Women’s World Cup 2023: The Africans to watch

The Women’s World Cup gets underway on 20 July, when both co-hosts – Australia and New Zealand – play their opening games.

Africa will field four teams at the finals for the first time, after world governing body Fifa expanded the tournament from 24 to 32 teams.

Reigning continental champions South Africa will be joined by Nigeria, who boast nine African titles, and World Cup debutants Morocco and Zambia at the month-long tournament which ends on 20 August.

Ahead of an event where Africa has yet to break the quarter-final barrier, BBC Sport Africa profiles four key players for the continent’s representatives.

Asisat Oshoala has been a key figure for Barcelona in recent years, topping 20 goals in each of the past four seasons

Asisat Oshoala – Nigeria

There is no player bigger in African women’s football than Oshoala – and for good reason.

After exploding onto the international scene in 2014 when she was top scorer and best player at the Under-20 World Cup, Oshoala has consistently been one of the continent’s top players.

Having won three Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon), and been player of the tournament at two of them, she has also scored at both the 2015 and 2019 World Cups.

If she nets in this edition, she will become the first African to score at three Women’s World Cups and may well add a record-extending sixth African Women’s Footballer of the Year award to her growing trophy cabinet.

The Barcelona star comes into the World Cup after a fourth successive season hitting over 20 goals and a second straight year as top scorer for the reigning European champions.

On her day, very few defenders can cope with Oshoala, given she is the complete forward able to dominate with her strength and pace, but it’s her intelligent movement both on and off the ball that makes her stand out.

Ruled out of last year’s Wafcon with a knee injury picked up in the opening match, she missed May’s Champions League final triumph with a hamstring injury as Barca defeated Wolfsburg, so Nigerians will hope she stays fit.

Barbra Banda – Zambia

After missing the 2022 Wafcon due to a gender eligibility row, Banda bounced back with 10 goals in five games for Zambia

Another who missed Wafcon, 23-year-old Banda is one of the most exciting talents in Africa.

The striker shocked the world in 2021 when scoring back-to-back hat-tricks at the Olympics – the first player to do so in the event’s long history – prior to Zambia’s group stage exit.

Yet Banda’s development stalled last year when she was ruled out of Wafcon – on the eve of the tournament – after a gender eligibility row.

Despite the setback, captain Banda showed her impressive leadership skills and stayed in Morocco to lead her team to an historic third-place finish from the sidelines.

Fortunately for Banda and Zambia, she has since been given the green light to play and returned with frightening ease, scoring 10 goals in five games during September’s Cosafa Cup.

As debutants, Zambia are likely to play defensively and counter-attack, and in Banda, whose searing pace can leave centre-backs for dust, they have one of the best in the business at playing on the break.

Having struck up a partnership with Racheal Kundananji, who bagged 25 goals in the Spanish top flight last season, the pair could form one of the most lethal attacks in Australia and New Zealand.

Refiloe Jane holds the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations aloft alongside Janine van Wyk

Refiloe Jane – South Africa

Jane is perhaps this list’s most understated player, but arguably the most important to her team given the diminutive midfielder is the heartbeat of the African champions.

Central to the type of football that coach Desiree Ellis wants to play, Jane is a deep-lying playmaker for Banyana Banyana.

Sitting in front of the defence, she has a terrific passing range and controls the tempo of matches from deep, allowing South Africa’s attacking talent to flourish.

Having made her competitive debut at the 2012 Olympics, Jane has featured for South Africa in every major tournament since, racking up over 100 caps.

Last year, she stepped up to co-captaining the side alongside long-time skipper Janine van Wyk – leading the side to its first Wafcon title against Morocco – but will now be the sole captain with Van Wyk out injured.

It will be a familiar return to Australia, where Jane signed her first professional contract with W League side Canberra United in 2019 before moving to Italy where she now plays for Sassuolo (after a spell with Milan).

While she is unlikely to score many goals or grab any headlines, Jane will be central to South Africa’s hopes as they contest the tournament for the second time.

Ghizlane Chebbak – Morocco

Captain Ghizlane Chebbak led Morocco on their historic run to the 2022 Wafcon final, helping to clinch World Cup qualification

While South Africa and Nigeria dominated headlines at last year’s Wafcon, hosts Morocco truly shocked the world as they reached their first final – with Ghizlane Chebbak the star of the show.

The daughter of former men’s international Larbi Chebbak, a Cup of Nations winner in 1976, Ghizlane captained the Atlas Lionesses in their first appearance at the tournament for 20 years, a run which led to their first World Cup qualification.

Leading from the front, Chebbak ended Wafcon as both joint top scorer and player of the tournament.

Despite being a midfielder, Chebbak is a natural goalscorer. Already her country’s record scorer, she recently notched up a fifth season topping the scoring charts in Morocco’s top division, where she has won ten straight titles with AS FAR.

In November, she led the club to their first African Champions League title, beating holders Mamelodi Sundowns in the final.

Chebbak is also a superb set-piece specialist, and whether it be a free-kick, corner or penalty, she rarely gets her delivery wrong, something which may prove invaluable for the debutants.

Often played as a number 10 or in a midfield three, Chebbak is the Atlas Lionesses’ creative hub, with everything passing through her.

While she may not possess tremendous pace, her technique and decision-making in the final third make her shine.

Source: BBC

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McDonald’s Workers Speak Out Over Sexual Abuse Claims

 A toxic culture of sexual assault, harassment, racism and bullying has been alleged by more than 100 current and recent UK staff at outlets of the fast-food chain McDonald’s.

The BBC was told that workers, some as young as 17, are being groped and harassed almost routinely.
The UK equality watchdog said it was “concerned” by the BBC’s findings and is launching a new email hotline.
McDonald’s said it had “fallen short” and it “deeply apologised”.
It added that all employees deserved to work in a safe, respectful and inclusive workplace.

The BBC began investigating working conditions at McDonald’s in February, after the company signed a legally binding agreement with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in which it pledged to protect its staff from sexual harassment.

At the time, McDonald’s insisted: “We already have a strong track record in this area.”
But our investigation has revealed a very different picture.
Over a five-month period, we reached out to McDonald’s workers to ask about their experiences of working there. Of the more than 100 allegations from employees we spoke to, 31 related to sexual assault, and 78 related to sexual harassment.

We also heard 18 allegations of racism, while six people made allegations of homophobia.

Read Full Story …. HERE >>> :   

Source: BBC

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Kenyan protesters shot as police battle demonstrations

Several people in Kenya have been shot and injured as police battled opposition protesters in several parts of the county demonstrating against the rising cost of living and tax hikes.

Local media reported that five people were injured in Nakuru town in the Rift Valley region – with four sustaining gunshot wounds. Two others were shot and injured in Makueni in the east.

Earlier three people were reported to have been taken to hospital in in Migori in the west after they were injured during the protests.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga reportedly urged his supporters to end the protests at 17:00 local time and resume on Thursday.

Mr Odinga told the local Daily Nation newspaper website that the first day of a series of cost-of-living protests had been a success.

In Nairobi’s city centre and in other key towns, businesses remained shut and people stayed away for fear of getting caught in the protests.

Meanwhile, a number of people were shot and injured in different towns during the anti-government protests.

The opposition Azimio coalition says some of their leaders and close allies including some MPs and local area representatives had been arrested, with deputy leader Martha Karua condemning their “arrest without lawful justification”.

President William Ruto meanwhile said he was ready for talks but denounced the chaos and hooliganism during the protests, and urged the opposition to find amicable ways to address their concerns.

Source: BBC

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Arresting Vladimir Putin In South Africa Would Be ‘Declaration Of War’ – Ramaphosa

Any attempt to arrest Vladimir Putin when he visits South Africa would be a declaration of war against Russia, the country’s president says.

Cyril Ramaphosa made the warning with weeks to go before an international meeting happens in Johannesburg, to which the Russian president is invited.
But if Mr Putin leaves Russian soil, he will be subject to an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant.
South Africa is an ICC signatory and should therefore help in his arrest.

Yet it has refused to honour that obligation in the past – allowing safe passage in 2015 to Sudan’s then-President Omar al-Bashir who was wanted for war crimes against his own people.

Mr Putin has been invited to South Africa in August, when the country hosts a summit for members of the Brics countries – an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. This bloc of fast-growing economies is seen by some as an alternative to the G7 group of advanced economies.

South Africa’s biggest opposition party, Democratic Alliance, has gone to court to try to force the authorities to carry out an arrest on Mr Putin should he set foot in the country.

Court documents reveal that President Ramaphosa is firmly against any such move, stating that national security is at stake.
“South Africa has obvious problems with executing a request to arrest and surrender President Putin,” he said in an affidavit.

“Russia has made it clear that arresting its sitting president would be a declaration of war. It would be inconsistent with our constitution to risk engaging in war with Russia.”

President Ramaphosa added that South Africa is one of several African nations holding talks with Russia and Ukraine “with a view of ending the war altogether”, and that attempting to arrest Mr Putin would be counter-productive.
Last month saw a peace mission to the European nations, where African presidents hoped they could bring Ukraine and Russia to the table together but ultimately failed.

Much has been made of African nations’ reluctance to back UN general assembly resolutions condemning Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Correspondents say the reasons range depending on the nation – be it South Africa’s anti-apartheid ties to the Soviet Union, or Mali’s present-day reliance on Russian Wagner mercenaries to fight jihadists.

There are economic ties between Russia and African nations too, not least in South Africa.
A sanctioned Russian oligarch, Viktor Vekselberg, is said to be one of the biggest donors to South Africa’s governing party – the African National Congress (ANC).

Source: BBC

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Israel to allow Palestinian Americans entry, wants US visa waiver

The US has previously prevented Israel from joining its Visa Waiver Program, citing its differential treatment of some US citizens.

Israel will allow all United States citizens, including Palestinian Americans living in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, to enter the country in a bid to get visa-free travel for Israelis to the US.

The change was introduced on Thursday, after US Ambassador Thomas Nides and Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who is currently visiting the US, signed a “reciprocity agreement” on the issue a day earlier, according to an Israeli statement.

“The full implementation of the program will apply to any US citizen, including those with dual citizenship, American residents of Judea and Samaria [the occupied West Bank] and American residents of the Gaza Strip,” the statement said.

The US has previously prevented Israel from joining its Visa Waiver Program (VWP), citing its differential treatment of some US citizens.

US officials will monitor the changes over a period of six weeks and make a decision about Israel’s entry into the VWP by September 30, according to US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.

During that period, they will also see whether Palestinian Americans and other Arab Americans are scrutinised disproportionately by Israeli security, as has often been the case, with Palestinians and Arabs often finding themselves facing extra checks and tight restrictions.

Sources told the Reuters news agency on the condition of anonymity last month that the changes will allow Palestinian Americans in the West Bank to fly in and out of Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, whereas in the past they had to go to neighbouring Jordan, cross into the occupied West Bank by land and be subjected to restrictions if they sought entry into Israel.

They will also be able to use new online Israeli forms to apply for entry into Israel at West Bank crossing points.

The Palestinian Americans making the journey will be able to stay in Israel for up to 90 days, a US official said.

Those participating in the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement that calls to boycott, divest from or sanction Israel, will not be restricted entry, a source told Reuters.

The Arab American Institute Foundation estimates that there are 122,500 to 220,000 Palestinian Americans, with a US official estimate that about 45,000 to 60,000 live in the West Bank.

US-Israel relations have been relatively tense in recent months, as Washington raises criticisms of Israeli abuses against Palestinians and expresses concern over the Israeli far-right government’s plan to overhaul the judiciary.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES

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New Zealand seal historic win over Norway in World Cup opener

Football Ferns produce a scintillating second half performance to beat Norway 1-0 in the Women’s World Cup opener.

Co-hosts New Zealand produced a second-half footballing masterclass as they overcame a highly-rated Norway side in the tournament’s opening match to win their first-ever Women’s World Cup match in their fifth tournament.

The Norwegians had started brightly, threatening a resolute New Zealand defence with several fast-paced attacks at Eden Park, Auckland, on Thursday.

However, they lacked a clinical finish, with Ada Hegerberg scuffing a bicycle kick five minutes into the match and Frida Maanum blasting the ball over the bar after a well-worked Norwegian attack.

Then the game was turned on its head in the 48th minute when Jacqui Hand crossed an inch-perfect ball behind the Norwegian defensive line to Hannah Wilkinson after a lung-busting run down the right wing.

Wilkinson had enough time to turn her body towards the goal and curl the ball over Aurora Mikalsen, sending the home crowd into raptures.

From that moment on, all the momentum, and at times luck, went New Zealand’s way.

New Zealand’s Ria Percival and Katie Bowen in action with Norway’s Caroline Graham Hansen [David Rowland/Reuters]

Just a few minutes later, New Zealand thought they had won a penalty after a possible handball in the Norway box, but it was ruled to have deflected up off Mathilde Harviken’s leg.

The Norwegians appeared unable to cope with the fast-paced, dynamic New Zealand attacks but will count themselves unlucky not to have pulled a goal back in the 81st minute after Tuva Hansen struck the bar with an elegant long-range lobbed strike.

The match reached a fever pitch in the final minutes after referee Yoshimi Yamashita of Japan, with the help of VAR, deemed Hansen to have blocked CJ Bott’s shot in the box with her arm. To many people’s surprise, there was an in-stadium announcement from the referee explaining her decision over the tannoy system, a first for many seasoned football fans.

Midfielder Ria Percival stepped up to the spot and attempted an audacious penalty strike aimed at the top corner but struck the bar.

New Zealand captain Ali Riley reacts after winning the match [Saeed Khan/AFP]

There was a nail-biting 10 additional minutes of injury time to see out for the hosts as Norway picked up steam, with the usually prolific Hegerberg uncharacteristically failing to strike the ball cleanly after the ball fell invitingly to her in the box.

At the final whistle, a packed Eden Park erupted as New Zealand’s players celebrated a historic opening day win.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA

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