Deadly blasts strike Kenya rally
Police in Kenya are expected to soon reveal what caused two explosions at a political rally in the capital, Nairobi.
At least six people were killed and more than 100 others wounded during the incident on Sunday.
The back-to-back explosions went off at a rally held to protest against a referendum on a new draft constitution.
Al Jazeera's Zeina Awad reports from the capital.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Ogaden group alleges massacre
| Ogaden group alleges massacre | |||
| | |||
Rebels in Ethiopia's eastern Ogaden region have accused the government of killing 71 civilians in a military operation last month. The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), which says it is fighting for autonomy for ethnic Somalis in the region on the border with Somalia, said the operation against them started on May 18. It said in a statement on Friday that the offensive was launched in retaliation for a raid during which ONLF claimed to have captured a town previously controlled by the government. "The Ethiopian army combed the countryside, summarily executing men in front of their families while beating, raping or killing the women," the ONFL statement said. "The ruthless troops have so far massacred 71 innocent civilians with impunity while wounding and torturing hundreds." The Ethiopian government denied the accusations. "We are still gathering information about these accusations, but so far we can say they are entirely baseless," Shimeles Kemal, an Ethiopian government spokesman, said. He denied that military operations were taking place in the Ogaden area. Claims from either side are almost impossible to verify, as journalists and aid groups cannot travel in the poverty-stricken region without a government escort. The ONLF has been fighting for what it calls autonomy for ethnic Somalis in the Ogaden region since 1984. The conflict has taken on new significance since international petroleum companies began searching for oil and gas in the area. In April, a British geologist working for a subcontractor of Petronas, a Malaysian oil giant, was shot dead there |
Thursday, June 10, 2010
More Death Penalties by TPLF Kangaroo Court on Oromo Civilians
June 8, 2010 - The following is a press release from the Oromo Human Rights and Relief Organization (Oromo Menschenrechts- und Hilfsorganisation – OMRHO e.V.)
In a less than two months of time, the Ethiopian court has handed down a death penalty and a life-long imprisonment on Oromo civilians for the second time.
The Ethiopian federal court handed down this time, 20th of May 2010, death penalty and harsh long time imprisonment on 7 Oromo civilians. These are:
1. Mrs. Dirribe Ettaana, sentenced to death
2. Mr. Deggu Ettaana, sentenced to death
3. Mrs. Urge Abebe, sentenced to death
4. Mr. Daniel Jaleta, sentenced to death
5. Mr. Girma Raggassa, Life imprisonment
6. Mr. Endale Nagari, 10 years imprisonment
7. Mrs. Workinesh Dube, two years imprisonment and 2000 Birr, Ethiopian currency.
US stresses backing for vote on future of south Sudan: Biden
Biden met with south Sudan leaders in Nairobi. He is traveling to attend the start of the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa at the end of this week.
"The Vice President reaffirmed the strong U.S. commitment to seeing the referendum on Southern self-determination occur on time and in a manner that credibly reflects the will of the Southern Sudanese people," the White House said.
A 2005 peace deal to end a 22-year civil war between the largely Christian and animist south Sudan and the mostly Muslim North, included autonomy for the South, a share in oil revenues and a path to independence via the referendum in January 2011.
Biden also urged southerners to immediately being talks with the Khartoum government in the north to iron out post-vote issues like the position of the border, revenue sharing and citizen rights.
The vote is seen as a potential flashpoint for regional security and Biden promised to continue U.S. aid to the Sudan People's Liberation Army "in recognition of the serious threats to security faced by the South", the White House said.
www.reuters.com
Tuesday, June 01, 2010
ONLF Forces In Control of Hilala Oil Field
Ogaden Online
Special forces of the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) yesterday liberated and are now in control of the Hilala oil field in Eastern Ogaden. ..read more
Our real allies are Ethiopians who are fighting Meles – Ed Royce
By Ed Royce, U.S. Congressman
Nineteen years and counting. Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and his ruling EPRDF party are cruising to an easy "victory" in the May 23 elections. Taking power in 1991, Meles is as entrenched as they get.
Meles' win did take some work. After the 2005 election, in which the opposition did too well for his liking, the hammer fell. Since then, political opponents and local journalists have been jailed. Foreign journalists denied visas. The internet jammed. Newspapers closed.
There are credible reports of food aid being used as a political weapon. The government jams our Voice of America broadcasts, despite the nearly billion dollars of aid we give it each year. The State Department reports that Ethiopian security services commit politically motivated killings. The Meles government has the repression thing down pretty good.
Meles has buddies. Throughout the continent, several leaders are into their second, third and nearly fourth decades in power. No democrats here. The State Department tends to put them on pedestals, especially Rwanda's Kagame and Uganda's Museveni. Along with Meles, the Clinton Administration lauded these "new African leaders."
I ran into the Ethiopian Ambassador last week. On democracy, he pleaded for time. African democracy is young, for sure. But that absolves sins of omission, poor infrastructure that frustrates voting, for example. Political hits and other violence against democrats are inexcusable. The Ambassador didn't mention that his government is committed to "revolutionary democracy," a collectivism that tolerates no dissent. The New York Times quotes a prominent Ethiopian dissident saying, "They still have this leftist ideology that the vanguard party is right for the people." Trust me, they always will.
Last week, with seven other members of Congress, I wrote the State Department charging that in recent years it "has rarely spoken out about the Meles government's human rights violations." Diplomats, never wanting to offend, always short democracy. They go especially easy on Ethiopia because it checks jihadists in neighboring Somalia. I doubt the Ethiopian government hits them as hard as its political opponents.
Getting excited about democracy risks driving the Meles government into Chinese hands, some argue. Beijing is pouring billions into Ethiopia. This possible dance with Beijing says a lot about the Meles government's true colors. Clearly, our real allies are the brave Ethiopian
men and women fighting the rot of years of Meles' unchecked reign. Aid them. Sadly, power has gotten to the point of absolutely corrupting Meles' 19-year rule.
(Ed Royce, a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from California, is a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and a former chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa.)
Nineteen years and counting. Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and his ruling EPRDF party are cruising to an easy "victory" in the May 23 elections. Taking power in 1991, Meles is as entrenched as they get.
Meles' win did take some work. After the 2005 election, in which the opposition did too well for his liking, the hammer fell. Since then, political opponents and local journalists have been jailed. Foreign journalists denied visas. The internet jammed. Newspapers closed.
There are credible reports of food aid being used as a political weapon. The government jams our Voice of America broadcasts, despite the nearly billion dollars of aid we give it each year. The State Department reports that Ethiopian security services commit politically motivated killings. The Meles government has the repression thing down pretty good.
Meles has buddies. Throughout the continent, several leaders are into their second, third and nearly fourth decades in power. No democrats here. The State Department tends to put them on pedestals, especially Rwanda's Kagame and Uganda's Museveni. Along with Meles, the Clinton Administration lauded these "new African leaders."
I ran into the Ethiopian Ambassador last week. On democracy, he pleaded for time. African democracy is young, for sure. But that absolves sins of omission, poor infrastructure that frustrates voting, for example. Political hits and other violence against democrats are inexcusable. The Ambassador didn't mention that his government is committed to "revolutionary democracy," a collectivism that tolerates no dissent. The New York Times quotes a prominent Ethiopian dissident saying, "They still have this leftist ideology that the vanguard party is right for the people." Trust me, they always will.
Last week, with seven other members of Congress, I wrote the State Department charging that in recent years it "has rarely spoken out about the Meles government's human rights violations." Diplomats, never wanting to offend, always short democracy. They go especially easy on Ethiopia because it checks jihadists in neighboring Somalia. I doubt the Ethiopian government hits them as hard as its political opponents.
Getting excited about democracy risks driving the Meles government into Chinese hands, some argue. Beijing is pouring billions into Ethiopia. This possible dance with Beijing says a lot about the Meles government's true colors. Clearly, our real allies are the brave Ethiopian
men and women fighting the rot of years of Meles' unchecked reign. Aid them. Sadly, power has gotten to the point of absolutely corrupting Meles' 19-year rule.
(Ed Royce, a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from California, is a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and a former chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa.)
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