NEWS OF THE DAY
1 President charged: Brazil’s federal police filed new charges against President Michel Temer on Tuesday, recommending he be put on trial for corruption, money laundering and criminal association for allegedly taking bribes to favor port management companies. The report also argues that Temer’s assets should be frozen. The charges also involve one of the president’s daughters and two of his close aides.
2 Health worker killed: Islamic State-linked extremists in Nigeria have killed another abducted health worker despite an urgent plea from the International Committee of the Red Cross to spare her life, the global aid organization confirmed on Tuesday. Hauwa Mohammed Liman, 24, had been working as a midwife in a hospital supported by the ICRC. Her death comes a month after a health worker abducted with her was killed by the same group, the Islamic State West Africa Province, the largest Islamic Statelinked extremist group in Africa. A third female health worker remains captive.
3 Hostage released: French President Emmanuel Macron announced the release of a French citizen Tuesday held hostage in Yemen for more than four months. French media reported that the 54-year-old Alain Goma was on a sailing trip when damage on the ship forced him to dock in a Yemeni port of Hodeida in June, where he was held by rebels. Yemen has been locked in a ruinous war pitting a Saudi-led coalition backing the government against Shiite rebels known as Houthis since March 2015. Yemeni security officials said the Houthis released Goma from a prison in the capital, Sanaa, which is under rebel control. They said the release came after “intensive” talks between France’s envoy to Yemen and Houthi leaders.
4 Mass expulsion: The U.N. refugee agency is expressing concern over Angolan authorities’ expulsion of some 200,000 Congolese in the past two weeks, saying it could create a humanitarian crisis. The U.N. agency says the order targeted Congolese migrants working in the informal mining sector. It is not clear what prompted the order. The statement on Tuesday says mass expulsions are contrary to African Charter obligations and urges the Angolan and Congolese governments to work together to ensure safe “population movement.” The U.N. notes some reports of violence in Angola as security agents enforced the order that set a deadline of Oct. 15 to leave. It worries that the Congolese are in a “desperate situation” as they return to the fragile, conflict-weary Kasai region.
5 Graft charges: China’s ruling Communist Party expelled a former top general who killed himself during a corruption probe and indicted another on graft charges amid President Xi Jinping’s continuing crackdown on military malfeasance. Official media reported that Zhang Yang killed himself at home last November, after which they denounced his death as a “despicable” act to escape punishment. Tuesday’s announcement said Zhang had been posthumously stripped of his rank, while assets related to his crimes would be seized. Zhang formerly headed the Political Work Department under the government and party commissions that oversee the People’s Liberation Army, the world’s largest standing military. The other general, Fang Fenghui, was also expelled and stripped of his rank and faces a court martial on corruption allegations.
Chronicle News Services