Tuesday 5 May 2010
Nigeria’s President Yar’Adua Dies at 58
ABUJA, Nigeria
Nigerian president Umaru Yar'Adua died Wednesday night following years of ill health, official sources announced. Presidential spokesman Olusegun Adeniyi said Yar’Adua died at 2100 local time (2000 GMT) at Aso Rock, the presidential villa in Abuja.
Acting President Goodluck Jonathan will be sworn in as head of state Thursday morning before Yar’Adua’s remains are flown to his native Katsina state for a Muslim burial later the same day.
Yar’Adua was elected in a 2007 election marred by opposition allegations of fraud, and has battled heart and kidney problems for years. [PE]
Key Darfur Rebels Threaten to Quit Peace Talks
Darfur largest rebel group has threatened to pull out of talks with the Sudanese government citing ground attacks on its positions.
The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) says it is contemplating a withdrawal from the Doha talks, claiming Khartoum has launched an offensive in an apparent attempt to impose a military solution to the conflict.
The Darfur conflict has flamed since 2003, killing at least 300,000 people and displacing 2.7 million according to UN figures, although Khartoum insists only 10,000 deaths have occurred.
JEM signed a framework accord in February in Doha that was widely praised as a major step towards ending the conflict. Sudan’s recently re-elected President Omar al-Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court for atrocities committed in Darfur. [ER]
ICC to Start Kenya Poll Violence Probe
The chief Prosecutor of International Criminal Court (ICC) is expected to travel to Kenya next weekend to lead investigations into the violence that broke out following a disputed 2007 presidential election.
A statement from The Hague says Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will conduct investigations and organize protection for witnesses he will meet during his five-day tour.
The ICC is seeking to prosecute people who bear the greatest responsibility for the violence that killed 1300 people after both President Mwai Kibaki and Opposition leader Raila Odinga (now prime minister) claimed to have won the majority votes in Kenya’s discredited 2007 presidential election. [ER]
UN to Probe DR Congo Massacre
The UN has opened an investigation into the killing of about 100 villagers in a February attack by Uganda’s Lord Resistance Army (LRA) rebels in the northeastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The LRA rebels have fought the Ugandan government for over two decades, operating in remote border areas of Central Africa and occasionally massacring local populations since being pushed out of Uganda.[ER]