ADF

An anti-extremist organization says the ISIS ‘handbook’ is based on distortions of the Quran ADF STAFF  |  photos by AFP/GETTY IMAGES In the name of Allah, ISIS fighters have committed unspeakable atrocities.  They have beheaded civilians. They have burned people alive. They have gang-raped children as young as 12 years old. They have not hesitated to slaughter women and children in a war against their enemies. Their enemies are, simply, anyone who is not among them. ISIS murdered 1,700 fellow Muslims — young army recruits — in June 2014 at a former palace compound of Saddam Hussein near Tikrit, Iraq. ISIS…

BBC NEWS AT BBC.CO.UK/NEWS Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES Malian singer and composer Khaira Arby, known as “the diva of Timbuktu,” died at a hospital in the capital, Bamako, in August 2018. She was 59. Arby was one of the first women to break onto Mali’s music scene in the 1970s, according to news site MaliWeb. Her father did not approve of her singing and made sure she was married when she was 16. She had children and later divorced her husband, saying she left him because she wanted a singing career. A native of the northern city of Timbuktu, she was…

BBC NEWS AT BBC.CO.UK/NEWS  Photo by REUTERS Kenya’s Mary Keitany has won the New York City Marathon for the fourth time in five years as Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa sealed the men’s title. Lelisa won the Boston Marathon in 2013 and 2015 but had never won in New York. Keitany, 37, was second in 2017 but won back the title in 2018 in an unofficial time of two hours, 22 minutes, 48 seconds. She finished almost four minutes ahead of compatriot Vivian Cheruiyot, while Shalane Flanagan of the United States was third. Keitany now is indisputably one of the greatest distance runners…

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Photo by REUTERS The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has picked its first African host of any Olympic competition, formally awarding the 2022 Youth Games to Senegal. Senegal will host the youth games for ages 14 to 18 in three places: Dakar; a new city of Diamniadio, close to the capital; and the coastal resort of Saly. Senegalese President Macky Sall said a 50,000-seat Olympic Stadium will be built for the government-backed project. The budget for the games is estimated at $150 million. Senegal’s games are likely to be held in late May 2022. This would be at the…

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, they call him “Doctor Miracle” for his surgical skill and dedication to helping women overcome the injuries and trauma of sexual abuse and rape. In October 2018, Dr. Denis Mukwege was recognized globally with the Nobel Peace Prize for his work with victims from the conflicts that have ravaged his homeland. He shared the award with Nadia Murad, an Iraqi human rights activist and member of the Yazidi minority who has challenged ISIS.  “Denis Mukwege is the foremost, most unifying symbol, both nationally and internationally, of the struggle…

Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES Côte d’Ivoire authorities have seized nearly 400 metric tons of fake medicine over two years. The country is battling the scourge of counterfeit drugs, particularly in Abidjan, which has become a West African haven for the crime. Counterfeit medicine results in 100,000 deaths annually in Africa, according to the World Health Organization. “In the course of the last two years, 385 [metric] tons of fake medicines — representing a financial loss of 152 million euros [$173 million] for the pharmaceutical industry — were seized,” said Able Ekissi, a Health Ministry inspector. “In Ivory Coast, 30 to 40…

ADF STAFF Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES The U.S. has pledged $111 million to the G5 Sahel Force to bolster the fight against extremism in the Sahel region. The 5,000-person regional force includes troops from member nations Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. Extremist violence in the region has tripled over the past year and resulted in 895 deaths, according to an October 2018 report by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies. “Since our initial pledge of $60 million in October 2017, U.S. assistance has nearly doubled to approximately $111 million to meet the needs and strengthen the capabilities of the…

ADF STAFF Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta announced sweeping reforms to the nation’s police force that change command structure, uniforms, housing and training. The new structure will merge the Administration Police, a paramilitary security force, with the Kenya Police to form a General Duty Police force, the newspaper The Standard reported. The deputy inspector general of police will command the force of 64,252 officers. There will be a new ceremonial uniform, renamed training institutions and new rules on housing allowances. In a September 2018 announcement, Kenyatta said the reforms began immediately and would continue for three years. The…

ADF STAFF Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has acquired 30 aircraft and activated 13 grounded ones in the past three years in an effort to expand and modernize its air fleet. Chief of Air Staff Air Marshall Sadiq Abubakar discussed the acquisitions at the inauguration of the new Headquarters of Air Training Command at the Air Force Comprehensive School in Kaduna. “I am very happy,” Abubakar said in the speech as reported by the newspaper New Day. “In the last three years, we were able to acquire 18 aircraft; similarly the federal government has paid for [an]…

VOICE OF AMERICA Photo by AFP/GETTY IMAGES Throughout nearly six years of civil war, the military of the Central African Republic (CAR) has struggled to restore peace. Fighting with rebels and militias has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, and accusations of human rights abuses and ethnic bias have left some civilians in fear of their protectors. The CAR minister of defense, Marie-Noëlle Koyara, hopes to change course. She’s leading efforts to rebuild the military’s reputation and restore the country’s security. “We want a professional army that will truly be of service to the people,” Koyara told VOA’s French to Africa…