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☆ Fact check: Trump’s post-conviction monologue was filled with false claims
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Daniel Dale | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Instead, Trump delivered a rambling monologue that was filled with false claims on subjects ranging from the Manhattan trial to immigration to tax policy. He said this time that “you have violent crime all over this city at levels that nobody’s ever seen before.”Facts First: Trump’s claim is not even close to true. Michael Cohen’s crimesCriticizing key prosecution witness Michael Cohen, Trump repeated a claim he made during the trial in April. Facts First: There is no basis for Trump’s claim. It was dead.”Facts First: Trump’s claim is false.

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, New York City Trump, Michael Cohen’s, Michael Cohen, Cohen, “, Robert Mueller, Trump’s, ” Cohen, ”, ” Trump, Biden, Joe Biden, Alvin Bragg’s, –, Bragg, Matthew Colangelo, Colangelo, Judge Juan Merchan, Merchan, Bradley Smith, Rather, Smith, Congo ’ Trump, Africa –, Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, ” Serge Mombouli Organizations: Washington CNN, New York City, New, Trump, Republican, Intelligence, Biden, DOJ, of Justice, federal, Department, Democrat, Justice Department, Congo, Democratic, CNN, PAC, Nord Locations: Manhattan, New York, , New York City, New York City, –, Russia, Moscow, York’s, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Africa, United States of America, Republic of, Germany, Russian, Trump’s, Ukraine

☆ Biden looks to counter China’s influence as he rolls out red carpet for Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-23 | by ( Kevin Liptak | Kayla Tausche | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Among the goals of his three-day state visit in October: securing another $1 billion in loans from China to help complete infrastructure projects. On Wednesday, when he arrived at Joint Base Andrews to begin another state visit – this time to Washington – he again found a red carpet and troops. Senior administration officials acknowledge a central factor in scheduling a state visit with Kenya was the desire to counter China’s influence and financial leverage on the African continent, which has outpaced the United States in direct investment. One of the goals of Thursday’s state visit is to demonstrate the ability of democracies – like Kenya’s – to deliver for their people. “I plan on going in February,” Biden told reporters.

Persons: Washington CNN —, William Ruto, Joint Base Andrews, Washington –, Jill Biden, Joe Biden, –, Kenya –, ”, “, Biden, Ruto, ” Ruto, he’s, João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, Jake Sullivan, ” Biden, Xi Jinping, Donald Trump –, ” Sullivan, Ariel Henry Organizations: Washington CNN, Kenyan, Joint Base, East, Kenya, NATO, Africa –, White, Initiative, Loans, Washington, World Bank, Group, European Union, Democratic, White House, Angolan, Advisers, CNN, Haitian Locations: Beijing, China, Africa, Kenya, United States, China’s, Nairobi, Mombasa, Boston, US, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Washington, East, Ukraine, ”, Russia, –, combatting al, Shabab, Somalia, Yemen, Haiti

☆ Ms Rachel, the YouTuber, launched a campaign to help kids in Gaza and other conflict zones. Then came the angry comments
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Faith Karimi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“Hiiii, heeeello,” she chirps while waving cheerfully in social media clips that feature upbeat nursery rhymes, dances and language lessons for preschool children. Instead of her usual smiling, clapping and cheering, the popular social media creator, whose full name is Rachel Griffin Accurso, was in tears. But I can handle this,” she said in a video posted to her accounts last Thursday. In the caption on her tearful May 16 video, Accurso reiterated her concern for all the world’s children. “Palestinian children, Israeli children, children in the US – Muslim, Jewish, Christian children – all children, in every country,” she wrote.

Persons: “, TikTok, Rachel Griffin Accurso, ”, Accurso, wasn’t, –, Rachel, she’d, she’s, Rogers, James Elder, —, Giselle Ugarte, ” Ugarte, influencers Organizations: CNN, YouTube, Democratic, New York Times, United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF Locations: Instagram, Gaza, Israel, gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Democratic Republic of the Congo, New York, Rafah, Palestinian, “

☆ Four Lawmakers Denounce Plan to Ease Sanctions on Israeli Mining Executive
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( Eric Lipton | More About Eric Lipton | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A bipartisan group of four congressional lawmakers have objected to the Biden administration plan to boost access to metals needed for electric vehicle batteries by easing sanctions on an Israeli mining executive accused of corrupt practices in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The objection came as the Biden administration moves to allow Dan Gertler, an Israeli billionaire, to sell his financial stake in three mines in Congo as part of an effort to remove him from the mining trade there. Senior Biden officials have argued this will help Congo, the largest producer of cobalt in the world, by enticing more Western-leaning investors. Mr. Gertler has said that all his investments in Congo were aboveboard. But the four lawmakers — two senators and two House members — disputed that, saying the Biden administration was wrong to propose allowing Mr. Gertler to profit as he sells off his holdings in Congo.

Persons: Biden, Dan Gertler, Gertler, — Organizations: Democratic, Biden Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo

☆ DR Congo: Americans involved in foiled deadly coup, military says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —American citizens were involved in an attempted coup d’état that left at least three people dead on Sunday in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a military spokesperson told CNN Monday. Malanga was killed in a gun battle between the armed putschists and the presidential guards, Ekenge said. Videos widely shared on social media, but not verified by CNN, showed a man with a bloody face being surrounded by Congolese military personnel. Sunday’s incident was the second coup attempt by the now deceased Malanga, a former Congolese military veteran, Ekenge told CNN. The African Union condemned Sunday’s coup attempt in the DRC and welcomed the “control of the situation” by the country’s security forces.

Persons: d’état, Vital Kamerhe, Christian Malanga, General Sylvain Ekenge, Malanga, Ekenge, “, ” Ekenge, Marcel, Benjamin Reuben Zalman, Polun, Patrick Ducey, Taylor Thomson, “ Patrick Ducey, Lucy Tamlyn, ”, Felix Tshisekedi, Kamerhe’s, Sunday’s Organizations: CNN, Democratic, Palais, Nation, Congolese, United Congolese Party, Reuters, World Bank, Central, African Union Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, Congolese, Kinshasa, Africa, Gabon

☆ Congolese Army Says It Foiled a Coup Involving Americans
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-19 | by ( Declan Walsh | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The military of the Democratic Republic of Congo said on Sunday that it had foiled a coup attempt involving foreigners, hours after a gunfight near the presidential palace in which at least three people were killed. In a brief statement on state television, an army spokesman, Brig. Gen. Sylvain Ekenge, initially offered little detail about the purported putsch in the capital, Kinshasa, other than to say that the plotters and their leader had been “put out of action.”But he later told The Associated Press that three Americans were among the perpetrators, and the United States ambassador to Congo, Lucy Tamlyn, acknowledged publicly that American citizens may have been involved. The United States will cooperate “to the fullest extent” with the Congolese authorities “as they investigate these criminal acts and hold accountable any U.S. citizen involved.,” she said on X, formerly Twitter.

Persons: Sylvain Ekenge, “, Lucy Tamlyn, ” Organizations: Democratic, Associated Press, United, Congolese Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa, United States, Congo

☆ C.D.C. Warns of a Resurgence of Mpox
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Apoorva Mandavilli | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

With Pride events scheduled worldwide over the coming weeks, U.S. officials are bracing for a return of mpox, the infectious disease formerly called monkeypox that struck tens of thousands of gay and bisexual men worldwide in 2022. A combination of behavioral changes and vaccination quelled that outbreak, but a majority of those at risk have not yet been immunized. On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned of a deadlier version of mpox that is ravaging the Democratic Republic of Congo and urged people at risk to be vaccinated as soon as possible. But the escalating epidemic in Congo nevertheless poses a global threat, just as infections in Nigeria set off the 2022 outbreak, experts said. Dr. Rimoin has studied mpox in Congo for more than 20 years, and first warned of its potential for global spread in 2010.

Persons: ”, Anne Rimoin, Rimoin Organizations: Centers for Disease Control, Democratic, University of California Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa, Congo, Nigeria, Los Angeles

☆ Seeking Access to Congo’s Metals, White House Aims to Ease Sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Eric Lipton | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Three years after Biden administration officials tightened sanctions on a billionaire Israeli mining executive for corrupt business practices in the Democratic Republic of Congo, they have reversed themselves and are offering the executive a deal they hope will bolster the supply of a metal vital to electric vehicles. The plan would allow the executive, Dan Gertler, to sell off his remaining stakes in three giant copper and cobalt mining operations in Congo. Once Mr. Gertler sells his positions, the Biden administration hopes Western-leaning companies will be more willing to invest in Congo, perhaps delivering a greater supply of cobalt to the United States as automakers race to increase domestic production of batteries. But certain State and Treasury Department officials strongly opposed the effort, saying that Mr. Gertler should not be allowed to profit from his deal-making, which the Biden administration earlier argued had cheated the citizens of Congo out of more than $1 billion in mining revenues.

Persons: Dan Gertler, Gertler, Biden Organizations: Biden, Democratic, Treasury Department Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, United States

☆ First British royal visits Ukraine since Russian invasion began
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Catherine Nicholls | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Duchess of Edinburgh has become the first member of the British royal family to visit Ukraine since Russia’s invasion in 2022, Buckingham Palace announced on Monday. The duchess is a champion of the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative and the United Nations’ Women, Peace and Security Agenda. Sophie met survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and torture, as well as children who were allegedly forcibly separated from their families by Russia, according to Buckingham Palace. Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh lights a candle as she visits Saint Andrew's Church on April 29, 2024 in Bucha, Ukraine. In March 2023, Prince William visited the Ukrainian-Polish border to meet British and Polish troops and learn more about their collaboration in supporting Ukraine.

Persons: Duchess, Buckingham, Sophie, Edinburgh, Prince Edward , King Charles ’, “, ” “, ”, Anatolii, Volodymyr Zelensky, Olena Zelenska, ” Buckingham, Prince William Organizations: CNN, United Nations, CNN’s Royal, Ukraine, Andrew's Church, Democratic Locations: Edinburgh, Ukraine, Russia, Buckingham, Bucha, Kyiv, Kosovo, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of, Congo, Colombia

☆ Fact checking Trump and Johnson’s election integrity announcement
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Cnn Staff | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Facts First: The system, as it is currently set up, is working, and effectively prevents mass voting by non-citizens in US elections. Despite Johnson’s focus on this topic, it is extremely rare, according to decades of voting data and nonpartisan experts. In federal and state elections, where voting by non-citizens is illegal, it occurs on a microscopic level. This system, as shown from decades of data, is very effective at stopping non-citizens from registering and voting in federal elections. Further, from a common-sense perspective, there’s little to gain for an undocumented immigrant who theoretically wants to vote in a presidential election.

Persons: Donald Trump, Mike Johnson, ”, Johnson, ” Johnson, David Becker, Brennan, There’s, they’d, Rick Hasen, you’re, Trump, Hillary Clinton, CNN’s Marshall Cohen, ” Trump, Trump’s, Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, Daniel Dale Trump, Biden, Trump baselessly, “, Matthew Colangelo, Alvin Bragg, Bragg, Colangelo, Joe Biden, Gainor Trump, ’, Roe, Wade, Roe V, Wade ”, Read, Daniel Dale Organizations: CNN, Election Innovation, Research, Brennan Center for Justice, UCLA School of Law, Trump, Democratic, Mar, Manhattan District Attorney, Biden, Justice Department, US Customs Locations: United States, Venezuela, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, York, Manhattan, Mar

☆ The next total solar eclipse: When and where to expect it
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Monday’s total solar eclipse, one of the most highly anticipated events of 2024, has come and gone. But the next total solar eclipse won’t occur until August 12, 2026, said Amir Caspi, a principal scientist at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado. The next total eclipse in the USThe US won’t catch a glimpse of a total solar eclipse again until March 30, 2033, and even then the Russia-centric path includes only Alaska, with totality lasting 2 minutes and 37 seconds. A partial solar eclipse will shine over most of the country during that celestial event. The next total solar eclipse with a coast-to-coast path spanning the Lower 48 states will occur on August 12, 2045.

Persons: it’s, Amir Caspi, Caspi Organizations: CNN, NASA, Southwest Research, New Zealand, Democratic Locations: Chile, Argentina, South America, Boulder , Colorado, Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia, Portugal, Europe, Africa, North America, Alaska, North Dakota, Montana, California , Nevada , Utah , Colorado , Kansas , Oklahoma , Arkansas , Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Australia, New, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Lesotho, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Sudan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, China, North, South Korea, Japan, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Philippines

☆ Southern Africa’s drought and floods could push tens of millions into hunger
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Sarah Dean | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The country’s top priority “is securing food for all Zimbabweans,” the president told journalists at the state house in Harare. Kb Mpofu/ReutersIn Zambia, Malawi and Central Mozambique, extreme drought has damaged more than 2 million hectares of crops, Oxfam said. Zambia declared its drought a disaster on February 29. In Mozambique — a country accounting for only 0.2% of global emissions — 3 million people face hunger, according to Oxfam. The country’s capital, Maputo, experienced devastating floods in March, after Tropical Storm Filipo hit followed a few weeks later by further intense rainfall.

Persons: South Africa CNN —, Emmerson Mnangagwa, El Niño, Zimbabwe —, Filipo, ” Teresa Anderson, Machinda Marongwe, ” Marongwe Organizations: South Africa CNN, Oxfam, Reuters, Democratic, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs, United States Agency, International, Systems Network Locations: Johannesburg, South Africa, Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Harare, “, Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Namibia, Pumula East, Bulawayo, Central Mozambique, ” Southern Africa, Maputo

☆ Opinion: ISIS is making a comeback
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-23 | by ( Peter Bergen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —If ISIS was indeed responsible for the attack Friday at a Moscow-area concert venue that killed at least 133 people, it would suggest that, unfortunately, the terror group is making something of a comeback. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack; a US official told CNN the US has no reason to doubt it. Through that attack, ISIS-K showed that the group, which is very anti-Shia, could target a hostile state like predominantly Shia Iran. In March alone, a Russian state news agency said the country had thwarted multiple ISIS-related incidents, including a plan to attack a synagogue in Moscow. As for capability, the ISIS-K attack in Iran earlier this year demonstrated that the group could carry out a large-scale attack outside of its home base in Afghanistan.

Persons: Peter Bergen, Osama bin Laden, Biden, Qasem Soleimani, Vladimir Putin, ”, Bashar al Assad, Assad, Putin Organizations: New, Arizona State University, Apple, Spotify, CNN, ISIS, US, Kabul Airport, Democratic, US National Security Council, Government Locations: New America, Moscow, Iraq, Syria, United Kingdom, Europe, Paris, Orlando , Florida, Africa, Asia, Afghanistan, Kabul, Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Iran, Russian, Russia, ”, Ukraine, Syrian

☆ ‘Everything he is saying isn’t true’: Congolese governments denounce Trump’s baseless stories about emptied prisons
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Daniel Dale | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

“Everything he is saying isn’t true,” Democratic Republic of Congo spokesperson Patrick Muyaya Katembwe told CNN in a text message on Thursday. Facts First: Trump’s claims are baseless. And federal figures show that there is no “very big” influx of Congolese migrants of any kind, let alone former prisoners in particular. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, keeps making claims about emptied Congolese prisons as he criticizes President Joe Biden’s handling of immigration. Official federal data shows that Congolese migrants in general, not ex-prisoners in particular, represent a tiny fraction of overall arrivals.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, “, ” Serge Mombouli, ”, Joe Biden’s, Trump, “ I’ve, ” Lewis Mudge, Abdoulaye Diarra, Mark Krikorian, Michelle Mittelstadt scoffed Organizations: Washington CNN, Democratic, CNN, PAC, Trump, Fox News, Human Rights, Amnesty International, Patrol, US Customs, Center for Immigration Studies, Policy Institute Locations: Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic, Republic of, Republic of Congo, ’, United States, Central Africa, Congolese, America, “, Mexico, South America

☆ The 26-year-old YouTuber conquering French journalism
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Joshua Berlinger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Travers, 26, is the founder and face of HugoDecrypte, a French media start-up that delivers news aimed primarily at young audiences. Travers' daily news round-ups, usually delivered from behind a desk, are very popular among younger French audiences. Joshua Berlinger/CNNThe first concerned the state of political coverage in French media. The HugoDecrypte channel launched with the mission to give young French audiences a fast, digestible way to understand the news. But he and editor-in-chief Aleberteau believe that, wherever there is social media, their model is viable.

Persons: Paris CNN — Hugo Travers, Travers, Le, “, ” Travers, there’s, ”, Alice Antheaume, Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Gabriel Attal, Marie Flament, Francois Jost, Joshua Berlinger, Z, Travers ’, pander, “ You’ve, Benjamin Aleberteau, HugoDecrypte, Christopher Nolan, “ Oppenheimer, Omar Sy, Tahar Rahim, Virginie Efira, Jost, “ TikTok, …, it’s, I’m, they’re, Xavier Niel, Vincent Bollore, Rupert Murdoch, Aleberteau, ” Aleberteau Organizations: Paris CNN, YouTube, CNN, Sciences Po Journalism School, Franco, Sorbonne Nouvelle University, Democratic, Sciences Po, Reuters Institute, Antheaume Locations: France, French, TikTok, Europe, Paris, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo

☆ Drones have turned the tables in recent African wars
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Paul Iddon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Drones recently supplied to Sudan by Iran are already making an impact in that country's brutal civil war. Similar types of drones played decisive roles in turning the tables in two previous African civil wars in recent years and could do so again. "It should come as no surprise that these drones are being used in wars around the world," Rogers told BI. In this context, drones are useful to achieve specific objectives, but they will not win the war alone," Rogers said. RANE's Dodd also credited Ethiopia's drone procurements for decisively "turning the tide" of the Tigray War.

Persons: —, Remi Dodd, RANE, it's, Dodd, James Patton Rogers, Rogers, Turkey's TB2, Loong, Debretsion Gebremichael, RANE's Dodd Organizations: Service, Business, Sudanese Armed Forces, Rapid Support Forces, United, Ethiopian, Tigray, Libyan National Army, Cornell Brooks Tech, Institute, Cornell University, American Warfare, Anadolu, Getty, Democratic Locations: Sudan, Iran, Iranian, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Libya, Tripoli, Omdurman, Tehran, Red, Yemen, Ukraine, Tigray War, Tigray, Addis Ababa, Ukrainian, New York, Donetsk, Nigeria, DRC, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso

☆ Sethembile Msezane on creating the iconic image “Chapungu — The Day Rhodes Fell”
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Rosa Rahimi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“Chapungu — The Day Rhodes Fell” has since become an iconic photograph, capturing the spirit of the #RhodesMustFall movement which led to the removal of 19th century colonist Cecil Rhodes’ statue at the University of Cape Town. “There is no way I could have conceptualized that moment and the way things unfolded on that day,” said Msezane, speaking to CNN from Cape Town. Artist Sethembile Msezane on a plinth in front of the statue of British colonialist Cecil John Rhodes. While several have now been returned, to this day, it remains at Rhodes’ former home at the Groote Shuur estate in Cape Town, Msezane explained. The statue of British colonialist Cecil John Rhodes was removed from South Africa's Cape Town University on April 9, 2015.

Persons: Sethembile Msezane, Rhodes, ”, Cecil Rhodes ’, Msezane, —, Sethembile, Cecil John Rhodes, Charlie Shoemaker, Zimbabwe —, Chapungu, Cecil Rhodes, ” Msezane, “, Schalk van, Lady Liberty, Rosie Organizations: CNN, University of Cape, Fine Arts, South London, South Africa's Cape Town University, Panzi, Democratic, University of Cape Town, Freedom, Worker’s Locations: University of Cape Town, Cape Town, “, Zimbabwe, Great Zimbabwe, Groote, London, Chile, Poland, United States, Iran, Bangladesh, South Africa's, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal

☆ Federal appeals court throws out lawsuit against Apple, Google, Tesla and other tech giants over alleged child labor in Congo
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Devan Cole | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A federal appeals court on Tuesday threw out a lawsuit that sought to hold Apple, Google, Tesla and other major tech companies liable for their alleged use of child labor to mine cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo. “The plaintiffs have not adequately alleged the Tech Companies participated in a venture because there is no shared enterprise between the Companies and the suppliers who facilitate forced labor,” Rao wrote. “The Tech Companies own no interest in their suppliers. A federal judge in DC had previously thrown the case out. The defendants in the case were Apple, Alphabet (which owns Google), Dell Technologies, Microsoft and Tesla.

Persons: Neomi Rao, “, ” Rao, Rao, Michelle Toh Organizations: CNN, Apple, Google, Democratic, DC Circuit, Appeals, “, Tech Companies, Companies, DC, Dell Technologies, Microsoft, International Rights Locations: Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo

☆ Deadliest Cholera Outbreak in Past Decade Hits Southern Africa
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( John Eligon | Jeffrey Moyo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sandra Mwayera wailed as her older brother slouched next to her in the back seat of a car — he had died from cholera as he waited for treatment among dozens of others outside a hospital in Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare. “My brother! My brother! Come back!”In neighboring Zambia, inside the 60,000-seat National Heroes Stadium in the capital, Lusaka, rows of gray cots lined rooms at a makeshift treatment center where 24-year-old Memory Musonda had died. Her family said they were not informed until four days later — the government buried her, and they have yet to locate her grave.

Persons: Sandra Mwayera wailed, slouched, ”, “, Musonda, Musonda’s, Stanley Mwamba Kafula Organizations: Democratic Locations: Zimbabwe’s, Harare, “, Zambia, Lusaka, Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique

BOSTON (AP) — A U.S. Customs and Border Protection dog sniffed out something unusual in luggage from a traveler returning from Africa — mummified monkeys. The passenger returning from a visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo reported that the luggage contained dried fish, but an inspection at Boston Logan Airport revealed dead and dehydrated bodies of four monkeys, agents said. Raw or minimally processed meat from wild animals, sometimes referred to as “bushmeat,” is banned in the U.S. because of the threat of disease. "The potential dangers posed by bringing bushmeat into the United States are real. Bushmeat can carry germs that can cause illness, including the Ebola virus,” said Julio Caravia, local port director for Customs and Border Protection.

Persons: “, ”, Julio Caravia, Ryan Bissette Organizations: BOSTON, —, U.S . Customs, Democratic, Boston Logan Airport, Customs, U.S . Centers for Disease Control Locations: U.S, Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, United States

☆ U.N. Peacekeeping Mission Says Staff, Vehicles Attacked in Congolese Capital
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

KINSHASA (Reuters) - The head of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Democratic Republic of Congo said its staff and vehicles were attacked in the capital Kinshasa on Saturday as a worsening eastern security crisis fuels a backlash against the mission. Crowds on motorbikes gathered in the riverside Gombe district, where the U.N. mission known as MONUSCO and many embassies are located. A number of the mission's vehicles were torched, said MONUSCO head Bintou Keita in an online post. Photos You Should See View All 21 ImagesKinshasa police and the government did not respond to a request for comment. The fighting "could compromise food security and economic activities in Goma and the region.

Persons: Bintou Keita, OCHA, MONUSCO, Ange Kasongo, Justin Makangara, Ange Aboa, Alessandra Prentice, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Democratic, Kinshasa Locations: KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa, Gombe, Ivorian, Goma, North Kivu, Congo, Congolese, Abidjan

☆ Thousands sheltering in hospital as fighting escalates in Democratic Republic of Congo
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Sarah Dean | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Thousands of people are seeking shelter inside an “overwhelmed” hospital amid an escalation of fighting in North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned on Thursday. At least 2,500 people, including children, are currently sheltering in Mweso Hospital, around 100 kilometers (62 miles) from the provincial capital Goma. “The hospital is overwhelmed, with thousands of people crowded inside, trying to find some protection from the fighting. In recent years, protesters have taken to the streets to demand the withdrawal of UN forces for failing to rein in rebel groups, including M23. The M23 group was named after a March 23, 2009, peace deal, which it accused the government of violating.

Persons: ”, Çaglar Tahiroglu, Jean, Pierre Lacroix, Felix Tshisekedi Organizations: CNN, Democratic, MSF, Ministry of Health, United Nations, UN, Rwandan Locations: North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, Mweso, Goma, Congolese, Rwanda

☆ AI is setting humanity on the path to a new age of discovery
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AI is paving the way to the future tooBill Gates-backed company KoBold Metals has used AI to discover a huge new copper mine. Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesAs well as seeing AI be used to excavate the past, it seems to be getting used to forge a path to the future too. Clearly then, billions of dollars aren't just being spent on AI for the sake of achieving some productivity and efficiency hacks. AI could also help usher humans into a new age of discovery.

Persons: —, Nat Friedman, Bill Gates, Chip Somodevilla, Jeff Bezos, Josh Goldman reckons Organizations: Service, Business, KoBold Metals, KoBold, Democratic Locations: Rome, Egypt, Switzerland, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo

☆ Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos-backed startup discovers large-scale copper deposit in Zambia
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

KoBold Metals, a California-based metals exploration company backed by billionaires including Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, said that it has discovered a vast copper deposit in Zambia. A spokesperson for KoBold Metals told CNBC on Monday that the company believes its Mingomba copper project in Zambia "will be one of the world's biggest high-grade large copper mines." "It is Kakula-scale in size and grade," KoBold Metals President Josh Goldman said in a statement shared on the firm's social media site X. Ivanhoe Mines, a Canadian mining company founded by billionaire magnate Robert Friedland, owns nearly 40% of the Kamoa-Kakula copper mine. KoBold Metals says it uses artificial intelligence to create a "Google Maps" of the Earth's crust to help find new deposits of copper, lithium, cobalt and nickel.

Persons: Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Josh Goldman, Robert Friedland, Andreessen Horowitz, Ray Dalio, Virgin Group's Richard Branson, Alibaba's Jack Ma Organizations: KoBold Metals, CNBC, Democratic, Ivanhoe Mines, KoBold, BHP, Breakthrough Energy, Bridgewater Associates Locations: Victoria, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Livingstone, California, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Canadian, Norwegian

☆ Opinion | Abolish the U.N.’s Palestinian Refugee Agency
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

United Nations agencies and officials are no strangers to scandal and infamy. In the 1980s, Kurt Waldheim, a former U.N. secretary general, was unmasked as a former Nazi. He was the same secretary general who denounced Israel’s 1976 rescue of Jewish hostages in Entebbe as “a serious violation” of Uganda’s national sovereignty. Now comes the latest scandal of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, better known as UNRWA. Last Friday, Israeli officials presented the U.S. government with an intelligence dossier detailing the involvement of 12 UNRWA employees, seven of them schoolteachers, in the massacre of Oct. 7.

Persons: Saddam Hussein, Kurt Waldheim, Ronen Bergman, Patrick Kingsley Organizations: Nations, Democratic, Iraq, Nazi, United Nations Relief, Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, “ Intelligence, Street Locations: Haiti, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Entebbe, Gaza

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