Free Republic

Mark Thatcher held in coup probe Aug 25 2004 Mark Thatcher has been arrested by South African police over allegations he was involved in a planned coup in Equatorial Guinea, according to media reports in South Africa. The son of former prime minister Baroness Thatcher was arrested at his Cape Town home by detectives according to the South African Press Association. He was expected to appear in court. Police spokesman Makahosini Nkosi said: "We are investigating charges of contravening the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act. This is in relation to the possible funding and logistical assistance in relation to...

South African police arrested Mark Thatcher, the son of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, early Wednesday on allegations he was involved in a plot to overthrow the government of Equatorial Guinea, police said.Police spokesman Sipho Ngwema said Thatcher was arrested at his Cape Town home and is expected to be charged with violation of the foreign military assistance act. "We have evidence, credible evidence, and information that he was involved in the attempted coup," said Ngwema. "We refuse that South Africa be a springboard for coups in Africa and elsewhere." Eight South Africans, six Armenians and four Equato-Guineans are...

<p>Los Angeles, , May. 22 (UPI) -- A grand jury and congressional investigators are probing real estate purchases by U.S. oil companies that may have constituted bribes to an African dictator.</p> <p>The Los Angeles Times reported Saturday the two separate investigations involve high-priced land purchases made by the oil companies through a holding company beleived controlled by the president of Equatorial Guinea.</p>

THE 70 suspected mercenaries who were arrested in Harare early this month in connection with the foiled coup in the Equatorial Guinea yesterday appeared briefly before a court convened at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison. The suspects, who are facing five charges under the Public Order and Security, Firearms, and Immigration Acts, were not asked to plead when they appeared before magistrate Mr Mishrod Guvamombe. They were remanded to April 13, when their lawyers are expected to make an application for refusal of remand. The suspects, made up of 10 whites, two coloureds and 58 blacks all clad in new prison...

Dear Family and Friends, Events in Zimbabwe this week have left us all open mouthed and shaking our heads in disbelief, surprise and shock. Every day and every hour the talk has been of mercenaries, conspiracies, terrorists and coup plots. No one seems to be able to explain why an aeroplane landed in Harare with people, described by local television as "burly, heavily built men" of assorted nationalities. At first the talk was of 64 mercenaries, later in the week it became 67. Reports as to what these men were doing here varied from collecting mining equipment to guard mines...

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe has seized a U.S.-registered cargo plane with 64 suspected mercenaries of various nationalities and a cargo of "military material", Home Affairs (Interior) Minister Kembo Mohadi said on Monday. "A United States of America-registered Boeing 727-100 cargo plane was detained last night at about 19:30 hours at Harare International Airport after its owners had made a false declaration of its cargo and crew," Mohadi said in a statement.

The alleged mercenaries arrested in Zimbabwe are believed to have been on their way to a covert military training camp in Cameroon. The men were remnants of South Africa's defunct mercenary company Executive Outcomes. They were planning to join another former Executives Outcomes operative in Equatorial Guinea in an elaborate plot to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, which was supposed to have taken place next week. The coup plot has been denied by the British-based company Logo Logistics, which employs the suspected mercenaries. The company claims they were going to provide security for mining operations in the Democratic...

How the French Plunder Africa France's unchallenged political, economic, and military domination of its former sub-Saharan African colonies is rooted in a currency, the CFA franc. Created in 1948 to help France control the destiny of its colonies, fourteen countries--Benin, Burkina-Faso, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Togo, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Bissau Guinea, and Chad--maintained the franc zone even after they gained independence decades ago. In exchange for France guaranteeing the CFA franc's convertibility, these countries agreed to deposit 65% of their foreign exchange reserves in a special account within the French Treasury and granted to...