French President Emmanuel Macron and EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen pressed Xi Jinping at a summit in Paris on Monday to use Beijing's influence to halt the Russian war against Ukraine, also telling the Chinese leader to accept fair global trade rules. Xi's two-day state visit to France is his first visit to Europe since 2019 on a trip that will also see him hold talks in Serbia and Hungary. He has said he wants to find peace in Ukraine even if analysts do not expect any major breakthrough. Opening an initial trilateral meeting attended by von der Leyen, Macron said coordination with Beijing on «major crises» including Ukraine was «absolutely decisive» and urged «fair rules for all» in Europe-China trade. «The future of our continent will very clearly depend on our ability to continue to develop relations with China in a balanced manner,» Macron said. Xi said China and the EU should «remain partners» and «carry out strategic coordination» and thus «make new contributions to world peace and development». - 'Flooding European market' - Europe is concerned that while officially neutral in the Ukraine conflict, China is essentially backing Russia which is already using Chinese machine tools in arms production. «More effort is needed to curtail delivery of dual use goods to Russia that find their way to the battlefield,» von der Leyen said after talks, adding that «this does affect EU-China relations». She added that France and the EU also «count on China to use all its influence on Russia to end Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine,» saying both Europe and China «have a shared in interest in peace and security». Von der Leyen also said she was «confident» Xi Jinping would continue to play an «important role» in de-escalating tensions over nuclear threats made by Russia, hours after President Vladimir Putin ordered nuclear weapons drills involving troops based near Ukraine. Both Macron and von der Leyen have indicated that trade was a priority in the talks, underscoring that Europe must defend its «strategic interests» in its economic relations with China. «Europe will not waver from making tough decisions needed to protect its economy and its security,» she said. Von der Leyen said there were «imbalances that remain significant» and «a matter of great concern», singling out Chinese subsidies for electric cars and steel that were «flooding the European market». - 'One of the great predators' - Rights groups are urging Macron to bring up human rights in the talks, accusing China of failing to respect the rights of the Uyghur Muslim minority and of keeping dozens of journalists behind bars. «President Macron should make it clear to Xi Jinping that Beijing's crimes against humanity come with consequences for China's relations with France,» said Maya Wang, acting China director at Human Rights Watch. Press freedom group Reporters Without Borders denounced the visit, installing a truck in central Paris with the names of 119 journalists it says are held by China and describing Xi as «one of the great predators of press freedom». Tuesday will see Macron take Xi, who is accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan, to the Pyrenees mountains to an area he used to visit as a boy for a day of less public and more intimate talks. However analysts are sceptical that Macron will be able to exercise much sway over the Chinese leader, even with the lavish red-carpet welcome and a trip to the bracing mountain air of the Col du Tourmalet over 2,000 metres (6,560 feet) above sea level on Tuesday. The other two countries chosen by Xi for his tour, Serbia and Hungary, are seen as among the most sympathetic to Moscow in Europe. Both Macron's messages on trade and Ukraine «are unlikely to have a significant impact on Chinese behaviour,» said Janka Oertel, director of the Asia programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations. © Agence France-Presse

Chadians voted Monday in a presidential election aimed at ending three years of military rule but dismissed by opponents of junta leader Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno as a fix. They will decide whether to extend three decades of Deby family rule, in a country crucial to the fight against jihadism across the Sahel desert region. Chad is the first of four military regimes in the Sahel to hold an election after successive coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger since 2020. The nation is also France's last military foothold in the Sahel region, with 1,000 soldiers. The three other junta-led regimes drove out French anti-jihadist forces, cutting ties with Paris in favour of closer links to Russia. The United States says it will temporarily withdraw some of its 100 troops from Chad, after agreeing to pull out of Niger. Deby's main rival is former opposition leader and now prime minister Succes Masra, denounced as a stooge by critics in the absence of other serious challengers. Both men have vowed a first-round win in polls that international rights groups have warned will be neither free nor fair. «All those who have shown they want massive change must go and vote in massive numbers, peacefully,» Masra, dressed in a blue boubou, said after voting. While turnout seemed slow shortly after polls opened in the capital N'Djamena, it had picked up by mid-morning in the more than 20 polling stations visited by AFP journalists. «I've come here today to make my choice now, to take on a good president who can change the country now and even help young people to evolve,» said Angeline Goltoua, an unemployed 24-year-old. Early in the campaign, observers predicted a massive win for Deby, 40, whose main rival has been killed and others banned from standing. However, economist Masra, also aged 40, has ramped up considerable support on the stump in recent weeks and could force a second round. - Proclaimed by generals - Surrounded by armed presidential guards, Deby declared his «commitment» to a «return to the constitutional order» after voting. He was proclaimed transitional president by 15 generals in 2021 after his father, Idriss Deby Itno, was killed in a gun battle with rebels after 30 years in power. Known as MIDI for his initials and as «the Man in Dark Glasses», Mahamat promised an 18-month transition to democracy but then extended it by two years. Opposition figures have since fled, been silenced or joined forces with Deby, while the junta has eliminated any attempts by civil society to campaign against it. On October 20, 2022, the army and police opened fire on demonstrators protesting the transition extension, including members of Masra's party, The Transformers. At least 300 young people died according to international NGOs, or, according to the regime, about 50. Deby's cousin and chief election rival Yaya Dillo Djerou was shot point-blank in the head in an army assault on February 28, according to his party. Masra was among the opponents driven out of the country but later returned and was named prime minister in January. Eight other candidates are not expected to win many votes. - Not 'free or democratic' - The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) has warned that the election appears «neither credible, free nor democratic». It noted «increasing human rights violations», including Dillo's killing. The International Crisis Group (ICG) also warned that «a number of problems in the run-up to the balloting cast doubt on its credibility». These include measures that allow officials to publish only regional tallies of votes rather than posting the results at individual polling stations -- making it impossible for observers to verify the vote count. ICG also cited Chad's Constitutional Council excluding 10 rival candidates from the vote in Deby strongholds. As for Masra, it said: «A significant proportion of his constituency now considers him to have become a stooge of those in power.» If Masra wins the election, it could be the first peaceful handover of power in Chad, which underwent several coups even before Deby's father seized power in 1990. More than 8.2 million people are registered to vote in the largely desert central African nation, ranked by the United Nations as the fourth least-developed country in the world. With a third of the population aged between 10 and 24, many are voting for the first time. Voting is due to end at 5:00 pm (1600 GMT), with results expected on May 21 and a possible second round on June 22. © Agence France-Presse

Tourism Seychelles, the marketing branch of the tourism department, is participating in the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) from May 6 to 9 at the Dubai World Trade Centre in the UAE with the aim of strengthening its position in the Middle East. Renowned as a premier travel event, the Arabian Travel Market draws in over 28,000 influential buyers and travel trade visitors, standing as a cornerstone of the global travel industry for over three decades. In a press communique on Monday, Tourism Seychelles said that the island nation's delegation is headed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde, and several high officials along with its Middle East representative, Ahmed Fathallah. Also part of the delegation are representatives of the local trade in the island nation in the western Indian Ocean. The Tourism Seychelles director general for Destination Marketing, Bernadette Willemin, said, «We have an exciting few days ahead of us. The ATM provides a unique opportunity to network and stay updated on the latest travel trends shaping the Arabian Travel Market. In the coming days, we will be focused on strengthening our position in the Middle Eastern Market, ensuring Seychelles remains a highly sought-after holiday destination.» Tourism Seychelles will engage with industry leaders throughout the event, showcasing the irresistible allure of the island destination. The United Arab Emirates remains one of Seychelles' top 10 markets, with 5,302 visitors recorded as of April 28, 2024. 

The Islands Development Company (IDC), a state-owned company, is calling on local authorities to regulate recreational fishery urgently amid concerns being expressed by fishermen on stock depletion. The IDC, which manages the outer islands of Seychelles and also the inner island of Silhouette, has over the years put guidelines in place for recreational fishing in the outer islands.   According to Seychelles' Fisheries Act, recreational fishing refers to any fishing activity undertaken by a vessel under 10 metres in length for recreational rather than commercial purposes, like trading or selling. Sport fishing is defined as any fishing activity undertaken for sport or recreation, which involves the hiring, chartering, or leasing of a vessel, and its annexes not exceeding 40 metres in length overall but which does not result in trading, offering for sale, or selling of fish. The chief executive of the IDC, Glenny Savy, said the the company has established its standards on the islands. «For example, on Alphonse, we only allow 12 fishermen at a time, on Farquhar it's 10, on Cosmoledo it's 8 and on Astove it's only 4. We don't allow more than that number of people to go and fish on those islands. In addition to that, the lagoons are divided into sectors and not every sector is fished everyday, as we rotate these sectors,» he explained. He said IDC realised the danger of unsustainable fishery in the 1980s when the reef of Silhouette, the only granitic inner island managed by IDC, was being heavily exploited for sea turtles, lobster and rabbit fish among others. «We lobbied the government in the eighties to declare Silhouette a marine national park. This was done in 1987 and it is the largest marine park in Seychelles.  But although we managed to get the waters around Silhouette protected the authorities have never enforced it. At least our island manager and rangers of the Island Conservation Society (ICS) on Silhouette caution people that they cannot fish around the island because it is a marine park,» Savy added. IDC confirms that it is currently in discussion with a couple of associations on a possible code of conduct, but even if members of these associations abide by that code, the fact remains that many boat owners are not part of any association and will probably continue with business as usual. He emphasised that the longer the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA) takes to put regulations in place, the more time people who are not practising sustainable fishing have to destroy the fish sock. Although there are no specific regulations governing recreational and sports fishing activities in Seychelles, certain restrictions have been put in place by the Fisheries (Mahe Plateau Trap and Line Fishery) Regulations 2021. These restrictions include a minimum size limit of 32cm for two key species, namely emperor red snapper and green job fish. Additionally, there is a bag limit of 20 fish per person per day for recreational fishers, and a ban on the sale of fish caught by recreational and sport fishers, unless authorised by the SFA.  There are no specific regulations governing recreational and sports fishing activities in Seychelles. (Seychelles Nation) Photo License: CC-BY SFA is currently working towards introducing a regulatory framework by the end of 2024 to further define these fisheries. SFA confirmed that currently there are no licensing schemes for recreational fishing but «the law prescribes that anything recreational and for sport shall have a permit system,» said Karyss Auguste, SFA's assistant manager for the License and Permit System. She said, «On the Mahe plateau, the law makes provision for fishermen to either have a commercial license or a recreational permit. Therefore, for someone to engage in any fishing activity, that person will have to be a registered fisherman with a commercial license or a holder of a recreational permit.» SFA acknowledges the difficulty in managing resources with open access such as the seas and they do not know who is fishing and the type or size of species that they fish, which makes it difficult to ensure sustainable fishing. Vincent Lucas, SFA's head of department fisheries management and technical coordination, said this is a concern and the authority worries about the sustainability of fishery if such practices continue. The idea of having regulation and a code of conduct is also supported by non-governmental organisations such as the Island Conservation Society (ICS). Gregory Berke, the director of conservation and science at ICS, said a code of conduct is necessary. «Some operators such as Blue Safari Seychelles already implement a code of conduct using guidelines from studies already undertaken in Seychelles and based on international best practices. It would be beneficial if there were a regulatory framework in place so that all recreational or sports fishing have a code of conduct in place,» he said. A Seychellois fisheries expert, Dr Ameer Ebrahim, told SNA that he feels there is not enough information to state what impact the recreational fishery is having on fish stock. «We haven't taken into consideration the social aspect of the fishery for example would you penalise a father and child who goes fishing on the rock on a weekend, or would they need a license? In other parts of the world, they would need a license to carry out any form of recreational fishing whether it is for a hobby or not,» said Ibrahim. He said this needs to be documented and discussed on a larger scale before deciding on a fee. Ebrahim also pointed out other aspects to consider such as foreign workers who work in Seychelles under a  the Gainful Occupation Permit (GOP) and their involvement in this type of fishery. « GOP workers are fishing during the weekend in various areas and they fish whatever they can catch. From my understanding under their GOP condition food is supposed to be supplied by their employee. If they are fishing for food external to their GOP condition this needs to be looked at because we have no control over the quantity of fish being removed and the way it being done, for me it seems quite significant. If they are fishing recreationally, as a hobby, there needs to be some sort of mechanism on how to regulate that,» he added.

Pop idol Madonna gave it all in Rio de Janeiro as she looked back on her four-decade career in a historic show before throngs of joyful fans jammed onto Brazil's famed Copacabana beach on Saturday night. The 65-year-old singer walked down an elevated bridge from the Copacabana Palace hotel shortly after 10:30 pm (0130 GMT Sunday) to a massive stage for one of the most important shows of her career. Dressed all in black, Madonna broke into her hit «Nothing Really Matters» at the start of a burst of brute energy. «Rio, here we are in the most beautiful place in the world,» she said at the start of a performance that brought the giddy Brazilian audience to its feet. The show marked the final stop on her «Celebration Tour» noting her 40 years atop pop charts, in a free event that was estimated to draw upward of 1.5 million fans from across Brazil. Billed as a «historic» show, it blended music and dance with cabaret. Madonna showcased her versatility with dozens of set and costume changes, spectacular lights and many giant screens along the beach. She went from being dressed as a schoolgirl in a miniskirt to an irreverent Christian in a black cape while luminous crosses circled around her during «Like a Prayer,» a song that cost her excommunication from the Catholic Church. - 'Live To Tell' - Madonna was joined on stage during the performance of her hit «Vogue» by Brazilian singer Anitta, who is known for taking Carioca funk -- the soundtrack of Rio's favelas -- to the rest of the world. With «Live To Tell», she paid tribute to AIDS victims, including Freddie Mercury and the legendary Brazilian musician Cazuza. US electronic dance music master DJ Diplo opened the show as thousands jostled to get a view of the stage. Boats bobbed in the water offshore, letting those onboard enjoy the show. «I'm a mess, I haven't slept well, I've been listening to Madonna all week,» 29-year-old sociologist Ina Odara told AFP. Tattooed on her shoulder was Madonna's phrase: «All that you ever learned, try to forget.» «Madonna helped me leave the Catholic Church, think about many things and change my relationship with my family,» said Odara, a transgender woman, standing near the huge stage that was twice the size of any other used on the tour. Police patrolled almost every corner to minimize the usual mass robberies. After 80 performances across Europe and North America, the Rio concert provided a crowning touch to a tour that took on sudden urgency when the singer suffered a life-threatening bacterial infection in June last year. Madonna has released an album every two or three years since the 1984 release of «Like a Virgin.» Her shows, with their spectacular productions, set a high bar. But the ever-provocative Madonna has also provided unforgettable moments, such as when she kissed Britney Spears at 2003's MTV Music Video Awards. Her irreverence led to a tumultuous relationship with the Catholic Church, with Pope John Paul II urging fans to boycott her over her provocative 1989 video «Like a Prayer,» which was seen as blasphemous. - 'Oi, Rio!' - Madonna's concert should provide an economic boost to Rio, which contributed 20 million reales ($4 million) toward the $12 million production cost. Authorities expected it would pump a far larger sum -- 293 million reales, or $57 million -- into the local economy. On every corner in the Copacabana neighborhood were billboards, souvenirs or T-shirts bearing images of Madonna or of the conical corset designed by Jean Paul Gaultier and made famous by the diva. Hundreds of her fans swarmed outside the Copacabana Palace since her arrival on Monday. The excitement spiked Thursday night when Madonna unexpectedly appeared for a sound check, her face almost completely hidden behind a colorful balaclava. That scene was repeated on Friday. «Oi, Rio!» she called out in Portuguese to fans. The response on Saturday night from more than a million voices: «Oi, Queen Madonna!» © Agence France-Presse

A first-ever lagoon-wide drone survey of the waters around the Aldabra Atoll in Seychelles using drones to capture images of dugongs, including juveniles, has started. The ongoing project is being implemented by the Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF), which manages the atoll, in order to monitor the dugong population and provide data to better inform SIF's decisions on the species' conservation. Dugongs - sometimes called sea cows - are shy and gentle creatures that survive solely on a diet of seagrass. Early settlers on the islands and sailors hunted and slaughtered them for their meat and oil. Today, they are a protected species under Seychelles law. «Initial analysis of the collected images revealed 19 dugong sightings. The largest group captured in a single photograph included six individuals, featuring two juveniles. Overall, juveniles were observed with one or two adults on more than three occasions. However, ongoing analysis is still in progress, and the final estimate has not been firmly established as of yet,» said the chief executive of SIF, Dr Frauke Fleischer-Dogley. Fleischer-Dogley added that by the end of this project, SIF aims to provide new information on the dugong population estimate and provide valuable insights to guide SIF's decision-making, government authorities, and conservation managers in the region to strengthen dugong conservation efforts.  Furthermore, the project outputs will support Seychelles' commitments under the Convention on Migratory Species and the Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Dugongs and their Habitats throughout their range. Aldabra, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is the habitat for the only known remaining population of dugongs in Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean. Classified as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, dugongs in East Africa are thought to be highly threatened. SIF's two-year project is being implemented through a Seychelles Climate Change Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) grant. Specialised fixed-wing drones manufactured by Wingtra,a company based in Switzerland, were procured.  Through this project, the foundation's staff now has capacity in drone piloting, and following the completion of this project, SIF will be exploring options to use drones elsewhere on Aldabra. The project will end in mid-2024, however, research and monitoring of this mammalian species will continue.  For this project, the Seychelles Islands Foundation is collaborating with Christophe Cleguer of the James Cook University and Amanda Hodgson of the Edith Cowan University, both based in Australia. 

The death toll from floods and mudslides triggered by torrential storms in southern Brazil has climbed to 56 people, with 74 injured and another 67 missing, the country's civil defense agency said Saturday. Fast-rising water levels in the state of Rio Grande do Sul were straining dams and threatening the metropolis of Porto Alegre, one of the largest cities in southern Brazil. Authorities there were scrambling to evacuate some neighborhoods that had been submerged -- in some cases using helicopters to rescue people stranded on roofs. And heavy rains of «very high severity» are expected to continue into Sunday, Civil Defense authorities said. The rapid rise of the Guaiba River, which runs through Porto Alegre, brought serious flooding to the city's historic center. - 'Going to be much worse' - With waters starting to overtop a dike along another local river, the Gravatai, Mayor Sebastiao Malo issued a stern warning on social media platform X, saying, «Communities must leave!» That warning came a day after the Rio Grande del Sul governor, Eduardo Leite, warned on X that «in the metropolitan region it's going to be much worse.» Leite called it the worst disaster in the state's history. Residential areas found themselves underwater as far as the eye can see, with roads destroyed and bridges swept away by powerful currents. Rescuers faced a colossal task, with entire towns -- some left without electricity or drinking water -- made inaccessible. At least 300 municipalities have suffered storm damage in Rio Grande do Sul since Monday, according to local officials, displacing more than 24,600. - 'Water up to my waist' - Roughly a third of the displaced have been brought to shelters set up in sports centers, schools and other facilities. «When I left the house, I was in water up to my waist,» a haggard-looking Claudio Almiro, 55, told AFP in a cultural center converted to a shelter in a suburb north of Porto Alegre. «I lost everything.» The rains also affected the southern state of Santa Catarina, where one man died Friday when his car was swept away by raging floodwaters in the municipality of Ipira. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva visited the region Thursday, vowing «there will be no lack of human or material resources» in responding to the disaster, which he blamed on climate change. Climatologist Francisco Eliseu Aquino told AFP on Friday that the devastating storms were the result of a «disastrous cocktail» of global warming and the El Nino weather phenomenon. South America's largest country has recently experienced a string of extreme weather events, including a cyclone in September that claimed at least 31 lives. Aquino said the region's particular geography meant it was often confronted by the effects of tropical and polar air masses colliding -- but these events have «intensified due to climate change.» © Agence France-Presse  

The road to the 2025 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Seychelles has officially begun with the launch of the event one year-ahead, which took place on Friday. The 2025 tournament will take place between May 1 to May 11, with 16 nations set to compete, including the hosts, Seychelles, who will be participating in a first ever global football tournament. The event to launch the World Cup took place at the Kempinski Resort in the south of the main island of Mahe, where guests included the President of Seychelles, Wavel Ramkalawan, who is also the patron for of the Seychelles Football Federation (SFF), the SFF's president, Elvis Chetty, and the director of competitions at FIFA (the football world governing body), Jaime Yarza.  Young Seychellois beach soccer players take part in the ceremony to launch the world cup (Seychelles News Agency) Photo License: CC:BY During his address at the event, Chetty explained the importance of the tournament that will take place in Seychelles, stating that this sporting event is a beacon of opportunity for Seychelles. “Hosting an event of this magnitude brings along a significant impact, promising to usher in an era of unparalleled growth and development for our islands and football community at large,” said Chetty, highlighting the expected surge in tourism from the games. He also noted the various infrastructure developments that this tournament will also bring. In fact, a new beach soccer stadium is expected to be constructed in Roche Caiman, near the existing venue, with a 4,000-capacity arena to be built, which will then be dismantled and put into other areas in Seychelles as two smaller stadiums, that will be used to continue the development of beach soccer in Seychelles. On his part, Yarza joked that when FIFA announced that the tournament would be held in Seychelles, they received more volunteers than ever to join the tournament. “Attending a world cup is a very special moment and we want to honour the people that love this sport, by bringing them the best teams, the best organisation and we are convinced that Seychelles can offer that,” Yarza added.  With Seychelles set to host the event almost exactly one year from now, the preparations for the games have already begun, where during the ceremony, the official logo was unveiled, along with the winner’s trophy, and tournament theme song, which is called “Kot mon ne” in Seychellois Creole or “Where is was born”, in English, sang by popular local artist known as Mercenary. Meanwhile, President Ramkalawan said that the people of Seychelles need to understand that this tournament is much bigger than anything Seychelles has hosted before. “We are now overtaking the Indian Ocean or a zone in Africa, now we are going global,” he said, adding that “with Seychelles' size, we will never be able to host a normal football world cup, but as small as we are, we can host the Beach Soccer World Cup.” He added that he hopes that the Seychelles team can do well, and that the tournament will be the catalyst that re-invigorates our local 11-a-side football and brings us back to the heights of previous years.

The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has confirmed that uncharacteristically high ocean temperatures have triggered the fourth global mass coral bleaching event and Seychelles is already being affected. Nirmal Shah, chief executive of Nature Seychelles, a non-profit organisation, said this event poses a significant threat to the ocean's ecosystem and the millions of individuals who rely on reefs for sustenance, employment, and coastal security. «The elevated ocean temperatures represent the result of the growing emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases (GHGs), such as carbon dioxide and methane, which have been increasingly trapped in the atmosphere. Consequently, the oceans have absorbed almost 90 percent of the excess heat, resulting in warmer waters,» Shah told SNA. In March, the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) reported that the average sea surface temperature reached a record monthly high of 21.07 degrees Celsius. «These developments are deeply concerning and require immediate attention from the international community to reduce GHG emissions and safeguard oceanic health,» said Shah In Seychelles, coral bleaching was detected first at Aldabra in March and is now widespread around the granitic islands. Shah elaborated that Nature Seychelles, which has been working on large coral restoration projects for almost 15 years, has had experimental shading mechanisms in the water for a few weeks now. The Coral Shading Initiative (CSI) is derived from indigenous knowledge in Seychelles by weaving palm leaves and putting them in bamboo frames. He confirmed that preliminary results show promise and that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which is funding Nature Seychelles' current reef restoration efforts, has agreed to provide $5,000 to expand this system. «However, this is inadequate to save reefs. Seychelles needs massive national mobilisation like a war effort otherwise we will lose our reefs which supply food, sand for our beautiful beaches, barriers to storms and surges, and assets for dive tourism,» he added.  Shah, who expressed concern regarding Seychelles' future, especially when facing extreme climate change, has recently been appointed to the Advisory Board of the Coral Restoration Consortium (CRC). The CRC is a unique global community of practice composed of thousands of dedicated scientists and members of reef-rich communities, volunteer divers and local fishermen, climate change activists and government officials, university professors and leaders from the business world. «The Advisory Board's role is to listen actively to what the community needs, then advise how to create and share the products and resources they need to work more strategically and rapidly,» he said.      

Pro-Palestinian protests that have rocked US campuses for weeks were more muted Friday after a series of clashes with police, mass arrests and a stern White House directive to restore order. Police in Manhattan cleared an encampment at New York University after sunrise, with video posted to social media by an official showing protesters exiting their tents and dispersing when ordered by loudspeaker. The scene appeared relatively calm compared to crackdowns at other campuses around the country -- and some worldwide -- where protests over Israel's war in Gaza have multiplied in recent weeks. University administrators, who have tried to balance the right to protest and complaints of violence and hate speech, have increasingly called on police to clear out the protesters ahead of year-end exams and graduation ceremonies -- and some clashes with counter-protesters. More than 2,000 arrests have been made in the past two weeks across the United States, some during violent confrontations with police, giving rise to accusations of over-use of force. President Joe Biden, who has faced pressure from all political sides over the Israel-Hamas war, gave his first expansive remarks on the protests Thursday, saying that «order must prevail.» «We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent,» Biden said in a televised statement from the White House. «But neither are we a lawless country. We're a civil society, and order must prevail.» His remarks came hours after police moved in on demonstrators at University of California, Los Angeles, which had seen a violent confrontation when counter-protesters attacked a fortified encampment there. A large police contingent forcibly cleared the sprawling encampment early Thursday while flashbangs were launched to disperse crowds gathered outside. Schools officials said that over 200 people were arrested. On the opposite US coast Thursday, protesters at New Jersey's Rutgers University agreed to take down their camp after reaching a compromise with administrators, like a similar deal at other institutions, including Brown University. - Worldwide - Republicans have accused Biden of being soft on what they say is anti-Semitic sentiment among the protesters, while he faces opposition in his own party for his strong support for Israel's war on Gaza. «There should be no place on any campus, no place in America for anti-Semitism, or threats of violence against Jewish students,» Biden said. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona echoed the condemnation in a letter to university leaders on Friday and pledging to investigate reports of anti-Semitism «aggressively,» CNN reported. Meanwhile, similar student protests have popped up in countries around the world, including in Australia, France, Mexico and Canada. In Paris, police moved in to clear students staging a sit-in at the Sciences Po university. An encampment has grown at Canada's prestigious McGill University, where administrators on Wednesday demanded it be taken down «without delay.» However, police had yet to take action against the site as of Friday morning. The Gaza war started when Hamas militants staged an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 that left more than 1,170 people dead, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel estimates that 128 hostages remain in Gaza. The Israeli military says 35 of them are dead. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 34,600 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. © Agence France-Presse

International Criminal Court prosecutors warned on Friday against «individuals who threaten to retaliate» against the tribunal or its staff, saying such actions might constitute an «offence against its administration of justice». The ICC did not say if the comment related to its investigation into possible war crimes by Israel or Palestinian groups in Gaza and the West Bank. US media reports have suggested that the ICC's Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) could issue warrants against both Israeli politicians and Hamas leaders. Israeli officials have said in recent days that any attempt by the court to take any action against Israel would be «outrageous». On Friday, the Hague-based office of ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan said on X, former Twitter, that it sought to «engage constructively with all stakeholders whenever dialogue is consistent with its mandate». «That independence and impartiality are undermined, however, when individuals threaten to retaliate against the court or against court personnel», it added. «Such threats, even not acted upon, may constitute an offence» against the ICC's «administration of justice», it warned, calling for an end to such activity. Khan's office declined to say where the threats had come from and which investigation was concerned, when questioned by AFP. - 'Blatant disregard' - But one legal expert said it was likely related to the «ongoing investigation in Palestine» given recent Israeli government statements about «threats to the Palestinian Authority in response to the potential issuance of arrest warrants». Israel's reported retaliatory steps were aimed at the Palestinian authorities, «not at the ICC or the OTP», said Gabriele Chlevickaite, a researcher at the Hague-based Asser Institute for international law. However, «some statements by Israeli officials could be interpreted as threatening the OTP officials indirectly and, or, interfering with the investigation,» she told AFP. This would not only be an offence under the court's founding Rome Statute «but a blatant disregard of the rule of law,» Chlevickaite added. The ICC opened a probe in 2021 into Israel, as well as Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups, over possible war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories. Khan has said this investigation now «extends to the escalation of hostilities and violence since the (Hamas) attacks that took place on October 7, 2023». - 'Outrageous' - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on X on Wednesday that the ICC was «contemplating issuing arrest warrants against senior Israeli government and military officials as war criminals». «This would be an outrage of historic proportions,» he said, alleging that the ICC was «trying to put Israel in the dock». The United States said on Monday it also opposed the ICC's probe into Israel's conduct in Gaza. The ICC is the world's only independent court set up to probe the gravest offences by individual suspects, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. It has previously issued warrants for national leaders -- most recently Russian President Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine. The war in Gaza started after Hamas's October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel's relentless retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,568 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the besieged Hamas-run enclave. © Agence France-Presse 

Seychelles has gone down three places on the World Press Freedom Index going from 34th to place in 2023 to 37th in 2024 published by the Reporters Without Borders (RWB), a Paris-based non-governmental organisation. The ranking is released every year to coincide with World Press Freedom Day on May 3, a date that celebrates the fundamental principles of press freedom around the world. The ranking is based on five indicators - political, economic, legislative, social and security. The political indicator has fallen the most, registering a global average fall of 7.6 points. In 2022, the island nation was ranked 13th out of 180 countries and was the highest ranking in Sub-Saharan Africa - a ranking it lost last year when it fell 21 places on the index. The chairman of the Association of Media Practitioners in Seychelles (AMPS), Rassin Vannier, told reporters on Friday morning that the AMPS plans «to hold consultative meetings with the authorities to stop a further decline.» Vannier was speaking at a half-day seminar AMPS held in collaboration with the French Embassy in Seychelles at L'Escale Resort and Spa to mark World Press Freedom Day. The seminar was organised jointly by AMPS and the French Embassy in Seychelles. (Seychelles News Agency) Photo License: CC-BY «What is important for the Association is to establish what has us continually going down in the rankings. Once we have determined the causes, we will approach the authorities concerned to see how we can find solutions for the problems so that we can go back up in the RWB ranking released annually,» he added. Reporters Without Borders defines press freedom as «the ability of journalists as individuals and collectives to select, produce, and disseminate news in the public interest independent of political, economic, legal, and social interference and in the absence of threats to their physical and mental safety.» Vannier said, «It is important that we have a dialogue and come up with a solution together.» The World Press Freedom Index compares the level of freedom enjoyed by journalists and media in 180 countries and territories.  Vannier added that with the «harassment of our journalists, something we see every day, there is a dialogue that needs to take place between the authorities and the profession.» At the seminar which took place on Friday, Vannier said, «As elections are coming up next year, and we have had some issues when working with the Commission in the 2020 elections, we felt it would be beneficial for both parties to have a dialogue now.» Representatives from the Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), TeleSesel, Seychelles Nation, Today in Seychelles and The People were among the media houses present. Also present, was the chief elections officer, Manuella Amesbury and her team that made presentations on the role and mandate of the Electoral Commission of Seychelles (ECS). It was also a chance for the journalists in attendance to voice their concerns on reporting on the election process as well as receive clarifications about issues concerning ECS. 

The Court of Appeal has allowed the application made by the Seychelles Human Rights Commission, the Ombudsman and the Bar Association of Seychelles for the recusal of a panel of judges on the Constitutional Court hearing of a controversial case. The three entities lodged a joint petition with the Constitutional Court on September 13, 2022, asking that the constitutionality of the 10th amendment of the Constitution be reviewed. The 10th Amendment to the Constitution empowers the Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) to carry out internal law enforcement in Seychelles outside the context of a public emergency. The panel hearing the case in the Constitutional Court comprises Chief Justice Rony Govinden and justices Mohan Burhan and Brassel Adeline. The three entities made the application for the recusal of the panel of judges on the Constitutional Court on the grounds that there is evidence indicating that the judiciary was involved in the preparation of the 10th Amendment. Additionally, that one of the judges of the Constitutional Court recently benefitted from a land transfer from the government. The Constitutional Court on January 24, 2023 dismissed the case and the judges ruled that the motion appears to be frivolous and vexatious and an abuse of the process of the court and dismissed it on this basis. The three Justices of Appeal on the case were Janak De Silva from Sri Lanka, Lillian Tibetemwa-Ekirikkubinza from Uganda and Karuna Gunesh-Balaghee from Mauritius. In a unanimous judgement, the Court of Appeal found that the application for the recusal of the judges had been wrongly decided by the Constitutional Court in its decision of January 24, 2023.  In its ruling on Friday, the three judges of the Court of Appeal, said: «The  Constitutional Court was of the view that the Recusal Guidelines applied only for situations where recusal of a presiding Judge or a bench is sought not where the recusal of all current Judges and Justices in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal is sought. On a plain reading of the Recusal Guidelines, that may well be a sustainable interpretation.» «However, it overlooks the fact that the doctrine of bias which disqualifies a Judge from hearing a case is a particular application of the fundamental human right and freedom recognised in Article 19(7) of the Constitution,» said the Court of Appeal.   Quashing the Constitutional  Court decision, the Court of Appeal directed that the recusal application should be heard anew by a panel of judges who were not in any way involved with the preparation of the 10th  Amendment. The Court of Appeal gave specific directives as to how this panel of judges should be set up to meet the imperatives of impartiality in the circumstances of this case. It also ordered that if it is not possible to set up this panel according to its directives, the Chief Justice should request the President of Seychelles to appoint temporary judges in terms of the Constitution for the purpose of hearing the recusal application. The Court of Appeal also ordered that the judges who dismissed the recusal application must not haveanything further to do with that application. 

The President of Seychelles, Wavel Ramkalawan sent a message of condolence to President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan following the recent passing of Sheikh Tahnoun bin Mohammed Al Nahyan, the ruler's representative in the Al Ain region. He was 82 years old. According to the Foreign Affairs Department in a press communique on Thursday, Ramkalawan, said, «I would like to offer our deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to Your Highness, to the Al Nahyan family, as well as to the government and the people of the United Arab Emirates on this sad occasion.» «The late Sheikh Tahnoun was a prominent national figure who played an instrumental role in the establishment of the United Arab Emirates. He will be fondly remembered for his unwavering commitment and tireless work in the service of his country,» added Ramkalawan. Seychelles' head of state said, «At this time of bereavement, our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of the late Sheikh Tahnoun, the Government of the United Arab Emirates and the Emirati people. May his soul rest in eternal peace.»

Seychelles' President Wavel Ramkalawan officially handed over six second-hand ambulances to the Minister for Health, Peggy Vidot, gifted by an anonymous donor in a ceremony on Thursday. The six Toyota Hiace ambulances are expected to improve the emergency services in the island nation. Ramkalawan said, «Depending on if the Ministry of Health is satisfied with the ambulances, we will purchase six more to add to the fleet.» Vidot welcomed the donation that she described as an opportune gift that will help her ministry «provide an immediate response when called – which is the difference between life and death.» The ambulances are second-hand vehicles with very high roofs, engines of 2,700cc, and equipped to cater for the emergency services the health authorities provide. The total cost of the ambulances is $94,000 (SCR1.3 million). Vidot explained that the latest additions will help revitalise the current fleet. The chief executive of the Public Health Agency, Danny Louange, said that the new ambulances are very welcomed as the current fleet of 16 has some vehicles that are beyond 15 years old and maintenance costs are high. The Beau Vallon, Grand Anse Praslin and Anse Royale health centres are expected to benefit from the donation.

Doubts grew on Thursday over the fate of a Gaza truce plan that, as the week began, had raised hopes of an end to nearly seven months of war between Israel and Palestinian Hamas militants. Israel was still waiting for Hamas's response to the latest proposal, said an Israeli official not authorised to speak publicly. Mediators have proposed a deal that would halt fighting for 40 days and exchange Israeli hostages for potentially thousands of Palestinian prisoners, according to details released earlier by Britain. Any such deal would be the first since a one-week truce in November saw 80 Israeli hostages exchanged for 240 Palestinian prisoners. The war started with Hamas's October 7 attack on southern Israel that resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures. Israel estimates that 129 captives seized by militants during their attack remain in Gaza, but the military says 34 of them are dead. Israel's retaliatory offensive, vowing to destroy Hamas, has killed at least 34,596 people in Gaza -- mostly women and children -- including 28 over the past day, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Much of Gaza has been reduced to a grey landscape of rubble. The debris includes unexploded ordnance that leads to «more than 10 explosions every week», with more deaths and loss of limbs, Gaza's Civil Defence agency said on Thursday. - 'Get this done' - Humanitarians are struggling to get aid to Gaza's 2.4 million people, hundreds of thousands of whom have fled to Rafah, the territory's southernmost point, the United Nations says. Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told AFP late Wednesday that the movement's position on the truce proposal was «negative» for the time being. The group's aim remains an «end to this war», senior Hamas official Suhail al-Hindi said -- a goal at odds with the stated position of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Regardless of whether a truce is reached, Netanyahu vows to send Israeli troops into Rafah against Hamas fighters there. US officials reiterated their opposition to such an operation without a plan to protect the civilians. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has urged the Islamist movement to accept the truce plan. «Hamas needs to say yes and needs to get this done,» Blinken said Wednesday while in Israel on his latest Middle East mission. In early April there had also been initial optimism over a possible truce deal, only to have Israel and Hamas later accuse each other of undermining negotiations. Following a meeting with Blinken, Israel's opposition leader Yair Lapid insisted that Netanyahu «doesn't have any political excuse not to move to a deal for the release of the hostages». Netanyahu faces regular protests in Israel calling on him to make a deal that would bring home the captives. On Thursday protesters set up over-sized photos of women hostages outside Netanyahu's Jerusalem residence. In Tel Aviv they again blocked a highway. - On trial - Demonstrators accuse the prime minister, who is on trial for corruption charges he denies, of seeking to prolong the war. Fallout from the Gaza fighting has spread throughout the Middle East, including to the Red Sea region where commercial shipping has been disrupted. US and allied warships have regularly shot down suspected drones and missiles fired by Iran-backed Yemeni rebels who say they act in solidarity with Palestinians. Criticism of the war has intensified in the United States, Israel's top military supplier. Demonstrations have spread to at least 30 US universities, where protesters have often erected tent encampments to oppose Gaza's ever-increasing death toll. Talks on a potential deal to pause the bloodiest-ever Gaza war have been held in Cairo involving US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators. Mairav Zonszein, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group think-tank, said he was pessimistic Hamas would agree to a deal «that doesn't have a permanent ceasefire baked into it». A source with knowledge of the negotiations said on Wednesday that Qatari mediators expected a response from Hamas in one or two days. The source said Israel's proposal contained «real concessions» including a period of «sustainable calm» following an initial pause in fighting, and the hostage-prisoner exchange. The source said Israel's withdrawal from Gaza remained a likely point of contention. - A mother's tears - Egypt was involved in a flurry of calls «with all the parties», the country's state-linked Al-Qahera News reported, citing a high-level Egyptian official who spoke of «positive progress». Martin Griffiths, the UN aid chief, this week said «improvements in bringing more aid into Gaza» cannot be used «to prepare for or justify a full-blown military assault on Rafah». The US military since last week has been building a temporary pier off Gaza to assist aid efforts. The pier is now more than half finished, the Pentagon said on Wednesday. In Khan Yunis city near Rafah, foreign aid and borrowed equipment helped to «almost completely» restore the emergency department at Nasser Medical Complex, said Atef al-Hout, the hospital director. Intense fighting raged in mid-February around the hospital, which Israeli tanks and armoured vehicles later surrounded. Israel's army on Thursday said that among strikes over the previous day, a fighter jet hit «a military structure in central Gaza». Witnesses and an AFP correspondent on Thursday reported air strikes in Khan Yunis and artillery bombardment in the Rafah area, while militants and Israeli troops battles in Gaza City to the north. Also in north Gaza, workers unloaded boxes of aid at Kamal Adwan hospital where Alaa al-Nadi's son lay motionless in the intensive care unit, his head almost completely swathed in bandages. Nadi, her own arm bandaged after they were wounded in a strike, feared the hospital's power could go out, cutting the boy's oxygen and killing him. «I call on the world to transfer my son for treatment abroad. He is in a very bad condition,» she said, breaking down in tears. © Agence France-Presse

French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed he did not rule out sending troops to Ukraine, saying the issue would «legitimately» arise if Russia broke through Ukrainian front lines and Kyiv made such a request, in an interview with the Economist published Thursday. The Economist said Macron gave the interview after delivering a keynote speech last week where he declared that Europe is «mortal» and could «die» partly due to the threat posed by Russian aggression after its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. «I'm not ruling anything out, because we are facing someone who is not ruling anything out,» said Macron when asked if he stood by comments earlier this year not excluding the sending of Western troops that sent shockwaves around Europe. Some analysts believe that Russia could be on the verge of launching a major new offensive in Ukraine. Macron said «if Russia decided to go further, we will in any case all have to ask ourselves this question» of sending troops, describing his refusal to rule out such a move as a «strategic wake-up call for my counterparts». He described Russia as «a power of regional destabilisation» and «a threat to Europeans' security». «I have a clear strategic objective: Russia cannot win in Ukraine,» Macron said. «If Russia wins in Ukraine, there will be no security in Europe. »Who can pretend that Russia will stop there? What security will there be for the other neighbouring countries, Moldova, Romania, Poland, Lithuania and the others?" he asked. © Agence France-Presse

Seychelles offers breathtaking landscapes, pristine beaches and vibrant culture and is a dream destination for honeymooners, family and retirees who wants to relax and enjoy what the island nation has to offer. However,  it is essential to remember that Seychelles' tropical climate can present unique challenges when it comes to oral health. Many times holiday are interrupted as tourists and travellers have to sit at the casualty room of the main Seychelles Hospital or at the private dental clinic. They must have not thought in their wildest dream that they would have to visit a dentist while vacationing in Seychelles. Here are seven tips to help you have a toothache-free holiday in Seychelles.   Stay Hydrated Seychelles' tropical climate means warm temperatures and mostly sunshine year-round so while enjoying the sun and sea, it is easy to become dehydrated. Dehydration can contribute to various oral health problems. Hydration is key to saliva production, which helps protect your teeth from decay and gum disease so carry a reusable water bottle to stay refreshed throughout the day. Tropical fruit juices and cocktails are delicious, but they can be high in sugar and acids that harm your teeth so consume them in moderation and rinse your mouth with water afterward. (Dr. Bibhakar Ranjan) Photo License: All Rights Reserved    Protect Your Lips and Gums  Seychelles' strong sun can lead to sunburn, not only on your skin but also on your lips and gums so to safeguard your oral health choose a lip balm with sun protection to prevent sunburn on your lips. When spending extended periods in the sun, wearing a hat provides additional protection for your lips and gums. (Sara Beckwith, Flickr) Photo Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0   Make Tooth-friendly Choices to Preserve Your Oral Health Enjoy Seychelles' abundant fresh fruits and vegetables, like papaya, pineapple, and coconut as they provide essential vitamins and minerals for healthy gums and teeth. While tempting, try to reduce your consumption of sugary treats and opt for healthier snacks like nuts or yogurt when hunger strikes. (Dr. Bibhakar Ranjan) Photo License: All Rights Reserved    Stay Prepared for Dental Emergencies Accidents can happen anywhere, so it is wise to be prepared. In a conversation with a private dentist practicing in Seychelles, he said that he often gets calls from resorts and hotels to see tourists in pain. Some tourists get toothache from previously untreated cavities or fracture in the tooth while eating or falling down. Remember to bring a dental first aid kit, which includes items like dental floss, pain relievers, and an emergency contact number for a local dentist in your travel kit. (Dr. Bibhakar Ranjan) Photo License: All Rights Reserved    Maintain Oral Hygiene Avoid chewing ice or hard objects although it might be tempting to cool down with ice cubes. Avoid chewing on the bone of chicken found in local dishes or ice cubes as it can lead to dental emergencies. Local dentist also highlighted many individuals report to the clinic with tooth fracture, while the patient attempted to open a beer bottle with their teeth, be advised to use a bottle opener. While savouring a cocktail or a local Seychelles beer can be part of the island experience, excessive alcohol consumption can harm your oral health. Alcohol can dry out your mouth, reducing saliva production, which is essential for protecting your teeth. Consume alcohol in moderation and drink water between alcoholic beverages to stay hydrated. (Gerard Larose) Photo License: CC-BY   Protect Your Teeth During Water Activities Seychelles offers fantastic opportunities for water activities such as snorkelling, diving, and swimming. If you're engaging in these activities, consider wearing a mouth guard to protect your teeth from accidental impacts. You can obtain a mouth guards prior to travel or can buy one at pharmacies and private clinics and in some places can be custom-fitted by dental professionals for added comfort and protection. Your time in Seychelles should be a harmonious blend of adventure and relaxation; maintaining good oral health is vital to that equation. Remember, a healthy smile is your best companion for exploring this tropical paradise. (Gerard Larose) Photo License: CC-BY

Seychelles launched the Ocean's Resolve programme to attract local businesses to work in the conservation and protection of coral reefs at an inception workshop. Prospective partners in the project met at Eden Bleu Hotel to learn about the project that will be managed by the Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT). The programme is funded by the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) and will run for seven years. GFCR is the first United Nations multi-partner trust fund dedicated to Sustainable Development Goal 14. It is a blended finance mechanism that can be used to mobilise $500 million in grants and investment capital that will towards coral reef ecosystem conservation and resilience, and strengthening services in reef-dependent communities. «With this new project we are launching today we are creating opportunities for people either in civil society or those in the private sector who are interested to work in the field of coral protection,» said SeyCCAT's chief executive Marie-May Jeremie. This will also include people who have businesses with an interest in working in areas such as waste management, protection, or conservation. Jeremie added that this would also include those «with innovative ideas that we had not thought of. The project is the first of its kind for Seychelles as usually there are grants, where we receive the funds that we then allocate.» This project is different in that for each dollar the business generates, it will give back four in terms of revenue, and Jeremie said «This will encourage people who traditionally were not involved in environment management.» At the launching of the programme, the Minister for Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment, Flavien Joubert, said the programme will expand on the Seychelles Blue Investment Art. This includes the expansion of a Business and Technology Incubator (BTI) for coral-positive SMEs, exploring opportunities with the Seychelles Investment Board (SIB), and conceptualising a Blue Enterprise Fund. «The programme is designed around the implementation of the National Coral Reef Policy and aims to improve coordination with national agencies, and the operationalisation of Seychelles' first Coral Reef Parametric Insurance,» he said. The minster highlighted the «importance of such an initiative as the local authorities have realised that coral reefs are an important ecosystem that required more specific attention.» He said that in response to the country's obligations to international conventions such as the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the implementation of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, in 2022, the government developed and endorsed the first National Policy and Strategic Action Plan (NPSAP).«   »The national level policy provided the opportunity for a solution to a more coordinated and comprehensive conservation and management of coral reefs in the Seychelles. This policy has formed the basis for this programme," said Joubert. Among the issues the Ocean's Resolve programme hopes to address are practices that also contribute to the destruction of coral reefs such as sea cucumber fishing.

Nearly 100 tourists are among people marooned after a river overflowed in Kenya's famed Maasai Mara wildlife reserve following a heavy downpour, a local administrator said Wednesday. Torrential rains, amplified by the El Nino weather pattern, have lashed much of the East African country and destroyed roads, bridges and other infrastructure. «Approximately 100 or more tourists» were stranded in more than a dozen lodges and camps, Narok West sub-county administrator Stephen Nakola told AFP. «That is the preliminary number as of now because some of the camps are unaccessible,» he said. The world-famous Maasai Mara, in southwestern Kenya, is a tourist magnet and home to native wildlife including the so-called Big Five -- lions, elephants, rhinos, leopards and buffalo -- as well as giraffes, hippos and cheetahs. The Kenya Red Cross said it had rescued 61 people from the camps, more than half of them by air. «In some camps, tents have been swept away and the Mara bridge, linking the Mara Triangle and the Greater Mara, has been washed away,» it said on X. Tourism minister Alfred Mutua had earlier on Wednesday said «several camps have been impacted» and warned all hotels and camps near rivers within Kenyan parks and reserves to prepare «for potential evacuations.» «Develop clear evacuation, transportation, and hospitality protocols,» Mutua said in a statement. The directive came hours after President William Ruto deployed the military to evacuate everyone living in flood-prone areas. People living in the affected areas will have 48 hours to move after those who remain «will be relocated forcibly in the interest of their safety,» the cabinet said in a statement. - 'Early warning systems' - So far, 179 people including 15 children have died in flood-related disasters across Kenya since March, according to government data. Some 90 people have been reported missing, raising fears that the toll could go higher, and more than 195,000 others displaced. In the worst single incident that killed nearly 50 villagers, a makeshift dam burst in the Rift Valley before dawn Monday, sending torrents of water and mud gushing down a hill and swallowing everything in its path. The tragedy was the deadliest episode in the country since the start of the rainy season. The disaster has sparked an outpouring of condolences and pledges of solidarity with the affected families from all over the world. Pope Francis on Wednesday said he conveyed his «spiritual closeness» to Kenyans «at this time when a severe flood has tragically taken the lives of many of our brothers and sisters, injuring others and causing widespread destruction». «I invite you to pray for all those who are suffering the effects of this natural disaster,» he said at a general audience at the Vatican. The weather has also left a trail of destruction in neighbouring Tanzania, where at least 155 people have been killed in flooding and landslides. El Nino is a naturally occurring climate pattern typically associated with increased heat worldwide, leading to drought in some parts of the world and heavy rains elsewhere. © Agence France-Presse

Seychelles' national airline, Air Seychelles, was removed from administration in November 2022, after a tough period when the company had to undergo restructuring. Air Seychelles went into administration in October 2021 following financial difficulties after a petition was filed by the Apex Trustees Bondholders on August 19, 2021, for the winding up of Air Seychelles to recuperate investment made in the national carrier.   Since being out of administration, Sandy Benoiton, a certified pilot, took up the role of acting chief executive of the airline on July 1, succeeding Remco Althuis, who had led Air Seychelles since 2018. He was appointed permanently into the position on August 1, 2023 and the company has been working hard to get back on its feet and become the pride of Seychelles once more. SNA spoke to the CEO of Air Seychelles to learn more about what lies ahead for the company.   SNA: Tell us about where Air Seychelles is at the moment. SB: We have to go back to 2021 when we entered administration and after some restructuring in the company, we saw that in 2022, Air Seychelles was able to bounce back and get out of administration in November 2022. We saw then that we made a slight profit, where we then paid our debt to the bond holders, and now the only debt we have left is with the loan we took from Nouvobanq to be able to pay the bondholders. In 2023, we maintained the same strict financial policy, where we also looked at training our staff, and we are also continuously looking at other opportunities, as things can change very quickly, such as the conflict in Israel, which was a very good market for us, and we had to look at other areas.   SNA: Israel was a key market for Air Seychelles. How is the latest development in the Israel-Palestine conflict affecting Air Seychelles? SB: Obviously, when the conflict between Israel and Palestine started, the demand for flights fell, so of course we stopped. But we have re-started our flights to Tel Aviv this month, April, and all our flights are actually doing well. It remains an important route for us, and of course, all safety and security measures are being taken and we continue to monitor the situation.   SNA: What are the other routes Air Seychelles have at the moment? SB: We are continuing our flights to countries such as Mauritius, Johannesburg, Mumbai, and Sri Lanka. We have just signed a codeshare agreement with Sri Lankan Airlines, which will give us more flexibility. Our code will be seen beyond Sri Lanka to other places such as Australia. This new codeshare agreement will allow Air Seychelles and SriLankan Airlines to place their codes on each other's flights. (Air Seychelles) Photo License: All Rights Reserved    SNA: Which route is the most profitable for Air Seychelles at the moment? SB: At the moment, the routes we concentrate more on are Mauritius and Johannesburg, but seasonally we do have routes, such as Israel that are doing very well. But in general, the flights to Mauritius are doing the best.   SNA: During the pandemic era and a while after, Air Seychelles was operating cargo flights as well. Is that still going on? SB: We have completely stopped the cargo flights. Once passengers started filling the planes again, we stopped with it. But, what we are still doing, is we have a plane that is doing an aircraft, crew, maintenance, and insurance lease agreement. The plane is based in Dubai.   SNA: When you took over as the head of the airline, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic were still being felt. Is the company still feeling the effects of the pandemic? SB: Honestly, since 2023, we have forgotten about COVID-19, and now we are focused on the various international conflicts and our biggest concern is in regards to fuel. COVID-19 is behind us and passengers are back on the plane, so things have almost returned to pre-pandemic levels.   SNA: Does that mean Air Seychelles is profitable now? SB: Yes, it is. Over the past two years, it has been profitable. We still have some debt with Nouvobanq that we are still paying, but the company is financially stable now. Air Seychelles has been profitable over the last two years. (Air Seychelles) Photo License: All Rights Reserved     SNA: The restructuring brought in some difficult measures, such as pay cuts for staff. Has that affected staffing and morale in the company? SB: Air Seychelles was not just affected by the pandemic, but we also went through administration and that was not easy on the staff, especially those who had their salaries reduced. However, as we progress, we have seen that many people have returned to the company and the rate of people leaving Air Seychelles has also gone down. Last year, we had a salary review, where although not all, some salaries were returned to what they were previously.   SNA: There was a point where some changes were being made to Air Seychelles' ground handling at the airport. How has that been? SB: The idea was to ensure that there would be no instances where ground handling services would be put at risk, in case the company faces any difficulties in the future. In our restructuring plan, it was always seen that all our three units - ground handling, domestic and international -  would remain with Air Seychelles, which works well, and with all three we are moving towards full sustainability. To answer your question though, work has been done behind the scenes, where ground handling is now protected, where if anything happens to Air Seychelles, it will not affect the continuity of these services.   SNA: What's the future of Air Seychelles? SB: For now, we are still in the six-year rescue plan, where we are proceeding with caution, so we do not go back to where we were before. It can be very easy to get excited and end up back to difficult times, so we are taking precautions and also thinking outside of the box, when it comes to our route. We are very happy at the moment, and we want to finish paying off all our debts, but we are already looking at something, such as expanding into the Asian market. In terms of expanding our fleet, we will look at around 2026/27, if there is availability, we will be looking to get a new plane that has a longer range, which will enable us to get into Europe.   SNA: On a personal note, you have headed Air Seychelles for almost three years now, although you were officially appointed last year. Tell us a little about your time at the company and the responsibility of leading the airline. SB: As I always say, I grew with Air Seychelles, where I was the chief operations officer before becoming CEO. For me, it was not a shock, it was simply a natural progression for me. For me, it's all about the resilience of everyone in the company that has made things work, which is my biggest pride. Because of these strong and professional staff, sometimes you don't realise how difficult things are because of the work being done by all the staff. I think we are all very blessed.  

Indonesia's remote Mount Ruang volcano erupted several times on Tuesday, authorities said, issuing the highest level of alert and ordering thousands of people to evacuate due to the threat of a tsunami from debris sliding into the sea. The country's volcanology agency had warned the threat from the volcano was not over after it erupted more than half a dozen times this month, sparking the evacuation of more than 6,000 people. Ruang, located in Indonesia's North Sulawesi province, erupted at around 01:15 am local time on Tuesday (1715 GMT Monday) and then twice more that morning, the volcanology agency said in a statement. The volcano sent a tower of ash more than five kilometres (3.1 miles) into the sky, it added, as well as a fiery column of lava. The national disaster agency BNPB estimated 11,000 to 12,000 people had to be relocated from near Ruang's crater, spokesman Abdul Muhari told a press conference. «Currently local disaster mitigation agency... military and police are evacuating residents,» he said. Images released by the agency showed a molten red column bursting into the sky, a large ash cloud spilling from the crater and burning embers near local houses. The disaster agency imposed a seven-kilometre exclusion zone around Ruang after volcanology officials warned locals of «the potential for ejections of incandescent rocks, hot clouds and tsunamis due to eruption material entering the sea». Abdul said a rescue ship and a warship had been dispatched to help move thousands from neighbouring Tagulandang island north to Siau island because of the tsunami warning. «We urge people in Tagulandang island to stay away from coastal areas, to be on alert for the potential of a tsunami to occur,» he said, citing an 1871 wave that killed around 400 people after volcanic debris fell into the sea. - Relocations - The tsunami fears were also informed by more recent events. The crater of Mount Anak Krakatoa, between Java and Sumatra islands, also partly collapsed in 2018 when a major eruption sent huge chunks of the volcano sliding into the ocean, triggering a tsunami that killed more than 400 people and injured thousands. More than 800 people live on Ruang, all of whom were evacuated this month. Some had returned to their homes after the emergency response ended on Monday, an AFP journalist said. It was unclear how many residents had gone back and how many were forced to evacuate once more. But Abdul said those who were previously evacuated from Ruang had been to be taken to provincial capital Manado to await relocation, unable to return to their homes because of the fear of eruptions. Ruang's latest eruption prompted authorities to again close Sam Ratulangi international airport in Manado, more than 100 kilometres away, according to a notice from state-run air traffic control provider AirNav Indonesia. The notice said the airport was shutting down due to «Ruang volcanic ash». Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific «Ring of Fire». © Agence France-Presse

A UN-backed court announced Tuesday it has issued an arrest warrant for the Central African Republic's former president Francois Bozize over possible crimes against humanity committed by the military between 2009 and 2013. Bozize, 77, who seized power in Central Africa in 2003 in a coup before being overthrown 10 years later and now heads the country's main rebellion, has been in exile in Guinea-Bissau since March 2023. The international warrant was issued February 27, according to a communique from the Special Criminal Court (CPS), a hybrid jurisdiction located in the capital Bangui with Central African and foreign magistrates in charge of investigating war crimes committed since 2003 in the country, which has endured civil wars and authoritarian regimes sice independence from France in 1960. The court's magistrates are probing possible «crimes against humanity» committed by Bozize's presidential guard at a prison and at a military training facility between February 2009 and March 2013. The judges concluded that «the existence of serious and consistent evidence against (Bozize), likely to incur his criminal liability, in his capacity as hierarchical superior and military leader». © Agence France-Presse

Bilateral relations between Seychelles and Pakistan will continue and there will be possibly some agreements signed between the two countries, said the outgoing Pakistani high commissioner on Tuesday. Muhammad Arshad Jan Pathan area, who served as a non-resident high commissioner for two years, paid a farewell call to Seychelles' President Wavel Ramkalawan at State House. He told reporters that the farewell visit was very fruitful. “We have seen the momentum has taken a high peak in Pakistan-Seychelles relations, with the visit of the [Seychelles'] Chief of Defence Forces to Pakistan in November 2022 and then a trade delegation that attended the Pakistan Trade Conference also in November 2022,” he said. The outgoing high commissioner added: “I’ve focused mainly on the political area and we have gained a lot of momentum, this is a testimony of these two visits to Pakistan, particularly in defence and trade so this is the outcome of our political relations.” He said, “We are hopeful that soon we will be signing a few more bilateral agreements and MOUs [memorandums of understanding] in trade, drug trafficking control and health services and trade population.” The outgoing high commissioner also paid a farewell call to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde, at Maison Queau de Quinssy on Monday. During their meeting, the two diplomats discussed agreements that have been signed between the two countries in various areas such as health and combatting financial crimes. They also discussed negotiations to revise the bilateral air service agreement between the two countries, signed in 1979, and possible cooperation in the field of maritime security.

Lecturers and representatives from different universities in the region participated in the first session of the ERASMUS Blue HEI project hosted by the University of Seychelles (UniSey) on ways of making the Blue Economy more mainstream. Speaking to SNA, the acting director for the Blue Economy Research Institute (BERI) at UniSey, Dr Jerome Harlay said, «The project is meant to develop ways of transferring academic skills to the public domain by using the students to get training and exposure from outside Seychelles within the region. As well as European universities, we are collaborating with especially the work and different types of activities that they offer there.» He said that Blue Economy is one of the flagships of Seychelles and «so we have got sort of an advance in that. Still, we must also be aware of what is developing in other countries, especially neighbouring countries such as Madagascar and Comoros, because they are making their way also and there are good ideas that we can all share.» Harlay added that the most important factor of a project like this is the creation of links between the participants. The delegates were from different universities from Madagascar, Mauritius, Portugal and the University of Alicante, which is managing this project. The director of the Institutional Project Department of the University of Alicante, Carolina Madeleine, described this first session as a very positive experience. She said that all the delegates were met to brainstorm ways of implementation for this project and «so far, it's only been on paper so we've brought together everyone to discuss the way forward. This project aims at providing capacity building for higher education – to involve students, businesses and investors.» The project is being funded through the ERASMUS + programme, which is a European Union fund meant to support education, training, youth and sport. «The application process for this grant was very selective, out of 800 applications only 150 were selected,» Madeleine said. Among the delegates present at the three-day session, was also a representative of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission for the Indian Ocean and representatives of businesses based in the region, who were following online. «One of the outcomes of the project is an online platform aimed at providing academic and entrepreneurial information based on the Blue Economy that anyone can access. To show the extent of the potential that the Blue Economy can have in the development of a country. It is also meant to encourage people to take up the Blue Economy, either in research or business. We want students to be more innovative, and entrepreneurial and to think outside the box,» said Madeleine. She shared that this project will include a survey to gauge the capacity of the universities participating in the project before a dedicated office for the Blue Economy is set up. «We are working with different universities and different countries, they all have a different reality, so each office might not be identical we need to understand the situation for each university, here you already have different entities and departments as well as a ministry dedicated for the blue economy but this is not the case elsewhere,» she said. Another outcome of the project is a competition for the students from the different participating universities who will have to submit a project related to the Blue Economy that can be implemented in their country.

The first-ever Seychelles Coral Festival was held recently by the Seychelles Parks and Garden Authority (SPGA) to share information about corals and the different projects undertaken to protect them. Shazelle Julie, assistant park officer for the SPGA, told SNA that the event was organised in collaboration with Absa Bank Seychelles, which will be adopting the Port Launay Marine Park. In addition, Absa Bank Seychelles wanted to promote the importance of coral through this festival. «Corals are one of the biggest economic drives we have in Seychelles. Without them, we wouldn't have fish and we wouldn't have tourists. Many of us would be jobless. They also play an important part in the absorption of CO₂ (carbon dioxide),» she said. The Aquaculture Department had a live display aquarium and several non-governmental organisations such as the Marine Conservation Society Seychelles (MCSS), the Seychelles Islands Foundation and Nature Seychelles were present for the festival. The NGOs were giving information on projects they are implementing and how the public can participate in conservation. Representatives from the Seychelles Investment Board (SIB) were also on the lookout for potential investors and shared information on possible investments in the Blue Economy in the country.   The Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) participated and advertised the Blue Grants Fund 8. The grant was launched recently and is still open for application from entrepreneurs and investors. Most of the organisations had on display facts linked to conservation and corals. (Seychelles News Agency) Photo License: CC-BY The Grants and Fundraising officer for SeyCAAT, Diana Renaud, told SNA this festival is the ideal place to promote the Blue Grants Fund 8. «This is good for businesses who may have a product that doesn't harm corals or maybe a feasibility study is needed, they may apply under the criteria set for the fund, among which is that the project should aim to reduce risk and build resilience to climate change,» said Renaud. The request for proposals was opened on April 15 and will close on May 27. Most of the stalls had interactive activities for people to participate and use facts linked to conservation and corals. Alisha Belle, who took part, said that this festival is very important for promoting more awareness about corals and the crucial role they play in our environment. «There's a lot of coral bleaching happening at the moment and this festival gets people thinking about these issues,» she said. A student from the School of Advanced Level Studies (SAL), Lishad Morgan, said, «What I found interesting is the information about how most people do not think about corals and how their actions may impact them. Such as people who are out on excursions, dropping their anchors without care, or even divers not being careful with their fins near the coral reefs. This started with previous generations but we have to protect what is left for our future generations.» The event also hosted several professionals in the scientific community in Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean. They held panel discussions about the importance of corals, and anyone could sit and listen.  

Developers presented a five-star luxury resort project to be made at the palace of former UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who passed away in 2022, to members of the public at the Grand Anse Mahe district administration's office on Saturday. It was revealed in the meeting that the owners of the building at La Misere plan to convert it into a 54-room luxury resort that would also include six villas, and construction is expected to be completed in August 2026. This initial meeting with residents and other concerned citizens is part of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) carried out before any such projects are undertaken. ECO-SOL is the local company carrying out the EIA for this project and through the various presentations, it revealed that the Seychelles Investment Board (SIB) granted the developers approval to proceed with the EIA in 2023. Those attending the meeting were also informed that in order to build the new establishment, certain parts of the palace will be demolished, while others will be elevated to the same height as the tallest building of the palace. One of the establishment's features will be a swimming pool on the roof. During the meeting, one of the attendees, Nelson Renaud, expressed his concerns at the fact that SIB had granted permission to proceed to the next step of carrying out an EIA. «You were given a plot of land to stay there, live there and not build a hotel,» he said. Sheikh Khalifa bought the former United States' satellite tracking station land for $395,000 in 2005. Renaud said SIB should not have given this plot of land to do that and expressed his concern that «SIB is asking all Seychellois to develop their plot of land in a sustainable manner» causing him to ask the developers whether the project was one that would be sustainable. Other issues raised by people who attended were water pollution, the endangerment of endemic species in the area such as the Seychelles white-eye (Zwazo linet) bird, and noise and vibration disturbances. The developer's legal counsel, Basil Siddiqui, asked that the project be looked at with an open mind. «Do not be overly cynical. Look at the conduct of the project's particular owner. This particular project owner has actively taken part for two decades in the development of infrastructure and other amenities in this country,» he added. Meanwhile, once the EIA is completed, interested parties will have a fortnight to view the document.

Kenyan President William Ruto called on richer countries Monday to boost contributions to a World Bank fund to help African development and the fight against climate change. His comments came at a summit of African leaders and the World Bank in the Kenyan capital Nairobi to discuss building financial support for the continent of 1.2 billion people. Ruto urged donors to the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA) to raise their contributions to at least $120 billion in 2024, from $93 billion raised in 2021. «As many African and other developing nations face severe debt crises, this financial strain hampers our efforts to combat climate change, transition to a low-carbon economy, and adequately fund essential sectors like education, health, and social protection,» he said. The leaders were discussing how the IDA could help improve services such as energy and health care across Africa. «The rising cost of living, increasing commodity prices, and supply chain disruptions severely impact our food security, healthcare systems, and overall preparedness for and response to crises,» Ruto said. The summit comes as Kenya and other East African countries are battling heavy rains and flooding that have claimed the lives of scores of people in recent weeks. Africa is responsible for the smallest amount of carbon emissions but is hit disproportionately hard by droughts, flooding, storms and heatwaves. Donors to the IDA fund meet every three years to «to replenish IDA's resources and review its policy framework,» the World Bank says on its website. The IDA helps developing nations in Africa and other parts of the world through grants and loans with low interest rates. World Bank president Ajay Banga told the meeting there was a need to act «with urgency» and said that the IDA, the World Bank, governments and the private sector should do more. «We are working to make IDA more efficient and able to deliver faster by cutting burdensome rules, requirements, and redundancies,» he added. © Agence France-Presse

Hamas has been offered a 40-day ceasefire and the release of «potentially thousands» of Palestinian prisoners in return for freeing Israeli hostages, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said Monday. The Palestinian militant group has been given «a very generous offer of sustained 40 days ceasefire, the release of potentially thousands of Palestinian prisoners, in return for the release of these hostages», Cameron told a World Economic Forum meeting in Riyadh. A Hamas delegation is due in Egypt on Monday, where it is expected to respond to the latest proposal for a truce in Gaza and a release of hostages after almost seven months of war. «I hope Hamas do take this deal and frankly, all the pressure in the world and all the eyes of the world should be on them today saying take that deal,» Cameron said, adding the proposal would lead to a «stop in the fighting that we all want to see so badly». Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been trying to mediate an agreement between Israel and Hamas for months, but a flurry of diplomacy in recent days appeared to suggest a new push towards halting hostilities. The UK foreign minister said that for a «political horizon for a two-state solution», with an independent Palestine co-existing with Israel, the «people responsible for October 7, the Hamas leadership, would have to leave Gaza and you've got to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza». «You've got to see a political future for the Palestinian people, but you've also crucially got to see security for Israel and those two things have to go together,» he added. © Agence France-Presse

Work is expected to begin this week on the natural disaster mitigation plans for Seychelles around the main island of Mahe following recommendations from experts from Switzerland on how to prevent rockslides, landslides and other such disasters.   A group of experts from several companies in Switzerland, including the Gasse Felstechnik, PNP Geologie & Geotechnik and the ETH Zurich University, made the recommendations after a series of site visits were conducted earlier this week. The group looked at the damages in several areas and is working on ways to ensure it does not happen in the future. This comes after the effects of the December 7, 2023, natural disasters in Seychelles, when heavy rainfall for several days caused flooding, landslides, and rock caused severe damage to numerous houses in the north of the Mahe. Two people lost their lives. The findings from the visits were presented to relevant authorities on Friday, including the Disaster Risk Management Division (DRMD), Seychelles Infrastructure Agency (SIA) and other relevant authorities, in a short meeting at L'Escale Resort, Roche Caiman. «The finding will help the government implement short- and long-term measures. This mission has also benefitted other agencies that have been able to build their capacity,» the DRMD's chief risk management officer, Daniel Cetoupe, told SNA. The areas visited and given priority for the recommended works to be done, include St, Louis Hill, Mont Signal, Le Niole, and Bel Ombre, the seven areas that need the most urgent attention. Plans have been laid out and work will begin soon.   A recommendation has also been made to stop the removal of a large boulder at Le Niole.  «It Le Niole, following the visit, the experts say that continuing to break off the rock is not viable right now, and there will be other measures put in place, to ensure the safety of the surrounding properties,» explained Cetoupe. The experts will not be doing all the work for Seychelles but will help the island nation through capacity building as well as providing equipment, to ensure that Seychellois contractors can carry out the required works. The delegation from Switzerland left the Seychelles on Saturday with the hope that once the works begin, it can ease some of the uncertainty of people leaving is the areas vulnerable to these natural disasters.

Saudi Arabia on Sunday called for regional «stability», warning of the effects of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war on global economic sentiment at the start of a summit attended by a host of Gaza mediators. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Palestinian leaders and high-ranking officials from other countries trying to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas are on the guest list for the summit in Riyadh, capital of the world's biggest crude oil exporter. The Gaza war along with conflicts in Ukraine and elsewhere put «a lot of pressure» on the economic «mood», Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan said at one of the first panel discussions of the two-day World Economic Forum (WEF) special meeting. «I think cool-headed countries and leaders and people need to prevail,» Jadaan said. «The region needs stability.» The war in Gaza, which has sent regional tensions soaring, began with an unprecedented attack on southern Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7. The attack resulted in the deaths of about 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel estimates that 129 hostages seized by militants on October 7 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead. Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,454 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry. Speaking in Riyadh, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said the United States «is the only country capable» of preventing Israel's long-feared invasion of Rafah city in southern Gaza. «We appeal to the United States of America to ask Israel to stop the Rafah operation,» Abbas said, warning it would harm and displace civilians, and be «the biggest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people». - 'New momentum' in hostage talks - Saudi planning minister Faisal al-Ibrahim told a press conference on Saturday, previewing the summit, that the world is «walking a tightrope right now, trying to balance security and prosperity». «We meet at a moment when one misjudgement or one miscalculation or one miscommunication will further exacerbate our challenges.» WEF president Borge Brende said there was «some new momentum now in the talks around the hostages, and also for... a possible way out of the impasse we are faced with in Gaza». However there will be no Israeli participation at the summit. «This is more an opportunity to have structured discussions» with «the key players» including mediators Qatar and Egypt, he said. «There will be discussions, of course, on the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza» as well as on Iran, which backs Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah group, he added. The US State Department said Blinken will «discuss ongoing efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza that secures the release of hostages». Hamas said on Saturday it was studying the latest Israeli counterproposal regarding a potential ceasefire in Gaza, a day after media reports said a delegation from mediator Egypt arrived in Israel in a bid to jump-start stalled negotiations. - Spotlight on Saudi - From the outset Saudi Arabia has worked with other regional and global powers to try to contain the war in Gaza and avoid the type of conflagration that could derail its ambitious economic reform agenda known as Vision 2030. The kingdom also remains in talks about a landmark deal under which it would recognise Israel for the first time while strengthening its security partnership with the United States, though analysts say the war has made it more difficult. Meanwhile the conservative Gulf kingdom, home to the holiest shrines in Islam, is trying to open up to the world, luring business leaders and non-religious tourists. Hosting international events such as the WEF meeting allows the kingdom to showcase social changes including the reintroduction of cinemas and the lifting of a ban on women driving. «Eight years into Vision 2030, we have demonstrated our willingness to lead the way towards a model of transformative growth that is innovative, inclusive and sustainable,» Ibrahim said on Saturday. Yet questions persist about just how much of Vision 2030 will be achieved and when, with special scrutiny falling on signature projects such as NEOM, a planned futuristic megacity. In December, Jadaan, the Saudi finance minister, said officials had decided to push the timeframe for some major projects past 2030, without specifying which ones, though he also noted that others would be accelerated. Saudi Arabia is projecting budget deficits through 2026 and GDP growth was nearly flat last year after a series of oil production cuts. Jadaan stressed on Sunday that non-oil GDP growth was «very healthy» at 4.4 percent and that «Vision 2030 is about, actually, the non-oil GDP». © Agence France-Presse

Since the beginning of the year, the coral reefs at the Aldabra Atoll, one of the Seychelles' UNESCO World Heritage sites, are experiencing a severe bleaching event. A marine researcher on Aldabra working for the Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF), Dr Anna Koester, said the bleaching event is even more severe than the one in 2016. Seychelles witnessed a mass coral-bleaching event from February to August 2016 after a particularly hot season coupled with an intense El Niño caused water temperatures to rise and exceed season averages by 1 to 2°C for several weeks, triggering the phenomenon of coral bleaching on the reef. «It is still too early to say anything specific about the scale of the damage as we are only now approaching the time of the year when water temperatures peak. However, already in February, the heat stresses the corals have experienced were by far higher than during the last bleaching event in 2016,» Koester told SNA. She said, «This heat stress is measured by adding up the weeks during which water temperatures have exceeded the usual maximum water temperature – this measure is called Degree Heating Weeks (DHW). The higher the DHW value, the higher the accumulated heat stress over the past weeks. For example, during the 2016 coral bleaching event, Aldabra's reefs experienced heat stress of a maximum of 6 DHW. Right now, they have experienced 3 DHW already.» Aldabra's reefs are an essential habitat to fish communities. (Fotonatura, Seychelles Islands Foundation) Photo License: All Rights Reserved  Koester said the heat stress «exceeds anything we have measured at Aldabra before, which clearly shows the severity of the current bleaching event. We have also observed some mortality already, however, we will only see the full scale of the mortality in a few months.» She added that they first began to see signs of bleaching at Aldabra at the beginning of January and emphasised the importance of reducing other stressors that affect coral reefs such as pollution, overfishing and physical damage through construction or anchors. «Marine protected areas, if well enforced, and appropriate coastal management are ways to address this. Nevertheless, we do have to be realistic about what can be achieved on the local level. Coral bleaching events such as the current one are triggered by global warming, which further and further reduces the time periods between severe bleaching events, leaving essentially no time for reefs to recover in between. Addressing climate change therefore remains the primary solution to safeguard coral reefs in the long term,» said Koester. She also talked about building more resilience in corals, especially concerning heat, and said, «There are no immediate options to mitigate the effects of this bleaching event, but we can utilise it to study the processes that make some corals more resilient than others. In the long term, this information can help to better conserve coral reefs and promote their resilience to heat stress.» Recently, the Minister for Blue Economy and Fisheries, Jean-Francois Ferrari, described Aldabra as being a living laboratory when talking about the preliminary results of the Monaco Explorations expedition and how experts at the Oceanographic Institute of Monaco had stated that about 82 percent of corals found elsewhere in the region could originate from Aldabra. During the Monaco Explorations expedition in November 2022, samples of corals from Aldabra were collected to be studied and preserved, and Ferrari said the samples are flourishing in several institutes. He said, «It's good that apart from the Oceanographic Institute, they are also being stored in three other laboratories in Europe. If one day we lose the corals at Aldabra because of a bleaching event, these samples will be crucial for their rehabilitation.»

Since the beginning of the year, the coral reefs at the Aldabra Atoll, one of the Seychelles' UNESCO World Heritage sites, are experiencing a severe bleaching event. A marine researcher on Aldabra working for the Seychelles Islands Foundation (SIF), Dr Anna Koester, said the bleaching event is even more severe than the one in 2016. Seychelles witnessed a mass coral-bleaching event from February to August 2016 after a particularly hot season coupled with an intense El Niño caused water temperatures to rise and exceed season averages by 1 to 2°C for several weeks, triggering the phenomenon of coral bleaching on the reef. «It is still too early to say anything specific about the scale of the damage as we are only now approaching the time of the year when water temperatures peak. However, already in February, the heat stresses the corals have experienced were by far higher than during the last bleaching event in 2016,» Koester told SNA. She said, «This heat stress is measured by adding up the weeks during which water temperatures have exceeded the usual maximum water temperature – this measure is called Degree Heating Weeks (DHW). The higher the DHW value, the higher the accumulated heat stress over the past weeks. For example, during the 2016 coral bleaching event, Aldabra's reefs experienced heat stress of a maximum of 6 DHW. Right now, they have experienced 3 DHW already.» Aldabra's reefs are an essential habitat to fish communities. (Fotonatura, Seychelles Islands Foundation) Photo License: All Rights Reserved  Koester said the heat stress «exceeds anything we have measured at Aldabra before, which clearly shows the severity of the current bleaching event. We have also observed some mortality already, however, we will only see the full scale of the mortality in a few months.» She added that they first began to see signs of bleaching at Aldabra at the beginning of January and emphasised the importance of reducing other stressors that affect coral reefs such as pollution, overfishing and physical damage through construction or anchors. «Marine protected areas, if well enforced, and appropriate coastal management are ways to address this. Nevertheless, we do have to be realistic about what can be achieved on the local level. Coral bleaching events such as the current one are triggered by global warming, which further and further reduces the time periods between severe bleaching events, leaving essentially no time for reefs to recover in between. Addressing climate change therefore remains the primary solution to safeguard coral reefs in the long term,» said Koester. She also talked about building more resilience in corals, especially concerning heat, and said, «There are no immediate options to mitigate the effects of this bleaching event, but we can utilise it to study the processes that make some corals more resilient than others. In the long term, this information can help to better conserve coral reefs and promote their resilience to heat stress.» Recently, the Minister for Blue Economy and Fisheries, Jean-Francois Ferrari, described Aldabra as being a living laboratory when talking about the preliminary results of the Monaco Explorations expedition and how experts at the Oceanographic Institute of Monaco had stated that about 82 percent of corals found elsewhere in the region could originate from Aldabra. During the Monaco Explorations expedition in November 2022, samples of corals from Aldabra were collected to be studied and preserved, and Ferrari said the samples are flourishing in several institutes. He said, «It's good that apart from the Oceanographic Institute, they are also being stored in three other laboratories in Europe. If one day we lose the corals at Aldabra because of a bleaching event, these samples will be crucial for their rehabilitation.»

Hamas said it was studying on Saturday the latest Israeli counterproposal regarding a potential ceasefire in Gaza, a day after media reports said a delegation from mediator Egypt arrived in Israel in a bid to jump-start stalled negotiations. The signs of fresh truce talks come as the United Nations warned that «famine thresholds in Gaza will be breached within the next six weeks» unless massive food assistance arrives. Aid groups say Gaza's already catastrophic humanitarian conditions would be worsened by an invasion which Israel vows to carry out against Hamas battalions that remain in Rafah, southernmost Gaza. Rafah, on the border with Egypt, is crowded with hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by nearly seven months of war between Israel and the Islamist movement. The area is regularly bombed already. Hospital officials said strikes in Rafah and elsewhere killed more than a dozen people overnight Friday-Saturday. Among the dead were an entire family, their relative Mohammed Yussef said. «Nobody left: the father, the mother, a girl and two boys» were killed when their house was targeted, he said. Elsewhere in Rafah people searched the rubble of homes that Abed al-Aziz Barhum, a young man with a thin moustache, said were «bombarded without prior warning». He appealed to «all Arab people to support us against occupation and help us reach a ceasefire». - Daily deaths - Khalil al-Hayya, deputy head of Hamas's political arm in Gaza, said it had «received the official Zionist occupation response to the movement's position, which was delivered to the Egyptian and Qatari mediators on April 13». In a statement, Hayya said Hamas «will study this proposal» before responding. The movement has previously insisted on a permanent ceasefire, which Israel rejects. Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been unsuccessfully trying to seal a new truce deal in Gaza ever since a one-week halt to the fighting in November saw 80 Israeli hostages exchanged for 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. A delegation from Egypt arrived in Israel on Friday hoping to revive the truce negotiations, Israeli and Egyptian media reported. There has been «noticeable progress in bringing the views of the Egyptian and Israeli delegations closer», said Al-Qahera News, which is linked to Egyptian intelligence services. In early April Hamas had said it was studying a proposal, after talks in Cairo, and Al-Qahera reported progress. Days later Israel and Hamas accused each other of undermining negotiations. As talks drag on, dozens of people in Gaza die every day, according to figures from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. The war began with Hamas's unprecedented October 7 attack which resulted in the deaths of about 1,170 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. - Summit in Saudi - Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,388 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry. At least 32 additional deaths are among the latest toll released Saturday, it said. An international summit set to begin Sunday in Saudi Arabia will have a strong focus on the war, including the humanitarian situation, organisers said. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will be among leaders attending the World Economic Forum special meeting, organisers said. Israel's military said Saturday its aircraft had hit more than 25 militant targets over the previous day. Israel estimates that 129 hostages seized by militants on October 7 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead. Israeli demonstrators have intensified protests for their government to reach a deal that would free the captives, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prolonging the war. In its report on Friday, the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said «the only way to halt famine» is by «massive and consistent food assistance that can be delivered freely and safely». OCHA says rising temperatures are exacerbating Gaza's sanitation crisis, and an infant girl has reportedly died in Rafah from extreme heat. Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said this month that Israel planned to «flood Gaza» with aid, but the OCHA report cited continued «access constraints». A Royal Navy support ship has sailed from Cyprus to house hundreds of US army personnel building a jetty for aid sent by sea, a British defence source said on Saturday. - Lebanon, West Bank deaths - The main aid agency in Gaza, the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), has been under attack and lost some of its global funding since January when Israel said several UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7 attack. The UN immediately fired the accused staffers and began an investigation. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Friday one case has been closed «as no evidence was provided by Israel to support the allegations against the staff member». Investigations into three others were suspended as information provided by Israel is «not sufficient», Dujarric said. The Gaza war has led to increased violence between Israel and Iran's proxies and allies, in particular the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah along the border with Lebanon. Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed three people on Saturday, including two members of Hezbollah, the movement and official media said. The violence has fuelled fears of all-out conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, which last went to war in 2006. Since October 8 more than 250 Hezbollah fighters and dozens of civilians have been killed in Lebanon, according to an AFP tally. Israel says 11 soldiers and nine civilians have been killed on its side of the border. Violence has also soared in the Israeli-occupied West Bank where almost 500 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers since October 7, according to Palestinian officials. Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinian men at a military post near the city of Jenin on Saturday, the army and Palestinian media reported. © Agence France-Presse

Seychelles has signed a loan agreement with the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Fund for International Development (OFID) for a sum of $20 million to provide budget support for the government, said the Ministry of Finance, National Planning and Trade on Friday. The agreement was signed by Minister Naadir Hassan and the President of the OPEC Fund, Abdulhamid Alkhalifa, in Washington D.C, US, on the sidelines of the boards of governors of the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) spring meetings from April 15 to 21. Hassan led Seychelles' delegation at the event, which brought together ministers of finance and development and central bankers, private sector executives, representatives from civil society organisations and academics. The aim was to discuss issues of global concern, including the world economic outlook, poverty eradication, economic development, and aid effectiveness. The delegation of Seychelles held talks with several departments within the Bretton Woods institutions on ongoing programmes being supported by those institutions as well as areas for future engagements. Discussions were also held on possible technical assistance programme to ensure that the island nation delivers on its commitments. In his discussions with the World Bank group, Hassan was briefed on the bank evolution roadmap and the role of the bank in its engagement with Seychelles. It was agreed that more focus will be placed on key structural issues such as human development, climate adaptation and resilience building as well as disaster risk. The minister also attended various events held by the Commonwealth on the sidelines of the Spring meetings.  Hassan speaking at the Climate Financing for Africa Small Developing States. (Ministry of Finance, National Planning and Trade)   The Commonwealth Small States Advocacy Champions convened their second meeting, which signalled a resolute effort to accelerate progress towards sustainable development, resilience-building, and debt management strategies in small states.  Ministers held critical discussions centred around themes such as spending pressures, innovative debt restructuring instruments, inclusive debt relief initiatives, and the consideration of climate vulnerability in debt sustainability analyses. Additionally, the aim of the meeting to generate action-oriented outcomes that would contribute to ongoing high-level events, including the upcoming UN SIDS4 Conference in May and the Commonwealth Ministerial Meeting of Small States taking place during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in October. As small states navigate through multifaceted challenges, the Advocacy Champions reaffirmed their commitment to advocating for tailored solutions and shaping global decision-making processes to benefit small states. Hassan also participated in various side events and was a key speaker at the IMF Small Developing States Forum and shared Seychelles' experience on its journey to mobilise climate financing, the challenges encountered and the opportunities that lies ahead.