Even a dead Robert Mugabe could stand in Zimbabwe election - wife

Source: BBC, February 18, 2017

The wife of Zimbabwe's 92-year-old President, Robert Mugabe, has said that he is so popular that if he died, he could run as a corpse in next year's election and still win votes.

Grace Mugabe, 51, was addressing a rally of the governing Zanu-PF party.
Mr Mugabe has governed Zimbabwe since the end of white-majority rule in 1980 following a bitterly fought war.
His wife, who has often professed her undying loyalty to her husband, has assumed an increasingly high profile.

All Eyes On Munich As Russia Feels Out New U.S. Administration

Source: THE MOSCOW TIMES. February 17, 2017

At last year’s Munich Security Conference — a traditional get together for the transatlantic alliance — Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev delivered a stark warning. It was time for the West to end sanction, he said, and join forces in a civilizational battle against radical Islam.

“It is either us or them,” Medvedev intoned. “It is time for everyone to realize this.”

His call fell on wearied, and unsympathetic ears. 2016 was a trying time for many of the attendees, after all. Russia’s actions in Syria exacerbated a migrant crisis sweeping Europe. Ukraine continued to pose a security dilemma. U.S. global leadership was under question.

Angola VP Manuel Vicente 'to face Portugal corruption charges'

BBC, February 17, 2017

The attorney-general's office says that Mr Vicente paid $810,000 (£650,000) in bribes to shut down corruption investigations that he was facing.
The alleged bribes were made to Portugal's former public prosecutor Orlando Figueira, who also faces charges as part of "Operation Fizz".
Mr Vicente's lawyer has denied the allegations, Portuguese media report.

Asia shares ease after run of gains; dollar, oil recover

Source: REUTERS, February 17, 2017


Asian stock markets took a breather on Friday from their recent surge as investors booked profits, while the dollar inched up after Thursday's slide and optimism over possible renewed supply cuts by OPEC lifted oil prices.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS pulled back 0.1 percent, on track to end the week up 1.3 percent, its fourth straight weekly gain.
Overnight, Wall Street lost momentum, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI barely eking out its sixth straight record high, while the S&P 500 .SPX and Nasdaq .IXIC snapped a seven-day winning streak as investors slowed buying to digest recent gains.

ABUJA, Ningeria: 90% of the Cause of our Recession is Corruption

Source: THISDAY LIVE, February 12, 2017

Acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Nigerian Anti-graft Agency), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has said that corruption is virtually the sole reason for the country’s current economic stump. In an interview with Arise TV yesterday, Magu said it was because of the central place of corruption in the present economic woes that the federal government was paying a lot of attention to the recovery of stolen funds.

6 Signs There’s No Such Thing as Internet Freedom in Russia

Source: THE MOSCOW TIMES February 12, 2017

Writing about Crimea, Ukraine, Syria or religion on social media in Russia has become a dangerous business. Saying — or typing — the wrong thing on the internet could now land you a harsher sentence than if you beat your wife.
The most recent report on Internet and media freedom in Russia released by the Agora international human rights group paints a bleak picture. Since the beginning of 2015, at least 47 people have been imprisoned for their statements online.

Egypt's '500kg' woman arrives at India hospital for surgery

Source: BBC February 12, 2017

An Egyptian woman, believed to be the world's heaviest woman at 500kg (78.5 stone), has arrived in Mumbai, India, for weight reduction surgery.
The family of 36-year-old Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty said it was the first time she had left home for 25 years.