Somali pirates have released a merchant vessel with 21 crew members, six months after it was hijacked. Officials in India say the MV Sinin, a bulk carrier, is headed to Sri Lanka after its release Saturday. The Maltese-flagged ship is believed to have a crew of nine Indians and 12 Iranians. Indian newspaper reports say […]
Somali Pirates Release Ship With 21 Crew
Posted August 14th, 2011 at 5:50 am (UTC-5)
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South Africa to Provide More AIDS Drugs
Posted August 13th, 2011 at 6:50 pm (UTC-5)
The South African government has expanded its AIDS program to allow people who have the HIV virus to start antiretroviral treatment earlier. South Africa’s Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe says all HIV patients will be put on life-saving antiretroviral drugs when their white blood cell level, known as their CD4 count, drops to 350. Previously, state […]
Nigerian Muslim Sect Kills Cleric
Posted August 13th, 2011 at 5:40 pm (UTC-5)
Police in Nigeria say suspected members of a radical Islamist group have shot dead a prominent Muslim cleric in the country’s northeast. Police said Saturday the 65 year-old cleric, Liman Bana, was killed Friday night after evening prayers in the town of Ngala. Officials say the gunmen traveled on motorcycles and sped away after the […]
UN Humanitarian Chief Meets Famine Victims in Somalia
Posted August 13th, 2011 at 1:35 pm (UTC-5)
The United Nations humanitarian chief has visited Somalia’s capital where tens of thousands of people are in desperate need of food and medical assistance. Valerie Amos visited a hospital Saturday during her tour of Mogadishu and met with people who have fled their homes in southern Somalia in hopes of escaping the famine. Amos said […]
WHO: Cholera on the Rise in Somali Capital
Posted August 13th, 2011 at 3:15 am (UTC-5)
The World Heath Organization says Somalia has seen a spike in cholera in the Mogadishu area. WHO said Friday more than 4,000 cases of diarrheal disease have been reported in Mogadishu’s Banadir hospital this year. It says children under five account for 75 percent of those cases. The World Health Organization says it has already […]
Five Somalia Pirates Sentenced in the Netherlands
Posted August 13th, 2011 at 12:15 am (UTC-5)
A Dutch court has sentenced five Somali men to up to seven years in prison on piracy charges. A judge in the Netherlands imposed the sentences on Friday. The suspects are all in their twenties. Two of them hijacked the South African yacht Choizil off the coast of Tanzania in November. Authorities say two people […]
Nigeria Extradites Scam Suspect To US
Posted August 12th, 2011 at 6:05 pm (UTC-5)
Nigeria has extradited a man to the United States for his alleged role in a multi-nation scam that defrauded law firms of more than 30 million dollars. Nigerian officials said Friday the suspect, Emmanuel Ekhator, who is Nigerian, was handed over to U.S. officials earlier this week and charged in the eastern U.S. state of […]
Al-Shabab Vows to Use Guerilla Tactics in Somalia
Posted August 12th, 2011 at 1:50 pm (UTC-5)
Somalia’s militant group al-Shabab says it will use guerilla tactics in the capital, Mogadishu, where a massive new shipment of foreign aid has just arrived in the famine-hit country. In an interview aired on London’s Somali Channel on Friday, al-Shabab leader Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys said the group will use the new strategy because it […]
UN Warns Cholera Epidemic Spreading in Somalia
Posted August 12th, 2011 at 10:15 am (UTC-5)
The United Nations says Somalia is facing a cholera epidemic as people in the famine-hit country migrate in search of food and water. Dr. Michel Yao, a public health advisor for the World Health Organization, says cholera cases among the refugee population in the capital, Mogadishu have risen sharply. He blames the outbreak on unsanitary […]
US Gives Additional $17 Million in Famine Aid
Posted August 12th, 2011 at 5:00 am (UTC-5)
The United States has announced an additional $17 million in funding to help Horn of Africa nations deal with drought and famine. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Thursday $12 million of the aid would go to Somalia, the country worst hit by the drought. The United States has so far given $580 million in […]
