[Al Ahram] Sustained gunfire erupted Tuesday in Lubumbashi, DR Congo's second-largest city, where large numbers of police have been deployed on the last day of President Joseph Kabila's mandate, an AFP correspondent said.
The firing started at 9:15am (0715 GMT) in the Matuba neighbourhood in the south of the city where demonstrators and police have clashed, with streets strewn with rocks and burned tyres, the correspondent said.
The gunfire was intense for about 20 minutes, and then became more intermittent, he said.
Earlier in Matuba, a policeman told AFP that his men were facing hostile groups of demonstrators.
Three of the demonstrators were armed, added Jean-Claude Kazembe, governor of the Upper Katanga district which includes Lubumbashi.
"This is what justifies police shooting live rounds in the air to disperse civilians," he said.
Lubumbashi is a stronghold of Moise Katumbi, an opposition leader who had been hoping to run in the presidential election which has, however, been postponed indefinitely.
Kabila has been in power since 2001 and the constitution bans him from running again.
But since he appears set to be hanging on to power, tensions in DR Congo have been running high, with police massing in the cities and many people staying home to avoid violence.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/21/2016 00:00 ||
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China has handed back an American underwater drone it seized from international waters in the contentious South China Sea.
Beijing’s defence ministry said it returned the unmanned vehicle after “friendly consultations”.
The drone was given back close to where it was taken, around 92km north-west of Subic Bay in the Philippines, Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said. Civilian contractors were using the drone to collect unclassified scientific data in international waters, according to the US.
Officials say a non-combat ship was recovering two drones when a Chinese boat approached, launched a small boat and picked up one of them.
Mr Cook said the US would continue to investigate the event, which happened on Thursday near the Philippines. The incident took place inside the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone, and the country described the incident as “very troubling” and increased the likelihood of “miscalculations that could lead to open confrontation.”
The incident was one of the most serious confrontations between the superpowers in decades and further escalated tensions between the countries.
Beijing had been angered by President-elect Donald Trump’s public questioning of the One China Policy and by the future leader’s willingness to take a phone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen earlier in December.
The seizure has added to US concerns about China's growing military presence and aggressive posture in the disputed South China Sea, including its militarisation of maritime outposts.
In a brief statement, China's Defence Ministry said the drone had been given back to the United States.
"After friendly consultations between the Chinese and US sides, the handover work for the US underwater drone was smoothly completed in relevant waters in the South China Sea at midday on 20 December," the ministry said in a short statement.
The ministry did not immediately respond to a request for more details about the handover.
h/t Instapundit
Venture capitalist Peter Thiel successfully pushed to give commercial space companies a stronger voice within President-elect Donald Trump’s NASA transition team, the result of an internal tug of war over policy directions and future decision makers at the agency.
[Illinois Policy] The door to Illinois continues to swing outward more often than it does inward. Dated articles, but instructive nonetheless. I doubt 2016 will have seen much improvement.
New data released by the U.S. Census bureau showed that in terms of domestic migration -- people moving about within the United States -- Illinois saw roughly 105,200 more people leave than arrive.
Even when offset by a gain of more than 37,600 by way of international migration, Illinois still ended up about 67,500 in the negative column.
With natural growth (births minus deaths) counted, Illinois showed a net population loss of nearly 22,200 people, or about 0.17 percent of its population.
Of the 50 states, Illinois was the top population loser. Other states showing a net loss of population were Connecticut (-3,876); Maine (-928); Mississippi (-1,110); New Mexico, (-458); Vermont, (-725) and West Virginia (-4,623).
In terms of domestic migration, the only state besides Illinois to show a six-figure loss was New York at nearly 158,000. The Empire State, however, showed a net population increase thanks to natural growth and international migration.
#2
Retirees moving south, understandable. Flatlanders moving north for lower taxes, understandable. But there has also been a steady immgration out of Chicago by undesirables being encouraged to move to Wisconsin or Minnesota
#7
Connecticut and New York have had a noticeable exodus of Wall Street traders and brokers, notably to Florida. One can thank Al Gore's internet, among other factors.
[The Week] Louis Marinelli of San Diego is a leader of Yes California, which wants the state to split off from the United States and form its own nation. Marinelli, in Russia to work on immigration issues related to his wife, told the Los Angeles Times the "embassy" was opened last weekend in order to "start laying the groundwork for a dialogue about an independent California joining the United Nations now."
Yes California argues that the state, which has the sixth largest economy in the world, could "do more good as an independent country than it is able to do as just a U.S. state." The group also says it feels the United States "represents so many things that conflict with Californian values," and continued statehood "means California will continue subsidizing the other states to our own detriment, and to the detriment of our children." The effort must first be approved by voters in 2018, then also win a special election in 2019. Should it get that far, it would face an immense legal battle, but Marinelli is shrugging off the long odds, telling the Times, "All major social and political movements in this country take time and inevitably have to overcome failures and setbacks before they are ultimately successful."
#3
Elmavish Panda1401, they like giving money and other "help" to socialist and communist countries and organizations. That doesn't include the rest of the United States, you know, us Deplorables and Un-redeamables.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
12/21/2016 7:17 Comments ||
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#4
Hypocrites. They need to look in the mirror and allow the state of Jefferson to be formed which they have blocked since the 40's. Bastard democritters in LA need northern water.
Again, I'd advise Trump to renegotiate the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo to sweeten Mexico City on the wall, by giving the California coasties back. Since its a Treaty (re)negotiation, it only requires 2/3rds of the Senate to approve. Just think Mexico City, all the $$$$$ to be had in graft and corruption. You simply absorb the Donks as members of PRI, it will be seamless.
#16
Let them go. 5 minutes after it's official, declare war, invade and wipe the place clean. Then repopulate the state. Then ask New York how they feel about being their own nation.
China has offered to provide $14 million worth of small arms and fast boats to the Philippines for free, aiding President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs and fighting terrorism, Manila's defense minister said on Tuesday.
The offer was made by China's ambassador Zhao Jianhua during a meeting with Duterte late on Monday night at the presidential palace, Delfin Lorenzana said, adding Beijing has also made available $500 million long-term soft loan for other equipment.
"China has given us a list of military equipment and we will go through it to find out what we really need," Lorenzana told reporters after giving out Christmas gifts to wounded soldiers at an army hospital in Manila.
"We might get some small arms, fast boats and night vision goggles because $14.4 million is not that much. We will finalize the deal before the end of the year and a technical working team will soon go there to look at the equipment."
Lorenzana said they hope to get the Chinese armaments by the second quarter next year. "The Chinese ambassador last night told the president, I know your problem in drugs so we would like to help you," he added.
"And those islands in the South China Sea aren't worth anything to you anyway," the ambassador continued...
Just six months ago, Manila and Beijing's relations were very frosty after the Philippines filed an arbitration case in The Hague, questioning China's extensive nine-dash line claims on the South China Sea.
But, Duterte, who came into power on July 1, reversed the country's foreign policy, distancing from Washington to pivot to Beijing and winning about $24 billion in trade and investment pledges after an October visit to China.
China's arms offer came after a U.S. senator has said he would block the sale of 26,000 M4 rifles to the Philippine police due to human rights concern.
China clearly doesn't worry about human rights concerns...
Early this month, executives from China's arms maker, Norinco, also met with Duterte.
Washington, the former colonial master and security partner, has been providing second-hand weapon systems to the Manila for nearly two decades since the return of U.S. forces for training and exercises.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/21/2016 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[The Week] Louis Marinelli of San Diego is a leader of Yes California, which wants the state to split off from the United States and form its own nation. Marinelli, in Russia to work on immigration issues related to his wife, told the Los Angeles Times the "embassy" was opened last weekend in order to "start laying the groundwork for a dialogue about an independent California joining the United Nations now."
