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GSK negotiating sale of thrombosis drug and plant to Aspen

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:20:31 -0400

DURBAN / LONDON - South Africa's biggest generic drug maker Aspen Pharmacare and its subsidiary Aspen Global Incorporated have made an offer to acquire thrombosis drugs and their associated manufacturing site at Notre Dame de Bondeville, France, from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). "AGI will acquire from GSK the Arixtra and Fraxiparine/Fraxodi brands and business worldwide, except in China, Pakistan ...

US Names New Envoy to Africas Great Lakes

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:15:23 -0400

Former Senator Russell Feingold has been named the U.S. special envoy to Africa's troubled Great Lakes region. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who announced the appointment Tuesday, said Feingold will work closely with U.N. envoy Mary Robinson to advance a U.N. framework for peace in the region. The eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has endured years of conflict and ...

Kenyas Deputy Leader to Appear during ICC Trial

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:15:05 -0400

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has ruled that Kenya's deputy president, William Ruto, must attend key segments of his trial on charges of crimes against humanity scheduled to begin in September, according to a court spokesman. Ruto and Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta face similar charges before the court in connection with their alleged role in the country's 2007-2008 post-election ...

Soon mobiles to use bat echolocation method to map rooms

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:50:04 -0400

Scientists have developed a computer algorithm that can map a room with the help of just four microphones. At EPFL, a team from the Audiovisual Communications Laboratory (LCAV), under the direction of Professor Martin Vetterli developed the computer algorithm. PhD student Ivan Dokmanic said that their software can build a 3D map of a simple, convex room with a precision of a few millimeters. ...

Rose says US Open win only possible after healing of traumatic early career scars

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:00:01 -0400

South African golfer Justin Rose has admitted that his US Open triumph was only possible after the healing of the scars from his 'traumatic' early career. Although the new world No.3 has been tipped for greatness ever since making his name as a teenage amateur at The Open in 1998, however, that period was followed by a depressing 21 successive missed cuts as a fledgling professional, the Mirror ...

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to be tried in Libya in August

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:40:03 -0400

The son of deceased Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi will be tried in Libya in August, the prosecutor's office has announced. It said the case against Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and other senior regime members would include charges of forming criminal gangs, inciting rape and illegal detentions. According to the BBC, among those who are expected to face trial in August are Gaddafi's ...

Pentagon to Allow Women in Key Combat Roles by 2016

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:56:53 -0400

PENTAGON -- The U.S. military says that within the next three years, it will put women in key combat roles from which they were previously excluded. American women have been serving in combat roles and hundreds have been killed on the front lines for years, but they have been excluded from key positions in areas including Special Operations and infantry. In January, then-Defense Secretary ...

Knotty cassava tubers can change Nigeria

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:51:23 -0400

Nigeria's cassava bread initiative is among an ambitious set of programmes designed to transform agriculture and rural livelihoods in this country of 170 million, the most populous of Africa's 55 nations. The sweeping plans include cutting corruption, rebuilding crumbling infrastructure, facilitating agro-processing industries and recapturing once-robust export ...

Shell uses sabotage claims to avoid blame for Nigeria oil spills

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:45:45 -0400

Shell's persistent claims that theft and sabotage are responsible for almost all the oil spills at its operation in Nigeria could have been exaggerated, an international watchdog has ...

Get me out of here - Canary Islands KenyaTanzania San Diego

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:45:43 -0400

Set sail for a cruise of the Canary Islands on 1 July. The 12-night trip departs from Southampton aboard P&O's Ventura, costing 749pp for an inside cabin. Ports include Madeira, La Palma, Tenerife, Lanzarote and ...

Tour Operators Win Scholarships To 2013 Adventure Travel World Summit In Namibia

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:20:13 -0400

Representing three different nations but sharing similar strategic goals, the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) and Rome McGuigan P.C. announced Uptuyu Adventures, Zbulo! -- Discover Albania and RED Sustainable Travel as winners of the 2013 Adventure Travel World Summit (ATWS) Tour Operator Scholarships. Each winner receives financial backing to attend the ATWS, a trade-only professional ...

US Postal Service Unveils Music Icon Stamp Series

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:53:24 -0400

WASHINGTON -- Earlier this year, the U.S. postal service revealed plans for a new stamp set called Music Icons. The series shines the spotlight on three American originals. The first issue in the Music Icon series honored Lydia Mendoza, a pioneer of Tejano music, the style that comes from the Texas-Mexico border area. Lydia Mendoza was 18 years old when she walked into a San Antonio studio ...

A move toward peace in Congo

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:47:48 -0400

Secretary of State John Kerry sent a powerful signal Tuesday to the people of war-torn eastern Congo by appointing former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) as the new U.S. special envoy to Africa’s Great Lakes region. Feingold’s appointment signals strong leadership from the Obama administration in supporting the peace process for Congo and the larger Great Lakes region. Grassroots women ...

20 killed in another attack in Nigeria

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:38:44 -0400

/enpproperty--> MAIDUGURI, Nigeria - Hospital and local residents on Tuesday said 20 people may have been killed in another attack on students and fishermen by the Boko Haram insurgents in the Nigeria northeast Maiduguri city currently under a state of emergency. "Thirteen fishermen and tea sellers have been killed at Alau River. Gunmen numbering about five stormed the river area and ...

Nigeria Islamists kill nine students in school attack - medic

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:35:58 -0400

MAIDUGURI (Reuters) - Suspected Islamist militants opened fire on a school in Nigeria's north-eastern city of Maiduguri on Tuesday, killing nine students, witnesses and a medical worker said, the second deadly attack on schools in three days. Witness Ibrahim Mohammed said he was taking exams in a classroom at Ansarudeen School when gunmen stormed the building, opening fire at random. "I ...

Ex-player Chad Johnson is released from jail after apologizing to judge

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:35:49 -0400

A contrite Chad Johnson apologized for disrespecting a judge in court and the former player was released from jail after a week instead of serving all of his 30-day ...

Photos Top 5 African countries for a safari

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:32:00 -0400

SafariBookings.com , an online marketplace for African safari tours, conducted a two-year study, gathering reviews from more than 1,000 safari-goers, as well as hundreds from guidebook authors to crown the best safari country in Africa. Here are the top 5 and how they rated on a five-star ...

Indiscriminate Shelling Kills UN Peacekeeper in Sudans Oil Region

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:23:07 -0400

A deadly shelling of the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism (JBVMM) interim headquarters in Kadugli, Sudan's Southern Kordofan state has killed one United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) peacekeeper from Ethiopia. Reports say the shelling was perpetrated by the elements of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N). The shelling also wounded ...

Terrorism in Tanzania – tourists scared

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:22:44 -0400

TANZANIA (eTN) - As more details about recent terror incidents in northern Tanzania's tourist city of Arusha are flowing through the media, the United States of America has issued a strongly-worded statement condemning the Saturday bombing at a public rally organized by the opposition Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo political party . The statement that was issued by the US Department of ...

Africa Advocacy Groups Congo Experts Applaud Appointment of Feingold as Great Lakes Envoy

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:18:14 -0400

Washington, DC - Nineteen advocacy groups and Congo experts applaud U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for his appointment of former U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) as the new U.S. Special Envoy for the African Great Lakes region and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They congratulate Special Envoy Feingold in an open letter, and call on him to apply leverage and use incentives to focus on ...

Africa McCann Health Hosts Toyin Saraki and Other Dignitaries from UN Secretary Generals Every Woman Every Child Initiative at 2013 Cannes Lions Festival

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:18:13 -0400

McCann Health, partnering with Great Guns and Massive Music, is gearing up for the launch of Lions Health in 2014 by hosting meetings with dignitaries from the U.N. Secretary General's Every Woman Every Child effort and top global creative leaders this week at the 2013 Cannes Lions Creative Festival. The goal: to highlight the importance of bringing creative ideas and solutions to improve ...

Africa Childerns Investment Fund Foundation Applauds G8 for Puttng Nutrition Compact on Global Agenda

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:18:13 -0400

London - The Children's Investment Fund Foundation applauds G8 leaders for putting the Global Nutrition for Growth Compact on the international agenda. Under-nutrition is the underlying cause of almost half of global child deaths, and reduces GNP by as much as 11 percent in Africa, Central America and Southeast Asia. A historic shift has taken place in recent weeks in which simple, ...

ICC trials for Kenyas new leaders may shift partly back home

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:12:56 -0400

Newly elected president Uhuru Kenyatta and deputy president William Ruto were indicted by the ICC for 2007 election violence. Is Kenya ready to watch the hearings up ...

Ghana to begin GMO Testing

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:09:35 -0400

Although the politicians in Ghana’s parliament have done their bit and have allowed Monsanto lobbyists and scientists influenced by this corporate giant to pass the Bio-Safety Bill in Ghana, that does not stop conscientious objectors from continuing to point out the gross error these politicians in parliament have ...

Some Aid Programs in Sahel Prefer Cash to Food

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:48:58 -0400

DIOURBEL, SENEGAL -- Humanitarian agencies in Africa's Sahel region are struggling to deal with a cycle of chronic food crisis. Some are moving away from traditional food aid in favor of "cash for work" programs that pay villagers to work on community improvement projects. The U.S. government is considering shifting as much as 45 percent of its $1.4 billion of traditional food aid ...

UN Says Libya Continues to Face Difficult Transition

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:48:57 -0400

NEW YORK -- A senior United Nations diplomat says Libya continues to face a difficult transition from the regime of Moammar Gadhafi, whose 42-year rule ended in ...

Piracy in West Africa outstrips Somalia report says

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:48:30 -0400

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A new report says piracy affected more ships and sailors off West Africa than off Somalia's coast last year.The report, drawing on data from the International Maritime Bureau, said nearly 1,000 seafarers and fishermen were attacked by pirates armed with guns or knives in the Gulf of Guinea. More than 200 people were taken hostage.The report said attacks on ...

AB de Villiers says South Africa will be Trophy champions or chokers

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:37:14 -0400

AB de Villiers has it in his power to keep South African tears at bay at The Oval on Wednesday - unlike the last time his country met England in a global semi-final.In March 1992 an eight-year-old De Villiers could only watch television in Pretoria as his heroes got the rawest of deals in Sydney. South Africa returned following a 12-minute rain interruption to discover, having needed 22 runs from ...

West Africa has worlds worst piracy rate report

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:18:24 -0400

A ship of the Nigerian navy, taking part in a counter-piracy patrol on September 28, 2011. Wast Africa has overtaken Somalia as the world's piracy hot-spot with 966 sailors attacked last year, a report by the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said on ...

Egypt and Ethiopia try to roll back threats of war

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:16:07 -0400

CAIRO, Egypt Egypt's foreign minister is in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa today to diffuse a diplomatic standoff over access to the Nile River that had led President Mohamed Morsi to threaten his Ethiopian counterparts with the prospect of "war." Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr's visit comes a week after Ethiopia's parliament voted to strip Egypt of its right to ...

Nigeria Year After Church Bombings Kaduna Struggles to Rebuild

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:12:40 -0400

ABUJA - Sectarian violence has plagued central Nigeria for decades and tens of thousands of people have been killed. Many mosques and churches are still rubble and in some cities the population has segregated itself out of fear. It is the first anniversary of triple church bombings that sparked sectarian riots in the central city of Kaduna. There is no roof on this mosque in Kaduna and no walls ...

South Sudan Theft From S. Sudan Presidents Office Inside Job

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:12:40 -0400

JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN - A spate of alleged thefts from the office of South Sudanese President Salva Kiir may have been an inside job, officials investigating how tens of thousands of dollars went missing from Kiir's office said Monday. Some $70,000 U.S. that was kept in the president's office to pay staff who do not have bank accounts, along with two laptops, went missing from Kiir's ...

North Africa AQIM Reportedly Confirms Commanders Death in Mali

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:12:40 -0400

The militant group al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb is reported to have confirmed the death of one of its top commanders. The Mauritanian news agency ANI says it received a statement from the militant group, saying that Abdelhamid Abou Zeid was killed while fighting French and Chadian troops in northern Mali. The statement says other jihadists also were killed in the clash, including another ...

Africa AU Says Africa Should Move Toward Prosperity

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:12:38 -0400

GENEVA - A top African Union official says Africa has everything it needs to move toward a prosperous future and to become a leading player in global affairs. AU Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says Africa has many hurdles to overcome, but she remains optimistic that the continent is up to the task. The African Union is celebrating its 50th anniversary. AU Commission Chairperson ...

Africa UN - Dont Let Our Future Dry Up

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:12:38 -0400

Water covers most of our planet, but only about two and a half percent of it is freshwater. And of that small amount, U.N. experts say, "The total useable supply for ecosystems and humans is less than one percent." This year's World Day to Combat Desertification slogan is: Don't Let Our Future Dry Up. "Desertification, and particularly drought, is one of the major ...

Refugees leave Nigeria for Niger Cameroon U.N. says

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:10:04 -0400

The United Nations said Tuesday an ongoing crisis in Nigeria has caused more than 6,000 refugees to flee to neighboring Niger and Cameroon. A statement from the United Nations said in recent weeks, "anti-insurgent operations and general insecurity" have uprooted thousands during a state of emergency declared in May in Nigeria's Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states. "Crossings of ...

African nations set negotiations on planned Nile dam

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:09:59 -0400

A controversial dam on the Nile River will be the subject of negotiations by Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan, foreign ministers of the countries announced Tuesday. The negotiations will deal with the political and technical aspects of dividing the river's waters between the countries, Egypt's Ahram Online reported. The $4.2 billion dam is planned by Ethiopia to power a hydroelectric plant. ...

World Brief | Africa Six Men Sentenced for Attacking Sufi Shrine in Tunisia

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:54:52 -0400

CAIRO ...

US House Wont Consider Immigration Bill Unless Republicans Back It

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:42:33 -0400

People shout out against the Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement Act in the hall outside the House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 18, ...

US Agriculture Industry Opposes Changes to Food Aid Program

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:42:32 -0400

CAMBRIA, WISCONSIN -- The Food for Peace program costs about $1.5 billion annually and provides U.S.-grown food to countries in need. But President Barack Obama’s proposed 2014 budget includes changes to the 59-year-old program - replacing some commodity shipments with direct cash purchases in foreign countries. While some aid agencies welcome the proposed changes, farmers and millers in ...

Iranians Observers Wonder How Rowhani Was Allowed to Win

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:42:32 -0400

W hen tens of thousands of Iranians took to the streets to celebrate Hassan Rowhani's presidential victory last weekend, one chant stood out: "Dictator! Thank you!" In the back of their minds, the protesters must have been asking themselves the same thing surprised Iran observers are wondering: Why would Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the "dictator" who has ...

How to travel to Africa for under $100M

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:38:20 -0400

The president and first lady will begin an 8-day trip to Africa on June 26, stopping in Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania. Obama will meet with government figures as well as leaders from the business, civil society and youth communities. The administration says the visit highlights the importance of close U.S. ties to sub-Saharan Africa.Source: Washington ...

Illegal mining will not affect Ghana - China relations

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:30:17 -0400

Accra, June 18, GNA - Mr Gong Jianzhong, the Chinese Ambassador in Ghana, on Tuesday said that illegal gold mining by some Chinese nationals would not affect the relationship between the two ...

Ghana makes progress in multi-party pluralism – Mahama

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:30:15 -0400

Accra, June 18, GNA - President John Dramani Mahama has said the government had made steady progress over the past 20 years of multi-party pluralism to enhance accountability, transparency and ...

Four Togolese arrested in Ghana for illegal mining

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:30:14 -0400

According to Inspector Adu Gyamfi, the officer in-charge of the Kyekyewere Police Station in the Central Region, the seven were arrested last Thursday afternoon after he led a patrol team to the mining ...

Ghana Revenue Authority destroys smuggled goods

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:30:13 -0400

Zuarungu (UE) June 18, GNA - The Customs, Excise and Preventive Service Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) in the Upper East Region, at the weekend destroyed seized goods worth ...

British Government to support Ghana

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:30:11 -0400

Accra, June 18, GNA - President John Mahama has struck a deal with the British Government to transform Accra into an international financial ...

Act Alliance Ghana Forum donates to flood victims

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:30:11 -0400

Accra, June 18, GNA - The Act Alliance Ghana Forum, a coalition of Churches and benevolent organizations, have presented relief items worth 50,000 dollars to over 1,000 flood victims in five districts of the Northern ...

Ethiopia admit to fielding suspended player

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:24:00 -0400

The Ethiopian Football Federation (EFF) have admitted to fielding an ineligible player in a World Cup qualifier and could be docked three points as a ...

Gaddafi son accuses Libya of blatant disregard for law over trial attempt

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:12:25 -0400

Muammar Gaddafi , has accused the authorities in his country of showing a "blatant disregard" for the international criminal court (ICC) by announcing they will put him on trial in August.In an urgent submission to the Hague-based court, the British lawyer John Jones asked appeal judges to ...

Nigeria Is Caught Between Military Abuses and Islamist Rebels

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:12:04 -0400

Nigerian Army soldiers stand as part of preparations for deployment to Mali, at the Nigerian Army peacekeeping centre in Jaji, near Kaduna on January 17, 2013. (Afolabi Sotunde/Reuters) A month after President Goodluck Jonathan imposed a state of emergency on northern Nigeria, the first eyewitness accounts are only now emerging about the Nigerian military's brutality. The state of ...

China says Ghanas arrest of its miners will not harm relations

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:11:41 -0400

ACCRA (Reuters) - China is determined that its relations with Ghana will not be undermined by the arrest of some 200 Chinese illegal gold miners in a crackdown by Ghanaian authorities, a senior Beijing Foreign Ministry official said on ...

WikiLeaks trial focuses on whether Tweets meet evidence standards

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:11:39 -0400

FORT MEADE, Maryland (Reuters) - The court-martial of the U.S. soldier accused of providing reams of classified documents to WikiLeaks in a case illustrating the challenge of keeping secrets in the digital age must decide whether tweets and Web pages can be admitted as ...

UN says 2 children of Libyas Gadhafi moved to Oman in apparent violation of UN travel ban

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:10:27 -0400

A son and daughter of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi moved from Algeria to Oman in apparent violation of a U.N. travel ban, the committee monitoring U.N. sanctions against Libya said Tuesday. Rwanda's U.N. Ambassador Eugene Richard Gasana, who chairs the committee, told the Security Council that Algeria's U.N. Mission confirmed on June 5 that Aisha Gadhafi and Mohammed Gadhafi ...

Southern Africa Zimbabwe Poll Date in Flux After Regional Body Calls for Delay

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:06:51 -0400

JOHANNESBURG - Regional leaders have requested that Zimbabwe's government delay upcoming elections to give the troubled nation time to make sure the vote is free and fair. President Robert Mugabe set elections for July 31, saying he was complying with a ruling of the Constitutional Court. The request from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) supports the argument of Prime ...

Zambia Zambia Opposition Demands Inquiry Into Violent Attacks

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:06:50 -0400

Zambian opposition parties are calling for an independent investigation into violence allegedly carried out by a militia group affiliated with President Michael Sata's ruling Patriotic Front (PF). "We are making a demand on the police to be professional, investigate what is going on and let us know whether this government wants to govern by violence, so that we can make up our minds on ...

Uganda Uganda Warns Meddling Envoys

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:06:50 -0400

Uganda's foreign minister has warned foreign envoys in the country not to interfere in the East African nation's internal affairs. Henry Okello Oryem says he has told the envoys to use regular diplomatic channels with President Yoweri Museveni's government to resolve their concerns about governance issues. "Ambassadors and other diplomatic missions come with clear terms of ...

Egypt Ethiopia Egypt Meet to Ease Nile Dam Tensions

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:06:49 -0400

ADDIS ABABA - Egypt and Ethiopia are taking steps to defuse tension over Ethiopia's diversion of the Nile River to construct a massive hydroelectric dam. The ministers of foreign affairs from both countries held talks in Addis Ababa on Monday and Tuesday. At issue: the tensions that rose after Ethiopia began diverting part of the Blue Nile to advance construction the Great Ethiopian ...

Kenya Kuppet Insists Teachers Strike On Even As Learning Went Uninterrupted

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:06:49 -0400

Nairobi - The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) insists that secondary school teachers are on strike even as learning went on uninterrupted in most schools. KUPPET National Chairman Omboka Milemba has told Capital News that all secondary school teachers are under instructions to stay away from class until they get further directives from the Union. "The teachers must ...

Africa G8 Urged to Fight Africa Land Grabs