linked

WASHINGTON — Somalia’s ambassador to the United Nations is facing fresh scrutiny after a senior U.S. health official said he has ties to an Ohio health care company that was later convicted of Medicaid fraud, a claim emerging as fraud cases involving Somali Americans draw intensifying attention in the United States. Jim O'Neil, deputy secretary at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, made the allegation against Abukar Dahir Osman, Somalia’s permanent representative to the United Nations and a former president of…

Four men appeared in a Harare courtroom accused of running a trafficking ring that sent Zimbabweans to Russia, where victims were allegedly coerced into fighting in the Russia-Ukraine war. Prosecutors say the suspects worked with a Russian national to recruit five people by advertising bogus firefighting jobs. Authorities allege the group targeted recruits on Facebook, Telegram, and WhatsApp, arranging travel to Russia before confiscating the victims’ documents on arrival. Instead of the promised emergency work, the…

Aboubacar Sidiki Diakité, a pivotal figure convicted for his involvement in the 2009 stadium massacre in Guinea, has died in custody following a medical emergency. Diakité, who was serving a 10-year sentence for his actions during the violent episode in Conakry—where over 150 lives were lost and at least 109 women were subjected to rape—was a controversial presence even behind bars. He established a political party and made attempts to vie for the presidency. The prison administration confirmed that Diakité succumbed at the…

At least 15 Zimbabweans have been killed in the Russia-Ukraine war after being deceived into joining foreign militaries, a development officials say exposes a trafficking pipeline preying on job seekers. Information Minister Soda Zhemu said employment agencies tied to criminal syndicates are enticing Zimbabweans with promises of lucrative pay before steering them into foreign armed forces. Recruiters have leveraged social media and bogus job listings to hook applicants, he added, with victims later stripped of their…

Belgian Authorities Arrest Leaders Linked to Cameroon War Crimes Belgian prosecutors have announced the arrest of three individuals as part of a probe into possible crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Cameroon due to the country's secessionist rebellion. The arrests underscore the expanding international efforts to address human rights violations associated with the conflict. The suspects are believed to be leaders of the Ambazonia Defence Forces (ADF), a militia advocating for the independence of…

Somalia says senior al-Shabab planner behind 2025 attacks killed in Lower Shabelle strike MOGADISHU, Somalia (AX) — Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency said Tuesday it killed a senior al-Shabab leader accused of orchestrating several of the extremist group’s deadliest operations last year, including the assault on the Godka Jilacow detention complex in Mogadishu. NISA said the March 1 operation took place in the Hantiwadaag area of Awdheegle district in the Lower Shabelle region and was conducted in…

At a glittering 2002 gala in Dublin’s Four Seasons Hotel, world leaders, Nobel laureates and cultural icons rubbed shoulders. Bill Clinton, Henry Kissinger and Mikhail Gorbachev were in the room. Quincy Jones presented an award to Bono. Chuck Berry played. And Jeffrey Epstein slipped in—not to be honored, simply to be there. A quarter-century later, the “Epstein files” are forcing that world of proximity and prestige into a reckoning. Those Dublin snapshots capture the financier’s method: relentless, targeted networking…

Former First Lady's Foundation Ordered to Surrender Records Amid Investigation A court has ordered the Clar Hope Foundation, owned by former First Lady Clar Marie Weah, to surrender its administrative and financial records concerning the construction of the foundation's massive complex outside Monrovia. The order follows a request from the government's Assets Recovery and Property Retrieval Task Force (AREPT), which is investigating allegations that illicit funds were used to finance the sprawling facility—a claim the…

Current evidence does not link paracetamol use in pregnancy to autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or intellectual disabilities, according to a wide-ranging review published in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Women’s Health. The findings, from an international team of researchers, support existing guidance that paracetamol — known as Tylenol in the United States — remains safe to use during pregnancy when taken as directed. The review comes after U.S. President Donald Trump said in September there…

Review finds no link between paracetamol use in pregnancy and autism, ADHD or intellectual disability Current evidence does not link paracetamol use in pregnancy to autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or intellectual disabilities, according to a new review published in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Women’s Health. The findings directly counter recent public claims that the common painkiller—marketed in the United States as Tylenol—could be a cause of autism. In September, US President Donald…