Podcast appearances and mentions of George Weah

Radio Foot à 16h10-21h10 T.U. au sommaire aujourd'hui : - Jamie Carragher crée la polémique ! ; - Liga : les Rouge et Blanc de Bilbao en embuscade derrière les intouchables (Atlético, Real Barça). ; - Le premier quadruplé de Guirassy. ; - De sifflé a admiré. Neymar répond aux supporters adverses. - Jamie Carragher crée la polémique ! Lors d'un débat sur les chances de Mo Salah de remporter le Ballon d'Or, l'ancien défenseur des Reds, actuel consultant pour la télévision anglaise, pense que l'ailier égyptien ne peut pas soulever le trophée sans avoir remporté une Ligue des Champions ou un Mondial. Il ajoute que l'Égypte n'a jamais soulevé la Coupe du monde... La CAN perçue comme un tournoi de seconde zone ? La sortie fait réagir... Depuis 30 ans et le B.O. de George Weah, l'ailier des Reds brille de mille feux avec les Scousers qui filent vers le titre. - Liga : les Rouge et Blanc de Bilbao en embuscade derrière les intouchables (Atlético, Real Barça). Les équipes de tête ont toutes remporté leur match de la 25è journée, les Basques ont étrillé Valladolid, dernier de la classe (7-1) mais les frères Williams et leurs coéquipiers n'ont perdu que 2 matches de Liga cette saison, et sont bien installés à la 4è place. Ils s'apprêtent à défier la Roma en 8ès de finale de Ligue Europa. - Le premier quadruplé de Guirassy. L'international guinéen s'est sublimé avec Dortmund, inscrivant 3 buts en moins de 10 minutes face à l'Union Berlin. L'attaquant reste à 8 unités d'Harry Kane, actuel meilleur buteur de la « Buli » Si les Noir et Jaune de la Ruhr sont à 10 points du podium, ils comptent bien se refaire la cerise en Ligue des champions, Lille est prévenu ! - De sifflé a admiré. Neymar répond aux supporters adverses. Face à l'Internacional de Limeira, le n° 10 a inscrit un corner direct et réussi 2 passes décisives avec Santos. Déjà auteur de 2 buts depuis son retour dans son club formateur en est à 140 unités avec les « Peixes », où il a débuté en 2009.Avec Annie Gasnier aujourd'hui : Frank Simon, Marc Libbra et Patrick Juillard. - Technique/réalisation : Laurent Salerno - David Fintzel/Pierre Guérin.

Radio Foot à 16h10-21h10 T.U. au sommaire aujourd'hui : - Jamie Carragher crée la polémique ! ; - Liga : les Rouge et Blanc de Bilbao en embuscade derrière les intouchables (Atlético, Real Barça). ; - Le premier quadruplé de Guirassy. ; - De sifflé a admiré. Neymar répond aux supporters adverses. - Jamie Carragher crée la polémique ! Lors d'un débat sur les chances de Mo Salah de remporter le Ballon d'Or, l'ancien défenseur des Reds, actuel consultant pour la télévision anglaise, pense que l'ailier égyptien ne peut pas soulever le trophée sans avoir remporté une Ligue des Champions ou un Mondial. Il ajoute que l'Égypte n'a jamais soulevé la Coupe du monde... La CAN perçue comme un tournoi de seconde zone ? La sortie fait réagir... Depuis 30 ans et le B.O. de George Weah, l'ailier des Reds brille de mille feux avec les Scousers qui filent vers le titre. - Liga : les Rouge et Blanc de Bilbao en embuscade derrière les intouchables (Atlético, Real Barça). Les équipes de tête ont toutes remporté leur match de la 25è journée, les Basques ont étrillé Valladolid, dernier de la classe (7-1) mais les frères Williams et leurs coéquipiers n'ont perdu que 2 matches de Liga cette saison, et sont bien installés à la 4è place. Ils s'apprêtent à défier la Roma en 8ès de finale de Ligue Europa. - Le premier quadruplé de Guirassy. L'international guinéen s'est sublimé avec Dortmund, inscrivant 3 buts en moins de 10 minutes face à l'Union Berlin. L'attaquant reste à 8 unités d'Harry Kane, actuel meilleur buteur de la « Buli » Si les Noir et Jaune de la Ruhr sont à 10 points du podium, ils comptent bien se refaire la cerise en Ligue des champions, Lille est prévenu ! - De sifflé a admiré. Neymar répond aux supporters adverses. Face à l'Internacional de Limeira, le n° 10 a inscrit un corner direct et réussi 2 passes décisives avec Santos. Déjà auteur de 2 buts depuis son retour dans son club formateur en est à 140 unités avec les « Peixes », où il a débuté en 2009.Avec Annie Gasnier aujourd'hui : Frank Simon, Marc Libbra et Patrick Juillard. - Technique/réalisation : Laurent Salerno - David Fintzel/Pierre Guérin.

Les images saisissantes de la rotonde du Parlement libérien en flammes font la Une d'une grande partie des médias du continent ce matin.« Le Capitole en feu : l'incendie a fait des ravages », s'exclame le Liberian Observer. « Le sinistre a provoqué une épaisse fumée noire et des flammes dans le ciel, choquant les résidents et soulevant bien des questions sur sa cause qui reste encore inconnue. Toutefois, pointe le quotidien de Monrovia, l'incendie s'est déclenché seulement 24 heures après une violente manifestation contre la destitution du président de la Chambre des représentants, Fonati Koffa. Une manifestation qui a conduit à l'arrestation de plusieurs personnes, dont un assistant de l'ancien président George Weah. (…) Cet incendie survient donc dans un contexte tendu, relève encore le Liberian Observer, entre deux groupes opposés au sein de la Chambre des représentants, l'un se faisant appeler le “Bloc majoritaire“ et cherchant à destituer le président de la Chambre, Fonati Koffa. Ce Bloc majoritaire est allé jusqu'à élire et installer un nouveau président, sans avoir au préalable destitué Koffa selon les règles en vigueur de la constitution. »Deux blocs opposés…En effet, résume le site Afrik.com, cet incendie « survient dans un contexte politique déjà tendu, où des rivalités existent au sein du Parlement. Deux blocs opposés se disputent le contrôle de la présidence de l'Assemblée nationale ; ce qui alimente les spéculations sur les raisons potentielles de cet incendie. Face à cette situation, le Président Joseph Boakai a convoqué une réunion avec les forces de sécurité pour enquêter sur les causes exactes du sinistre et déterminer si celui-ci est le fruit d'un accident ou bien d'un acte intentionnel. »Le quotidien Aujourd'hui à Ouagadougou nous éclaire sur ce qu'il appelle les « bisbilles politiques » qui secouent en ce moment le Liberia… Des bisbilles apparues « depuis le retour aux affaires “du vieil homme“ (80 ans), surnom de Joseph Boakai, qui a battu George Weah à la présidentielle en novembre 2023 d'une courte tête (51%). Boakai est un vieux briscard du marigot politique libérien (…) Mais voilà, depuis un certain temps, une fronde feutrée puis frontale l'oppose au président de la Chambre des représentants Fonati Koffa. » Conséquence, pointe Aujourd'hui, « le parlement libérien est divisé : d'un côté, 43 députés proches du président exigent le départ de Fonati Koffa (qu'ils accusent de corruption), de l'autre, un groupe de 30 parlementaires le soutient. »Chasse aux sorcières ?En fait, complète WakatSéra, « si ce bras-de-fer conduisait à la démission, forcée bien entendu, du président de la Chambre des représentants, ce serait pain béni pour le président Joseph Boakai qui sait qu'il ne peut pas gouverner avec un opposant à la tête de l'institution qui vote les lois. Les blocages pourraient se multiplier, au risque de rendre impossible la réalisation des projets de l'exécutif. (…) Pour l'instant, la crise bat son plein, et pourrait connaître de nouveaux pics dans les prochains jours, Joseph Boakai ayant promis que les responsables de cet incendie seraient traduits devant la justice. »Cela dit, soupire Le Pays, toujours au Burkina, « il ne faudrait pas que l'incendie de l'Assemblée nationale à Monrovia donne lieu à une chasse aux sorcières au risque de voir le pays basculer avec tous les risques que cela comporte. Le Libéria, faut-il le rappeler, qui revient de loin, n'a pas besoin de ça. »Les plaies toujours béantes de la guerre civile…En effet, entre 1989 et 2003, deux guerres civiles ont fait environ 250.000 morts et mis le pays à genoux. « Malgré les pressions de la société civile et de la communauté internationale, note Jeune Afrique, le Liberia n'a encore tenu aucun procès sur cette période marquée par une litanie d'exactions imputables à toutes les parties : massacres de civils, actes de cannibalisme, tortures, viols, mutilations, enrôlement d'enfants soldats… Et ce n'est seulement qu'en mars dernier, après des années d'inaction (donc) ou presque, que la Chambre des représentants a adopté une motion visant à instaurer une cour chargée de juger les auteurs de violations des droits humains et de crimes économiques commis lors de ces deux guerres civiles. »

Les images saisissantes de la rotonde du Parlement libérien en flammes font la Une d'une grande partie des médias du continent ce matin.« Le Capitole en feu : l'incendie a fait des ravages », s'exclame le Liberian Observer. « Le sinistre a provoqué une épaisse fumée noire et des flammes dans le ciel, choquant les résidents et soulevant bien des questions sur sa cause qui reste encore inconnue. Toutefois, pointe le quotidien de Monrovia, l'incendie s'est déclenché seulement 24 heures après une violente manifestation contre la destitution du président de la Chambre des représentants, Fonati Koffa. Une manifestation qui a conduit à l'arrestation de plusieurs personnes, dont un assistant de l'ancien président George Weah. (…) Cet incendie survient donc dans un contexte tendu, relève encore le Liberian Observer, entre deux groupes opposés au sein de la Chambre des représentants, l'un se faisant appeler le “Bloc majoritaire“ et cherchant à destituer le président de la Chambre, Fonati Koffa. Ce Bloc majoritaire est allé jusqu'à élire et installer un nouveau président, sans avoir au préalable destitué Koffa selon les règles en vigueur de la constitution. »Deux blocs opposés…En effet, résume le site Afrik.com, cet incendie « survient dans un contexte politique déjà tendu, où des rivalités existent au sein du Parlement. Deux blocs opposés se disputent le contrôle de la présidence de l'Assemblée nationale ; ce qui alimente les spéculations sur les raisons potentielles de cet incendie. Face à cette situation, le Président Joseph Boakai a convoqué une réunion avec les forces de sécurité pour enquêter sur les causes exactes du sinistre et déterminer si celui-ci est le fruit d'un accident ou bien d'un acte intentionnel. »Le quotidien Aujourd'hui à Ouagadougou nous éclaire sur ce qu'il appelle les « bisbilles politiques » qui secouent en ce moment le Liberia… Des bisbilles apparues « depuis le retour aux affaires “du vieil homme“ (80 ans), surnom de Joseph Boakai, qui a battu George Weah à la présidentielle en novembre 2023 d'une courte tête (51%). Boakai est un vieux briscard du marigot politique libérien (…) Mais voilà, depuis un certain temps, une fronde feutrée puis frontale l'oppose au président de la Chambre des représentants Fonati Koffa. » Conséquence, pointe Aujourd'hui, « le parlement libérien est divisé : d'un côté, 43 députés proches du président exigent le départ de Fonati Koffa (qu'ils accusent de corruption), de l'autre, un groupe de 30 parlementaires le soutient. »Chasse aux sorcières ?En fait, complète WakatSéra, « si ce bras-de-fer conduisait à la démission, forcée bien entendu, du président de la Chambre des représentants, ce serait pain béni pour le président Joseph Boakai qui sait qu'il ne peut pas gouverner avec un opposant à la tête de l'institution qui vote les lois. Les blocages pourraient se multiplier, au risque de rendre impossible la réalisation des projets de l'exécutif. (…) Pour l'instant, la crise bat son plein, et pourrait connaître de nouveaux pics dans les prochains jours, Joseph Boakai ayant promis que les responsables de cet incendie seraient traduits devant la justice. »Cela dit, soupire Le Pays, toujours au Burkina, « il ne faudrait pas que l'incendie de l'Assemblée nationale à Monrovia donne lieu à une chasse aux sorcières au risque de voir le pays basculer avec tous les risques que cela comporte. Le Libéria, faut-il le rappeler, qui revient de loin, n'a pas besoin de ça. »Les plaies toujours béantes de la guerre civile…En effet, entre 1989 et 2003, deux guerres civiles ont fait environ 250.000 morts et mis le pays à genoux. « Malgré les pressions de la société civile et de la communauté internationale, note Jeune Afrique, le Liberia n'a encore tenu aucun procès sur cette période marquée par une litanie d'exactions imputables à toutes les parties : massacres de civils, actes de cannibalisme, tortures, viols, mutilations, enrôlement d'enfants soldats… Et ce n'est seulement qu'en mars dernier, après des années d'inaction (donc) ou presque, que la Chambre des représentants a adopté une motion visant à instaurer une cour chargée de juger les auteurs de violations des droits humains et de crimes économiques commis lors de ces deux guerres civiles. »

There is more fallout in the ongoing division in the Liberian House of Representatives over the removal of Speaker J. Fonati Koffa. The opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) led by former President George Weah has expelled Deputy Speaker Thomas Fallah from the party for his involvement in what the CDC calls the “illegal” removal of Speaker Koffa. This comes after President Joseph Boaka's government this week recognized the majority bloc and their new speaker, Richard Koon. CDC National Chairman Janga Kowo tells VOA's James Butty, the CDC reaffirms its recognition of Koffa as the legitimate Speaker of the 55th Legislature

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first female elected head of state in an African nation and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate joins Mike Shanley to discuss the role of aid donors, localization, and women and development. This episode was recorded live at the Society for International Development-US Annual Dinner on 13 November 2024.   BIOGRAPHY: Internationally known as Africa's “Iron Lady,” President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is a leading promoter of peace, justice and democratic rule. She grew up in the Liberian capital of Monrovia, where she married and had four sons. President Johnson Sirleaf later moved to the United States where she earned an accounting degree from the Madison College of Business and a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. In her efforts to bring justice to her people in Liberia, she has spent more than a year in jail at the hands of the military dictatorship of General Samuel Doe and had her life threatened by former President Charles Taylor. She campaigned relentlessly for Taylor's removal from office and played an active and supportive role in the Transitional Government of Liberia as the country prepared for elections in October of 2005. President Johnson Sirleaf was a presidential candidate in the 1997 Liberia general election where she finished second in the field of 13. Before that, she served for five years as Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa of the United Nations Development Program as Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations and was the first woman to lead the United Nations Development Project for Africa. She served as the Chairperson of the Governance Reform Commission of the National Transitional Government of Liberia until she resigned in March 2004 to accept the nomination of the Unity Party of Liberia as the party's leader. In November 2005, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected President of Liberia and became the first woman to lead an African nation. In the elections she defeated popular world-class soccer star George Weah with an impressive 59.4 percent of the vote. In October 2007, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civil award, for her personal courage and unwavering commitment to expanding freedom and improving the lives of people in Liberia and across Africa. And in 2010, as the only female and African Head of State, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was named by Newsweek Magazine as one of the World Top Ten Leaders.   LEARN MORE Thank you for tuning into this episode of the Aid Market Podcast. You can learn more about working with USAID by visiting our homepage: Konektid International and AidKonekt. To connect with our team directly, message the host Mike Shanley on LinkedIn. You can learn more about the Society for International Development-US online here. 

It's football's biggest individual award. But in 2024, there was heavy debate on social media, and fan groups as to who would win, or even who would attend the ceremony! So, why has the Ballon D'Or become controversial? And when will another African join George Weah on the winner's list? Eddy Micah talks to football journalists Glory Mushinge and Matt Pearson.

Spurs Chat: Discussing all Things Tottenham Hotspur: Hosted by Chris Cowlin: The Daily Tottenham/Spurs Podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Depuis 1995 et le sacre de George Weah, aucun footballeur africain n'a soulevé le Ballon d'Or. Eto'o, Drogba et Mané s'en sont approchés et aujourd'hui, personne n'est en mesure de prendre la relève. Modalités du vote, domination de Messi et Ronaldo, creux générationnel : « Afrique Football Club » tente d'y voir plus clair. Un podcast présenté par Marie-Amélie Motte, avec Nabil Djellit et Hervé Penot. Enregistré par Mathis Rouanet.Hébergé par Ausha. Visitez ausha.co/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.

1er partie /: Actualités :Focus sur Rafael Leão : une exploration de ses récentes performances, de son rôle au sein de l'équipe, et des attentes autour de ce joueur clé.Francesco Camarda a-t-il une carte à jouer ? : l'équipe discute des chances du jeune talent de se faire une place dans l'effectif principal, avec un regard sur sa progression et ses potentiels.Calabria ou Emerson : Le duel : un débat sur les mérites et contributions de Davide Calabria et d'Emerson, et sur celui qui pourrait devenir le titulaire indiscutable au poste de latéral.Êtes-vous inquiet avant d'affronter le Napoli ? : les interveants discutent des points forts et faiblesses de l'équipe avant ce grand choc de Serie A, partageant leurs pronostics et préoccupations.La deuxième partie est consacrée à l'histoire du club avec un retour sur la légende George Weah. De ses exploits sur le terrain à son héritage durable, cet épisode revient sur la période glorieuse de Weah à l'AC Milan, marquée par son charisme et ses réalisations mémorables."Coeur Rossonero" est une source vivante d'informations, d'analyses et d'histoires pour vivre pleinement la passion milanaise ! Hébergé par Acast. Visitez acast.com/privacy pour plus d'informations.

** This week Owen Blackhurst, Seb White, James Bird, and Tommy Stewart chat about football but also discuss mental health issues. If you are affected by any of the issues discussed, please visit thecalmzone.net or samaritans.org or phone the Samaritans on 116 123 **Live from Spotify, the old gang are back together as Owen Blackhurst, James Bird, Seb White and Tommy Stewart talk Roy Orbison, Ghetts, Joy Guidry, Puressence, Metallica, trainspotters, Francis Bourgeois, MUNDIAL digital, Héctor Bellerín, West Didsbury & Chorlton FC, Owen Blackhurst's Goal of the Month, trains, Dave and Sharons, Matthew Le Tissier, Seb on the Spot, allies, conspiracy theories, Bill Gates, George Weah, Alan Brazil, Ray Parlour, Pulp Fiction, David Beckham, Arsène Wenger, John Hartson, John Travolta, Les Dennis, Extras, Ronaldo, Xherdan Shaqiri, Barclaysmen, Stoke City FC, Basel, Bayern Munich, Kolkata, vodka & tonics, Liverpool v Manchester United, José Mourinho, Jürgen Klopp, Turkey hair, Goodison Park, David Beckham, Daniel Podence, Charlie Adam, The Masters, Duck magazine, BMX, Marko Arnautović, the Stoke accent, the Black Country, Bojan, BoJack Horseman, hyperbole, Hermione, misled, Elliot Hackney, Seb and the Queen, Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, Tiger Woods, Walt Disney, Colin Montgomerie, blue slacks, World Mental Health Day, talking to your mates and strangers, CALM, Jonny Sharples, Manny Singh Kang, coming out, LGBTQ+ in football, the Rainbow Devils, Old Trafford, NFL, Miami Dolphins, the noise away fans make, pooptracking, “Man on!”, Arne Slot's outfits, Lee Carsley, the national anthem, Erik ten Hag, LimeBikes, The Avengers, and somehow so much more.Get the latest issue of MUNDIAL Mag hereFollow MUNDIAL on Twitter - @mundialmagFollow MUNDIAL on Instagram - @mundialmag Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

(Rec: 14/2/19) Unemployed Roy sinks into a ‘half life' before getting a job eating chocolate, George Weah backs a demolition start-up, and Forest come calling… Join the Iron Filings Society: https://www.patreon.com/topflighttimemachine Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Owen Blackhurst, Seb White and Tommy Stewart chat pundits crossing the divide, football pie, Carlos Roa, World Cup 98, David Brent, Zinedine Zidane, Redondo at Old Trafford, Dwight Schrute, Creed Bratton, Steve Carell, the US Office, crossing swords, Henrik Larsson, Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson, a touch of the Pruniers, Alan Smith, Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Louis Saha, Martin O'Neill, Celtic, Helsingborgs IF, the Goosewagon, Eric Cantona face paint, George Weah, Carl Anka, World Cup 94, The Big Match, Eastenders, Queen Vic FC, Barbara Windsor, the Mitchell Brothers, The Sopranos, The Wire, Sad Ricky, Wellard, Bouncer, Lassy, dipsticks, Harrow Borough FC, pub football teams, Harry Redknapp on Albert Square, Sonia Fowler, Danny Dyer, Bobby Moore, West Ham, Harold ten-Pinter, photobombing Billy Mitchell, Gary Johnson, respecting the turf, Steven the squirrel, OtterPilot, Expected Pints, basketball, the Chicago Bulls, Five Guys, milkshakes, Seb shakes, Dumb and Dumber, Nutribullet coffee, Snatch, GRUB in Sheffield, Gilles Peterson, broken ribs, work summer Olympics, therapy twice a week, the wet bandits, CBD gel, arnica, foam hands, pebbly beaches, sand, homemade showers, Hugh Gleave, Gareth Jones, and somehow so much more. Get the latest issue of MUNDIAL Mag hereFollow MUNDIAL on Twitter - @mundialmagFollow MUNDIAL on Instagram - @mundialmag Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A spokesperson says the Liberian government is not running a witch hunt against officials of the government of former President George Weah. President Joseph Boakai's government recently issued writs of arrest or removed some Weah government officials from their positions for alleged corruption. They include former Finance Minister Samuel Tweah and Central Bank of Liberia Governor J. Aloysius Tarlue. Both declined our request for interviews on the grounds they have petitioned the courts. Former President Weah's Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) threatened last month it will begin to resist the alleged witch hunt. Information Minister Jerolinmek Piah tells VOA's James Butty, the Boakai government will not hesitate to go after proven corrupt officials, former or present

An official of the opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) of Liberia says President Joseph Boakai's government is using the judicial system to further political aims. The Boakai government recently issued writs of arrest or removed from office some officials of former President George Weah's government for alleged corruption. Eugene Nagbe, chair of the CDC National Executive Committee, tells VOA's James Butty, that former President Weah is a man of peace who operated within the confines of Liberian laws during his administration

On Daybreak Africa: Nigerian President Tinubu calls for dialogue over protest. Plus, Liberian government denies running a witch hunt against officials of former President George Weah's government. South African President Ramaphosa explains why the ANC did so poorly in May 29 elections. A community of breastfeeding women in Uganda is helping mothers. Somalia says it has made some arrests, including security officers, for alleged negligence following Friday's al-Shabab attack. U.S. Vice President Harris set to announce VP pick soon; and Trump wants a different debate venue. For these and more, tune in to Daybreak Africa!

As Liberia celebrates its 177th independence Friday, an opposition member of parliament says there's gloom in the country because some civil servants have not been paid. But the government says they have, and that the country is in a good mood and ready to celebrate. However, Representative Yekeh Kolubah, once a staunch critic of former President George Weah, is urging VOA's James Butty, not to believe what the government say

As Liberia celebrates its 177th independence Friday, an opposition member of parliament says there's gloom in the country because some civil servants have not been paid. But the government says they have, and that the country is in a good mood and ready to celebrate. However, Representative Yekeh Kolubah, once a staunch critic of former President George Weah, is urging VOA's James Butty, not to believe what the government say

À trois jours du match de football entre le Cameroun et le Cap-Vert (ce 8 juin), qui va compter pour la qualification à la prochaine Coupe du monde, la tension ne baisse pas entre le ministre camerounais des Sports, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, et le président de la Fédération camerounaise de football, Samuel Eto'o. Si le match a bien lieu samedi à Yaoundé, comment vont jouer les Lions indomptables ? C'est la question que se posent beaucoup de Camerounais, pour qui le président Paul Biya est le seul homme qui peut dénouer cette crise. Le professeur camerounais Thomas Atenga enseigne la communication à l'université de Douala. Il livre son analyse à Christophe Boisbouvier. RFI : Ce qui frappe dans ce conflit, c'est que chacun se réclame du président Paul Biya. Il semble qu'après la contre-performance des Lions indomptables à la CAN en Côte d'Ivoire en janvier dernier, le président Paul Biya ait quand même donné son feu vert à son ministre des Sports, pour imposer un nouveau sélectionneur à Samuel Eto'o ?Thomas Atenga : Imposer un sélectionneur, ce n'est pas ce que nous avons compris puisque nous avons quand même suivi et lu son discours du 10 février. Il a affirmé avoir donné des instructions au ministre pour regarder de plus près comment la fédération est gérée et encadrée, mais de ce que nous avons entendu le 10 février, il n'était pas question, me semble-t-il, d'une ingérence qui fragilise le président de la Fécafoot.Voulez-vous dire que, dans son discours du 10 février, Paul Biya ne voulait pas aller jusqu'à humilier Samuel Eto'o, mais que le ministre des Sports en a peut-être profité ?Absolument. Je pense que l'occasion lui est offerte en ce moment, à la fois de régler des vieux comptes personnels, de régler probablement des vieux comptes politiques aussi, et puis de tenter de restreindre, on va dire, les pouvoirs du président de la Fédération. Donc, c'est vraiment une bataille entre deux hommes qui ne se pardonnent rien.Au Cameroun, beaucoup se disent que ce conflit ne pourrait pas perdurer depuis plus de deux mois maintenant, si chacun des deux adversaires n'avait pas un ou plusieurs soutiens au sommet de l'État. Quels sont les soutiens de l'un et de l'autre ?Alors, le pouvoir camerounais est très compartimenté, de ce qui se dit, de ce que la rue perçoit. Monsieur Eto'o aurait le soutien, dit-on, du cabinet civil, de son adjoint et certainement la Première dame, dit-on. Tandis que le ministre aurait le soutien du secrétaire général et du Secrétariat général. En tout cas, c'est la perception que le public en a.Est-on en train d'assister indirectement à un nouvel épisode du bras de fer entre le Secrétariat général de la présidence et le cabinet civil de la présidence ?Évidemment, pour beaucoup de Camerounais, c'est une énième manifestation de ce qu'on a qualifié ici de lutte de clans dans ce contexte de fin de règne, parce qu'en 2025 s'annoncent les élections.Est-ce qu'il y a dans le premier cercle, autour de Paul Biya, des gens qui ont peur de la popularité de Samuel Eto'o et de son éventuelle candidature à une présidentielle à venir ?Monsieur Eto'o l'a dit dans son interview chez votre confrère France 24 : à savoir que beaucoup de problèmes qu'il rencontre dans sa gestion de la Fédération, c'est parce qu'on lui prête, n'est-ce pas, des intentions politiques. Donc, s'il le dit, c'est qu'il a certainement des renseignements, c'est quelqu'un de très adulé, qui sait aussi comment s'informer, souvent au cœur de ce qui se passe dans le système.Voulez-vous dire que certains voient en lui un futur George Weah ?Dans les rues camerounaises, je pense que beaucoup le perçoivent ainsi. Et se disent que, s'il venait à sauter le pas, beaucoup le suivraient, y compris même dans les milieux universitaires comme celui que je connais un peu : il y a des gens qui sont prêts à le suivre, partant du principe qu'il a tout pour être un bon président. Avec son dynamisme, son caractère un peu vibrionnant, et que le pays mérite d'être secoué après les 4 décennies qu'on vient de passer.Depuis le violent accrochage verbal du 28 mai entre Samuel Eto'o d'un côté, le sélectionneur belge, Marc Brys, et le conseiller du ministre des Sports de l'autre côté, la vidéo de ce clash fait le tour du monde. Est-ce que l'image de Samuel Eto'o n'en a pas été ternie ?Certainement. C'est une star planétaire, c'est un sportif de haut niveau qui normalement connaît le fair-play, la retenue. Il est ambassadeur UEFA et FIFA du fair-play et la lutte contre le racisme… Je pense qu'il en a pris conscience et c'est pour ça que le lendemain, il a fait amende honorable. Mais quand on regarde les agissements depuis cette séquence, on n'a pas l'impression que le pouvoir soit prêt à reculer ou à être un peu plus accommodant avec la Fédération.Voulez-vous dire que le pouvoir penche nettement maintenant du côté du ministre des Sports contre Samuel Eto'o ?Jusqu'à ce que la FIFA intervienne peut-être. On va dire que ce moment, avantage au ministre, il a les moyens de l'État, il a ensuite les finances dans un contexte où la Fédération camerounaise du football tire un peu le diable par la queue. Mais je voudrais surtout dire qu'au-delà du football, c'est l'ensemble du mouvement sportif camerounais qui est dans un état de délabrement, né du fait qu'il y a une rupture de confiance entre les acteurs du sport camerounais et le ministre de tutelle, et qu'il y a peut-être lieu d'organiser -je ne sais pas comment on va baptiser ça- peut-être un symposium pour le sport camerounais ou alors des États généraux du sport camerounais. Je pense qu'il faut aller vers quelque chose comme ça qui permet de ressouder un peu le lien du mouvement sportif camerounais avec l'État représenté par le ministère.Parce que la Fécafoot n'est pas la seule fédération en crise ?Ce n'est pas la seule fédération en crise. Le volleyball, le handball, pratiquement toutes les fédérations sont sous tension au niveau relationnel avec le ministère, ce qui est quand même signifiant de quelque chose qui ne va pas.Journal des sports AfriqueFootball: énième épisode dans le bras de fer autour de la sélection camerounaise

“Everybody wants to see you – everybody thinks this is an opportunity for employment…. a lot of people come into government believing they are there to enrich themselves.”It's nearly three months since Joseph Boakai started work as Liberia's new president. But in an interview with the Africa Daily podcast he tells Alan Kasujja that he's still fielding enquiries from people wanting government jobs every working day from early in the morning. The 79-year-old, who was Vice President from 2006 to 2018 under President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, narrowly defeated George Weah in November last year – after campaigning on an anti-corruption ticket. But he says while he's spoken constantly about the need to clean up politics, many people ‘still haven't grasped' the concept that politics is about service and not about financial security for themselves and their family.In a wide-ranging and frank interview, he also tells Alan Kasujja how poverty and badly paid jobs like rubber tapping helped prepare him for leadership, his plans for a war crimes court to work for justice and reconciliation after the country's two brutal civil wars, and how he wants to sort out Liberia's awful roads within his first 100 days in office.And he and Alan discover a shared love of Arsenal Football Club…

The mid-90s were a wild time in football. Regulations were loose, players could still be seen in your local boozer and clubs themselves were easier to access. Josh and Dara explore how these were the perfect conditions for someone purporting to be footballing legend George Weah to phone Southampton and offer them their “cousin” – Ali Dia.If you like what you hear, please do leave a rating and a review. Don't forget, you can listen on Global Player. Download it from the App Store, or head to globalplayer.com

Special guest host Prof. Andreas Evagora is joined by Riviera roué Luke Entwistle and AFP shot caller Andy Scott to dissect and analyse all the action in a busy last two weeks in French football.The chaps discuss PSG's return to form as Luis Enrique's men go from strength to strength in the league, Coupe de France and the Champions League - just as the second Classique of the season, at the Orange Vélodrome, looms.They also preview the upcoming European quarter-final ties for PSG, OM and LOSC, while also looking ahead to the Coupe de France semis and the next two rounds of Ligue 1 football.Another clue drops in the Déjà Who quiz race to win our Teddy Teuma Stade de Reims jersey, while Le Prof. continues his Cult Players series with a look at perhaps the most distinguished Ligue 1 alumnus in history - the former Monaco and PSG star who went on to become the president of his country - 'Mister' George Weah.WATCH: Mister George doing Mister George things back in the dayTHAT goal against Bayern: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dE-xG_9oRi4The Reykjavik goal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYa2CjYxMBsAndreas's favourite individual goal ever! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbrAwdS0Th4Honouring Arsène: https://www.tiktok.com/@uberarsenal/video/7317156729169464609All that and plenty more in the latest instalment of the world's premier French football podcast in English - Le Beau Jeu!

Can you name the goal from a famous piece of commentary? How well do you know your Dutch footballing "vans"? Which players have played for both Spurs and Barcelona? Is the George Weah pun really, really bad? Listen on for all this and more football trivia drivel... Follow us on instagram and twitter @careerwegopod. Fancy sponsoring an episode? Email: careerwegopod@gmail.com ***Please do leave us a 5 star rating if you enjoy the show! As an independent pod, this is the best way of supporting us and is very much appreciated! ***

Liberian President Joseph Boakai has been criticized for nominating individuals to tenured positions that are already occupied by officials from the administration of former President George Weah. As Dennise Nimpson reports from Monrovia, the issue has generated a lot of controversy

Hi, I'm Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode Chris Norris, the head coach of the College of William and Mary men's soccer program and I welcome one of his former players, Will Smith. As you will hear, Will made the most of his opportunity as a student-athlete on the field, on campus, and abroad. Among many other highlights, he went on to co-found a residential youth soccer academy in Liberia called LEAD MFA. There's more to the story obviously, thank you for listening to hear the rest. Thank you to Will and Coach Norris for being great guests.Check out the links to the LEAD network:www.leadedu.org www.monroviafa.com www.leadmorocco.comSummaryWill Smith shares his journey as a college soccer player at William & Mary, discussing his recruitment process, the challenges he faced, and the impact of his leadership. He highlights the importance of self-belief, resilience, and personal growth throughout his career. Will also reflects on the role of other sports, such as golf, in shaping his mindset and skills. He discusses memorable moments, including defeating the number one ranked team and the lessons he learned from his experiences. Will concludes by sharing his research project in Liberia and the transition to life after college. Will Smith shares his journey of discovering the potential of soccer in Liberia and starting a leadership academy. He talks about his experiences playing with George Weah and the transformative power of soccer in the country. Will also discusses the challenges and successes of expanding the academy to Morocco. He then transitions to his current role at Charter Oak Advisory, where he helps design and implement impact programs for various organizations. Will concludes by discussing the possibility of future academies and his commitment to creating positive change.TakeawaysSelf-belief and resilience are crucial for success in college sports.Playing multiple sports can provide valuable skills and perspectives.Leadership styles should be personalized to meet the needs of individuals.Maintaining momentum and addressing challenges are key to achieving success.College sports can provide valuable lessons and skills for future endeavors. Soccer has the transformative potential to empower young people and create positive change in communities.Building strong relationships and partnerships with local individuals and organizations is crucial for success in international development work.Curiosity, resilience, and the ability to overcome adversity are valuable skills learned through sports that can be applied to other areas of life.Empowering others and giving them the opportunity to lead is essential for sustainable and impactful initiatives.Understanding the cultural context and adapting programs accordingly is key when working in different countries and communities.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Background02:02 Assessing Will's Potential as a Player08:40 Choosing William & Mary and the College Soccer Experience19:01 Developing Self-Belief and Leadership Skills24:46 Highlights of Will's College Soccer Career41:11 Research Project in Liberia and Transitioning to Life After College46:00 Discovering the Potential of Soccer in Liberia51:31 Starting the Leadership Academy in Liberia58:21 Expanding to Morocco01:14:42 Transitioning to Charter Oak Advisory01:17:22 Future Plans and Expansion

The chair of Liberia's Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) says the country, under the leadership of President Joseph Boakai, will improve its standing on the 2024 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. This, after Transparency International said Liberia declined 16 points since 2012 on the survey. LACC chairperson Alexandra Kormah Zoe says Liberia under President Boakai will become a country of good governance, transparency, and accountability. She also tells VOA's James Butty, her commission did not get 100 percent asset declaration compliance from officials in the executive branch of the administration of former President George Weah.

On Daybreak Africa: Former Vice President Joseph Boakai will be inaugurated Monday as the 25th president of Liberia. Boakai defeated President George Weah in a close November 2023 runoff election. Plus, Senegal chooses 20 candidates to contest the country's February presidential elections. Tensions rise in the Horn of Africa over the Ethiopia-Somaliland port deal. In Eswatini, a commemoration of the anniversary of a pro-democracy leader's assassination. For this and more tune to Daybreak Africa!

Samuel Eto'o répond-il aux attentes de ses millions de supporters depuis qu'il a été élu président de la Fédération camerounaise de football (Fécafoot) en décembre 2021 ? Pour son ancien directeur de campagne, le journaliste camerounais Jean-Bruno Tagne, la réponse est non. Il critique sévèrement l'ancien triple vainqueur de la Ligue des champions. Mais il reconnaît que Samuel Eto'o est populaire et qu'il peut nourrir un jour des ambitions politiques.  RFI : Le premier reproche que vous faites à Samuel Eto'o, c'est de ne pas avoir amélioré les performances des Lions indomptables. Mais est-ce qu'il n'a tout de même pas réussi à les qualifier pour la Coupe du monde du Qatar au terme d'un match héroïque, comme vous l'écrivez vous-même, contre l'Algérie en mars 2022 ?Jean-Bruno Tagne : Oui. Effectivement, le Cameroun s'est qualifié in extremis pour la Coupe du monde au Qatar, grâce à ce match héroïque contre l'Algérie, il faut le reconnaître. On peut le mettre au crédit de Samuel Eto'o qui venait quand même de changer le sélectionneur dans des conditions assez terribles. Il fallait avoir l'audace de Samuel Eto'o pour oser pareille chose. Par contre, lorsqu'on est allé à la Coupe du monde, Samuel Eto'o a fanfaronné partout pendant des mois qu'il allait au Qatar pour ramener pas moins que le trophée de cette Coupe du monde. Et au final, on ne revient même pas sorti du premier tour. Je pense que cela a été un échec.Autre reproche vis-à-vis de Samuel Eto'o, ce que vous appelez son éventuelle implication dans des matchs truqués pour favoriser la montée de certains clubs en première division du championnat camerounais. Et vous rappelez à juste titre qu'en août dernier, la Confédération africaine de football (CAF) a ouvert une enquête sur « certains comportements inappropriés présumés » de la part de Samuel Eto'o. Mais pour l'instant, à part la diffusion sur les réseaux sociaux d'une conversation téléphonique de janvier dernier entre Samuel Eto'o et le président d'un club de deuxième division, il n'y a pas grand-chose pour étayer ce soupçon ?C'est une conversation téléphonique assez compromettante. Si vous avez un acteur de football qui a ce type d'échanges avec le président de la fédération, c'est assez suffisant pour jeter un soupçon sur la nature des rapports qui peuvent exister entre le président et cette personne-là. Donc, ce ne sont pas des fantasmes. Il y a des faits. Et on est un peu surpris par le temps que cela prend pour la CAF d'essayer soit de disculper totalement Samuel Eto'o, c'est possible, soit de constater qu'effectivement il y a des faits sérieux qui l'impliquent dans des affaires de matchs truqués. Et puis, on prend les mesures qui s'imposent. De toutes les façons, il est important de tirer cette affaire au clair. On ne peut pas continuer comme si de rien n'était. Le public ne demande qu'à savoir.Dans votre livre, vous racontez les coulisses de la campagne de Samuel Eto'o pour être élu à la tête de la Fécafoot il y a deux ans, et notamment l'audience que lui a accordée le directeur de cabinet civil à la présidence camerounaise, Samuel Mvondo Ayolo. Vous révélez qu'au cours de cet entretien, le directeur de cabinet lui a demandé s'il était vrai, comme le disait la rumeur, qu'il visait à terme la présidence de la République du Cameroun, et si c'était vrai que la Fécafoot n'était pour lui qu'un tremplin. Vous racontez que Samuel Eto'o a nié farouchement. Est-ce que vous pensez que le président de la Fédération camerounaise de football nourrit l'ambition de devenir un jour le George Weah [footballeur international devenu président de la République du Liberia] du Cameroun ? Ce serait une ambition légitime, bien que je n'en ai pas parlé avec lui, mais la réalité est effectivement que, quand Samuel Eto'o a été candidat à la Fédération camerounaise de football, il a fait le choix d'une campagne populaire qui tranchait un peu avec ce qui se faisait jusque-là dans une élection à la Fédération camerounaise de football, dont le corps électoral ne constitue même pas 100 personnes. Donc, c'était vraiment une campagne très populaire comme si c'était une élection nationale. Et du coup, cela a fait naître au sein de l'opinion, et surtout au sein d'un certain nombre de pontes du pouvoir, une certaine inquiétude, parce qu'il faut le reconnaître, Samuel Eto‘o est très populaire. Il l'est un peu moins aujourd'hui parce que, depuis ces deux dernières années, il s'est sérieusement démonétisé auprès de l'opinion camerounaise. Mais à l'époque, il était au sommet de sa gloire. Et je raconte dans le livre qu'il faudrait également que, dans ce pays, on arrête de criminaliser l'ambition. Samuel Eto'o est un Camerounais et c'est tout à fait légitime si jamais il voulait briguer le fauteuil présidentiel, qui n'est pas la chasse gardée de qui que ce soit.Et si demain les Lions indomptables gagnent une Coupe d'Afrique des nations, qui sait si Samuel Eto'o ne pourra pas nourrir des ambitions politiques, non ?Ce serait très bien pour lui, encore faudrait-il que les Lions indomptables gagnent d'abord, et je pense qu'une victoire du Cameroun à la Coupe d'Afrique des nations en Côte d'Ivoire pourrait permettre à Samuel Eto'o d'avoir un peu de répit parce qu'en ce moment, il est au cœur de la tourmente.►Jean-Bruno Tagne est l'auteur du livre L'Arnaque aux Éditions du Schabel.À lire aussiCameroun: un journaliste sort un livre pour dénoncer les agissements de Samuel Eto'o à la Fécafoot

On November 17th, 2023, President George Weah gracefully conceded to President-elect Joseph Boakai, who secured victory with a narrow margin of just 1.28% in votes. The electoral process was not only marked by a closely contested run-off but also had a first run of twenty candidates. This concession underscores Liberia's positive democratic trajectory and political stability. Furthermore, President Weah upheld the peaceful transition precedent set by his predecessor, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Africa's first female president.  To delve into the voting trends shaping Liberia's political landscape, Mvemba is joined by Charles Lawrence, Liberian Political Analyst. Together, they discuss the significance of this election, shedding light on the precedent it sets for peaceful and democratic transitions in the country.  

This is the web version of Foreign Exchanges, but did you know you can get it delivered right to your inbox? Sign up today:TODAY IN HISTORYNovember 28, 1814: The Times of London is published via a new steam-powered printing press, making it the first major newspaper so produced. The use of the faster steam press took newspapers from a niche business to a mass market one, in the process boosting efforts to increase literacy.November 28, 1943: Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin begin the Tehran Conference, the first of three major World War II meetings between the leaders of the UK, US, and USSR. The main outcome of Tehran was that Roosevelt and Stalin managed to get Churchill to commit to an invasion of France, in part to force Germany to pull forces away from their eastern front with the Soviets. They also discussed the eventual partition of Germany and creation of the United Nations.MIDDLE EASTISRAEL-PALESTINEHamas and the Israeli government, thanks primarily to Qatari mediation, finally agreed on the terms of a detainee exchange and temporary ceasefire deal last week. The accord, which went into effect on Friday morning, was originally intended to involve the release of some 50 hostages being held by Hamas and other Gazan militant groups and some 150 Palestinians in Israeli custody. Hamas has also been releasing a number of Thai and Filipino nationals under a separate arrangement negotiated by the Qataris. The arrangement was to have been implemented in stages over four days, ending Tuesday morning local time. The process appeared to be faltering on Saturday, as Hamas delayed its hostage release while accusing the Israelis of violating the terms of the agreement, before some additional Qatari diplomacy apparently salvaged things.The reason I referred above to what the deal “originally” involved is because it's since been extended. The Israelis and Hamas have agreed to continue the ceasefire and daily detainee releases for at least two more days, though Thursday morning, albeit amid new accusations from both sides about ceasefire violations. I'm not entirely certain about the details but Israeli officials have said they're expecting Hamas to release at least 10 hostages per day, which at current exchange rates suggests around 30 Palestinians released per day. Efforts are underway to extend this arrangement beyond Thursday morning, though it goes without saying that at some point all the hostages will be released and it's unclear what will happen then. It's true that conflicts at rest have a tendency to stay at rest, but Israeli rhetoric has indicated a clear intention to resume pulverizing Gaza once the detainee exchanges are no longer part of the equation.In other items:* Some of the freed Israeli hostages have talked to media and describe being treated poorly, which is not surprising. There have been claims of treatment that seems outright cruel though I'm unaware (which to be clear does not mean they haven't been made) of any claims of physical cruelty (apart from the cruelty of their initial abductions, of course). Several of the hostages seem to indicate that their access to food and water diminished over time but that may be related to deprivations across Gaza caused by the Israeli blockade and the minimal amount of aid that has entered the territory. Palestinians released from Israeli custody, who have been described as “prisoners” though many of them have never been charged with anything under the West Bank's rigged military justice system, have described harrowing treatment including torture. This is consistent with claims made by Palestinians swept up in Israeli mass arrest operations since the October 7 attacks and subsequently released.* On the subject of aid, the ceasefire is/was intended in part to facilitate a surge of aid into Gaza and its distribution throughout the territory—including across the heavily battered northern area. That effort does appear to have been successful, though as United Nations officials have said even this temporary surge isn't enough to meet the need. The Biden administration is sending three military planeloads of humanitarian aid to Egypt this week for distribution into Gaza.* Over the four days of the initial detainee exchange, under which Israeli authorities released somewhere around 150 Palestinians, they detained 133 Palestinians in the West Bank. Make of that what you will. As Spencer Ackerman noted yesterday, with events in Gaza getting most of the attention the Israeli government and its settler proxies are continuing to kill (including at least two more on Tuesday), arrest, and displace Palestinians in the West Bank at unprecedented rates. Unlike Gaza, where Israeli leaders have at least articulated the barest inkling of a goal (the “destruction of Hamas,” ostensibly), there's no indication what, if anything, might stop the violence in the West Bank.* The Biden administration has dispatched CIA Director and de facto Secretary of State William Burns to Qatar to participate, along with Egyptian, Israeli, and Qatari officials, in talks on extending the current “pause” (the administration is still refusing to call it a “ceasefire”). Burns is there mostly so that the administration can claim credit for the ceasefire/exchange deal even though its embrace of the Israeli military campaign in Gaza has left it unable to contribute all that much to this diplomatic process. Actual Secretary of State Antony Blinken is undertaking another European-Middle Eastern tour this week, mostly (from what I can tell) in order to look busy.* One message the administration is now ostensibly delivering to the Israeli government is that any eventual Israeli military (IDF) incursion into southern Gaza has to be more circumspect than its obliteration of northern Gaza. In particular the administration says it's insisting that a southern operation must not cause “significant further displacement of persons.” With most of the territory's population already displaced into the south (where the IDF has continued bombing them), it's unclear where they would go anyway. And with the IDF already having killed over 15,000 people (probably well over, given that it's been at least a couple of weeks since Gazan authorities could issue a reliable casualty update), the optics of this situation may finally be testing the administration's capacity for indulging Israeli war aims.* Israeli media outlets have gotten hold of leaked emails demonstrating that “a highly respected career military intelligence NCO” in the IDF had warned her superiors over the summer that Hamas fighters were training for what looked like an attack on an Israeli kibbutz. Those warnings were, according to the emails, subsequently corroborated but then dismissed further up the chain of command with arguments that the training was nothing more than a staged demonstration. The emails may increase public anger toward the IDF but seemingly give Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu evidence to bolster his claim that any failure to prevent the October 7 attacks rests with Israeli security forces rather than with his government. Perhaps that's why they were leaked.YEMENYemen's Houthi rebels escalated their attacks on Israeli interests when they hijacked the cargo vessel Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea on November 19. That ship is apparently part-owned by an Israeli businessman, though there was no other immediately apparent connection to Israel and none of the 25 people who were on board—and who are now in Houthi custody—are thought to have been Israeli. The USS Mason, a naval destroyer, reportedly prevented the hijacking of another cargo ship in the Red Sea on Sunday, but US officials now believe the would-be hijackers were Somali pirates rather than Houthi fighters. They have not ruled out the possibility of some sort of Houthi connection. Some Israeli shipping now appears to be diverting around Africa to avoid the Red Sea, which needless to say makes for a significantly longer journey.TURKEYTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had told reporters earlier this month that his Iranian counterpart, Ebrahim Raisi, would visit Ankara on Tuesday. Turkish media reported on the planned summit for more than two weeks, even as late as Monday evening, but Tuesday came and Raisi was, uh, not there. It's unclear whether this was an intentional snub or a miscommunication, particularly since the Iranian government never mentioned any planned summit. Either way it's somewhat bizarre.UNITED ARAB EMIRATESThe BBC is reporting, based on “leaked briefing documents,” that UAE officials are hoping to use the COP28 climate change summit, which they're hosting later this week, as a forum for concluding some new oil and natural gas deals. UAE officials haven't denied the report but they have said their focus is on achieving “meaningful climate action” at the summit—efforts to undermine that action notwithstanding.SAUDI ARABIAAnother investigative report suggests that the Saudi government is pursuing its own oil-forward agenda, something called the “oil demand sustainability program.” This effort aims to use the kingdom's massive public investment fund and some of its largest companies to sell developing nations on an array of fossil fuel-heavy technologies, including supersonic aircraft, gas-fueled cars, and oil and natural gas fueled power plants. The initiative is primarily aimed at emerging African economies and, as the name suggests, is intended to sustain oil demand even as developed countries move increasingly toward renewable energy. This is completely incompatible with the kingdom's stated adherence to the international climate agenda, though if you think the Saudis actually mean what they say when they talk about reducing carbon emissions you're a far more trusting person than I.ASIAMYANMARThe rebel “Brotherhood Alliance” claimed on Monday that its fighters had seized control of another significant commercial outpost close to the Chinese border in northern Myanmar's Shan state. In that sense the rebels seem to have picked up right where we left them prior to Thanksgiving, on the advance in Shan and several other provinces across the country. With Myanmar's ruling junta promising to stem those advances without actually demonstrating any ability to do so, the Chinese military conducted multi-day exercises near the border over the weekend. There's no indication that Beijing is planning to intervene here but it would need to respond to any instability along the border itself. PHILIPPINESThe Philippine government and communist New People's Army rebels announced on Tuesday that they will reopen peace talks, under Norwegian mediation. Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte broke off the last round of talks in 2017 but the basic outlines are still in place for a deal that would see the NPA transition from militant to political movement in return for amnesty for its fighters.NORTH KOREAThe North Korean military finally succeeded in putting a spy satellite in orbit last week, sparking an immediate security crisis along the Korean Demilitarized Zone. The South Korean government announced shortly after the launch that it was suspending part of the intra-Korean Comprehensive Military Agreement in order to increase its surveillance capabilities along the border, which Pyongyang took as an invitation to scrap the rest of the deal and begin restoring border guard posts and moving heavy armaments into the border region. The CMA bans “aerial surveillance,” a category that the South Korean government has decided includes satellites as well as sub-orbital aircraft so they're accusing North Korea of having violated the accord first. North Korean state media reported on Tuesday that the satellite had taken photographs of the White House and the Pentagon, which puts Pyongyang roughly on par with Wikipedia in terms of its new surveillance capabilities.JAPANJapanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio hosted Vietnamese President Võ Văn Thưởng on Monday, at which time the two agreed to upgrade their bilateral relationship to the level of “comprehensive strategic partnership.” That means strengthening economic as well as military ties, which could pull Vietnam further toward the US axis despite its still-strong relationship with China. Tokyo has in the past helped to support Vietnamese activity in the South China Sea, in waters whose ownership Hanoi disputes with China. The upgrade puts Japan's relationship with Vietnam on an equal footing with China, India, and the US.AFRICASUDANThe deputy commander of the Sudanese military, Yassir al-Atta, delivered a speech to the Sudanese General Intelligence Service in Omdurman on Tuesday in which he openly accused the UAE government of supporting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces group. This is the first time a senior member of the Sudanese military/de facto government has leveled that accusation directly and it charges the UAE with complicity in a growing list of (alleged) RSF atrocities, particularly in the Darfur region. Atta further accused the governments of the Central African Republic, Chad, and Uganda of acting as conduits for UAE-supplied arms.In response, Emirati officials denied supporting the RSF and insisted that they have “consistently called for de-escalation, a ceasefire, and the initiation of diplomatic dialogue” since the military and RSF went to war with one another back in April. Observers have noted that the RSF is using more sophisticated weaponry, especially drones, than it had at the start of the conflict, but the paramilitaries insist they've seized those arms from Sudanese military bases rather than obtaining them from abroad. The Ugandan government also responded to Atta's charges, similarly rejecting them.SIERRA LEONESierra Leonean authorities say that unrest in Freetown early Sunday morning was the result of a “failed attempted coup” involving a number of active duty and retired members of the country's military and police forces. According to Al Jazeera, they've arrested “13 military officers and one civilian” and “have published photographs of 32 men and two women…being sought in connection with the unrest.” The alleged coup plotters attacked a military barracks and two prisons in the capital, killing at least 20 people and releasing some 2200 detainees, an unknown number of whom have been recaptured. Authorities imposed a curfew in the city that they've since relaxed. Like most failed coups the rationale behind this one remains unclear, though it presumably involved some combination of political and economic resentment. President Julius Maada Bio's narrow and heavily disputed victory in June's presidential election may have ratcheted up some of those resentments.LIBERIAThe official results came out while I was on break, but challenger Joseph Boakai did in fact defeat incumbent George Weah in Liberia's presidential runoff earlier this month. Weah, to his credit, conceded without incident even before the release of those official numbers.BURKINA FASOSome 3000 jihadist fighters attacked the town of Djibo in northern Burkina Faso on Sunday, according to Burkinabé state media. Details are very spotty but authorities are claiming that security forces killed at least 400 attackers from the al-Qaeda aligned Jamaʿat Nusrat al-Islam wa'l-Muslimin group, which has kept Djibo blockaded and largely cut off from the rest of the country for more than a year. There's no definitive word on casualties among security forces or civilians, though the UN says it's confirmed at least 40 civilians killed and more than 42 wounded.EUROPERUSSIAA Russian court on Tuesday extended the detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich through at least January 30. Russian authorities arrested Gershkovich in March on spying charges that they've never fully explained, contending that the details are classified. He will presumably be traded back to the US at some point, but Russian officials have said they won't discuss a prisoner swap until after Gershkovich stands trial, and they continue to delay that process.A new report from the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center and the Levada Center shows that domestic support for Russia's war in Ukraine has not diminished, even as Russians show increasing weariness for the conflict and for the economic hardships caused by Western sanctions. Indeed, the hardship appears to be hardening attitudes toward negotiations, with a number of focus group subjects expressing the view that Russia has sacrificed too much to give up any of the Ukrainian territory it has seized. I bet more sanctions will solve that problem.UKRAINEThe Ukrainian military's commander in Avdiivka, Vitaliy Barabash, told a media outlet on Tuesday that the Russian military has intensified its assault there and is now “attempting to storm the city from all directions.” It's unclear whether the Russians would be able to use Avdiivka as a staging ground for further offensives, particularly in the short term giving the impending onset of winter, but taking the city would at the very least further secure Russian-controlled parts of Donetsk oblast. Elsewhere, Marianna Budanova, the wife of Ukrainian military intelligence head Kyrylo Budanov, has reportedly been hospitalized for heavy metal poisoning and there are indications that a number of officials in the military intelligence service (GUR) have also been poisoned. I'll leave it to the reader to speculate as to potential suspects.The Ukrainian government will later this week reportedly unveil a number of changes to its military mobilization system in an effort to reduce the incidence of both draft dodging and of forced conscription. Full details aren't yet known, but one part of the reform will involve the use of “commercial recruitment companies” to identify potential conscripts who have needed skills (mechanics, for example). These individuals will then somehow be given assurances that they won't be deployed to the front but will instead be put to work in support roles. Given Ukraine's need for more front-line soldiers, however, there must be more to it than that.POLANDPolish President Andrzej Duda on Monday swore in a new government led by incumbent Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in a move that has opposition leaders crying foul. Morawiecki has two weeks to form a government that can pass a parliamentary confirmation vote, a task even he acknowledges he's almost certain to fail given the results of last month's election. So Duda, who favors Morawiecki's right wing Law and Justice Party, is simply delaying the opposition's inevitable takeover for another two weeks. Why, you ask? Well, it seems fairly clear at this point that he's delaying in order to give Law and Justice more time to appoint party loyalists to important state positions, which could create problems for the government that will presumably take office after this two week period is up.FINLANDThe Finnish government, which had already closed all but one of its checkpoints along the Russian border, is planning to close the entire border for the next two weeks in hopes of stemming the flow of asylum seekers attempting to enter Finland. Authorities say that 900 such people have tried to cross the border from Russia this month, a hefty increase that they say is the product of a deliberate effort by the Russian government to funnel people to the border.NETHERLANDSConfounding polling that suggested a narrow race, the far right Party for Freedom (PVV) handily won last week's Dutch parliamentary election. PVV came away with 37 seats in the 150 seat House of Representatives, 12 ahead of the second place GreenLeft-Labour alliance. The victory may put party boss Geert Wilders in line to become the next Dutch prime minister, assuming he can moderate his extremist agenda enough to attract coalition partners. That may be easier said than done.AMERICASARGENTINASpeaking of far right election victories, libertarian extremist Javier Milei won Argentina's presidential runoff on November 19. Polling, which had been wrong at every stage of this election, was wrong again, having predicted a tight race only to see Milei win an 11 point victory over Finance Minister Sergio Massa. Milei, whose agenda includes dissolving Argentina's central bank and ditching the peso in favor of the US dollar, may find himself struggling against a relatively unfavorable Congress once he takes office next month.UNITED STATESFinally, The Nation's Mohammad Alsaafin finds both US and Israeli plans for the future of Gaza to fall short, for one seemingly basic reason:Speaking to reporters last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken suggested that the territory's governance should be unified with the West Bank, and laid out a series of edits for the future of Palestine.“Gaza cannot continue to be run by Hamas,” Blinken said. “It's also clear that Israel cannot occupy Gaza…. it is imperative that the Palestinian people be central to the governance of Gaza and the West Bank.Blinken's parameters were defied days later by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who declared, “IDF forces will remain in control of the Strip,” and made clear that he will not allow the Palestinian Authority to play a role there. (Netanyahu then told Fox News that Israel “does not seek to occupy” Gaza, though, given the facts on the ground, it is hard to know how Israel defines “occupation.”)The back-and-forth over what comes next in Gaza has prompted headlines like this one from NBC News: “The gap between the Biden administration and Netanyahu government over Gaza's future is widening.”But there is a glaringly absent party in these conversations: the Palestinian people themselves. Nobody seems particularly interested in what they might have to say about the future of their land.Thanks for reading! Foreign Exchanges is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.foreignexchanges.news/subscribe

Le Liberia s'apprête à tourner une page : celle des années George Weah. L'ancien footballeur, largement élu président en 2017, a été battu d'un cheveu la semaine dernière, lors du second tour de la présidentielle, par un vieux routier de la politique libérienne : Joseph Boakai, 78 ans, qui a été durant douze ans le vice-président d'Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Vaincu en 2017 par George Weah, Joseph Boakai a donc pris sa revanche. Comment analyser ce résultat ? George Weah a-t-il fait les frais d'un bilan jugé par certains très décevant ? Et quel avenir désormais pour le pays ? Mathias Hounkpè, directeur pays de la Fondation internationale pour les systèmes électoraux (IFES) au Mali, est notre invité.  RFI : Joseph Boakai a été déclaré lundi vainqueur de l'élection présidentielle avec 50,64% des voix, une victoire à l'arraché. Mais dès vendredi, avant même la proclamation des résultats, George Weah avait reconnu sa défaite. C'est là un geste très rare ?Mathias Hounkpè : Disons que c'est un geste assez rare lorsque vous êtes en Afrique subsaharienne et en Afrique de l'Ouest, et donc je pense qu'il faut saluer le président sortant George Weah pour avoir posé cet acte qui a réduit de façon considérable les risques de protestation ou les tensions dans le pays, surtout lorsqu'on sait que les résultats de la présidentielle étaient très serrés.Les soutiens les plus radicaux de George Weah appelaient l'ex-chef de l'État à contester les résultats du scrutin. Lundi, à Monrovia, une voiture a foncé sur une foule de partisans du vainqueur, faisant plusieurs morts. Avec ce résultat très serré, un peu plus de 20 000 voix d'écart, doit-on craindre une montée en tension dans le pays, selon vous ?Je pense que ça dépendra en partie de la manière dont le nouveau président, donc le président Boakai, va gérer le pays. Parce que lorsqu'on hérite d'un pays aussi divisé, il faut d'abord attendre et voir les résultats des élections au niveau du Sénat et de l'équivalent de l'Assemblée nationale, la première chambre, pour voir si à ce niveau également les chambres ne seront pas pratiquement divisées en deux parce que ça, ça peut rendre la gouvernance politique même difficile. Et ensuite, le nouveau président, comme je le disais, aura la responsabilité de réunir le pays. Et lorsque vous écoutez le discours de Weah où il a concédé la victoire au nouveau président, l'un des défis sur lequel il a attiré son attention, c'est justement la nécessité d'unir le pays. Joseph Boakai a donc pris sa revanche sur George Weah, après son revers de 2017. George Weah a-t-il fait les frais de son bilan, jugé décevant par certains, voire même très décevant ?Oui, à mon avis, la raison fondamentale, c'est vraiment que George Weah n'a pas eu de résultats, et ceci pour diverses sortes de raisons. En-dehors de quelques secteurs, par exemple les infrastructures, un peu quand même dans le domaine de l'emploi, je crois que le président Weah n'a pas pu vraiment produire des résultats, a déçu et aussi a adopté des comportements qui donnaient le sentiment que s'occuper des préoccupations des citoyens n'était pas vraiment sa première préoccupation. Par exemple, lorsqu'on l'a vu passer une dizaine de jours pendant la Coupe du monde [de football au Qatar en 2022] pour aller regarder les matchs, on a vu que dans le pays, il était devenu comme un prêtre qui animait des messes, il a construit une maison de composition en musique, etc. Donc je pense que les citoyens ont eu le sentiment à un moment donné que le président Weah n'avait pas vraiment à cœur leurs préoccupations.Vous diriez que ce sont ses résultats en matière de lutte contre la pauvreté et contre la corruption qui lui ont coûté l'élection ?Oui, surtout la lutte contre la corruption. Je pense que Weah n'a pu rien faire contre ça. Vous vous rappelez que dans ce pays, il y a deux ou trois juges de l'équivalent de la Cour des comptes qui ont été tués, simplement parce que l'équivalent de la Cour des comptes était sur un dossier qui était très sensible. Donc je pense que non seulement il n'a pas réussi mais il n'a même pas laissé la marge aux institutions mises en place pour aider la lutte contre la corruption. De mon point de vue, c'est l'un des grands défis auxquels le nouveau président aura à se confronter.Pour gagner, Joseph Boakai a bénéficié du soutien du très influent Prince Johnson. Or, ce sénateur est un ancien chef de guerre accusé de nombreux meurtres pendant la guerre civile. Est-ce à dire que le Liberia ne va jamais juger ses bourreaux des années 90 ?Je pense que ça va être très difficile pour lui et pour le Liberia, parce que j'ai le sentiment, en ce qui me concerne, que l'un des prix pour obtenir la stabilité dans le pays c'est aussi de savoir gérer cet aspect de leur histoire et essayer d'éviter de rechercher nécessairement à sanctionner, à punir, etc. Ce n'est pas surprenant que Prince Johnson continue d'être dans l'espace politique, comme Charles Taylor à travers son parti politique. Donc, je pense qu'ils ont peut-être décidé de s'accommoder de ça, afin de garantir la stabilité et éviter encore des facteurs qui pourraient contribuer à raviver les plaies qui peut-être avec le temps sont en train de se cicatriser.

As Liberians wait to swear in President-elect Joseph Boakai, we look back at George Weah's time in office. Why did he lose the last election? What impact did he make? Also what happened at the stadium in the Brazaville-Congo where 37 people died and over 100 were injured? And how the rise in the cost of living is forcing girls out of schools in some African countries.

Liberia's president, George Weah, has been praised for his sportsmanship after peacefully conceding the country's election this week. Andrew Mueller explains why this is remarkable and why the football legend might have lost his position in the first place.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

C'est un geste qui ne passe pas inaperçu. Au Liberia, le président sortant Georges Weah a reconnu sa défaite et félicité son adversaire Joseph Boakai, alors que les résultats définitifs n'avaient pas encore été publiés. Pourquoi ce fair-play est-il si rare en Afrique ? Quelles leçons nous donne le Liberia ? 

Les journalistes et experts de RFI répondent également aux questions des auditeurs sur les élections générales en RDC, sur la réaction des habitants de Kidal et sur le candidat choisi par le Pastef au Sénégal. Libéria : les raisons de la défaite de George WeahAu Libéria, Joseph Boakai a remporté l'élection présidentielle face à George Weah. Pour quelles raisons le président sortant n'a-t-il pas été réélu ? Quelles pourraient être les premières mesures du nouveau président ? Avec Bineta Diagne, correspondante permanente à Abidjan, de retour de Monrovia.   Élections en RDC : comment voteront les territoires occupés ? En RDC, à un mois des élections générales, les habitants des territoires de Rutshuru et du Masisi ne pourront pas voter. Qu'en est-il du reste de la région ? Un report est-il envisageable dans certains territoires comme ça avait été le cas en 2018 ? Avec Paulina Zidi, envoyée spéciale de RFI en République démocratique du Congo. Mali : que pense la population de Kidal du retour de l'armée ? Comment la population de Kidal a-t-elle réagi à la reprise de la ville par les forces armées maliennes ? Où se sont réfugiés les habitants qui ont fui les combats ?  Avec David Baché, journaliste au service Afrique de RFI.   Sénégal : Diomaye Faye, le candidat Bis du PastefLe Pastef, le parti d'Ousmane Sonko, a désigné Bassirou Diomaye Faye comme candidat. Pourquoi une telle décision alors que les recours judiciaires ne sont pas épuisés pour permettre la candidature d'Ousmane Sonko ? Comment expliquer le choix de cette personnalité alors qu'elle est également en prison ? Avec Léa-Lisa Westerhoff, correspondante permanente de RFI à Dakar.    

Three news stories summarized & contextualized by analytic journalist Colin Wright.Fiery right-wing populist Javier Milei wins Argentina's presidency and promises ‘drastic' changesSummary: Far-right outsider candidate Javier Milei has won Argentina's presidential runoff election in a landslide, defeating the more conventional, continuity candidate nearly 56% to just over 44%.Context: That's a staggering victory for someone who has promised to essentially gut the government, kill-off the peso in favor of adopting the US dollar, and who has been embroiled in controversy for years; the degree to which Milei will be able to do what he's promised to do is still an open question, but this victory—and the size of that victory—is being seen as a pretty clear indication that the Argentine voting population is fed up with the existing political and economic status quo in the country, which has, among other things, led to persistent incredibly high levels of inflation, rising poverty levels, and ever-increasing levels of government debt.(More on Milei and what was at stake in this election in this recent Let's Know Things episode: Argentina Election)—The Associated PressOne Sentence News is a reader-supported publication. To support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Liberian leader George Weah hailed for his sportsmanship after accepting defeatSummary: The outgoing President of Liberia, George Weah, has conceded defeat to his rival, the now-incoming President Joseph Boakai, easing concerns that the country might face a power-struggle in the wake of a tight election.Context: Liberia has a history of fairly brutal and recent politics-tied conflict, so there were concerns that this election, the first since 2018, could trigger violence; this peaceful transfer of power, though, is being lauded both for the clarity it grants everyone involved and for the trend it continues and example it sets in a region that has otherwise been partially defined, in recent years, by military coups and instability.—BBC NewsMike Johnson to release 40,000 hours of January 6 footageSummary: Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson announced last week that tens of thousands of hours of footage from the January 6, 2021 Capital Building incursion will be released to the public.Context: Far-right House Representatives have been demanding this footage be released for a while, and this is being seen as a nod to them as the Speaker attempts to keep the different wings of his party in sufficient lockstep to move other priorities forward, following inter-party disagreements about his recent stopgap spending bill; some Representatives and security professionals have said this footage could present a security risk, calling its release an attempt to politicize the event in question, but others—those who favor its release—have said that the 5%-ish of the footage that's considered to be a major security risk will be withheld, and that those who are being charged for breaking into the Capitol deserve to have access to footage that could help them defend themselves in court.—AxiosRecent analysis from Oxfam and other research groups indicate that—mostly because they have things like yachts, private jets, and mansions (though also investments in highly emitting business endeavors)—twelve of the world's wealthiest people produce more emissions than about 2.1 million average homes each year (which is about 17 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions).—The Guardian280 millionApproximate number of electric two- and three-wheeled vehicles on global roads in 2022 (bikes, mopeds, etc).That far surpasses the just-over 20 million electric four-wheeled vehicles and around 1.3 million commercial EVs (buses, delivery vans, etc) that are in use, at the moment.And because the majority of trips people take across much of the world (often using cars) are short, these smaller electric vehicles are estimated to be savings folks a bunch of money, but also reducing global oil demand by something like 1%, according to Bloomberg estimates.—The ConversationTrust Click Get full access to One Sentence News at onesentencenews.substack.com/subscribe

Au Libéria, les résultats provisoires donnent vainqueur Joseph Boakai face au président sortant George Weah. Boakai l'emporterait avec 50,89% des suffrages. si cela se confirme ce serait la première qu'un président sortant ne parvient pas à être réélu.

Les journalistes et experts de RFI répondent également aux questions des auditeurs sur l'élection présidentielle au Libéria, sur le sabotage des gazoducs Nord Stream et sur l'accord entre le Premier ministre espagnol et les indépendantistes catalans. Niger : le retrait des troupes françaises progresseL'armée française entame la dernière étape de son retrait militaire du Niger. Le président français Emmanuel Macron avait annoncé un départ du convoi avant le 31 décembre 2023. Le délai sera-t-il respecté ? Où vont-être redéployés les militaires ? Que vont devenir les bases occupées par l'armée française ?  Avec Franck Alexandre, journaliste spécialiste des questions de défense. Libéria : les résultats de la présidentielle s'annoncent serrés  Au premier tour de l'élection présidentielle, George Weah, le président sortant était légèrement en tête. Comment Joseph Boakai a-t-il mené campagne pour tenter de rattraper son retard ?  Avec Bineta Diagne, envoyée spéciale de RFI à Monrovia. Nord Stream : un officier ukrainien a-t-il coordonné le sabotage ?Selon le magazine allemand Der Spiegel et le quotidien américain Washington Post, un officier ukrainien aurait coordonné le sabotage des gazoducs Nord Stream. Que sait-on du cerveau de cette opération ? Avec Pascal Thibaut, correspondant de RFI à Berlin. Espagne : accord controversé entre le Premier ministre et les indépendantistes catalansEn Espagne, l'opposition dénonce l'accord conclu entre le Premier ministre Pedro Sanchez et les indépendantistes catalans. Quelles concessions le parti socialiste leur a-t-il accordées ? Cet accord pourrait-il être annulé, comme l'envisagent des magistrats espagnols ? Avec Maria Elisa Alonso, politologue spécialiste de l'Espagne, enseignante-chercheuse à l'Université de Lorraine.  

This is the web version of Foreign Exchanges, but did you know you can get it delivered right to your inbox? Sign up today:Friends, for family reasons and also because of my own mental exhaustion I will be taking a longer than usual break from the newsletter for this year's Thanksgiving holiday. The newsletter will be going quiet following Thursday's roundup and will return to our regular schedule on Tuesday, November 28. As I've written before here I can always tell when it's time for me to take a bit of a break from the newsletter and the truth is we probably passed that point around three or four weeks ago so I'm running on fumes. Thanks for reading and for supporting this venture!TODAY IN HISTORYNovember 14, 1965: The Battle of Ia Drang, the first major engagement between the United States and the North Vietnamese Army, begins. It ended on November 18 with both sides claiming victory, though the NVA's ability to fight the much better armed US Army to a draw was a boost to their morale and probably the battle's most important effect.November 14, 2001: Fighters with the Northern Alliance rebel coalition enter and occupy the city of Kabul, marking the end of the US war in Afghanista—just kidding. I had you going there for a second, didn't I?INTERNATIONALWith deaths due to “extreme heat” projected to increase five-fold by 2050, according to The Lancet Countdown, you'll no doubt be pleasantly surprised to learn that an AP investigative report shows that the “green transition plans” being formulated by most major fossil fuel companies are not green, not transitional, and not even really plans. Without any serious government pressure to force them to invest in genuinely renewable technologies, these firms are able to do things like, say, classify natural gas development as a “green” investment. That's absurd, of course, but who's counting?The main problem with these plans has long been, and continues to be, the fact that fossil fuel companies exempt the products they sell when assessing their progress toward “net zero” carbon emissions. Firms only account for “Scope 1” emissions, which are their direct carbon outputs, and “Scope 2” emissions, the indirect output that results from their production process. The emissions that ensue when people burn the products they sell are considered “Scope 3” and energy firms disavow any responsibility for them. Like tobacco companies, they argue that what the customer does with their products is the customer's business, not theirs. Maybe people just want to buy a barrel of oil and place it in their foyer as a conversation piece or put it to some other use that doesn't emit carbon. Who's to say?MIDDLE EASTISRAEL-PALESTINEEarly Wednesday morning Israeli forces began what they called “a precise and targeted operation against Hamas in a specified area in the Shifa hospital” involving “medical teams and Arabic speakers, who have undergone specified training to prepare for this complex and sensitive environment, with the intent that no harm is caused to the civilians.” There are hundreds of patients and thousands of other people who have been trapped in the hospital by the IDF and the chances that “no harm” will come to any of them in the next several hours are probably slim. Israeli officials have been insisting that Hamas's lair is located underneath the hospital but at this point it's too soon to know if that's the target or if this is a more limited operation. This is a developing story so there's not much more I can say about it at this time.What I can say is that the Biden administration gave a green light to this operation earlier in the day, when White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that the administration has “independent intelligence” (which is code for “we didn't get this from the IDF”) that “Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad use some hospitals in the Gaza Strip — including Al-Shifa — and tunnels underneath them to conceal and to support their military operations and to hold hostages.” According to Kirby this intelligence shows that the militant groups have a “command and control” center in Shifa and “have stored weapons there.” Kirby insisted that that the administration was not endorsing an Israeli attack on the hospital, but anybody with ears to hear or eyes to read what he said should have no doubt as to what the intent was.I wrote everything below prior to news of the Israeli assault breaking so some of it might no longer be relevant but I think most of it still is:Gazan health authorities said on Tuesday that some 40 patients at Shifa—three of them babies—have died since that facility ran out of generator fuel on Saturday. Without electricity the hospital cannot maintain its incubator units and so there are now 36 newborns who are at critical risk. With the IDF surrounding the hospital it's also become impossible to transfer the dead to a cemetery, so personnel are planning to bury some 120 bodies in a mass grave on site. Gazan officials have proposed evacuating the facility under the auspices of the Red Cross/Red Crescent and sending its remaining patients to Egypt but there had been no movement on that front at time of writing. The Israeli government has apparently offered to send the hospitals more incubators, a fascinating attempt at a humanitarian gesture that would be completely pointless because the problem isn't the incubators, it's the electricity.In other news:* David Ignatius at The Washington Post reported (I use that term loosely) on Monday that “Israel and Hamas are close to a hostage deal.” With the caveat that if David Ignatius told me the sky was blue I'd glance out the window to double check, the terms he reported are that Hamas would release (or facilitate the release) of the women and children that it and other Gazan militant groups took hostage during their October 7 rampage through southern Israel. This would be done in stages and be matched by the release of Palestinian women and children being held by Israeli authorities. It would also involve a ceasefire of unspecified duration but “perhaps five days” according to Ignatius. The ceasefire could allow some time to address humanitarian issues in Gaza though I don't know what that would entail and whatever it was would almost certainly be inadequate.* Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen met with International Committee of the Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger on Tuesday and later told reporters that the ICRC has had no access to the aforementioned hostages. It's highly unlikely that the Israelis would agree to anything involving hostages without at least proof of life, so this could be a big sticking point with respect to the potential prisoner deal outlined above. Families of the hostages, meanwhile, are marching from Tel Aviv to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's residence in Jerusalem to pressure him to take some action to secure the hostages' release.* Israeli occupation forces killed at least eight Palestinians in the West Bank on Tuesday, seven of them in Tulkarm. The IDF carried out a drone strike in that city, an occurrence that's still relatively rare in the West Bank though it's certainly become more common over the past year and in particular the past month.* Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich issued a statement on Tuesday endorsing what he laughably termed the “voluntary emigration of Gaza Arabs to countries around the world.” I guess “leave or die” is a choice, right? A couple of Israeli politicians floated this idea on Monday in a Wall Street Journal editorial that was less a serious proposal than a written middle finger to Western critics of the Israeli military campaign. That piece didn't go into extensive detail about what a mass relocation would look like—again, it wasn't meant as a serious proposal—but Smotrich's intent is much easier to guess, and that's the permanent ethnic cleansing of Gaza and the relocation of its population as far away from Israel as possible. Smotrich, whose ministerial brief also includes running the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories office, isn't part of Netanyahu's “war cabinet” but that doesn't mean he's completely lacking in influence.* The US and UK governments on Tuesday announced new sanctions targeting Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad members along with a Lebanese entity that allegedly facilitates money transfers from Iran to Gazan militant groups. This is the third round of sanctions the Biden administration has imposed since October 7. Also on Tuesday, over 400 employees of the Biden administration sent a joint letter to their boss, Joe Biden, expressing opposition to the administration's approach to the Gaza conflict.YEMENHouthi rebels say they fired another barrage of missiles toward Israel on Tuesday. There's no confirmation of this, though the IDF did say that its air defenses downed a single missile near Eilat that we can probably assume was of Houthi provenance. The leader of Yemen's Houthi movement, Abdulmalik al-Houthi, delivered a speech on Tuesday pledging that his rebel fighters would continue attacking Israel. In particular, Houthi suggested that they could target Israeli commercial vessels in the Red Sea, which would certainly be an easier target for them than Israel itself.IRAQA Turkish drone strike killed two people, both allegedly members of the Sinjar Resistance Units militia, in northern Iraq's Nineveh province on Monday evening. The Sinjar militia was formed in 2014 with assistance from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and is still allied with that group, which makes its personnel potential targets for the Turkish military.Elsewhere, the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court removed two members of the Iraqi parliament on Tuesday, one of whom just happened to be speaker Mohammed al-Halbusi. It's not clear why, though another MP named Laith al-Dulaimi had reportedly sued Halbusi alleging that the speaker forged Dulaimi's name on a resignation letter. Dulaimi was, as it happens, the other MP who had his term ended by the court (I assume that's not a coincidence). The ruling created a potential political crisis for Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaʿ al-Sudani. As speaker, Halbusi was Iraq's leading Sunni Arab politician, and his support was important to Sudani's government. Three members of his Progress Party quit their cabinet posts after the court ruling and it remains to be seen how that will impact Sudani's position.ASIAAFGHANISTANAfghan Commerce Minister Haji Nooruddin Azizi apparently visited Pakistan this week, where—according to the Afghan government—he pressed Pakistani Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani on the issue of all those Afghan migrants the Pakistani government is presently deporting. Specifically it sounds like Azizi raised the issue of allowing deportees to at least take some of their money and/or possessions to Afghanistan with them. Deportees are currently arriving with nothing and are being housed in what are effectively refugee camps—leaving aside the incongruity of being a “refugee” in one's home country—on the Afghan side of the border.MYANMARReports on Monday only hinted at some new fighting in western Myanmar's Chin state, but as more details are emerging the situation there sounds pretty serious. According to the Chin National Front, rebel fighters had by the end of the day seized two Myanmar military outposts and were working to seize control of the Myanmar-Indian border. According to Indian media the fighting has sent some 2000 people streaming across that border to escape. In neighboring Rakhine state, the rebel Arakan Army has also been seizing military outposts and authorities have imposed a curfew in the state capital, Sittwe, as a result. Rebel factions across Myanmar have launched new offensives in recent weeks, starting with the “1027” (for October 27) operations by the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army in Shan state. Myanmar's ruling junta is clearly struggling to mount a response.CHINAJoe Biden told reporters on Tuesday that his main goal in meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in San Francisco this week is to restore “normal” communications between their governments. In particular this would involve a return to regular military-to-military contacts, something Beijing ended in the wake of former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan last year. Any prospect of resuming those contacts was complicated by the fact that former Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu was under US sanction. But as he's no longer defense minister that complication is no longer an issue.AFRICALIBERIALiberian voters turned out on Tuesday for the second round of that country's presidential election, pitting incumbent George Weah against Joseph Boakai. Both candidates finished with just under 44 percent of the vote in last month's first round. Such a close finish might augur poorly for the incumbent in a head to head matchup, though that's just one of many factors that could sway this vote in either direction. Polls have closed in that contest but I have yet to see anything by way of preliminary or partial results.MALIMali's ruling junta says its security forces have seized control over the northern town of Kidal after battling with rebels in that region for several days. The Malian military and mercenary auxiliaries marched on Kidal after United Nations peacekeepers vacated the region as part of their ongoing withdrawal from Mali. Kidal has been a rebel stronghold since the initial northern Mali uprising in 2012 and government control there has been nebulous at best since then. There's been no comment as far as I know from the rebels and it's unclear what their disposition is at this point.ETHIOPIAAccording to Addis Standard, Fano militia fighters attacked a predominantly Oromo community in Ethiopia's Amhara region last week, killing at least 25 people and displacing some 3000 into the Oromia region. The Fano militia is still battling the Ethiopian government but Amhara paramilitary groups have also made a pastime of preying on ethnic Oromo communities (likewise, Oromo militias have preyed on ethnic Amhara). In this case they apparently demanded grain from the community and attacked after residents refused to comply.On a more upbeat note, the US Agency for International Development is reportedly planning to resume food distribution across Ethiopia next month under a “one-year trial period.” The agency suspended its Ethiopian food program earlier this year amid allegations that the aid was being diverted. It resumed providing food aid to Ethiopian refugees last month and is now planning to spend the next year testing whether procedural changes adopted by aid groups and the Ethiopian government are enough to stop that alleged diversion. Solid data is hard to come by but it's possible that hundreds or thousands of Ethiopians have died because of the decision (which the UN World Food Program joined) to suspend food aid.DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGOThe death toll from Sunday's Allied Democratic Forces attack on a village in the eastern DRC's North Kivu province has risen to 33, according to provincial officials. ADF fighters are also believed to have been responsible for attacking a village in neighboring Ituri province on Tuesday, killing at least 11 people.EUROPERUSSIAVladimir Putin signed a new law on Tuesday that permits elections to be held even in parts of Russia that are under martial law. This apparently clears the way for the portions of Ukraine that Moscow claims to have annexed to participate in next year's presidential election. The effect will be to try to stitch those regions a little more tightly to Russia and complicate any possible return to Ukrainian authority.UKRAINEThe European Union promised back in March to supply the Ukrainian military with 1 million 155 mm artillery shells within 12 months. You'll never guess how that went. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told a meeting of EU defense ministers on Tuesday that the bloc isn't going to fulfill its commitment and even went so far as to criticize the fact that it was made in the first place. The will was apparently there, but EU member states still don't have the collective capacity to churn out that many shells that quickly. The effort has apparently sparked a boost in production capacity but not enough to meet the 12 month deadline.SWEDENSweden's NATO accession may be moving slightly forward, as the Turkish parliament's foreign affairs committee will take up the issue on Thursday. It's been about three weeks since Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan submitted Sweden's accession to parliament and it should be clear by now that the folks in Ankara are in no particular hurry to work their way through that process. There may be some impetus on the part of other NATO members to have the issue resolved in time for the alliance foreign ministers summit on November 28, but Erdoğan has proven himself to be fairly impervious to that sort of pressure in the past.AMERICASUNITED STATESFinally, TomDispatch's William Hartung wonders whether the “Arsenal of Democracy” really cares all that much about the “democracy” part:The list of major human rights abusers that receive U.S.-supplied weaponry is long and includes (but isn't faintly limited to) Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, Turkey, Nigeria, and the Philippines. Such sales can have devastating human consequences. They also support regimes that all too often destabilize their regions and risk embroiling the United States directly in conflicts.U.S.-supplied arms also far too regularly fall into the hands of Washington's adversaries. As an example consider the way the UAE transferred small arms and armored vehicles produced by American weapons makers to extremist militias in Yemen, with no apparent consequences, even though such acts clearly violated American arms export laws. Sometimes, recipients of such weaponry even end up fighting each other, as when Turkey used U.S.-supplied F-16s in 2019 to bomb U.S.-backed Syrian forces involved in the fight against Islamic State terrorists.Such examples underscore the need to scrutinize U.S. arms exports far more carefully. Instead, the arms industry has promoted an increasingly “streamlined” process of approval of such weapons sales, campaigning for numerous measures that would make it even easier to arm foreign regimes regardless of their human-rights records or support for the interests Washington theoretically promotes. These have included an “Export Control Reform Initiative” heavily promoted by the industry during the Obama and Trump administrations that ended up ensuring a further relaxation of scrutiny over firearms exports. It has, in fact, eased the way for sales that, in the future, could put U.S.-produced weaponry in the hands of tyrants, terrorists, and criminal organizations.Now, the industry is promoting efforts to get weapons out the door ever more quickly through “reforms” to the Foreign Military Sales program in which the Pentagon essentially serves as an arms broker between those weapons corporations and foreign governments.Thanks for reading! Foreign Exchanges is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.foreignexchanges.news/subscribe

Liberians return to the polls on Tuesday in a runoff election between President George Weah and former vice-president Joseph Boakai. It follows a fiercely fought first round in which neither candidate was able to secure 50% of the votes for an outright victory. So, what can we expect from the runoff? Also British Somali author Nadifa Mohamed leads us into a world of cruelty and horror about human zoos. She tells the story of a stillborn baby, whose parents came from the Bambuti community from present day Democratic Republic of Congo to the UK. And does the blockbuster Nigerian film, "Over the Bridge", take us beyond Nollywood and into movie magic?

Les journalistes et experts de RFI répondent aux questions des auditeurs sur l'élection présidentielle au Libéria, sur la désignation de Thomas Boni Yayi à la tête des Démocrates et sur les accusations de Gérald Darmanin contre Karim Benzema. Sénégal : Ousmane Sonko, de nouveau en lice pour la présidentielle ?  À la suite d'une décision rendue par le tribunal de Ziguinchor, l'opposant sénégalais devrait être réintégré sur listes électorales. Pour quels motifs le juge a annulé la radiation du leader du Pastef ? Cela signifie-t-il qu'Ousmane Sonko est de retour dans la course à la présidentielle prévue en février 2024 ?  Avec Léa-Lisa Westerhoff, correspondante de RFI à Dakar. Présidentielle au Libéria : un second tour aux allures de 2017 Le président sortant George Weah et l'opposant Joseph Boakai sont donnés au coude à coude au premier tour de l'élection présidentielle. Comment expliquer ce résultat très serré entre les deux candidats ? Peut-on craindre des violences après que des cas d'affrontements ont été constatés lors de la campagne ?  Avec Bineta Diagne, correspondante de RFI dans la région. France : Karim Benzema va porter plainte contre Gérald Darmanin En France, le ministre de l'Intérieur Gérald Darmanin a accusé Karim Benzema d'être « en lien notoire avec les Frères musulmans ». Sur quels éléments se base Gérald Darmanin pour formuler une telle accusation ?   Avec Eric Chaurin, chef adjoint au service politique. Bénin : Thomas Boni Yayi prend la tête des Démocrates L'ancien chef d'État béninois Thomas Boni Yayi a été désigné chef du parti des Démocrates. Comment expliquer ce choix ? Quelles sont les ambitions de l'ancien président ?  Avec Steve Kpoton, juriste, consultant en gouvernance démocratique.  

Liberians voted in elections on Tuesday, with President George Weah seeking a second term. Observers said polling was peaceful, despite some violence during the campaign. Mr Weah is the favourite to win, with former Vice-President Joseph Boakai considered his main challenger. Did the president deliver in his first term? Are reparations the best way of rectifying the injustices of the past? After Ghana's president Nana Akufo-Addo calls for Western countries which profited from the transatlantic slave trade to pay reparations to African countries, we hear from an opponent of the proposal. And South Africa's latest census reveals the population rose by over 10 million, to 62 million people, in just over a decade. But how significant is this data?

Le Liberia a commencé mercredi à décompter les voix des électeurs qui sont allés voter la veille pour choisir le successeur de leur président George Weah, favori pour sa réélection, ainsi que leur nouveau Parlement. Au lendemain du jour du scrutin qui était férié, les Libériens ont repris le travail. Ils se disent satisfaits du déroulement du scrutin. Les précisions de notre envoyée spéciale à Monrovia, Julia Guggenheim.

Les journalistes et experts de RFI répondent aux questions des auditeurs sur la reprise des bases de l'ONU de l'armée malienne, sur le rejet du recours d'Ousmane Sonko et sur l'organisation de la Coupe du monde 2030. Libéria : vers un doublé de George Weah ?  Le premier tour des élections générales a eu lieu ce mardi. Il s'agit de la première élection organisée dans le pays depuis le départ de la mission de l'ONU, en 2018. Le scrutin s'est-il déroulé dans de bonnes conditions ? Avec un bilan contrasté, George Weah pourrait-il être mis en difficulté pour sa réélection ? Avec Christina Okello, journaliste au service Afrique de RFI.  Sénégal : le recours d'Ousmane Sonko rejeté par la Cour suprême Au Sénégal, la Cour suprême a rejeté la requête des avocats d'Ousmane Sonko qui demandaient le droit pour l'opposant de récolter les parrainages pour la présidentielle. Existe-il désormais d'autres voies de recours pour permettre à l'opposant d'être candidat en février 2024 ? Avec Léa-Lisa Westerhoff, correspondante permanente de RFI à Dakar.   Mali : l'armée en route pour Kidal, fief du CSP Après avoir pris le contrôle de la localité d'Anéfis, à une centaine de kilomètres de Kidal, l'armée malienne a annoncé vouloir reprendre les bases de l'ONU, situées dans le fief des rebelles du Cadre stratégique permanent. Les FAMA sont-ils en mesure de remplir cet objectif ?   Avec David Baché, journaliste au service Afrique de RFI.Football : la Coupe du monde 2030 se déroulera sur trois continents La Fifa a annoncé que la Coupe du monde 2030 se déroulera en Argentine, au Paraguay et en Uruguay, puis au Maroc, en Espagne et au Portugal. Mais l'instance mondiale du Football n'a pas encore vérifié si les six pays choisis respectaient les critères techniques. Cette décision est-elle définitive ? Comment la Fifa compte-t-elle répondre aux défis logistiques pour l'organisation de la compétition ? Avec Hugo Moissonnier, journaliste au service des Sports de RFI. 

Poursuite des combats dans le nord du Mali avec une nouveauté cette semaine : c'est  quasiment pour la première fois que ces combats entre l'armée malienne appuyés par les mercenaires du groupe Wagner et les mouvements armés ( CSP)  se déroulent vers le nord-est dans une région en partie contrôlée par les ex-rebelles . 

9.20.2023 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Louisiana Cops Accused of Torture, Ark. State Trooper Resigns, Libera's Alex Cumming Interview A huge case out of Louisiana.  Baton Rouge police officers are accused of illegally strip-strip searching, torturing, and assaulting people in the narcotics processing facility, dubbed "BRAVE cave."  Two people have filed a federal lawsuit.  One of the attorneys is here to give us the details.  During a high-speed chase, an Arkansas state trooper performs a PIT maneuver on the wrong vehicle.  Instead of facing the consequences of the investigation, he's allowed to retire.  The Kentucky gubernatorial race is getting heated.  Governor Andy Beshear dropped an ad today that his Republican opponent could not ignore.  I'll have a highlight video from the 10th Annual Cedric the Entertainer Celebrity Golf Classic! And premiering tonight my interview with the Liberian Opposition Leader Alex Cumming, who's challenging President George Weah in the October 10 election.  Download the Black Star Network app at http://www.blackstarnetwork.com! We're on iOS, AppleTV, Android, AndroidTV, Roku, FireTV, XBox and SamsungTV. The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platform covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.