UN to vote on resolution to authorize one-year deployment of armed force to Haiti

By Dànica Coto, SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico 

The United Nations Security Council is scheduling a vote Monday on a resolution that would authorize a one-year deployment of an international force to help Haiti quell a surge in gang violence and restore security so the troubled Caribbean nation can hold long-delayed elections.

The U.S.-drafted resolution obtained by The Associated Press on Saturday welcomes Kenya’s offer to lead the multinational security force. It makes clear this would be a non-U.N. force funded by voluntary contributions.

The resolution would authorize the force for one year, with a review after nine months.

The force would be allowed to provide operational support to Haiti’s National Police, which is underfunded and under resourced, with only some 10,000 active officers for a country of more than 11 million people.

The resolution says the force would help built capacity of local police “through the planning and conduct of joint security support operations as it works to counter gangs and improve security conditions in Haiti.”

The force would also help secure “critical infrastructure sites and transit locations such as the airport, ports, and key intersections.” Powerful gangs have seized control of key roads leading from Haiti’s capital to the country’s northern and southern regions, disrupting the transportation of food and other goods.

Passage by the Security Council would authorize the force to “adopt urgent temporary measures on an exceptional basis” to prevent the loss of life and help police maintain public safety.

Leaders of the mission would be required to inform the council on the mission’s goals, rules of engagement, financial needs and other matters before a full deployment.

A spokesman for Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry said he wasn’t aware of the resolution or the upcoming vote and said the government did not immediately have comment.

The resolution condemns “the increasing violence, criminal activities, and human rights abuses and violations which undermine the peace, stability, and security of Haiti and the region, including kidnappings, sexual and gender-based violence, trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, homicides, extrajudicial killings, as well as arms smuggling.”

If adopted, it would mark the first time a force has been deployed to Haiti since the U.N. approved a stabilization mission in June 2004 that was marred by a sexual abuse scandal and the introduction of cholera. That mission ended in October 2017.

Concerns also have surrounded the proposed Kenyan-led mission, with critics noting that police in the East Africa country have long been accused of using torture, deadly force and other abuses.

The resolution stresses that all those participating in the proposed mission must take necessary action to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse as well as vet all personnel. It also demands swift investigations of any allegations of misconduct.

In addition, the resolution warns that those involved in the mission must adopt wastewater management and other environmental control to prevent the introduction and spread of water-borne diseases, such as cholera.

It wasn’t immediately clear how big the force would be if approved, although Kenya’s government has previously proposed sending 1,000 police officers. In addition, Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Antigua and Barbuda have pledged to send personnel.

Last month, the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden promised to provide logistics and $100 million to support a Kenyan-led force.

The resolution notes that the Security Council intends to impose additional sanctions on Jimmy Chérizier, known as “Barbecue,” who heads Haiti’s biggest gang alliance. Chérizier, a former police officer, recently warned that he would fight any armed force suspected of abuses.

The proposed resolution comes nearly a year after Haiti’s prime minister and other top government officials requested the immediate deployment of a foreign armed force as the government struggles to fight violent gangs estimated to control up to 80% of the capital of Port-au-Prince.

From Jan. 1 to Aug. 15, more than 2,400 people in Haiti were reported killed, more than 950 kidnapped and 902 injured, according to the most recent U.N. statistics. More than 200,000 others have been displaced by violence, with many crammed in makeshift shelters after gangs pillaged their communities.

Suicide bombings rip through two mosques in Pakistan, killing at least 57

BALUCHISTAN, Pakistan

The death toll from a suspected suicide bomb blast at a procession to celebrate the birthday of Prophet Muhammad in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province has climbed to 52, officials and media reports say.

The powerful bomb exploded on Friday near a mosque in Mastung district of Balochistan, wounding dozens of others, including many in a critical condition, local officials said.

The Reuters news agency, quoting Abdul Rasheed, a district health official, said at least 52 people had died in the blast and 58 others were wounded.

Rasheed said the toll could further rise as many people were in a serious condition.

“It seems a suicide attack” senior local police officer Javed Lehri, adding that the bomber blew himself up near the vehicle of Deputy Superintendent of Police Nawaz Gishkori.

Balochistan’s government administrator Atta Ullah said a senior police officer, Mohammad Nawaz, was among the dead. The injured were taken to nearby hospitals, he said.

The country’s interior ministry confirmed a blast carried out by “terrorist elements” in Balochistan.

“The attack on innocent people who came to participate in the procession of Eid Milad-un-Nabi is a very heinous act,” it said in a statement, referring to the prophet’s birthday.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), quickly distanced itself from the attack.

The TTP is a separate group but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, which seized power in neighbouring Afghanistan in August 2021. Last year, the group broke a ceasefire with the government which led to a resurgence of its deadly attacks across the country.

Al Jazeera’s Kamal Hyder said the TTP, which had been carrying out attacks in the area, has denied it was involved.

“And that of course would raise alarm bells because the area has seen the presence of Islamic State [ISIL or ISIS] elements,” he said.

Ex-Prigozhin aide to oversee volunteer fighters in Ukraine – Kremlin

MOSCOW, Russia

Russian President, Vladimir Putin has tasked a former aide of late Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin to oversee volunteer fighter units in Ukraine, according to a Kremlin statement on Friday.

Vladimir Putin meets with Yunus-Bek Yevkurov and Andrei Troshev.

"At the last meeting, we talked about you overseeing the formation of volunteer units that can carry out various tasks, first and foremost, of course, in the zone of the special military operation," Putin was quoted as saying to Wagner commander Andrei Troshev, who is known by his nom de guerre "Sedoi" ("Gray-haired").

The meeting, also attended by Deputy Defense Minister Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, underlined the integration of fighters from the mercenary group into Russia's regular military in the wake of Prigozhin's aborted mutiny in June.

Troshev, a retired colonel, comes from Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg and is a decorated veteran of Kremlin military campaigns in Afghanistan, Chechnya and Syria.

He was one of the leaders of the Wagner Group in Syria, for which the EU put him on its sanctions list in December 2021.

Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group, died with nine other people when a plane flying from Moscow to Saint Petersburg crashed on Aug. 23.

Exactly two months earlier, Prigozhin had openly challenged Russia's military high command by leading a short-lived mutiny with his fighters that threatened to spiral into civil conflict.

Prigozhin called off the rebellion after apparently striking a deal with the Kremlin through the mediation of Belarus but he faced no criminal prosecution.

Putin's talks with the president of South Sudan

MOSCOW, Russia

Visiting South Sudan President, Salva Kiir agreed in a meeting with Russia’s president to expand their relationship in energy, trade and other areas, notably oil.

Kiir and President Vladimir Putin met in Moscow on Thursday and also discussed political and security matters in South Sudan, which is preparing for its first presidential election in December 2024. The country won independence from Sudan in 2011, and Kiir has led the country since then.

According to a video of the leaders’ public statements posted online by the Kremlin, Putin said the development of oil refineries in South Sudan with the participation of Russian companies would strengthen ties.

“This is only the beginning. We have many good opportunities in a variety of fields, including energy,” Putin said.

Currently, Russia’s Safinat Group is working on an oil refinery in South Sudan’s Unity state.

Russia's invitation to Kiir to visit came as global powers reach out to African nations for support regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

South Sudan is under pressure from the United States and other allies to more quickly implement a peace deal signed in 2018 to end a five-year civil war and prepare for the election.

For its part, South Sudan wants arms embargos removed. Russia, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, could help.

Kiir said “the world dictates that no one can survive or succeed alone,” and told Putin that the young country needs “strong friends and you are one of them.”

Putin and Kiir also discussed peace and security in Africa and international affairs. The conflict in neighboring Sudan has sent thousands of people into South Sudan, whose humanitarian and other resources were already badly strained.

This is the second time the South Sudanese president has visited Russia. Kiir attended the first Russia-Africa summit in 2019.

Putin said Russia would assist South Sudan in handling its domestic political situation and ensuring security.

“We will do our ultimate to support you in this domain,” Putin said.

Eswatini holds parliamentary elections under monarch’s control

MBABANE, Eswatini

Voters in Eswatini will cast their ballots on Friday in parliamentary elections whose outcome will make little difference to the politics of a country controlled by Africa’s last absolute monarch.

King Mswati III has ruled the southern African kingdom of about 1.2 million people since 1986, when he inherited the crown from his father, Sobhuza II.

Political parties are banned, but individual candidates can run for seats in the House of Assembly every five years.

The power of the politicians elected in these polls consists mainly of being able to make suggestions to the king, who is free to ignore them.

The election will be dominated by monarchists and other candidates sympathetic to the ruler, said Louw Nel, a senior political analyst at Oxford Economics Africa, in a note.

Two members of the previous parliament who supported the pro-democracy movement were jailed, and a third fled the country, he added.

“It is a misnomer to call what is happening in Swaziland elections,” Sivumelwano Nyembe, spokesperson for Eswatini’s Multi Stakeholder Forum, a pro-democracy activist group, said.

Anger against the governing system has been building for years, and pro-democracy protests turned violent in 2021.

Campaigners say the king has consistently evaded calls for meaningful reforms that would nudge Eswatini, which changed its name from Swaziland in 2018, in the direction of democracy.

Mswati’s opponents also say he uses public money to fund a lavish lifestyle which he shares with his 15 wives, while most of the country’s population is made up of struggling subsistence farmers.

The 55-year-old king denies being an autocrat and is unapologetic about his riches.

Eswatini is rated “Not Free” by the U.S.-based organisation Freedom House, which says the king exercises ultimate authority over all branches of the national government and effectively controls local governance through his influence over traditional chiefs.

The South African Development Community (SADC) has sent an electoral observation mission to Eswatini at the kingdom’s invitation, and will release a preliminary statement on Sunday.

US to support “civilian-led” militaries in Africa

LUANDA, Angola

The United States will continue to support “civilian-led” militaries in Africa, its defence chief said on Wednesday, censuring a series of recent coups as he outlined Washington’s security strategy in the continent.

During a trip to Angola, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Africa needs militaries that serve their citizens and not the other way round.

“That will remain a core principle of America’s engagement with our African partners,” Austin said in a speech in the capital, Luanda.

“So we will continue to invest in professional, civilian-led militaries… And we’ll be candid with our partners when their security institutions fall short of those universal standards.”

Austin did not name any country, but his comments appeared to be a clear reference to Niger, where military leaders overthrew a democratically elected president in July and the US has about 1,100 military personnel.

“When generals overturn the will of the people and put their own ambitions above the rule of law, security suffers,” he said, decrying “autocrats” who “undermine free and fair elections”.

Earlier this week, Austin said the US would “evaluate” its next steps on the Niger crisis after France announced a full troop withdrawal as demanded by the military leaders.

Austin was in Angola on the last leg of a three-country tour, including stops in Djibouti and Kenya, aimed at “strengthening partnerships” on the continent, where China and Russia have enjoyed rising clout.

Niger is among several nations to have undergone coups since 2020, along Burkina Faso, Guinea, Gabon and Mali.

The latter has since pivoted towards Moscow, bringing in mercenaries from the Wagner group.

“Africa deserves better than autocrats selling cheap guns, pushing mercenary forces like the Wagner Group, or depriving grain from hungry people all around the world,” Austin said, in a reference to the Kremlin.

In Luanda, he met President Joao Lourenco and said Washington would deepen cooperation with the country “on military modernization, training, maritime security, and medical readiness.”

The visit, the first by a US Secretary of Defense, underscored Angola’s diplomatic shift towards the west under Lourenco.

One of the largest oil exporters in Sub-Saharan Africa, the country long held close ties to China and Russia.

Its ruling party was supported by the Soviet Union in the civil war against US-backed rebels.

“Over the past few years, America’s relationship with Angola has taken huge strides forward,” Austin said.

Can Kenyan police officers defeat the gangs?

NAIROBI, Kenya

Kenya has pledged to lead a multinational security force in Haiti in response to a plea from the Caribbean nation's prime minister for help restoring order.

Haiti has suffered from gang violence for decades but the current wave of brutality escalated after the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.

Gangs have taken control of large parts of the country, waging terror on residents and killing hundreds.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said that a "robust use of force" is needed to disarm the gangs and restore order.

Kenya has said it would send 1,000 police officers to Haiti.

When this was first proposed in July, Kenyan officials said the officers would guard government buildings and infrastructure, but that plan changed after Kenya sent a fact-finding mission the following month.

The country now wants to deploy an intervention force that will neutralise the armed gangs, protect civilians and bring about peace, security and order.

Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua told the BBC that his country would also like to help Haiti rebuild vital infrastructure and establish a stable democratic government.

No other country has yet publicly pledged to add to the 1,000 Kenyans but the minister said that Spain, Senegal, Chile, Jamaica, The Bahamas and Antigua and Barbuda were also likely to deploy security personnel.

No-one can be deployed until the UN Security Council gives the go-ahead, but Mr Mutua said he expected the force to be in place by the beginning of next year.

Haiti is experiencing a multi-faceted security and humanitarian crisis that Mr Guterres called "a living nightmare".

Swathes of the mountain-cradled coastal capital Port-au-Prince - some estimates say 80% - are either controlled or regularly terrorised by heavily armed gangs.

These gangs, with names in Haitian creole such as "Kraze Barye" (Barrier-Crusher) and "Gran Grif" (Big Claw), have over the last two years been robbing, looting, extorting, kidnapping, raping and killing.

Armed with automatic weapons smuggled in mostly from the US, the gang members often out-gun the local police, sometimes burning their vehicles and stations.

They control, or regularly raid, the main routes in and out of the capital.

Similar lawlessness plagues large areas of west and central Haiti, where roving "bandits", as locals call the gang members, invade and burn villages and towns.

The gangs have caused chaos and disrupted public services and the work of aid agencies, worsening poverty and health problems in a nation that was already the poorest in the Western Hemisphere.

Mr Mutua has in part portrayed this as an altruistic offer.

"Haiti looked around and said: 'Kenya, please help us'. They did not ask any other countries. We have decided to do God's will and assist our brothers and sisters," Kenya's foreign minister said at a press conference.

However, Mr Mutua told the BBC that the intervention in Haiti would raise Kenya's global profile, which could benefit the country.

Some commentators have said Kenya is doing the US's bidding and is hoping to curry favour with the global superpower.

The US has pledged to support the mission financially to the tune of $100m (£82m) - Canada has also offered funding.

On a recent visit to Kenya, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin signed a five-year security agreement and also said the US was "grateful to Kenya for its leadership in tackling security challenges in the region and around the world".

Many critics have cast doubt on the ability of Kenyan police to take on Haiti's gangs.

They will need to come face-to-face with the armed gang members in unfamiliar terrain.

Mr Mutua said the government had been preparing for the deployment. But he has not divulged more details about the planning, other than saying that the authorities are currently providing French lessons to some of the officers to ease communication in Haiti.

The language barrier has raised some concerns, as in Haiti people predominantly speak French and Haitian Creole, while in Kenya, the most commonly spoken languages are English and Swahili.

Burkina Faso’s junta have foiled a coup attempt

ABUJA, Nigeria 

Burkina Faso’s military government said Wednesday its intelligence and security services had thwarted a coup attempt and were actively pursuing others believed involved in what it called a bid to “throw our country into chaos.”

A junta statement said the coup attempt happened Tuesday without providing further details.

“Officers and other alleged actors involved in this attempt at destabilization have been arrested and others are actively sought,” junta spokesman Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel Ouedraogo said in the statement.

Burkina Faso is one of a growing list of West African countries where the military has taken power, accusing the elected governments of failing to keep their promises. 

The current junta seized power in September 2022 by ousting the military regime of Lt. Col. Paul Henri Sandaogo Damiba about eight months after it staged a coup to remove democratically elected President Roch Marc Kaboré.

Capt. Ibrahim Traore was named as the transitional president. However, since its inception, the junta has struggled to end Burkina Faso’s security challenges — the very reason that it said prompted it to take over power in September 2022.

Ouedraogo said an investigation into the attempted takeover was underway and that those behind it had sought to cast Burkina Faso “into chaos.”

The announcement came a day after protesters marched in Ouagadougou, the nation’s capital, expressing support for the transitional government.

The junta’s statement praised citizens “for their resolute and historic commitment to defending the Homeland and protecting it against all those who want to take us backwards into history.” It also commended “the patriotic action and the high sense of duty” of the defense and security forces that thwarted the coup.

The transitional government is running Burkina Faso under a constitution approved by a national assembly that included army officers, civil society groups and traditional and religious leaders.

The junta has set a goal of conducting elections to return the country to democratic rule by July 2024.

Burkina Faso has been ravaged by growing attacks by Muslim extremists linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. 

The violence has killed thousands, displaced more than 2 million people and pushed tens of thousands to the brink of starvation.

Since the country’s first coup in January 2022, the number of people killed by Islamic extremists has nearly tripled compared with the 18 months before, according to a recent report by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies.

US Defense Secretary completes first tour across Africa

LUANDA, Angola

United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin returns to the United States Thursday after wrapping up his first tour across the African continent as Pentagon chief.

Austin started his tour in Djibouti, home to the primary U.S. military base on the African continent. There he met with Djiboutian leaders and Somalia’s president, whose forces, Austin said, had made more progress against the al-Shabab terror group in the past year than the previous five years combined.

Austin then turned to Kenya, visiting a base in Manda Bay near the Somali border where a terrorist attack in 2020 killed three Americans.

“Message here being very clear that the war on terror still remains top on the agenda of the American government,” said Vincent Kimosop, a policy analyst with Sovereign Insight.

The American and Kenyan defense secretaries signed a five-year security agreement to support working together against their common terror threat.

Austin also pledged $100 million in support of Kenyan security deployments, as Kenya prepares to lead a multinational peacekeeping mission to Haiti to combat gang violence.

“Kenya is ready, Kenya is willing to lead that multinational peacekeeping force that will go to Haiti,” said Kenyan Cabinet Secretary of Defense Aden Duale.

Austin ended his trip on Africa’s western coast, becoming the first U.S. defense secretary to ever visit Angola. Officials of both nations are hopeful that Angola can dump Russia as its arms supplier and opt for American-made weapons.

“Africa deserves better than outsiders trying to tighten their grip on this continent,” Austin said. “Africa deserves better than autocrats selling cheap guns, pushing mercenary forces like the Wagner Group or depriving grain from hungry people all around the world.”

Austin called out African military juntas without naming Burkina Faso, Gabon, Mali or Niger. It was his most forceful rhetoric since the military removed Niger’s elected president from power in July.

“When generals overturn the will of the people and put their own ambitions above the rule of law, security suffers -- and democracy dies,” Austin said. “Militaries exist to defend their people, not to defy them. And Africa needs militaries that serve their citizens and not the other way around.”

France decided this week to withdraw its military forces from Niger by the end of the year, and analysts say the U.S. could follow suit should the Nigerien military not return the elected government to power.

“Niger has become the key hub, the key center of counterterrorism operations for the U.S. and France in the region,” said Bill Roggio of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “And if this is, if it’s cut back, or if it’s reduced, or if it’s ended, there is no other assets in the region that the U.S. can use.”

The U.S. has so far kept its forces in Niger, but the Pentagon has declined to conduct counterterror operations with Niger’s military.

Justin Trudeau apologises after Nazi veteran honoured in parliament

By Chloe Kim, OTTAWA Canada

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has apologised on behalf of Canada after a Ukrainian man who fought for a Nazi unit was unwittingly applauded in parliament.

"This is a mistake that deeply embarrassed parliament and Canada," Mr Trudeau said on Wednesday.

Speaker Anthony Rota, who has assumed responsibility for inviting Yaroslav Hunka, 98, resigned on Tuesday.

The incident has drawn global condemnation.

Mr Trudeau also apologised directly to Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky, who was visiting Canada and present in parliament, saying: "Canada is deeply sorry."

The Ukrainian leader was among those pictured applauding Mr Hunka, an image that has been exploited in Russian propaganda.

"All of us who were in this House on Friday regret deeply having stood and clapped even though we did so unaware of the context," Mr Trudeau said. "It was a horrendous violation of the memory of the millions of people who died in the Holocaust."

He said what happened was "deeply, deeply painful" to Jewish people and the many millions who were targeted by the Nazi genocide.

Mr Hunka, who fought with a Nazi unit in World War Two, got a standing ovation and was praised as a Ukrainian and Canadian "hero".

He served in the 14th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division, a voluntary unit made up mostly of ethnic Ukrainians under Nazi command.

Division members are accused of killing Polish and Jewish civilians, although the unit has not been found guilty of any war crimes by a tribunal.

Mr Rota has said he was not aware of Mr Hunka's Nazi ties and made a mistake in inviting him to parliament.

"The Speaker was solely responsible for the invitation and recognition of this man, and has wholly accepted that responsibility and stepped down," Mr Trudeau said.

But neither the prime minister's comments nor the speaker's resignation have slowed criticism from Canada's opposition leader, the Conservative Party's Pierre Poilievre.

"There's always someone else to blame when it comes to Justin Trudeau. But, here's the reality: responsibility and power go together," he said.

"If he wants the power, he has to take the responsibility and come to the floor of the House of Commons today and apologise."

Mr Poilievre called the incident the "biggest single diplomatic embarrassment" in Canada's history.

Canadian Jewish organisations welcomed Mr Rota's decision to step down, but the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies has said "questions remain as to how this debacle occurred".

Nigeria's main labour unions announce indefinite strike from October 3rd

ABUJA, Nigeria

Nigeria's major unions on Tuesday (Sep. 26) called for a national strike next week in protest at the government's response to tackling the rising cost of living.

The National Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) said they had to call an indefinite strike on October 3 because the government failed to address their concerns in talks over how to ease the financial burden for Nigerians.

"The government has totally abdicated this responsibility and has shown gross unwillingness to act abandoning Nigerian people and workers to excruciating poverty and affliction," they said in a joint statement

Africa's largest economy has seen living and transport costs heavily impacted after the government ended a petrol subsidy and a free fall of the naira currency, leading to a sharp devaluation of the local money.

Inflation is at 25 percent while fuel costs have tripled since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ended the subsidy when he came to power in May calling the move part of necessary reforms to improve a struggling economy.

The National Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) called on all workers to stop activities from October 3 and said they would organise street protests.

Tinubu's administration acknowledges the difficulties and says it distributed funds to state governments to help offset the impact of the economic reforms. Other measures include providing transport options and small business loans.

The NLC brings together unions for many industries from nurses to road workers and printers while the TUC represents senior bank workers and high school teachers among others.

Nigerian unions have threatened or gone on strike in the past only to come back into negotiations. It was not clear how much traction next week's industrial action would gain.

The NLC and TUC called a strike in August over the same issues, with many businesses, government offices, markets, banks closed for a day in the capital Abuja. Strike impact in the economic capital Lagos was more mixed.

Tinubu said ending the fuel subsidy was essential as it cost the government billions each year to keep the price of petrol artificially low.

Nigeria, a member of the OPEC oil exporters' organisation, is a major crude producer but lacks refining capacity and is forced to import most of its fuel requirements.

Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to co-host 2027 AFCON

CAIRO, Egypt

The joint bid by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania has won the race for the hosting rights of the host of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The trio of countries beat off stiff competition from the likes of Senegal to win the tournament, and this will be the first time that the three nations have ever hosted the tournament. 

The Executive Committee board of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced the news today in Cairo, Egypt.

Senegal, Botswana, and Egypt are vying to host the 2027 AFCON, while Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania have also launched a joint bid for the tournament.

The committee also announced Morocco as the host of the 2025 AFCON.

CAF President Patrice Motsepe celebrated the news saying that the “future of African football has never been brighter.”

He also suggested that an African nation will win the World Cup in the near future.

French ambassador to Niger leaves after weeks of tension

NIAMEY, Niger

France's ambassador to Niger, Sylvain Itte, has left the capital Niamey early Wednesday morning, the French presidency said.

"The ambassador and six colleagues left Niamey around 4 a.m. (0300 GMT)," a diplomatic source from the French embassy was quoted as saying by the French news agency AFP. Nigerien sources earlier confirmed the departure of the official.

Itte's departure follows the announcement by French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday that he would recall the ambassador from Niger.

Niger's military junta had ordered Itte's expulsion soon after seizing power in a coup on July 26. The country's leaders reiterated the order in August, setting a 48-hour ultimatum for Itte to leave.

But France ignored the requests, as the country does not recognize the legitimacy of Niger's military government. The EU backed France in its refusal to bring back its ambassador.

The decision sparked daily protests in front of the embassy, along with thousands rallying across the capital to demand the withdrawal of French troops.

After ordering Itte's expulsion, Niger's junta stripped him of his diplomatic immunity and his visa, prompting comments from French President Macron that Itte and his staff were "literally being held hostage" at the embassy.

Macron said Niger's military was also blocking food deliveries to the building and that Itte was living off "military rations."

Despite the pressure from the junta, Macron had insisted on negotiating any deal to withdraw both the ambassador and France's troops with Niger's ousted President Bazoum.

Russia accuses Ukraine’s allies for helping attack its Black Sea Fleet headquarters

By Illia Novikov, KYIV Ukraine

Russia on Wednesday accused Ukraine’s Western allies of helping plan and conduct last week’s missile strike on the Black Sea Fleet’s headquarters in annexed Crimea.

“There is no doubt that the attack had been planned in advance using Western intelligence means, NATO satellite assets and reconnaissance planes and was implemented upon of the advice of American and British security agencies and in close coordination with them,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing.

Moscow has repeatedly claimed that the U.S. and its NATO allies have effectively become involved in the conflict by supplying weapons to Ukraine and providing it with intelligence information and helping plan attacks on Russian facilities.

The accusation came the day after video appeared to show the fleet’s commander, Adm. Viktor Sokolov, was still alive despite Ukraine’s claims — without providing supporting evidence — that he was among 34 officers killed in Friday’s strike on the port city of Sevastopol.

The Crimean Peninsula, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014, has been a frequent target since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine 20 months ago. Crimea has served as the key hub supporting the invasion and has increasingly come under fire by Ukraine.

Ukraine said the strike that put a large hole in the main building of the headquarters had wounded 105 people, though those claims could not independently be verified.

Russia initially said one serviceman was killed but quickly retracted that statement and said the person was missing.

Moscow has provided no further updates and has not commented directly on Sokolov’s status. The Ministry of Defense, however, posted video Tuesday showing Sokolov among other senior officers attending a video conference with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Sokolov did not speak in the clip shown.

Ukraine’s Special Operation Forces posted a statement Tuesday saying its sources claimed Sokolov was among the dead, many of whom had not yet been identified. It said it was trying to verify the claim after the video surfaced.

Sokolov was shown speaking to journalists about the Black Fleet’s operations in a video posted on a news channel linked to the Russian Defense Ministry. It wasn’t clear when the video was recorded. The video didn’t contain any mention of the Ukrainian attack on fleet headquarters.

Zakharova’s statements follow comments made Tuesday by Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, who said the arrival American-made Abrams tanks in Ukraine and a U.S. promise to supply an unspecified number of long-range ATACMS missiles would push NATO closer to a direct conflict with Russia.

Consensus builds for EU bank to finance shells and tanks

By Hans Von Der Burchard, BERLIN Germany

Germany is warming to a French plan that would expand the powers of the European Investment Bank to allow it to finance defense projects such as the buying of weapons and military supplies.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz is coming around to an idea that the French government and France’s EU commissioner have been advocating for months, according to four officials and diplomats in Berlin and Brussels, who were granted anonymity to enable them to speak freely. 

If approved, the proposal would widen the mandate of the EU's lending arm to allow it to bankroll joint defense projects, such as for the purchase of arms, military equipment and ammunition. The Luxembourg-based body, owned by EU countries, currently provides loans in other sectors, like climate, sustainable energy and digitalization — but is prohibited from investing in defense.

The shift underscores the growing importance of the EIB, which has grown rapidly in recent years as financially strapped EU countries have tapped it to fund investments. The race to become the bank's president has become highly political, with several candidates — including the EU’s competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager, who is currently on leave, and Spanish Finance Minister Nadia Calviño — competing for the post, open from next year.

Germany has in the past been cautious about giving the EIB the authority to invest in defense. But Russia's invasion of Ukraine has changed the thinking in Berlin — not only out of political necessity but also because investment in the military is now seen as more morally acceptable.

Scholz last year announced his "Zeitenwende" shift in German foreign and security policy, moving Berlin toward a leading role in European security. EIB investment could support the EU in boosting defense capabilities and production capacity to help Ukraine, the officials and diplomats said.

Although changing the EIB's mandate is not an agreed German government position yet — a spokesperson for Finance Minister Christian Lindner declined to comment on whether he backs the plan — Scholz's sympathy for the plan is significant: If Germany were to officially support the French push, it would increase the likelihood of other countries throwing their weight behind the idea.

That would be key to reaching a majority of the EIB's board of directors, which consists of finance or economy ministers from the 27 EU countries. They are the ones who could change the EIB's mandate to include defense. A mandate change would require support by at least 14 EU countries representing 50 percent of the bank's subscribed capital. Here, Germany is key as it is one of the EIB's biggest shareholders besides France and Italy, which all hold almost 19 percent of the bank.

Support for more defense spending among institutions like the EIB is evident not only in Paris, but also in other capitals such as Tallinn, which is on the front line of Russian borders, a senior EU diplomat said.

“Defense spending has been viewed as a taboo by financial institutions for too long, due to reputational risks. That’s where the EIB can make a difference, and that’s why some member states are making a push now,” said the diplomat, who was granted anonymity to discuss the ongoing discussions. 

Earlier this year, Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren expressed support for such a mandate change, saying “we need to have a highly capable defense industry in the European Union ... For that you have to invest ... [and] if it’s not coming from big pension funds or banks, then there is a real issue.”

EU countries and the European Parliament already indicated a first strong sign of support for the concept when they voted in favor of the Act in Support of Ammunition Production, a law to boost shell production for Ukraine, which included the line that the EIB "should enhance its support to the European defense industry and joint procurement beyond its ongoing support for dual use.”

The EIB's outgoing president Werner Hoyer last week warned against allowing the bank to invest in defense projects, saying that this would put the bank on the "wrong track." People close to the bank’s outgoing president said that within the bank, there were also strong reservations. A major concern is that the EIB could lose certain investors such as pension funds, from whom the bank borrows money and who may have rules against investing in defense projects. 

An EIB spokesperson said it was "fully committed to supporting investment in the technologies that Europe needs for its security and long-term defense," but that it sought to do this via so-called dual-use technologies such as investing in cybersecurity or satellites, which can be used for military purposes but are not military technologies per se.

The spokesperson added that the EIB decided in June to increase funding for such security infrastructure "to the highest level to date, earmarking €8 billion in funding until 2027."