President Robert Mugabe lashed out at church leaders who have been among the most outspoken critics of Zimbabwe's human rights record.
Addressing the funeral of Josiah Tungamirai, Mugabe recalled on Sunday that the Cabinet minister and retired air force commander had quit a Catholic seminary to join the fight against white rule in what was then Rhodesia.
Tungamirai's goal had been "to serve others, something which is sadly missing in some churches today," Mugabe said. "Zimbabwe is no home for traitors, for political stooges, for political crooks and cowards."
Mugabe's comments came the same week an Anglican bishop who is a strong supporter of the president was brought before an ecclesiastic court on charges ranging from besmirching the church to incitement to murder.
Harare Bishop Nolbert Kunonga has not been asked to answer the accusations and faces no criminal charges. The case was left in disarray when the Malawian Supreme Court judge presiding over the ecclesiastic court walked out declaring he had never seen anything like it.
Mugabe, who lead Zimbabwe to independence in 1980, has been widely criticized for his increasingly autocratic rule.
Children's welfare groups united on Sunday to demand an end to forced evictions under a slum clearance campaign that the UN estimates has destroyed the homes or livelihoods of 700,000 people.
The groups took out a full-page add in the independent Sunday Standard newspaper to announce the formation of an alliance called the Child Protection Working Group made up of local and international aid groups, faith-based organizations and UN agencies.
The alliance said the government's Operation Murambatsvina -- Drive Out Trash -- was exposing children to "exploitation, abuse and violence."
It demanded an immediate end to the evictions and measures to protect children already affected -- risking heavy fines, seizure of assets and jail terms for defying a government ban on non-governmental groups that involve themselves in "governance issues."
Thousands of children have missed schooling, had their examinations disrupted, or been separated from their families "as a result of continual population movements," the alliance said.
"In order to meet their own and families' basic needs, children, especially adolescent girls and boys, have resorted to risky activities which put them at risk of exploitation," it said, a reference to a reported increase in prostitution and substance abuse associated with the demolitions.
The alliance demanded unrestricted access to assess the impact on children across the country so it can prepare relief plans. UN Undersecretary-General Jan Egeland on Friday accused Zimbabwe of blocking an emergency appeal for millions of dollars to help victims of forced evictions by arguing over the text of the appeal.
Zimbabwe authorities claim the evictions have stopped and rebuilding has begun. But more than 600 people were last week removed from a farm near Harare by baton-wielding paramilitaries for unspecified reasons.
The alliance said it was committed to "collaborative engagement with the government" and pledged to "support any measures implemented by the government to ensure the best interests of children."
The government did not respond on Sunday to the group's demands.
South Korea’s air force yesterday apologized for a 2021 midair collision involving two fighter jets, a day after auditors said the pilots were taking selfies and filming during the flight and held them responsible for the accident. “We sincerely apologize to the public for the concern caused by the accident that occurred in 2021,” an air force spokesman told a news conference, adding that one of the pilots involved had been suspended from flying duties, received severe disciplinary action and has since left the military. The apology followed a report released on Wednesday by the South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection,
Young Chinese, many who fear age discrimination in their workplace after turning 35, are increasingly starting “one-person companies” that have artificial intelligence (AI) do most of the work. Smaller start-ups are already in vogue in Silicon Valley and elsewhere, with rapidly advancing AI tools seen as a welcome teammate even as they threaten layoffs at existing firms. More young people in China are subscribing to the model, as cities pledge millions of dollars in funding and rent subsidies for such ventures, in alignment with Beijing’s political goal of “technological self-reliance.” “The one-person company is a product of the AI era,” said Karen Dai
About 240 Indians claiming descent from a Biblical tribe landed at Tel Aviv airport on Thursday as part of a government operation to relocate them to Israel. The newcomers passed under a balloon arch in blue and white, the colors of the Israeli flag, as dozens of well-wishers welcomed them with a traditional Jewish song. They were the first “bnei Menashe” (“sons of Manasseh”) to arrive in Israel since the government in November last year announced funding for the immigration of about 6,000 members of the community from the states of Manipur and Mizoram in northeast India. The community claims to descend from
‘TROUBLING’: The firing of Phelan, who was an adviser to a nonprofit that supported the defense of Taiwan, was another example of ‘dysfunction’ under Trump, a US senator said US Secretary of the Navy John Phelan has been fired, a US official and a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in another wartime shakeup at the Pentagon coming just weeks after US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth ousted the Army’s top general. The Pentagon announced his departure in a brief statement, saying he was leaving the administration “effective immediately,” but it did not provide a reason or say whether it was his decision to go. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Phelan was dismissed in part because he was moving too slowly to implement reforms to
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