World News liveblog
Reuters live coverage of events around the world. Follow @ReutersWorld on Twitter for top news and @ReutersLive for live video events.
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Two Ruto decisions from ICC:
1. Permission to return to Kenya : youtube.com
2. Adjournment: youtube.comby ReportingKenya.net via twitter edited by Margarita Noriega (Reuters) 9/23/2013 3:16:06 PM -
Regrettably, 11 KDF soldiers have been injured in this operation and are receiving medical attention at the Defence Forces Memorial Hospitalby Kenya Defence Forces via twitter 9/23/2013 3:10:37 PM -
Kenya Defence Forces soldiers take cover behind a wall near the Westgate shopping centre after an exchange of gunfire inside the mall in Nairobi September 23, 2013. REUTERS/Noor Khamis
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Fire engines and armoured military vehicles are pictured in front of Westgate shopping centre after explosions at the mall in Nairobi September 23, 2013. REUTERS/Noor Khamis
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Fire started in the building by the terrorists to distract the ongoing operation is being managed by fire fighters frm different agencies. Chances of any terrorists sneaking and escaping are very slim. KDF troops have sealed all possible escape routes.
KDF has dominated all floors of Westgate Mall building. Troops are now concentrating on clearing the building via @kdfinfoby Kenya Defence Forces via twitter edited by Margarita Noriega (Reuters) 9/23/2013 3:02:35 PM -
Kenya's economy seen resilient to mall attack, tourism aside
By Kevin Mwanza and Joseph Akwiri
NAIROBI/MOMBASA - Security worries are nothing new in Kenya and so the country is unlikely to see long-term investors pull money out after the deadly attack on a Nairobi shopping mall, analysts say.
However, the tourism industry - a big earner of foreign exchange - may suffer some damage, especially if governments warn their citizens from travelling to the east African country.
This weekend's hostage crisis, in which more than 60 people have been killed, is a sharp reminder of the threat from war-ravaged Somalia on the doorstep, but Kenya's previous encounters with Islamic militancy - in 1998 and 2002 - suggest the economic impact will be limited.
"It will hit investor confidence but having said that the areas which are most likely to be impacted are tourism and in the shorter-term consumer goods," said Joseph Rohm, a portfolio manager of African equity portfolios at Investec Asset Management in Cape Town.
Click here for the full story. -
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Uganda steps up security after Kenya mall attack -army
KAMPALA - Uganda, which like Kenya has sent troops to fight Islamist militants in Somalia, said on Monday it had stepped up security after a raid by Somali-linked gunmen on a Kenyan shopping mall that killed at least 68 people.
The last big attack by Somalia's al Shabaab, which has claimed responsibility for the Nairobi attack, was a double bombing in Uganda in 2010, targeting people watching the soccer World Cup final on television in Kampala, killing 77 people.
"We have generally stepped up security across the board in terms of streamlining border security so that we plug all the loopholes at entry points that could be potentially exploited by these characters," said Ugandan army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Paddy Ankunda when asked about Uganda's response.
There was no obvious sign of heightened security at two of the capital's main shopping malls, beyond the usual checks by private security personnel.
"We have strengthened our cooperation with our neighbouring countries in intelligence sharing and all other ways in which we can collaborate to defeat these terrorists," Ankunda added.
(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Robin Pomeroy) -
The Independent compiles tweets from survivors of the shopping mall attack. ind.pn
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The operation ticks the boxes that al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri listed in a message published just over a week ago.
CNN -
Nice backgrounder and observations from Martin Plaut, former Africa editor with the BBC. bit.ly
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Exclusive RAW Video Footage On The Westgate Attack ( Courtesy of CCTV).
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As details are released about the victims in the Nairobi shopping mall attack, a picture emerges of the assault's global impact. Mana Rabiee reports.
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Kenyan police officers take position during the ongoing military operation at the Westgate Shopping Centre in the capital Nairobi, September 23, 2013. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
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Smoke rises over Westgate Shopping Centre after an explosion in Nairobi, September 23, 2013. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic
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"Tear gas wafting through the crowd at Westgate. Police evacuating crowds. Black smoke & chaos": Daniel Howden. bit.ly
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Reuters Video: EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton meets Egypt's interim leaders at the start of a mediation mission to Cairo. Lily Grimes reports.
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Reuters Picture: Supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi shout slogans during a protest at the Rabaa Adawiya square where they are camping, in Cairo August 2, 2013. Tens of thousands of supporters of Mursi marched through Cairo on Friday, demanding Mursi's reinstatement amidst a looming threat that Egyptian authorities will clear out two pro-Mursi sit-ins with force. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
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Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Michael Georgy and Alistair LyonEgypt's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi understands that there must be a political solution to Egypt's crisis, Vice President Mohamed ElBaradei said in an interview published on Friday, adding that the general was not thinking of running for president.
"He understands that there has to be a political solution. But of course he has a responsibility to protect the country in terms of security. And the army is on the edge," ElBaradei told the Washington Post.
The interview was published as the European Union pursued an effort to negotiate an end to the standoff between the Muslim Brotherhood and the army-backed administration installed after President Mohamed Mursi's July 3 downfall. ElBaradei said protest camps set up by the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo should be disbanded through dialogue, following Interior Ministry warnings that steps would be taken to disperse them."I do not want to see any more bloodshed. Nobody wants that. We are doing our best," ElBaradei said.
"That’s why [I favor] a dialogue renouncing violence as part of a package for them to disband this whole demonstration and then start building the country," he added. "They need to cooperate," he added, in reference to the Brotherhood. "But they need of course to feel secure, they need immunity, they need to feel that they are not excluded. It’s things we are willing to provide."In detention since he was deposed, Mursi faces a judicial inquiry into accusations of murder and conspiring with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in 2011 when he escaped from prison during the revolt against former President Hosni Mubarak. ElBaradei said he would like to see the charges against Mursi dropped "if they are not very serious"."I would like to see a possible pardon as a part of a grand package. Because the fate of the country is much more important," ElBaradei said.
He also said Sisi was not thinking of running for president:"You see Sisi’s picture everywhere, and it’s good that he is not thinking of running for president. It’s good that he does not want to have the army run the country," he said. "But people in a national emergency look for power, and the power rests with the army right now."
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Reuters: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says U.S. government, other countries working to bring Egypt parties togetherReporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Sonya HepinstallThe United States and other nations are working hard to bring Egypt's parties together to find a peaceful resolution to the current crisis, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday (August 2, 2013)."Egypt needs to get back to a new normal, it needs to restore stability, to be able to attract business and put people to work," Kerry said before a meeting with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed in London."We will work very very hard together with others, in order to bring parties together to find a peaceful resolution that grows the democracy and respects the rights of everybody."
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I live near the presidential palace. I hear lots of people in the streets, car honking and helicopters flying every 2.054 seconds.by TheBigPharaoh via twitter 7/26/2013 8:43:45 PM -
by TheBigPharaoh via twitter 7/26/2013 8:42:30 PM -
Egyptians stage rival rallies as Mursi charges fuel tension3:20pm EDT, July 26, 2013
By Noah Browning and Shadia Nasralla
CAIRO (Reuters) - Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets in rival mass rallies on Friday, hours after the state news agency said ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi was being investigated for charges including murder.
In Cairo, huge crowds heeded a call by army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to give him a popular mandate to confront violence unleashed by his July 3 overthrow of Mursi, many of them clutching pictures of the general in full ceremonial uniform. Supporters of the deposed Islamist leader staged mass counter-demonstrations to demand his reinstatement, shrugging off fears of an imminent crackdown.
The army's move against Egypt's first democratically elected president has caused deep alarm in the West. The country of 84 million people forms a bridge between the Middle East and North Africa and receives $1.5 billion a year in mainly military aid from the United States.
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Reuters Picture: A view of a sunset over Tahrir Square during a protest to support the army, in Cairo July 26, 2013. Ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Mursi is under investigation for an array of charges including murder, the state news agency said on Friday, stoking tensions as opposing political camps took to the streets. Confirming the potential for bloodshed, two men were killed in confrontations in Egypt's second city Alexandria and a further 19 were hurt, Mena news agency reported. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
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Friday's protests are in relation to charges that ousted President Mursi conspired with Palestinian Islamist group Hamas to flee jail during the 2011 uprising against veteran autocrat Hosni Mubarak, killing some prisoners and officers, kidnapping soldiers and torching buildings. Mursi has previously said locals helped him escape from prison during the 2011 upheavals and the Muslim Brotherhood denounced the series of accusations leveled against him.
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"At the end of the day, we know all of these charges are nothing more than the fantasy of a few army generals and a military dictatorship," Brotherhood spokesman Gehad El-Haddad said. "We are continuing our protests on the streets."
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Two Egyptians were killed in clashes between supporters and opponents of ousted President Mohamed Mursi in Egypt's second biggest city of Alexandria on Friday, Egypt's MENA news agency reported. It said 19 others were injured in clashes that erupted after thousands took to the streets in response to a call by army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi for a popular mandate to tackle violence unleashed since the ouster of Mursi on July 3. That triggered calls for pro-Mursi rallies.
Reporting by Omar Fahmy; writing by Yasmine Saleh; editing by Edmund Blair -
"There were people who supported Sisi or didn't want the Brotherhood," said Hatem al-Dabaa, a 50-year-old owner of an antique shop in Cairo who is opposed to military rule. "But when they see what the military rule will do, they will change their minds."
Read: Egypt's generals back in power (Reuters) -
An anti-Mursi protester waves an Egyptian flag as a military helicopter flies over Tahrir square during a protest to support the army in Cairo July 26, 2013. Many of those Egyptians opposed to ousted President Mohamed Mursi say their admiration for the army has never wavered, and that any anger was always directed at the generals in charge. In the turbulent world of Egyptian politics since Hosni Mubarak, a former air force marshal, was toppled, the military is seen as an institution that offers stability. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih
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Anti-Mursi protesters climb up a utility pole where a poster of army chief Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi is hung from it during a mass protest to support the army in Tahrir square, Cairo, July 26, 2013. Many of those Egyptians opposed to ousted President Mohamed Mursi say their admiration for the army has never wavered, and that any anger was always directed at the generals in charge. In the turbulent world of Egyptian politics since Hosni Mubarak, a former air force marshal, was toppled, the military is seen as an institution that offers stability. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih
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"I'm staying home all day, it's too dangerous to work. I didn't think things in Egypt could get this bad, but every day you hear about clashes and deaths," said Shadi Mohamed, a 22-year-old taxi driver. "Egypt is a disaster."
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World Wrap: Abe cements grip in weekend winJapanese prime minister scores weekend victory, blast targets radical Buddhist monk, and UAE drops charges against a Norwegian woman for reporting rape. Today is Monday, July 22, and this is the World Wrap, brought to you by @dwbronner and @clarerrrr.
Japan’s Prime Minister and the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Shinzo Abe, makes an appearance before the media at a news conference following a victory in the upper house elections by his ruling coalition, at the LDP headquarters in Tokyo, July 22, 2013. REUTERS/Issei KatoAbe’s win a double-edged sword. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s decisive victory in Sunday’s upper house election gives him better footing to bolster his signature economic reform plan, Abenomics. However, Abe could face pushback from members of his own Liberal Democratic Party on making politically unpopular reforms. A stronger mandate also may prompt Abe to push for other elements of his conservative agenda:
Ever since Abe stormed back to power with a big win in a December lower house poll, some – including Japanese businesses with a big stake in the matter – have worried the hawkish leader will shift focus to the conservative agenda that has long been central to his ideology. That agenda includes revising the post-war pacifist constitution, strengthening Japan’s defense posture and recasting Tokyo’s wartime history with a less apologetic tone.
According to the Tokyo Shimbun metropolitan newspaper, 42.9 percent of those polled said they are against Abe’s plan to alter the constitution to make it more hawkish, and nearly 55 percent are against restarting nuclear reactors. Analysts say Abe’s mandate is not as strong as it appears, despite a landslide win. Just over half of the eligible population turned out to vote, and Abe’s victory was aided by a splintered opposition.
Buddhist monk Wirathu (C), leader of the 969 movement, greets other monks as he attends a meeting on the National Protection Law at a monastery outside Yangon, June 27, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun‘Burmese bin Laden’ targeted by bomb attack. The leader of a radical Buddhist movement in Myanmar was unscathed by a bomb that exploded 40 feet from him as he delivered a mass sermon. Wirathu, who has described himself as the “Burmese bin Laden,” said he believes the attacker wanted to silence him with the blast:
The home-made bomb went off inside a parked car, according to police and witnesses. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Tensions have been smoldering between radical elements of Myanmar’s Buddhist majority and Muslims. Bouts of religious violence have killed at least 237 people and displaced 150,000 in the past year, testing the resolve of a two-year-old quasi-civilian government.
Five people were slightly injured by the bomb. The 969 movement has been accused of inciting violence against Myanmar’s minority Muslim Rohingya, many of whom have fled the country in hopes of finding acceptance elsewhere. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Norwegian interior designer Marte Deborah Dalelv, 24, who reported being raped, speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Norwegian Seamen’s Center in Dubai, July 21, 2013. REUTERS/Jumana El HelouehBackwards ruling reversed. The UAE pardoned a Norwegian woman sentenced to 16 months in prison for illicit sex after she reported she was raped to authorities in Dubai:
Marte Deborah Dalelv, 24, had been awaiting an appeal hearing of her 16-month sentence handed down this month after a court in the Gulf Arab emirate found her guilty of having sex outside marriage, drinking and making false statements… News of the sentence had dominated the front pages in Norway and raised questions about the judicial system in the Gulf state, which attracts large numbers of expatriates and tourists with a Western lifestyle but has little-publicized conservative laws covering sex and alcohol.
Dalelv told police a colleague had pulled her into his hotel room and raped her when she asked him for help finding her own room after they had a few drinks. In the UAE, a rape conviction requires testimony from four adult male witnesses or a confession.
Nota Bene: At least 54 people were killed and hundreds injured in a 6.6-magnitude earthquake that hit China.
Standouts:
Trade route revamp - Hewlett-Packard revives the Silk Road. (The New York Times)
Would you like porn with that? - Internet porn will be blocked in British homes unless subscribers opt-in. (BBC)
Ancient digs - Israeli archaeologists say they have located King David’s palace. (The Associated Press)
Quack cops - Geese are the newest soldiers fighting China’s war on crime. (Quartz)
Great Barrier grief - Bombs dropped by U.S. fighter jets on the Great Barrier Reef add to a long list of threats. (National Geographic)
From the File:
- EU could decide to blacklist military wing of Hezbollah.
- Suicide bomber attacks Iraq army convoy, killing at least 25.
- Afghan parliament sacks interior minister over security issues.
- Spain’s PM to appear in parliament over corruption scandal.
- Panama finds MiG fighter jets on North Korean arms ship.
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U.S. 'deeply disappointed' at Russian opposition leader conviction
A White House spokesman said on Thursday the United States is "deeply disappointed and concerned" at the conviction of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and called on Russia to allow an appeal and cease pressure on anti-corruption activists.
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A policeman beats a man, who was detained, inside a police bus during a protest against the verdict of a court in Kirov, which sentenced Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to five years in jail, in central Moscow, July 18, 2013. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva
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Amnesty International calls for the release of Navalny after "parody" trial.
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With Navalny's sentence, Putin chooses the hard way
Navalny had managed to do what nobody else had: he beat the system Putin had put in place to effectively bar any unwanted figure, group, or party from entering the political realm. He built a following in a country where mass-media outlets are under tight government control. He took on Russia’s high-ranking officials and large companies. He encouraged others to act.
Read the full piece in the New Yorker by Masha Lipman here. -
A piece from April in the New York Review of Books describes the implications of the Navalny trial on U.S.-Russia security cooperation and the investment climate in Russia. Months before Navalny's sentencing, Amy Knight writes that his conviction was a "foregone conclusion":
Long a target of the Kremlin, Navalny has already received two fifteen-day prison sentences in the last eighteen months for involvement in street protests. Now he faces up to ten years in prison on charges of embezzling 16 million rubles (over $500,000) from a state-owned timber company. As with other such prosecutions, it seems a foregone conclusion that Navalny will be found guilty, despite the bogus nature of the charges. It also seems clear that the verdict will be dictated by the Kremlin.
Read the full article by Amy Knight here. -
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People protest in St. Petersburg against a court verdict in Kirov sentencing Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to five years in jail, July 18, 2013. Navalny was sentenced to five years in jail for theft on Thursday, an unexpectedly tough punishment which supporters said proved Russia's President Vladimir Putin was a dictator ruling by repression. REUTERS/Alexander Demianchuk
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Panama detains N. Korean-flagged ship, seizes weapons
Panama has detained a North Korean-flagged ship coming from Cuba as it approached the Panama Canal with undeclared weapons, President Ricardo Martinelli said.
The weapons, hidden in containers of brown sugar, were detected after Panamanian authorities stopped the ship, suspecting it was carrying drugs. The vessel was pulled over near the port of Manzanillo on the Atlantic side of the canal.
"We're going to keep unloading the ship and figure out exactly what was inside," Martinelli told Panamanian television late on Monday, without giving further details.
"You cannot go around shipping undeclared weapons of war through the Panama Canal."
Martinelli said the captain of the vessel tried to commit suicide after the ship was stopped. Panamanian authorities have detained some 35 crew members.
A spokeswoman for the canal said she did not have any more information and referred questions to the attorney general.
The attorney general's office did not immediately return requests for comment.
Javier Caraballo, Panama's top anti-drugs prosecutor, told local television the ship was en route to North Korea.
(Reporting by Lomi Kriel; editing by Elizabeth Piper) -
by JodyBland via twitter 7/16/2013 2:03:19 PM -
Heathrow airport closes both runways after plane fire
LONDON - Britain's Heathrow airport said on Friday it had closed both its runways after a fire aboard an Ethiopian Airlines plane.
A Heathrow spokeswoman said fire services were attending the incident but could not provide any more details. There were no passengers aboard the plane.
(Reporting by Rhys Jones; editing by Guy Faulconbridge, Stephen Addison and Kate Holton) -
Fugitive Snowden to seek temporary asylum in Russia
By Lidia Kelly and Alessandra Prentice
MOSCOW - Former intelligence agency contractor Edward Snowden will seek temporary political asylum in Russia, according to human rights groups that met him on Friday.
The Kremlin told Snowden, who has been on the run since disclosing details of U.S. electronic surveillance programmes, that he should refrain from criticising the United States if he wants refuge in Russia.
Participants in a meeting with human rights groups at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, where he has been stranded in the transit area since June 23, said Snowden would seek to travel on to Latin America.
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The first video of Snowden talking is out; http://lifenews.ru/news/116311by Olaf Koens via twitter 7/12/2013 3:14:43 PM
U.S. decision to withdraw troops dismays some Somalis
ADDIS ABABA President Donald Trump's decision to pull U.S. troops out of Somalia in the waning days of his presidency triggered dismay on Saturday from some Somalis, who appealed to the incoming U.S. president to reverse the decision.