Free Republic

A UAE-led heritage project is shedding new light on the origins of Zanzibar’s Stone Town.Archaeologists have discovered evidence of an original settlement at the Unesco World Heritage site in Tanzania that dates back to the 11th century.It proves the town — previously thought to be an 18th century Omani Arab town — was actually established much earlier by local Swahili people, archaeologists believe.During a major dig this summer, they unearthed traces of homes, cooking pits and significant amounts of pottery from this era.They were then able to pinpoint the settlement’s transition to stone buildings by the 14th century...Stone Town became...

Four-time Grand Slam tennis champ Naomi Osaka is being hit with backlash over the unintentionally — or cluelessly, depending on whom you ask — offensive name of her new media company, Hana Kuma. ...Hana kuma means “flower bear” in Japanese — but Twitter users quickly noted it has a far more explicit meaning in Swahili, where it translates to “woman without a vagina.” The lost-in-translation controversy began trending on Twitter in multiple African countries...

Four-time Grand Slam tennis champ Naomi Osaka is being hit with backlash over the unintentionally — or cluelessly, depending on whom you ask — offensive name of her new media company, Hana Kuma.

More than 50,000 people have signed a petition accusing Disney of “colonialism and robbery” after it trademarked the Swahili phrase “hakuna matata”. The expression means “no problem” in Swahili, which is spoken across east Africa and is a national language of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The petition, which calls on Disney to drop its trademark, precedes the release of the company’s motion capture remake of The Lion King next summer, which will be voiced by Beyoncé, Donald Glover and Chiwetel Ejiofor. The phrase was popularised in 1982 by the Kenyan band Them Mushrooms, whose...

Supernatural experiences are happening now with in my Body and Bride but do not let this distract you for though you walk on the waters with me it is My Testimony that keeps you afloat for I AM in and through all things and it is as you cause others to understand My love for them that I elevate you to walk in the heavenlies for you are not earthly bound and it is "My Spirit IN YOU" that performs what seems impossible to others for as Stephen did now you shall do ! Acts 6 Seven Chosen to Serve...

Gen. Carter Ham is head of the U.S. African command. An Army brigade from Fort Riley, Kan., will begin helping train African militaries beat back a growing terrorist threat posed by al-Qaida. An Army brigade from Fort Riley, Kan., some 4,000, soldiers, will begin helping to train African militaries. The idea is to help African troops beat back a growing terrorist threat posed by al-Qaida. The American troops will head over in small teams over the course of the next year. The Dagger Brigade returned to Kansas last year from a deployment to Iraq, where it trained and advised that...

Al Jazeera has started recruitment prior to the launch of Al Jazeera Kiswahili, a new channel in the Swahili language. The channel, which will stick with the news and current affairs shows familiar to viewers of Al Jazeera English, will broadcast across East Africa and be headquartered in the region – probably in Nairobi. By SIMON ALLISON. This is big news for the East African media market, which is already the most vigorous in Africa, and is a huge step for the Qatar-based news outlet. Al Jazeera’s rise to prominence has been meteoric. Helped by handouts from the seemingly bottomless...

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (WBZ) ―Two people have been arrested in connection with a daylong bomb scare on a Greyhound bus in Portsmouth, N.H. John Smolens of Lewiston, Maine was tasered and charged with resisting arrest after police say he refused to obey orders from the SWAT team during the evacuation Thursday. Calvin Segar of Brooklyn, New York was charged with two counts of obstruction for lying to authorities. Both will be arraigned in Portsmouth Friday afternoon. The bomb scare began Thursday morning when a passenger overheard a man speaking a foreign language on a cell phone, police said. The passenger then...

SNIPPET: "An al Qaeda leader wanted by the US for a string of deadly attacks has been named the new leader of terror group's network in East Africa. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, one of several al Qaeda leaders charged with carrying out the 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, was appointed the leader of al Qaeda in the Horn of Africa. Fazul was "inaugurated" during an open ceremony in the southern city of Kismayo, according to a translation received by The Long War Journal of an article posted Waaga Cusub, a website operated by the Hawiye clan,...

I was killing some rare free time this morning with a little trip around Archive org. With the recreation of al-Ekhlaas and a growing number of issues animating the jihobbist these days (Palestine, "revisions," Somalia, etc), expect Archive to remain the preeminent jihad media hosting site.

When Curtis Williams took the field for the Huskies' 2000 season opener, the University of Washington's media guide described him like this: Senior, strong safety, 5-foot-10, 200 pounds. Named, in 1999, the team's best hitter. Led team in solo tackles. Went to high school in Fresno, Calif., where he was a top recruit. The seventh of eight kids. Pursuing a degree in American ethnic studies. Here's what the media guide didn't say: When Williams played against Idaho, he had a warrant out for his arrest. He'd been arrested every year he was here: 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000. He was...