RABAT— Moroccan police have foiled an attempt to smuggle 8.99 tonnes of cannabis near Casablanca, the police said Saturday in a statement. The drugs were carefully hidden in large blocks of marble of about 10 tons each, intended for export to an African country, it added. The operation occurred at a warehouse located […]
General
UN extends mandate for int’l forces fighting piracy off coast of Somalia
UNITED NATIONS— The United Nations (UN) Security Council renewed for an additional three months its authorization for states and regional organizations cooperating with Somalia to use all necessary means to fight piracy off the coast of the East African country. Unanimously adopting Resolution 2608, the council decided, for a further period of three months […]
Total solar eclipse plunges Antarctica into darkness
SANTIAGO— A total solar eclipse plunged Antarctica from summer into darkness early Saturday in a rare astronomical spectacle witnessed by a handful of scientists and thrill-seekers — and countless penguins. “The visibility was excellent,” said Raul Cordero of the University of Santiago de Chile (USACH), who was on site to witness “totality” at 0746 […]
Hundreds of Ivory Coast women march against rape
ABIDJAN— Hundreds of women in Ivory Coast took to the streets of Abidjan on Saturday to protest a surge of violence against women, in a country where 800 women reported rapes in 2020. The movement, dubbed “Offensive Orange”, saw more than 2,000 women march against rape in the Ivorian economic capital, calling it “a weapon […]
Gambia President Barrow Wins Reelection in Post-Jammeh Vote
Gambia’s President Adama Barrow has secured his reelection with a comfortable margin over his opposition in a vote that set the bar for a new chapter in the small West African nation’s democracy. Barrow won about 53% of the vote in Saturday’s election, according to results from the Independent Election Commission announced Sunday. He easily […]
Twin Explosions Rock UN Camps in Mali
Two explosions rocked U.N. camps in the northern Mali city of Gao on Sunday, causing damage but no casualties, AFP journalists at the scene said. The early morning blasts shook the barracks of the U.N. mission in Mali, called MINUSMA, forcing the occupants to take refuge in shelters for two hours. The French army reported […]