February 2021

Zambia's honorary consul in Istanbul on Sunday said that Zambia and Turkey have established mutually beneficial relations that have continued to grow in recent years. Bülent Göktuna said that Turkey considers Zambia as a strategic partner both in the region of southern Africa and the continent as a whole, according to a statement from the Zambian embassy in Ankara. He spoke at the Zambian Chancery in the Turkish capital before handing over a shipment of 12 computers and a laptop worth 166,000 TL ($…

Pro-independent rebels fighting Morocco for Western Sahara said on Saturday that the UN was responsible for "political stalemate" over the disputed territory, on the 45th anniversary of their unilateral declaration of independence. The Algeria-backed Polisario Front controls about one-fifth of Western Sahara's large, arid territory and demands a promised UN-led referendum on self-determination. Morocco has offered autonomy but claims that the territory is a sovereign part of the empire. "We call on…

Manchester United have an untenable situation with the goalkeeper, with David de Gea and Dean Henderson each commanding a starting salary, neither satisfied with being anything other than "number one" and no way for the club to sufficiently compromise or satisfy both at once.Henderson was persuaded to return to his parent club at the end of last season after two hugely important loan spells at Sheffield United, during which he helped the Blades into the Premier League and played for the England squad.Henderson has joined…

Security forces continue to search for 317 girls who were abducted on Friday, just a day before an armed gang released 27 teenage boys who had been abducted from their school in the northern state of Niger last week. Schools have become the target of mass kidnappings of rapists in northern Nigeria by armed groups, many of whom carry weapons and bicycles. On February 17, gunmen killed a boy and kidnapped 42 people - 27 students, three employees and 12 members of their families - in an attack on the…

Thousands of anti-government protesters took to the streets of Algeria's capital on Friday as the Hirak movement regained momentum after a year-long hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic. Despite a ban on gatherings over COVID-19, crowds gathered in several districts of Algiers in the early afternoon and marched towards the city center, say journalists from Agence France-Presse (AFP). "It's amazing. It's like the big Friday Hirak is protesting," a protester said. Also known as the Revolution of…

It's not easy growing up to be a professional footballer when your dad himself was a pretty successful Premier League player, as Charlie Savage is about to find out.The Manchester United kid is currently a member of the squad during the 18th century and has just signed his first professional contract with the Red Devils. So who is Savage? Here are the things you need to know about him.So proud of @ charliesavage48 who started as the 1st researcher at the biggest club in the world ?? commitment, desire and sacrifice to get…

Eritrean soldiers fighting across the border in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region killed hundreds of people in a massacre last year in a likely crime against humanity, Amnesty International said on Friday. The rights guard spoke to survivors of the atrocities and used satellite images to bring together the bloody events of November last year in the ancient city of Axum in a new report. "The evidence is convincing and points to an incredible conclusion. Ethiopian and Eritrean troops committed several…

The Libyan interim government presented a new vision for the war-torn country when the appointed prime minister, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, on Thursday proposed a structure in line with the UN roadmap. Dbeibah was selected earlier this month in a UN-sponsored dialogue between Libya, the latest internationally supported attempt to save the country from a decade of conflict and fragmented political fiefdoms. But it was unclear how far progress has been made towards appointing a cabinet. "Today we have…

Armed men abducted 317 students on Friday and a rescue operation is underway, police in northwestern Nigeria said of the country's latest mass kidnapping. "The Zamfara State Police Command, in cooperation with the military, has launched a joint rescue operation to rescue the 317 students abducted by the armed bandits of the Government Girls Science Secondary School in Jangebe," police spokesman Mohammed Shehu said in a statement. "Unknown armed men came shooting sporadically and abducted the girls,"…

Libya's new caretaker government will pay special attention to bilateral relations with Turkey during the new term, the country's caretaker prime minister said in a statement on Thursday. "Our ties with Turkey will be different. It is our economic partner and we support this partnership," Abdul Hamid Dbeibah told a news conference in the capital Tripoli. He also emphasized Libya's commitment to the maritime agreement between Turkey and Libya in November 2019. Dbeibah previously said that Libya would…