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☆ Kenyan police fire tear gas as anti-government protests resume
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas MukoyaNAIROBI, May 2 (Reuters) - Kenyan police fired tear gas at a small group of protesters in the capital Nairobi on Tuesday as the opposition took to the streets again in anti-government demonstrations following a one-month pause. Police said they had arrested 46 people "engaging in acts of criminality" and said the protests were unlawful. The Azimio La Umoja (Declaration of Unity) coalition said some of its members of parliament were stopped on their way to the president's office and met with teargas. Our protests will resume on Thursday," the coalition said in a statement. But he later announced that the protests would resume, accusing the government of not negotiating in good faith.

☆ Kenyan cult leader to remain in prison after more than 100 followers die
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

An investigator involved in the case, who did not wish to be identified, told Reuters that Mackenzie has denied ordering his followers to fast. Paul Mackenzie, 50, a Kenyan cult leader accused of ordering his followers of the members of the Good News International Church to starve themselves to death in Shakahola forest, appears at Malindi Law Courts, in Malindi, Kenya, May 2, 2023. Angry residents gathered and started throwing stones at the compound protected by a high wall and barbed wire on top. They later destroyed the front part of the wall, Komora said, adding that police had to fire teargas to disperse them. Most showed signs of starvation, while two children showed signs of asphyxiation, he said.

☆ Renewed protests in Kenya as authorities vow to 'halt the descent'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

In Mathare, a low-income settlement in Nairobi, protesters used improvised catapults to launch stones at police in riot gear, footage on Kenyan television showed. Local television stations on Thursday showed tires ablaze in Kibera and in Kisumu, near Odinga's ancestral home. During the previous two protests, they have fired tear gas and water cannon. The government says two civilians have been killed and more than 130 people, including 51 police officers, injured in protests since last week. Reporting by Ayenat Mersie; Editing by Aaron Ross and Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Shops and banks closed early on Wednesday as the West African nation braced for fresh protests over a court case that has fuelled tension and violence ahead of presidential elections next year. Violence broke out on the day of Sonko's last court appearance on March 16, as police fired tear gas at supporters accompanying his motorcade to the courthouse. Sonko has called for more nationwide protests on Wednesday, Thursday and April 3. Police fired several rounds of tear gas and stun grenades forcing mostly student protesters to retreat into the campus from where they hurled rocks. He is also on trial for allegedly raping a beauty salon employee in 2021 and making death threats against her.

☆ Clashes at rally against pension bill in France
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsClashes at rally against pension bill in FrancePostedBlack-clad groups on Tuesday (March 28), set fire to garbage cans and threw projectiles at police in Paris, who charged at them and threw teargas in confrontations on the fringes of a march against President Emmanuel Macron and his deeply unpopular pension bill.

☆ South Africa's EFF marches to demand president's resignation
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Members of the political party, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), gather at Church Square after calling for a "National Shutdown" and demanding resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria, South Africa March 20, 2023. REUTERS/Alet PretoriusJOHANNESBURG, March 20 (Reuters) - Thousands marched through the streets of South Africa's cities on Monday to demand that President Cyril Ramaphosa resign, as security forces guarded malls and roads to prevent violence and looting. The Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party, whose supporters are mainly poor and working class Black South Africans who feel marginalised since the governing African National Congress (ANC) ended white minority rule in 1994, had called for a national shutdown. South African security forces said on Monday that 87 people had been arrested in the last 12 hours over public violence ahead of planned protests. Parliament said in a statement on Sunday that the South African military would deploy 3,474 troops for a month until April 17 to prevent and combat crime in cooperation with the police.

Summary Arrest warrant issued after ex-PM failed to attend courtCourt rejects Khan's offer to appear voluntarilyFormer cricket star denies wrongdoingSupporters battled police for two days to prevent arrestLAHORE, Pakistan, March 16 (Reuters) - A Pakistani court on Thursday rejected former Prime Minister Imran Khan's plea to suspend an arrest warrant issued against him, stoking fears of a renewed confrontation between his supporters and security forces. [1/5] Supporters of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, carry sticks as they walk towards Khan's house, in Lahore, Pakistan March 16, 2023. Provincial information minister Amir Mir said there were militants among Khan's supporters outside his house. The police were unarmed, he said, adding they had to use water-cannons and teargas shells when Khan's supporters turned violent. Current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has rejected Khan's demands, saying an election would be held as scheduled later this year.

☆ Clashes between Pakistan police, former PM Khan's supporters injure several
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Mubasher Bukhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A few hundred Khan supporters gathered outside his house after a police team arrived from Islamabad to arrest him on a court order, government spokesman Amir Mir told Reuters. Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers started the violence, which injured several police officials, Mir said, adding, "If Imran Khan ensures his presence in the court, it will be good, otherwise the law will take its course." "If something happens to me, or sent to jail, or they kill me, you've to prove that this nation will continue to struggle even without Imran Khan." Several of Khan's supporters were injured when the police resorted to teargas shelling, witnesses said. The workers started pelting the police with stones and bricks, and in response police directed a water cannon at them and in some cases baton charged them, he said.

☆ Pakistan police and ex-PM Khan's supporters clash, injuring several
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Mubasher Bukhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The clashes erupted in the eastern city of Lahore ahead of a Khan's planned rally to kick-start his election campaign, but which the government then banned. The former premier has been demanding snap polls since he was ousted in a parliament vote of confidence last year. Twelve workers of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party were arrested, he added. Khan's aide Shafqat Mahmood said several of the workers were injured in the clashes, which, he termed, "fascist tactics." Live TV footage showed the police using extensive teargas shelling on several spots around Khan's Lahore home, with a couple of the workers seen bleeding.

☆ Opposition in majority in key Solomon Islands province after anti-China leader ousted
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WELLINGTON, Feb 8 (Reuters) - The opposition has taken a majority in the assembly of the most populous Solomon Islands province after Daniel Suidani, a vocal critic of the country's relationship with China, lost a no-confidence vote, an adviser to the ousted leader said on Wednesday. Celsus Talifilu, the adviser, said in an interview if a new government is formed in Malaita province, it would back the federal government's pro-China stance. Suidani is a long-time critic of the country's deepening relations with China and vocally opposed the Solomon Island’s switching recognition from Taiwan to China in 2019. A government spokesperson in Honiara said that following the no-confidence vote on Tuesday, those who had voted against Suidani were now in talks to propose a new leader. However, Suidani and his supporters boycotted the vote as they were waiting for the court to hear an application to delay the vote, Talifilu said.

☆ Zimbabwe police arrest 25 opposition members ahead of presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HARARE, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Zimbabwean police on Saturday fired teargas at an opposition party gathering in Harare and arrested 25 of its members, including two members of parliament, the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) said. The arrests come after a wave of politically motivated violence against opposition supporters in rural Zimbabwe, raising fears of repression ahead of the presidential election this year. Police confirmed the arrests of members of the Citizens Coalition for Change, Zimbabwe's main opposition political party, and said a detailed statement would be released following investigations. Police allegedly fired teargas at the gathering, and beat up several opposition members before they were bundled into a police truck, she added. The opposition party, born out of the old Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), enjoys massive urban support and is seen as a threat to ZANU-PF's 43-year-old stranglehold on power.

PARIS, Dec 23 (Reuters) - A gunman killed three people at a Kurdish cultural centre and nearby Kurdish cafe in central Paris on Friday, prompting violent protests in nearby streets as night fell. President Emmanuel Macron said France's Kurdish community had been the target of a heinous attack. All three of those who died were Kurdish, a lawyer for the Kurdish cultural centre told Reuters. Julien Verplancke who works at another local restaurant, Chez Minna, said staff from the Kurdish restaurant emerged from the premise in tears after the shooting. Salih Azad, a prominent figure from the Kurdish community in Marseille, said he knew one of the victims, a 26-year-old woman who had lived in Paris for several years.

☆ Iranians strike to mark 2019 protests in fresh rebuff to ruling clerics
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

In the latest protests, the rights activist HRANA news agency said 344 people have been killed, including 52 minors. Videos shared on social media showed strikes and gatherings in several cities and towns. On Monday, the European Union imposed additional sanctions over the crackdown on protests and French President Emmanuel Macron characterised the unrest as a revolution. A video on 1500Tasvir showed people running down a street in Tehran's western neighbourhood of Shahrak Gharb after several gunshots could be heard. The 1500Tasvir account also showed a video of people at a metro shouting "death to the dictator", a slogan referring to Khamenei.

☆ Iranians protest nationwide, mark 'Bloody Friday'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Summary Prominent Sunni cleric criticises security forcesUnrest in minority areasGeneral tells clerics to restore calmDUBAI, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Iranians protested in the restive southeast on Friday to mark a Sept. 30 crackdown by security forces known as "Bloody Friday", as the country's clerical rulers battled nationwide unrest. The region is one of the country’s poorest and has been a hotbed of tension where Iranian security forces have been attacked by Baluch militants. Thirty-nine members of the security forces had also been killed, while nearly 15,100 people have been arrested, it said. They were accused of acts of sabotage, assaulting or killing members of the security forces or setting fire to public property. Several social media videos showed a gathering at Tehran's Behesht-e Zahra cemetery to honour Amir Mehdi Farrokhipour, a 17-year-old allegedly killed by security forces 40 days ago.

☆ Many young Iranians lose their fear in struggle for "freedom"
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Her sentiment was echoed by a dozen young Iranians from across the country interviewed by Reuters by phone. As a young woman, her death sparked anger among Iranians who do not want their daughters arrested because of how they dress. Many young Iranians have long called for the lifting of social restrictions, such as internet censorship and strict dress codes. With student numbers swelling in Iran's young population, such signs of growing dissent cannot be easily ignored by the authorities, a former moderate official said. By defying state warnings to end protests, students have paid a heavy price.

☆ EXCLUSIVE Deadly Iran jail fire erupted as police clashed with inmates, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

A view of the aftermath of the fire in Evin prison in Tehran, Iran October 17, 2022. The patrols at the Tehran jail began without any apparent provocation by inmates, the sources said. The prisoner and other sources spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity due to concern for their safety. Ward 7 holds prisoners convicted of general crimes and political prisoners, and is in the same building housing ward 8. "Prisoners from ward 7 tried to break the door of ward 8 to let them out too.

☆ Iran toughens crackdown as some oil workers reported to join protests
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Human rights group Hengaw reported a heavy presence of armed security forces in the Kurdish cities of Sanandaj, Saqez and Divandareh on Monday. Activists said on social media that several people, including two teenagers, were killed by security forces in the province. Blaming the protests on Iran's foreign foes, authorities said "rioters" have killed at least 20 members of the security forces. In spite of a harsh crackdown by security forces, protesters across Iran have burned pictures of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called for the downfall of the clerical establishment and chanted "Death to the Dictator". "Instead of dying every minute under this regime's repression, I prefer to die with their (security forces) bullets in protests for freedom."

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