Month: February 2024

Cameroon Rebels Abduct Government Officials in Fresh Wave of Attacks

Posted on by SeeAF

YAOUNDE, CAMEROON — Cameroon separatist fighters Wednesday claimed responsibility for the killing of four government workers, including a policeman abducted Tuesday in the country’s restive English-speaking North-West region. Government officials say two of the hostages, including a government official the military freed, are responding to treatment in a hospital. The abduction and killing followed renewed separatist attacks that have claimed several dozen civilians within two weeks.

Cameroon on Wednesday said one of its officials who had been abducted Tuesday evening in the restive English-speaking North-West region bordering Nigeria has been freed by government troops.    

Nicholas Nkongho Manchang, the divisional officer for the region’s Bamenda Second District was kidnapped at gunpoint with five others, including a policeman, on their way to an official ceremony in Nkambe town, the government said.     

Deben Tchoffo, governor of the North-West region, told a crowd in Nkambe Wednesday that Manchang and another captive were freed after a swift military operation.   

“The head of state [president Paul Biya] instructed the security services to set free the hostages,” Tchoffo said. “Four hours later, the said administrative authority was freed thanks to the bravery of our military as well as the bravery of the abducted victims. Authorities, living forces (should) continue providing the military with all information to free the hostages that are not yet released.”  

Tchoffo said the divisional officer known locally as the D.O and the other freed captive are responding to treatment in a hospital in Bamenda, where they were rushed to by government troops.  

Christopher Achobang is the spokesperson for the Ambazonia Governing Council, fighting for independence for Cameroon’s English-speaking regions from the French majority country.     

Achobang said Manchang saved his life by escaping. 

“The D.O staged an escape because he fell into a ravine and the fighters were not so ready to get into the ravine to rescue him so they left him there wounded and dying,” Achobang said. “He escaped and walked for a long distance where the Cameroon military then found him and took him to a helicopter which evacuated the D.O to Bamenda.”

Achobang said separatist fighters should have killed the D.O if he did escape.

English speaking separatists say they consider divisional officers, who are heads of districts, to be government troops because they undergo military training and as such constitute a legitimate target to fighters. 

But Cameroon government officials say divisional officers are civil administrators who represent the Yaounde central government and work for the development of their districts. 

Government troops say Manchang drove past the military-led convoy of government officials travelling to Nkambe and fell into an ambush mounted by fighters. Manchang has not explained why he left the convoy.    

Separatists say after Manchang escaped, four companions, including a police officer were killed.  

The Ambazonia Governing Council said that separatist forces killed the captives to send a message to government troops that claims that separatists fighting for an independent English-speaking have been defeated are unfounded.   

The government and military have not commented on the alleged killing of the four captives but on Wednesday night separatists shared pictures of four dead bodies on social media including Facebook and WhatsApp. VOA could not independently verify the authenticity of the pictures. 

Civilians, however, say the pictures appear to be those of the abducted government workers. 

Cameroon has within the past two weeks reported that separatists killed several dozen people in northwestern towns including Bamenda, Kumbo and Ndop. 

The government says at least eleven separatists were killed in military raids in Kumbo and Oku, both northwestern towns. 

Separatists acknowledge their fighters were killed and say several governments troops also died in fighting. 

Edward Nfor is a member of the Cameroon Civil Society Group and a road contractor working in the Northwest region. He says the current wave of abductions and killings is either unreported or underreported by local media that fear persecution from rebels and the Cameroon government.

“Killings are on the rise, kidnapping is on the rise. If heavily guarded government officials are kidnapped, then what about the ordinary civilian. People are moving but they can’t move freely,” Nfor said. “These boys [separatist fighters] will go out to the village[es]. get out people and say that they are supporting the military and execute them in public. Let the government try to do something and get this thing [crisis] to an end.”  

Nfor said several dozen people have either been abducted or killed since fresh attacks began in January.    

Separatists on social media say they will not spare anyone who reports fighters hiding in towns and villages to government troops.     

The separatist conflict broke out in 2016 when Anglophone Cameroonians protested discrimination by the Francophone majority.

The United Nations says more than 6,000 people have been killed and the unrest has deprived 600,000 children of education. 
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Zimbabwean With Cerebral Palsy Eyes Special Olympics

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A 22-year-old Zimbabwean with cerebral palsy is hoping to compete in the 2024 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary starting later this month. Meanwhile, groups in Zimbabwe advocating for disabled people’s rights are hoping to turn government policy into law. Columbus Mavhunga reports from Harare. Camera: Blessing Chigwenhembe.
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5 Marines Aboard Helicopter That Went Down Outside San Diego Confirmed Dead, Military Says

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San Diego, California — Five U.S. Marines aboard a helicopter that went down during stormy weather in the mountains outside of San Diego are confirmed dead, military said.

Authorities say the CH-53E Super Stallion vanished late Tuesday night while returning to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego after training at Creech Air Force Base, northwest of Las Vegas.

“It is with a heavy heart and profound sadness that I share the loss of five outstanding Marines from 3d Marine Aircraft Wing and the “Flying Tigers,” Maj. Gen. Michael J. Borgschulte, commander of 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, said in a statement.

The names of the Marines were not immediately released.

The craft was discovered Wednesday morning near the mountain community of Pine Valley, an hour’s drive from San Diego.
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Russian Election Officials Reject Antiwar Politician’s Bid to Oppose Putin in Next Month’s Vote

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TALLINN, Estonia — Antiwar politician Boris Nadezhdin was rejected Thursday as a candidate in next month’s presidential balloting by Russian election authorities, a strong signal from the Kremlin that it would tolerate no public opposition to the invasion of Ukraine.

The move by the Central Election Commission provides an even smoother path for President Vladimir Putin to win a fifth term in power. He faces only token opposition from pro-Kremlin candidates in the March 15-17 vote and is all but certain to win, given his tight control of Russia’s political system.

Nadezhdin, a local legislator in a town near Moscow, had needed to gather at least 100,000 signatures of supporters — a requirement that applies to candidates of political parties that are not represented in the Russian parliament.

The Central Election Commission declared that more than 9,000 signatures submitted by Nadezhdin’s campaign were invalid, which was enough to disqualify him. Russia’s election rules say potential candidates can have no more than 5% of their submitted signatures thrown out.

Nadezhdin, 60, has openly called for a halt to the war in Ukraine and for starting a dialogue with the West. Thousands of Russians lined up across the country last month to sign papers in support of his candidacy, an unusual show of opposition sympathies in the country’s rigidly controlled political landscape.

Speaking to officials at the election commission on Thursday, Nadezhdin asked them to postpone their decision, but they declined. He said he would appeal his disqualification in court.

“It’s not me standing here,” Nadezhdin said. “Hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens who put their signatures down for me are behind me.”

Putin is running as an independent candidate, and his campaign was required to gather at least 300,000 signatures in his support. He was swiftly allowed on the ballot earlier this year, with election officials disqualifying only 91 out of 315,000 that his campaign submitted.

Most of the opposition figures who might have challenged Putin have been either imprisoned or exiled abroad, and the vast majority of independent Russian media outlets have been banned.

Three other candidates registered to run were nominated by parties represented in parliament and weren’t required to collect signatures: Nikolai Kharitonov of the Communist Party, Leonid Slutsky of the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party and Vladislav Davankov of the New People Party.

The three parties have been largely supportive of the Kremlin’s policies. Kharitonov ran against Putin in 2004, finishing a distant second.

Exiled opposition activists threw their weight behind Nadezhdin last month, urging their supporters to sign his nomination petitions.

Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said the Kremlin doesn’t view Nadezhdin as “a rival.”

Nadezhdin urged his supporters not to give up despite the setback.

“One thing happened which many could not believe: citizens sensed the possibility of changes in Russia,” he wrote in an online statement. “It was you who stood in long lines to declare to the whole world: ‘Russia will be a great and a free country.’ And I represented each of you today in the auditorium of the Central Election Commission.”

Nadezhdin is the second antiwar hopeful to be denied a place on the ballot. In December, the election commission refused to certify the candidacy of Yekaterina Duntsova, citing problems such as spelling errors in her paperwork.

Duntsova, a journalist and a former legislator from the Tver region north of Moscow, had announced plans last year to challenge Putin. Promoting a vision of a Russia as “peaceful, friendly and ready to cooperate with everyone on the principle of respect,” she said she wanted to end the fighting in Ukraine swiftly and for Moscow and Kyiv to come to the negotiating table.

Abbas Gallyamov, a former Putin speechwriter who became a political analyst, said the decision to keep Nadezhdin off the ballot showed how hollow the support for Putin was.

“All of Putin’s mega-popularity, which official sociology constantly broadcasts, all that ‘rally around the national leader’ that Peskov regularly talks about is, in fact, a highly artificial and unstable structure that does not withstand any contact with reality,” he said.
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US Political Campaigns Weigh Artificial Intelligence 

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The 2024 U.S. presidential election may look a lot like the 2020 vote, with the two major party nominations likely going to the same men, Joe Biden and Donald Trump. One big difference will be the use of artificial intelligence, which is playing a growing role in American politics.
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Iraq Criticizes US Strikes After Baghdad Attack Killed Iran-Backed Militant Group Commander

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Pentagon — Iraq Thursday sharply criticized a U.S. drone strike that the U.S. military said killed a leader of an Iranian-backed militant group, with an Iraqi spokesman calling the attack “a blatant assassination” that showed “no regard for civilian lives or international laws.”

Yehia Rasool, a spokesman for the Iraqi prime minister, said the U.S.-led coalition that has operated in Iraq to counter the Islamic State group “consistently deviates from the reasons and objectives for its presence on our territory.”

“The trajectory compels the Iraqi government more than ever to terminate the mission of this coalition, which has become a factor for instability and threatens to entangle Iraq in the cycle of conflict,” Rasool said in a statement.

U.S. Central Command, which oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East, said the strike on Tuesday killed a commander of the militant group Kataib Hezbollah who was “responsible for directly planning and participating in attacks on U.S. forces in the region.”

Two U.S. officials confirmed to VOA that the commander was operations officer Wisam Mohammad al-Saedi. Photos on social media allegedly showed his Iraqi identification card that was pulled from his body.

VOA had earlier reported the U.S. military was involved in an airstrike against a high-value target in the Middle East but had not identified al-Saedi by name. 

 Video shared on social media shows a vehicle engulfed in flames on a Baghdad highway. 

The U.S. strike was in response to the almost 170 drone, rocket and missile attacks against U.S. forces in the Middle East since mid-October, one of which killed three U.S. service members and wounded dozens more in northern Jordan last week.

A wave of U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria on Friday pounded targets associated with Iranian-backed militias responsible for the attacks. The strikes targeted three locations in Iraq, as well as another four in Syria, and they destroyed more than 80 individual targets, ranging from command-and-control centers and intelligence hubs to missile and drone storage facilities, according to the latest U.S. assessments.

But while U.S. officials have defended the strikes as necessary following a drone attack that killed three U.S. soldiers at a base in Jordan last month, Iraqi officials have voiced increased anger, summoning the U.S. chargé d’affaires in Baghdad to protest. They have charged that some of the U.S. strikes hit elements of Iraq’s own security forces.

The U.S. State Department said Monday that Iraq was not given any warning but added the U.S. strikes should not have come as a surprise. 

Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder said Monday the U.S. had no plans for a long-term military campaign against the militias in Iraq and Syria, but he noted the U.S. response to the killing of its service members was “not complete.” 

The U.S. has about 2,500 troops in Iraq tasked with advising and assisting Iraqi security forces as they pursue the remnants of the Islamic State terror group, also known as ISIS or Daesh.

And while talks between the U.S. and Iraq are under way to eventually reduce the U.S. military footprint and transition from the counter-IS mission to what officials describe as more traditional military-to-military relationship with Baghdad, the process has been complicated by the attacks.  
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Blinken, Israeli Officials Discuss Efforts to Free Hostages Held in Gaza

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U.S. State Department  — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed efforts to free hostages held by Hamas militants in Gaza as he met Thursday with members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war Cabinet.

At the start of his meeting with former military chiefs Benny Gantz and Gabi Eisenkot, Blinken said the focus would be on “the hostages and the strong desire that we both have to see them returned to their families, the work that’s being done to that end.”

Blinken said he would also provide updates from meetings he’s had elsewhere in the region on a trip that has included stops in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar and the West Bank.

Gantz told Blinken that the most urgent issue is finding ways to bring back the hostages.

The meetings come as Israel and Hamas consider a proposal for a new temporary cease-fire that would include a pause in fighting and the release of hostages from Gaza.

A senior Hamas official said a Hamas delegation would travel to Cairo on Thursday to continue negotiations with Egyptian and Qatari officials. 

Blinken said Wednesday that the response from Hamas leaders to a plan drafted by U.S., Egyptian, Qatari and Israeli officials contained “clear nonstarters,” but that there was room for ongoing negotiations.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, rejected the plan offered by Hamas to end the war in Gaza, instead vowing to push forward with his nation’s attack on the militants until it achieves “absolute victory.” 

“We are on the way to an absolute victory. There is no other solution,” Netanyahu said at a news conference after meeting with Blinken. He said Israel’s war effort would take months, not years. 

In its proposal, Hamas called for three 45-day phases, first releasing all remaining women and children, as well as older and sick men, in exchange for an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The Hamas plan calls for Israel to withdraw from populated areas and end its aerial bombardment while also allowing far more humanitarian aid to enter Gaza and permitting Palestinians to return to their homes, including in devastated northern Gaza.

The second phase, to be negotiated during the first, would include the release of all remaining hostages, mostly soldiers, in exchange for all Palestinian detainees over the age of 50, including senior militants, to be freed by Israel.

Israel would release an additional 1,500 prisoners, 500 of whom would be specified by Hamas, and complete its withdrawal from Gaza.

In the third phase, the sides would exchange the remains of hostages and prisoners. Israel says it believes more than two dozen of the remaining 130 or so hostages in Gaza have already died or been killed.

The Hamas offer also called for the militants to retain governing control of the narrow territory along the Mediterranean Sea and the right to rebuild its military capability.

Blinken is on his fifth round of talks with Mideast leaders in a so-far fruitless effort to end the warfare that erupted with the October 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people. Hamas health officials in Gaza say Israel’s counteroffensive has killed more than 27,500 and displaced about 2 million Palestinians in Gaza from their homes.

Blinken held talks Wednesday with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah and with senior Israeli national security leaders, including Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Blinken reiterated U.S. support for the establishment of a Palestinian state as the best way to ensure lasting peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike, and greater integration for the region. According to the State Department, Blinken also emphasized the urgent need to lower tensions in the West Bank and prevent the conflict from expanding.

Netanyahu has rejected any arrangement that would leave Hamas in full or partial control of Gaza. He also said Israel is the “only power” capable of guaranteeing security in the long term. The U.S. has called for a revitalized Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which Netanyahu has also rejected.

Martin Griffiths, United Nations undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, said that more than half of Gaza’s population is currently crammed in Rafah, a town originally home to 250,000 people situated right at Egypt’s border.

“Their living conditions are abysmal — they lack the basic necessities to survive, stalked by hunger, disease and death,” said the U.N. humanitarian chief.

VOA U.N. Correspondent Margaret Besheer and White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this report. Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.  
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US High Court to Hear Arguments on Trump’s Eligibility to Regain Presidency

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The United States Supreme Court hears oral arguments Thursday to determine whether former president and likely Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is ineligible for the office and must be excluded from states’ ballots because of his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara brings this preview.
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Stars, Athletes Plan to Flock Las Vegas for Super Bowl Events

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LOS ANGELES — Las Vegas will be flooded with so many pre- Super Bowl events that Shaquille O’Neal lowered the prices to his popular carnival-themed “Shaq’s Fun House.”

Instead of raising the rate, O’Neal decided to offer potential attendees more bang for their buck to the NBA legend’s sixth annual event planned for Friday in Sin City. He made the decision to lower the rates after purchasing an expensive suite at the Formula One that cost nearly five times more than normal to watch the racing event in Las Vegas last year.

“We’re not going to do that to the people,” said O’Neal, who said the going rate for Fun House starts at $99 but will increase as the event nears. He’ll bring back Lil Wayne, Diplo and himself under his name DJ Diesel to perform during his over-the-top festival — which features several attractions including a Ferris wheel, circus performers and premium bar.

“We could’ve done $200, $250 or $300,” said O’Neal whose event will take place XS Nightclub at the Wynn — a hotel that will host Rob Gronkowski ‘s Gronk Beach in Encore on Saturday afternoon and Sports Illustrated’s The Party in XS Nightclub later that night. “But I don’t like taking advantage of people. We want to have the best party with the best rides, performers and just hanging out.”

Along with O’Neal’s event, the days leading up to the Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers will include concerts from some of the biggest stars including Travis Scott, Green Day, Killer Mike, Kelly Clarkson, Ice Spice, Future and David Guetta. The week will include some comedy too.

Here’s a look at some of the invite-only and public events during a busy Super Bowl week:

Fanatics Party

Michael Rubin is known for his exclusive summer bashes in the Hamptons — which bring out stars like Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck and Kendall Jenner.

Now, Rubin, the founder and CEO of Fanatics, will host his invite-only daytime event at Marquee Dayclub at the Cosmopolitan the day before the Super Bowl. His event will feature performances by Travis Scott, The Chainsmokers, Ice Spice, A$AP Ferg, Meek Mill, Lil Baby, Fabolous, Ludacris, Ne-Yo and Kid Laroi.

Madden Bowl

After Killer Mike collected three Grammys during his arrest-shortened night, the Atlanta-based rapper is expected to be one of the performers at the EA Sports’ The Madden Bowl.

Rock group Green Day will headline the Friday night event at House of Blues. It will also feature Big Boi of OutKast and Breland.

“Las Vegas isn’t ready for the show we’re about to bring,” Big Boi said.

In addition to the music performances, the event will include the Madden NFL 24 Championship Series in front of a live audience — where two of the world’s best players will travel to Las Vegas for their share of the $1 million prize pool and title of Ultimate Madden Bowl champion.

Kevin Hart and O’Neal’s production companies will hold a star-studded, stand-up comedy showcase.

Actor Deon Cole will host the two-night show called the All Star Comedy Jam with performances by D.L. Hughley, Earthquake, Desi Banks and Aida Rodriguez. The event will be held inside the Resorts World Theatre’ 5,000-capacity venue on Friday and Saturday night.

Gospel Celebration

Cedric the Entertainer and Tichina Arnold will help bring the gospel to Sin City.

The stars of the CBS show The Neighborhood will host the Super Bowl Soulful Celebration at the Palms Casino Resort on Wednesday night. The lineup includes some of gospel’s best from Earth, Wind & Fire, Mary Mary, Kirk Franklin, Robin Thicke and the NFL Players Choir including Tully Banta-Cain and Bryan Scott, who played in the league.

“I want people to feel empowered walking away from this show,” Arnold said. “You should never walk way feeling drained. You should walk way feeling loved.”

CBS Mornings co-host Nate Burleson, a former NFL player, will receive the Lifetime of Inspiration award. He will be the sixth person to receive the honor the show’s 25-year history.

Previous recipients include Tony Dungy, Ray Lewis, Tim Brown, Troy Vincent and Deion Sanders.

Gronk Beach

Despite being retired, Rob Gronkowski keeps making his presence felt during the NFL’s championship week. 

The four-time Super Bowl winner — who views himself the “MVP of Fun” — will host a music festival called “Gronk Beach” the day before the big game. The beach-themed party will feature a performance by DJ Afrojack.

“It’s all about going there and having a good time. Just losing your mind in a great and positive way,” Gronkowski said. “You can dance free, be yourself freely and just enjoy yourself with great company around you.”

Gronkowski placed his tickets starting at $74.

Billy Idol

Instead of riding his motorcycle on Super Bowl Sunday, Billy Idol will be strolling on stage a few hours before kick off to perform during a pre-game concert.

The legendary British rocker will perform Sunday just outside Allegiant Stadium, where the NFL’s two best teams face off. He’s expected to perform a 35-minute set on two different stages at On Location’s Club 67 and Touchdown Club in front of nearly 9,000 guests.

Idol said he’s stoked about the setup being arranged by One Location — a premium hospitality provider of the NFL. The hospitality company offers various packages including Idol’s performance, attendance at NFL Honors and postgame field access.

Maluma & SiriusXM

Colombian superstar Maluma will take his vibrant Latin music vibes into Las Vegas with the help of SiriusXM.

Maluma will headline a special concert at The Theater at Virgin Hotels on Thursday night for SiriusXM subscribers and Pandora listeners. He’s expected to perform songs from his latest album Don Juan including Según Quién and COCO LOCO along with other fan favorites such as Hawái.

Future and David Guetta are expected to perform at the invite-only h.wood Homecoming Weekend pop up bash on Friday followed by another show with Jack Harlow and Kaytranada performer the next night at a custom venue on the Las Vegas Strip across from the Wynn.

On Saturday night, Zach Bryan will headline the Bud Light Backyard Tour.

Tiësto will headline a show at LIV at Fontainebleau on Saturday while 21 Savage and 50 Cent are expected to perform the same night.

Lil Wayne will hit the stage once again but this time with T-Pain as a co-headliner at the Alex Morgan and Dan Marino-hosted Michelob ULTRA Country Club at Topgolf on Saturday night. Bryan and Leon Bridges will perform at The Chelsea in The Cosmopolitan on Friday.

On Sunday, Guy Fieri will host his Guy’s Flavortown Tailgate, a free and family-friendly event that he expects will draw more than 10,000. Diplo will perform.

GQ will hold Super Bowl party Friday at the The Nomad Library and sports agent Leigh Steinberg will host an event Saturday morning at Ahern Luxury Boutique Hotel. 
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NATO Allies Pressure Hungary for Blocking Sweden’s Accession

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Hungary’s NATO allies are turning up the pressure on Prime Minister Viktor Orban to swiftly approve Sweden’s accession to the alliance, after lawmakers from his party refused to vote on the issue this week in parliament. Henry Ridgwell reports from Budapest.
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Russia, Iran Not Invited to Munich Security Conference

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BERLIN — Russian and Iranian government officials have not been invited to this year’s Munich Security Conference, as they did not seem open to meaningful dialogue, according to the chairperson of the annual event.

The conference, attended by the world’s defense and security elite and sometimes known as “Davos for defense,” will take place in the southern German city on February 16-18.

The event will open days before the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and four months after the start of the Israel-Hamas war, which has deepened instability across the Middle East as Western nations battle Iran-backed groups in Iraq, Yemen and Syria.

Christoph Heusgen said Tuesday he hoped the meeting would discuss these conflicts as well as others that received less attention but were causing major humanitarian crises, such as the 10-month-old war in Sudan that has displaced millions.

U.S. and Chinese officials, for example, had spoken with one another for the first time in a long while at last year’s event, which led to further engagement, he told Reuters.

“So we hope Munich offers the opportunity to make these small steps,” said Heusgen, who was a longtime foreign policy adviser to former Chancellor Angela Merkel.

He also expected the attendance of high-ranking Chinese officials. Last year top diplomat Wang Yi attended the event.

Heusgen told German press agency DPA the Iranian and Russian governments had not been invited because they had not shown a serious interest in negotiations. However, Iranian and Russian non-governmental organizations had been invited, he said.

Heusgen, roundly condemned by Israel’s ambassador to Germany for warning in October against an Israeli ground offensive in Gaza, said he expected high-ranking Israeli officials to attend.

Germany was in a dilemma on Israel, he said, as it was committed to the country’s security but also disagreed with its current leadership on a number of issues and had therefore suspended bilateral government consultations.

Heusgen praised Germany’s support for Ukraine, as the second biggest provider of military help to Kyiv. However it would need to have a discussion throughout society on the importance of higher defense spending and how to finance this, he said.
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Journalists Criticize Tucker Carlson Over Putin Interview

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Washington — Former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlon’s announcement on Tuesday that he interviewed Russian President Vladimir Putin has been met with disapproval from an array of journalists, some of whom say the Kremlin may use the interview for propaganda purposes.

In a video posted on the social media platform X, Carlson said he wanted to interview the longtime Russian leader because “Americans have a right to know all they can about a war they are implicated in.”

In mid-March, Russia is set to hold presidential elections, which Putin is all but guaranteed to win. Putin likely agreed to the interview with Carlson because he thinks it will help his campaign, according to Mikhail Rubin, deputy editor-in-chief of the Russian investigative outlet Proekt Media.

Carlson “needs to understand that he’s a part of the presidential election campaign, and he’s going to help [Putin], unfortunately,” Rubin told VOA.

Rubin added that Carlson’s interview is likely to be used to paint Moscow in a positive light.

“The most important is to show that Putin is open and that American journalists can work inside Russia because Russia is an open and free country,” Rubin said.

But that narrative is plainly false, said Rubin, who fled the country in 2021 for safety reasons.

“If I go to Russia, as far as I understand, I will be arrested the next day,” said Rubin, who is now based in Washington. “I’m not sure that I will ever see my father again.”

Other Russian journalists shared similar critiques on social media.

“I am like hundreds of Russian journalists who have had to go into exile to keep reporting about the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine. The alternative was to go to jail,” said Russian journalist Yevgenia Albats on X. Meanwhile, Carlson was “shooting from the $1,000 Ritz suite in Moscow,” she said.

Carlson also drew criticism for appearing to ignore the poor state of press freedom in Russia, which has led to the arrests of scores of reporters inside the country and forced many others into exile.

“Quite something to complain about how not enough American journalists are reporting on the Russian side of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine when two of them — Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva — are in jail right now for doing just that,” Max Seddon, Moscow bureau chief for the Financial Times, said in a post on X.  

The Wall Street Journal’s Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023 on espionage charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny.

Kurmasheva, an editor at VOA’s sister outlet Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was jailed in October 2023 and is facing charges for failing to register as a “foreign agent” and spreading false information about the Russian military. She and her employer reject the charges.

Besides Kurmasheva and Gershkovich, at least 20 other journalists were jailed in Russia as of the end of 2023, according to data from the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the interview was recorded on Tuesday.

The interview will likely be published Thursday, according to the Wall Street Journal. Carlson said it will be uploaded live and unedited to X, where he launched a show after he was abruptly fired from the conservative channel Fox News last year.

 

The right-wing television personality hosted a prime-time show on Fox News from 2016 until his firing in 2023. Carlson’s departure came shortly after Fox News agreed to pay over $787 million to Dominion Voting Systems to settle a defamation lawsuit over false election claims, many of which Carlson himself propagated.

The Tucker Carlson Network did not immediately reply to VOA’s email requesting comment.

After accusing U.S. media of “fawning pep session” interviews with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Carlson went on to claim that “not a single Western journalist has bothered to interview the president of the other country in this conflict, Vladimir Putin.”

Journalists took to social media to criticize that claim, as well.

“Does Tucker really think we journalists haven’t been trying to interview President Putin every day since his full-scale invasion of Ukraine?” CNN’s Christiane Amanpour said in a post on X. “It’s absurd — we’ll continue to ask for an interview, just as we have for years now.”

Even the Kremlin fact-checked that claim from Carlson.

“No, Mr. Carlson is wrong. In fact, he cannot know this,” Peskov, the spokesperson, said, adding that the Kremlin receives many requests for interviews with Putin.
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Newly-Uncovered False Foreign Exchange Claims Could Hurt Nigerian Economy

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abuja, nigeria — Nigeria’s central bank said this week it uncovered $2.4 billion in false foreign exchange claims after investigating backlogs of $7 billion due to be cleared. Authorities said the findings will reduce pressures caused by foreign exchange shortages and warned that false claims could harm Nigeria’s economy.

The discovery of the invalid claims followed a comprehensive forensic audit by the consulting company Deloitte on behalf of the Nigerian central cank.

The CBN described the discovery as startling and said the irregularities include invalid documents, non-existent claimants and, in some cases, beneficiaries receiving unauthorized foreign exchange allocations.

The bank also said some claimants received more than they had initially requested.

CBN governor Olayemi Cardoso said the bank will not honor invalid transactions.

Economic analyst Ogho Okiti said it is a step in the right direction.

“Given what we have now, about 50% has been cleared and we have about 50% to go,” said Okiti. “And whenever that is done, that should actually support or help our improvement in liquidity. I think anyone found to be intentionally, deliberately and by design wanting to defraud the Central Bank, I think they should be made to account for that.”

It is the first time in seven years that audited accounts of the CBN have been made public.

Prolonged foreign exchange shortage

Nigeria has been struggling with a prolonged foreign exchange shortage that has delayed economic progress, devalued the local currency, and worsened inflation.

Authorities said the audit had become necessary in order to understand the problems with the central bank and the economy.

So far, the CBN has paid out around $2.3 billion in the valid claims, including money owed to airlines, manufacturing and energy sectors.

‘It’s not going to solve anything’

Economist and director at the Center for Social Justice Eze Onyekpere said the audit will not fix what ails the Nigerian economy.

“It’s not going to solve anything,” said Onyekpere. “The currency’s position in terms of the value is beyond the CBN and it’s monetary policies. It’s a whole lot about the governance architecture whether it’s in the area of fiscal, industrial, education, health policies. You heard the CBN governor tell the house of representatives that medical tourism and payment of school fees consumed about $40 billion within the space of 10 years — that’s $4 billion dollars a year.”

However, Onyekpere said the findings of the audit reflect deeper problems within Nigeria’s foreign exchange system and must be addressed.

“Commonwealth, foreign exchange, the resources of Nigeria have not been properly managed,” said Onyekpere. “Over the years they have been systematically stolen. The present economic situation we find ourselves is as a result of outright stealing.”

Upon taking office last year, President Bola Tinubu pledged to crack down on corruption and enact reforms to boost the economy. So far, the economy has not taken off and Nigerians remain in a wait-and-see mode.
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US Drone Strike in Iraq Kills Iran-Backed Militant Group Commander

Posted on by SeeUS

Pentagon — The United States military says it carried out a drone strike on a vehicle in Baghdad, killing a leader of an Iranian-backed militant group in Baghdad.

U.S. Central Command, which oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East, said the strike on Tuesday killed a commander of the militant group Kataib Hezbollah who was “responsible for directly planning and participating in attacks on U.S. forces in the region.”

Two U.S. officials confirmed to VOA that the commander was operations officer Wisam Mohammad al-Saedi. Photos on social media allegedly showed his Iraqi identification card that was pulled from his body.

VOA had earlier reported the United States military was involved in an airstrike against a high-value target in the Middle East but had not identified al-Saedi by name.

The official, who spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity, said the strike occurred in Baghdad, Iraq, late Wednesday. Local reports say the strike hit a vehicle carrying the commander of Khataib Hezbollah. Video shared on social media shows a vehicle engulfed in flames on a Baghdad highway.

The strike appears to be another attack in response to the killing of three U.S. service members in northern Jordan in a drone attack by Iranian-backed proxies.

A wave of U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria on Friday has pounded targets associated with almost 170 attacks by Iranian-backed militias on U.S. forces in the region. The strikes targeted three locations in Iraq, as well as another four in Syria, and they destroyed more than 80 individual targets, ranging from command-and-control centers and intelligence hubs to missile and drone storage facilities, according to the latest U.S. assessments.

But while U.S. officials have defended the strikes as necessary following a drone attack that killed three U.S. soldiers at a base in Jordan last month, Iraqi officials have voiced increased anger, summoning the U.S. chargé d’affaires in Baghdad to protest. They have charged that some of the U.S. strikes hit elements of Iraq’s own security forces.

The U.S. State Department said Monday that Iraq was not given any warning but added the U.S. strikes should not have come as a surprise.

Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder said Monday the U.S. had no plans for a long-term military campaign against the militias in Iraq and Syria, but he noted the U.S. response to the killing of its service members was “not complete.”

The U.S. has about 2,500 troops in Iraq tasked with advising and assisting Iraqi security forces as they pursue the remnants of the Islamic State terror group, also known as ISIS or Daesh.

And while talks between the U.S. and Iraq are underway to eventually reduce the U.S. military footprint and transition from the counter-IS mission to what officials describe as more traditional military-to-military relationship with Baghdad, the process has been complicated by the attacks.

On Tuesday, Iranian-backed Houthi militants once again ignored U.S. calls to stop attacking international shipping lanes or face consequences, this time firing six anti-ship missiles from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen into the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

U.S. Central Command said late Tuesday that one of the missiles caused minor damage to the Marshall Island-flagged, Greek owned-and-operated bulk carrier MV Star Nasia in the Gulf of Aden, while another missile landed in the water near the ship. U.S. forces shot down a third missile in the area.

There were no reported injuries, and the ship was able to continue toward its destination, CENTCOM said in a statement.

In the southern Red Sea, CENTCOM said three missiles likely targeting the Barbados-flagged, UK-owned cargo ship MV Morning Tide landed in the water without causing any damage.

The latest Houthi launches came as an unclassified Defense Intelligence Agency report released Tuesday confirmed that Houthi militants in Yemen were using various missiles and drones of Iranian origin in its recent attacks across the region. The report compares publicly available images of Iranian weapons to those employed by the Houthis and highlights the strengthening relationship between the Houthis and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Earlier Tuesday, the U.S. military said it conducted its latest self-defense strikes against two Houthi kamikaze drone boats that were laden with explosives.

CENTCOM, which oversees U.S. forces in the region, said the vessels “presented an imminent threat to U.S. Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region.”

The Houthis have said their Red Sea attacks are in solidarity with the people of Gaza and have vowed to continue them, despite the U.S. and British strikes.
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UN Chief: ‘Age of Chaos’ Engulfing the World Must End

Posted on by SeeAF

New York — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Wednesday that the world has entered an “age of chaos” that is causing a multitude of suffering and thwarting progress – and must be reversed.

“There is so much anger and hate and noise in our world today,” the secretary-general told member states as he laid out his priorities for 2024. “Every day and at every turn, it seems – it’s war.”

He said people just want peace and security and to live their lives with dignity.

“For millions of people caught up in conflict around the world, life is a deadly, daily, hungry hell,” he said.

He pointed to conflicts in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan, but also protracted situations in Myanmar, Yemen, Haiti and across Africa’s Sahel.

“If countries fulfilled their obligations under the [U.N.] charter, every person’s right to a life of peace and dignity would be guaranteed,” he noted. But he said the charter is regularly being trampled with impunity.  

He chastised the U.N.’s most powerful organ – the 15-nation Security Council – for contributing to the chaos.

“The United Nations Security Council – the primary platform for questions of global peace – is deadlocked by geopolitical fissures,” he said. “This is not the first time the council has been divided, but it is the worst.” 

He said the dysfunction is deeper and more dangerous today than even during the Cold War years.

“We are seeing the results, a dangerous and unpredictable free-for-all with total impunity,” Guterres said.

Divisions among the council’s five veto-wielding permanent members – Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States – have blocked meaningful action on a number of situations, including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as enforcing sanctions against bad actors like North Korea and the military junta in Myanmar.

He said the council must undergo serious reform to reflect today’s realities, including adding a permanent seat for Africa.

Guterres also called for reform of the international financial system, noting that the world’s poorest countries are drowning in debt.

And he urged people to “make peace with the planet” and stop waging a war with nature.

“It is a crazy fight to pick,” he said of the climate crisis. “We are detonating systems that sustain us.”

He also pointed to modern challenges, including the rapid spread of misinformation and disinformation, as well as the need to ensure artificial intelligence is used to benefit humanity.

“AI will affect all of humankind, so we need a universal approach,” he said.

He said adequate guardrails and ethical standards must be adopted and it should be widely available.

At the base of all progress, Guterres said, is peace, and he said it is a collective responsibility to act for it in all its dimensions.

“Peace can achieve wonders that wars never will,” he said. “Wars destroy. Peace builds.”
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NATO Allies Pressure Hungary Over Blocking Sweden’s Accession

Posted on by SeeEU

budapest — Hungary’s NATO allies are turning up the pressure on Prime Minister Viktor Orban to swiftly approve Sweden’s accession to the alliance after his MPs refused an opportunity to vote on the issue this week.

Sweden applied to join the alliance in May 2022 in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February of that year. But Hungary has repeatedly delayed ratification.

Hungary is now the only country preventing Sweden from joining NATO after Turkey finally gave its approval last month. Ankara had initially raised concerns over Sweden’s purported harboring of Kurdish separatist groups, which Turkey considers terrorists.

No-show vote

With Hungary’s parliament currently on winter recess, opposition MPs convened an extraordinary session of lawmakers Monday in an attempt to force a vote.

Lawmakers from Orban’s Fidesz Party refused to attend, though, despite Orban declaring last month that he supports Sweden’s accession to NATO and would urge his party to approve the application at the first opportunity.

Tompos Marton of Hungary’s Momentum Party was among the opposition lawmakers pushing for Monday’s vote.

“What is quite ridiculous for us is that we understood why Turkey was pushing the issue. They had demands. However, in Hungary, there was no demand articulated at all,” Marton told VOA Wednesday, adding that many suspected Orban had different motives.

“On the one hand, we could say that it’s a miscalculation, they [Fidesz] just didn’t catch the flow, didn’t understand the situation. On the other hand, there are also understandings that the only person who benefits from this is [Russian President] Vladimir Putin. And Mr. Orban has done a few favors for him already, and why not another one?” Marton said.

Agnes Vadai, a lawmaker with the opposition Democratic Coalition, echoed those concerns.

“Orban is personally responsible. He wants to favor Putin, and through that, breaking the unity of NATO,” she told Reuters.

The Hungarian government repeatedly refused VOA requests for an interview. In the past, Orban has denied favoring Putin but has called for an immediate cease-fire in Ukraine, arguing that Western support for Kyiv will only prolong the war.

Allied pressure

Hungary’s NATO allies are turning up the pressure. U.S. Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman spoke to reporters after attending Monday’s session of parliament in Budapest.

“The prime minister pledged to convene parliament to urge parliament to act at its earliest opportunity,” he said on Monday. “Today was an opportunity to do that, and we look forward to watching this closely, and to Hungary acting expeditiously.”

U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, chairman of the influential Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said earlier this month that Hungary was “the least reliable” NATO ally and that Washington should consider imposing sanctions, along with a suspension of the U.S. Visa Waiver Program for Hungarian citizens.

A German government spokesperson said Tuesday that Hungary’s approval of Sweden’s accession was a “matter of loyalty” to the NATO alliance.

Hungary’s demands

Orban has made no specific demand of Sweden but has indicated displeasure over its criticism of perceived democratic backsliding in Hungary.

Fidesz MPs want Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to visit Budapest before they approve his country’s NATO membership.

“If it is important for the Swedes, then obviously they will come to Budapest. Or at least they will make steps that will lead to the Hungarian MPs to vote for the accession with good hearts,” Gergely Gulyas, Orban’s chief of staff, told reporters in Budapest February 1. “I think it is better if we start running to jump a hurdle if we know that we can jump over it.”

Meanwhile, Kristersson has said he will visit Budapest only after Hungary has approved his country’s accession to NATO, adding that Sweden’s membership and Hungary’s perceived offense at the criticism of its democracy should not be linked.

Loss of face

With his country now isolated among allies, Orban is looking for a way out, said analyst Peter Kreko, executive director of the Political Capital think-tank in Budapest.

“Fidesz and Orban maneuvered themselves into a dead end. And they do not seem to be able to correct the mistake, because right now, I think they put themselves in the center of attention to an extent that it’s just more difficult to leave this situation without a loss of face,” Kreko told VOA.

“I do think Orban will not let this situation go until he receives some kind of public recognition,” said Kreko. “I think for Orban, this is partially an ego game. This is about showing that he deserves respect in the international domain.”

Hungary’s parliament is scheduled to return from recess on February 26. It is not clear if or when a vote on Sweden’s accession will take place.
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UN Launches Appeal to Aid Millions in War-Torn Sudan

Posted on by SeeAF

geneva — As Sudan is about to enter its 10th month of conflict, United Nations agencies launched a $4.1 billion appeal Tuesday to provide urgent aid for 14.7 million people inside Sudan and 2.7 million people who have taken refuge in five neighboring countries. 

The U.N. launch in Geneva got off to a poignant start with a video of Sudanese victims who recounted the terrible impact the war has had on their lives. Mena, a young Sudanese refugee in Egypt said the war has robbed her and other children of their education. 

“How can we build our future in this situation? No school, which means no studying, no education, no medical service and most importantly,” she said. “We lost our childhood. This is our future, and it must be preserved.” 

U.N. officials at the conference agreed that Sudan’s conflict has fueled “suffering of epic proportions.” And yet, said Martin Griffiths, U.N. undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, this crisis has been forgotten by the international community because of “competing crises in Gaza, Ukraine, and elsewhere.” 

“But I do not think that there is anywhere quite so tragic in the world today as Sudan,” he said. “The figures speak for themselves — 25 million people in Sudan who need assistance, half of them are children. That is an astonishing figure.” 

He said, “There is a certain kind of obscenity about the humanitarian world which is a competition of suffering,” where different places in the world feel the need to magnify their level of suffering “to get more attention and get more money.” 

Fighting threatens food availability 

The United Nations says the conflict has come at an intolerable high price for the Sudanese people. It reports more than 13,000 people have been killed and millions of people have been uprooted from their homes. 

The World Food Program warns the expansion of fighting in Sudan, including to Al Jazirah, the country’s so-called breadbasket, “poses a significant threat to national food availability.” It says nearly 18 million people are facing acute hunger. 

The World Health Organization reports diseases, including cholera, measles and malaria are spreading at a time when 70 to 80 percent of hospitals in conflict hot spots are not functioning. 

U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi told the conference that the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has created one of the world’s largest displacement and protection crises. 

“If you calculate people displaced inside and outside, you reach easily eight, nine million people displaced. This is massive. This is the scale of Ukraine, the scale of Syria. These are the three biggest displacement crises at the moment, and this is the one that is least talked about.” 

Grandi visited Sudan and Ethiopia last week. While in Port Sudan, he said he raised the issue of humanitarian access to people in need with both warring parties. He told them that the delivery of humanitarian assistance “needs to be facilitated, not made more difficult.” 

“I have received all the assurances,” he said, adding that he had to explain to them that aid was being held up in a variety of ways: “We get slowed down by travel, by the need to get permits, by checkpoints and bureaucracy.” 

Grandi said he met with Sudanese refugees in Ethiopia and displaced people inside Sudan. All of them, he said, had the same message: “We want peace so we can go home, and we need support to rebuild our lives.” 

Grandi urged donor countries attending the conference “to step up their support for the people of Sudan. They desperately need help, and they need it now.” 

UN official spotlights deseparation

Griffiths warned countries that they are ignoring the conflict in Sudan and the desperation of its people at their peril. 

“Sudan geographically poses a threat to destabilizing parts of Africa … It is something which we cannot allow to continue the way it is now,” he said. “We have to invest in political diplomacy. We have to invest in humanitarian efforts. We have to invest in the region as well and we have to make sure that Sudan is a place that we think about every single day, to make sure that we do the best we can.” 

Griffiths said he looks forward to going to Sudan in a couple of weeks to bring attention to this crisis and to try to gain greater access for humanitarian aid to reach the millions in need. 

He said he recently has been in touch with Sudan’s rival generals  — General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, who commands the Sudan Armed Forces and the RSF paramilitary leader, General Mohammed Hamdan, known as “Hemetti.” 

His aim, he said was to bring them together to the so-called humanitarian forum “so we would have negotiations for access.” 

“It is so clear. It is uncomplicated. It is so necessary, and I begged the two of them to come together,” Griffiths said. “They both said they would. We are still waiting.” 
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Prince William Back to Work after Kate’s Surgery and King Charles’ Cancer

Posted on by SeeEU

London — Britain’s Prince William returned to public duty on Wednesday following his wife Kate’s surgery and news that King Charles had cancer, as his younger brother Prince Harry was set to return to the United States after a flying visit to see their father. 

William, the heir to the throne, had postponed all his planned engagements to look after his three children after Kate, 42, underwent planned abdominal surgery on Jan. 16, and spent two weeks in hospital recovering.  

Since then, his father has undergone treatment at the same hospital for an enlarged prostate, before Buckingham Palace announced on Monday that subsequent tests on the 75-year-old monarch had revealed he had a form of cancer. 

On Wednesday, William, 41, made his first official public appearance since the series of health blows to the royals when he carried out an investiture – a ceremony to hand out state honors – at Windsor Castle and will later attend a gala dinner for London’s Air Ambulance Charity. 

With the king postponing public duties as he has out-patient treatment and Kate not expected to return to engagements until after Easter, the onus will be on the remaining royals especially William and Charles’ wife Queen Camilla, to provide the public face of the monarchy. 

Royal author Robert Hardman said William had already taken on substantial state duties towards the end of Queen Elizabeth’s reign when she was hampered by mobility issues. 

“In that regard, it’s not that different but obviously there’s the burden of expectation,” Hardman told Reuters. “On many occasions he will have to stand in, he’ll be sort of quasi head of state in much the same way that Prince Charles was when the queen was infirm.” 

On Tuesday, the king travelled with Camilla to Sandringham House, his home in eastern England, after a brief meeting of about 30 minutes with his estranged son Prince Harry who had just flown in to see his father after the king told him he had cancer. 

Harry has barely been on speaking terms with many of the Windsors following his criticism of the monarchy since stepping down from royal duties almost four years ago.  

A royal source said there were no plans for him to see his elder brother William during his visit to Britain. After only about 24 hours in Britain, Harry was seen at Heathrow Airport from where he was expected to fly home to California where he now lives with wife Meghan and their two children. 

Despite the diagnosis, Charles is planning to continue with much of his private work as monarch and dealing with state papers. He will hold his regular weekly audience with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak by phone on Wednesday, Sunak’s spokesman confirmed.  

Buckingham Palace has not given any details of the condition other than to say it was not prostate cancer, but said the king was remaining “wholly positive” and looking forward to returning to public duty as soon as possible.
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Authorities Search for Helicopter Carrying 5 Marines From Nevada to California

Posted on by SeeUS

SAN DIEGO — Crews were searching for a Marine Corps helicopter carrying five troops from Nevada to California that was reported overdue early Wednesday, a watch commander said. 

The Marines were flying a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter from Creech Air Force Base in Clark County, Nevada, to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. 

The five U.S. Marines were assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing at Miramar, the military said in a statement. 

The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing based at Miramar Air Station in San Diego is coordinating search and rescue efforts with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and the Civil Air Patrol. 

The Sheriff’s Department was notified at 1 a.m. that the craft was overdue for arrival at Miramar and was last seen in the area of Pine Valley, a mountainous region about 35 miles (56 kilometers) east of downtown San Diego, said Lt. Matthew Carpenter. 

Carpenter did not have any details on the type of helicopter or number of people aboard. 

Calls to Miramar were not immediately answered. 

Waves of heavy downpours hit the area throughout the night from an historic storm that has drenched California this week. 
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Nigerian Activists Working to End Painful Practice of Breast Ironing

Posted on by SeeAF

A harmful practice called breast ironing or flattening affects about 3.8 million women in Africa, including some parts of Nigeria. The practice aims to delay development in adolescent girls. Gibson Emeka has this story, narrated by Salem Solomon.
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