Rwanda

Three African sites removed from the Unesco world heritage 'in danger' list

The World Heritage Committee has removed three African heritage sites -- in Madagascar, Egypt and Libya -- from UNESCO's list of endangered sites, acknowledging successful efforts to mitigate threats and restore their cultural and ecological integrity. The decision was taken on July 9 during the ongoing 47th session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) in Paris, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said in a statement on Wednesday. It said these removals are the result of extensive efforts by states parties, with UNESCO's support, to significantly reduce threats to these sites. The sites taken off the danger list are the Rainforests of the Atsinanana in Madagascar, Abu Mena in Egypt, and the Old Town of Ghadams in Libya. "When sites are removed from the List of World Heritage in Danger, it is a great victory for all. For the countries and communities directly concerned, for UNESCO and, more broadly, for the shared heritage of humanity," Direct

Trump promises West African leaders pivot to trade after US aid cut impacts

President Donald Trump promised West African leaders a pivot from aid to trade during a White House meeting on Wednesday as the region reels from the impact of sweeping US aid cuts. Trump said he sees great economic potential in Africa as the leaders of Liberia, Senegal, Gabon, Mauritania and Guinea-Bissau boasted of their countries' natural resources and heaped praise on the US president, including their thanks for his help in settling a long-running conflict between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Trump described the nations represented at the meeting as all very vibrant places with very valuable land, great minerals, and great oil deposits, and wonderful people a definite shift from his first term, when he used a vulgar term to describe African nations. The meeting comes amid a shift in US global and domestic priorities under Trump's leadership. Earlier this month, US authorities dissolved the US Agency for International Development and said it was no longer followi

Rwanda, Congo sign US-brokered deal to end deadly eastern conflict

Kinshasa and Kigali will also launch a regional economic integration framework within 90 days, the agreement said

Trump brokers Congo-Rwanda peace deal, says he deserves Nobel Prize

Trump announced Congo-Rwanda peace deal with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, calling it a 'great day for Africa' and hinting he deserves a Nobel Peace Prize

Rwanda-backed rebels advance into eastern Congo's 2nd major city of Bukavu

Rwanda-backed rebels in eastern Congo on Friday entered the region's second-largest city of Bukavu, local and civil society leaders said, the latest ground gained since a major escalation of their yearslong fighting with government forces. The M23 rebels entered the city's Kazingu and Bagira zone and were advancing towards the centre of the city of about 1.3 million people, according to Jean Samy, vice-president of the civil society in South Kivu. He reported gunfire in parts of the city. Videos posted online appeared to show rebels marching toward the Bagira area. In one of the videos, a voice in the background shouted: They are there ... there are many of them." Rwanda-backed rebels in eastern Congo claimed Friday to have seized a second airport in the region following a days-long advance, as the UN warned that the recent escalation of fighting with government forces has left 350,000 internally displaced people without shelter. Local sources said M23 rebels have surrounded the ar

773 dead in week-long clashes as Congo tries to repel Rwanda-backed rebels

At least 773 people were killed in eastern Congo's largest city of Goma and its vicinity this week amid fighting with Rwanda-backed rebels who captured the city in a major escalation of a decadelong conflict, Congolese authorities said Saturday. The rebels' advance into other areas was slowed by a weakened military that recovered some villages from them. Authorities confirmed 773 bodies and 2,880 injured persons in Goma's morgues and hospitals, Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya told a briefing in the capital, Kinshasa, adding that the death toll could be higher. These figures remain provisional because the rebels asked the population to clean the streets of Goma. There should be mass graves and the Rwandans took care to evacuate theirs, said Muyaya. Hundreds of Goma residents were returning to the city on Saturday after the rebels promised to restore basic services including water and power supply. They cleaned up the neighborhoods littered with debris from weapons and .

As M23 rebels advance in Congo, new leader signals shift in its identity

After Rwanda-backed M23 rebels took control of the biggest city in eastern Congo this week, the man who emerged from the shadows to assert his leadership was not the group's long-time military leader. Sultani Makenga, an ethnic Tutsi rebel leader sanctioned by both the US and the UN, was nowhere to be seen in Goma's Serena Hotel as the bearded Corneille Nangaa, in military fatigues, was ushered into the hall. Nangaa, who is not a Tutsi and who analysts say brings a more diverse, Congolese face to the group, told reporters of his plan to fight all the way to Kinshasa, the national capital a thousand miles away. The spectacle was significant because it captures the evolution of M23 from an ethnic Tutsi-dominated outfit more than a decade ago to one that's now actively seeking to be seen as a Congolese nationalist group. That's the case despite the military support it gets from neighbouring Rwanda, according to observers and analysts in Africa's Great Lakes region. From election chief

It's declaration of war: Congo after Rwanda-backed rebels claim key city

Rwanda-backed rebels claimed they captured eastern Congo's largest city, Goma, early Monday, as the United Nations described a mass panic among its 2 million people and Congo's government said the rebel advance was a declaration of war." The M23 rebels announced the city's capture in a statement minutes before a 48-hour deadline expired that had been imposed by the group for the Congolese army to surrender their weapons. Early Monday morning, gunfire was heard throughout the city, according to two aid workers sheltering there who were not authorized to speak to the media. In a statement, the rebels urged residents of Goma to remain calm and for members of the Congolese military to assemble at the central stadium. The M23 rebels' offensive in the heart of the mineral-rich region threatens to dramatically worsen one of Africa's longest wars and further displace civilians. According to a United Nations report, over a third of the population of North Kivu province where Goma is located

UK's worst unrest in 13 yrs: What led to riots; how's govt handling it?

UK riots: While 'far-right' groups are protesting against 'uncontrolled' immigration, asylum seekers are also holding counter-protests

Nothing will stand in way of Rwanda flights: Sunak after key bill passes

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's latest effort to send some migrants to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament early Tuesday, hours after he pledged deportation flights would begin in July. The parliamentary logjam that had stalled the legislation for two months was finally broken just after midnight when the unelected House of Lords recognised the primacy of the elected House of Commons and dropped the last of its proposed amendments, clearing the way for the bill to become law. Earlier in the day, Sunak held a rare morning press conference to demand that the Lords stop blocking his key proposal for ending the tide of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats, promising that both houses of Parliament would remain in session until it was approved. The legislative stalemate was just the latest hurdle to delay implementation of a plan that has been repeatedly blocked by a series of court rulings and opposition from human rights activists who say it is illegal and .

Britain's plan to send some migrants to Rwanda hits hurdle in Parliament

A law that will enable Britain to send some asylum-seekers on a one-way trip to Rwanda suffered a setback on Wednesday after Parliament's upper chamber pressed its attempt to amend the contentious legislation. The House of Lords inserted amendments into the Safety of Rwanda Bill, sending it back to the lower House of Commons in a process known as parliamentary ping-pong. The government had hoped members of the Lords would stop blocking the bill on Wednesday, relenting to the parliamentary rule that the unelected Lords ultimately can't overrule the elected Commons. The Lords' resistance underlines the strength of opposition in the upper house, where the governing Conservative Party does not have a majority. The bill is still overwhelmingly likely to become law, but the latest move delays its passage, likely until next week. The legislation will pave the way for deportation flights to take off though opponents plan new legal challenges that could keep them grounded. The Rwanda plan

UK's contentious plan to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda likely to clear Parl

The British government hopes one last push can revive its stalled plan to send some asylum-seekers on a one-way trip to Rwanda. A bill aimed at overcoming a UK Supreme Court block on deportation flights returns to the House of Commons and could be passed into law within days. That would be a boost for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is facing disquiet from fellow Conservative lawmakers as the party lags in opinion polls ahead of an election due this year. Britain and Rwanda signed a deal almost two years ago that would see migrants who cross the English Channel in small boats sent to the East African country, where they would remain permanently. So far, no migrant has been sent to Rwanda under the agreement. Lawmakers in the House of Commons on Monday rejected changes made to the Safety of Rwanda Bill by Parliament's upper chamber, the House of Lords. The Lords inserted a series of amendments designed to water down the legislation. All 10 amendments, backed by opposition members of

Rwanda rejects US calls for withdrawal of missiles, troops from Congo

Authorities in Rwanda on Monday rejected US calls for the withdrawal of troops and missile systems from eastern Congo, saying they are defending Rwandan territory as Congo carries out a "dramatic military build-up near the border. Rwanda's Foreign Ministry in a statement spoke of threats to Rwandan national security stemming from the presence in Congo of an armed group whose members include alleged perpetrators of the 1994 genocide. The rebel group, known by its initials FDLR, is fully integrated into" the Congolese army, the statement said. Although Rwanda has long cited a threat posed by FLDR, authorities there had never admitted to a military presence in eastern Congo, whose authorities accuse the tiny central African country of actively supporting the violent armed group known as M23. The US State Department in a statement Saturday criticised the worsening violence caused by M23, describing it as a Rwanda-backed armed group. That statement also urged Rwanda to immediately withd

Rishi Sunak's Rwanda migration bill suffers blow in Britain's Parliament

The upper house of Britain's Parliament has urged the Conservative government not to ratify a migration treaty with Rwanda. It's a largely symbolic move, but signals more opposition to come for the stalled and contentious plan to send some asylum-seekers on a one-way trip to the African nation. The House of Lords voted by 214 to 171 on Monday evening to delay the treaty that paves the way for the deportation plan. The treaty and an accompanying bill are the pillars of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak 's bid to overcome a block on the deportations by the UK Supreme Court. Members of the Lords, who are appointed rather than elected, backed a motion saying Parliament should not ratify the pact until ministers can show Rwanda is safe. John Kerr, a former diplomat who sits in the Lords, said the Rwanda plan was incompatible with our responsibilities under international human rights law. The considerations of international law and national reputation... convince me that it wouldn't be right to

Uganda dance their way to historic first-ever T20 World Cup qualification

Uganda reached their first-ever senior men's World Cup after beating Rwanda and finishing in the top two of the ICC Africa T20 World Cup 2023 qualifiers

UK govt policy to deport refugees to Rwanda ruled unlawful: London SC

The UK government on Wednesday lost a crucial legal challenge after the Supreme Court in London ruled that its policy to deport refugees to Rwanda while their application for asylum is processed is unlawful. The country's highest court agreed with a previous Court of Appeal decision to say that there are "substantial grounds" to believe people deported to Rwanda could then be sent to places they would be unsafe by the Rwandan government. It was one of the flagship policies championed by recently sacked home secretary Suella Braverman, who in a scathing pre-emptive letter had sought to lay the blame for such a ruling at the door of the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claiming he had failed to prepare any sort of credible Plan B to tackle the issue of illegal migration. Sunak admitted it was not the outcome the government wanted as part of his "stop the boats" pledge but stressed that he had prepared for such an eventuality. We accept the Home Secretary's submission that the Rwandan ...

UK court rules that plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlawful

But the judges said that a policy of deporting asylum seekers to another country was not in itself illegal

Plan for asylum seekers' deportation to Rwanda lawful, says British court

A British court has ruled that the government's plan to send asylum-seekers on a one-way trip to Rwanda is lawful

UN welcomes trial against Rwanda genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga

A top UN official has welcomed the opening of a trial in The Hague against Felicien Kabuga for his involvement in the 1994 Rwandan genocide

UK says one-way flights to Rwanda for asylum-seekers to start within weeks

Critics of the Conservative government accused Prime Minister Boris Johnson of using the headline-grabbing policy to distract attention from his political troubles