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News_Naija
Finally, Rauf Aregbesola Moves On
~4.8 mins read
In 2010, when he became governor of Osun State, the name Rauf Aregbesola didn’t sound familiar to many of us who’d been out of Nigeria for a while. From different sources, my ears were filled with both sweet and sour stories flying around town about the man when he was governor from 2010-2018. In 2013, I went to verify the stories before riding alongside others on the vilifying train, throttled by strangers on social media. What I saw in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State and surrounding towns in the spiralling asphalted roads, in the big bridges, the torn-down and towered-back-up high school buildings that stood in classic comparison with those in some US cities, made my heart throb in joy, after all, Osun is my state. In the aftermath of my fact-finding sojourn and by fortuitous arrangement, I met the governor one-on-one in the place he called home. Our friendship grew from there. When I read in the news that the former governor was dumping the ruling party for the coalition political assemblage, I was not surprised. I knew the relationship between him and his political mentor, President Bola Tinubu, was frosty. But I had to contact him to confirm the controversy in the news. That was when he told me that an announcement was coming regarding his next political move. And a few days ago, the buzz was across the media space that the former governor will be teaming up with other politicians from across the nation to position the African Democratic Congress in a contest that promises to be fierce and furious against the incumbent President Tinubu, in the 2027 presidential election. Now, we have the first stage of the revealing. Aregbesola was nominated as the interim secretary of the new opposition party. My friends, I am certain that there is much more to come in the near future. I got to know the former governor much more in 2014 during his reelection as the Osun governor. We never agreed on all issues, but his mindset on fairness, justice, man’s inhumanity to man, and nation-building caught my attention. During our many discussions, the former minister told me a bit about his relationship with Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who is now the president of Nigeria. He spoke loftily about this president with much reverence and deference. “Fola, emi l’oga ooo.” (I have a boss), he said several times. What he meant was that whatever Asiwaju said to him to do was the final. This is often the thinking of a man who is loyal and committed to a cause and a friend. Unfortunately, that season of friendship may have come to an end, at least for now. Aregbesola is now a member of another political party, where he is pursuing his own political destiny after it became obvious that a détente between the two brothers was a mission impossible. But what happened between these two progressive personalities, whose close relationship dates back decades? Aregbesola will not deny the role that Tinubu has played in his political life. And I heard that the President believes that his friend has added value to his political life as well. The benefits, we heard, have been mutual. So, what happened? The swirling furore apparently began when Asiwaju backed Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, his blood relative, as successor to Aregbesola in Osun. The former governor cautioned against possible public perception of nepotism and highhandedness. Those warnings apparently didn’t carry too much weight. Tinubu rarely misses when he picks candidates for certain offices and assignments. The man has a nose for high-achieving people. It’s in his DNA.  Oyetola eventually became governor in 2018 in a controversial rerun. The fiery feud between Oyetola and Aregbesola originated from Bourdillon and spiralled down the Lagos-Ibadan expressway to Osogbo. The cause of their rift is politics and power play that got personal. Suddenly, Rauf, one of the few Godzilla of grassroots politics in the entire South-West, became a plague Oyetola didn’t want to touch with a 10 -foot pole. In 2022, Oyetola’s political train was derailed. He lost the election. And the feud was a great factor. Aregbesola ’s relationship with Tinubu immediately went south and sour afterwards. Serious efforts were made at a truce. Late Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Adeyemi, was the arrowhead who tried to rebuild the battered bridge between the two brothers. But the cold hands of death snatched him at old age. I heard that there were other Yoruba elders who took a swing at resolving the misunderstanding. I heard that the former Osun governor stretched out his hands to Mr President to settle the rift. For almost two years, he has apologised publicly and privately for whatever human error may have triggered. But the party he helped build in the state expelled him. I also heard that Mr President misses his friend, too. I heard that in their close circles, he wondered what the former Minister was angry about at this time in history. The irony of this whole story is that Tinubu’s avowed enemies are now serving in his government. Men who told false stories about him, who made up tales about some illegal odysseys he allegedly engaged in, who said he never graduated from any school abroad and that he falsified his records, sleep and wake up with him every day because their sins have been forgiven. Those who called Mr President ugly names are in the same villa working for him. And these people never swallowed their words nor apologised for the foul words spewed against Mr President. If the sins of these fellas can be forgiven, what is dragging this feud on between Mr President and Aregbesola? And till today, the two have neither spoken nor seen face-to-face. My friends, when dealing with politicians anywhere, do so with a long spoon. Politicians are behind this feud, for whatever reason. Finally, Rauf Aregbesola has moved on. The former minister is the interim secretary of the political party ADC. He is tough, strong, energetic and vibrant and a custodian of brain and brawn. As for Tinubu, the sitting president may be ageing, but the neurotransmitter in his brain fires without fail. His unusual intelligence is his strength; his boldness to do what others have no guts to do as president has no presidential comparison. What a great combination of ideas and meshing of minds this would have been if the two who have worked together for decades and achieved so much in their individual political spaces had looked beyond the feud and animus and closed ranks pro bono publico. I hope that the strained fences between the former governor and the President could have been mended before now. But it was not. I am certain that someday it will be. I wish Aregbesola’s relationship with Tinubu had remained cordial. I wish Rauf didn’t have to bunch up with others to run against this president. These are just my wishes. But I understand Aregbesola’s thinking.  He is 68 years old! He still has a lot to offer.  Time may be running out. I wish both of them well. X-@Folaojotweet
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Worldnews
Irans FM Araghchi, Saudi Crown Prince MBS Hold Fruitful Talks In Jeddah
~2.1 mins read
Tehran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi visits Saudi Arabia for the first time after Iran’s 12-day war with Israel. Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) has met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Jeddah in the first visit by a top Iranian official to the Gulf kingdom after Israel’s war with Tehran. Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Araghchi’s talks with Prince Mohammed and other Saudi officials on Tuesday were “fruitful”. The visit after the 12-day intense conflict between Israel and Iran, which saw the United States bomb three Iranian nuclear facilities before mediating a ceasefire, suggests that the war did not derail the rapprochement between Tehran and Riyadh. Saudi Arabia’s official news agency, SPA, said Araghchi and Prince Mohammed “reviewed bilateral relations and discussed the latest regional developments and the efforts being made in that regard”. “The Crown Prince expressed the Kingdom’s aspiration that the ceasefire agreement would contribute to creating conditions that promote security and stability in the region, emphasizing the Kingdom’s stance in supporting dialogue through diplomatic means as a path to resolving disputes,” SPA said. It added that Araghchi expressed his gratitude to the kingdom for “condemning the Israeli aggression”. The top Iranian diplomat also met with Saudi Minister of Defence Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz and Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud. Israel launched a massive bombardment against Iran on June 13, without direct provocation, killing top military commanders and nuclear scientists as well as hundreds of civilians. Iran retaliated with missile barrages that left widespread destruction in Israel. After the US targeted Iran’s nuclear sites, Tehran responded with a missile launch against a US airbase in Qatar. Shortly after that attack, US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between Iran and Israel. While Arab countries condemned the attack as a violation of Qatar’s sovereignty, Iran appears to be pushing to repair relations with Gulf states. Ties between Tehran and Riyadh were strained for years over disagreements around regional conflicts and mutual accusations of spreading instability. But the two countries agreed to restore formal relations as part of a deal brokered by China in 2023, and top Saudi and Iranian officials have been in regular contact. Before the outbreak of the recent war, Saudi Arabia had welcomed Iran’s nuclear talks with the US, saying it supported efforts to resolve regional and international disputes. On Monday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he believed Tehran could resolve its differences with the US through dialogue, but trust would be an issue after the attacks on his country. In an article published by the Financial Times earlier on Tuesday, Araghchi accused Israel of preferring conflict over diplomacy. “Iran remains interested in diplomacy, but we have good reason to have doubts about further dialogue,” he wrote. “If there is a desire to resolve this amicably, the US should show genuine readiness for an equitable accord.” Follow Al Jazeera English:...
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Worldnews
Sudans Aid Workers Fear Crackdown Under Strict New Army Rules
~5.8 mins read
Aid workers fear arrest and worsening of hunger crisis that already threatens millions of people. Aid workers and activists are fearful that new regulations announced by Sudan’s army-backed government will lead to a crackdown on local relief volunteers, exacerbating the catastrophic hunger crisis affecting 25 million people across the country. A directive announced by Khartoum state on its official Facebook page this month said all relief initiatives in the state must register with the Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC), a government body that oversees humanitarian operations in Sudan. The HAC was given expanded powers to register, monitor and – critics argue – crack down on local and Western aid groups by former leader Omar al-Bashir in 2006, according to aid groups, local relief volunteers and experts. “HAC is trying to monitor and restrict the work of ERRs by forcing us to register, … and I fear they will arrest volunteers if we keep working but don’t register,” Ahmed*, a local volunteer in Khartoum, said, referring to the Emergency Response Rooms, grassroots committees that are spearheading the humanitarian response in Sudan. Khaled Abdelraheem Ahmed, the HAC commissioner for the state of Khartoum, confirmed the new directive to Al Jazeera. He said registration requires paying a fee of roughly $800 and submitting a list of names of the employees or volunteers in each relief initiative. “[Nobody] is allowed to carry out humanitarian activities without registering,” Abdelraheem said. The new directive is raising concern among ERRs. They have been instrumental in feeding, protecting and rescuing civilians from attacks since the civil war erupted between Sudan’s regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in April 2023. The ERRs maintain a public stance of neutrality in an effort to preserve humanitarian access irrespective of who controls the areas they operate in at any given time. Still, they have been attacked by both sides throughout the war. Local activists, foreign aid workers and experts now suspect that the HAC is trying to register ERRs in Khartoum to try to monitor and coopt their activities and profit from their already meagre budgets. Any constraints or impediments to their work could have devastating consequences for civilians in Khartoum, said Kholood Khair, a Sudan expert and the founder of the Confluence Advisory think tank. “In Khartoum, it’s one meal a day for a lot of people in a lot of areas,” she told Al Jazeera. “If people start missing that one meal because [ERR] volunteers are not turning up because they don’t feel safe enough to [show up and feed them], then obviously that means that famine levels will go through the roof,” Khair added. Experts and aid workers previously told Al Jazeera that they consider the HAC an outfit for military intelligence. Al Jazeera contacted army spokesperson Nabil Abdullah to comment on the accusations against the HAC. He did not respond before publication. The head of the HAC, Najm al-din Musa, previously denied allegations that the commission was involved in aid diversion, telling Al Jazeera that they were “lies”. The HAC has long been accused of imposing bureaucratic impediments to prevent international aid groups from reaching regions outside the army’s control. It often forces aid agencies to apply for multiple – seemingly endless – permissions from various ministries and security branches as a way to significantly delay or outright block access to regions outside the army’s control and in urgent need, aid workers previously told Al Jazeera. This practice has led experts, global relief workers and human rights groups to accuse the army of using food and aid as a weapon of war. Hamid Khalafallah, an expert on Sudan’s grassroots movements and a PhD candidate at Manchester University in the United Kingdom, believes the HAC is further politicising aid by forcing ERRs to register. “[The HAC] wants to control the programming of [the ERRs] and make sure that it matches their priorities, … which are obviously politicised and follow the guidelines of the de facto [army] government,” he told Al Jazeera. In addition, local relief workers and experts fear that if ERR members in Khartoum register with the HAC, then their names could be handed over to intelligence branches, exposing them to unwanted harassment or arrest. Shortly after the army recaptured most of Khartoum in March, a number of “hit lists” circulated over social media, Khalafallah said. The lists accused hundreds of civilians who did not have the resources to flee from the RSF while it controlled Khartoum of cooperating with the group. The names of some ERR members were on the lists. The army has created some of its own humanitarian committees called “Karama” (Dignity), which have been providing some services to civilians in Khartoum, four local relief workers told Al Jazeera without providing details. The relief workers did say that the Karama committees have not tried to obstruct the work of the ERRs. Local volunteers still worry that the Karama committees were designed to help the army build a loyal constituency through aid provision. “The [army] wants the services to go through the people they appoint. They will handle distribution of food, medicare and whatever else,” said Salma*, a local volunteer from one of the ERRs. “It’s a type of propaganda,” she told Al Jazeera. ERR volunteers worry that if they register with the HAC, then they will be prohibited from aiding their communities if they ever come back under RSF control. This could significantly harm the trust that ERR volunteers have built with their communities since the start of the war, they said. Others worry that the HAC will try to restrict and impede the work of ERRs once they register as part of a broader ploy to empower Karama committees at their expense. However, experts and international aid workers both said the army is not doing enough to repair basic services in a city that has been destroyed by the RSF. In contrast, the ERRs have been effective in acting quickly to mitigate the humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan because volunteers do not need approval from a state authority before making life-saving decisions, Khalafallah said. “This requirement [to register] with HAC is absolutely damaging for ERRs because the work they do is based on being totally independent and … [on having a model] where accountability looks downwards to the beneficiaries,” he said. The ERRs are struggling to raise enough money to support their communities. They now worry they will be forced to cough up money to the HAC if they have to register with it. “We know that HAC will take a cut from our budgets. … This is the main problem [with registering] really,” said Noon, a local volunteer. The HAC has a long history of shaking down aid agencies for money. Even before the war, they forced aid groups to hire HAC staff to deliver aid and sit in on job interviews. One foreign relief worker who did not wish to be named said international aid agencies who have supported ERRs since the start of the war will likely continue to do so quietly whether they register or not. However, the source warned that United Nations agencies may make concessions to the HAC. “What the UN agrees to [with the HAC] will have an impact on everybody else, and it will undermine the position of everybody else,” the source said. Daniel Tengo, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) spokesperson for Sudan, told Al Jazeera that the UN has not decided whether it will maintain or cease support to ERRs that do not register with the HAC. He added that OCHA is in touch with ERRs and waiting for them to make a decision. “OCHA is aware of the recent communication from Khartoum HAC and has reached out to the coordination body of the Emergency Response Rooms to better understand the implications,” he said. “ERRs confirmed awareness of [HAC’s directive] and indicated that internal discussions are ongoing on how best to respond,” Tengo told Al Jazeera. Local relief workers in Khartoum explained that each ERR in Khartoum will deliberate among its own members and then share their opinion with other ERRs. In the end, they will reach a unanimous decision. “Maybe we will find another creative solution,” said Salma* “We are just trying to find a way to keep working without creating more fights and problems,” she told Al Jazeera. *The names of local aid workers have been changed due to safety concerns. Follow Al Jazeera English:...
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Worldnews
What Are Germanys Taurus Missiles That Ukraine Wants?
~6.0 mins read
German Chancellor Merz’s recent comments cause speculation Berlin will finally send the weapons to Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has held talks with Germany’s Friedrich Merz in Berlin, days after the newly installed chancellor said Kyiv’s Western allies had lifted range restrictions on their missiles and would allow Ukraine to use them to strike deep inside Russian territory. Merz made the announcement on Monday as Russia carried out heavy aerial bombardments on Ukraine and both sides launched tit-for-tat drone attacks. That comment sparked hope in Kyiv and put renewed attention on the possibility of Germany supplying Ukraine with Taurus missiles, which the war-wracked country has long requested. However, Merz, in a joint appearance with Zelenskyy on Wednesday, promised the Ukrainian leader that Germany would help his country develop long-range missiles on its territory. He did not make any commitments regarding the Taurus. Germany has been a key backer of Ukraine and is the second biggest supplier of military aid after the United States. However, former Chancellor Olaf Scholz was reluctant to supply Kyiv with Taurus missiles because he did not want Germany to be directly involved in the Ukraine war. He agreed to provide Leopard 2 battle tanks in January 2023 after pressure from his NATO allies. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that if Western countries allow Ukraine to use their long-range weapons to strike inside Russia, it would put NATO “at war with his country”. Since taking office on May 6, however, Merz has deepened efforts to retain Western support for Ukraine amid efforts by US Donald Trump’s administration to end the war. Trump has been critical of the US aid to Ukraine under his predecessor Joe Biden. But recent intensified Russian aerial attacks on Ukraine have angered Trump, who has called Putin “crazy”. Ukraine believes the Taurus would be a game-changer in the war. Here’s what to know about the weapons: The Taurus is a German-Swedish low-cruise, long-range air missile that can accurately deliver heavy explosives to targets as far away as 500km (300 miles). It was manufactured in 1998 through a joint partnership between the German missile company MBDA Deutschland and Sweden’s Saab Bofors Dynamics. A powerful warhead allows the missile to penetrate and cause significant damage to deep or hard targets, such as underground bunkers, communication facilities, ammunition storage warehouses and ships. The missile can also travel over long distances without GPS support. Although Ukraine already uses Western-provided missiles from the US and the United Kingdom, some experts and Ukrainian officials believe this projectile would be the strongest Western missile to be used by Ukraine if Germany gives a green light because the others have only half of the range of the Taurus and cannot carry as much ammunition. Scholz’s left-leaning Social Democratic Party (SPD)-led coalition government was cautious of escalating the war and possibly drawing in Germany, and by default, NATO. That’s because Moscow has warned several times that if Ukraine uses any Western missiles inside Russian territory, it would be perceived as those countries directly entering the conflict. It’s also due to the SPD’s stance against war. Germany – which currently provides Ukraine with short-range rockets, including the M142 HIMARS MLRS and MARS II MLRS – and other weapons-providing Western allies initially restricted Ukraine from using their weapons inside Russia but allowed Kyiv to hit Russian targets within Ukraine. In November, former US President Biden, however, lifted restrictions on US weapons, allowing Ukraine to use them in Russia’s Kursk region. That came at a time when Kyiv had launched a surprise offensive on the region on its border. Some experts said lifting the restrictions was a major help to Ukraine. It has since lost most of the territory it had seized but does continue to hold some Russian land. In March 2024, Russia tapped a top-secret conversation among Germany’s military brass in which officials discussed whether they might be able to persuade Scholz to send the Taurus to Ukraine and whether the missile could blow up the Kerch Bridge connecting Russia to Ukraine’s occupied Crimea region. Berlin appeared ready to change its tone under Merz’s new administration. As an opposition member, Merz, who heads the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), had pressured Scholz to send the Taurus to Ukraine and for Germany to take a stronger stance against Russia. During his election campaign, Merz promised to support Ukraine more concretely, including by sending long-range missiles. However, his coalition government includes the SPD. On Wednesday, Merz promised Zelenskyy German support in producing long-range missiles on Ukrainian territory in what appeared to be a compromise position. The chancellor promised that financing for the project would be discussed subsequently at the Group of Seven summit to be held in Canada in June. Analyst Michael Bociurkiw of the Atlantic Council think tank told Al Jazeera the pledge was still “pretty significant”, adding that it was one of the first real pledges from Germany to Ukraine. “I think it’s a recognition of Ukrainian capabilities,” he said. On Monday, Merz had spoken to the public broadcaster WDR about the range restrictions enforced by NATO members and said there were “no longer any range restrictions for weapons that have been delivered to Ukraine – neither by the British, nor by the French, nor by us, and not by the Americans either”. Merz did not explicitly say that Germany would send the Taurus to Ukraine, but his comments sent many analysts into a speculative frenzy. On Tuesday, Merz clarified that he was specifically referring to his support for Ukraine’s right to strike deep inside Russia. “Hence yesterday in Berlin, I was describing something that already happened months ago,” Merz said. Merz’s comments, however, attracted criticism from the SPD and from within his own CDU. Some said his statements and actual reality are contradictory. CDU lawmaker Roderich Kiesewetter said in a post on Tuesday on X that Germany was “irrelevant” in the long-range missile conversation because it has refused to send Ukraine the Taurus and he saw no willingness to do that under the current coalition. “Therefore, we should also avoid making contradictory statements on this matter. … I continue to see no unity in the coalition and no political will to act appropriately and with strength and consistency in response to Russia’s massive escalation. Such statements are therefore overall unhelpful because they highlight Europe’s weakness to Russia,” he wrote. Also on Tuesday, SPD head and Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil said at a news conference that there had been no policy change regarding delivering German weapons to Ukraine or the restrictions on their use. Expert John Foreman, who is affiliated with the UK think tank Chatham House, said even if Germany sends the Taurus at this point, its effects might be more of a symbolic victory for Ukraine rather than a tactical one. A Taurus delivery would arrive “too late to change the overall trajectory of the war”, Foreman told Al Jazeera, adding that Germany would have to supply a significant number to make a difference. “Russia has learned a lot about the transparency of the modern battlefield over the last three years and has become more adept at dispersal, air defence and camouflage to complicate targeting,” he added. Moscow has yet to comment on Germany’s move to collaborate with Ukraine in developing long-range missiles in the country. Russia has consistently warned that Western-provided weapons striking inside the country would be seen as an escalation, one that Putin said in September could attract nuclear retaliation. But Merz’s move attempts to circumvent that threat. After Merz’s election victory in April and his continued assuredness of his willingness to send Taurus missiles to Ukraine, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova repeated that Russia would take a Taurus strike as Germany’s “direct” involvement in the war. The Kremlin has also reacted to Merz’s comments this week, according to the Russian news agency TASS. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Merz “has confused everyone, if not himself”, after the vice chancellor denied that such decisions had been made. Peskov warned Berlin against an escalation, saying it would be an “extremely dangerous decision” that goes against ongoing peace efforts. “It is literally several steps towards additional confrontation,” he said. Zakharova added that Germany would “drive itself deeper into the hole in which the Kyiv regime it supports has long been”. “It is doubtful that the head of the German government was or is authorised by anyone to make such statements on behalf of other countries,” she added. Follow Al Jazeera English:...
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