that the LRA's "propensity for violence remains undiminished" despite having a fighting force of just 400. Ledio Cakaj, a field researcher for the project, said Obama's plan signalled a more hands-on approach by the US military in regional counterinsurgency operations.<br /><br />"You are not going to see marines on the ground fighting Kony," Cakaj said. "But you are going to see more US troops and contractors on the ground facilitating regional efforts to stop the rebels. It's not a radical move, but it is certainly a positive step."</blockquote><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading Congo Watch.</div>Ingrid J. Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08451813216666237295noreply@blogger.com1