Monday 11- Nov-2024 {HMC} Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered what he called “total support” for Africa, including in the struggle against terrorism and extremism.
The speech was read out at a summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to his African counterparts.
Several African governments have cut ties with traditional Western allies and are looking to Moscow for help in tackling frequent attacks by jihadists.
During the summit, Burkina Faso’s Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean-Marie Traoré said Russia was a more suitable international partner than the former colonial power, France.
It is a view shared by several of France’s former colonies – and was reiterated by Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop, who contrasted the Kremlin’s “sincere” partnership to the “neo-colonial” relationship of Western powers.
He said that as well as military co-operation, Mali was exploring other joint projects in the energy, telecommunications, technology and mining sectors.
“Russian companies are working in all these areas with the Malian government and [private] partners in Mali to provide solutions to the challenges facing the Malian people. The two parties have agreed to step up the pace to ensure rapid results,” he said on the second and final day of the conference of African foreign ministers.
Wagner mercenary fighters – now rebranded under the Africa Corps banner by Russia’s defence ministry – were the preferred choice for the military leaders who ordered French and UN troops to leave.
Russia’s help, often in exchange for access to raw materials, also comes with a promise that there will be no meddling in a country’s internal affairs or lessons on how to run an election.
However, Russia’s military expeditions to Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have helped protect the junta leaders there, but have failed to make much progress in the fight against Islamist militants.
Nonetheless, the Kremlin is trumpeting about these new-found friends, with foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova saying the conference had dashed Western hopes for Russia’s isolation.
And Lavrov said Russia’s relations with Africa were strengthening “more and more” with progress “on all axes”.
Putin’s speech underlined this point.
“I would like to reiterate that our country will continue to provide total support to our African friends in different sectors: ensuring sustainable development, the struggle against terrorism and extremism, combating epidemics, food problems and the consequences of natural disasters,” it said.
Emanuela Del Re, the EU special representative for the Sahel region of West Africa, told the BBC the West needed to accept the shifting sands of allegiances.
While Russia was “certainly a very malicious actor”, the Italian diplomat explained it had a strong bond with Africa going back to before independence and was not alone in its interest in the Sahel.
“It’s largely a desert but in reality the region is very crowded: because at the moment you see Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iran… all member states of the EU and the UK,” she said.
In fact, African leaders were pragmatic about their need to “diversify their partnerships”, Ms Del Re said, adding it was not a time for the EU to abandon what she called the “three difficult countries” of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, which have all experienced coups in recent years.
Her point was that it should not be seen as a competition.
Rwanda, which has strong ties with the UK and the West, is one of several African countries that have already signed deals with Moscow to get help building a nuclear power plant.
Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe, who is also in Sochi, told the AFP news agency hundreds of Rwandan students had graduated from Russian universities, including “those who specialise in nuclear science”.
“We hope to be able to train a certain number of scientific managers specialising in this field,” he added.
Five years ago, Putin promised to double trade with Africa – this has not happened.
But using other means, which the West sees as destabilising the continent, Russia’s influence has grown significantly.
Monday 11- Nov-2024 {HMC} The CEO and two executives of Australian gold mine Resolute in Mali have been arrested while in Bamako to discuss ongoing disputes with authorities, the company confirmed Sunday.
CEO Terence Holohan and his two colleagues “were in Bamako to discuss with mining and tax authorities the company’s business practices in Mali generally and to make progress on ongoing claims against Resolute, which continues to claim they are unfounded,” Resolute said in a statement posted on its website.
“Unexpectedly, the three employees were arrested after the end of these meetings on Friday,” she reported.
The three executives were taken the same day to the unit specializing in the fight against corruption and economic and financial delinquency — and were placed in police custody in a case of alleged forgery and damage to public property, AFP learned Saturday from a judicial and industrial source.
Four employees of the Canadian company Barrick Gold, also in dispute with the Malian authorities, were detained for several days at the end of September, then released. Foreign mining companies are subject to increased pressure from the junta that came to power by force in 2020 and pays particular attention to the juicy revenues of the mining industry.
“Resolute is working to reach an agreement with the Malian government that secures the long-term future of the Syama gold mine; at the same time its top priority remains the safety and well-being of its employees,” the company said.
The executives benefit from the support of the embassies and consulates of the United Kingdom and other countries present in Mali, she said.
Resolute holds 80% of the shares in the subsidiary that owns the Syama mine, with the remaining 20% in the hands of the Malian state, according to the company’s website.
The Malian authorities have made the fight against corruption and the restoration of national sovereignty over natural resources their mantras.
Mali, one of the poorest countries in the world, faces jihadis and a multidimensional crisis, and is also one of the leading gold producers in Africa. Gold contributes to a quarter of the national budget and three quarters of export revenues.
The increased pressure on foreign companies coincided with the junta’s strategic pivot toward Russia.
Monday 11- Nov-2024 {HMC} At least 15 Chadian soldiers were killed and 32 others wounded in clashes between the army and Boko Haram fighters Saturday, the army’s spokesperson said, adding that 96 Boko Haram members were also killed.
General Issakh Acheikh on Sunday did not say where the operation took place or provide any details on the circumstances.
He said on national television that the army also wounded 11 Boko Haram members and seized arms and equipment.
“The army assures the population that the situation is under control and that actions to track down residual elements continue as part of Operation Haskanite,” Acheikh said, referring to a military operation launched to dislodge Boko Haram militants from Lake Chad.
The region has been attacked repeatedly by insurgencies including Islamic State in West Africa and Boko Haram, which erupted in northeast Nigeria in 2009 and spread to the west of Chad.
Around 40 soldiers were killed in an attack on a military base in Chad’s Lake region at the end of last month, after which interim President Mahamat Idriss Deby threatened to withdraw the Central African country from a multinational security force.
Chad is an important ally for French and U.S. forces seeking to help fight a 12-year jihadi insurgency in West Africa’s Sahel region.
Military juntas that seized power in recent years in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger — whose shared borders have become epicenters of jihadi violence — have turned their backs on the West in favor of Russian support.
Isniin 11- Nov-2024 {HMC} Ciidamada cirka ee dowladda Ukraine ayaa weeraro culus oo loo adeegsaday diyaarado nuuca aan duuliyaha laheyn ku qaaday qeybo kamid ah gobolada dalka Ruushka, waxa ayna weeraradaasi qalqal badan ku abuureen shacabka Ruushka.
War kasoo baxay Wasaaradda Difaaca Ruushka, ayaa lagu sheegay in ay kahor tageen 84-diyaaradood oo nuuca aan duuliyaha laheyn oo lagu soo weeraray qeybo kamid ah dalkooda, waxa ayna wasaaraddu sheegtay in diyaaradahaasi hawada lagu burburiyay.
Goobaha diyaaradahan lagu weeraray ayaa waxaa ku jira magaalada Moskow ee caasimadda Ruushka, waxa uuna weerarkan sababay in qaar kamid ah duulimaadyadii caalamiga ahaa ee tagayay Moskow loo weeciyo goobo kale.
Warbaahinta Ruushka ayaa shaaciyay in shan qof ku dhaawacmeen dhowr gurina dab qabsaday kaddib markii duqeymaha Ukraine ku dhaceen degmada Ramenskoye, oo ku taal koonfur-galbeed ee Moscow, waxaa sidoo kale aagaasi lagu soo riday 34 diyaaradood oo kale.
Weerarkan Ukraine ku qaaday dalka Ruushka ayaa lagu tilmaamay kii ugu cuslaa ee diyaarado u adeegsadaan ay ku qaadaan Ruushka, waxa uuna weerarkan jawaab u ahaa weerar kan lamid ah oo Ruushka ku qaadeen inta badan gobolada dalka Ukraine.
Monday 11- Nov-2024 {HMC} Mohammed Abdiwali sexually violated women in 2014 and 2020. Now in and out of jail because of repeatedly breaching his release conditions, he has nowhere permanent to live so sleeps either on the streets or with meth-addicted friends, risking, he says, relapsing into his own addiction. “I’m meant to be a monster and I’m f…ing roaming around,” he tells journalist Paula Penfold, of his desperation to get control of his life in a system he says is failing him.
At the end of October, on his first night out of custody, Mohammed Abdiwali slept at Wellington train station.
Perhaps surprisingly, given I’d reported he was dangerous, he got in touch because he wanted to “highlight what is going on in my life”.
“Here I am today, I literally have nothing. Nowhere to go.
“And last night was pretty hard and rough. I could have gone to places that I know, for shelter, but the thing is those people, they use meth, and I don’t want to smoke.”
It’s a complex situation and a complex story to tell. After all, Abdiwali sexually violated two different women in 2014 and 2020. His is hardly a sympathetic case.
Earlier this year, Corrections applied for an Extended Supervision Order (ESO) to be imposed on Abdiwali, so that he could be subject to stringent monitoring, arguing he had “an emerging pattern of problematic harmful sexual behaviour against women”.
His second victim, Stephanie, we’ll call her, supported that application. “I do believe that he poses a risk to other women. I still think he’s a really high risk of going on to traumatise others in this same way,” she told Stuff.
But in his decision released in August, Wellington District Court judge Brett Crowley found the criteria were not met and declined to impose an ESO on Abdiwali.
Since being released last year after serving his sentence for the attack on Stephanie, Abdiwali has repeatedly breached his release conditions, winding up back in custody over and over.
So on being released again, at the end of October, he contacted Stuff to set out his situation, and in a series of phone calls and interviews since, has described how he believes the system is setting him up to fail — “throwing me in the deep end” — when he’s trying to do better.
“I have hurt people and made terrible decisions in my life,” he says. “I’m deeply ashamed of my past and what I caused, and the pain and hurt.”
But he says he now has two aims (well, three, but we’ll come to the third later).
“What I want to do is get a job, have a decent place to live and sort my life out.”
But he — and his Public Defence Service lawyer — believe he can’t move forward because Corrections’ assessment of him as high risk for the ESO application is overshadowing all his attempts, even though a judge disagreed with Corrections’ assessment.
Stuff understands Corrections has said Abdiwali could reside at Te Korowai, a residence for high-risk child sex offenders.
But Abdiwali claims he has been abused at Te Korowai in the past and does not want to return.
He says he wants the stability of social housing, but is getting nowhere, and in the weeks since his latest release has been sleeping either on the streets or in the homes of friends with drug addictions, exposure he wants to avoid.
The Ministry of Social Development (MSD) is responsible for first assessing his eligibility for social housing. If he’s deemed suitable social housing providers such as Kāinga Ora can be looped in.
In a letter to both agencies, provided to Stuff by Abdiwali, his lawyer wrote that it would be “improper for the Department of Corrections and other Government agencies to subvert the Court’s assessments and orders by creating a situation where Mr Abdiwali is denied any assistance for housing, other than if he agrees to reside at Te Korowai – a facility designed to house high risk child sex offenders”.
MSD is responsible for assessing whether Abdiwali is eligible for assistance with housing. Christel Yardley / Waikato Times
His lawyer noted that in Corrections’ oppositions to bail for Abdwali it had assessed him as “at increased risk of offending if he is homeless”.
“Having secure housing is a protective factor which reduces the risk of offending.
“I am concerned about this situation … Mr Abdiwali needs secure housing and an opportunity to rehabilitate and reintegrate into our community. In my view, Mr Abdiwali should be provided with secure housing as a matter of priority.”
Even Abdiwali’s second victim agrees, at least to an extent.
“It’s because I have a good heart,” says Stephanie, “that part of me feels sorry for him.”
But she also believes he is “an accident waiting to happen”. “Someone might take pity on him and …” she trails off.
A number of different government agencies have roles in Abdiwali’s case.
Kāinga Ora says it has not yet been involved in any discussions about housing for him. “Eligibility for social housing is determined by the MInistry of Social Development,” it said in a statement. “It is their job to assess and prioritise housing need and share the details of suitable applicants with social housing providers as homes become available.”
MSD could not comment on Abdiwali’s circumstances without a signed privacy waiver so it’s not yet known whether or not he’s been deemed eligible for assistance with housing.
Generally speaking, MSD says it can offer a variety of services to people who have recently left prison. “This could include some assistance with housing if a client is eligible.”
Corrections reiterated that the responsibility for sourcing and funding accommodation for offenders subject to release conditions is held by MSD. “The Ministry of Social Development complete their own risk assessments.”
Corrections says it has offered Abdiwali accommodation at a supported accommodation facility, “however he has refused to reside there”.
“We hold no information to suggest he has been assaulted or harmed while previously residing [there].
“Corrections has applied to the court on two occasions for a condition allowing us to direct this offender to reside at a specific address. On both occasions, this has not been granted by the court.”
It says its staff have been working hard to safely manage Abdiwali in accordance with his court-imposed conditions “through actively monitoring his compliance and ensuring he is held to account for any breaches”.
And so it came to pass.
During the series of phone calls with Stuff, Abdiwali’s desperation became increasingly evident. He spoke frequently of self-harming because of the stress he was under, and of thinking the only solution to his situation was that he should kill himself.
Then last Thursday, as he predicted might happen, Abdiwali tested positive for drugs.
He was returned to custody — but bailed again the next day.
“I just got out,” he texts.
I ask where he will sleep tonight.
“At my lady friend,” he replies.
And what about after that?
“I’m going to stay on the streets. I could stay at my other friends but they use.”
Victim advocate Ruth Money says the back and forth over Abdiwali’s case shows “the system is not set up to deal with high risk individuals,” and that he has slipped through the cracks.
She sheets that back to the District Court decision denying Corrections’ application for an Extended Supervision Order.
“This is the fallout. [The judgment] enabled this, whereas if he was under the care and protection of Corrections he — and the community — wouldn’t be in this situation.”
Mohammed Abdiwali as a child, on his immigration documentation.
“I want to get the hell out of this country”
Which brings us to the third thing Abdiwali wants.
After his first sexual violation, in 2014, he claimed his motivation for committing such a serious offence was because he wanted to be deported to his home country, Somalia.
He still maintains that, telling Stuff it was on the advice of an uncle that he thought committing a serious crime might get him deported.
“Which I’m not proud of, I hurt someone.”
What couldn’t be reported previously, but can be now because Abdiwali has provided a confidentiality waiver, is that he is a refugee.
He has provided Stuff with hundreds of pages of immigration documentation, which sets out how he came to New Zealand in 2003, aged 12, as a UNHCR-mandated refugee.
But here’s where, again, things get complicated.
He says his refugee status was granted on the basis of false information: that Abdiwali is not his real surname, and that his mother, who is referenced in his refugee application as being deceased, is alive and well in Somalia. (He cites a phone call with her between himself, his lawyer, and an immigration official.)
“I want to sort my [immigration] papers out and get a job and go back home.”
Immigration New Zealand’s head of refugee status unit, Greig Young, says “Mr Abdiwali’s case is incredibly complex”.
He says INZ is aware Abdiwali states his name and date of birth are not correct.
But the rules are that, “individuals with refugee status cannot be deported unless their refugee status is ceased or cancelled under the Immigration Act”.
“Because of the unique circumstances of Mr Abdiwali’s case, it is unlikely he would meet the threshold for cancellation of refugee status.”
Stuff understands that because Abdiwali was so young, 12, when he came to New Zealand, he would not be deemed responsible for any inaccuracies in his documentation: he arrived here with adults, whose relationship to him is unclear.
“However,” says Young, “INZ can decide to cease an individual’s refugee status if their circumstances have evolved to the point where the individual is no longer in danger and does not need protection under the 1951 Refugee Convention.
“INZ also has the option to deport an individual under Article 33 of the Convention if an individual poses a threat to the community or national security,” he says.
INZ will not say whether it considers Abdiwali such a threat, but confirms that it is “working with him and his representative to determine his immigration options.
“This is complex and will take time to consider.”
On one of the hundreds of pages of documentation, there’s a photo of Abdiwali as a young boy, the picture of innocence.
Which he was, then.
“You see that boy?,” he says, in one of his phone calls.“This is the reason I want to go home. That will make me happy. I want to have dinner with my family.
“I need to sort my immigration and get the hell out of this country. I don’t want to be in this country. I’m very sad that I hurt women.
“But I didn’t want to come to this place. I want to go back home.”
