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South Sudan lawyers challenge the postponement of elections in court

South Sudan's President Salva Kiir. (AP file photo)
South Sudan's President Salva Kiir. (AP file photo)
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Updated 24 September 2024

South Sudan lawyers challenge the postponement of elections in court

South Sudan lawyers challenge the postponement of elections in court
  • The postponement prompted international guarantors of South Sudan’s peace process to express their disappointment, saying it showed the government’s failure to implement a 2018 peace plan

NAIROBI: A group of South Sudanese lawyers filed a case to the country’s top court on Monday challenging the president’s postponement of elections and extension of the transitional government’s term for two years.
Ten days ago, President Salva Kiir’s office announced an extension of the transitional period by two years and postponed elections for a second time following a delay in 2022.
Late last week, parliament ratified the decision without changes after the cabinet endorsed it. Elections were due to be held in December.
On Monday, the lawyers challenging the action went to the Supreme Court, asking it to declare it “null and void.”
“As lawyers, we think that this extension is unconstitutional, is illegal and we (are) demanding our government to conduct elections within the time-frame,” Deng John Deng, speaking on behalf of his colleagues, told reporters shortly after filing the case.
Michael Makuei, the information minister and government spokesperson, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The postponement prompted international guarantors of South Sudan’s peace process to express their disappointment, saying it showed the government’s failure to implement a 2018 peace plan.
South Sudan has formally been at peace since the 2018 agreement ended a five-year conflict responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths, but violence between rival communities breaks out frequently.


Sri Lanka Catholics seek prosecution of sacked spy chief

Sri Lanka Catholics seek prosecution of sacked spy chief
Updated 8 sec ago

Sri Lanka Catholics seek prosecution of sacked spy chief

Sri Lanka Catholics seek prosecution of sacked spy chief
  • Sri Lanka’s Catholic Church on Monday demanded the criminal prosecution of the intelligence chief who was sacked for failing to prevent the 2019 Easter bombings that killed 279 people
AFP: Sri Lanka’s Catholic Church on Monday demanded the criminal prosecution of the intelligence chief who was sacked for failing to prevent the 2019 Easter bombings that killed 279 people, including 45 foreigners.
Church spokesman Cyril Gamini Fernando said they welcomed the dismissal days ago of Nilantha Jayawardena, who was head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) when jihadist suicide bombers attacked three churches and three hotels.
“This (sacking) is for the negligence part of it, but we want the authorities to investigate Jayawardena’s role in the attack itself,” Fernando told reporters in Colombo. “We want a criminal prosecution.”
He said evidence presented before several courts and commissions of inquiry indicated that the SIS, under Jayawardena, had attempted to cover up the actions of the jihadists in the lead-up to the April 21 attacks.
“Six years on, we are still looking for answers. We want to know the truth about who was behind the attack,” he said.
Jayawardena, 52, was dismissed Saturday from the police department, where he was the second most senior officer in charge of administration and on track to become the next inspector-general.
Court proceedings have revealed that both military and police intelligence units were closely linked to the home-grown jihadists, and some had even been on the payroll of the intelligence services.
The current ruling party, led by Anura Kumara Dissanayake, had while in opposition accused Gotabaya Rajapaksa of orchestrating the attacks to win the 2019 presidential election.
The once powerful Rajapaksa family has denied the allegations.
The attacks occurred despite a warning from an intelligence agency in neighboring India, which alerted Jayawardena 17 days before the devastating bombings.
He was found guilty of ignoring a series of alerts. More than 500 people were also wounded in the bombings, Sri Lanka’s worst jihadist attack on civilians.
Jayawardena was removed from his position as SIS chief in December 2019 but was later promoted to deputy head of the police force, overseeing administration.
However, he was placed on compulsory leave a year ago, pending the disciplinary inquiry, following repeated judicial orders to take action against him.

13 dead in Russian bus crash

13 dead in Russian bus crash
Updated 29 min 5 sec ago

13 dead in Russian bus crash

13 dead in Russian bus crash
  • The driver appeared to have lost control of the vehicle

MOSCOW: Thirteen people were killed and 20 injured after a bus transporting mine workers in Russia’s far eastern Yakutia region crashed early Monday, authorities said.
The driver appeared to have lost control of the vehicle, swerving off the road and sending the bus plummeting 25 meters (82 feet) into a ravine, according to officials.
The incident took place at around 3:20 am (1820 GMT on Sunday), the local interior ministry said.
It published images showing the bus overturned next to a pool of muddy water, its wheels facing upward, while another showed a twisted metal barrier on the road above.
“The road accident occurred on the industrial road of the Denisovsky Mining and Processing Plant,” it added.
The plant mines and processes coal.
Investigators said they had opened a probe into criminal negligence.
Industrial accidents are common in Russia, with investigators often pointing to lax safety standards.
Local authorities declared a day of mourning for Tuesday.


China denies link to espionage group accused of attacking Singapore critical infrastructure

China denies link to espionage group accused of attacking Singapore critical infrastructure
Updated 21 July 2025

China denies link to espionage group accused of attacking Singapore critical infrastructure

China denies link to espionage group accused of attacking Singapore critical infrastructure
  • Last Friday, a Singapore minister said the espionage group UNC3886 was “going after high value strategic threat targets, vital infrastructure that delivers essential services”

REUTERS: The Chinese embassy in Singapore refuted claims that an espionage group accused of performing cyberattacks on Singapore’s critical infrastructure was linked to China.
In a Facebook post published over the weekend, the Chinese embassy said such claims were “groundless smears and accusations.”
“The embassy would like to reiterate that China is firmly against and cracks down all forms of cyberattacks in accordance with law. China does not encourage, support or condone hacking activities,” it wrote on Saturday.
Last Friday, a Singapore minister said the espionage group UNC3886 was “going after high value strategic threat targets, vital infrastructure that delivers essential services” but did not give details of the attacks.
The minister did not link the group to China but Google-owned cybersecurity firm Mandiant has described UNC3886 as a “China-nexus espionage group” that has attacked defense, technology and telecommunications organizations in the United States and Asia.
Beijing routinely denies any allegations of cyberespionage, and says it opposes all forms of cyberattacks and is in fact a victim of such threats.
Singapore’s critical infrastructure sectors include energy, water, banking, finance, health care, transport, government, communication, media, as well as security and emergency services, according to the country’s cyber agency.


Pakistan arrests 11 suspects after viral video of couple shot dead in the name of ‘honor’

Pakistan arrests 11 suspects after viral video of couple shot dead in the name of ‘honor’
Updated 21 July 2025

Pakistan arrests 11 suspects after viral video of couple shot dead in the name of ‘honor’

Pakistan arrests 11 suspects after viral video of couple shot dead in the name of ‘honor’
  • Couple shot dead on the orders of a local tribal council last month in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province
  • The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said that in 2024, there were at least 405 cases of ‘honor killings’

QUETTA, Pakistan: Pakistan has arrested 11 suspects after a video emerged on social media of a woman and a man being shot and killed for marrying against the wishes of their families, in a so-called honor killing, authorities said.

The couple, who were not identified, were shot dead on the orders of a local tribal council last month in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, according to provincial authorities, who investigated after the video went viral.

Eleven suspects have been arrested, the provincial chief minister, Sarfraz Bugti, said in a statement on Monday, hours after he announced that the location and people in the video had been identified.

A case has been registered against all those involved, Bugti said, adding that they will be prosecuted.

The video shows people in a desert, and some pickup trucks and SUVs in which they had apparently been driven there. The woman is given a copy of the Qur’an, the Muslim holy book, and she then tells a man: “Come walk seven steps with me, after that you can shoot me.”

The man then follows her for a few steps. A local police official said the woman did not cry or seek mercy.

“You are allowed only to shoot me. Nothing more than that,” the woman says in the regional Brahavi language, translated by the official.

It was not clear what she meant by “nothing more than that.” The man, who had followed her, then aimed a pistol at her as she turned her back to the shooter.

The woman, wrapped in a shawl, stood still as shots were fired. She remained standing after two shots, delivered from close range, dropping to the ground after the third shot.

That is followed by a series of gunshots. The footage then shows a bloodied man lying on the ground, close to the woman’s body. Then, men are shown shooting at both the bodies.

Reuters could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said that in 2024, there were at least 405 “honor killings,” criticizing the authorities for failing to stamp out these crimes. Most victims are women, and the killings are usually carried out by relatives professing to defend their family’s reputation, human rights groups say.

Conservative families in many parts of Pakistan and India do not allow couples to marry against their wishes.


French foreign minister in Kyiv for official visit

French foreign minister in Kyiv for official visit
Updated 21 July 2025

French foreign minister in Kyiv for official visit

French foreign minister in Kyiv for official visit
  • Jean-Noel Barrot is expected to meet counterpart Andriy Sybiga, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and newly-nominated Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko
  • France has contributed to help fix a radiation cover at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine allegedly hit by a Russian drone

KYIV: France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Monday arrived in Kyiv for a two-day visit aimed at supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s invasion, AFP journalists reported.

Barrot is expected to meet counterpart Andriy Sybiga, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and newly-nominated Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.

“In the wake of the unprecedented sanctions adopted by France and the European Union against Russia, the minister will take stock of France’s support for Ukraine,” the French foreign ministry said in a press release.

The EU on Friday adopted a sweeping new package of sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine war, lowering its price cap on Russian oil exported to third countries around the world to 15 percent below market value.

Barrot arrived shortly after air raid alerts were lifted in Kyiv, at the end of another night of Russian attacks that killed at least one person in the capital.

“As Russian forces continue to carry out regular strikes against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, threatening its security and that of the European continent, the minister will visit the Chernobyl nuclear power plant,” the French foreign ministry said.

France has contributed to help fix a radiation cover at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine allegedly hit by a Russian drone in February, in an attack that did not result in any radiation being released.