GRAPHITTI NEWS collates national and international highlights from
late-breaking news, up-coming events and the stories that will be talked about Sunday:
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NAF Alpha Jets.... One of them
declared missing. Photo Credit: http://beegeagle.files.wordpress.com via google
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1.
NIGERIA MILITARY AIRCRAFT BOMBING BOKO HARAM MISSING
An
Alpha Jet (NAF 466) belonging to the Nigerian Air Force and involved in
the counter insurgency operation against the extremist Boko Haram sect has gone
missing around Adamawa State.
The
spokesperson of the Defence Headquarters, Chris Olukolade, a Major General,
said the aircraft, with two pilots on-board, went missing on Friday.
In
a statement early Sunday, Mr. Olukolade said the aircraft “left Yola at
about 10:45a.m on 12 September 2014 on a routine operational mission and
was expected back by 12:00 noon”.
“Since
then, all efforts to establish contact with the aircraft have not yielded any
positive result,” the statement said.
Mr.
Olukolade said search and rescue effort had since commenced “to establish
contact with the crew”.
The
Nigerian military had on September 1 launched heavy air bombardment on Bama,
Borno State’s second most important city, after pulling off its ground troops
as the town came under Boko Haram attack following hours of fierce fighting.
Even
after it announced it had regained Bama, the military had continued to shell
locations believed to have large concentration of insurgents.
The
aerial bombardment, insiders say, has left the Boko Haram insurgents suffering
extensive losses in men and equipment.
But
as the military bombed their locations from above, the terrorists also began to
plot against the aircraft carrying out the operation.
The
military on Saturday said some of the equipment recovered from the terrorists
during an operation in Konduga were three Hilux and one Buffalo vehicles
with mounted anti-aircraft guns.
It
is however not clear whether the missing plane was shot down or whether it was
simply involved in an accident.
It
is the second time in less than two months that a military aircraft would go
missing while flying over the insurgency-hit area of Nigeria.
On
July 21, the military announced that a Nigerian Air Force, NAF, Mi-35
helicopter, had gone missing and later crashed while “on a training mission”.
The
helicopter’s co-pilot, Flight Lieutenant NM Halilu, and the aircraft
technician, Warrant Officer Augustine Nwanonenyi, survived the crash while the
pilot, Flight Lieutenant Onyeka Nwakile, died in the incident.
2.
OBASANJO VISITS INJURED SON IN JOS
Former
president Olusegun Obasanjo flew into Jos, the Plateau State capital, at 5:45pm
yesterday to see his wounded son, Lt. Col. Adeboye Obasanjo.
He
had been injured during a clash with Boko Haram in Maiduguri.
Our
correspondent gathered that Adeboye is currently receiving treatment at 3rd
Amoured Division Medical Centre, Maxwell Khobe Cantonment, Rukuba Barracks in
the Tin City. The former president flew in amidst heavy security along the
Airport Road that leads into the city.
Last
week, the younger Obasanjo, who led a platoon in Adamawa State, was said to
have been injured during a fierce battle between Boko Haram and the Nigerian
security forces.
3.
UK'S CAMERON CALLS EMERGENCY MILITARY, SECURITY MEETING AFTER EXTREMISTS BEHEAD
BRITISH MAN
Prime
Minister David Cameron is summoning military and security chiefs for an
emergency meeting Sunday in response to the beheading of a British hostage and
a threat against another.
The
meeting comes after Islamic extremists released a video showing the beheading
of British aid worker David Haines and threatening another with death.
Mike
Haines, the victim's brother, said David Haines had been murdered "in cold
blood." Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office said it saw no reason to
doubt the authenticity of the video.
Haines
is the third Westerner beheaded in recent weeks by the Islamic State group,
which has seized vast swaths of territory in Syria and Iraq. The first two were
U.S. journalists.
Islamic
State extremists had threatened Haines' life in an earlier video.
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Prime Minister David Cameron said
the beheading of David Haines was 'an act of pure evil'
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4.
LIBERIA PRESIDENT FIRES 10 OFFICIALS FOR FAILURE TO RETURN HOME
Liberian
President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has fired 10 government officials for
disobeying an order to return to the country after foreign trips, according to
an e-mailed statement from the Executive Mansion.
This
is the second time in less than a month Johnson-Sirleaf has fired officials for
their absence from the West African nation, which is struggling to contain a
deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus.
On
Aug. 26, she sacked ministers and senior government workers traveling overseas
who flouted an instruction to return home as part of a state-of-emergency
announcement.
Among
the most recently dismissed are Wheatonia Dixon-Barnes, deputy minister for
administration and public safety; Victoria Sherman-Lang, deputy justice
minister for economic affairs; and Hilary Sirleaf-Siakor, assistant justice
minister for prisons, according to the statement, dated yesterday.
Liberia,
on West Africa’s Atlantic coast, is the worst-hit of four countries in the
region which have recorded cases of Ebola. The virus had killed 1,236 people in
Liberia as of Sept. 9, its Health Ministry said, and it threatens to wipe out
the farming season in the agriculture-dependent nation.
Liberia
has fallen into a recession, and the government needs to cut spending as the outbreak
takes its toll on business, Finance Minister Amara Konneh said on Sept. 12.
The
International Monetary Fund cut its expansion forecast for Liberia’s economy to
2.5 percent this year from a previous estimate of 5.9 percent, spokesman
Ismaila Dieng said on Sept. 11.
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U.S. citizen Matthew Todd Miller sits in a
witness box during his trial at the North Korean Supreme Court in this undated
photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang
September 14, 2014.(Reuters / KCNA)
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5.
N. KOREAN SUPREME COURT SENTENCES AMERICAN MATTHEW MILLER TO 6 YEARS FOR
ESPIONAGE
North
Korea's Supreme Court has sentenced Matthew Miller, a U.S. citizen, to six
years with labor for entering the country illegally and trying to commit an act
of espionage.
The
court said Sunday that the 24-year-old Miller, of Bakersfield, California, tore
up his tourist visa at Pyongyang's airport when he entered the country on April
10 and intended to "experience prison life so that he could investigate
the human rights situation."
After
its brief session Sunday morning, the court denied Miller any appeal.
A
trial is also expected soon for 56-year-old Jeffrey Fowle, who entered the
North as a tourist but was arrested in May for leaving a Bible at a provincial
club. A third American, Korean-American missionary Kenneth Bae, is serving out
a 15-year sentence for alleged "hostile acts."
6.
WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TOMATOES — THROW THEM
Amsterdam's
central Dam square is set to be the scene of a red pulpy mess Sunday, as
entrepreneurs have seized upon Russia's boycott of European produce to set up a
tomato-throwing fight.
The
idea is lifted from Spain's famed annual "La Tomatina" festival.
The
Dutch event is being marketed as a protest, but participants say they're mostly
looking forward to smacking friends and strangers with overripe tomatoes.
Wearing goggles is strongly advised.
Tickets
to the one-hour fight cost 15 euros (US$18) each and around 1,000 have been
sold.
Organizers
say they have purchased 120,000 tomatoes labeled unfit for human consumption
for the event. Remains will be cleaned and sent to a biogas production
facility.
Organizer
Joep Verbunt says proceeds will go to tomato growers hurt by the sanctions.
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Tomatina Festival, Bunol, Spain - 03
Jun 2013
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7.
SCOTTISH REFERENDUM: VOTE 'ONCE IN A GENERATION' CHANCE
Scotland's
First Minister has said the independence vote is a "once in a
generation" opportunity as he pledged not to bring back another referendum
if Scots choose to remain in the UK.
As
a series of polls indicate the vote on Thursday remains too close to call, Alex
Salmond said one vote would be enough to win, but insisted the Yes campaign was
hoping for a "substantial majority".
He
said that work was already under way to assemble a team of specialists to
negotiate terms with the rest of the UK in the event of a vote for
independence.
Several
new polls show a slim lead for the No camp, with one suggesting the
pro-independence side had a lead of eight points - the reverse of the picture
in a poll commissioned by Better Together.
No
leads by 50.6% to 49.4%, according to Panelbase for the Sunday Times and - with
undecideds taken out - by 53% to 47% in research by Opinium for the Observer.
An
ICM poll for the Sunday Telegraph put the Yes camp in front by 54% to 46%,
although it had a smaller than usual sample size of 705.
And
a Survation poll commissioned by Better Together found that 54% plan to vote No
while 46% intend to say Yes, factoring out undecided voters.
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Scotland's
First Minister Alex Salmond visited the Tollcross area of Glasgow to meet Yes
Scotland supporters
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Mr
Salmond told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: "Harold Wilson famously (said)
one vote is enough in a referendum but we're not aiming to win by one vote,
we're aiming to achieve a substantial majority if we can."
He
added: "If you remember that previous constitutional referendum in
Scotland - there was one in 1979 and then the next one was 1997. That's what I
mean by a political generation.
"In
my opinion, and it is just my opinion, this is a once in a generation
opportunity for Scotland."
Asked
if he could pledge not to bring back another referendum if the Yes campaign
does not win on Thursday, he said: " That's my view. My view is this is a
once in a generation, perhaps even a once in a lifetime, opportunity for
Scotland."
Mr
Salmond said that following a Yes vote there would be "urgent
business" to bring the country together.
He
said: "Firstly it will be a day of celebration, Scotland will have
achieved something astonishing in democratic politics.
WHAT
NEXT? IF SCOTLAND VOTES FOR INDEPENDENCE, PREPARE FOR INTENSE TALKS AND A MESSY
DIVORCE
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Supporters of the No campaign surround Jim Murphy
during his speech on Glasgow's Sauchiehall Street
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How
do you divorce after a 300-year union? It's complicated, and there is a
deadline.
If
Scots vote yes to separation on Thursday, a clock starts ticking down to March
24, 2016 — the independence day declared by the Scottish government.
The
British and Scottish administrations have agreed that they will recognize the
outcome of the referendum and appoint negotiators to work out the details of
separation "in the best interests of the people of Scotland and of the
rest of the United Kingdom."
But
there is disagreement on many issues, and only 18 months to redraft laws,
establish international agreements and work out relationships with
international organizations.
Robert
Hazell, head of the Constitution Unit at University College London, says that
is an "impossible timetable," and estimates it could take up to three
years to hammer out the details.
8.UGANDA
ARRESTS SOMALI AL SHABAAB BOMBERS
Ugandan
police have said that suspected Islamist Al-Shabaab insurgents arrested in
weekend raids had planned to carry out bomb attacks, as the US embassy said the
immediate threat had been "countered".
Police
raids on Saturday came two weeks after Ugandan troops, fighting in Somalia,
reportedly provided intelligence that helped US Special Forces kill the
Al-Shabaab's chief in a devastating air strike.
"Al-Shabaab
planned to carry out attacks in Kampala and other towns over the weekend, but
police working with sister agencies stopped these attacks and we have recovered
the explosives they were to use," said police chief Gen. Kale Kayihura.
"We
have arrested a number of suspects and they are being interrogated," he
said, without giving further details on the number arrested or the targets they
had planned to attack.
The
US embassy on Sunday lifted warnings to its citizens to stay at home, but said
people should remain vigilant.
"Based
on coordination with Ugandan authorities, and taking into account the
heightened security measures the government has put in place, we believe that
the immediate threat of an Al-Shabaab attack has been effectively
countered," the embassy said in a statement.
"We
remain vigilant to the possibility that some of the attack cell could still be
at large."
Last
Monday the US embassy warned that Al-Shabaab insurgents may try to exact
revenge for a US air strike that killed the militant group's commander.
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Uganda's police chief
Gen. Kale Kayihura. PHOTO/Ramadhan Abbey
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"Stay
alert to the ongoing potential for terrorist attacks in Uganda," it said.
"We
also caution US citizens of the possibility of retaliatory attacks in Uganda by
Al-Shabaab in response to the US and Ugandan military actions in Somalia last
week which killed Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Godane."
Uganda
is a major contributor to AMISOM, the African Union (AU) force fighting the
Al-Shabaab in Somalia.
The
government said it was “happy” at the death of Godane, and that it had provided
the US with key intelligence on his whereabouts.
During
the World Cup final four years ago, Al-Shabaab insurgents killed at least 76
people after setting off explosions that ripped through two restaurants in
Kampala.
The
strike against Godane came days after AU troops and Somali government forces
launched "Operation Indian Ocean", a major offensive aimed at seizing
key ports from the Al-Shabaab and cutting off charcoal exports, one of their
key revenue sources.
9.
GAZA CHILDREN RETURN TO SCHOOL 2 WEEKS LATE AFTER WAR WITH ISRAEL
Some
half million Gaza children made a delayed return to school on Sunday after a
devastating 50-day war with Israel that killed more than 2,100 Palestinians and
damaged hundreds of school buildings.
Gaza
Education Ministry official Ziad Thabet said the opening is for 230,000 1st to
12th graders attending public schools, 200,000 going to United Nations-run
schools and tens of thousands enrolled in private institutions.
The
opening was delayed for two weeks because of damage to schools and the
diversion of U.N. school buildings for use as temporary centers to house tens
of thousands of displaced people. Some 50,000 people are still being housed in
the U.N. schools, the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency said.
Early
Sunday the Gaza City streets were crowded with children dressed in a broad
array of school uniforms, many accompanied by parents or older siblings.
In
the Al-Zaitoun boys elementary school, students pasted stickers with the names
of fellow students killed during the war, as teachers struggled to cope with
the badly damaged facilities — a hole in a ceiling here, a partially collapsed
wall there.
10.
US POLICE COMMISSIONER: DEADLY AMBUSH OF PENNSYLVANIA TROOPERS 'HAS TOUCHED US
TO THE CORE'
With
the deadly ambush on a state police barracks in the Pocono Mountains, law
enforcement in eastern Pennsylvania went on high alert and officers from
throughout the region, including New York and New Jersey, joined in a massive
search for the shooter or shooters.
But
after scouring dense woods on foot and by helicopter Saturday, authorities
suspected the assailant had left the area. They had no one in custody as
midnight neared, a state police spokesman said.
Pennsylvania
State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan said the attack Friday night that left
one trooper dead and another critically wounded was directed at state police
and a "very dangerous, armed criminal" eluded quick capture.
"This
attack was an ambush. Our troopers were ... shot without warning and really had
no chance to defend themselves," Noonan told reporters Saturday afternoon.
"It's a cowardly attack. It's an attack upon all of us in society."
Law
enforcement officers searched state game lands surrounding the barracks in
Blooming Grove, in Pike County, and beyond Saturday. Several roads around the
barracks, including parts of Interstate 84, were closed.
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Floyd
Mayweather, left, took his record to 47-0 with victory in Las Vegas (AP)
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11.
MAYWEATHER DEFEATS MAIDANA
Floyd
Mayweather won his rematch with Argentinian slugger Marcos Maidana on a
unanimous decision in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
The
37-year-old American's professional record was extended to 47-0, while Maidana's
slipped to 35-5 as Mayweather retained his WBA and WBC welterweight titles as
well as the WBC junior middleweight belt.
The
judges scored the 12-round bout 115-112, 116-111 and 116-111.
Pound-for-pound
king Mayweather edged the opening three rounds despite hitting the canvas in
the first, as he allowed Maidana the middle of the ring but used his feet to
get the fight on his own terms.
The
local favourite did not have the entire crowd in his corner at the MGM Grand,
with plenty of Argentinian support for the challenger.
And
Mayweather showed signs of frustration in round eight, claiming Maidana had
bitten him on the glove, forcing referee Kenny Bayless to separate the pair
momentarily.
But
it would be as close as Maidana came to upsetting the undefeated champion, as
Mayweather comfortably negotiated the final rounds.
Mayweather
was given one of his sternest tests of his career in their first encounter in
May, but weathered an early storm before coming on strong down the stretch to
record a majority points decision victory.
12.
EPL FINAL SCORES FOR SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2014
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| Source: BBC Sport |
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