Global News Update
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Somaliland Students Rely on Food Aid
Tens of thousands of children are out of school in Somaliland because of drought.
Many of those still in the classrooms are relying on aid from the World Food Programme.
Teachers say that although the children do not get a balanced diet, the food gives them enough energy to stay in class.
Al Jazeera’s Catherine Soi reports from Burao in eastern Somaliland.
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Chibok Community Welcomes Schoolgirls’ Release
The release of 82 schoolgirls by Boko Haram has brought some cheer to Nigeria’s Chibok community.
But there are still many families who have not heard news of their daughters since the kidnapping three years ago.
Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris reports from Chibok.
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Four UN Peacekeepers Killed in Central African Republic
Four UN peacekeepers have been found dead and one remains missing after an attack on a convoy in the Central African Republic (CAR), United Nations officials said on Tuesday.
The UN’s MINUSCA mission said the convoy was attacked by fighters of the “anti-Balaka” armed group near Yogofongo village, more than 470km east of the capital, Bangui, close to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.
CAR has been plagued by conflict since early 2013, when mainly Muslim Seleka rebels seized power, triggering reprisals by Christian “anti-Balaka” militias.
IN PICTURES: Displaced and forgotten in Central African Republic
MINUSCA, which had earlier announced the death of one Cambodian peacekeeper, said later on Tuesday it was “deeply saddened to confirm that three of the four peacekeepers that were missing in action since [Monday’s] attack have been found dead”.
At least eight peacekeepers, one Cambodian and seven Moroccans, were also wounded in the attack.
Eight “anti-Balaka” attackers were killed and several wounded in the crossfire, MINUSCA said.
War crime
Killing a UN peacekeeper is considered a war crime, MINUSCA spokesman Herve Verhoosel told the AFP news agency, saying the convoy comprised of police and UN military staff.
The UN sent a helicopter and soldiers to secure the area and search for the missing, while the wounded were evacuated to Bangui, MINUSCA said.
READ MORE: Dozens of civilians killed in CAR violence, HRW says
Central African Republic is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for aid agencies, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said last week, with at least 33 attacks on aid workers in the first quarter of 2017.
On Saturday, at least four international aid agencies said they were temporarily suspending their operations in northern CAR due to attacks on aid workers by armed groups, the UN said.
The Seleka and other groups have splintered after violence broke out in March 2013, prompting further fighting despite the election in March 2016 of President Faustin-Archange Touadera, which raised hopes of reconciliation.
The UN mission has 13,000 peacekeepers on the ground, but some civilians complain it does not do enough to protect them against dozens of armed groups.
Around 425,000 people have been uprooted by the fighting within CAR, some 465,000 have fled to neighbouring countries, and more than 2.2 million, nearly half the population, need humanitarian aid, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
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South Sudan’s Kiir Replaces Army Chief Paul Malong
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has dismissed Paul Malong, the war-torn country’s powerful army chief of staff.
Malong was sacked via a presidential decree that was announced on Tuesday on national television by Kiir himself.
General James Ajongo Mawut, the former deputy chief of general staff for administration and finance, was named new head of armed forces.
Minister of Defence Kuol Manyang Juuk downplayed the move as “routine”, calling it “just a normal practice of changing somebody and bringing (in) another person”.
South Sudan descended into conflict in December 2013 after Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar, who he had sacked earlier that year, of plotting a coup.
The clashes that followed set off a cycle of retaliatory killings that have split the world’s newest country, which won its independence from Sudan in 2011, along ethnic lines.
As Kiir – from the Dinka ethnic group – fought it out with rebels allied to Machar – a Nuer – both sides committed atrocities, including massacres and gang rape, according to the UN and the African Union.
In February, several senior army officers resigned, accusing Malong of conducting an ethnic war against non-Dinkas and ruling with an “unqualified clique of friends and relatives”.
Among those who quit was Lieutenant-General Thomas Cirillo who has since announced plans to launch his own rebellion.
Malong is widely regarded by some as being the mastermind of fighting that erupted in the capital, Juba, last July, killing hundreds and dashing hopes of a power-sharing government between Kiir and Machar
Foreign diplomats repeatedly accused him of undermining the country’s 2015 peace agreement.
The conflict has triggered famine in parts of the country, forced millions from their homes and killed tens of thousands so far.
READ MORE: Two million children displaced by South Sudan conflict
Separately, gunmen attacked the vice president’s convoy on Tuesday and wounded three of his bodyguards, a government official told the Reuters news agency.
First Vice President Taban Deng Gai, who joined the government after defecting from the main rebel group last year, was not in the convoy because he was travelling by plane at the time.
The vehicles were assaulted as they headed north from Juba to the town of Bor.
“Three people were wounded. These are security guards of the first vice president,” State Minister of Information Jacob Akech Deng said.
“No soldier died and the convoy of the first vice president has reached Bor safely.”
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Zimbabwe Opposition Suspicious of Election Rigging
Zimbabwe’s long-standing leader Robert Mugabe will be running in next year’s presidential elections.
The government is testing new biometric voter registration technology, which means everyone eligible to vote will have to register again.
Opposition parties say they won’t accept the result if Mugabe is re-elected and are also suspicious of the new registration system.
Al Jazeera’s Haru Mutasa reports from Harare.
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Somalia: Huge Blast Rocks Downtown Mogadishu
Mogadishu, Somalia – A car-bomb blast hit the heart of Somalia’s capital on Monday, killing at least five people and wounding 20 others, police said. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility in a statement on its website.
Mostaf Abdi Abshir, a journalist with Radio Shabelle, told Al Jazeera the vehicle laden with explosives detonated near a coffee shop opposite of the immigration directorate.
“I heard a huge explosion on Maka al-Mukarama street and saw at least seven injured people,” Abshir said.
Police officer Hussein Nor Mohamed told Al Jazeera the death toll currently was five.
Major Aden Ibrahim, a police official, told Reuters news agency the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber.
Abdikadir Abdirahman, the director of AMIN ambulances, said his organisation had removed eight bodies from the scene and taken more than two dozen wounded to hospital.
“The death toll may rise,” he said.
Senior security officials were among the casualties, al-Shabab said.
“We are behind the blast,” Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, the group’s military operations spokesman, told Reuters. “The targets were police, intelligence, military officials and immigration workers.”
Al-Shabab was forced out of the capital and other major urban areas in Somalia by national and African Union multinational forces, but it continues to carry out deadly bombings and attacks in Mogadishu and elsewhere.
Targets have included hotels, military checkpoints, and the presidential palace.
Earlier on Monday, three Somali soldiers on an ordnance-clearing mission were killed after a roadside bomb planted by the insurgents exploded 90km north of the capital.
Somalia has been mired in conflict since 1991, when clan-based warlords overthrew dictator Siad Barre and then turned on each other.
Abdirisak Mohamud Tuuryare contributed to this report from Mogadishu
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Kenya Rolls out Anti-Retroviral Drug to Curb HIV Infection
Doctors in Kenya have started prescribing a daily pill to reduce the number of people contracting HIV.
The free anti-retroviral medication is being given to anyone with a high risk of exposure to the virus.
Al Jazeera’s Fahmida Miller reports from Nairobi.
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Somalia Buries Slain Minister Siraji, Opens Probe
Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed has ordered an investigation into what he called an “unfortunate tragedy” as the country buried a minister killed by another official’s guards.
Mohamed on Thursday cut short his trip to Ethiopia and prayed at the coffin of Abbas Abdullahi Siraji, the 31-year-old minister of public works and reconstruction, who was shot dead on Wednesday outside the presidential palace in the capital, Mogadishu.
In a series of posts on Twitter, Mohamed, known by his nickname Farmajo, said he would “make sure the perpetrators are brought to book”.
He also said that Siraji was “young, diligent and patriotic”.
READ MORE: Somalia leader declares country a ‘war zone’
Siraji was killed when bodyguards tasked with protecting Nur Jimale Farah, auditor-general, apparently mistook the minister, who was driving himself in a following vehicle, for an assailant.
Farah said: “What happened was gunfire involving soldiers who had become suspicious of each other, and what happened was very bad – a brother was killed.”
He also asked to not “speculate about the details before the results” of the investigation become available.
Three soldiers have been arrested in connection with the killing, police said.
Police spokesman Qaasim Ahmed said two of the arrested soldiers were among the auditor general’s bodyguards and the third was a bodyguard of the late minister.
It is rare for a government minister to drive himself, making mistaken identity a strong possibility.
Many government officials, wealthy individuals and foreigners drive around Mogadishu, a city that has been frequently targeted by armed group al-Shabab, with squads of armed bodyguards who are often nervy and trigger happy.
Inspiring to many
Siraji, a former humanitarian worker, was born in Somalia but grew up and was educated in one of the world’s biggest refugee camps, Dadaab, in neighbouring Kenya. He was elected a member of parliament last year and became a cabinet minister in February.
His story was seen as inspiring to many in a country that has suffered conflict and anarchy for the last 25 years and his death has been widely mourned, including on social media.
The African Union Commission’s Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat offered condolences.
“My sincere condolences to the family of Minister Abbas Abdullahi Siraj, the government and people of Somalia. The AU stands in solidarity with you,” Mahamat said in a statement posted on his Twitter account.
Former Somali government minister Abdi Aynte wrote on Twitter of the “pain and agony” of Siraji’s death while others posted videos of their grief on Facebook.
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Will Julius Malema Succeed Jacob Zuma in South Africa?
In recent years the relationship between South African President Jacob Zuma and Julius Malema, the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), has dominated South African politics.
With an almost 40-year age gap, their partnership has played a profound role in shaping the tone and bent of post-apartheid politics. Although they were initially close allies, in recent years Zuma has served as an effective punching bag for the young leader. Malema has made a meal out of Zuma’s shortcomings and his mistakes. He has used each fresh scandal related to the president’s alleged misuse of state funds, or his relationship with wealthy benefactors such as the Gupta family, or his relationships with women, to demonstrate to the electorate that Zuma is unworthy of their votes.
Startling similarities
Yet despite their differences, the men are startlingly similar. Indeed, it was Malema’s ability to mobilise, cajole and cause strategic political chaos that helped to bring Zuma to power. Malema was the snarling pitbull whose presence allowed Zuma to play the even-keeled and charming elder statesman.
Over time, Malema’s adversarial approach to politics (and Zuma’s implicit support for the conduct) became emblematic of a new riotous culture in the ruling party – one in which booing, populism and loyalty to personalities rather than policy positions became the norm. Malema may have been expelled from the ruling party, but his tactics of disruption and conflict have continued to mar elective conferences and major events.
While less overtly confrontational than Malema, Zuma has also stamped his imprimatur on the political landscape. Like Malema, Zuma has encouraged factionalism, maintaining a firm grip on those who are loyal to him, quashing dissent through political favours. Zuma has also been able to change tack quickly and with agility when required.
Both Zuma and Malema can turn on the charm. Throughout most of his first term of office, Zuma was often referred to as “the people’s president”. Similarly, Malema is able to draw large crowds and inspire his followers with his common-sense appeals. More worryingly, both men have been embroiled in legal cases that have required them to fend off allegations of corruption and abuse of state connections and resources.
Importance of demographics
Despite these similarities, there are two key differences between the two men. It is these differences that will determine Malema’s political future in a post-Zuma South Africa. The first lies in the demographics they attract. The second relates to their commitment to constitutionalism.
In terms of demographics, as a rural African man with a poor education and humble beginnings, Jacob Zuma has risen to the highest office in the land in what is seen by many in his base as a clear sign that the politics of the apartheid era are over. Similarly, Malema also comes from humble beginnings – his roots are in the township of Seshego in the province of Limpopo. However, the young leader offers an equally powerful and perhaps more resonant example of the post-apartheid dream. His rise from the streets of his township, to being one of the most powerful political figures in the country, is as meteoric as Zuma’s rise from cattle-herder to president.
However, Zuma’s base – indeed the base of the African National Congress (ANC) – is dying. Appealing to the rural poor in a country that is rapidly urbanising holds little strategic value.
The EFF, on the other hand, is attractive to the exploding youth demographic: those under the age of 30, whose numbers are on the rise. In this sense, then, Malema’s future is bright. His core constituency is young and urban.
This, above all else, marks the difference between Malema and Zuma. It is not just Malema’s age that works in his favour, it is that those who support him are young themselves; they represent the future. Whereas those who are being considered for the top position in the ANC are in their mid-to-late 60s, Malema will still be under 40 in 2019 when Zuma steps down.
Defending the constitution
Still, at a more substantive level, what matters most is how similar the two men are when it comes to defending or trampling on the country’s iconic constitution. Zuma has already demonstrated his contempt for the rule of law and for the spirit of the constitution in the past five years and has been sanctioned by the constitutional court in a judgment that ordered him to pay back some of the costs of building his village palace in Nkandla.
Malema, on the other hand, began his career by undermining democratic processes within his party and has faced a number of corruption and fraud court cases.
OPINION: South Africa, EFF and political vulgarity
In recent times, however, as he has taken on Zuma, the young leader has spoken eloquently in defence of democracy, accountability and the constitution. Those who are skeptical of his about-turn say “a leopard doesn’t change its spots”. They worry that after 2019, without Zuma in the top spot, Malema may move into a central position within the ruling party. Firmly ensconced there, he may forget his allegiance to democracy.
These anxieties are not unfounded. Yet they diminish the agency and sophistication of the South African voters. South Africa is a country whose citizens are torn between old loyalties to the liberation movement and a deep commitment to democracy on the basis of their apartheid past. How Malema chooses to negotiate these competing interests will determine his future, and in the process, the future of the country.
He must play his cards right because there is a real risk that, fed up with the sort of charismatic populism that Zuma and the ANC have represented in recent years, the electorate in 2019 may see Malema as too deeply embedded in the very culture of cronyism and populism that they wish to escape. If this is the case, voters may punish not just the ANC but also the combative, disrespectful and machismo style of leadership and politics that Zuma and Malema have represented. In so doing they may decide to reject Malema, opting instead for a fresh start with a candidate who is yet to emerge.
There is no question that even in such a scenario Malema has a long career ahead of him. In the end, the battle for the hearts and minds of South Africans will not come down to age or political party affiliation or a struggle between two men who have shadowed each other for years. All indications are that after nearly a decade of infighting and political decay, it is the politician most closely aligned with the values espoused in the constitution for which so many South Africans fought and died for, who will win the day. Malema would do well to keep his eye on this political reality.
Sisonke Msimang is a South African writer and political commentator who focusses on race, gender, popular culture and democracy. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, Newsweek, and a range of other publications.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial policy.
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Gambia: West African Troops Extend Mandate
The mandate for a group of West African troops deployed in Gambia has been extended.
The country is struggling to rebuild its armed forces, after mass graves were discovered in March.
Police believe the victims were killed by members of the Gambian army, on orders from the now exiled president, Yayha Jammeh.
Al Jazeera’s Nicolas Haque reports from Banjul.
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