Politics

South Africa / AFP South Africa’s top court on Thursday delivered a damning verdict against President Jacob Zuma, saying he flouted the constitution over public funds used to upgrade his private residence, sparking immediate calls for him to be impeached. Zuma “failed to uphold, defend and respect the constitution as the supreme law of the land,” Chief Justice MogoengMogoeng said ...

Bloomberg The Hong Kong government threatened to bar formation of a political party advocating independence from China, adding to tensions over Beijing’s control of the city before legislative elections in September. Hong Kong is an “inalienable part of the People’s Republic of China” and any movement that advocates independence violates the city’s stability and the Basic Law, the city’s de-facto ...

Myanmar / AFP Aung San Suu Kyi’s party moved on Thursday to make her a special state adviser, giving her access to every tier of government and cementing her control over Myanmar’s first civilian administration in decades. Hopes are growing the newly sworn-in government can accelerate the country’s economic and political rejuvenation after nearly half a century of military repression. ...

Paris / AFP Malaysia’s Sarawak state will dissolve its assembly on April 11, paving the way for elections that are seen as a test of support for Prime Minister NajibRazak. The Election Commission will fix the nomination and polling days after the assembly is dissolved, the New Straits Times newspaper said on Twitter, citing Chief Minister AdenanSatem. An election must ...

Tripoli / AFP Gunmen stormed the headquarters of a Libyan television station late Wednesday, as the authorities in control of Tripoli demanded the departure of the newly-arrived prime minister designate in a blow to hopes for a peaceful power handover. Armed men burst into the headquarters of satellite TV station Al Nabaa in central Tripoli, cut its transmissions and forced ...

Kolkata / AFP At least 14 people were killed and dozens more injured when a flyover collapsed in a busy Indian city on Thursday, an official said, as emergency workers battled to rescue people trapped under the rubble. The flyover was under construction when it collapsed onto a crowded street in the eastern city of Kolkata around lunchtime, crushing pedestrians, ...

Ankara / AFP Turkey’s military on Thursday angrily denied suggestions it could be planning a coup against the increasingly controversial President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Certain media outlets have carried reports speculating over the possibility of a military coup in Turkey, with Erdogan out of the country for almost a week on a visit to the United States. The Turkish military ...

Hebron / AFP Israeli authorities overnight demolished the home of a Palestinian killed after fatally stabbing a Jewish settler in the West Bank city of Hebron, the Israeli army and Palestinian sources said on Thursday. Israel regularly demolishes Palestinian attackers’ homes in a bid to deter violence, but human rights activists say it amounts to collective punishment, forcing relatives to ...

Jerusalem / AFP Israel’s state-run electricity company was set on Thursday to reduce the power supply to a Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank over a debt of $450 million, an Israeli official said. The decision by the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) applies to Jericho and comes after the Palestinian Authority and the private Palestinian Jerusalem District Electricity Company ...

Kampala / AFP Ugandan judges dismissed on Thursday a legal challenge to President Yoweri Museveni’s fifth-term election victory last month, which sparked claims of foul play. “The Election Commission nominated Museveni lawfully in accordance with the Presidential Elections Act,” Chief Justice Bart Katureebe said as he read the ruling to a packed court in the capital Kampala. “We find no ...