Another 200 UK troops sent to Kabul evacuation

 

The UK is to send a further 200 troops to Kabul after the Taliban seized control of the Afghan capital.

A total of about 900 UK troops will patrol Kabul’s airport amid chaotic scenes on the runway, as part of efforts to secure evacuation flights.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab confirmed 350 more UK nationals and Afghans who worked with UK troops would be evacuated in “the days that come”.

He said the UK was considering how many Afghan refugees it would take in.

Mr Raab said the situation was “not what we wanted, but we have to deal with the new reality”.

Nearly 2,000 Afghans who have worked with UK troops have already left Afghanistan on UK flights, with 289 Afghans coming to the UK “over the last week”.

And the UK government said the processing of Afghan workers’ applications “continues at pace”.

Mr Raab confirmed another 150 British nationals were due to arrive in the UK from Kabul on Tuesday morning.

Chaotic scenes at Kabul airport saw a number of people die on Monday, prompting all flights to be halted.

The Ministry of Defence said no further Royal Air Force aircraft were due to depart Kabul on Monday.

The Foreign Office has advised more than 4,000 British citizens thought to be in Afghanistan to leave.

On Thursday night, the government announced about 600 UK troops would be sent to the country to help British and eligible Afghan nationals leave.

The MoD said further personnel would be forward deployed to the region and able to move to Afghanistan if needed, while more troops would be held at readiness in the UK.

The Pentagon said the US would send another battalion to help, bringing the total US forces on the ground to about 6,000.

‘Lesson to learn’

Speaking to broadcasters following a meeting of the government’s emergency Cobra group on Monday, Mr Raab said there had been “surprise” at the speed of the Taliban’s progress.

He said: “Everyone, I think, has been surprised by the scale and the pace at which the Taliban have taken over in Afghanistan, and that’s a lesson that we’ve all got to learn from.

“But the truth is what matters right now is focusing on getting British nationals out, getting out those who have so loyally served the UK, and making sure that the gains that we’ve made over 20 years are not lost.”

Asked about the number of refugees the UK might be willing to take, Mr Raab said he was unable to commit to taking in a specific number, but that the government was considering the next steps.

“We’re obviously a big-hearted nation, we’ve got the criteria for asylum that is set in law – we work with the UN on that.

“We’re working very carefully at what kind of further commitment we might make”.

Officials are looking at a potential response similar to the resettlement of people from Syria in 2014 – which saw the UK accept refugees in greatest need, including survivors of violence, and women and children.

Mr Raab said the UK would work with its international partners to hold the Taliban to account over the group’s commitments, including a pledge to prevent Afghanistan becoming a base for terrorism.

Downing Street said the British ambassador to Afghanistan, Sir Laurie Bristow, was working from the airport in Kabul, alongside UK staff and the armed forces, to process visas for eligible Afghans.

image caption Sir Laurie Bristow was appointed British ambassador to Afghanistan in June

There have been warnings that Afghan interpreters who helped British forces could be “left behind” after Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said “some people won’t get back”.

Former Grenadier Guard Julian Perreira told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme he was trying to reassure some interpreters, but added: “I just haven’t got the heart to tell them that I think their worst fears may be coming true – that they may be left behind.”

Most Afghan nationals eligible for relocation to the UK are those who have worked for the British government in frontline roles “that made a material difference to the delivery of the UK mission” in the country.

This group includes interpreters as well as cultural advisers and embassy staff. Others eligible are those deemed to be at high and imminent risk, according to the MoD.

……………………………………………………

US takes control of Kabul airport to evacuate staff from country

 

There have been scenes of panic at Kabul airport as desperate residents try to flee following the seizure of the Afghan capital by the Taliban.

Eyewitnesses told the BBC that at least two civilians died on Monday in the chaos at the airport, which is being secured by US troops.

Commercial flights have mostly been suspended, stranding hundreds of Afghans and other foreign nationals.

The US and other countries are rushing to evacuate staff and allies.

On Sunday the Taliban declared victory after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled abroad and his government collapsed.

The militants’ return to rule brings an end to almost 20 years of a US-led coalition’s presence in the country.

Kabul was the last major city in Afghanistan to hold out against a Taliban offensive that began months ago but accelerated in recent days as they gained control of territories, shocking many observers.

The Islamist group was able to seize control after most foreign troops pulled out.

At the weekend US President Joe Biden defended the withdrawal of American troops, saying he could not justify an “endless American presence in the middle of another country’s civil conflict”.

Following the Taliban’s seizure of Kabul, many people headed to the airport.

One video taken by an Afghan journalist on Monday showed crowds running to the airport terminal with children and luggage in tow.

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Pictures showed crowds of Afghans waiting on the tarmac while US troops stood guard. Some accounts said people died in a stampede triggered by shots fired by US troops to keep crowds at bay.

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told the BBC that Kabul airport was divided into a commercial side – which has largely ground to a halt and where the chaos is unfolding – and a military side, which has now been secured and is working for the various countries evacuating staff.The US has sent 6,000 troops to assist in the evacuation.

Thousands of American citizens, locals embassy staff and their families, as well as other “vulnerable Afghan nationals” will be airlifted in the coming days,

On Sunday night footage showed hundreds of people running to try to get on the last commercial flights out of the city.

Rakhshanda Jilali, a human rights activist who is trying to leave, said: “How can [the Americans] hold the airport and dictate terms and conditions to Afghans?”

“This is our airport but we are seeing diplomats being evacuated while we wait in complete uncertainty,” she told Reuters news agency.

image caption One picture showed Afghans crowding behind barbed wire near the airfield

More than 60 countries, including the US and the UK, have issued a joint statement saying the Afghan people “deserve to live in safety, security and dignity”, and that security and civil order should be immediately restored.

They also called on the Taliban to allow anyone who wishes to depart to do so, and to keep roads, airports and border crossings open.

A Taliban spokesman said people would be allowed to return home from the airport, Reuters reported.

On Sunday Suhail Shaheen, a Taliban negotiator in Qatar, told the BBC that properties and lives were safe. “We are the servants of the people and of this country,” he said.

US helicopters took embassy staff to the airport on Sunday, and there were reports of smoke rising near the compound as documents were destroyed.

Russia is planning to convene an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.

It said it would not be closing its embassy because it has been provided with security assurances by the Taliban.

………………………………………………

Zambian opposition leader Hichilema wins presidential election

Electoral Commission of Zambia Chairperson Justice Esau Chulu declared the result in the early hours of Monday after a full and thorough scrutiny of the votes from 155 out of 156 constituencies.

ZAMBIA’S opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema (pictured) has emerged as the winner in the August 12 presidential election, beating incumbent President Edgar Lungu.

Hichilema managed to pass the 50 percent-plus-one requirement for a presidential winner with 2,810,757 of the votes while Lungu got 1,814,201.

Electoral Commission of Zambia Chairperson Justice Esau Chulu declared the result in the early hours of Monday after a full and thorough scrutiny of the votes from 155 out of 156 constituencies.

Hichilema, a 59-year-old wealthy businessman, who had lost in five past elections, becomes Zambia’s new president and is tasked with resuscitating the country’s economy, a major focus of his election campaign.

The election, contested by 16 presidential candidates, attracted a huge voter turnout of about 70 percent of the registered 7,023,499 voters.

In a tweet, the president-elect stressed the importance of prioritising the interest of the country. ‘We are one nation, one people, one Zambia. We must come together, united by a common love for our country and our people, so that we can begin moving Zambia forward.’

The victory signalled a new beginning in the country’s governance and was a hard-earned result amid challenges, Garry Nkombo, chairman for elections of Hichilema’s United Party for National Development, told reporters at the Results Totaling Center in Lusaka, the country’s capital.

He thanked young people for turning up in huge numbers to vote, saying this demonstrated that they were tired of the economic malaise brought by the former administration.

The party, he said, will remain committed to fulfilling the promises made during the campaigns.

Monday was also marked by celebrations in Lusaka by Hichilema’s supporters who had been waiting for the official announcement of results. A number of people gathered at the president-elect’s residence on the outskirts of the capital singing jubilant songs while young people gathered at the party’s youth centre.

 

…………………………………………………………

Across Africa in Five Minutes

 

Mozambique

Mozambique’s military chief has said the ongoing offensive in the restive northern region of Cabo Delgado has faced little resistance because militants based there have likely discarded their weapons and disguised themselves as civilians.

“That’s why we continue to pursue them and do the screening of any arrivals of people, particularly those who claim to be coming from Palma, which for a long period until recently was deserted,” Brig Chongo Vidgal told state TV on Sunday night.

Nigeria

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has signed into law an oil bill first introduced in parliament nearly 20 years ago.

The Petroleum Industry Act – which amalgamates some 16 previous laws – overhauls nearly every aspect of oil and gas production.

 Ghana

Survivors of the Tulsa massacre, one of the worst racist killings in US history, that occurred 100 years ago, are in Ghana for a week-long visit.

Viola Fletcher, 107, known as “Mother Fletcher”, and her brother Hughes Van Ellis, 100, known as “Uncle Red”, were children in 1921 when a mob of armed white people descended on Greenwood, a district in Tulsa, Oklahoma, known then as Black Wall Street, one of the most prosperous predominantly black areas in the US.

Kenya

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced a cash reward for all participants in the Tokyo Olympics. The four gold medallists will each receive one million Kenyan shillings ($9,100; £6,500) while silver medallists will be given $6,800.

The two bronze medallists will receive $4,500 while everyone who took part in the games and the technical team members will each receive $1,800.

Uganda

The Ugandan constitutional court has annulled the controversial anti-pornography law passed in 2014.

The law was quashed by a unanimous decision from five judges, following a 2014 petition by several women’s rights organisations and human rights lawyers.

……………………………………………………

Second Nigerian ‘Chibok girl’ freed in a week seven years after abduction

 The army handed over Hassana Adamu, along with her two children, to Governor Babagana Zulum on Saturday

A SECOND young woman abducted seven years ago from the town of Chibok by Boko Haram militants was freed this week, Borno state’s governor said on Saturday.

The kidnappings of some 270 teenagers in the northeastern town in 2014 sparked an international outcry and a viral campaign on social media with the hashtag #bringbackourgirls.

The army handed over Hassana Adamu, along with her two children, to Governor Babagana Zulum on Saturday, one week after his office announced that another of the victims had been freed and reunited with her parents.

Adamu, like the other of the recently freed ‘Chibok girl’, as the victims became known, ‘presented herself to the Nigerian army,’ the governor’s office said.

Photos shared by his office showed a shell-shocked looking young woman, in a pink striped hijab, speaking to the governor with her two small children, flanked by military officers.

Eighty two of the victims were freed in 2017 after mediation, adding to 24 who were released or found. A few others have escaped or been rescued, but just over 110 remain missing.

Earlier this week, the army said that more than 1,000 Boko Haram members and their families had recently surrendered “due to the intense pressure from troops’ sustained offensive actions”.

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau died in May following a battle with rival Islamist group Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

ISWAP, the regional affiliate of Islamic State, has since sought to absorb Shekau’s fighters and unify the groups which during Shekau’s tenure fought one another for control of territory in northeast Nigeria and around Lake Chad.

…………………………………………………………

Uganda says only vaccinated legislators to be allowed in parliament sessions

 THE Ugandan Parliament has made it mandatory for the country’s legislators to get vaccinated against Covid-19 before being allowed to attend parliament sessions.

‘Some Members of Parliament have been vaccinated while others have not,’ said Chris Obore, director of communications at Parliament, told Xinhua on Friday.

According to Obore, those who have not been vaccinated should get the jabs by Tuesday.

Obore said that the same restrictions would apply to parliamentary staff and journalists.

‘No visitors will be allowed in the chambers because the public gallery will be used by legislators since the house can only accommodate 100 people,’ he added.

He said the country has 429 legislators but they would attend plenary in shifts.

‘We have asked party chief whips to draw a plan which will allow the legislators to attend proceedings on a rotational basis,’ he said.

Ministry of health figures show that by August 11, over 1.16 million people had been vaccinated since the exercise started in March this year.

……………………………………………………………

FIRST FOUNDATION STONE LAID FOR NEW GENERAL HOSPITAL OF KWANZA NORTE

 Ndalatando – The Ministry of Health has approved a project aimed to build a new General Hospital in northern Cuanza Norte Province, within 18 months, with a capacity of 200 beds.

As a symbol of the start of the project, the foundation stone for the construction of the infrastructure was laid this Saturday, by the minister of Health, Sílvia Lutucuta, with the effective start of the work scheduled for next week, under the responsibility of the company Griner.

 

The hospital will be built in an area of ​​15,000 square meters, in the locality of Kirima, eleven kilometres off Ndalatando City , capital of the province, and will have the capacity to serve more than a thousand patients daily.

 

According to the minister of Health, the new hospital unit will cost the state around 63 million US dollars, and the government 's objective is to improve health care in the region.

 

The new health unit will have a haemodialysis centre and pathological anatomy services, as well as neonatology, intensive care, dentistry, psychiatry, orthotrauma, operating room, ophthalmology, among other services.

 

The unit will also include an area for the treatment of patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart and kidney diseases, which is why the minister says that it will be a Reference Center for the training of staff in various specialties in the areas of medicine, nursing and biomedical.

 

On his turn, the governor of Cuanza Norte, Adriano Mendes de Carvalho, underlined that the construction of this health unit is a project that has long been awaited by the population of the region, as it will be built to relieve the current provincial hospital.

 

The old hospital has been in existence for over 50 years, and no longer offers adequate conditions to respond to the current challenges, due to demographic growth and the emergence of various diseases, in addition to the degradation of the infrastructure.

 

According to the governor, this situation has embarrassed the local health authorities in providing services that meet the needs of the province, and he considers the construction of the project a great gain that will revolutionize health care locally.

 

 He also added that the residents of the province will no longer need to go to other provinces for specialty medical care.

 

Cuanza Norte has 133 health units, including municipal hospitals, health centres and medical posts, created to alleviate the demands at the Provincial Hospital, which has insufficient structure and space to care for patients from the ten municipalities.

 

The province has nearly 500,000 inhabitants, and medical assistance to the population is provided by 197 physicians, including nationals and foreigners, and 946 nurses.