Headline News

Turkey-Syria earthquake: Search for survivors as death toll surpasses 8,000

8, February 2023

Turkey-Syria earthquake: Search for survivors as death toll surpasses 8,000 0

Rescuers are racing to pull survivors from earthquake rubble before they succumb to cold weather in southern Turkey and war-ravaged northern Syria. As the death toll climbed, despair and anger were growing over the pace of rescue efforts. Follow the latest developments on our live blog below.

The death toll from the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria early on Monday has now reached 5,894 in Turkey and 2,470 in Syria, bringing the total to 8,364.

More than 34,000 were injured in Turkey.

Bad weather hampered the search and rescue efforts overnight

Thousands of children may have been killed, according to UNICEF.

Monday’s quake, followed hours later by a second one almost as powerful, toppled thousands of buildings including hospitals, schools and apartment blocks, leaving thousands of people homeless.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a state of emergency in 10 provinces.

More than 12,000 Turkish search and rescue personnel are working in the affected areas, along with 9,000 troops.

More than 70 countries have offered rescue teams and other aid.

The United Nations says it’s “exploring all avenues” to get supplies to rebel-held northwestern Syria, and it released $25 million from its emergency fund to help kick-start the humanitarian response in Turkey and Syria.

Source: France 24

Prosecution should seek the death penalty against Belinga Amougou

7, February 2023

Prosecution should seek the death penalty against Belinga Amougou 0

The murder of two journalists Martinez Zogo and Jean Jacques Ola Bébé in Yaoundé is not a new development in Cameroon but it is also one that should prompt prosecutors to bring the death penalty on the table for men like Amougou Belinga found to be killing media men and women and looting the state.

President Biya as always is facing international condemnation for his brutal crackdown on opposition figures to his rule, age is telling on him, the Southern Cameroons uprising has become increasingly hydra-headed, Boko Haram is now in control of certain areas in the Far North region as CPDM defectors are joining forces with anything antagonistic with his regime.

It is now time for the judiciary in Cameroon to do something to cleanse Biya’s nasty legacy and that is imposing the death penalty on Belinga Amougou.

This tougher measure should come immediately including the implementation of the Canada peace plan aimed at halting the violence that has killed thousands of Southern Cameroonians according to United Nations estimates.

On Monday, security agents arrested business tycoon Amougou Belinga and a young journalist he recently promoted to the post of General Manager of his privately-owned television channel, Vision 4 for planning and teleguiding the barbaric murder of journalist and whistleblower Martinez Zogo and his close associate Jean Jacques Ola Bébé.

The late radio host of the program “Embouteillages” had been very critical against alleged corruptors and embezzlers of public funds. It is said that more than 22 people have been arrested in Yaoundé and are currently being interrogated at the Secretariat for Defense (SED).

Earlier today, forensic searches were conducted in the building hosting the head office of the French Cameroun mafia boss. The search was conducted by Colonel Mbarga, accompanied by two divisional commissioners and officers. Amougou Belinga was present as well as his lawyer, Charles Tchoungang. The building was searched from top to bottom. AMOUGOU BELINGA only refused to open a finger print lock safe where he said some of his blood money was.

Investigators also auditioned his wife, Sarah Amougou Belinga, a senior magistrate. The operation targeting his wife was led by Colonel Abena Ayissi Parfait. Justice Sarah Amougou Belinga refused to grant access to some rooms that were later on forcefully opened.

Biya reluctantly agreed to allow an investigation into the Zogo affair after pressure from Paris, Yaounde’s close ally, and the European Union, which threatened to refer Yaoundé to the UN Security Council, a serious diplomatic escalation that could have led to the collapse of the 40-year-old regime.

In a divided nation where atrocities are being recorded on a daily basis – common sense demands state prosecutors to seek a death penalty for Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga-to use his four names, stop the bloodshed in Southern Cameroons, withdraw Francophone civil administrators from English speaking Cameroon, release all Southern Cameroons detainees including Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and his top aides and start talks with the jailed Southern Cameroons leaders.

We of the Cameroon Concord News and the Cameroon Intelligence Report are calling on state prosecutors in Yaoundé to halt the killing machine against journalists in Cameroon and the Biya regime’s tactics to buy time and avert a showdown with the international community by sentencing Jean Pierre Amougou to death by hanging.

To this I put my name

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

PRC 2023: The forum for a key stakeholder in the climate debate

7, February 2023

PRC 2023: The forum for a key stakeholder in the climate debate 0

Found across a vast range of modern products, petrochemicals are part of the fabric of our societies. Clothing, tyres, digital devices, packaging, detergents, and countless other everyday items are made from petrochemicals. Petrochemical feedstock accounts for 12% of global oil demand, a share that is expected to increase, driven by increasing demand for plastics, fertilisers, and other products. Despite its size, the sector continues to take a back seat in the global energy debate.

Over last 50 years, society has been increasingly reliant on the products of the organic chemical industry to supply the clothes we wear, the food we eat, our health, housing, transportation, security, and other commodities. About 92% of organic chemical products are produced from petroleum, that is, fossil, or mineral, oil, and gas. In addition, these same resources are generally used to provide the large quantities of process heat and power needed by the industry. In the modern petrochemical industry, oil and gas inputs for both raw material and process energy compose about 50% of the operating costs.

The result is that not only is the chemical industry (including petrochemicals) the industrial sector with the highest emissions worldwide, it is also very vulnerable to variations in fossil fuel and carbon prices. Thus, efficiency has long been a major factor in determining competitiveness in petrochemicals, and the sector has a high success rate in reducing its energy intensity. Despite this, over the past decade, while total use of oil has grown globally at a rate of 1.4% per year over, the use of oil for chemical feedstocks has grown at about 4.0% per year. Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in an industry that is so dependent on fossil fuels presents a significant challenge that has begun to receive serious attention from researchers and businesses alike.

Regarding this sector, the concept of “biorefining” for bio-based chemicals has been given particular prominence for its potential to deliver renewability, low CO2, and energy/feedstock security in the long term. However, establishing new production routes based on biomass in Europe is shown to face considerable social, technical, and economic obstacles to reaching a scale that can contribute valuable emissions reductions.

Due to the important role the petrochemical industry plays in our lives, PRC Europe has been organizing events to shed more light on the significant role this industry has been playing when it comes to cutting emissions. PRC Europe 2023 is the annual B2B Congress and it will bring together downstream industry players who are making decisions to accelerate the energy transition and comply with COP26. Among the key topics of the business program are the question of energy trilemma, biorefining, clean hydrogen and petrochemicals production, meaning of alternative transportation fuels, decarbonization and plant improvement, recycling technologies and many others.

During 3 days of intensive networking, participants get direct access to the whole value chain of downstream. Each year PRC Europe gathers industry leaders from Oil & Gas Companies, EPCs, Refineries and Petrochemical Plants, Licensors, Chemical Companies to discuss innovative solutions and business practices and to share the lessons learned.

PRC Europe is a closed-door event aimed to gather only industry experts from both top-management and technical level. For that reason, BGS Group works upon invitations and requests selectively choosing the audience that is able to discuss ongoing trends and questions of Downstream Oil & Gas, contributing to the business program with up-to-date case-studies. Al of this transforms the Congress into an efficient B2B networking platform.

By Ayuk Boris Ebot

Science and Environment Correspondent

Earthquake kills more than 5,000 in Turkey, Syria

7, February 2023

Earthquake kills more than 5,000 in Turkey, Syria 0

Rescuers in Turkey and Syria braved frigid weather, aftershocks and collapsing buildings Tuesday, as they dug for survivors buried by an earthquake that killed more than 5,000 people.

Disaster agencies said several thousand buildings were flattened in cities across a vast border region — pouring misery on an area already plagued by war, insurgency, refugee crises and a recent cholera outbreak.

Through the night, survivors used their bare hands to pick over the twisted ruins of multi-storey apartment blocks — trying to save family, friends and anyone else sleeping inside when the first massive 7.8-magnitude quake struck early Monday.

“Where is my mum?” asked a distraught seven-year-old girl who was pulled — her face, hair and pyjamas covered in dust — from a collapsed building in Hatay, on the Turkish side of the border.

The sense of disbelief was widespread, as residents struggled to comprehend the scale of the disaster.

Disaster agencies said several thousand buildings were flattened across a vast Turkey-Syria border region

Some of the heaviest devastation occurred near the quake’s epicentre between Kahramanmaras and Gaziantep, a city of two million where entire blocks now lie in ruins under gathering snow.

As residents tried to clear a mountain of masonry, plasterboard and furniture that had been a multi-story building, another collapsed nearby — sending crowds screaming and clamouring for safety.

With aftershocks rattling the area, many terrified and exhausted survivors spent the night outdoors, too afraid to go home.

Source: AFP

Ex-Newcastle winger Atsu pulled alive from earthquake rubble

7, February 2023

Ex-Newcastle winger Atsu pulled alive from earthquake rubble 0

Ghana international winger Christian Atsu has been found alive after being buried under rubble by the earthquake, the vice president of his club Hatayspor told media on Tuesday. He had been reported missing in Turkey’s Hatay province.

“Christian Atsu was pulled out injured. Our sporting director, Taner Savut, is unfortunately still under the rubble,” club vice president Mustafa Ozak told Radyo Gol.

Atsu, 31, played in the Premier League for Newcastle United and Everton, on loan from Chelsea, and joined Hatayspor in September. He was last selected to play for Ghana in 2019, but has not officially retired from international football.

Journalist Martinez Zogo Affair: Media tycoon Amougou Belinga, Bruno Bidjang in police drag-net

6, February 2023

Journalist Martinez Zogo Affair: Media tycoon Amougou Belinga, Bruno Bidjang in police drag-net 0

Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga and a young journalist he recently promoted to General Manager of his privately-owned television channel, Vision 4 were arrested at their respective homes shortly after 6am on Monday, February 6, 2023.

Cameroon Intelligence Report understands the mafia boss of the press group ANECDOTE Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga was auditioned in the premises of the Secretariat of State for Defense (SED) in the night of Thursday, February 2, 2023 in Yaoundé, before images of him touring one of his fraudulent financial establishments “Vison finances” were released Friday morning. An activity organized in order to deny his arrest.

This time around Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga is no longer free to move. He was arrested this morning, as well as his closest collaborator and trusted man, Bruno Bidjang.

Cameroon Intelligence Report has evidence that Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga teleguided the barbaric murder of journalist and whistleblower Martinez Zogo. The late host of the program “Embouteillages” had been very critical against alleged corruptors and embezzlers of public funds.

Zogo was kidnapped on January 17, 2023, and then found dead on Sunday, January 22, 2023. A joint gendarmerie-police investigation ordered by President Biya has already led to the arrest of some twenty suspects.

By Rita Akana

Yaoundé: The head of counter-espionage summoned in the case of Martinez Zogo’s death

6, February 2023

Yaoundé: The head of counter-espionage summoned in the case of Martinez Zogo’s death 0

Divisional Commissioner Léopold Maxime Eko Eko, head of the General Directorate of External Research (DGRE), the Cameroonian counterintelligence service, had his presence requested at the State Secretariat for Defence on 1 February.

According to sources close to the investigation, Léopold Maxime Eko Eko has been summoned for questioning in connection with the assassination of journalist Martinez Zogo, whose body was discovered on the morning of 22 January, following that of Lieutenant-Colonel Justin Danwe, Director of Operations of the Direction générale de la recherche extérieure (DGRE), who is believed to have orchestrated Zogo’s kidnapping, custody, torture, and murder. Eko Eko’s arrest is the first significant step towards an investigation that has been slow to develop.

Use of force methods

It has long been believed that the authorities may have had something to do with the murder. On 27 January, Secretary General of the Presidency, Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, ordered that the investigation be opened, causing hope to abound.

Before his August 2010 appointment as head of the DGRE, Eko Eko was Director of General Intelligence at the Délégation générale à la sûreté nationale, DGSN, (General Delegation for National Security). Already a police commissioner with a Doctorate in Information and Communication Sciences from l’université Paris-Est, Eko Eko has long been a supporter of treating perceived enemies of the state with force, as was the case with the disappearance of Guérandi Mbara’s as revealed in 2014 by us; Mbara being one of the masterminds of the 6 April 1984 coup d’état.

Mbara was kidnapped in Bulgaria, repatriated to Cameroon, and delivered into the hands of the DGRE, never to be seen nor heard from again.

According to our sources, Eko Eko has been temporarily replaced by Deputy Director General Monkouop Mouminou, Divisional Commissioner.

Source: Africa Report

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Yaoundé says Amba fighters are using IED

6, February 2023

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Yaoundé says Amba fighters are using IED 0

Cameroon says separatists have killed and abducted villagers in the troubled South-West region in retaliation after the military this week killed a rebel leader and three of his men. The military blamed the self-declared general, nicknamed Transporter, for several atrocities, which the rebels deny.

Videos of improvised bombs exploding was shared on social media platforms, including Facebook and WhatsApp, by Cameroon separatist groups.

The separatists have been fighting since 2017 to carve out an English-speaking state from majority French-speaking Cameroon.

In one video, a man identifies himself as Sagon Jaguar, leader of the separatist group called the Ambazonia Restoration Forces, in Bamessing village in Cameroon’s English-speaking North-West region. He says the bombs fighters planted destroyed five military jeeps belonging to Cameroon government troops.

The military confirmed that fighters resumed the use of such bombs in several English-speaking towns and villages, including Bamessing, Oku, Kumbo, Nkambe and Kom this week, and says several civilians have been killed or abducted with their property torched. Officials added that military vehicles were destroyed and some troops were wounded but gave no details.

Cameroon said fighters resumed attacks after government troops on Tuesday killed Ayuk Ndifon Defcam, a self-proclaimed rebel leader known as “General Transporter.” Government troops said he was neutralized alongside his assistant and two collaborators in Wame, a village in Meme, an English-speaking administrative unit in Cameroon’s South-West region.

Chamberlin Ntou’ ou Ndong, the highest-ranking government official in Meme visited Kumba on Friday to encourage civilians to denounce suspected fighters hiding in towns and villages. He said fighters who are avenging the killing of Transporter will be killed by the military if they do not lay down their weapons and surrender.

Ndong told VOA the notorious self-proclaimed general Transporter committed many crimes against civilians, including abductions, rape, and the massacre of seven school children in the English-speaking southwestern town of Kumba on October 24, 2020. He said Transporter, who escaped and was hiding in the creeks around the Gulf of Guinea, returned to Konye village near Kumba and was planning attacks on public edifices and military installations when government troops surprised him and three of his fighters.

Ndong said the military seized weapons from the rebels and freed several people who were held hostage by the fighters. The military said Transporter was the leader of several hundred fighters hiding in the bush.

In December, Cameroon’s military said no major separatist attack had been reported within six weeks, an indication that peace is returning to the regions where 3,500 people have been killed in five years.

The United Nations says 750,000 have been displaced by the fighting.

Source: VOA

Beyoncé breaks record for the most Grammy wins ever

6, February 2023

Beyoncé breaks record for the most Grammy wins ever 0

Beyoncé stands alone on her Grammy throne: With her fourth win Sunday night, she has become the most decorated artist in the show’s history surpassing the 26-year-old record once held by the late Hungarian-British conductor Georg Solti.

The superstar singer has now collected 32 awards after she won for best R&B song for “Cuff It,” dance-electric music recording for “Break My Soul,” traditional R&B performance for “Plastic Off the Sofa” and dance-electric music for her seventh studio album “Renaissance,” which is also nominated for album of the year.

Beyoncé missed the milestone of her tying Solti’s record, which stood since 1997. Host Trevor Noah said she was on her way to the ceremony but blamed Los Angeles traffic for not being in person to accept it.

The song was written by several writers including Beyonce, The-Dream, Nile Rodgers and Raphael Saadiq.

Once Beyonce finally arrived, Noah presented her with the best R&B song award at her table which included her husband Jay-Z and The-Dream. In that category, she extended her record as the artist with most wins in the category with five wins.

Bad Bunny opened the Grammy Awards with a festive, high-energy performance that brought many of the audience including Taylor Swift who rose to her feet and danced near her table at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena.

Noah introduced Bunny calling him a “global force” who is the most streamed and listened to artist in the world.

By the time the show started on CBS, Beyoncé had already won two Grammys. Beyoncé entered Sunday’s ceremony as the leading nominee including album, song and record of the year.

If she wins in any of those major categories, it’ll be her first since since she received the song of the year honor for “Single Ladies” in 2010.

Styles won the main telecast’s first award for best pop vocal album for “Harry’s House.”

The singer said recording the song was one of the “greatest experiences of my life. It’s been my greatest joy.”

Sam Smith and Kim Petras won best pop duo-group performance for their song “Unholy.”

Petras said Smith wanted Petras to make the acceptance speech because “I’m the first transgender woman to win this award.”

“I want to thank all the incredible transgender legends before me who kicked these doors open for me so I could be here tonight,” said Petras, who made a reference to friend and Grammy-nominated musician Sophie, who died after an accidental fall in Athens, Greece in 2021.

“You told me this would happen. I always believed in me. Thank you so much for your inspiration, Sophie. I adore you, and your inspiration will forever be in my music.”

Petras thanked Madonna for being a tremendous supporter of LGBTQ rights.

“I don’t think I could be here without Madonna,” Petras said. “My mother, I grew up next to a highway in nowhere Germany. And my mother believed me that I was a girl. I wouldn’t be here without her and her support.”

During the in memoriam segment, the Grammys recognized the lives of Loretta Lynn, Migos rapper Takeoff and Christine McVie with several star-studded performers paying them homage.

The touching performances included Kacey Musgraves singing “Coal Miner’s Daughter” in tribute to Lynn; Quavo and the Maverick City Music hit the stage to honor his nephew Takeoff with the song “Without You;” and Sheryl Crow, Mick Fleetwood and Bonnie Raitt performed “Songbird” to remember McVie.

Kendrick Lamar won sixth career trophy for best rap performance for “The Heart Part 5” and also won best rap album for his studio offering, “Mr. Morales & The Big Steppers.”

“You know, as entertainers, we say things to provoke thoughts and feelings and emotions,” he said. “So making this record is one of my toughest. … I would like to thank the culture for allowing me to evolve in order to make this. I finally found imperfection with this album.”

Viola Davis emerged from Sunday’s show an EGOT — a term for those who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony — after her win for best audio book, narration and storytelling recording.

The actor gave an emotional speech and emphatically said “I just EGOT” after she marched on stage to collect her award.

“Oh, my God,” she said. “I wrote this book to honor the 6-year-old Viola, to honor her, her life, her joy, her trauma, everything,” Davis said. “It has just been such a journey.”

Tattered streetwear, T-shirts and denim mixed with blinged-out couture, wild patterns and plenty of skin on the Grammys carpet.

Lizzo wowed in a bright orange Dolce & Gabbana robe adorned with flowers and a huge hood while Taylor Swift wore a long two-piece sparkly skirt with a high-neck and long-sleeve crop top in midnight blue.

Brandi Carlile made a rare appearance during the pre-telecast for a major artist. The singer showed up after her song “Broke Horses” won for best rock performance and best rock song, a songwriter’s award, and best Americana album.

“It’s rock ‘n’ roll, man,” said a smiling Carlile, who jogged on stage with a couple of her band members. “I cannot tell you how much this means to us. We’re born and raised in Seattle.

When I met these guys 22 years ago we decided to get into a band.” Carlile co-wrote “Broken Horses” with twin brothers Phil and Tim Hanseroth.

There could be many other firsts during the ceremony: If Bad Bunny wins album of the year for “Un Verano Sin Ti,” it would be the first time a Spanish-language album has taken home the top honor.

Taylor Swift, whose latest album “Midnights” wasn’t eligible for this year’s Grammys, could win her first song of the year trophy for “All Too Well.”

An Adele win for song of the year for her track “Easy on Me” would make her the most decorated artist in the category with three wins, the others coming for her megahits “Hello” and “Rolling in the Deep.”

This year’s Grammys have also introduced several new categories, including one for video game music composition, which went to the soundtrack for “Assassins Creed: Valhalla.”

This year’s show marks a return to Los Angeles after the pandemic first delayed, then forced the Grammys to move to Las Vegas last year. Noah hosted the ceremony as well, which saw Jon Batiste take home album of the year.

Source: AP

50 dead in Syria after earthquake

6, February 2023

50 dead in Syria after earthquake 0

At least 50 people have been killed across Syria as buildings collapsed after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that had its epicentre in southeastern Turkey, state media and a local hospital said.

Forty-two people were killed in government-controlled parts of Syria, state media said, while a local hospital told AFP that eight others were killed in northern areas controlled by pro-Turkish factions.

“Forty-two deaths and 200 injuries have been reported in Aleppo, Hama and Latakia as a result of the earthquake in a preliminary toll,” state news agency SANA said quoting a health ministry official.

Rescuers have been rushing to search for survivors under the rubble of collapsed buildings since the earthquake hit Syria at dawn.

AFP correspondents in northern Syria said terrified residents ran out of their homes after the ground shook.

SANA had reported earlier that the earthquake was felt from the western coast of Latakia to Damascus.

“This earthquake is the strongest since the National Earthquake Centre was founded in 1995,” Raed Ahmed, who heads the centre, told SANA.

In northern Syrian areas controlled by pro-Turkish factions, at least eight people were killed “in the regions of Azaz and al-Bab,” a source at a local hospital told AFP, adding that the number is likely to rise as search and rescue operations are ongoing.

In the neighbouring rebel-held Idlib region bordering Turkey, civil defence said there were “dozens of victims and hundreds of people injured and stuck under the rubble”.

“Our teams are in a state of emergency to rescue survivors,” the White Helmets rescue group said on Twitter.

The 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit near Gaziantep in southeastern Turkey on Monday at 04:17 am local time (0117 GMT) at a depth of about 17.9 kilometres (11 miles), the US Geological Survey said.

The tremors were felt in Lebanon, Syria and Cyprus, according to AFP correspondents.

Source: AFP

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