Latest news with #protests
News24
5 hours ago
- Politics
- News24
Togo: Rights groups report several killed in demonstrations
Protests in Togo against constitutional reforms led to deadly violence by security forces. Long-time ruler Faure Gnassingbe is positioned to remain in power after controversial reforms. Authorities and civil society report deaths, with calls for an international investigation into abuses. Several people were killed during anti-government demonstrations over the weekend in Togo's capital, Lome, according to civil society groups. The unrest comes as Togo's long-time leader, Faure Gnassingbe, is positioned to remain in power indefinitely following controversial constitutional reforms. A grouping of civil society organisations and opposition parties in the West African country under the banner of 'Don't Touch my Constitution' said security forces assaulted protesters. Reuters news agency, citing witnesses, said security forces used tear gas and batons. The civil society groups said that seven people died during the protests, adding that several bodies were found in lakes and lagoons. The groups issued a statement denouncing 'abuses committed by elements of the security forces and militia' during the protests, and called for an 'international investigation'. Togolese authorities did not comment on the reports of violence against protesters at the hands of security forces. The government acknowledged in a statement on Sunday that bodies were recovered from a lagoon and lake in the capital, but said the victims died from drowning. Why are people protesting in Togo? The demonstrations over the weekend were the second in a month, after authorities clamped down on protesters in early June. About 50 arrests were reported by the authorities on 5 and 6 June. Another call to demonstrate was made for Tuesday. Omer Urer/Anadolu via Getty Images Demonstrations in Togo have been banned since a deadly attack in 2022 at a market in Lome. However, fears over democratic backsliding after the recent reforms have sparked protest. In May, Gnassingbe was sworn into the powerful new role of President of the Council of Ministers, which has no fixed term limit. Opposition politicians denounced the move as a 'constitutional coup'. Gnassingbe's former job as president has now been rendered mostly ceremonial. He has ruled Togo since 2005, having taken over as president from his father Gnassingbe Eyadema.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
2 adults charged with assaulting horses, and a teen with attempted murder at L.A. protests
L.A. County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman announced new charges against people at immigration protests in L.A., including a man and a woman accused of assaulting law enforcement horses and a teen accused of attempted murder. Hochman said his office had charged more than 40 people in connection with protest-related violence and vandalism and intended to file more charges as attorneys continued to review evidence. At least 14 people are facing separate federal charges in relation to the L.A. protests, with alleged crimes including assaulting officers with cinder blocks and Molotov cocktails, and conspiracy to impede arrests. Read more: Federal prosecutors 'coming after' L.A. protesters. Do some charges encroach on 1st Amendment? Among the new charges announced by the D.A.'s office Tuesday were those against a 17-year-old boy, who faces one felony count each of attempted murder, assaulting a peace officer and vandalism, as well as two misdemeanor counts of rioting. Iran Castro, 29, of El Monte and Dana Whitson, 66, of Oro Valley, Ariz., were charged in separate alleged assaults on L.A. County Sheriff's Department horses during different days of protests in downtown L.A, prosecutors said. Castro is accused of pulling on the bridle of one horse and grabbing the reins of another as mounted deputies moved toward a crowd of protesters to enforce dispersal orders on June 14. Castro has been charged with two felony counts of assaulting a peace officer, two felony counts of animal cruelty and one felony count of resisting arrest. She faces up to 10 years and four months in prison if convicted as charged and has pleaded not guilty, according to court records. On June 13, Whitson allegedly pushed one of the sheriff's horses several times, hit the animal's muzzle and pulled on its reins. He has been charged with one felony count each of assaulting a peace officer, resisting arrest and animal cruelty and pleaded not guilty, according to court records. If convicted as charged, Whitson faces up to six years and four months in prison. In addition to the injuries suffered by Sheriff's Department horses, at least five Los Angeles Police Department horses were injured at protests, officials said. Law enforcement use of horses for crowd control has been criticized due to the physical dangers posed to protesters. Read more: How the LAPD's protest response once again triggered outrage, injuries and lawsuits A video captured on June 8 by independent journalist Tina-Desiree Berg shows a protester falling as a line of officers on horseback advance into a crowd. The mounted units continue marching forward, trampling over the protester lying on the ground. Other protesters recently charged by the D.A.'s office include Patrick Monoz, 37, of Whittier. He is accused of injuring a police officer with a flagpole on June 11 after officers ordered protesters to disperse outside a Whittier hotel where federal immigration agents were rumored to be staying. Monoz pleaded not guilty to one felony count each of assaulting a peace officer and resisting arrest and one misdemeanor count of rioting. Robert McGrath, 21, is charged with one felony count of vandalism for allegedly spray-painting an expletive on the side of the federal Veterans Affairs building in downtown Los Angeles. He has pleaded not guilty, according to court records. 'The large-scale protests may have ended for now, but our work has not,' Hochman said in a statement. "I want to thank the team of investigators and prosecutors for their tireless efforts to ensure that those who committed criminal acts under the guise of protest are held accountable.' Hundreds of people were arrested by various law enforcement agencies as protests roiled downtown Los Angeles for more than a week, with the most intense period of unrest from June 6 until June 10, the day a regional curfew was imposed. Los Angeles police alone made at least 575 arrests. The D.A.'s office announced initial charges against more than a dozen protesters on June 11, for alleged crimes such as throwing fireworks at police officers, driving a motorcycle into officers and vandalizing the Hall of Justice. Another round of charges was announced on June 17, with allegations including setting a California Highway Patrol vehicle on fire and looting of an Apple store. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Independent
15 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Kazakhstan has banned the burqa. Here's why
Kazakhstan has enacted a new law prohibiting the wearing of clothing in public that obscures the face and impedes facial recognition. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the legislation, which permits face coverings only for medical reasons, adverse weather, official duties, or specific events. The president said the ban aims to promote Kazakhstan's ethnic identity, encouraging national attire over face-concealing garments. This restriction follows similar bans on the face veil in other Central Asian countries, including Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, often citing security or secularism. The new law comes after a 2023 government decision to ban headscarves in educational institutions, which resulted in protests and approximately 150 girls dropping out of school.
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Photos of street protests as Turkey detains 120 opposition officials
ISTANBUL (AP) — Demonstrations were held Tuesday in Istanbul after Turkish authorities detained a former mayor and dozens of municipal officials in the western city of Izmir over alleged corruption, extending a crackdown against the country's main opposition party. Officials from CHP-controlled municipalities in Istanbul and elsewhere have faced waves of arrests this year over allegations of corruption. The opposition claims the arrests are politically motivated, but President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government insists the courts are impartial and free from political involvement. The crackdown comes a year after the CHP made significant gains in local elections. ___ This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Photo shows quake-hit building in Myanmar, not proof of corruption in Bangladesh
"The contractor says the funds for construction ran out after everyone took their bribes. I thought about it today after seeing this government building," reads part of the Bengali-language caption of a Facebook video posted on May 28, 2025. "Bribe-taking officials are getting frustrated as the avenues for corruption are narrowing." The video shows a partially collapsed fire station, with the building crushing fire engines that were parked underneath. The short video was also shared in similar Facebook posts ahead of the one year anniversary of student-launched protests that culminated weeks later in the overthrow of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina's government (archived link). Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024 when Hasina's government launched a brutal campaign to silence the protesters, according to the United Nations (archived link). The country has started trials of senior figures from Hasina's government -- a key demand of several political parties now jostling for power as the South Asian nation awaits elections that the interim government has vowed will take place before June 2026. A tribunal in Dhaka has issued arrest warrants for Hasina, and the interim government has formally requested her extradition from India -- where she fled after being toppled -- several times. The video circulating online, however, was not filmed in Bangladesh and is unrelated to allegations of graft under Hasina's rule. A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared clip led to a YouTube video posted on May 24 by a channel called "2025 Sagaing Earthquake Archive" (archived link). The video is titled, "Damage To Sagaing Fire Station, Sagaing, Myanmar". The city of Sagaing was less than 15 kilometres (nine miles) from the epicentre of a devastating 7.7-magnitude quake that struck Myanmar on March 28, killing nearly 3,800 people and destroying swathes of homes and businesses (archived link). A subsequent keyword search found a similar image of the quake-damaged fire station in articles from Myanmar news outlet Irrawaddy and the BBC that were published in March (archived here and here). An official Facebook page for the Sagaing fire district also posted the same photo on April 15 (archived link). The falsely shared clip also matches a Google Maps photo of the Sagaing fire station taken in December 2020 (archived link). AFP has debunked other false claims stemming from the unrest in Bangladesh here.
