ECOWAS LEADERS MEET TODAY TO PONDER NEXT STEPS ON NIGER ULTIMATUM.

Leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have scheduled an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the crisis in Niger Republic.

ECOWAS made the announcement, a day after its deadline to the military junta in Niger to reinstate the ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.

The military government is bracing for a response from ECOWAS after ignoring its deadline to reinstate Bazoum or face the threat of military intervention.

In a statement by the secretariat, the summit will be held in Abuja, the ECOWAS headquarters.

“President Bola Tinubu, president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and chairman of the authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of the ECOWAS leaders, will be considering and discussing the political situation and recent developments in Niger during the summit,” the organisation said.

Recall that ECOWAS had met in Abuja on July 30, where a seven-day deadline was issued for the Niger junta to reinstate Bazoum or risk sanctions, including possible military intervention, but the junta severed ties with Nigeria and some other countries sympathetic to Bazoum’s cause, rather than reinstate the deposed Niger leader.

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WORLD BANK HALTS NEW LOANS TO UGANDA OVER ANTI-GAY LAW.

The World Bank is pausing approval for new public finance projects in Uganda over the country’s adoption earlier this year of a widely criticized bill criminalizing same-sex conduct.

The move comes after pressure from human rights organizations and members of the US Congress to take a tougher line with Kampala over the law, which is among the harshest of its kind in the world.

Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023 contains provisions making “aggravated homosexuality” a capital offense and imposes penalties for consensual same-sex relations of up to life in prison.

“Our goal is to protect sexual and gender minorities from discrimination and exclusion in the projects we finance,” the World Bank said Tuesday, adding that it was in discussion with the Ugandan authorities over the issue.

At the end of July, several members of the US Congress called on World Bank President Ajay Banga to “immediately postpone and suspend all current and future lending to Uganda” until the law was struck down.

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PRESIDENT MNANGAGWA SAYS ZIMBABWE WILL BE LOST IF HE IS NOT RE-ELECTED.

Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa told over 150,000 supporters in the capital of Harare they would be “lost” if they did not re-elect him at this month’s tense polls.

“If Harare fails to vote Zanu-PF, you will be lost,” the 80-year-old strongman said as he addressed a rally for his party Zanu-PF near the city centre.

“No one will stop us from ruling this country,” he said at the party’s first major rally in the capital.

Zimbabwe votes on August 23 to elect the president and legislature in what analysts expect to be a tense affair, amid a crackdown on dissent and a disaffected population battling hyperinflation, poverty and high unemployment.

Suspicions over possible election irregularities are rife in a nation that has been ruled by the same party since independence in 1980 and has a long history of disputed votes.

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GUINEA-BISSAU PRESIDENT NAMES PRIME MINISTER AFTER POLL SETBACK.

Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo has appointed a former finance minister to head the next government following legislative elections in the West African state that ushered in power-sharing.

A coalition led by the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) won 54 out of 102 seats in the June vote, ahead of Embalo’s Madem G15 party, which picked up 29.

Embalo, in a decree published by his office on social media, named PAIGC’s deputy leader, Geraldo Martins, as next prime minister.

Martins was proposed by the coalition, Pai-Terra Ranka.

He succeeds Nuno Gomes Nabiam, who had served since 2020.

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UNITED STATES, UNITED NATIONS EXPRESS CONCERN FOR OUSTED NIGER PRESIDENT.

The US and UN are concerned about the health and safety of Niger’s elected President Mohamed Bazoum, who has spent more than two weeks under house arrest.

The Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) had given Niger’s coup leaders until Sunday to stand down.

Ecowas officials are meeting later to decide what to do next.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres also said he was concerned, including about the reportedly “deplorable living conditions” the family were in.

Bazoum was deposed on 26 July.

Earlier, Bazoum’s party said he and his family were being detained under “cruel” and “inhumane” conditions.

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GORDON BROWN DESCRIBES TALIBAN REPRESSION OF WOMEN AS CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY.

The Taliban’s treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan is a “crime against humanity”.

Former Prime Minister, Gordon Brown is calling on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to prosecute those responsible for the “vicious” abuse of human rights.

The Taliban government has severely restricted the freedoms of women and girls since regaining power in 2021.

“This is the systematic brutalisation of women and girls,” he said.

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WILDFIRES RAGE IN HAWAII KILLED THIRTY-SIX.

At least 36 people have died as fast-moving wildfires rage across the Hawaiian island of Maui.

The fires have been fanned by strong winds from a passing hurricane, destroying hundreds of buildings and burning some areas to the ground.

Thousands of people have been forced to evacuate their homes on the island and a state of emergency has been declared.

A huge search and rescue operation is under way, with some people still unaccounted for.

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ECUADOR’S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CANDIDATE SHOT DEAD.

A candidate in Ecuador’s forthcoming presidential election who campaigned against corruption and gangs has been shot dead at a campaign rally.

Fernando Villavicencio, a member of the country’s national assembly, was attacked as he left the event in the capital, Quito.

He is one of the few candidates to allege links between organised crime and government officials in Ecuador.

A criminal gang called Los Lobos (The Wolves) has claimed responsibility.

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FBI KILLS MAN WHO THREATEN PRESIDENT BIDEN.

A man who posted violent threats against President Joe Biden and other officials online was shot dead during an FBI raid.

Agents were attempting to serve an arrest warrant on Craig Robertson at his home in Utah, just hours ahead of a planned visit to the state by Biden.

A criminal complaint said Robertson posted threats on Facebook against Mr Biden and a prosecutor pursuing criminal charges against Donald Trump.

The FBI declined to give more details.