* Liberia. Flag of convenience — Liberia, once the shipping world’s number one flag of convenience, is coming under international pressure to clean up its maritime business as part of efforts to rebuild the country after more than a decade of civil war. United Nations experts have raised concerns about how Liberia spends earnings from the registry, now the world’s second-largest register of ships, behind Panama. The signing of a UN-brokered peace deal last month has strengthened calls for a full audit of maritime revenues. «This is the time for a new approach, meeting the requirements of the UN Security Council,» says Hans-Heinrich Noll, general secretary of Verband Deutscher Reeder, the German shipowners’ association. «I think there is an obligation to set up appropriate measures to see how the money is spent.» Liberia’s maritime operations are run by the US-owned Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry (LISCR). It took over in 2000 after the previous managers, International Registries, fell out with the government of former president Charles Taylor, who went into exile in Nigeria last month. LISCR is based in the US, reflecting the links between the US and Liberia, which was founded by freed US slaves more than 150 years ago. The Liberian registry had its origins during the second world war. Washington wanted to register US controlled ships outside the country, allowing the government of President Franklin Roosevelt to  supply Britain without violating a US neutrality act. Revenues remitted from LISCR to the Liberian government amount to a modest $18m a year, but as war has disrupted other sources of income, the earnings generated by the registry have become increasingly important. Liberian central bank figures suggest maritime business accounted for about one-sixth of total official revenues during the second half of last year. (Financial Times, UK, 8 September 2003)

* Liberia. Taylor allegedly took $3 million — 8 September: The US press is reporting that former president Charles Taylor who is now in exile in Nigeria, took with him $3 million donated for disarming and demobilizing thousands of armed combatants. A senior UN official, describes the theft and says the donor has been an Asian nation. Other government officials said it was Taiwan. Taiwan is the only Asian country with both an embassy in Monrovia and with close ties to the former Taylor administration. Taiwanese officials could not be reached for comment in Monrovia; nor could Taylor in Nigeria. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 8 September 2003)

* Liberia. Déploiement des forces de paix — 8 septembre. Les militaires de l’opération ECOMIL, dépêchés par la Communauté des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest, pourront quitter la capitale Monrovia ce lundi, pour escorter les secours humanitaires et sécuriser d’autres zones du pays, a annoncé le ministre de la Défense, Daniel Chea. 600 soldats bissau-guinéens étaient prêts à partir samedi dernier, mais la mission avait été reportée à cause de “problèmes de coordination” entre les forces gouvernementales et celles de l’ECOMIL. Le ministre a indiqué que les soldats libériens avaient reçu l’ordre de se retirer de la principale route qui relie la capitale aux régions du centre. Les incursions de bandes armées entravent toujours le travail des agences humanitaires. A Monrovia, on attend l’arrivée de 450 soldats ghanéens pour renforcer la mission de paix africaine, qui comptera alors 3.500 hommes, rapporte l’agence Misna. — Selon des religieuses, citées par l’agence Fides le 5 septembre, la situation à Buchanan, le principal port du pays à 90 km de Monrovia, reste dramatique par manque de nourriture. “Il n’est pas possible d’arriver à cette localité, car il faut traverser des postes de contrôle tenus par l’armée gouvernementale, par les rebelles du MODEL et par des milices nées de la dissolution des groupes armés de l’ancien président Taylor. Ces derniers sont les plus danguereux. Il s’agit des plus fidèles partisans de Taylor qui, lorsqu’il a quitté le pays, se sont divisés en mille groupes répandus sur tout le territoire. Pour la plus grande partie, il s’agit de très jeunes gens dirigés par un chef à peine plus âgé qu’eux. Ces jeunes assaillent les villages en pillant les gens et en se livrant à des violences contre les femmes”. — 9 septembre. Les rebelles du LURD (Libériens unis pour la  réconciliation et la démocratie) se sont emparés de la province de Kakata dans le comté de Margibi, à 45 km au nord de Monrovia, avant que l’ECOMIL   ait pu se déployer. La veille, des combats entre l’armée et les rebelles du LURD dans la ville de Todee, à 40 km de la capitale, près de la route menant à Kakata, avaient différé les plans de déploiement du contingent. Malgré l’accord de paix, le LURD se bat et gagne du terrain. L’avancée des rebelles a isolé au moins 80.000 civils. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 9 septembre 2003)

* Liberia. Large numbers of peacekeepers needed — 5 September: Killings, rape and looting will continue unless peacekeepers are deployed in large numbers, says the United Nations representative to Liberia. Jacques Klein said that 15,000 troops were needed to make last month’s ceasefire agreement work. «Unless we, this time, do this thing correctly, it potentially destabilises West Africa,» he told a news conference in the capital, Monrovia. It seems likely that this will be approved by the UN, making it the world’s largest peacekeeping operation. The UN envoy described Liberia as the key to the stability of the whole of West Africa. «I think there’s a clear understanding by the region that this, this time, has to work,» he said. He also urged the United States to stay beyond its planned withdrawal of forces at the beginning of October. Mr Klein has already named countries that may contribute troops, including Nigeria, Ireland, South Africa and several Asian states. The West African peacekeeping force in Liberia now has 3,050 soldiers and is expected to reach its full force of 3,500 African troops by 10 September. 7 September: Liberian Defence Minister Daniel Chea says agreement has been reached clearing the way for a first major deployment of West African peacekeepers outside the capital, Monrovia. Mr Chea said government troops would be withdrawn from the main road from Monrovia into central Liberia to allow the West African force, known as ECOMIL, to move in tomorrow. ECOMIL wants to put its troops between government soldiers and two rebel groups to ensure they all respect the ceasefire they have signed, to enable humanitarian aid to reach hundreds of thousands of displaced people. The deployment of 600 soldiers from Guinea-Bissau had been planned for 6 September but the move was delayed at the last minute because of what the peacekeepers described as a «co-ordination problem» between them and the Liberian Government. The Guinea-Bissau troops, looking well equipped and disciplined, had boarded their convoy and were about to leave Monrovia when the order came to disembark. Today, Mr Chea says he has given orders for the withdrawal of «over 3,000 (soldiers) from the main road». 8 September: The first big deployment of ECOMIL peacekeepers outside Monrovia has again been delayed. — A fact finding team has been sent by ECOMIL, to investigate reports of fighting on the main road to central Liberia. 9  September: Serious fighting has broken out between Liberian government forces and soldiers from the Lurd rebels. The clashes in the town of Kakata, north-east of Monrovia, are the most significant since the arrival of the ECOMIL forces. However, West African peacekeepers in Kakata say they now have the situation under control. This is the first time soldiers of the Nigerian-led peacekeeping force, known as Ecomil, have successfully deployed outside the capital, Monrovia. The peacekeepers are now in the process of removing both sides from Kakata. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 9 September 2003)

* Liberia. Displaced urged to leave schools so classes can resume — 3 September: IRIN reports that the Liberian government has asked thousands of displaced civilians sheltering in school compounds in the capital, Monrovia, to leave by mid-September so that classes can resume in November. The Ministry of Education says that people should vacate all the primary schools in the city by 15 September. The normal school-year runs from September to June. There are more than 110 temporary shelters for people displaced from their homes by recent fighting in and around Monrovia, of which 47 are schools. Relief workers estimate that these schools and the Ministry of Education headquarters together host 47,000 people. Some relief agencies, such as the International Rescue Committee, have attempted to locate a few teachers and resume makeshift classes for the children of displaced families, but all formal education has been suspended since rebels launched their first attack on the city in early June. 10 September: The first groups from among at least 35,000 displaced people currently living at schools in the Liberian capital, Monrovia, are to begin returning to camps outside the city, the UN in Monrovia has said. The departure of the refugees from schools and public premises will free up the buildings for their proper use ahead of the school new term, a statement from the Special Humanitarian Co-ordinator in Monrovia says. The decision to move the displaced people comes after West African peacekeepers in the town of Kakata — about 50 kilometres north-east of Monrovia — announce they have the situation under control, following clashes between government troops and rebels. The World Food Programme (WFP) is considering the use of food-for-work payments for teachers, who are expected to resume work in October, when new school term begins. Overall, an estimated 300,000 people fled the camps outside the capital after the most recent fighting between rival factions. And looting from war-displaced people by government and rebel militias is so widespread that some hungry civilians pleaded with aid agencies on 9 September not to give them stockpiles of food for fear that it will encourage attacks. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 10 September 2003)

* Libya. Medics did not spread AIDS — 4 September: The French doctor who first  isolated the HIV virus has said a hospital AIDS epidemic in Libya was probably caused by poor hygiene, and not by the seven medical workers who are on trial on charges of deliberately spreading the disease. A Bulgarian doctor and five nurses, as well as a Palestinian doctor, are accused of infecting about 400 children with HIV, the virus which can lead to AIDS, at a hospital in Benghazi. The case was dismissed last year for lack of evidence, but the prosecution refiled charges. Diplomats have suggested the case could be an attempt to divert attention from the conditions in Libya’s state-run hospitals. There are also suggestions that Libya might be trying to pressure Bulgaria into forgiving its debts, estimated at $300m. On the first day of the hearing, Professor Luc Montagnier presented a report he had made on the case, showing the infection had already begun before those accused started working at the hospital, and continued to spread after they were arrested. «This can happen not only in this hospital, but in many others, particularly paediatric hospitals, because children are more vulnerable to infection, even by very small quantities of blood,» he told Bulgarian radio after testifying in court. Professor Montagnier and Italian Aids scholar Vittorio Collizzi have studied the case, following a Bulgarian request for an independent international assessment. The seven accused were working at the al-Fateh children’s hospital in Benghazi in 1998, when several children died without any immediately apparent cause. The case became a major international incident between Libya and Bulgaria, which called on the help of a number of Arab, African and Western countries to intercede on its behalf to ensure a fair trial. At the trial, the defendants pleaded not guilty, with two of the nurses saying they had been tortured to extract false confessions. The seven defendants have remained in custody, pending a referral to an ordinary criminal court. The charges they now face in Benghazi still carry the death penalty. 8 September: Libyan prosecutors have now demanded the death sentence. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 8 September 2003)

* Libye. DC-10: les familles lâchent du lest — 8 septembre. Les familles des victimes de l’attentat contre le DC-10 d’UTA en 1989 n’excluent plus que les négociations sur leur indemnisation par la Libye se poursuivent après la levée des sanctions contre Tripoli lors du vote prévu mardi, 9 septembre, à l’Onu, a déclaré l’un de ses représentants. “C’est un choix de pragmatisme et d’ouverture”, a-t-il dit. Initialement, la France avait menacé d’opposer son veto à la levée des sanctions, tant que le dossier des indemnisations des victimes du DC-10 n’était pas réglé. La Grande-Bretagne, qui a réglé de son côté avec la Libye l’indemnisation des victimes de Lockerbie, a fixé le vote du Conseil de sécurité sur la levée des sanctions à mardi, après plusieurs reports. - 9 septembre. Après une matinée confuse, l’Onu a décidé de repousser à nouveau les discussions sur la levée des sanctions au vendredi 12 septembre. (ANB-BIA, de sources diverses, 10 septembre 2003)

* Libya. France’s threat to UN vote — 9 September: 9 September: The UN Security Council resolution to lift a decade of sanctions against Libya is delayed after the French government threatens to veto the move until French families have reached an agreement with Libya for increased compensation for the bombing of a French airliner. Intense last-minute talks in closed session looked set to give French families until the weekend to conclude protracted negotiations with the Libyan government over increased payments for the victims in the 1989 bombing of a UTA airliner which exploded over sub-Saharan Africa. «The mood around the table is that everyone wants to lift sanctions but not to have a vetoed resolution just for the sake of it,» a Security Council source close to the talks said last night. «The question is if you give the French more time will that make any difference or will be just in the same place further down the road? There was a feeling that a time limit might be helpful to push the talks with the French families forward.» (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 9 September 2003)

* Mali. Floods damage Timbuktu — Heavy rains have destroyed at least 180 ancient mud buildings in the Unesco-designated world heritage city of Timbuktu. The floods have also caused the deaths of at least four people in central Mali. Timbuktu has a poor drainage system meaning that some 30mm of water that fell on the city some two weeks ago had nowhere to go, and soaked into the brittle, hard earth-built walls and foundations. With more rain now predicted, Mali’s authorities said on Monday, that things could get worse if the Niger River spills its banks. They appealed to residents along Africa’s second-longest river to build sandbag barriers on the shores. People have also been warned to move away from the danger areas. Timbuktu used to be one of the world’s wealthiest cities and was an important Islamic centre. Some mud buildings, such as Jingereber mosque, date back more than 600 years. But the isolated city is now one of the poorest in Mali which itself is one of the poorest countries in Africa. Timbuktu’s town hall has been helping to find accommodation for those driven out of their homes, and has paid medical bills for the needy. (BBC News, UK, 10 September 2003)

* Morocco. Teen-age girls under arrest for planning a suicide attack — 5 September: Police in Morocco have said that they have detained three teenage girls, including twin sisters, suspected of planning a suicide attack on a supermarket in the capital, Rabat. They say they have uncovered a cell of a radical Islamic group which was planning to attack targets in the capital, Rabat. According  to the police, they have arrested eight more suspected members of the Salafia Jihadia cell and are carrying out a manhunt for 17 more. So far Rabat has escaped attacks by the radical Islamic organisation which blew up Western and Jewish targets in the commercial city of Casablanca in May killing 45 people. But with this discovery, the capital is once again on high alert. According to police the group planned to carry out suicide attacks on a parliament building, a supermarket in a prosperous neighbourhood of Rabat and against several high profile personalities. The Ministry of Justice is conducting an investigation into the cell. The ministry says that police were first alerted to the existence of a Rabat-based terrorist group through the statements of the two teenage girls. The girls, twin sisters aged 13 and a third aged 14, are the youngest suspects to be arrested in Morocco under a new anti-terrorism law. Police say that one of the sisters said she had planned to blow herself up in the alcohol section of the supermarket before she was arrested. According to the police the girls had contacted a local Imam, an Islamic preacher, asking if their action were in accordance with Islam. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 5 September 2003)

* Maroc. 906 islamistes arrêtés — 906 islamistes ont été arrêtés à la suite des attentats du 16 mai à Casablanca, a déclaré, le 9 septembre, le ministre marocain de la Justice, Mohamed Bouzoubâa, ajoutant que le “péril est toujours là”. Il a ajouté que 108 suspects sont devant des juges d’instruction et que d’autres enquêtes sont en cours. (Le Figaro, France, 10 septembre 2003)

* Morocco. Casablanca bomb trials leave questions unanswered — A 31-year-old Frenchman currently on trial in a Moroccan court on charges of masterminding an extremist Islamist cell in the northern port of Tangiers, has claimed that he has been tortured and raped in prison and that he worked for the French secret service. Pierre Robert, 31, a Muslim convert who was arrested in June, told the court in Rabat on 8 September that he had infiltrated Islamist groups on behalf of French intelligence. France’s internal security agency promptly denied any connection with Mr Robert. The Moroccan prosecution alleges that — while he was not directly responsible for a series of suicide bombings in Casablanca on May 16, in which 33 bystanders and 12 bombers were killed — Mr Robert was trying to organise two training areas for Islamist militants in Morocco. Thirty-three other men are accused of membership of his group. The Moroccan authorities have detained thousands of people associated with hard-line Wahabi Muslim groups following the attacks on five mainly Jewish targets in Casablanca, Morocco’s commercial centre. Mr Robert is unlikely to escape lightly if convicted. (Financial Times, UK, 10 September 2003)

* Mauritanie. Procès des putschistes — Le 7 septembre, 129 militaires détenus dans le  cadre de l’enquête initiée au lendemain de la tentative de putsch avortée du 8 juin dernier, ont été déférés devant la justice. “Les détenus jouiront de leur droit à la défense”, a affirmé le substitut du procureur. La plupart des personnes impliquées dans la tentative de putsch sont en fuite et le gouvernement mauritanien a lancé un mandat de recherche international contre elles. Les deux principaux instigateurs, les ex-commandants Saleh Ould Hanena et Mohamed Ould Cheikna, ont annoncé dans une vidéo-cassette diffusée le 2 septembre par la chaîne qatarie Al-Jazira, la création d’un mouvement armé dénommé “Les cavaliers du changement”. (PANA, Sénégal, 7 septembre 2003)

* Mozambique/South Africa. Elephants relocated to Mozambique — Elephants living in the Kruger Park in South Africa are being moved to Mozambique in the latest stage in the creation of a huge cross-border game park between the two countries and Zimbabwe. The elephants are being relocated to the Mozambican side of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, as part of a plan to spread the animals across the three countries, now fences separating them are being removed. The translocation of four families of elephants, more than 40 in all, takes place today. Some 10,000 elephants live in the Kruger Park on the South African side, too many for the habitat to sustain. So the translocation serves the purpose of stocking the Mozambican park and providing more space for the animals. The countries’ three heads of state signed an international treaty last year and since then some border fences have been removed to allow the animals to migrate and move around in their natural habitat without man-made restrictions. It will take many years for the park to be completed and eventually it is hoped an area of 100,000 square kilometres will be protected within the conservation area. (BBC News, UK, 4 September 2003)

* Mozambique. Mutola hits jackpot — 5 September: Mozambique’s Maria Mutola became the first athlete to win the $1m Golden League jackpot by winning the 800m in Brussels today. The 30-year-old won in a time of 1 minute 57.78 seconds to claim her sixth consecutive League victory of the season. Natalya Khrushelyova, bronze medallist at the World Championships, was second in a time of 1:58.53, with Morocco’s Amina Ait Hammou third in 1:58.66. To collect her winnings, Mutola must compete in the World Athletics Final in Monaco from 13 to 14 September. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 5 September 2003)

* Nigeria. Floods displace 100,000 — 8 September: At least 100,000 people have been displaced by flooding in northern Nigerian after the River Kaduna burst its banks. Thousands of homes were washed away in Kaduna state and about 30,000 graves are submerged in water. The government has set up a temporary camp to accommodate the displaced people, but the majority  have opted to stay along the burst river bank in the hope of salvaging their belongings. Young men were busy throughout the day diving into the flooded river to salvage whatever they could. The worst flooding happened on 7 September, with some residents waking up in the middle of the night to find their houses submerged in water. The area has experienced a continuous heavy downpour for some time now. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 8 September 2003)

* Nigeria. Avocats assassinés — Un couple d’avocats nigérians a été assassiné, sous les yeux de ses trois enfants, dont un bébé de 10 mois, par des hommes vêtus d’uniformes de l’armée, a rapporté la presse nigériane le 7 septembre. En juin, les avocats nigérians ont appelé le président Olusegun Obasanjo à prendre des mesures pour protéger leur profession après une recrudescence d’assassinats. (Libération, France, 8 septembre 2003)

* Nigeria. Terrible accident: 100 morts — Accident de la route au bilan effroyable dans le centre du Nigeria: trois autocars et un camion sont entrés en collision, provoquant une violente explosion et la mort de plus de 100 personnes, ont annoncé les autorités le lundi 8 septembre. La télévision a diffusé des images des corps carbonisés. L’accident est survenu dans la nuit du dimanche au lundi dans l’Etat de Kogi, à une centaine de kilomètres de la capitale Abuja. Les circonstances de l’accident n’ont pas encore été établies. Les cars effectuaient tous des trajets longue distance et l’un d’entre eux transportait 70 passagers. Le Nigeria a un réseau routier chaotique et les accidents de la circulation sont fréquents et souvent très meurtriers. (AP, 9 septembre 2003)

* Nigeria. Wooing South African farmers — 10 September: A team of white South African farmers has arrived in Nigeria at the invitation of the government of the western state of Kwara to look into investing and possibly relocating to the region. The advance team also represents some white Zimbabweans who have recently lost their farms in the country’s controversial land redistribution programme. The Kwara state government, who initiated and paid for the visit, has pledged to give them all the land they need for free. If all goes according to plan, some of the white farmers will move to Nigeria on a permanent basis. (ANB-BIA, Belgium, 10 September 2003)

* Nigeria/Belgium. Belgian police on trial over asylum seeker’s death — Five Belgian police officers accused over the death of a Nigerian asylum seeker have gone on trial. Twenty-year-old Semira Adamu died during attempts to expel her from Belgium in 1998. Her face had been pushed into a pillow as she resisted an operation to strap her to a seat on a plane returning her to Africa. She died later in hospital of a brain haemorrhage. Her death sparked a wave of public protests and forced Interior Minister Louis Tobback  to quit. Three of the five policeman are accused of involuntary manslaughter and assault. Two others, who were supervising the operation, face charges of negligence leading to involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutor Hedwig Steppe asked for suspended prison sentences for three of the defendants, and reprimands for the other two. Defence lawyer Rene Kumpen said the five officers had done nothing wrong, and said a video of the operation showed that they were following normal procedures. The court was shown the police video of scenes from the operation. Adamu had unsuccessfully claimed asylum in Belgium, saying her family in Nigeria wanted her to marry a 65-year-old man with other wives. She had previously resisted five attempts to deport her. Her death continues to arouse strong public emotions. A protest banner reading «No to expulsions» was unfurled on the entrance of the Brussels law courts as the trial got under way. Police officers also staged a show of support for their colleagues. The police union argues the five defendants were following the regulations which were in force at the time. (BBC News, UK, 10 September 2003)