Burundi’s security forces systematically killed dozens of people on December 11 as an act of repression in the country’s capital, according to a report by a UK-based rights group.

The government, however, blamed much of the violence on rebels.

Amnesty International said it documented extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests, and looting by the police in Bujumbura on what it called the single bloodiest day of the country’s escalating crisis.

At least 87 people were killed, with many reportedly shot at short range.

“In the single most deadly day since the current political unrest began, the streets of Bujumbura were left littered with bodies, many shot with a single bullet to the head. At least one body was found tied up,” said Amnesty’s Muthoni Wanyeki said.

The violence was ignited on December 11 after attackers launched assaults on three army installations in the capital, according to Burundian officials.

Burundi had descended into bloodshed last April when President Pierre Nkurunziza announced his intention to run for a controversial third term, which he went on to win in July.

Months of street protests turned into regular armed attacks with gunfire disrupting the nights and bodies being found on city streets almost every day.

But December 11 represented “a dramatic escalation in scale and intensity from previous security operations,” the Amnesty report said.

Presidential spokesperson Jean-Claude Karerwa told Al Jazeera that rebels had committed “war crimes and crimes against humanity and later put the crimes on the back of Burundi defence and security forces”.

“The army and police source insist that people found dead with hands tied with handcuffs have simply been killed in cold blood by attackers,” Karerwa added.

Amnesty, in Monday’s report, said that the bodies of most of those killed were collected by the authorities and taken to an undisclosed location.

A day after the violence, an army spokesperson said that 79 “enemies” had been killed, as well as four soldiers and four police. But Amnesty said that many of those killed were civilians, not opposition fighters.

As international alarm grew over the spiralling violence, the African Union last week suggested sending in peacekeepers.

But parliament on Monday criticised the proposal and the government has said such a mission would constitute an “invasion force”.

Burundi’s Prosecutor General on December 17 announced an investigation into the events of December 11.

Amnesty called that “a good first step if the team is allowed to carry out its work in a truly independent, impartial and thorough manner”.

“There must be an urgent and impartial investigation into the actions of the police on 11 December and other incidents. All those suspected of criminal responsibility for these heinous crimes must be held to account before an ordinary civilian court,” it said.

Karerwa told Al Jazeera that the government palnned to conduct its own inquiry.

“As we look forward to the findings by different organisations, we should try to dominate our emotions,” he said. “I understand that such an exercise might take blood, sweat and tears, but let us all be strong and give it a try,” he said.

aljazeera.com

The British Secretary of State for Defence, Mr Michael Fallon, has said his country will deploy additional military advisers and trainers to Nigeria to help in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency.

Fallon stated this while fielding question from State House correspondents after a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Monday.

According to him, the military personnel, who will be in Nigeria next year, will be offering training to improve the Nigerian Army’s resilience to Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) left behind by Boko Haram.

“Britain and Nigeria are both democracies; we are free peoples, free to choose our governments.

“These terrorists – ISIS, Boko Haram – they are opposed to us, our ways of life and they need to be defeated.

“So, we have been discussing today what more Britain can do; can we step up our military effort with more training, more help in dealing with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and with dealing with medical evacuation and airfield defence.

“And what more can be done to improve the intelligence Nigeria needs to deal with terrorism.

“Well, this year, for example, we have had some 130 military personnel here helping to train the Nigerian Army.

“Next year, I want to more than double that to more than 300 personnel are coming to offer training and particularly to improve the Army’s resilience to IEDs, which obviously have been left behind by Boko Haram when they were being moved out of the villages they captured.’’

He stated that British government would want to do more to help stabilize those areas liberated by the soldiers.

According to Fallon, the British government will not only be assisting in the provision of security and rehabilitation of the affected areas but will ensure economic development of the areas.

“The President and I are aware both have to do with this kind of terrorism facing our countries.

“So, he has welcomed our offer of support to help to clear the terrorists out of the North East of Nigeria.

“And we are going to be working together on a wider issues of stabilization and economic development of these areas, providing long-term security.’’

dailypost.ng

Mali’s government on Monday declared a ten-day state of emergency from midnight after what security sources say follows a series of threats from unnamed jihadist groups.

An Islamist insurgency simmering in the West African country since French forces drove the militants out of key northern towns two years ago has intensified in recent months.

Unknown jihadists attacked a luxury hotel in November, killing 20 people including many foreigners, in the latest strike on the country’s once stable southern capital Bamako.

Mali’s government then declared a state of emergency but it has since expired.

“The state of emergency aims to give the relevant authorities the means to allow them to better identify and counter any project threatening people’s safety…,” according to the government statement, without giving details.

Two security sources said threats issued by jihadist groups had prompted the announcement. One of them said this followed a meeting of Islamist militant leaders in the northern Kidal region last week.

Many armed fighters operate in Mali’s vast northern desert, including some with links to al Qaeda, and other secular groups drawn from the Tuareg community seeking independence for a region they call Azawad.

reuters.com

A group of Kenyan Muslims travelling on a bus ambushed by Islamist gunmen protected Christian passengers by refusing to be split into groups, BBC News reports citing eyewitnesses.

They told the militants “to kill them together or leave them alone”, a local governor told Kenyan media.

At least two people were killed in the attack, near the north-eastern village of El Wak on the Somali border.

The Somali based al-Shabab group is the main suspect for the attack.

It has not said if it was responsible, but often carries out attacks in Kenya’s north-east.

The bus was travelling from the capital Nairobi to the town of Mandera.

When al-Shabab killed 148 people in an attack on Garissa University College in April, the militants reportedly singled out Christians and shot them, while freeing many Muslims.

Last year, a bus was attacked near Mandera by al-Shabab militants, who killed 36 non-Muslims travelling to Nairobi for Christmas celebrations.

“The locals showed a sense of patriotism and belonging to each other,” Mandera governor Ali Roba told Kenya’s private Daily Nation newspaper.

The militants decided to leave after the passengers’ show of unity, he added.

The passengers on the bus showed great bravery, but there was another quality revealed by their surprising decision to stand up to the gunmen: frustration.

The majority of the local population in the north-east are Kenyan Muslims of Somali descent, and they have been hit hard by the consequences of al-Shabab attacks, even if non-Muslims are supposedly the main target of the Somali militant group.

An attack last year in Mandera, in which Christians were killed after being separated from Muslims, caused the departure of more than 2,000 teachers, as well as many health workers who had come from other parts of the country.

Perhaps the passengers felt that the region could simply not afford another such attack.

It will be interesting to see if their actions embolden local populations to increase their resistance to al-Shabab, which has attacked the area several times.

panarmenian.net

euronews.com

The Western Naval Command (WNC), which is based in the city, says it has achieved a major success in combating pirates. The Navy announced that intensive patrolling in Gulf of Aden and off the Somalia coast has led to pirates shifting bases.

The two locations are important sea lanes for trade. The WNC controls the anti-piracy operations. Currently, INS Trishul, extensively patrols the seas at these locations and is the pivot of the missions. On December 3, aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya along with several other warships took part in patrolling Gulf of Aden and the Somalia coast. Last year, there were four attacks by pirates in Gulf of Aden and three off Somalia seas. The Navy has so far escorted 3,000 merchant vessels to safety and foiled piracy attacks on 46 ships at other locations.

A report by the ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) showed a decrease in piracy cases reported across the world. While 245 cases took place last year, the figure for 2015 is 223. The IMB, which is based in the United Kingdom, said a crackdown by the Navy has reduced serious attacks in southeast Asia. However, IMB urges vessels to maintain vigilance while travelling in Somalia waters as the threat of piracy has not been eliminated completely. A day prior to the Navy Day celebrations, the WNC Vice Admiral SPS Cheema said the economy is directly linked to the growth in trade and most of India’s voluminous trade is carried out using the sea route for import and export. “The Middle East remains a major source of the country’s crude oil imports. Our Navy ensures that the trade via the sea is safe at all times thereby guaranteeing unhindered growth of our economy. Our efforts have resulted in zero piracy this year in Gulf of Aden and Somalia,” said Cheema.

Cheema said good coordination and understanding with all agencies and stakeholders—Coast Guard, Marine Police, Customs, the fishing boats—is encouraged to prevent threats emanating from the sea

The pirates have been kept on their toes since 2011 when the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard officials caught 120 of them from Somalia in three different attacks. The pirates are facing trial on charges of murder, hijacking and waging war against the Indian government.

They are lodged at the Taloja jail. Given India’s strategic location, the Navy requires continuous monitoring of eight major shipping lanes, with a large number of foreign warships being present round the clock. More than one lakh ships pass through the waters along India’s coast annually. “If this trade were to be disrupted for any reason, then it would not only be India’s but the world economy’s loss,” said Cheema.

indiatimes.com

As part of their determined efforts to rid the society of all known Boko Haram terrorists enclaves and hideouts, troops of 25 Task Force Brigade, based on tip off, conducted a fighting patrol along Damboa-Njaba-Bale road in Borno State.

In a statement by Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman, Acting Director Army Public Relations,
he said the troops encountered and killed 3 suspected Boko Haram terrorists that had been terrorizing the communities around Sabon Gari and Damboa.

Among those killed was the Boko Haram terrorists Ameer (Leader) in Bulayaga. The Ameer was notorious in terrorizing Bale, Wass and Mufurundi villages.

The troops recovered an AK-47 rifle with its magazine, 43 rounds of 7.62mm Special Ammunition, 1 Grinding Machine and 5 Dane Guns. Other items recovered include 7 Motorcycles,21 bags of grains and 2 Boko Haram terrorists flags hoisted.

In a related development, troops of 7 Division Garrison on patrol at Mainari village in Mafa Local Government Area had an encounter with Boko Haram terrorists.

The encounter led to the killing of 9 terrorists and recovery of weapons, which include 4 AK-47 and 1 Pump Action Gun.

The patrol teams have continued to dominate the respective areas.

dailypost.ng

The African Union High Commissioner for Security and Peace Smaïl Chergui announced Sunday in Oran that that the Pan-African Organization intends to set up “another force in northern Mali to fight against terrorism an d the organized crime.”

Speaking on the sidelines of the 3^rd High Level Seminar for Peace and Security in Africa in Oran, he said that « terrorism and the organized crimes are threats to the Peace Accord in the region.”

Early 2013, the AU set up an African-led International Support Mission to (MISMA), transformed on 1st July of the same year into MINUSMA, United Nations multidimensional integrated stabilization mission in Mali.

Chergui has also said that the AU wants to mobilize a force against Boko Haram and set the necessary funding for armies to fight against those groups who activate in the Chad Lake zone.

“AU advances at sure steps as the stake is great and this effort against terrorism must be everyone’s effort, a global effort,” he underlined, adding that the African Organization has mechanisms of fight against terrorism in the Continent.

In this regard, he mentioned the force of fight against Shebab groups in Somalia, which is a special force against the terrorist groups activating in Uganda, as well as an AU-UN joint force in Darfur.

aps.dz

An organization that tracks jihadi websites says the Islamic State group has published an infographic saying its West Africa division has launched more than 100 attacks in the past two months.

SITE Intelligence Group reports Boko Haram, which joined the Islamic State group in March, has killed and injured more than 1,000 people between Oct. 14 and Dec. 12.

Based in Nigeria, Boko Haram has expanded its attacks into Cameroon, Niger and Chad, countries contributing to a regional force to wipe out the extremists.

The IS graphic says its West African branch has staged 67 suicide attacks and fired more than 120 rockets.

SITE says the data for the infographic posted Saturday on Twitter and Telegram was apparently collected from media reports.

foxnews.com