Abcnews.go.com, December 13, 2013.
A New York Police Department report on September's Westgate Mall attack in Nairobi that suggests the terrorist gunmen may have escaped does not reflect the United States government position, the top U.S. State Department official for Africa said Friday.
The NYPD report, released earlier this week, angered the Kenyan government for suggesting the four gunmen from the al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab may have escaped. Kenyan and Western officials have said the evidence suggests the four gunmen died inside the mall and that their remains have been recovered. The FBI worked closely with Kenyan officials during the investigation.
At least 67 people were killed in the four-day siege on the mall. The NYPD report says that "it is unknown if the terrorists were killed or escaped the mall." Other parts of the report suggests they were seeking an escape route.
"That report has no connection with any official U.S. government reporting. It was not shared with us and we don't share the conclusions that were in the report," Assistant Secretary of State Linda Greenfield-Thomas said. Greenfield-Thomas, who represented the U.S. at Kenya's celebration of its 50th anniversary of independence from Britain on Thursday, met with top Kenyan officials on her trip. She said the NYPD report was brought up in one meeting and that she told the Kenyan delegation that the report was not sanctioned by the U.S. government and does not reflect the U.S. position.
Maj. Emmanuel Chirchir, a Kenyan military spokesman, on Thursday said the bodies of the four attackers were discovered and dismissed the NYPD report, saying it used secondary information and that NYPD did not have representatives among the group of western investigators assisting Kenya with the probe.
At an NYPD briefing on Tuesday for corporate security officials, Lt. Kevin Yorke of the Intelligence Division presented an analysis of the Kenyan attack and the response by authorities there that he said was "based solely on open-source information we gathered and is unclassified."
Much of the presentation focused on closed-circuit footage of the four shooters during the first 12 hours of the siege. One segment showed the men hiding out in a storage area until one disabled a camera. Yorke said it was the last known images of the terrorists, and questioned why they weren't seen again even though other closed-circuit cameras around the mall were running for another 34 hours. Power to the mall and the CCTV camera feeds were cut on Monday at 11 a.m., the NYPD report says.
The NYPD report may only add to the cloudy information surrounding the mall attack, which has been troubled by inaccuracy from the start of the attack, when the first reports from the mall suggested a bank robbery was under way. Other statements and reports that turned out to false include:
— Kenyan Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said that 10 to 15 terrorists carried out the attack. In truth there were only four attackers, officials now say.
— Lenku said an unknown number of hostages were being held. Officials now say no hostages were ever held.
— News reports attributed to unidentified officials said the attackers had rented a shop at the mall and installed weaponry including belt-fed machine guns. Officials say there is no evidence that is true.
— Kenya's president and foreign minister issued statements that some of the attackers came from the U.S. and Britain. There is no evidence that is true, though one attacker did spend time in Norway.
— News reports that some of the attackers may have escaped from the mall after changing clothes. There is no evidence that is true, officials now say.
Burundi: U.S. assists Burundi with deployment to Central African Republic
Marforeur.marines.mil, December 13, 2013.
BUJUMBURA, Burundi - Burundian National Defense Forces and the U.S. Marines with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Africa 13 worked together Dec. 10 as the African partners prepared to embark to the Central Africa Republic as part of the African Union mission.
On Dec. 9, the U.S. government authorized U.S. aircraft to assist the Burundian National Defense Forces with their deployment to Bangui, Central Africa Republic (CAR), according to a Department of State press release. The Marines have been in Burundi since October, taking part in military-to-military engagements focused on varied skills and knowledge including combat marksmanship, first-aid, basic infantry skills and engineering skills.
“Security Cooperation Team 2 moved to assist their partnered Burundian Forces hours after learning about [the operation],” said Lt. Col. Thomas Marble, Special-Purpose MAGTF Africa 13 commanding officer from Stafford, Va.
U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Burundi Dawn Liberi met with 1st VP Bernard Busokoza and Chief of Defense and War Veterans MG Prime Niyongabo on Dec. 8 to facilitate close collaboration between U.S. and Burundian militaries to respond immediately to the crises in CAR. Ambassador Liberi emphasized the need for immediate deployment to help end the widespread violence and chaos that has caused such great human suffering to the people of the Central African Republic.
This event highlights Burundi’s contribution to regional peacekeeping as Burundi has now deployed in an expeditionary role to two of Africa’s most urgent humanitarian crises (Somalia and CAR).
Burundi’s ability to deploy highly trained soldiers is the result of the 7-year military-to-military partnership between the U.S. and Burundi and reflects the long term training assistance provided by the Africa Contingency Operations Training & Assistance program. ACOTA is a State Department program that enhances the capacities and capabilities of its African Partner Countries, regional institutions, and the continent’s peacekeeping resources as a whole so that they can plan for, train, deploy, and sustain sufficient quantities of professionally competent peacekeepers to meet conflict transformation requirements with minimal non-African assistance. Marines and Burundian soldiers have been partnered since 2012, working together through theater security cooperation engagements that bolster partnerships and military capacity for both forces.
“The flexibility of the Special-Purpose MAGTF and the engagement our team provided have prepared [the BNDF soldiers] well for their mission in the Central African Republic,” said Marble.
The BNDF and Marines worked together to palletize equipment, stage supplies and assist in the final preparations as the soldiers embarked for their Central African Republic mission as part of the African Union force in Bujumbura, Burundi, Dec. 10-11.
“The team spent about five hours out there helping to build pallets of beans, rice, and other sustainment items as well as staging vehicles,” said Maj. Matthew Berthinet, Security Cooperation Team 2 officer-in-charge. “Regular training is suspended for tomorrow so we can return to the airport and finalize some of the pallets as well as issue new [personal protective equipment] to the soldiers as they walk on the [aircraft].”
Liberi also conveyed her personal congratulations to Brig. Gen. Athanase Kararuza who will deploy to CAR as the deputy force commander of the African Union Mission to Central Africa Republic (MISCA). “His selection reflects the great confidence that the AU has in Burundi’s generals, and in particular General Kararuza. The United States Government wishes him the best of luck and safety during his mission.”
The Marines will continue to logistically assist the 850-man Burundian force as part of the U.S. Africa Command directed support to the French and AU mission that is providing humanitarian assistance and establishing an environment that supports a political transition to a democratically elected government.
“[Their] deployment will take several days” said Lt. Col. Dan Ebert, U.S. Defense Attaché to Burundi. “The preparation and logistical planning by the Burundians has accelerated the pace with which we can conduct this deployment. I am extremely impressed with the integration of ADAPT-A training by the Burundian military” referring to the three iterations of training provided by U.S. Army Africa under the AFRICOM sponsored Africa Deployment Assistance Partnership Training-Aircraft.
BUJUMBURA, Burundi - Burundian National Defense Forces and the U.S. Marines with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Africa 13 worked together Dec. 10 as the African partners prepared to embark to the Central Africa Republic as part of the African Union mission.
On Dec. 9, the U.S. government authorized U.S. aircraft to assist the Burundian National Defense Forces with their deployment to Bangui, Central Africa Republic (CAR), according to a Department of State press release. The Marines have been in Burundi since October, taking part in military-to-military engagements focused on varied skills and knowledge including combat marksmanship, first-aid, basic infantry skills and engineering skills.
“Security Cooperation Team 2 moved to assist their partnered Burundian Forces hours after learning about [the operation],” said Lt. Col. Thomas Marble, Special-Purpose MAGTF Africa 13 commanding officer from Stafford, Va.
U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Burundi Dawn Liberi met with 1st VP Bernard Busokoza and Chief of Defense and War Veterans MG Prime Niyongabo on Dec. 8 to facilitate close collaboration between U.S. and Burundian militaries to respond immediately to the crises in CAR. Ambassador Liberi emphasized the need for immediate deployment to help end the widespread violence and chaos that has caused such great human suffering to the people of the Central African Republic.
This event highlights Burundi’s contribution to regional peacekeeping as Burundi has now deployed in an expeditionary role to two of Africa’s most urgent humanitarian crises (Somalia and CAR).
Burundi’s ability to deploy highly trained soldiers is the result of the 7-year military-to-military partnership between the U.S. and Burundi and reflects the long term training assistance provided by the Africa Contingency Operations Training & Assistance program. ACOTA is a State Department program that enhances the capacities and capabilities of its African Partner Countries, regional institutions, and the continent’s peacekeeping resources as a whole so that they can plan for, train, deploy, and sustain sufficient quantities of professionally competent peacekeepers to meet conflict transformation requirements with minimal non-African assistance. Marines and Burundian soldiers have been partnered since 2012, working together through theater security cooperation engagements that bolster partnerships and military capacity for both forces.
“The flexibility of the Special-Purpose MAGTF and the engagement our team provided have prepared [the BNDF soldiers] well for their mission in the Central African Republic,” said Marble.
The BNDF and Marines worked together to palletize equipment, stage supplies and assist in the final preparations as the soldiers embarked for their Central African Republic mission as part of the African Union force in Bujumbura, Burundi, Dec. 10-11.
“The team spent about five hours out there helping to build pallets of beans, rice, and other sustainment items as well as staging vehicles,” said Maj. Matthew Berthinet, Security Cooperation Team 2 officer-in-charge. “Regular training is suspended for tomorrow so we can return to the airport and finalize some of the pallets as well as issue new [personal protective equipment] to the soldiers as they walk on the [aircraft].”
Liberi also conveyed her personal congratulations to Brig. Gen. Athanase Kararuza who will deploy to CAR as the deputy force commander of the African Union Mission to Central Africa Republic (MISCA). “His selection reflects the great confidence that the AU has in Burundi’s generals, and in particular General Kararuza. The United States Government wishes him the best of luck and safety during his mission.”
The Marines will continue to logistically assist the 850-man Burundian force as part of the U.S. Africa Command directed support to the French and AU mission that is providing humanitarian assistance and establishing an environment that supports a political transition to a democratically elected government.
“[Their] deployment will take several days” said Lt. Col. Dan Ebert, U.S. Defense Attaché to Burundi. “The preparation and logistical planning by the Burundians has accelerated the pace with which we can conduct this deployment. I am extremely impressed with the integration of ADAPT-A training by the Burundian military” referring to the three iterations of training provided by U.S. Army Africa under the AFRICOM sponsored Africa Deployment Assistance Partnership Training-Aircraft.
Rwanda: Opposition figure Ingabire sentenced to 15 years in jail
(AFP), Dec 13, 2013:
Kigali
— Rwanda's Supreme Court on Friday sentenced opposition figure Victoire
Ingabire to 15 years in jail on appeal, increasing her prison term from
eight years for conspiring against the authorities.
Ingabire, a Hutu and a leading critic of President Paul Kagame, who took power after a Tutsi rebellion ended the genocide, was also found guilty of spreading rumours to incite violence.
First arrested in October 2010, months after returning from 16 years in exile in the Netherlands, Ingabire, 45, has been a rare voice speaking out and challenging Kagame's iron-fisted rule.
Ingabire, who heads the unrecognised opposition United Democratic Forces (UDF) party, was convicted in October last year of terrorism and denying genocide, but charges of spreading genocide ideology and of "setting up an armed group" were dropped.
Appealing to the Supreme Court in March, prosecutors asked for Ingabire's punishment to be increased to the maximum of 25 years and called for judges to reconsider the dropped charges.
The prosecution also accused her of collaborating with armed Hutus in the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), who fled across the border to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo after mainly Tutsi rebels led by Kagame ended the genocide.
Ingabire had pleaded with the court to drop all charges.
"We are disappointed, of course, but... we are going to wait for the written verdict which will be available as of next week," her British lawer Iain Edwards said after the hearing. "We will read it at length and reflect on what is to come."
The verdict is not a surprise... we expected it," said UDF vice-president Boniface Twagirimana. "Most of our members are in jail. We won't give up the fight."
The Supreme Court also rejected an appeal by a fellow defendant, Vital Uwumurenyi, and upheld his initial sentences of four and six years in jail, with one year suspended, for "the crime of conspiracy in harming authorities through terrorism and war" and for being an accomplice to terrorism.
The judges also rejected appeals by the prosecution for an extension of the light sentences given to three other accused, who have already served their terms and been freed.
Ingabire's four co-defendants had confessed to being former members of the FDLR and they stated that she had given them money to set up an armed group to attack Rwanda.
Her husband, Lin Muyizere, has declared that if Ingabire had any discussions with the FDLR rebels, it was to make clear how she opposed integration with them.
"The armed struggle was not her field," he has said.
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Under 40 Years Old: East African MP of the Week.
(born 1 January 1993) is a Ugandan university student and politician.
She was born in Katakwi District on 1 January 1993. Her father, Michael Oromait, served as the MP for the same parliamentary seat before his death on 21 July 2012.
She completed her high school (S6) at St. Kalemba Senior Secondary School in Kayunga District in December 2011. She was admitted toUganda Christian University in Mukono, beginning August 2012, where she currently studies for the degree of Bachelor of Mass Communications.
After her father's death, Alengot Oromait decided to contest the National Resistance Movement primary elections to replace her father, who had served as an Independent. She won the primary and in the general elections in September 2012, she won with 54.2% of the vote. She is expected to juggle her undergraduate studies with her parliamentary duties for the next three years at the minimum.
For More info, follow the link: http://youngestmp.blogspot.ca/2013/06/alengot-oromait.html
Under 40 Years Old: East African MP of the Week.
Honorable January Y. Makamba.
Born on 28th of January in 1974, Mr. January Makamba is a Tanzanian politician, Member of Parliament elected in the Constituency of Bumbuli in the Lushoto district of Tanga.
He is currently serving as the Deputy Minister of Communication, Science and Technology in the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania.
For more information about his prominent under 40 years old politician, please visit his web site at http://www.januarymakamba.com/mystory.html, and there you will get to know why the residents of Bumbuli chose him to be their representative in the Tanzanian Parliament.
Every week, we will be providing a profile of an East African Politician who is a Member of Parliament and whose age is Under 40.
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