Headline

Rich Profile Of Joseph Boakai, Political Veteran Set To Lead Liberia

Published

2 years ago

November 18, 2023

Joseph Boakai, who is expected to win the presidency in Liberia after incumbent leader George Weah conceded election defeat, has four decades of political experience behind him.

Boakai was vice president from 2006 to 2018 to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Africa’s first elected female president, who rebuilt the ravaged country after a civil war left an estimated 250,000 dead.

This week’s vote was Boakai’s second run for the top job after he lost to President George Weah in a 2017 run-off.

The two faced off again in a second-round vote on Tuesday, following last month’s hard-fought first ballot, in which neither secured an outright victory.

Boakai, 78, has castigated the record of his opponent, a former international star footballer, and emphasised his own experience in office, proposing a “rescue plan” for the West African country.

He has pledged to improve infrastructure, invest in agriculture, attract investment, open the country to tourism and restore Liberia’s reputation.

“His motivation is to rescue Liberia from the current state it is in,” Mohammed Ali, Boakai’s Unity Party spokesman, told AFP ahead of the vote.

He highlighted an “influx of illicit drugs, the increase in the poverty rate (and) the image of the country being so low” as problems that have worsened under Weah’s presidency.

His strategy seemed to have worked.

While six years ago Boakai won 28.8 percent in the first round and 38.5 percent in the second, he pulled level with Weah in this year’s first round, with both receiving about 43 percent of the vote.

With almost all the polling stations tallied after the latest run-off, Boakai had garnered 50.89 percent of votes against Weah’s 49.11 percent.

– Alliances –

Boakai has promised an inclusive government, reflecting the country’s political, ethnic, regional, religious and gender diversity.

Some of the 18 other candidates who were now out of the second-round race have endorsed him.

In the first round, he skillfully built alliances with local political leaders, such as the former warlord Prince Johnson, who supported Weah in 2017 and still enjoys strong support in his native Nimba County.

An ally of Johnson — now a member of the Liberian Senate who is under US sanctions for corruption and was seen in a 1990 video sipping beer while his soldiers torture and kill president Samuel Doe — is Boakai’s running mate.

Their ticket won easily in the heavily populated northeastern region.

Like 57-year-old Weah, Boakai is from the Indigenous population and not the US-Liberian elite, who founded the free nation and were descended from slaves.

He was born in a remote village in Lofa County near the borders with Guinea and Sierra Leone, often called Liberia’s “breadbasket”.

He was agriculture minister from 1983 to 1985 under Doe.

Boakai portrays himself as a simple man who rose from humble origins through hard work. He is married with four children.

– Age and credentials –

Throughout the campaign, his team presented Boakai as a man of integrity whose credentials make him the only candidate able to tackle corruption — one of Weah’s key 2017 promises and one on which some voters say he has failed.

“He believes in perfection, he takes note of everything,” his senior adviser Augustin Konneh told AFP.

“Boakai is a very humble person.”

His opponents have argued that his age is a handicap, suggesting he is out of touch in a country where 60 percent of the population is under the age of 25.

Rather than aspiring to run the country, they say he should retire and have nicknamed him “Sleepy Joe.”

Headline

Netanyahu Asks Israeli President For Pardon From Corruption Charges

Published

12 hours ago

November 30, 2025

Editor

Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has asked the country’s president for a pardon in his long-running corruption case, saying the criminal proceedings are hindering his ability to govern and that ending the trial would benefit the nation.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has denied the bribery, fraud and breach of trust charges.

His lawyers told the president’s office that he still believes the legal process will eventually lead to a complete acquittal.

“My lawyers sent a request for pardon to the president of the country today. I expect that anyone who wishes for the good of the country support this step,” Netanyahu said in a brief video statement released by his Likud party.

The prime minister, who has been on trial for five years, has not admitted guilt, and neither have his lawyers. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said Netanyahu should not receive a pardon unless he admits wrongdoing, expresses remorse and immediately withdraws from political life.

Pardons in Israel are usually granted only after a conviction, but Netanyahu’s lawyers argued the president can step in when public interest is at stake, saying intervention could help heal national divisions and promote unity.

President Isaac Herzog’s office described the request as “extraordinary” with “significant implications”. His office said the president “will responsibly and sincerely consider the request” after receiving the necessary opinions.

United States President, Donald Trump, recently wrote to Herzog urging him to consider approving the pardon, describing the case against Netanyahu as “a political, unjustified prosecution”.

Herzog’s office said the request will be sent to the justice ministry’s pardons department to gather assessments that will be forwarded to the president’s legal adviser, who will prepare a recommendation.

(Reuters)

Headline

US: Four Killed, 10 Others Wounded In California Shooting

Published

23 hours ago

November 30, 2025

Editor

Four people were confirmed dead and 10 others injured after a shooting at a family gathering in California, United States on Saturday night, according to US police, who described the attack as a “targeted incident.”

The incident occurred inside a banquet hall in Stockton, northeast of San Francisco, shortly before 6:00 pm, spokesperson for the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office, Heather Brent, told reporters during a news briefing.

Brent said the victims, ranging from “juveniles to adults,” were rushed to nearby hospitals, noting that details about the shooting remained limited.

“What we have confirmed at this time is that there was a banquet hall where a family was celebrating. We have 14 victims of this shooting. Four of those are deceased,” Brent said.

“Early indications suggest that this may be a targeted incident. Investigators are exploring all possibilities at this time.”

The sheriff’s office posted on social media that detectives were “working to determine the circumstances leading up to this tragedy.”

“We are urging anyone with information, video footage, or who may have witnessed any part of this incident to contact the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office immediately,” the post added.

Authorities said no suspect had been identified at the time of the report.

California Governor Gavin Newsom was briefed on the development, his office said in a social media statement.

Data from the Gun Violence Archive shows there have been 504 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, including the Stockton attack.

(AFP)

Headline

FULL LIST: US To Review Green Cards From 19 ‘Countries Of Concern’ After Washington Shooting

Published

2 days ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it will review the immigration status of all permanent residents, or “Green Card” holders, from Afghanistan and 18 other countries following the attack on National Guard troops in Washington, D.C.

U.S. officials identified the suspect in Wednesday’s shooting as a 29-year-old Afghan national who previously worked alongside American forces in Afghanistan.

The individual was granted asylum earlier this year, not permanent residency, according to AfghanEvac, an organisation that assists Afghans resettled in the United States after the Taliban takeover in 2021.

“I have directed a full-scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern,” said Joseph Edlow, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), on X.

The review follows a June executive order from President Trump classifying 19 countries as “of Identified Concern.”

The order banned entry for nearly all nationals from 12 countries, including Afghanistan. The full list of these countries is:

Afghanistan

Myanmar

Chad

Congo-Brazzaville

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Haiti

Iran

Libya

Somalia

Sudan

Yemen

A partial travel ban applies to seven additional countries, though some temporary work visas remain allowed: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.