Egypt Crisis: 'Scores Killed' At Cairo Protest - BBC News

Photo: BBC

More than 100 people have been killed and 1,500 injured at a protest held by supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo, doctors say.

However the health ministry has put the death toll lower, at 38.
The army ousted Mr Morsi on 3 July. He has been formally accused of murder, relating to a 2011 jail outbreak, and of links to the militant group Hamas.
Both pro- and anti-Morsi demonstrators held huge protests overnight in the capital.
The anti-Morsi camp occupied Cairo's Tahrir Square in support of the army, after its chief, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, had urged people to demonstrate to provide a mandate for its intervention.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Morsi supporters continued their sit-in protest at the mosque in the Nasr City area.
On Saturday, Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim vowed to end the sit-in, saying local residents had complained about the encampment.
He said the protest would be "brought to an end soon, and in a legal manner" with an order from the prosecutor, although this has yet to happen.
The BBC's Jim Muir in Cairo says the latest violence is the most serious since the army's intervention to remove President Morsi, but this does not appear to have been a planned campaign to clear the area around the mosque.
'Shooting to kill'
It appears that clashes began after some of the Morsi supporters tried to block a main road in the area, and security forces responded.
The state news agency Mena quotes a security official as saying they had been trying to stop fighting between rival sides, and that eight security personnel had been injured.
The official added that live fire had not been used, only tear gas.
But our correspondent says medics at the hospital believed about 70% of the casualties were caused by live fire - with many of the victims hit in the chest or head by snipers firing from rooftops.
Ahmed Nashar, a Brotherhood spokesman witnessed what happened near the Nasr City mosque where demonstrators built a wall to protect themselves.
"When I arrived, bullets were whizzing past my ears," he told the BBC. "Today was just brutal - people were fired at, with live firearms."
Our correspondent says Morsi supporters are furious about the role the military is taking, and in particular the head of the army, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, whom they say is killing Egyptians.
Egypt's pro-Muslim Brotherhood TV station, Ahrar 25, quoted the coalition that supports Mr Morsi - the National Coalition for Supporting Legitimacy - as saying it held Gen Sisi responsible for the deaths at the mosque protest.
There has also been violence in Egypt's second city of Alexandria, where at least 10 people have been killed in clashes between rival factions.
European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said she "deeply deplored" the latest deaths in Egypt.
Her spokesman called "on all actors to refrain from violence and to respect the principles of peaceful protest".
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said: "Now is the time for dialogue, not confrontation. It is the responsibility of leaders on all sides to take steps to reduce tensions."
Morsi accused
Mr Morsi, Egypt's first democratically elected president, has been formally remanded in custody at an undisclosed location for an initial 15-day period, according to a judicial order on Friday.
The order was the first official statement on Mr Morsi's legal status since he was overthrown.
He has now been formally accused of the "premeditated murder of some prisoners, officers and soldiers" when he and several Muslim Brotherhood leaders were freed during a breakout at a Cairo prison in January 2011.
He is alleged to have plotted attacks on jails in the uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak.
Mr Morsi is also accused of conspiring with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip and has strong links with the Muslim Brotherhood.
Two human rights activists visited Mr Morsi's place of detention on Friday, although he reportedly refused to meet them, instead sending his chief of presidential staff Refaa el-Tahtawy - who is also held at the location.

Mr Tahtawy told the visitors they were being treated well but complained that they were unable to meet relatives.

On Saturday, the interior minister Ibrahim said that Mr Morsi would be transferred to Torah Prison, where Mubarak is being held.
Saharareporters

Nigerian Judge Caught On Tape Negotiating Bribe To Skew Justice

A senior Nigerian judge serving as the Acting Chief Justice of the Gambia, Joseph Wowo, has been sacked for soliciting a N2.5 million (500,000 Dalasi) bribe from a Gambian-based Dutch businessman in return for a favourable judgment in a land dispute case

Mr. Wowo, also a former President of the Gambia Court of Appeal, was caught on tape holding a surreptitious meeting with the former Gambian Justice Minister, Lamin Jobarteh (who has also been sacked), a Dutch national, André Klaarbergen, and his Nigerian Lawyer simply identified as Mene, negotiating the price of subverting the judgment of a Gambian High Court over a land dispute case, which Mr. Wowo agrees the Dutch rightly lost.

“How much are you willing to offer first so that we can negotiate,” Mr Wowo was heard saying on tape, now posted on Youtube. “You know my position based on my position I’m not even supposed to come here in the first place. I’m the President of the court of Appeal and now I’m acting Chief Justice,” he continued, openly admitting he was sabotaging the course of justice by even agreeing to be at the meeting.

“I’ve read your file at the Court of Appeal, [and] that is why I said you don’t have any case at the Court of Appeal. You will lose at the court of Appeal because the way they deal with the case at the Court of Appeal, the lawyer messed it up. That is why I called your lawyer and said let us see how we can help you,” confirming that the lower court had made the right call in the case.

Mr Jobarteh then cuts in and suggested a quick resolution of the matter. “The fact of the matter is that the error has been made and it’s irrecoverable. The issue now is how can we meet each other to correct the problem,” he said. Mr. Wowo then demanded a bribe of 2.5 million Dalasi (N12.3 million) but Mr Klaarbergen, who complained that his business had been slow lately, offered to pay 500,000 Dalasi.

The disgraced Attorney-General, with a tone of threat, then appealed to Mr Wowo to accept the bribe. “Come a time you people will come running to me and in view of all other consideration and the man financial predicament now, I appeal to you to accept the 500,000. “Because of Justice Jobarteh, honourable minister, that is why I’m accepting,” Mr Wowo replied.

Even when the Dutch businessman expressed some reluctance and suggested talking to his partner, Justice Wowo asked him to “go and borrow” if he could not raise the agreed bribe. Fearing prosecution, Mr Wowo is feared to have fled the Gambia furtively. His whereabouts is currently unknown, and he did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES’ series of calls to his Gambian mobile telephone. Guinness and Brandy However, the Wowo bribery transaction also revealed a flabby underside and worldliness of the Nigerian judge.

Once he was satisfied that the bribery deal had gone well, Mr. Wowo then complained about the choice of drink on offer. “You didn’t bring my choice. Me I take only Guinness and brandy.” When his host (Mr Jobarteh) offered to give him non-alcoholic wine apparently due to his religious leaning, Mr. Wowo complained that it would “run my stomach” and jocularly threatened to sue his host if that happens. Nigerian Mercenary Judges The report of the scandal in the Gambian media shows that Mr. Wowo and other Nigerian judicial officers have tainted reputation in that West African country.

Many Gambian newspapers openly refer to Nigerians working as legal personnel in the country with derogatory monikers such as “The Nigerian Mercenary Judges”, “the Nigerian Mafia” and the “Nigerian cowboys”. The President of Gambia, Yayah Jammeh, had on June 13 named Mr. Wowo as replacement for another Nigerian, Akomaye Emanuel Agim. A source that asked not to be named told that Mr. Wowo was allegedly instrumental to the removal of Mr. Agim as the Chief Justice of the Gambia after he reported on him to Mr Jammeh. With his removal from office the somewhat astronomical career growth of the 47- year old judge came to a disgraceful end.

Mr Wowo, a graduate of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, was called to bar in 1991 and after a stint in private practice in the Gambia, he was appointed a Principal State Counsel and Deputy Head of the Civil Division Ministry of Justice, Banjul, The Gambia from 1998 – 2001. In 2007 he was appointed a High Court Judge, Criminal Division from where he became the President of the Court of Appeal.

The Gambia, West African smallest country of less than two million people, lack qualified citizens to hold key positions, especially in the judiciary. So it has, since independence in 1965, hired many Nigerians to work as senior judges, and presidents of its Court of Appeals and Chief Justices of the country.

Naij

‘Senate stance on electoral reform disturbing’

Written by Abbas Jimoh

The inability of the Senate to act decisively on the appointment of the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is disturbing.

This is part of the resolutions at the end of a meeting between the Partners for Electoral Reform (PER) and Youth Alliance on Constitution and Electoral Reform (YACORE) yesterday in Abuja.
PER chairman, Ezenwa Nwagwu and YACORE national coordinator, Somson Itodo, told newsmen that they were shocked that the key positions of majority of Nigerians on electoral reform were not captured in the Senate’s proceeding.
“Some of the key recommendations not captured include removing the powers to appoint INEC chairman from the President and vesting it in the National Judicial Council (NJC) to guarantee the independence of INEC; establishment of an Electoral Offence Commission to prosecute electoral offences; mainstreaming independence candidacy into Nigeria electoral process and constitutional classification of youth and lowering the age for contesting elections in Nigeria.
“We commend the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review for respecting the will of the people by capturing some recommendations on electoral reform in her proposed amendments. We urge the legislators both in the House of Representatives and the State House of Assembly to respect the will of the people as they vote on amendments to the Constitutions,” Nwagu said.

WeeklyTrust

I Regret Not Dumping Nigeria For Cameroon –Tony Destroyer

He will be 61 in September but Tony Nwabueze has not allowed his age stop him from learning about the new generation. The tattoos on his chest, the trademark T-shirt and baggy trousers, black sunglasses and face cap partly represent this.

Nwabueze exudes athleticism and his towering height is as intimidating as his stentorian voice.

But beneath his scary look, the African Super heavyweight wrestling champion is full of kindness, love and compassion.

Ever since Nwabueze turned pro in 1980 he has yet to lose in nearly 40 fights within and outside Nigeria.

The grappler loves to punish his opponents and he has won a majority of his fights by technical knockouts.

Nwabueze was nicknamed Tony Destroyer by his fans because of his style and TKO skills.

“I was a boxer for years before moving over to karate and taekwondo,” he told our correspondent in Lagos during the week.

“My training in boxing and martial arts has helped me a lot in wrestling. I combine these in my fights. When my opponent is proving very difficult, I resort to martial arts.

“And no matter who the opponent is, I will knock him out. Because of my approach to my fights and the manner of my victory, my fans nicknamed me Tony Destroyer.”

Nwabueze did not become a wrestler by accident for his parents had laid the groundwork for his future career.

He said, “My father and mother were leading wrestlers in our town Akumazu Umuocha in Agbor, Delta State.

“Then, there were wrestling competitions in my town and other towns. But there was one which brought my mother and father together

“Both of them won their categories and became celebrities. My father proposed to my mother and there was a marriage of champions.

“So, I’m no fighter by accident. I inherited it from my parents. I’m very proud of this and I’ve no regrets following in their footsteps.

“My late twin brother, who died in 2009, was not interested in sports but instead chose to to do other things with his life.

“My greatest regret however is that my mother died very early and didn’t see me become an African champion.”

Nwabueze was born in Lagos into a family of six. His father, Joseph Nwabueze, was a soldier and fought during the Second World War.

Tony Destroyer also joined the army in 1968 and was in the service for 22 years before retiring to concentrate on professional wrestling.

He said, “I was introduced to boxing in my secondary school days (at Birch Freeman College, Lagos).

“It was easy for me to become a boxer because I was born and grew up in Idi Oro, Mushin. It was tough growing up in the area then. There were a lot of street fights and you have to fight for survival.

“I was a great fan of Muhammad Ali and I wanted to be like him. I represented Lagos in the early 70s in many competitions I knocked out many of my opponents. We trained and fought at the Mobolaji Centre (now Rowe Park).

“I called it quits with boxing later for martial arts – taekwondo, kickboxing and karate. In 1975, I got my black belt in taekwondo.

“I became a wrestler when the late Mike Bamidele arrived in Nigeria from London to introduce amateur wrestling in the country.

“I was one of the five he selected to start amateur wrestling in the country. He was our coach and he took us round the states in 1979 to introduce the game.

“I represented Lagos and won five gold medals for Nigeria at various (amateur wrestling) championships.”

Nwabueze closed the book on amateur wrestling when the late Mike Okpala, who was popularly called Power Mike, became a promoter.

Power Mike became a household name in the country after he defeated Gambia’s Massambula in 1970 to become the African heavyweight wrestling champion and titleholder.

He later defeated Ali Baba of Lebanon in 1973, Johnny Kwango and other top wrestlers.

After retiring in 1976, Power Mike became a promoter. His company Power Mike International Promotions brought wrestlers like Mil Mascaras, Dick the ‘Bulldog Brower’, Buddy Rose, Michael Hayes, Mighty Igor, The Mongols, Carlos Colon, Chris Adams and Thunderbolt Williams to Nigeria.

Nwabueze, a fan of Power Mike, turned pro in 1980 to be part of the big show.

“Power Mike told me in 1986 to work hard to fight Johnny Kwango,” he said.

“He promised to send me to the United States after the fight to continue my professional wrestling there.

“I accepted the challenge. My people in Akumazi Umuocha travelled in two big buses to Lagos to support me.

“The National Stadium mainbowl was filled to capacity. I beat Johnny Kwango and injured him and he was taken to hospital.

“But Power Mike was annoyed with me because of the beating I gave Johnny Kwango. He told me that he had spent the N300 he was to give me for the fight on treating Johnny Kwango. He also refused to send me to America as promised.

“I tried to raise money through other sources but I couldn’t. Nobody was ready to help me and that is why I’m in Nigeria suffering.

“I would’ve since become a world champion and become a millionaire if I had travelled to America.”

Nwabueze has been the undisputed African Super heavy weight since he defeated Amadou Ahijou of Mali in South Africa in 2007. He defended his title in South Africa the following year by beating Musa Bakayoko. Two years later, he knocked out Cameroon’s Mbenge Amakia in Yaoundé.

Tony Destroyer regrets the decision he took after the fight and has not forgiven himself.

”It was a bloody fight and I deserved to win,” he said.

“After the fight, the President of professional wrestling in Cameroon and some other officials pleaded with me to change my nationality.

“They told me that many people in the country loved the way I fought against Amakia and wanted me to adopt Cameroon as my country and carry their flag in my fights. They also said they wanted me to stay back to help them develop wrestling in Cameroon.

“They promised me money, a house and training grants. They also promised to sponsor my fights abroad.

“But I rejected the offer because of my love for Nigeria. I’m one of the admirers of my governor (Emmanuel Uduaghan) and I felt I would deny the state the opportunity to savour the victory.

“Because my victory was celebrated by the Nigerian media, I was sure that the governor was interested in me and would receive me. I wanted to use the opportunity to plead with the governor to assist me with money to prepare for my world title.

“I want to win the world title. This is the vision God has given me. My preparations for the fight will cost N25m. Nobody is ready to challenge me in Africa because they are afraid. That is why I want to conquer the world. Once I get the chance to fight the world champion I will drop the African belt, because I’m tired of holding it.

“But unfortunately, I’ve not been able to see the governor.

“I learned that there is someone in the Government House who has been frustrating my efforts. I’m told that whenever my letter to the governor arrives at the Government House, this man will throw it into the waste bin.

“I’ve written a series of letters to the governor through the sports council but no response.

“I’ve not been recognised by the Federal Government. No national award. It’s like I’ve labored for nothing.

“Instead of living well I’m doing security work to keep body and soul.

“I regret not accepting the offer from Cameroon. I won’t repeat the mistake next time.”

Despite the frustrations Nwabueze doesn’t look like he is ready to retire from the game.

He said, “I will retire when God says it’s time for me to quit. Yes, I’m under pressure from my family to retire but I’m still very strong.

“Johnny Kwango, Mighty Igor and Mill Mascara fought far into his 70s. So, I can do the same.

“What I’m doing will encourage the young ones to take after me. I train from 5.30am to 9am every day. When the young ones watch me train in the gym that are motivated.

“I eat fruits and vegetables and I do not drink alcohol or smoke. I’m a vegetarian and I control everything I do. I don’t womanise.

“My wife is never in support of what I’m doing but she hasn’t missed any of my fights. When I’m being beaten by my opponent she will be crying. But when I retaliate she will jump on me and kiss me.”

None of Nwabuze’s six children has followed in his footsteps and he is not bothered.

He said, “My first son is a Reverend Father in Rome. He chose to be one and I’m not against his choice. I can’t force any of my children to do what I’m doing.

“My second son is a computer engineer and the rest are doing very.

“I went through a lot to train them. I get peanuts from wrestling but I got money from other sources to train them. It was difficult but I don’t regret what I went through to get them to where they are.”

He insists his wife and children are not against the tattoos on his body, in spite of his age.

“The idea of tattoos on my body came about when I went to South Africa for a fight,” the veteran grappler said.

“There’s nothing strange about tattoos because they have been with us in Nigeria for a very long time. The white only differentiated it.

“Tattoos are meant for sportsmen and musicians to differentiate themselves from the people in the streets. They are not meant for touts or area boys.

“When I’m in the ring people love my tattoos and would always want to touch me. I love them and no regrets having them.

Naij

WOW! See Photos From D'Banj Sister's Traditional Wedding

Taiwo and Dotun had their traditional marriage on Saturday July 27, at the Remo Majestic Hotel in Sagamu, Ogun State. And they were well supported by family and friends. The couple will have their white wedding next Saturday. Congratulations to them!

 CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PICTURES INCLUDING D'BANJ

 CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PICTURES INCLUDING D'BANJ

YNaija

Beyoncé's Hair Gets Caught In Fan During Concert

The singer didn't miss a beat while singing "Halo" in Montreal.

By Dorkys Ramos

Talk about ouch! Last night, Beyoncé's hair got caught in a stage fan while she was performing in Montreal. The incident occurred midway through "Halo" and do you think the singer skipped a beat during the fiasco? Not at all.

Her crew swooped in to free the singer with a few snips and Bey kept on as if nothing had happened.

After the show, she acknowledged the crazy situation by penning a little song for her fans explaining, "Gravity can't begiiiiiiiin/to pull me out of the fan again./I felt my hair was yankiiiiiiiin/From the fan thats always hatiiiiiiiin," and adding that, "I got snatched."

(Photo: londonpeachful via Youtube)

View the incident below.

(Photo: Beyonce via Instagram)


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SHOCKING: ‘We Were Paid N150,000 To Kill School Proprietor’

The Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Ikeja, Lagos, has arrested three men, who claimed they were contracted to kill a 65-year-old school proprietress, Mrs. Veronica Okenido,

A police source told Saturday PUNCH on Friday that the leader of the gang was 25-year-old Jude Ekpenisi, who confessed that were paid by an undisclosed person to assassinate the woman.

According to a statement Jude made, they pitied Okenido because she is a Christian.

“We had compassion on the woman and rejected the N150,000 we were offered but asked the woman to pay us off with the same amount,” the suspect said.

The other two suspects are Jude’s brother, 22-year-old David, and Philemon Uwadi, also 22.

After a report was made to the police, the officer-in-charge, SARS, Superintendent of Police Abba Kyari, tracked down the gang leader through his brother’s phone line.

Our source said, “Jude was arrested after he was lured out by a promise of a lucrative employment in a big church. A SARS operative posed as the pastor.

“The third suspect, Uwadi, reported at the SARS Scorpion Building by himself not knowing that Jude had been arrested in connection with the assassination attempt they had abandoned because their victim was not cooperating.”

David was arrested when he went to visit his brother at SARS office.

Jude said his house shares a fence with Okenido’s school and that the woman even knew him but had no idea he was the one who planned the kidnap.

The spokesperson for the Lagos State Police Command, Ngozi Braide, was not available for comment as she was said to have travelled.

InformationNigeria