Free Republic

excerpt- For several years, scientists have tried and failed to determine the cause of the illness, which locals say has killed hundreds of youngsters. What they do know is that the disease affects only children and gradually devastates its victims through debilitating seizures, stunted growth, wasted limbs, mental disabilities and sometimes starvation.

African farmers ostensibly will benefit from an approximately new $60 million project that U.S. taxpayers could be funding. The U.S. Agency for International Development's "USAID/WA [West Africa] Trade Hub and African Partner Network Project," as the endeavor is known, will seek to "assist farmers and firms to increase trade in key grains and livestock" in that region, according to a presolicitation notice that U.S. Trade & Aid Monitor has located. The document says the initiative, which remains "subject to the availability of funds," will keep in line with the U.S. government's Feed the Future strategy as well as support the...

Mali has experienced perhaps the most significant external repercussions from the downfall of the regime of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Stratfor has discussed the impact of the conflict in Libya on the wider region since international intervention began in March 2011. Instability in Libya due to that country's deep internal fault lines meant that re-establishing a government would prove difficult. As we pointed out, that instability could spread to neighboring countries as weapons and combatants flow outward from Libya. Reports now indicate that thousands of armed Tuareg tribesmen who previously served in Gadhafi's military have returned home to Mali. The...

Having recognized that successful early reading education programs contribute to future student success both in and out of the classroom, the Obama Administration intends to execute a new program to build upon those successes. And it intends to carry out that task in the African nation of Mozambique. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which will carry out this endeavor with private sector assistance, late last week issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) from vendors capable of launching such an initiative. The Early Grade Reading Assessment Plus Quality Instruction and Management (EGRA+QIM) Project, as it is known, "will be...

Ali al'Amin Mazrui Another Islamic fanatic, Afro-ARAB racist Infamous for wish washing[1] the Goliath Arab-Muslim Slave Trade while 'criticizing' the West. His allegiance are with his Arab ancestors. He writes approvingly on the Arab-Islamic genocide in the Sudan (2.5 million deaths[2]), as well as sympathizing with the Hausa-Fulani Islamic ethnic cleansing and genocide of the Igbo ethnic non-Muslims in Nigeria (100,000 Igbo/Biafraians died[3][4]). Served as chief adviser for the infamous butcher, Islamic leader Idi Amin.(the 'Butcher of Uganda,'[5] responsible for the genocide of between 300,000 [6] and a half a Million Ugandans,[7]. He went on a 'crusade against Whites,'[8] has...

Explanation: Which attracts your eye more -- the sky or the ground? On the ground are rocky peaks in Teide National Park on Tenerife Island of the Spanish Canary Islands off the northwestern coast of Africa. The volcanic landscape features old island summits and is sometimes used as a testbed for instruments on future Martian rovers. The lights of a nearby hotel shine on the far left. Storm clouds are visible on the horizon, artificially strutted from multiple exposures. Dividing the sky, across the middle of the above deep image, is the vertical band of the Milky Way Galaxy. The...

Fake and poor quality malaria drugs risk crisis in Africa, warn scientists Report calls for measures to prevent circulation of counterfeit and sub-standard medicines that threaten millions of lives Sarah Boseley, health editor guardian.co.uk, Monday 16 January 2012 19.51 GMT Hopes of controlling malaria in Africa could be wrecked by criminals who are circulating counterfeit and substandard drugs, threatening millions of lives, scientists are warning. They are calling for public health authorities to take urgent action to preserve the efficacy of the anti-malarials now being used in the worst-hit areas of the continent. /snip Artemisinins have replaced old medicines such...

It's been 18 years since the late dictator Hastings Kamuzu Banda's "indecency in dress" laws were repealed in Malawi, but mobs of men and boys in the largely conservative southern African country have recently been publicly stripping women of their miniskirts and pants. ... Other African nations, including neighboring South Africa, have seen similar attacks and harassment of women. Last year, women and men held "SlutWalks" in South Africa, joining an international campaign against the notion that a woman's appearance can excuse attacks. "SlutWalks" originated in Toronto, Canada, where they were sparked by a police officer's remark that women could...

Ethiopia says Eritrea-trained gunmen killed touristsTue, Jan 17 2012By Aaron MaashoADDIS ABABA | Wed Jan 18, 2012 7:10am EST ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Two Germans, two Hungarians and an Austrian were killed by gunmen in an attack on tourists in the remote Afar region of northern Ethiopia, the Ethiopian government said on Wednesday.Government spokesman Bereket Simon said a Hungarian and an Italian were wounded while two Germans and two Ethiopians had been kidnapped in the Tuesday attack, that happened in an area prone to banditry and where separatist rebels have operated.

South Sudan on Tuesday accused its northern neighbor Sudan of stealing more than 2.1 million barrels of oil, and warned buyers and shippers that they might face prosecution. The accusation has cast a pall over a new round of talks on sharing oil revenues. South Sudan's chief negotiator at the African Union-mediated talks accused the Khartoum government of confiscating and selling southern oil, saying it is creating an economic and political crisis. The oil is shipped from landlocked Southern Sudan by pipeline to Port Sudan, where it is loaded onto ships for export. The two countries produce about 500,000 barrels...

The AU wants Africa to manufacture and export finished products to its trading partners rather than just selling them the raw materials as it does now. She cited China, India, the EU and US and other rising stars in trade with the continent, including Turkey and Latin America, and said the AU had held talks on the new breed of partnerships with some of them. The AU also wants Africa to have a veto-wielding seat on the UN Security Council, and a place at the G20 negotiating table, Ali said. The peace and security that have eluded Africa for decades...

A Gallup survey done across 20 sub-Saharan African countries on the main sources of lighting for households saw Mauritius fair best, with 100% of respondents saying this was provided by power lines. South Africa came in second at 80% in terms of households with grid supplied power for lighting, followed by Ghana (67%), Nigeria (66%) and Cameroon (65%). At the bottom of the list in this survey for electrical grid power supplying household lighting was Liberia at 4%, followed by Chad and Burkina Faso at 8%. In Chad, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, Uganda and...

A growing trend of African countries promising to free up money for social spending by slashing fuel subsidies will test public faith in governments, amid widespread fear the cash will vanish in a haze of graft and mismanagement. Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea, Chad and others have all cut back on expensive fuel subsidy programmes in recent months. For economists, the cuts have been an encouraging sign, raising hopes that reforms are taking root in the continent even as it braces for the fallout of the European debt crisis. For millions of Africans, however, the changes have created nothing by pain. Nigerians...

President Goodluck Jonathan is living the toughest week of his political career as tens of thousands of Nigerians take to the streets in the longest national strike in the nation's history, at the same time as an increasingly deadly Islamist group continues its relentless sectarian onslaught, prompting an upsurge in Christian-Muslim violence. The crises presented by the protests against gasoline-subsidy cuts and the communal violence may be quite different, but both are symptoms of years of government abuse and corruption. After four days of deadlock, Jonathan has begun negotiating with labor unions, hoping to end the strike that has paralyzed...

He's like a phantom. Of course, thousands have seen him, tens of thousands have died because of him, and hundreds of thousands have suffered thanks to him and his supporters. But the people on his trail haven't been able to catch him. The man is 49-year-old Joseph Kony, the self-appointed general of God, guerrilla fighter and mass murderer. For more than two decades, he and his Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) have terrorized people living in an area of roughly 100,000 square kilometers (40,000 square miles) of jungle in Uganda, the Central African Republic (CAR), the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

The Islamist terror group Boko Haram’s escalating war against Christians and a violent nationwide protest against the end to government fuel subsidies have brought Nigeria to the edge of civil war. Boko Harem began its current escalation with the Christmas Day suicide bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church in Niger state, an attack which killed over 50 people. The bombing of St. Theresa induced Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan on December 31 to place the Muslim-dominant northern Nigerian states of Borno, Yobe, Niger and Plateau — areas that have been witness to most of Boko Haram’s attacks — under emergency rule....

Nigeria, Jan 11 – Ethnic and religious violence in Nigeria claimed 16 more victims, with gunmen killing eight in the north and a mob torching an Islamic school in the south, as a fuel strike added to the deadly tension. Amid the sectarian and social turmoil, Nobel literature prize laureate Wole Soyinka, one of the country’s most respected voices, warned that the continent’s most populous nation was heading toward civil war. A two-day old general strike has paralysed the country and sent President Goodluck Jonathan’s government — already battling a spate of bloody attacks by the Islamist sect Boko Haram...

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is sending five American military officers to South Sudan amid recent outbreaks of violence in the newly independent African nation. The White House said the U.S. forces will join the United Nations mission in the capital of Juba and focus on strategic planning and operations. They are not expected to engage in combat operations, but will be armed for personal protection. Obama issued a memorandum Tuesday declaring that the U.S. officers could not be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court during their deployment because South Sudan is not a party to the ICC. The White...

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan is facing a double challenge with a series of sectarian attacks by the Boko Haram Islamist group and deadly protests over a fuel subsidy removal. When he took over the presidency of Africa’s most populous nation in 2010, Goodluck Jonathan seemed destined to live up to his name. But that was until recently, when a steady drum-roll of bad news from Nigeria appeared to be reaching an alarming crescendo. On two different fronts, Jonathan is facing challenges that are threatening the stability of Africa’s largest oil-producing nation. A wave of violence blamed on the Boko Haram...

... But the country's oil wealth is in the Christian-dominated south and little has reached the long-neglected north, which has fanned regional resentment. Boko Haram's growing expertise in terrorist attacks, in which hundreds of people have been killed, has deepened suspicions it has developed links with al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, the jihadists' North African arm. In November, it was disclosed that the U.S. Army has sent 100 Special Forces soldiers to Nigeria to provide counter-insurgency training for national troops engaged against Boko Haram, the country's largest military deployment since the 1967-70 Biafra war. This opened up a new front...

Kampala - Ugandan and US military officials are confident the end is nigh for the brutal Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a group that has been avoiding head-on battles for over a quarter of a century while leaving carnage in its wake. The two countries have teamed up to tackle the LRA, a rebel movement that originated in Uganda during the country's civil war in the 1980s. After suffering defeats in Uganda in recent years, remaining LRA forces have moved into the poor and often dysfunctional Central African Republic (CAR), still carrying out attacks that often employ a scorched earth policy,...

Attacks on Christians are surging in Kenya, and analysts say Islamic radicals are putting a bull’s-eye on the community. International Christian Concern’s Middle East specialist Aidan Clay says he recently visited a victim of a Somali mob attack in Kenya. “When I saw him a month after the incident, he was still badly bruised, could hardly see out of his right eye which was black, and was missing teeth,” Clay said. Clay said the attacks are getting more frequent and more intense. “Recently, there has been a slight surge of violence targeting Christians inside Kenya, provoked mainly by Somali Muslims,...

Addis Abbaba, Ethopia (AP) - Christianity, Islam and communism are battling for the minds and heart's of Africa's uncommitted millions. At the moment Islam is making the greatest progress. This is the sober conclusion drawn by American evangelist Billy Graham after an exhausting eight-week crusade through east, central and west Africa.

Kristy, 15, was in such pain after days of being attacked with sticks, a metal bar, hammer and chisel that he begged to die, jurors heard. His brother-in-law Eric Bikubi was joined by his partner, Kristy's sister Magalie, in the horror, said Brian Altman QC, prosecuting. And his other siblings were forced to join in before they were all placed in the bath to be hosed down in cold water with a shower head by Bikubi on Christmas Day, 2010. ... The jury was told that in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the defendants are originally from, witchcraft...

It should be noted, that there are more than 6,000 branches of Chinese related companies across Africa with some 2,000 investments in the continent. In Malawi for instance, China's first investment program in that country following the signing of diplomatic ties years back is through the Malawi Cotton project, with funding from the China-Africa Development Fund. This is believed to be the largest China-related agriculture investment in Africa. The China-Africa Development Fund is one of several ways through which Chinese enterprises are encouraged to invest in Africa. Trade between Ghana and China, according to the publication earlier referred to reach...

The giant Black Tiger shrimp that Ron Pockrus caught off the Texas coast might be the biggest threat to the $700 million Gulf shrimp industry to come along in years, marine biologists said. Pockrus, the owner of a 13-vessel shrimp fleet operating out of Brownsville, caught the 12-inch, 13-ounce specimen last week. Pockrus said he’s been aware of the species for about three years but hadn’t seen one. Now, he has turned in two to marine and wildlife officials this season. “I have another boat coming in with one on it now,” Pockrus said. “That makes the third one we’ve...

Rush Limbaugh caused a bit of a stir recently when he asked the question: “What do you think has fed more mouths, greed or charity?” The question seemed particularly untoward given that Christmas was right around the corner. Who besides Gordon Gekko might ask such a ludicrous question? Rush, obviously… and it turns out that it’s not such a ludicrous question after all. Of course when he says greed, what he is really referring to – and he says as much – is self interest. Basically what he is arguing is that while giving charity to someone may make...

At a restaurant along the River Nile offering crocodile and ostrich meat, officials of the world's newest -- and desperately destitute -- nation hosted a lunch this month for Liu Guijin, China's visiting envoy for African affairs. Liu's visit to Juba, the dirt-track capital of South Sudan, which split from Sudan in July, came at a tense time: Sudan had just bombed a refugee camp, armed militias were mining roads, and troops were clashing in disputed border areas. The Chinese envoy, however, came here mainly to talk about oil. The Chinese "are very worried," said Stephen Dhieu Dau, South Sudan's...

You are my children of light , you are my children of light , you are my children of light , and in this season of lights , let MY Light shine through you , for MY SEASON NEVER ENDS ! Truly this is a season of lights , but we are to be lights for Christ Jesus in an open season and heaven for him ! Isaiah 60 The Gentiles Bless Zion 1 Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. 2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,...

A mysterious metal ball reportedly fell from space , landing in a grasslands area of the African nation of Namibia. So far experts claim the object is not of alien origin. It has two bumps on each end, appears to be hollow and weights about 13 pounds. Namibia's National Forensic Science Institute Director Paul Ludik said the sphere is 3.6 feet around and is made out of a "sophisticated" alloy that is not unknown to modern science, although it has no identifying markings to link it with a country or a company. So far that's about all we're told. But...

The enshrinement of equal rights for homosexuals into US foreign policy activities has drawn quick ire from African nations, with one senior figure saying the notion is "abhorrent" across the continent. President Obama has instructed officials across government to "ensure that US diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect the human rights of lesbian, gay, and transgender persons" around the world. Under the move, legal, moral, and financial support will be boosted for gay rights organizations, emergency assistance will be sent to groups or individuals facing threats, and asylum in the US will be offered to people forced to flee...

Amnesty International on Thursday urged Ethiopia, Tanzania and Zambia to arrest former US president George W. Bush for violating international torture laws, during his African tour this week. Bush is touring the countries through to Monday to promote efforts to fight cervical and breast cancers, and Amnesty said the three nations have an obligation to arrest him under international law. Amnesty made a similar appeal to Canada in October when Bush visited British Columbia for an economic summit. Amnesty cites several instances of alleged torture of detainees at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, naval facility, in Afghanistan and in Iraq, by...

Situations may be precarious at times but truly this is merely a lack of prayer as preparation for you are my houses of preparation of my will. So know my will by the preparation of your hearts before me for I AM The LIGHT of your path and way in Me ! John 1:4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. John 8:12 New International Version (NIV) Dispute Over Jesus’ Testimony 12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk...

World Health: At a star-studded gala Thursday, President Obama drew big praise from AIDS activists and NGOs for expanding AIDS-fighting programs. But the real accomplishment rests with his predecessor, President Bush. After quietly helping to save 30 million lives from the scourge of AIDS across the African continent, it would seem that higher honors would be in store for Bush, whose AIDS initiatives there have been an astonishing success. Obama, to his credit, acknowledged Bush in his World AIDS Day speech Thursday, as have serious-minded Africa advocates including rock singer Bono. But among the garden-variety NGOs, media elites or activist...

SURRENDER COMPLETELY AND RECEIVE MY LOVE FOR YOU ! My surrender to you is eternal , for as My Sacrifice was a promise and a statement of My Love coming down through the Father ! It is Now time for You to SURRENDER wholeheartedly to Me . I need to see a heart opened forth right and true ; to discern My Presence ! That you make " ALL " Known to Me ~ free for release and in this surrender as you raise your hands and lower your defenses and pride I WILL COME ! And My SPIRIT ,...

Imagine what would happen if America barged its way into a developing country, buttered up its homicidal dictator and agreed a back-of-the-envelope deal in which he signed over his nation’s mineral wealth in return for roads, railways and sports stadiums. Everyone would benefit, no? No. The problem is that the infrastructure turns out to be worth a hell of a lot less than the minerals. Fortunately, Washington has had the foresight to top up the dictator’s Swiss bank account. Problem solved! As for the mining operation, the Americans really don’t want to be bothered by minimum wages or trade unions....

The Obama Administration wants to modernize the Customs Service, as obsolete laws and practices "continue to make trade difficult and expensive, and often create bottlenecks for commercial activities." Consequently, it is hiring a contractor to devise a reform plan to bring that agency into the 21st Century. Not the U.S. Customs Service, that is, but the Nigeria Customs Service. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) estimates it will award a contract in the $10 million range to carry out the goals of the Nigeria Expanded Trade and Transport, or NEXXT, program (Solicitation #SOL-620-12-000001). The overarching goal of the project...

This week, in Oakland, Calif., America saw yet another stellar example of the glories of diversity. At a taping of a rap music video in that fair city, eight people, including a one-year-old child, were shot. When a classical music video goes wrong, somebody busts a string. When a rap music video goes wrong, somebody busts a cap. Such observations, however, are now taboo. We're not supposed to suggest that the rap culture is any different from the classical music culture or that one is better than another. As white guy John Kerry put it, "I think there's a lot...

SECURITY: US advisers limited to "support" role in tracking down LRA NEW YORK, 22 November 2011 (IRIN) - The main stated aim of the US deployment of 100 military advisers to central Africa is to improve coordination among the armies of countries affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) to avoid repeating the fiasco of the 2008 multinational offensive against the group. They “are not directly involved in the operation to find members of the Lord's Resistance Army”, said Major James Rawlinson of the US Special Operations Command, Africa, in a statement to IRIN. While they will be “working and...

Detailing a number of possible motives — including a recent oil discovery — for Obama's Ugandan mission.On October 14, 2011, President Barack Obama announced that 100 U.S. troops, acting as advisors to the Uganda military, will help in military action against the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) — a rebel force roaming northwest Uganda, recruiting child soldiers, committing atrocities, and taking hostages (including slave “wives”) for more than fifteen years. The LRA’s main goal is to live off the terror it creates. Northwest Uganda, northeast Congo, and southeast Sudan (now divided by the new border with South Sudan) have all seen...

(Reuters) - New convoys of heavily-armed Ethiopian troops have crossed into Somalia and are heading for central areas, residents said Sunday, days after Addis Ababa said it planned to send troops to help Somali and Kenya forces fighting Islamist insurgents. Ethiopia, which intervened in Somalia between 2006 and 2009, said Friday that it would deploy troops inside Somalia again for a "brief period. An Ethiopian government official also acknowledged Friday that a small force was already there on a reconnaissance mission. Ethiopia had previously denied scores of military trucks and armoured vehicles had entered Somalia on November 19 and 20....

Why Eastern DR Congo Is 'Rape Capital of The World' By Fiona Lloyd-Davies November 25, 2011 Masika is a survivor of the conflict in the DRC and a rape victim. She has set up a center where other survivors can come for sanctuary when they have nowhere else to go. Eastern Congo has been called the "rape capital of the world" Writer has noticed disturbing trend of generational rape Dr. Mukwege, a general surgeon, works tirelessly to repair women damaged by rape Editor's note: Award-winning film maker Fiona Lloyd-Davies is one of the UK's most experienced foreign documentary and current...

Ethiopia is being sucked back into Somalia to open another front against Islamist rebels battling Kenyan forces but even a military victory is unlikely to end two decades of anarchy unless the country's feuding politicians and clans want peace. A small Ethiopian contingent rolled across the border on November 19 and 20, although Addis Ababa has publicly denied its troops are there. They have revived bases used during its ill-fated 2006-2009 campaign to rid the anarchic country of hardline Islamist rebels. Regional leaders were meeting in the Ethiopian capital on Friday to discuss ways of supporting Kenya's campaign. Mogadishu has...

The eruption of a volcano in Virunga National Park near Goma is seen at night. Volcano fanatics will have to pay $300...The eruption of a volcano in Virunga National Park near Goma is seen at night. Almost three weeks after a fissure opened amidst dense flat forest, the Democratic Republic of Congo's Virunga National Park has seen an increasing number of tourists seeking to be guided on treks to witness the Nyamulagira volcano spewing geysers of lava into the night.

On Africa: Protagonist of a New Season of Hope "The Continent Contains Reserves of Life and Vitality for the Future" VATICAN CITY, NOV. 23, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the Italian-language catechesis Benedict XVI gave today during the general audience held in Paul VI Hall. The Pope reflected upon his apostolic journey to Benin. * * * Dear brothers and sisters, Still alive within me are the impressions made during my recent apostolic journey to Benin, which I desire to reflect upon today. Thanksgiving to the Lord flows spontaneously from my soul: in His providence, He willed that...

PRESIDENT Mugabe yesterday said homosexuals and lesbians will be punished severely for their behaviour which is inconsistent with African and Christian values. He made the remarks at the launch of the Tongogara Community Share Ownership Tru-st at Unki Mine. Zimbabweans told Copac during the outreach programme that they want homosexuality outlawed. Said the President: "Do not get tempted into that (homosexuality). You are young people. Mukaenda ikoko we will punish you severely." He took a swipe at recent utterances by British Prime Minister David Cameron that London will not aid countries that do not respect gay rights. Mr Cameron said...

Ordinary measures are not warranted anymore for I have overcome for you and in Me you reside in the heavenlies. So cast off your flesh when it distracts you from My Will of virtue and Righteousness and "Remain" in "MY" Loyalty for I AM all you need to KNOW! John 15:9 (AMP) 9I have loved you, [just] as the Father has loved Me; abide in My love [[a]continue in His love with Me]. Acts 17:28 28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his...

DALLAS (AP) — Former President George W. Bush will travel to Africa next month to raise awareness about cervical and breast cancer, an effort he calls a "natural extension" of a program launched during his presidency that helps fight AIDS on the continent. Bush, former first lady Laura Bush and officials with the George W. Bush Institute are heading to Tanzania, Zambia and Ethiopia from Dec. 1 through Dec. 5, where they'll visit clinics and meet with governmental and health care leaders. "We believe it's in our nation's interest to deal with disease and set priorities and save lives," Bush...

“Jewelry Made From AK-47s, for the Greater Good,” Lauren Covello of Fox Business News assumes. She’s “reporting” about Fonderie 47, an “organization [that] helps fund the removal of illegal assault rifles in Africa – in part by selling high-end, custom jewelry made from AK-47s.” That all “assault rifles” would be deemed “illegal” by brutal thugs in power goes unchallenged (but let’s stay focused on Africa and I’ll write about Mayors Against Illegal Guns some other time). We’re told “a $25,600 ring will enable the destruction of 75 assault rifles; a set of $35,000 cufflinks will lead to the destruction of...

Activists say the new law would make an already bad situation worse for Nigeria’s gay community. Although homosexuality is already outlawed in Nigeria, a new law proposing criminal penalties for gay marriages has some worried that the move will alienate the nation from its western allies and make life for gay Nigerians even more dangerous. "If this bill passes into law, the Nigerian government will be sanctioning even greater discrimination and violence against an already vulnerable group," said Graeme Reid, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights director at Human Rights Watch. The new law would punish married homosexual couples...