NIAMEY (AFP) – A suspected militant attack on three lorries and a motorcycle in western Niger near the border with Mali killed 11 people, local sources told AFP on Sunday. The attack took place on a remote road in the so-called “three borders” region between Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso plagued by militants linked with Al-Qaeda and the Daesh terrorist group. A local government official in the Banibangou area where the attack occurred said armed men intercepted three trucks on a remote road on Saturday morning and killed their nine occupants. Two people riding a motorcycle also died, he added. A local lawmaker also confirmed the toll of 11 dead, saying two of the trucks were burned and the other taken away. Attacks by militants had been less frequent in recent months in Banibangou, located in the vast and unstable Tillaberi region in western Niger. Civilians have often been caught in the fighting between the rebels and security forces. In November 2021, authorities said at least 69 local self-defence militiamen were massacred.

 

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KHARTOUM (Al Jazeera) – The death toll from days of tribal fighting in southern Sudan has risen to at least 220, making this one of the deadliest episodes of ethnic violence in recent years. Fighting in Blue Nile province, which borders Ethiopia and South Sudan, reignited this month over a land dispute. It pits the Hausa people, who have origins across West Africa, against the Berta community. The tensions escalated on Wednesday and Thursday in the town of Wad al-Mahi on the border with Ethiopia. The unrest added to the woes of a country mired in civil conflict and political chaos. Fath Arrahman Bakheit, director general of the Blue Nile health ministry, said on Sunday that officials have counted at least 220 dead. He said the figure could be much higher because medical teams have not been able to reach the epicentre of the fighting. Bakheit said the first humanitarian and medical convoy reached Wad al-Mahi late Saturday to assess the situation, including counting the “huge number of bodies” and the dozens of wounded. “In such clashes, everyone loses,” he said. “We hope it ends soon and never happens again, but we need strong political, security and civil interventions to achieve that goal.” Footage from the scene showed burned houses and charred bodies. Others showed women and children fleeing on foot.

 

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LJUBLJANA (AFP) – Slovenians voted on Sunday in close presidential elections seen as a chance by the country’s conservatives to regain some support after their defeat in April parliamentary elections. Electors in the small Alpine EU member of two million people chose from seven candidates standing for the largely ceremonial post -- but with no candidate expected to clinch the 50 percent support needed for an outright victory, a second round of voting looks likely. The frontrunner, with a forecast 30.1 percent of the vote, is expected to be Anze Logar, a foreign minister under the former conservative government of veteran Janez Jansa. Slovenia’s former head of the data protection authority, centre-left candidate Natasa Pirc Musar, 54, is tipped to gain around 20 percent of the vote, according to a poll published by daily Delo on Friday. Liberal Prime Minister Robert Golob has backed European Social Democrats parliament member, Milan Brglez, and called for the centre-left parties to unify behind one candidate. The 55-year-old Brglez is tipped to get just over 17 percent of the vote.

 

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NEW DELHI (Al Jazeera) – India’s space agency says its rocket has successfully put 36 internet satellites into orbit for UK-based satellite company OneWeb after months of delay due to the war in Ukraine. The mission – part of a commercial arrangement between New Space India Limited, a government-run firm, and OneWeb – was announced successful by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) early on Sunday.  “This is the first-ever commercial launch of the new rocket LVM3 [Launch Vehicle Mark 3],” ISRO Chairman Sreedhara Panicker Somanath said as liftoff took place at 12:07am from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh. This 14th launch of OneWeb satellites relied on India’s heaviest rocket, normally reserved for government spacecraft. OneWeb launched its first satellite in 2019. It was the first launch for OneWeb since breaking with the Russian Space Agency in March because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Despite this year’s disruption, the British company said it remains on track to activate global coverage next year with a planned constellation of 648 satellites. It is already providing service in the northernmost latitudes. 

 

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NEW HAMPSHIRE (NBC) – A small plane crashed into an apartment building near an airport in the northeastern U.S. state of New Hampshire, killing two people on board, local officials said. The multifamily building in the city of Keene, 70 miles (110 kilometers) northwest of Boston, caught fire in the Friday night crash but no one on the ground was injured. Keene Mayor George Hansel said that two people on board the plane died, but gave no further details. “There were no injuries at the multifamily building. Unfortunately, those on the plane have perished,” the city of Keene said in a Facebook post on Friday night. “The FAA has been notified. Additional details will be shared as they become available.” Resident Scott Gauthier said he heard a loud noise and felt the building shake.