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Army chief takes power after Burkina Prez bows to protests
Fighting Ebola in Liberia
Israel reopens Al-Aqsa mosque
Afghan first lady backs French veil ban
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Army chief takes power after Burkina Prez bows to protests
Ouagadougou, October 31 However, with hundreds of thousands of protesters packing the streets of the capital Ouagadougou for a second day on Friday and no sign of international support for him staying on, Compaore announced his resignation. "I declare a vacancy of power with a view to allowing a transition that should end with free and transparent elections in a maximum period of 90 days," Compaore said in a written statement read on local radio and television. A heavily armed convoy believed to be carrying Compaore was seen travelling on Friday towards the southern town of Po, near the border with Ghana, two diplomatic sources and local media said. Crowds danced and cheered in Ougadougou's dusty streets, blowing on whistles after Compaore's statement was broadcast. The mood cooled, however, as it became plain that military chief General Honore Traore had taken over the reins of power. Under Burkina Faso's constitution, when the President resigns, the head of the National Assembly should take office, but Parliament had already been dissolved by Traore on Thursday under short-lived martial law. "Considering the urgency of saving the nation, I have decided that I will assume from this day the responsibility of the head of state," Traore told a news conference. There was no immediate reaction from opposition leaders to Traore's announcement. Many protesters said they wanted a transition led by retired General Kouame Lougue, a popular former defence minister who was accused of trying to topple Compaore in 2004. Long a bastion of stability in the turbulent Sahel region, Burkina Faso's crisis is being closely watched by military allies France and the United States, and by governments in the region where several long-standing rulers are approaching the end of their mandates amid rumbling of popular discontent. French President Francois Hollande, who had discretely sought ways to usher Compaore into an international role when his term was due to have ended next year, welcomed the former president's resignation in a statement and called for quick elections to be held.
— Reuters
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China to send elite army unit
Beijing, October 31 Washington has led the international drive to stop the spread of the disease that has killed nearly 5,000 people, sending thousands of troops and committing about $1 billion, but Beijing has faced criticism for not doing enough. The PLA squad, which has experience from a 2002 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), will build a 100-bed treatment centre in Liberia, the first such facility in the three countries most impacted by Ebola to be constructed and run by a foreign country, said Lin Songtian, director general of the ministry's Department of African Affairs. The centre will be open for operation in a month's time, he told a briefing in Beijing. China will also dispatch 480 PLA medical staff to treat Ebola patients, he said. It's the first time China has deployed a whole unit of epidemic prevention forces and military medical staff abroad, Lin said. China is Africa's biggest trade partner, tapping the continent's rich vein of resources to fuel its own economic growth over the past couple of decades. Some critics have rounded on Beijing for not helping more in Africa's hour of need. China has so far donated 750 million yuan ($123 million) to 13 African countries and international organisations to combat Ebola. — Reuters
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Jerusalem, October 31 The streets of east Jerusalem were calm ahead of the prayers at midday, following an Israeli clampdown on the shrine, which is holy for Muslims and Jews alike. Clashes erupted when Israeli police on Wednesday night shot dead a Palestinian accused of trying to kill a Jewish hardliner. The closure was the first for decades and prompted a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to condemn the move as an Israeli "declaration of war". Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said that because of fears of unrest at the midday prayers, entry for Muslim men would be restricted to those over 50. Additional police were deployed around the Al-Aqsa compound in the heart of the Old City, with local media reporting the presence of some 3,000 officers, three times more than usual. The Al-Aqsa mosque compound - known to Jews as the Temple Mount - is the third holiest site in Islam and Judaism's holiest. The clashes subsided late yesterday with a few sporadic confrontations between stone-throwing Palestinians and police firing rubber bullets and tear gas. Three Palestinians were arrested, Samri said. The funeral of the Palestinian passed off without incident, she added. Jerusalem has been shaken by months of unrest sparked by the murder of a Palestinian teenager in July in revenge for the killings of three Jewish teenagers in the West Bank. A 50-day war between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza in July and August intensified protests and clashes in the Holy City. — AFP Religious importance
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Afghan first lady backs French veil ban
Kabul, October 31 Rula Ghani shocked Afghan observers earlier this year when she appeared with her husband during the country's presidential campaign, a rare example of a political wife sharing the spotlight. Now the Lebanese-American of Christian heritage is set to carve out a role for herself as the patriarchal and deeply Muslim nation's first high-profile first lady. In an interview with AFP at the presidential palace, Rula, who speaks five languages, reminisced about her time as a student at the prestigious Sciences Po university in Paris which she attended during the late 1960s. Wearing a vintage Hermes scarf over her hair, she recalled in fluent French that "all the young women at Sciences Po had their headscarves which they would wear as they stepped out of school". "When issues began to arise around the veil and hijab in France, I was a little shocked, people seem to not have a very long memory." Wearing the full veil in public was banned by French law in 2011, igniting a fierce debate over the value of religious freedom against social cohesion. Rula said she supported the ban. "Regarding the French law against the niqab and burqa which prevent women from being able to move freely and see, because the niqab is a bit like blinders, I am in full agreement with the government of France," she said. It is a typically forthright view from a woman of strong opinions who has already taken a far more prominent role than her predecessor, Zeenat Karzai, who was practically invisible during the 13-year rule of her husband Hamid Karzai. Rula admits she is still trying to define her role, but hopes that by the end of her husband's five-year term, "men in Afghanistan will be more inclined to recognise whatever role their wives take" "In one word, more respect," she said. Her husband is already leading by example, praising his wife's work with internally displaced people, women and children during his September 29 inauguration speech. — AFP Leading by example
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PIA took Indian passengers to Pak hotel without visa
Car bomb kills 10 at bus stop in northeast Nigeria Myanmar may allow Suu Kyi to become President
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The head of Burkina Faso's armed forces took power on Friday after President Blaise Compaore resigned amid mass demonstrations against an attempt to extend his 27-year rule in the West African country.
“This is a sub-Saharan Spring and it must continue against all the presidents who are trying to hang on to power in Africa,” said law student Lucien Trinnou, referring to the Arab Spring that toppled several long-term leaders
