Today's World News covering, Africa, Europe, Middle East

Four of six men arrested on Friday over last month's attacks in Brussels have been charged with terror offences.

The four include key suspect Mohamed Abrini, who was also wanted in connection with the attacks in Paris that killed 130 people last November.

 

The prosecutors could not confirm whether Abrini was the "man in the hat", the third bomber seen in a video clip in the Brussels airport attacks.

The attacks on the airport and a metro station left 32 people dead.

Officials believe those who carried out the Brussels and the Paris attacks were part of the same network backed by so-called Islamic State.

Abrini, 31, had previously not been directly linked to the Brussels bombings. His fingerprints and DNA were found in two "safe houses" in Brussels, as well as in a car used during the Paris attacks, investigators say.

Besides Abrini, those charged on Saturday were named as Osama K, Herve BN, and Bilal EM.

They are all accused of "participating in terrorist acts'' linked to the Brussels bombings. Two other people arrested on Friday have been released.

Osama K - identified in media reports as Swedish national Osama Krayem - was the man seen with the suicide bomber at Malbeek metro station just before the attack on 22 March, investigators say.

They also say that he bought bags used by the two bombers who struck at Zaventem airport on the same day.

Osama K is believed to have entered Greece from Syria with migrants last year, using a fake Syrian passport. Prosecutors believe he was driven from Germany to Belgium by Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam in October.

Abrini, a Belgian national of Moroccan origin, is thought to have been filmed at a petrol station with Abdeslam two days before the attacks in Paris.

Herve BM, described as a Rwandan national, and Bilal EM are both suspected of having offered assistance to Abrini and Osama K.

Also on Saturday, heavily armed police carried out a search in the Etterbeek area of Brussels. The target was a flat which police believe may have been used as a safe house by the militants.

bbc.com

Pope Francis has issued hotly-anticipated new guidelines on the Church’s approach to family life after two years of consultations with the world’s bishops.

 

The 200 page much anticipated guidelines touched on many subjects.  The following are some of the main points according to AFP:

Pope Francis is to make public the conclusions of his two Synods on the family in a document eagerly awaited by 1.3 billion Roman Catholics.

The massive leak of confidential banking documents known as the Panama Papers has implicated some big names in Africa. The documents, described as the biggest data leak in history show how 143 politicians, including 12 national leaders, have used offshore tax havens and other means to avoid taxes and sanctions.

 

Some of the Africans mentioned in the documents include a nephew of South African President Jacob Zuma, the twin sister of Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila, the jailed former governor of Nigeria’s oil-rich Delta State, and the petroleum minister of Angola, Africa’s second-biggest oil producer behind Nigeria.

Stanley Achonu is operations manager for Budgit, a civic organization that works to simplify the Nigerian federal budget for ordinary Nigerians. He said while the use of offshore facilities is not in itself a crime, the leak confirms what Africans have known all along about some of their leaders, that they use these offshore bank accounts to conceal stolen public funds.

“This is not new. The revelation is things that we have always known. But it now makes sense to have a paper trail backing up things that we have heard in the past,” he said.

James Ibori, governor of Nigeria’s oil-rich Delta State from 1999 to 2007, pleaded guilty in a London court in 2012 to conspiracy to defraud and money laundering offences. Ibori admitted using his position as governor to corruptly obtain and divert up to $75 million out of Nigeria through a network of offshore companies, although authorities alleged that the total amount he embezzled may have exceeded $250 million. Ibori received a 13-year prison sentence.

Achonu said the leaked data will bolster President Muhammadu Buhari’s effort to recover stolen public funds.

“This confirms all he has said in recent months about how huge sums of money was stolen by both elected and appointed officials. I believe that this revelation will further provide evidence for the anti-corruption fight,” Achonu said.

The leaked Panama papers also named the nephew of South African President Jacob Zuma.

Zuma’s nephew -- Khulubuse Zuma -- was listed as a representative of Caprikat Limited—one of two offshore companies that allegedly acquired oilfields in Democratic Republic of Congo in a $6.8 million deal in 2010. Caprikat is registered in the British Virgin Islands, the main offshore tax haven involved in the Panama Papers.

Khulubuse Zuma’s spokesperson Vuyo Mkhize said Monday that “Khulubuse does not, and has never held any offshore bank account” and that the Panama Papers simply suggested he was associated with Caprikat, which was a matter of public record.

The revelation could not have come at a worse time for President Jacob Zuma as South Africa's parliament is scheduled to open a debate Tuesday on an opposition motion to impeach him for violating the constitution.

The Constitutional Court ruled last week that Zuma "failed to uphold, defend, and respect the constitution" by failing to pay back some of the public funds he used to make improvements on his private home.

Zuma said in a televised address to the nation last week that he "never knowingly or deliberately set out to violate the constitution, which is the supreme law of the republic." Achonu said it’s about time South Africans make a decision about what to do about their president.

“For me it’s not just about South Africa. It’s also about the larger role that South Africa plays in Africa, one of the biggest countries, only second to Nigeria. South Africa cannot afford to have a president who has been tainted on all sides with respect to scandals,” Achonu said.

The documents also mentioned Jaynet Désirée Kabila, twin sister of Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila. She has been a member of parliament since 2012. She is allegedly linked to Keratsu Holding Limited, a company incorporated in the Pacific island of Niue in June 2001, months before her brother was elected as president. Kyungu has yet to comment on the allegations.

Achonu said while the use of offshore facilities is not in itself a crime, the leak confirms what Africans have known all along about some of their leaders, that they use these offshore bank accounts to conceal stolen public funds.

“I wouldn't want to reduce the data being released to just tax evasion. Especially in Africa, it’s most likely a case of people who have stolen public funds which they cannot justify using their regular income based on the position they hold in government and are now trying to hid their assets and wealth through offshore companies,” he said.

Other Africans mentioned the alleged leaked date include Kenya’s deputy chief justice Kalpana Rawal and the widow of former Guinean President Lansana Conte, Mamadie Touré.

A Newsweek magazine article said U.S. authorities allege that Touré received $5.3 million in bribes to help a mining company obtain rights to the world’s richest iron ore deposit.

It said in 2014, U.S. authorities raided Touré’s Florida home, seizing properties, restaurant equipment and an ice cream cooler collectively worth more than $1 million.

The son of former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan is also mentioned in the alleged leaked Panama papers.

According to Newsweek, the Swiss company Cotecna hired Kojo Annan in 1995 for work in Nigeria. By early 1998, he had quit to become a consultant to Cotecna. Months later, the United Nations awarded the firm a contract as part of Oil-for-Food humanitarian program in Iraq, prompting allegations of impropriety. An independent panel investigated the program, including Kojo Annan, and issued a report in 2005 that found no evidence that he tried to influence or to use family connections to benefit from the program.

Alaa Mubarak, the son of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is also mentioned in the papers as well as Ian Stuart Kirby, president of the Court of Appeal in Botswana, and former Zambian Ambassador to the United States, Attan Shansonga.

voanews.com

The prime minister of Iceland has resigned over the Panama Papers leaks which have shed an embarrassing spotlight on the world of offshore finance.

Wonders they say shall never end. If you think Ghana was the only place where self-proclaiming men of God gave out ridiculous prophecies and claim to have performed  miracles that even Jesus Christ did not perform while on earth, then you must be mistaking.

The United Nations Security Council asked U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday to provide options for a police deployment to Burundi, where simmering political violence has stoked fears the small African state could spiral into ethnic conflict.

 

Burundi has been embroiled in political violence since President Pierre Nkurunziza said last April he would seek a third term, which his opponents said was illegal. Since then, at least 439 people have been killed and more than 250,000 have fled.

The 15-member council unanimously adopted a French-drafted resolution after language asking the United Nations to work with the government of Burundi on disarmament was removed to appease the United States, which is a council veto power.

 

The resolution asks Ban - in consultation with the Burundi government and cooperation with the African Union - to provide options within 15-days for the deployment of a U.N. "police contribution to increase the U.N. capacity to monitor the security situation, promote the respect of human rights and advance rule of law."

reuters.com

Everyone knows Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) is running as the “nice guy” in the Republican presidential race. But at MSNBC’s recent GOP town hall, he made some nasty comments about black infant mortality rates in his state.

 

After a question on criminal justice reform, NBC News host Chuck Todd asked Kasich to explain how his efforts in the black community could go further than policing and mass incarceration. Todd listed statistics including the state’s staggering income gap, that Ohio was deemed the sixth worst state to raise a black child by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and that Cleveland is considered one of the of the 10 most segregated cities in the U.S.

Kasich, after saying he didn’t believe those statistics, listed his accomplishments as governor — including school reform and job creation — before oddly pivoting to infant mortality rates.

“The issue of infant mortality is a tough one. We have taken that on and one of the toughest areas to take on is in the minority community,” he said. “And the community itself is going to have to have a better partnership with all of us to begin to solve that problem with infant mortality in the minority community, because we’re making gains in the majority community.”

Ohio has the third highest rate of infant mortality in the nation — and the main organization working to lower those rates had its funding cut by Kasich.

Though Kasich expanded Medicaid, which brought health care to many low-income mothers, a lot of the gains were erased in February. That month he signed a bill to slash $1.3 million of state funding to Planned Parenthood and other organizations that “perform or promote” abortions (even though Ohio law already prevented state funds from covering abortions). The bill takes effect May 23. Among Planned Parenthood’s services is Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies, the largest of 14 infant mortality programs in the state.

“It is offensive to hear John Kasich tell black women what we should do with our bodies, though not at all surprising. John Kasich blames black women for infant mortality, while as Governor, he cuts programs that help black families in Ohio,” said Alencia Johnson, assistant director of constituency communications for the Planned Parenthood Action Fund in a statement.

huffingtonpost.com

Three first-graders at an Anchorage school have been suspended for plotting to kill a classmate with poison.

 

Luckily for their intended victim, two things went wrong: most importantly, another kid who learned of their scheme informed grownups before the plot could be carried out, local NBC affiliate KTUU reports. And even if they had made their attempt, they likely would have failed: they were planning to use silica gel, which is not actually considered toxic (though they thought it was).

An email to parents of first graders at Winterberry Charter School explained what happened and urged parents to encourage their kids to be like the good Samaritan in this case.

A spokesperson for the Anchorage Police Department said, “The important lesson here is to really teach your kids if they hear something like this, something where someone intends to do harm to someone else, they should tell someone that they trust right away.”

 

time.com

A 41-year-old from Bronx was Tuesday busted in Vermont with over 1,400 bags worth of heroin inside him, cops have said, according to nydailynews.

Fernando Estrella was hiding three condoms filled with the drug inside his body when state troopers pulled him over on North Elm St. in St. Albans at around 1 a.m. for speeding his gray Chevy minivan through a stop sign, said Sgt. John Helfant of the Vermont State Police.

A drug-detecting dog then alerted police to Estrella’s car seat. Cops found a heroin needle and cooking cap in the car, but recovered no drugs.

Cops detained Estrella and took him to a local hospital, where cops executed a warrant for a body cavity search.

They eventually removed the three heroin-filled condoms, which equal 1,428 bags for sale, from his rectum, Helfant said.

Estrella, had brought the drugs from New York City to be sold in the area, he said.

He was charged with felony heroin possession, heroin trafficking, and heroin importation. He had also violated the terms of his release on a Nov. 2015 cocaine bust, officials said.

Tragedy struck for real during a reenactment of Jesus's death when the main actor plunged from the top of the cross to the ground. 

A video on Mailonline shows the man dressed as Christ falling about 13ft into the crowd below has now gone viral on social media.

The incident is said to have happened during Easter celebrations in the town of Santa Barbara, in the south-west Guatemalan department of Suchitepequez.

The images show the man, with long curly hair and a white loincloth, falling off the high cross with his arms flailing.

The scared Jesus actor tries to grab onto the robes supporting the cross but tumbles down into the crowd amidst shouts of alarm.

There is no news as to the condition of the man.

 

 

primenews.com.gh

A passenger on board the hijacked EgyptAir flight has described the unique reactions he witnessed among his fellow travellers when they believed they could be killed during the ordeal.

 

As the plane was forced to divert from Cairo at the behest of hijacker Seif Eldin Mustafa, 58, many began calling loved ones for what they thought were their final goodbyes.

One rang his wife to reveal the existence of a secret bank account, while another woke up as the diverted jet approached Cyprus, asking: 'Why Cyprus? I'll miss my connection.'

Another man's wife, apparently unconcerned about the fact her husband was a bomb hostage, forced him to repeat the details of his bank account several times.

The stories were retold by AbdAllah El Ashmawy, an orthopedic surgeon from Egypt who is based in Plymouth.

In a post on his Facebook page, he thanked all those who called and messaged him concerned about his safety.

Admitting it was a day he would 'never forget', he said it was a 'very painful experience to be on a hijacked plane in the middle of the sea with a guy... who claims he has explosives'.

However, he also revealed that the reactions of his fellow passengers helped lighten the tense mood on board the plane.

He wrote: 'Most of the people managed to stay calm, but as usual passengers on board made my day.

'A lovely Egyptian chap decided to call all his family and friends one by one in the middle of the hijacked plane when we were about to land to Cyprus.

'Another funny husband calling [sic] his wife to tell her about some money he was hiding in a bank and the funniest part is his wife forgetting about the hijack thing and asking him to repeat the bank name.

'Another lovely guy was sleeping and woke up to be informed we are landing in Cyprus and his funny response was 'why Cyprus??!..I will miss my connection.'

dailymail.co.uk

A Native American man has refused to sell his tiny wooden Miami house to developers for $1.8million because he believes it is on sacred ground.

 

Ishmael Bermudez, 65, also known as Golden Eagle, has been excavating the backyard of his home for almost 50 years and claims it is a mystical place sacred to the Tequesta tribe.

He says he will not sell his home unless the garden, where he discovered a natural spring, is protected.

The small house, which is decorated with colorful paintings, sits incongruously in the heart of Miami's bustling city center, surrounded by high rise buildings, heavy traffic and ongoing construction projects.

Developers have driven up the value of his property to at least $1.8 million, but Mr Bermudez says he has no intention to sell unless his backyard can be protected.

Mr Bermudez claims he has found evidence of the earliest native inhabitants of the area in his garden, which sits just two blocks from busy Brickell Avenue and is surrounded by skyscrapers, bars and restaurants.

dailymail.co.uk