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Ronaldo refuses to answer Ballon d’Or questions despite Nations League triumph

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‘I will not speak’ – Ronaldo refuses to answer Ballon d’Or...

Middleton Prince - June 11, 2019

JUVENTUS The Juventus forward would not be drawn into debate over the award when pressed by reporters following...

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Skynewsafrica At least 250 journalists are jailed around the world, with the largest number held in China, amid a growing crackdown by authoritarian regimes on independent media, a press watchdog group said Wednesday. Many of those imprisoned face "anti-state" charges or are accused of producing "false news," according to the report by the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists which also cited Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Eritrea, Vietnam, and Iran for their jailing of journalists. The press freedom watchdog said it counted at least 48 journalists jailed in China, one more than in 2018, as President Xi Jinping ramps up efforts to control the media. That put China ahead of Turkey, which has 47 imprisoned journalists -- and the largest number over the previous three years. The report said the situation in Turkey, which had 68 journalists jailed last year, is not really an improvement but "reflects the successful efforts by the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to stamp out independent reporting and criticism." AFP/File / BULENT KILIC Journalist and writer Ahmet Altan (C) is led to a car by Turkish police after he was detained on November 12 in Istanbul The CPJ said the Turkish government has shut down more than 100 news outlets and lodged terror-related charges against many of their staff, putting many reporters out of work and intimidating others. "Dozens of journalists not currently jailed in Turkey are still facing trial or appeal and could yet be sentenced to prison, while others have been sentenced in absentia and face arrest if they return to the country," the committee said. The report said authoritarianism, instability and protests in the Middle East led to a rise in the number of journalists locked up in the region, with Saudi Arabia on a par with Egypt as the third worst jailer worldwide, each with 26 imprisoned. In Saudi Arabia, no charges have been disclosed against 18 of the journalists behind bars, and CPJ expressed concern over reports of "beating, burning and starving political prisoners, including four journalists." Several of the arrests in Egypt came ahead of protests against corruption in September, which included calls for President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to resign. Campaigners say the global total of 250 remains disturbingly high even if it is slightly below the 255 counted in 2018 and the record 273 in 2016. AFP/File / KHALED DESOUKI Egyptian photographer Mahmoud Abdel Shakour, known as Shawkan, released in March, 2019, pictured during his trial in Cairo in 2016 after covering the police dispersal of an Islamist protest camp in the city "CPJ believes that journalists should not be imprisoned for doing their jobs," the group said in its report. It cited the case of Chinese freelance journalist Sophia Huang Xueqin, arrested in October after writing about marching with pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. It also highlighted the case Egyptian economics reporter Mohammad Mosaed, detained after tweeting during an internet shutdown intended to suppress news of protests against high fuel prices. Globally, the number charged with 'false news' rose to 30 compared with 28 last year. This charge is used most frequently in Egypt but has also been leveled against journalists in Russia and Singapore.

China, biggest jailer of journalists, as press dangers persist

December 11, 2019

skynewsafrica Forces loyal to Libya's UN-recognised government said they launched an offensive Saturday for slain dictator Moamer Kadhafi's hometown Sirte, as rival strongman Khalifa Haftar backed a ceasefire following a string of military setbacks. Government of National Accord forces have repulsed a 14-month offensive against the capital Tripoli by eastern-based Haftar and are now poised to drive on eastwards taking advantage of stepped up military support from Turkey. "The air force has carried out five strikes in the outskirts of Sirte" -- the last major town before the traditional boundary between Libya's western Tripolitania and eastern Cyrenaica regions -- GNA spokesman Mohamad Gnounou said. "Orders have been given to our forces to begin their advance and to systematically attack all rebel positions," he added. Sirte was taken by Haftar's forces virtually without a fight in January after one of Libya's myriad local militias switched sides. Beyond Sirte lies the prize of Libya's main oil export ports, Haftar's most important strategic asset. Some 450 kilometres (280 miles) east of Tripoli, the town was where Kadhafi put up his last stand against NATO-backed rebel forces in 2011 and nostalgia for his ousted regime remains strong. - Ceasefire talks - AFP / Abdullah DOMA Libyans in the eastern port city of Benghazi watch a televised speech by strongman Khalifa Haftar, whose forces have lost significant ground to a UN recognised government in recent weeks Haftar's forces have put a brave face on their precipitate fallback from the west, saying that it was a response to mounting international pressure for a lasting ceasefire. "Heeding appeals from the major powers and the United Nations for a ceasefire... we pulled back 60 kilometres (40 miles) from the Greater Tripoli city limits," the general's spokesman, Ahmad al-Mesmari, said. "We have asked friendly countries and the United Nations for guarantees... that the other side and the Turkish invaders refrain from attacking us," he told a news conference late Friday. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, one of Haftar's key foreign supporters, said after talks with the general and other eastern leaders Saturday that they had signed up to a declaration calling for a ceasefire from 6 am (0400 GMT) Monday. But the GNA forces' spokesman appeared to pour cold water on the Egyptian proposals, which included a demand that militias disband and hand over their weaponry to Haftar's men. "We didn't start this war, but we will choose the time and place when it ends," Gnounou said. "Our forces continue to advance with force and resolve, chasing the fleeing (Haftar) militias," he said. The United Nations' Libya mission said Tuesday that after a three-month suspension, the warring parties had agreed to resume ceasefire talks. Libya has endured years of violence since the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed Kadhafi, with rival administrations and scores of militias battling for power. The United Nations has urged outside powers to respect a deal reached at a January conference in Berlin, ending foreign meddling and upholding a much-violated arms embargo. While the GNA is backed by Turkey and its ally Qatar, Haftar is supported by Russia and the United Arab Emirates as well as Egypt. In April, UN experts said hundreds of mercenaries from Russian paramilitary organisation the Wagner Group were fighting for him. But last month, as Haftar's losses mounted, the GNA said Wagner Group fighters had withdrawn from combat zones south of the capital.

Libya govt says offensive launched for Kadhafi hometown Sirte

June 6, 2020

Kenya central bank holds main lending rate at 9.0 pct

Kenya central bank holds main lending rate at 9.0 pct

January 28, 2019

Mugabe declared 'national hero,' Zimbabwe awaits return and burial

Mugabe declared ‘national hero,’ Zimbabwe awaits return and burial

September 7, 2019

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