International

Sierra Leone Government Arrests Gunmen ‘who attacked Barracks’ in Alleged Coup Attempt

Sierra Leone says its security forces have restored calm to the West African nation after armed men attacked the military barracks on Sunday.

Chernor Bah, the country’s minister of information and civic education, said “unidentified individuals” attacked the barracks which house several foreign embassies, including those of China, Germany, Austria, Gambia, Lebanon and Syria, resulting in a nationwide curfew.

Prisoners also escaped from a detention facility after a coordinated jailbreak orchestrated by the unknown gunmen.

In an address on Sunday night, Julius Bio, president of Sierra Leone, said most of the leaders of the attack have been arrested.

Although Bio refrained from describing the attack as a coup, he labelled them an attempt to undermine the stability the country has worked hard to achieve.

“The attackers have been repelled by a combined team of gallant security forces and calm has been restored,” the president said.

“Most of the leaders have been arrested, and security operations and investigations are ongoing. We will ensure that those responsible are held accountable through due process.

“I acknowledge the bravery and dedication of our armed forces, police, and all those who played a role to defeat this attempt to undermine the peace and stability we’ve worked so hard to achieve.”

Bio asked citizens to be reminded of national unity and advised that “everyone remain vigilant and cooperate with the security forces”.

In another statement, the minister of information and civic education said a new curfew would be imposed from 9 pm to 6 am local time till further notice.

Sierra Leone has been engulfed by a tense political climate since Bio was re-elected in June.

The result of the election was rejected by the opposition candidate and questioned by international partners, including the US and European Union, who said the polls lacked transparency.

The unrest in Sierra Leone comes in the wake of a flurry of military coups in West and Central Africa since 2021.

International

Tunisia: Court upholds jail term for presidential candidate

A Tunisian court has confirmed an imprisonment sentence earlier handed down to a presidential contender ahead of elections scheduled for Sunday in the North African country.

The appeals court in the city of Jendouba in western Tunisia had upheld the 20-month jail sentence against detained presidential candidate Ayachi Zammel, his lawyer said.

The ruling can be appealed and will not affect Zammel’s candidacy, his lawyer said.

Last month, a lower court issued the sentence against Zammel, a businessman and the head of the liberal Azimoun party, on charges of falsifying electoral endorsements.

The Oct. 6 polls are pitting incumbent President Kais Saied against Zammel and Zouhair Maghzaoui of the leftist nationalist People’s Movement.

Serious challengers to Saied, who is seeking a second term in office, have been excluded, according to observers.

The election commission has recently refused to reinstate three more presidential hopefuls who won court appeals to run for president.

Critics have accused the panel of lacking in independence and clearing the way for Saied to win, accusations that the panel has denied.

The vote will take place “against a backdrop of increased repression of dissent, muzzling of the media, and continued attacks on judicial independence,” Human Rights Watch said last month.

Since 2021, Saied has consolidated his power by dissolving the parliament and calling early elections, steps that the opposition called a “coup.”

International

Israeli airstrikes kill 46 in 24 hours – Lebanese officials

Lebanese health officials announced late Wednesday that Israeli airstrikes have claimed the lives of 46 people and left 85 others wounded across the country in the past 24 hours.

The escalating violence, which has gripped the region since 7 October 2023, shows no signs of abating as Israel and Hezbollah continue to exchange relentless cross-border fire.

According to Lebanon’s Disaster Management Agency, the death toll from the ongoing conflict has risen sharply, with a total of 1,928 people reported dead since the violence erupted.

The hostilities began following the outbreak of the Gaza war, sparking a deadly and prolonged exchange between Israel and Hezbollah.

Lebanese officials have condemned the “enemy Israeli strikes” as tensions in the region continue to intensify.

The conflict has led to widespread devastation, displacing thousands of civilians and leaving critical infrastructure in ruins. Hospitals and emergency services are struggling to cope with the surge of casualties, and international observers fear the humanitarian crisis may deepen if a ceasefire is not reached soon.

With the death toll climbing and the prospect of peace seeming distant, the people of Lebanon remain caught in the crossfire of a conflict that threatens to destabilize the entire region.

International

Four family members killed after gas explosion in Italy

Four members of the same family, including two young children, were killed in a gas explosion that caused their home to partially collapse in southern Italy.

The tragedy occurred in the town of Saviano, near Naples, where a two-storey house was destroyed by the blast early Monday morning.

The victims include a boy and a girl, their mother, and their grandmother.

Italian firefighters, the Vigili del Fuoco, said the father and a newborn baby were rescued alive from the rubble.

The father remains in serious condition at a hospital in Naples, while the baby’s injuries are not life-threatening, according to local media.

“The parents and their three children lived on one floor of the house, while the grandmother lived on the floor above,” the Vigili del Fuoco said in a statement.

Rescue teams worked throughout the day and into the night to recover the victims, eventually locating the mother at 16:45 and the grandmother after midnight.

The explosion occurred at around 07:00 local time (06:00 BST). The exact cause is still under investigation, but preliminary theories point to a gas explosion as the cause of the collapse.

Drone footage from the scene showed large holes in the building’s roof, with much of the structure reduced to rubble.

Over 60 civil protection volunteers were involved in the rescue operation, which continued for hours with the assistance of sniffer dogs.

The fire service shared images of rescue teams working into the night, carefully sifting through debris to avoid further collapses.