Turkey’s ambassador to Gabon says pirates have released an oil tanker hijacked last week off the West African country’s coast, leaving its 24-member Indian crew unharmed. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Tag Archives: Gabon
Oil tanker hijacked off coast of Gabon
Officials in Gabon say pirates hijacked an oil tanker with a 20-person crew near the main port where oil is loaded for transport to international markets.
Defense Minister Pacome Rufin Ondzounga and Interior Minister Jean Francois Ndoungou said in a statement distributed Wednesday night that the attack occurred early Monday.
Security firm AKE said the attack constituted “a significant expansion” of the area affected by piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, occurring 200 nautical miles further south than a previous attack in April. The firm said all contact had been lost with the Indian crew aboard the Malta-flagged tanker, which is operated by the Turkish firm Geden Lines.
The International Maritime Bureau warned earlier this week of a “worrying surge” of attacks by pirates in the Gulf of Guinea.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Cosafa Cup favourites Zambia begin campaign
Hosts Zambia embark on Sunday on a Cosafa Cup journey they hope will last seven days and finish with a record-equalling fourth title.
They face Mozambique in the second half of a quarter-finals double-header at Nkana Stadium in mining city Kitwe.
Surprise qualifiers Lesotho, who topped a qualifying group ahead of Botswana and Kenya, meet Angola in the other match.
Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) won the first two editions of the 16-year southern Africa national team championship.
They were successful again in 2006, but the closest they came to glory since was collecting silver medals twice.
Although France-born coach Herve Renard has chosen an experimental squad, his side are favoured to lift the trophy.
And he accepts the pressure is on him and his team as they try and put a miserable year for the Copper Bullets behind them.
“Every Zambian believes we will win the Cosafa Cup this year, especially as we are hosting the tournament,” admitted Renard.
“This means there is only one path for us to follow — the one that leads to the winners’ podium in Ndola next Saturday.”
Renard became a national hero in Zambia last year when his team emerged as shock winners of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.
After 120 goalless minutes against Didier Drogba-skippered Ivory Coast, the underdogs won a penalty shootout in Gabon.
But little has gone right for Zambia since with a disappointing Africa Cup title defence followed by poor World Cup qualifying results.
They failed to win at the 2013 Nations Cup in South Africa, drawing with Ethiopia, Nigeria and Burkina Faso and making a first-round exit.
And draws with minnows Lesotho and Sudan have left dreams of a first World Cup appearance on the verge of extinction.
Renard hopes goalkeeper Danny Munyau, defender Kondwani Mtonga and midfielder Mukuka Mulenga can lead by example in Kitwe.
The local stars were promoted to the first team for recent World Cup ties and offer experience amid exciting but untested talent.
Mozambique coach Joao Chissano has been in charge less than a month since German Gert Engels paid the price for a 6-1 World Cup drubbing in Guinea.
His Cosafa Cup build-up has been nightmarish with a spate of withdrawals owing to injuries and club commitments leading to 11 squad changes.
Almiro Lobo and Dario Khan are long-serving defenders and Alberto Diogo is a midfielder with a fondness for goals.
Striker Josimar Machaisse gave Chissano a timely boost by scoring in a 1-0 friendly victory away to Malawi last weekend.
Lesotho held Kenya 2-2 and Botswana 3-3 before defeating Swaziland 2-0 to top Group B on goal difference and book an unexpected last-eight place.
The Botswana clash stamped Likuena (Crocodiles) as a team to watch when they came from behind twice to level deep in stoppage time.
Angola dare not concede any penalties as midfielder Ralekoti Mokhahlane has proven his worth by converting two spot kicks.
Striker Thapelo Tale has also netted twice and defender Nkau Lerotholi and strikers Mojela Letsie and Tsepo Seturumane once each.
A team averaging 2.3 goals a game and full of never-say-die spirit could trouble Angola, even though they are 65 …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
US missionary pilot missing off West Africa coast
The small plane carrying only its American pilot disappeared 10 days ago just miles from a refueling stop at a West African island in the middle of a tropical storm of thunder and lightning.
Since then, searches with a plane and boats have found no trace of the pilot, 54-year-old missionary Jerry Krause, or the twin-engine Beechcraft 1900C that he was flying from South Africa to Mali.
Krause’s family in Mali, where he has lived for 16 years, and in Waseca, Minnesota, believes he is alive and has launched a multifaceted campaign to “find Jerry.” Family members are lobbying officials, posting messages on social media and a Web site www.findjerry.com as well as using the Internet to encourage a relay of prayers for his safe return.
Krause’s last contact was apparently with the control tower at Sao Tome island, a couple of kilometers north of the equator and 150 miles (240 kilometers) from the coast of Gabon.
“We have no idea what happened to him,” Januario Barreto, the control tower chief, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview on Wednesday.
He said Krause called in to say he was 9 miles (14 kilometers) from the island when lightning struck the tower in a thunderstorm and knocked out the power. That was just before 4 p.m. local time (1600 GMT), still in daylight, on Sunday, April 7. When generators kicked in and the power returned, soon afterward, Krause could no longer be reached, Barreto said.
He said air traffic controllers immediately contacted the nearest control towers on the African mainland at Libreville, Gabon and Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, to see whether they had heard from Krause. They had not.
Navy and Coast Guard vessels are still looking for any trace of Krause’s plane but have found nothing, Barreto said.
But while the Sao Tome control tower contacted others on the mainland, it did not inform of the missing plane until almost 24 hours after the disappearance, according to Eric van der Gragt, owner of the Bamako, Mali-based Sahel Air Aviation charter company where Krause works as general manager.
“The tower just didn’t inform people that he had disappeared,” van der Gragt said in a telephone interview.
He said he
From: http://feeds.foxnews.com/~r/foxnews/world/~3/uWe11UDxA4A/
Being there: Turning research into action in Gabon
Michelle Lee first set foot in Gabon in 2001: ‘I went with just a backpack expecting to stay three weeks, but ended up being the project manager there for six years,’ she tells me. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Phys.org
29 survive after Nigeria boat capsizes, while 90 still missing
An official says a search continues after a boat carrying 128 people capsized off Nigeria six days ago.
The head of the Cross River State Emergency Management Agency Vincent Acquah said Thursday that rescuers have found nine female bodies off the coast of the city of Calabar, with 90 passengers still missing. He said there were also men and children aboard.
Acquah said the number of survivors rose to 29 Wednesday after 27 people were found further south, around the port of Oron.
He said the wooden boat was going from Benin to Gabon, stopping on various ports along the way.
Survivors said the captain informed passengers of a leak. He said “only God could save (them)” an hour before the mishap, which occurred Friday at 9 p.m.
Cobalt International Energy, Inc. to Present at Upcoming Howard Weil Energy Conference
By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool
Filed under: Investing
Cobalt International Energy, Inc. to Present at Upcoming Howard Weil Energy Conference
HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Cobalt International Energy, Inc. (“Cobalt”) (NYS: CIE) announced today that James H. Painter, Executive Vice President, Gulf of Mexico, will present at the Howard Weil 41st Annual Energy Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana on Wednesday, March 20, 2013 at 8:25 a.m. Central Time.
The company presentation to be used by Mr. Painter will be available on Cobalt’s website at www.cobaltintl.com in the Investors-Presentations and Publications section.
About Cobalt
Cobalt is an independent oil exploration and production company active in the deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico and offshore Angola and Gabon. Cobalt was formed in 2005 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Cobalt International Energy, Inc.
Investor Relations:
Richard A. Smith, +1 (713) 579-9141
Vice President, Investor Relations, Compliance and Risk Management
or
Media Relations:
Lynne L. Hackedorn, +1 (713) 579-9115
Vice President, Government and Public Affairs
KEYWORDS: United States North America Louisiana Texas
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:
The article Cobalt International Energy, Inc. to Present at Upcoming Howard Weil Energy Conference originally appeared on Fool.com.
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…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
Gabon says half its elephants killed since 2004
More than half of Gabon‘s elephant population has been killed by poachers since 2004 despite ramped up security measures to try to stop the slaughter, wildlife officials said Wednesday. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Phys.org
Mali soccer team show strength in adversity
With a simple act and a clear statement, captain Seydou Keita linked Mali‘s soccer team at the African Cup of Nations to the conflict at home.
Keita wrapped a Mali flag around himself after his team came from behind to beat host South Africa and reach the semifinals at the African Cup.
“It (the flag) flies not only in the northern part of Mali, and not only in the south of Mali, but also outside Mali,” Keita said at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium on South Africa‘s east coast. “That is important. Only football can do that.”
In January, France unilaterally launched a military intervention to stem the advance of al-Qaida-linked fighters in Mali.
“Today we can keep our heads up as Malians, we are proud of being Malians. I think all the people of Mali are proud,” said Keita, whose country is trying to win its first African title.
Mali‘s players and French coach Patrice Carteron had initially played down the effect of the violence at home, talking of the need to concentrate on soccer.
But Keita left no doubt that the battle to liberate northern Mali was now central to the team’s campaign after it regrouped from a 1-0 deficit to beat South Africa in a penalty-kick shootout, overcoming an intimidating crowd of 50,000.
Keita, a former Barcelona midfielder, scored the tying goal to revive the Malians. Goalkeeper Soumaila Diakite made two decisive saves in the shootout.
Twice now in the last two African Cups, Mali has fallen behind to the host country in front of a home crowd in the quarterfinals. Twice it has picked itself up and won in the drama of penalty shootouts.
Mali‘s player huddled at the end of the game in Durban. They have forged close bonds, thinking about more than just a soccer game or a tournament as they try to better their semifinal appearance and eventual third place of 12 months ago.
“Our biggest motivation is to make Malian people and all the supporters happy,” striker Modibo Maiga said. “Even if it was difficult for us to qualify, we do not want to repeat what happened last year. We want to do better than last year.”
Last year in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, Keita made statements about the need for peace in his homeland. Now, the team’s 33-year-old leader is driving his team forward while pleading for his country’s search for stability.
“I won everything in football,” said Keita, who has lifted trophies in France and Spain and won the Champions League and Club World Cup twice. “I won all the titles. Today the only thing I want is to bring joy to my country.”
Carteron understands what Keita means to the team.
“He practically is some of the players’ spiritual father,” the coach said. “He is an extraordinary man.”
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
France chooses Africa intervention carefully
France has a history of intervention in Africa, where it was a colonial power for decades and still maintains several military sites and has hundreds of troops across the continent, including Senegal, Ivory Coast, Chad and Gabon.
MALI
— January 2013: French helicopter gunships and fighter jets struck at Islamist fighters in Mali at the request of Mali‘s president, after the rebels began seizing territory well to the south of the strongholds they had held for the previous nine months. It was the first military intervention under French President Francois Hollande.
— January 2011: Two French hostages were killed on the Niger-Mali border by their captors as French rescue forces closed in.
SOMALI
— January 2013: A French commando was killed and another missing after a failed raid to rescue an intelligence agent held hostage in Somalia for more than three years.
— April 2009: French commandos stormed a sailboat off the Somali coast to rescue hostages held by pirates. One hostage was killed and four were freed in the operation, which was part of an EU-led anti-piracy operation.
IVORY COAST
— April 2011: French tanks and helicopters backed Ivory Coast troops trying to oust Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to leave power after disputed elections. A French armored advance in Abidjan allowed troops for Alassane Ouattara to secure the city and take Gbagbo into custody.
— November 2004: French troops fought soldiers from Ivory Coast and French jets all but destroyed the West African country’s air force after its warplanes from killed at least nine French peacekeepers and an American civilian.
LIBYA
— March 2011: France was a leading force in the NATO operation against Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi‘s forces in 2011. Then-President Nicolas Sarkozy sent French jets to target Gadhafi’s forces after pressing for a no-fly zone.
CHAD
— April 2006: France provided intelligence to government forces of President Idriss Deby, who himself received military training in France. The intelligence allowed Deby to keep power against a rebel force that threatened to seize control of the nation rich in oil reserves.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
UN welcomes peace deal in Central African Republic
The U.N. Security Council is welcoming the cease-fire agreement and peace deal in the Central African Republic that will allow President Francois Bozize to stay in office and let the opposition run the government.
The council emphasized the need for “expeditious implementation” of the agreements reached in Libreville, Gabon on Friday, and called on all parties “to implement them in good faith.”
A rebel offensive stopped short of the capital and posed a grave threat to Bozize.
A council statement late Friday urged speedy access to all people in need of humanitarian assistance and immediate release of all civilians being held by armed groups.
Council members also demanded an immediate end to reported human rights violations including targeting ethnic minorities, recruitment and use of child soldiers, and sexual violence.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Peace deal announced for Central African Republic after weeks of violence
Central African Republic President Francois Bozize and the rebels who sought to overthrow him have reached a deal to create a coalition government with the country’s political opposition, an agreement that will allow Bozize to stay in office until 2016, officials said Friday.
The announcement came after several days of talks in Gabon, which were organized after an alliance of rebels groups swept through the north of country seizing control of a dozen towns.
Bozize publicly shook hands with the rebel representatives and other political opponents.
Friday’s agreement includes a provision that a prime minister will be appointed from the country’s political opposition, and legislative elections will be organized in a year, said Chadian Foreign Affairs Minister Moussa Faki Mahamat.
“The mandate of President Bozize is a constitutional question. We cannot challenge the Central African Republic‘s constitution,” said Chadian President Idriss Deby, who presided over the closing ceremony for the talks.
Bozize seized power in 2003 after a rebellion, and later went on to win elections in 2005 and 2011, though the United States and others have described the votes as deeply flawed.
The rebels, who began their offensive on Dec. 10, had previously called for Bozize to step down from power and had dismissed his calls to form a national unity government. Their offensive stopped short of the capital of Bangui but posed the gravest threat to Bozize during his nearly 10 years in power.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Peace deal announced for C. African Republic
Officials say that rebels from Central African Republic have agreed to enter into a coalition with the government.
A statement released by Chadian Foreign Affairs Minister Moussa Faki Mahamat on Friday says a prime minister will be appointed from the country’s political opposition as part of the agreement.
The deal will allow President Francois Bozize to stay in office until his current term expires in 2016.
The announcement on Friday that the rebels will enter into a national unity government comes after negotiations in Gabon, which were organized after the rebels seized control of a dozen towns across the north of Central African Republic in a month’s time.
The rebels, who began their offensive on Dec. 10, had previously called for Bozize to step down from power.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
C. African Republic rebels agree to cease-fire
A spokesman for rebels mounting an offensive against the government of Central African Republic says the fighters will observe a one-week cease-fire amid peace talks in Gabon.
The rebels have seized a dozen towns since Dec. 10, although they have not moved toward the capital, Bangui, since agreeing to the negotiations.
In Gabon on Thursday, Rebel Col. Frange Florian N’djadder-Bedaya said the cease-fire would let the rebels “test the good will” of President Francois Bozize, who they accused of stationing mercenaries in the capital.
Troops from South Africa as well as neighboring nations Chad, Republic of Congo, Cameroon and Gabon are in Central African Republic to help stabilize the country as it faces its most serious rebellion in years.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Talks on Central African Republic begin in Gabon
Gabon government officials say that talks on the crisis in Central African Republic began with representatives of the government, rebels and other groups gathering in this nearby country.
The negotiations stated Wednesday with several different groups from Central African Republic, including the Seleka rebels, representatives of President Francois Bozize‘s government, the political opposition and civic organizations. Also present were several ministers of the 10 countries in the Economic Community of Central African States.
Officials say the talks are about the revision of a peace agreement signed in 2007 but the rebels have stated they want the talks to be about the resignation of Bozize.
Organizers say the issues raised at the talks are to be discussed Thursday at a summit in Libreville of the heads of state of neighboring countries.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
C. African Republic leader calls rebels terrorists
The embattled president of Central African Republic on Tuesday accused the rebels who have seized the northern half of the country of being backed by “foreign terrorists” and said he was heading to this week’s peace talks to defend democracy.
President Francois Bozize, who himself took power in 2003 following a rebellion, has offered to form a coalition government with the rebels. Some fighters, though, insist they will not join the government unless he steps down.
Bozize told journalists Tuesday that if the rebels come to this week’s peace talks in Gabon with something positive to say, he is prepared to hear it.
“If the terrorists come to talk terrorism, the whole world will know it,” he said. “If they come to discuss defending the cause of Central African Republic, we are going to listen to them. If there is something positive, we will accept it. If it’s armed robbery, we will not accept it.”
Rebel leaders and the delegation representing Bozize’s government already have arrived in Gabon. The rebels of the Seleka alliance come from four separate groups that have now joined forces against Bozize’s government.
On Tuesday, the president again accused outside forces of aiding the rebels and said “there is a risk that a religious cause is behind Seleka.”
He said it appeared there were Janjaweed, or fighters from neighboring Sudan, along with “people who don’t speak Sango, French or even English” from beyond the country’s borders.
“Foreign terrorists are attacking the established power in Central African Republic. Under those circumstances, I am proud of having served my country normally, that democracy is functioning normally,” he said during the press conference at the presidential palace.
While Bozize’s government has faced previous rebellions, this latest joint offensive has posed the gravest threat to his rule during his nearly 10 years in power.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News