The Nation Newspaper

Category: Foreign

  • Palestinians reject ‘conspiracy’ Middle East plan

    PALESTINIANS have dismissed United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump’s new Middle East peace plan as a “conspiracy”.

    The plan envisages a Palestinian state and the recognition of Israeli sovereignty over West Bank settlements.

    Trump said Jerusalem would remain Israel’s “undivided” capital, but the Palestinian capital would “include areas of East Jerusalem”.

    Reacting to Tuesday’s announcement, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Jerusalem was “not for sale”.

    “All our rights are not for sale and are not for bargain,” he added.

    Thousands of Palestinian protesters held a “day of rage” in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday and yesterday, while the Israeli military deployed reinforcements in the occupied West Bank.

    The blueprint, which aims to solve one of the world’s longest-running conflicts, was drafted under the stewardship of President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

    Standing alongside Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday, Trump said his proposals “could be the last opportunity” for Palestinians.

    Reports said Netanyahu was planning to press ahead with annexing 30% of the occupied West Bank, with a cabinet vote due on Sunday.

    Read Also: Lagos Govt partners China on prevention of Coronavirus

    Israel has settled about 400,000 Jews in West Bank settlements, with another 200,000 living in East Jerusalem. The settlements are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.

    Speaking on Tuesday, he said it was “impossible for any Palestinian, Arab, Muslim or Christian child to accept” a Palestinian state without Jerusalem as its capital.

    “We say a thousand times, no, no, no,” he said. “We rejected this deal from the start and our stance was correct.”

    The militant Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, also rejected the deal which it said aimed “to liquidate the Palestinian national project”.

    The UN said it remained committed to a two-state solution based on the boundaries in place before the 1967 war, when Israel seized the West Bank and Gaza.

  • Guineans protest Conde’s alleged third term bid in Abuja

    By Nicolas Kalu, Abuja

    REPUBLIC of Guinea’s nationals in Nigeria on Wednesday protested the alleged third term plot of their president, Alpha Conde, in Abuja.

    The Guineans, who displayed banners and chanted songs of solidarity at the Unity Fountain in Abuja, alleged that Conde was using military force against people who were against his third term bid.

    They called on President Muhammadu Buhari and the international community to intervene in the situation before it gets out of hand.

    Speaking under the umbrella of the National Front for the Defence of Constitution, one of the leaders of the protesters, Amadu Sow, who spoke in French through an interpreter, said: “President Conde wants to change the Guinean Constitution to fit his third term political ambition. This has triggered a wave of protest across the country as Guineans have vowed to defend their constitution. The military forces are killing the masses indiscriminately due to the protests they are staging. This has prompted the Guineans in Nigeria to stage a peaceful protest at the Unity Fountain in an effort to bring the plight of the Guineans to the international community to intervene urgently.

    Read Also: Nigeria, South Africa to partner on security

    “I want to send a message from Abuja that the times are critical for us in Guinea Conakry. Things are very bad there. The country is burning. We are calling on the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari and other African leaders to put hands together before the country burn down.

    “The international community should intervene now before it is too late. Someone needs to stand up now. We wish this message would be heard.”

    Condé was elected as President of Guinea in 2010 for a five-year term. He was reelected in 2015 and his tenure is expected to elapse in December this year.

  • Brexit: European Parliament backs terms of UK’s exit

    MEMBERS of the European Parliament have overwhelmingly backed the terms of the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union (EU).

    MEPs ratified the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement by 621 votes to 49, following an emotional debate in Brussels.

    After the vote, MEPs marked the UK’s exit by singing Auld Lang Syne.

    Several British MEPs said they hoped the UK would return one day although Eurosceptics, including the Brexit Party’s Nigel Farage, used their final speeches to tear into the EU.

    The UK is due to leave the bloc at 23:00 GMT on Friday.

    Signing the letter confirming the EU’s consent, the Parliament’s president, David Sassoli, said the two sides must heed the words of the late Labour MP Jo Cox when approaching their future relationship and recognise “there is more that unites us than divides us.”

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    “You are leaving the EU but you will always be part of Europe…It is very hard to say goodbye. That is why, like my colleagues, I will say arrivederci.”

    Wednesday’s session saw those on either side of the Brexit debate, including the UK’s 73 MEPs, celebrate or lament the end of British EU membership.

    Some MEPs marked the occasion with songs – others wore “always united” scarves.

    The Parliament’s Brexit spokesman, Guy Verhofstadt, said it was “sad to see a country leaving that has twice given its blood to liberate Europe”.

    He added that British MEPs had brought “wit, charm, and intelligence” as well as “stubbornness”, and would be missed.

    President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said ratification of the withdrawal deal was “only a first step” towards a new partnership between the EU and the UK.

  • Court formally indicts Netanyahu on corruption charges

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Tuesday on was formally indicted in court on corruption charges after he withdrew his request for parliamentary immunity from prosecution.

    Netanyahu was in Washington for meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump ahead of the release of Trump’s long-delayed Israel-Palestinian peace plan when Israel’s attorney-general filed the charges in a Jerusalem court.

    The immunity bid seemed doomed to fail from the beginning since Netanyahu, who denied any wrongdoing, lacked sufficient votes in the legislature for approval.

    The request for protection from prosecution had effectively blocked the filing of the indictment until now.

    As proceedings move toward trial the timeline remains unclear and it could take months or years.

    In addition to his legal battle, Netanyahu is fighting for his political life in a March 2 election, Israel’s third in less than a year after inconclusive ballots in April and September.

    Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, said in a statement that an immunity debate in parliament would have been a “circus” and he did not want to take part in this “dirty game”.

    With public attention in Israel focused on events in Washington, Netanyahu’s White House meetings seemed likely to overshadow his latest legal woes.

    Report says the veteran right-winger is under no legal obligation to resign.

    Netanyahu’s main rival, centrist former general Benny Gantz, made Netanyahu’s legal troubles a centrepiece of his campaigns in two Israeli elections in 2019.

    Gantz made a brief trip to Washington to discuss the peace plan with Trump and had rushed back to Israel expecting to lead the parliament debate against granting Netanyahu immunity.

    READ ALSO: Like Trump, like Netanyahu

    “Netanyahu is going to trial, we have to move on.

    “The citizens of Israel have a clear choice: a prime minister who works for them or a prime minister busy with himself.

    “No one can manage the country and in parallel manage three serious criminal cases,” Gantz said after Netanyahu pulled his immunity request

    The corruption charges marked the first criminal indictment against a serving Israeli prime minister.

    The charge sheet was first published by Israel’s attorney general in November following a long-running investigation.

    The charges included bribery, breach of trust and fraud.

    Netanyahu is suspected of wrongfully accepting 264,000 dollars worth of gifts, which prosecutors said included cigars and champagne, from tycoons.

    He was also accused of dispensing regulatory favours in alleged bids for improved coverage by a popular news website.

    Netanyahu could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of bribery and a maximum three-year term for fraud and breach of trust.

    (Reuters/NAN)

  • Coronavirus fears: Japan to repatriate 200 citizens from Wuhan

    Japan will send a chartered flight to the central Chinese city of Wuhan later in the day to repatriate about 200 of its citizens, the government says.

    The government will also send doctors, nurses and quarantine officers so that those Japanese citizens can undergo checkups on a plane, according to the health ministry.

    The aircraft is scheduled to come back to Japan on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi says.

    Since a total of 650 Japanese in Wuhan wish to return, the government will send more flights to take them home, Motegi says.

    China and countries around the world are scrambling to contain the spread of the coronavirus that has killed at least 106 people and infected more than 4,500.

    Germany has reported its first case of the virus, as the U.S., and Canada upgraded travel warnings to advise their citizens to avoid all non-essential travel to China.

    READ ALSO: Nigeria’s plans against Novel Coronavirus

    More than 56 million people in almost 20 Chinese cities – including Wuhan, capital of Hubei Province and the epicentre of the virus – have been prevented from travelling in an attempt to curb the spread of the virus during the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, traditionally China’s busiest travel season.

    The director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO) is currently in China.

    The agency has acknowledged that the respiratory illness is an emergency in China but said last week that it was too early to declare the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

    It has described the global risk from the virus as high.

    (dpa/NAN)

  • UK unveils new visa scheme

    Agency Reporter

    Britain on Sunday announced a new fast-track visa scheme for top scientists, researchers and mathematicians as it prepares a new immigration system for life outside the European Union.

    Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed the plan just days before Brexit finally takes place on January 31.

    Concerns about mass migration were a driving force in the 2016 campaign to leave the EU, and Johnson has promised to end free movement with the bloc.

    But he said on Sunday: “As we leave the EU, I want to send a message that the UK is open to the most talented minds in the world, and stand ready to support them to turn their ideas into reality.”

    EU free movement will continue for 11 months after Brexit during a transition period designed to allow London and Brussels to agree a new future partnership.

    The government hopes to introduce a new points-based immigration system on January 1, 2021, for EU and non-EU citizens, but the details are still being worked out.

    The newly announced Global Talent visa system will come into effect from next month, to replace the Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) visa.

    Only around 550 of the old visas were issued in 2018-19, well below the cap of 2,000, and officials hope the new, uncapped scheme will be more enticing.

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    It is open to a wider range of applicants, and offers an easier route to settling in Britain.

    The government also unveiled an extra $392 million (356 million euros, £300 million) to fund “experimental and imaginative mathematical sciences research” over the next five years.

    “The UK has a proud history of scientific discovery, but to lead the field and face the challenges of the future we need to continue to invest in talent and cutting-edge research,” Johnson said in a statement.

  • 31-year-old man accused of emailing bomb threats across Germany

    Agency Reporter

    German prosecutors have accused a 31-year-old man of sending a string of emails containing bomb threats and right-wing extremist material to politicians and public authorities across Germany.

    The accused signed them with the alias National Socialist Offensive, the prosecutors’ office in Berlin said on Monday.

    He is accused of 107 separate offences.

    From December 2018, members of parliament, courts, police stations, shopping malls and media outlets received emails threatening them with bomb attacks and other deadly acts.

    READ ALSO: Germany praises Nigeria’s effort in polio eradication

    The suspect was arrested in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein in April 2019 and was transferred later to a prison in Berlin.

    According to the prosecutors’ office, he had previously been convicted for crimes involving explosives, fire and bodily harm.

    He had only been released from prison a few weeks before sending the first emails, the prosecutors said.

    (dpa/NAN)

  • Gambia arrests 137 in protests urging president Barrow to step down

    Agency Reporter

    Gambia’s police have arrested 137 people amid protests calling for the president Adama Barrow to step down after three years in power, the government said on Monday.

    Also more than two dozen were injured as protests calling for President to honor a pledge to step down turned violent for the first time.

    Barrow came to power after a 2016 election, ending 22 years of authoritarian rule by Yahya Jammeh.
    But he has reneged on his campaign promise to step down by this month, saying the constitution requires him to serve out a full five-year term.

    In response, a movement called “Three Years Jotna” – which means “enough” in the local Wolof language – began protesting in December 2019 to demand his departure.

    On Sunday, police intervened when protesters deviated from the planned route on the outskirts of the capital Banjul in order to march toward the city centre, the government said.

    In a statement late on Sunday, government spokesman Ebrima Sankareh said the protesters had stormed a police barricade and chanted that they planned to unseat Barrow.

    “The protesters became riotous and violent by obstructing roads and burning tyres and logs on the highway as well as setting up fires in nearby bushes and on government wetland,” Sankareh said.

    Eighteen police officers and seven civilians were injured, Sankareh said, adding some of those among the 137 arrested were executive members of Three Years Jotna.

    READ ALSO: AAU to honor Gambia President, others at 22nd convocation

    The government also decided to ban Three Years Jotna, Sankareh said, calling it “a subversive, violent and illegal movement”, and suspended two radio stations it accused of inciting violence during demonstrations.

    Opposition leaders could not be immediately reached for comment.

    After winning plaudits at the beginning of his tenure for committing to respect rights and establish a truth commission to investigate abuses under Jammeh, Barrow is facing multiple challenges.

    Hundreds of Jammeh’s supporters demonstrated earlier this month to demand the former president be allowed to return to Gambia from exile in Equatorial Guinea.

    Jammeh fled there in January 2017 under military pressure from West African countries to respect his election loss to Barrow.

    The government has said Jammeh will be arrested if he returns to Gambia for killings, torture and other abuses allegedly committed by his security forces. Jammeh denies those allegations.

    Barrow also faces a weak economy, hobbled by massive debts incurred by Jammeh’s government.

    (Reuters/NAN)

  • White House to release Middle East peace plan Tuesday — Trump

    U.S. President Donald Trump says he will release his plan for the Israelis and Palestinians on Tuesday at noon (1700 GMT), as he welcomed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House.

    “We are going to announce tomorrow at 12 o’clock. We are going to show a plan. We’ll see whether or not it catches hold.

    “If it does that would be great, and if it doesn’t we can live with that too,” Trump said.

    Trump said Israel has a “very strange system,” noting that he has been waiting for their third election in a year to conclude.

    READ ALSO: Visa abuse and Trump’s phobia

    “I look forward to making history tomorrow,” Netanyahu said.

    Netanyahu repeatedly thanked Trump, including for the move of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and the administration’s hardline stance on Iran, which he dubbed “the most anti-Semitic regime on the planet.”

    (dpa/NAN)

  • American woman returns stolen German beer mug after 55 years

    More than half a century after her crime, a 73-year-old U.S. woman has returned a beer mug she stole from one of Germany’s most famous breweries.

    The beer stein, a traditional stone mug which holds one litre, arrived in a surprise package at Munich’s popular Hofbraeuhaus last week, spokesperson Tobias Ranzinger said on Monday.

    “She sent off the mug on Dec. 27, and we received it last Thursday, intact and with a nice note attached.”

    In the card, which was signed Celeste, the sender expressed her regrets for having taken the mug during her teens.

    “I took the beer stein from your establishment the summer of 1965, when I was young, reckless and inconsiderate,” the now senior citizen from the U.S. state of Maryland explains in the English note.

    READ ALSO: Couple battles to retrieve N1.2m lost in search of Chinese, American visas

    “I am sorry I did not get it back to you sooner.”

    Celeste didn’t explain what motivated her to return the mug after so many years.

    “But we are happy to know that people still feel a connection to our pub after such a long period of time,” Ranziger said.

    The returned mug is of a type that isn’t used at Hofbraeuhaus anymore – the pub switched to glass mugs in 1972.

    The pub now plans to send her tokens which can be exchanged for free beer at Hofbraeuhaus the next time Celeste visits.

    (dpa/NAN)