Mauritanian president flies to Paris after being shot

Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is on his way to Paris on Sunday to receive medical treatment after being "accidentally" shot by the army in what officials say was a case of mistaken identity.

Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is on a plane to Paris on Sunday to receive treatment after being wounded when an army unit fired on his convoy.
Government officials said soldiers mistakenly opened fire on the president after failing to recognise his car.

However, a military source said earlier the president had been directly targeted, without giving any indications as to the identity of the attacker or the motive.

"This was an accidental shooting on the presidential convoy as it returned to Nouakchott. The army unit did not recognize the presidential convoy," Communications Minister Hamdi Ould Mahjoub said on national television.

             

"The Mauritanian people can be reassured, the president is fine... He was slightly wounded, and he got out of the vehicle unassisted upon arrival at the hospital, where he walked in without difficulty."

             

Earlier, a security source told AFP that Abdel Aziz was hit in the arm by a bullet that an unknown gunman fired at him as he was driving from his weekend retreat in nearby Tweila. Other reports said Aziz received a bullet wound to the abdomen.

             

"The president's life is not in danger, he got out and walked to a military hospital where he received first aid," the source said.

             

The hospital was placed under high surveillance by the presidential guard.

'Difficult to understand'

FRANCE 24’s correspondent in the Mauritanian capital of Nouakchott, Laurent Prieur, said circumstances surrounding the incident were still unclear.

“The official government stance is that the army mistakenly shot an unmarked car that they did not recognise as the president’s car, but at this point that is difficult to understand,” Prieur said.

Opposition lawmakers accuse the former general of despotism and mismanagement and having failed to heed commitments made in the Dakar accords that led to his election in 2009, a year after he seized power in a coup d'état.

             

The opposition wants a transition government to take over from Abdel Aziz and find a way out of the crisis, dealing with issues such as unemployment, slavery and attacks on human rights.

             

Abdel Aziz has insisted he will not resign, despite a series of opposition protests.

              

"I have no intention of leaving power because I think that in a democracy, change must be done through the ballot box," Abdel Aziz said in August.

             

He has led a military campaign against Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).

              

He has been the subject of several failed assassination attempts by AQIM, Al-Qaeda's franchise in North Africa, according to sources.

             

AQIM, which stems from a group started in the late 1990s by radical Algerian Islamists, formally subscribed to Al-Qaeda's ideology in 2007, but after a string of high-profile attacks, the Algerian army managed to severely curtail its operations.

             

It has since been boosted by the turmoil in neighbouring Mali that followed a coup there in March, with hard-line Islamists occupying the country's vast northern region.

             

Abdel Aziz's mandate expires in 2014.

(FRANCE 24 with wires)

Morsi backtracks on sacking Egypt's top prosecutor

Egypt's President Mohammed Morsi agreed Saturday to allow the country's top prosecutor, Abdel-Meguid Mahmoud, to remain in his post after asking him to step down earlier this week, sparking criticism that Morsi was interfering with the judiciary.

 

Egypt’s top prosecutor reached an agreement with the country’s president to keep his job on Saturday despite earlier attempts to remove him, ending a standoff that had prompted accusations of interference in judicial affairs.
President Mohammed Morsi had ordered Prosecutor General Abdel-Meguid Mahmoud to step down last Thursday in an apparent bid to appease public anger over the acquittals of ex-regime officials accused of orchestrating violence against protesters last year.
Morsi had broad public support for removing Mahmoud, who was appointed under ousted president Hosni Mubarak. But the move created a backlash from angry judges, who saw the decision as infringement on the judiciary.
Egyptian law protects the prosecutor general from being fired by the president. To overcome that constraint, Morsi had asked Mahmoud to become ambassador to the Vatican. But Mahmoud refused to be reappointed.
Vice President Mahmoud Mekki told reporters after meeting the prosecutor that the president agreed to suspend the decision following a request from the country’s Supreme Judicial Council.
After meeting Morsi and his advisers, Mahmoud told The Associated Press that “a misunderstanding” had been resolved.
Earlier Saturday, Mahmoud defied the order by entering his office in a downtown Cairo courthouse flanked by security and hundreds of judicial officials who came in his support.
Mekki said the procedures to reappoint Mahmoud have been stopped after the appeal by the Council. He said the decision was initially to avoid popular anger following the Wednesday acquittal of Mubarak loyalists over their alleged role in a turning point of the 2011 uprising, known as the “Battle of the Camel,” when camels ridden Mubarak supporters charged into an opposition crowd.
Mekki dismissed accusations that Morsi was interfering in the judiciary. The move, he said, was to “protect the post” against criticism. In defense of the decision, Mekki said the presidency had announced the decision after initially understanding that Mahmoud had agreed to step down.
“There was confusion. The acceptance was not complete, was not clear,” Mekki told reporters.
Mahmoud returned to his office after the meeting with Morsi. At a press conference later, hundreds of judges came out to congratulate him for retaining the job. Mahmoud said he had been threatened, a charge the presidency denies.
An independent daily’s online headline read: “The judges win in the battle of the prosecutor general.”
(AP)

Five British marines charged with murder

Five British marines have been charged with murder in relation to a 2011 incident in Afghanistan, the UK government said on Sunday. The defence ministry also announced plans to withdraw "thousands" of British troops from Afghanistan in 2013.

 

Five British Royal Marines have been charged with murder over a 2011 incident in Afghanistan, the country’s Ministry of Defence confirmed on Sunday.

The five are among nine marines who were arrested in connection with the incident in recent days. Four of those detained were later released without charge.

British media have reported the arrests were made after suspicious footage was found on a soldier’s laptop by police in the UK.

 

Details of the incident have not been revealed but government officials have said it involved an “engagement with an insurgent” in Helmand Province, where the majority of Britain’s 9,500 troops in Afghanistan are deployed. They say no civilians were involved.

 

The soldiers, who have not been named, are believed to be the first British troops to be charged with murder in Afghanistan since deployments began in 2001.

 

The Ministry of Defence said the cases “will now be taken forward” and will be dealt with by the independent Service Prosecuting Authority, which oversees military trials.

 

"Following direction from the SPA these marines have now been charged with murder and they remain in custody pending court proceedings,” a spokesman from the Ministry of Defence said.

 

"It would be inappropriate to comment further on this ongoing investigation," he added.

 

Rules of engagement

 

Speaking to the BBC on Sunday, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said the government was “determined that the rules of engagement” be followed.

 

“Everybody serving in theatre knows the rules of engagement, they carry cards in their uniforms with the rules on them in case they should need to remind themselves,” Hammond said.

 

The British rules of engagement, largely derived from the Geneva Convention, dictate under what circumstances soldiers are allowed to open fire.

 

The brigade believed to be involved in the incident, 3 Commando, was in the thick of the fighting with Taliban insurgents during its deployment last year to Helmand, which lies in Afghanistan’s south.

 

 

(FRANCE 24 with wires)

Tunisia ruling coalition agrees to hold elections next June

Ennahda, its coalition partners agree on mixed political system in which president will be elected by universal suffrage for better balance of power.

Middle East Online

By Antoine Lambroschini – TUNIS

Better balance of power Tunisia will go to the polls next June, the Islamist-led government said Sunday, after striking a deal on a new constitution for the North African state which was the cradle of the Arab Spring. The announcement of the June 23 date for both presidential and parliamentary elections came after National Constituent Assembly speaker Mustapha Ben Jaafar said in an interview that a key proposal by the Islamist Ennahda party to outlaw blasphemy in the new constitution would be dropped. The proposal stoked fears of creeping Islamisation in Tunisia, which has been wracked by political tensions and a wave of violent attacks in recent weeks that have been blamed on radical Salafists. Ennahda and its coalition partners -- centre-left parties, the Congress for the Republic (CPR) of President Moncef Marzouki and Ettakatol -- also agreed that a second round in the presidential ballot will take place on July 7. A statement said the parties agreed "on a mixed political system in which the president will be elected by universal suffrage for a better balance of power, including at the heart of the executive branch." Disagreement has been rife over the content of the constitution and the political system in Tunisia, which sparked the Arab Spring when it ousted veteran strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali early last year. Ennahda, an Islamist party which touts itself as moderate, won Tunisia's first post-uprising poll in October, taking 41 percent of the seats in the National Constituent Assembly. It said that Islamic law would not be inscribed in the new constitution and eyed a parliamentary system, while the other parties insisted that key powers should be held by a president elected by universal suffrage. But polls can only be held after parliament adopts the new constitution which is being drafted by the interim assembly. Assembly speaker Jaafar said this week that a first draft of the text will be submitted in November to parliament which is expected to debate each article over a period of several months before a vote takes place. The ruling coalition also agreed overnight on setting up an independent electoral commission to be headed, according to sources, by Kamel Jendoubi, architect of Tunisia's first free polls in October last year. The compromise is a leap forward in Tunisia, a still fragile nation despite the gains achieved from the revolution that ousted Ben Ali in January 2011. Jaafar, who heads Ettakatol party, admitted in the interview this week that the coalition government had made several "mistakes" and "lacked firmness" towards the increasingly assertive Salafist movement. The government also has been accused of authoritarian tendencies, and of having failed to make progress on social and economic issues that were driving factors behind the revolution.

Britain's Watson wins first WTA title at Japan Open

British player Heather Watson poses with the trophy after winning the Japan Women's Open tennis tournament in Osaka on October 14, 2012. Watson became the first British woman in 24 years to win a WTA singles title after edging past Chang Kai-chen of Taiwan 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (7/4) on Sunday.

AFP - Heather Watson became the first British woman in 24 years to win a WTA singles title after edging past Chang Kai-chen of Taiwan at the Japan Women's Open tennis tournament on Sunday.
The unseeded 20-year-old Watson, playing in her first WTA final, squandered a match point when leading one set and 5-3, hitting a double fault. She had to save four match points when 5-4 down in the final set before winning 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (7/4).
She became the first Briton to win a WTA title since Sara Gomer in Aptos, California back in 1988.
Until a few weeks ago no Briton had even reached a WTA final in 22 years until Laura Robson broke the drought with her run to the final in Guangzhou, China.
Watson has also won three ITF titles, at Wrexham and Toronto in 2010 and at Frinton in 2009.
Watson, who received the winner's cheque of 37,000 dollars, will be back to the centre court later Sunday for the doubles final with Japan's Kimiko Date-Krumm against top seed Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears.
Watson will try to become the first Briton to win both the singles and doubles at the same WTA tournament since Anne Hobbs in 1985.

Kobayashi 'sorry' over double prang at Korean GP

Japanese Sauber-Ferrari driver Kamui Kobayashi steers his car with a flat tyre during the Korean F1 Grand Prix at the Korean Circuit in Yeongam on October 14, 2012. Kobayashi, whose place next season at Sauber is in serious jeopardy, apologised to Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg after he sent both crashing out of the Korean Grand Prix on Sunday.

AFP - Kamui Kobayashi, whose place next season at Sauber is in serious jeopardy, apologised to Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg after he sent both crashing out of the Korean Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Japanese, criticised by other drivers in the past for his recklessness, also had to retire from the race because of the incident that occurred just moments into a grand prix that was won by Sebastian Vettel.
"It was my mistake at (the) start," he wrote on Twitter. "Sorry for Jenson and Nice (Nico).... Also to my team."
Button's fine start from lowly 11th was wrecked when Kobayashi came flying down the inside, smashing into the McLaren man and destroying his suspension.
"I've just been hit by Kobayashi. What an idiot!" the Briton and 2009 world champion exclaimed over the team radio.
He also hit out at the Japanese after the race, saying: "It's extremely disappointing. This is a long race, with so much opportunity for everyone.
"It's a great circuit for overtaking, so it's surprising to see people behaving like that on the first lap."
His title hopes were over, Button conceded.
Not long after Button retired, Rosberg did the same to his Mercedes because of the same incident. It was the second week in a row that the German has failed to finish a race.
"Unfortunately this has been the second poor weekend in a row for me and it's very frustrating to be taken out twice in the first corners of the race," he said.
"Kobayashi hit me from behind today and that was my race over. The one small positive to be taken from the weekend is our qualifying performance, which was a small step forward.
"Now I'll look forward to India and hope for a bit more luck there."
Kobayashi, third last week in his native Japan, was forced into the pits for a new nose and tyre.
He was then landed with a drive-through penalty for causing the early carnage, and bowed out soon afterwards when Sauber decided that the damage to his car was too extensive.

Philippine rebel chief on historic peace trip

14 October 2012 - 12H15  

Moro Islamic Liberation Front chairman Murad Ebrahim (centre) with other MILF leaders in Camp Darapanan, Sultan Kudarat in the southern Philippines in July. The leader of the Philippines' biggest Muslim rebel group is expected to arrive in Manila on Sunday for a historic visit aimed at ending one of Asia's longest and deadliest insurgencies.

Murad Ebrahim (centre) with his troops inside their base at Camp Darapan, Sultan Kudarat province, on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao.

Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels inside their base at Camp Darapan, Sultan Kudarat province, on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao.

AFP - The leader of the Philippines' biggest Muslim rebel group is expected to arrive in Manila on Sunday for a historic visit aimed at ending one of Asia's longest and deadliest insurgencies.
Murad Ebrahim and other senior figures of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are scheduled to participate in the signing of an accord at the presidential palace on Monday that outlines a roadmap for peace by 2016.
The accord, announced by President Benigno Aquino a week ago, has won applause from foreign governments and the United Nations as a rare chance to end a rebellion that has killed an estimated 150,000 people since the 1970s.
However rank-and-file soldiers of the 12,000-strong MILF, as well as the groups's leaders and independent security analysts, have warned that many obstacles could still derail the peace process.
Ebrahim, an ageing warrior in his 60s who has spent most of his life in the southern Philippine region of Mindanao, will be making his first official trip as MILF leader to Manila and his first visit to the presidential palace.
"We feel honoured to be welcomed in Manila, but I must stress this is just the beginning of the peace journey," Ebrahim's deputy for political affairs Ghazali Jaafar told AFP by phone from the MILF's southern headquarters before departing for Manila.
Jaafar arrived in Manila around 4:00 pm (0800 GMT) Sunday, along with other MILF officials.
He said Ebrahim was to take a separate plane and arrive later in the day.
The MILF chief "feels relieved" that the roadmap for peace would be signed, Jaafar said, after 15 years of negotiations.
In a statement shortly after Aquino's announcement on the "framework agreement", Ebrahim had said the deal "lays down the firm foundations of a just and enduring peace formula".
"The forging of the framework agreement, however, does not mean the end of the struggle for it ushers a new and more challenging stage," he said.
Muslim rebel groups have been fighting for full independence or autonomy for four decades in Mindanao, which they consider their ancestral homeland from before Spanish Christians colonised the country in the 1500s.
The fighting has mired large parts of resource-rich Mindanao in poverty, and led to the proliferation of unlicensed guns and political warlords who battle over fiefdoms.
The estimated four to nine million Muslims are now a minority on Mindanao after years of Catholic immigration, but they insist they should be allowed to govern on their own and control Mindanao, which has fertile farming lands.
The MILF is the biggest and most important remaining rebel group, after the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) signed a peace pact with the government in 1996.
The peace deal with the MNLF led to the creation of an autonomous region that Aquino said was a "failed experiment" that led to corruption and even more poverty.
Underscoring the current fragile security situation in Mindanao, the army said Sunday that three soldiers were gunned down by Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants in a bid to goad fighting ahead of the deal signing.
The Abu Sayyaf is blamed for the country's worst terrorist attacks, and it is not included in the negotiations.
The document to be signed Monday will outline plans to replace that autonomous region with a new one in which the MILF will hold significant power.
Under the framework, the MILF will drop its bid for independence in exchange for autonomy covering several areas on Mindanao island, the southern third of the mainly Catholic Philippines.
They will have their own taxation and share of revenues from natural resources.
It's forces would be disarmed in stages, while the government retains powers in defence, as well as monetary policies.
A transition panel made up of members from both sides is to draft a "basic law" covering the autonomous region to be passed by the nation's parliament by 2015.
The people living in the proposed autonomous region would then need to ratify it in a plebiscite held before 2016 when Aquino is required by the constitution to stand down.
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, whose government hosted the talks, and OIC secretary general Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu will attend Monday's signing of the peace pact.