Foreign

*Parliament Impeaches Runaway President An elite military unit said it had taken power in Madagascar today, 14 October, after the country’s parliament impeached President Andry Rajoelina after weeks of anti-government protests. Rajoelina, who said on Monday in a Facebook live video that he had gone into hiding after attempts to kill him, had refused demands to step down, but the demonstrators won the backing of the influential Capsat military unit at the weekend. On Tuesday, the Presidency posted a statement saying there had been an “attempted coup d’état”. It continued: “The President of the republic remains fully in office and…

*But Govt Warns Against Such Declaration *Trouble Looms Cameroun opposition leader, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, has declared himself winner of the 12 October presidential election and called on the incumbent, Paul Biya, to accept the end of his 43-year rule. “Our victory is clear, it must be respected,” Bakary,more popularly known as Tchiroma, said in a video statement on Facebook with the national flag in the background, before directly addressing 92-year-old Biya: “We call on the regime in power to show greatness and to honour the truth of the ballot box with a long-awaited gesture: that phone call of congratulations, which…

Madagascar’s President, Andry Rajoelina, said he had to flee the country in fear for his life after a military rebellion but did not announce his resignation in a speech broadcast on social media late on Monday from an undisclosed location. The 51-year-old has faced weeks of Gen Z-led anti-government protests, which reached a pivotal point on Saturday when an elite military unit joined the protests and called for the President and other Ministers to step down. That prompted Rajoelina to say that an illegal attempt to seize power was under way in the Indian Ocean island and to leave the…

Hamas has started deploying armed fighters and police across parts of Gaza in an apparent attempt to reassert authority in the devastated Palestinian territory after the ceasefire deal agreed with Israel last week. Images showed dozens of Hamas fighters at a hospital in southern Gaza during the release of Israeli hostages on Monday morning, 13 October, and there were reports of shootings and executions elsewhere in the territory. Telegram channels associated with Hamas said “collaborators and traitors” had been targeted, a reference to Israel-backed militia in the territory, while Hamas gunmen also engaged in bloody clashes with a powerful local…

*President Cries Out Over Military Coup Plot Madagascar’s President said an “attempt to seize power illegally and by force” was under way, as an elite military unit that joined protesters on the streets on Saturday announced it was taking over the army. The Capsat unit’s intervention comes after weeks of youth-led protests, which started on 25 September against water and electricity shortages and expanded to calling for the resignation of the president, Andry Rajoelina, an end to corruption and radical overhaul of the political system. Some keen analysts of political happenings in Africa say, should the Madagascar protests succeed in…

*Situation May Be Test Case For Other Countries *Leaders In Frenzied Meetings To Satisfy Students' Demands Madagascar’s Prime Minister called for calm after an elite group of soldiers joined thousands of protesters against the country’s President on the streets of the capital on Saturday afternoon,11 October. Protesters marched alongside soldiers from the Capsat unit, who drove armoured vehicles, some waving Madagascar flags, from their base in Soanierana in the south of Antananarivo, the country's capital. A Capsat leader, Lylison René de Rolland, then addressed the cheering crowds in front of the city hall in 13 May Square, which protesters had…

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair would not be welcome in any post-war role for Gaza, a senior Hamas official said, while praising Donald Trump in securing a peace deal. Speaking to Sky News, Dr Basem Naim said a ceasefire would not have been possible without Trump but said the US President must continue to apply pressure to Israel to ensure the agreement is not violated. He said: "Without the personal interference of President Trump in this case, I don’t think that it would have happened to have reached the end of the war. Therefore, yes, we thank President Trump…

*Institute Inducts, Graduates, Honours Several Persons It was an unleashing of ideas to advance the Digital Age when the Institute of Information Management (IIM) and International University of Information Management (IUIM) held the 3rd IIM Canada annual conference, the 60th IIM induction/investiture, as well as 11th IUIM graduation/conferment ceremony,in Toronto, Canada recently. A number of Nigerians servicing the robust Canadian data and information management sector were on hand at the event, to add competency and colour to the occasion. Thrills and excitement filled the air as cheerful-looking, resplendently-attired guests and smiling host staff exchanged pleasantries ahead of kick-off of the…

*Deal Expected To Be Signed Today *Living Israeli Hostages Free On Saturday *Israeli Troops To Withdraw To Agreed Line *Hamas Seeks Guarantee That Israel Won't Bomb Again, Once Hostages Released *Blessed Are The Peacemakers --Trump US President Donald Trump has announced that Israel and Hamas have signed off on the “first phase” of his plan to end the Gaza war. “This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace,” Trump posts on Truth Social. “All…

*Israel Rejects Freedom For Oct 7 Attackers Who Triggered Gaza War *The Behind-The-Scene Trade-Offs Planned A blanket of some welcome semblance of peace could finally descend on Gaza should today's ceasefire talks in Cairo go successfully. In a deal birthed by US President Donald Trump, who has called for speed, Israeli and Hamas negotiators will see eyeball to eyeball to try and hammer out a ceasefire to the war which has claimed at least 67,000 Palestinian lives,aside thousands buried in the rubble of high-rise buildings literally pulverized by Israeli air bombings. Ahead the talks,which would involve prisoner exchange on both…