Briefly

RWANDA

U.N. chief meets Kagame over Sudan pullout

KIGALI | U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with Rwanda’s president Wednesday after he threatened to withdraw thousands of Rwandan peacekeepers if the U.N. publishes a report accusing Rwanda's army of possible genocide in the 1990s.

The joint U.N.-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur is commanded by a Rwandan, Lt. Gen. Patrick Nyamvumba, and Rwanda has more than 3,200 troops and 86 police in the nearly 22,000-strong force.

U.N. officials and diplomats have said a Rwandan pullout from Darfur would be a major blow at a time of increasing violence and fresh efforts to end the seven-year conflict.

Mr. Ban and President Paul Kagame did not talk to journalists after their meeting, and the U.N. chief went straight to the airport.

Mr. Ban said there that he had asked Rwanda and other countries mentioned in the report to send in their comments to the U.N. by the end of September. The release of the report has been delayed until Oct. 1.

NIGERIA

Attack on prison frees 732 inmates

KANO | An attack on a prison in northern Nigeria by suspected members of an Islamist sect freed 732 inmates, including members of the extremist group, the state prisons head said on Wednesday.

“The prison had 762 inmates at the time of the attack,” Mohammed Ahmed told Agence France-Presse, adding that “732 escaped, leaving 30.”

Referring to the sect, he said: “All the Boko Haram suspects on remand have escaped. There were 150 of them.”

Boko Haram is a militant Islamist sect that seeks to impose Shariah law throughout Nigeria.

SWAZILAND

Activists march, youth leader arrested

Story Continues →