Posts
Syrian rebel fighters' civil war within a civil war
Many Free Syria Army soldiers fear that without heavy weapons they cannot win the war Continue reading the main story A senior rebel commander with the Free Syrian Army has been shot and killed by jihadis. As Paul Wood reports, the killing is part of an escalating struggle within the armed uprising between moderates and Islamist linked to al-Qaeda. The Free Syrian Army commander, stocky, bearded, dressed in camouflage, oozed menace and seethed with righteous anger. We were speaking about the biggest jihadi group in Syria, the Nusra Front, who had kidnapped his brother. "I know the names of all their emirs [leaders]. They will have nowhere to hide. This will be all-out war," he said. He explained that he was now free to take his revenge because he had just paid $50,000 (£33,000) to get his brother out. He had hated to do this because Nusra would just spend the money on weapons to use against the FSA. He told me they had sent a suicide bomber to infiltra...
Somali capital Mogadishu hit by 'suicide attack'
Continue reading the main s At least five people have been killed in a suicide attack targeting African Union peacekeepers in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, witnesses say. A witness told the BBC he had seen the bodies of five civilians after a car exploded. The AU has confirmed that two of its soldiers were wounded in the attack on one of its armored vehicles. No group has said it was behind the explosion but al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab has often staged similar attacks. Al-Shabab is fighting to create an Islamic state in Somalia - and despite being pushed out of key cities in the past two years still remains in control of smaller towns and large swathes of the countryside. Some 18,000 African Union troops are in Somalia supporting the government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who was elected by MPs last September. His administration is the first one in more than two decades to be recognized by the US and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
China and Nigeria sign $1.1bn deal
President Jonathan is leading a business delegation on a four-day trip to China Continue reading the main story China has agreed to give Nigeria a $1.1bn (£700m) low-interest loan to build much-needed infrastructure. The deal was struck during Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Wednesday. The money would help build roads, airport terminals in four cities, and a light-rail line for Nigeria's capital. China is investing heavily in Africa at it relies on it for oil and other natural resources. Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer, but its infrastructure needs updating and most people live in poverty. Mr Xi said both countries had been brought together by a common task of pursuing national development, AFP news agency reports. "As a proverb of Nigeria reads: 'A man cannot sit down alone to plan for prosperity,'" he is quoted as saying. Mr Jonathan is leading a business ...
Defense rests case in George Zimmerman trial
. View gallery . . . . MIKE SCHNEIDER and KYLE HIGHTOWER 18 hours ago Society Shooting of Trayvon Martin SANFORD, Fla. (AP) — After taking less than a week to call 18 witnesses, George Zimmerman's defense attorneys rested their case Wednesday in the neighborhood watch volunteer's second-degree murder trial. Prosecutors called their first rebuttal witness immediately afterward— Adam Pollock, the gym owner who had trained Zimmerman. Following rebuttal witnesses, prosecutors and defense attorneys will then work out the jury instructions before presenting closing arguments. The judge then sends the case to six jurors. Zimmerman never testified. But jurors saw repeated video recordings of Zimmerman telling his side of the story to police investigators. The defense started its case last Friday, and it presented half as many witnesses in half of the time that prosecutors did. The defense rested on a day when the judge made two ru...
