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Members of the public at at the Jomo Kenyatta Public beach in Mombasa, December 26. Image: ONYANGO OCHIENG

Mombasa governor Abdulswamad Nassir has announced that seven rescue and patrol boats have been deployed along all public beaches in the county.

He said this is aimed at averting tragedies as visitors and locals throng the beaches to celebrate December festivities.

The move comes a day after two people died on Sunday after a boat capsized at the Jomo Kenyatta Public beach, commonly known us Pirates 

 

The two were among 12 family members who had travelled from Nairobi and had hired the boat for a short trip into the deep seas.

"We have deployed seven patrol boats along all our public beaches. With this beach (Pirates) being the most frequented one, we have deployed four boats."

"We will have one along the main island and another two across the ferry," said Nassir.

The governor was speaking after visiting the beach on Monday afternoon.

He said that each boat will have a Kenya Coast Guard officer, a life guard as well as youths with diving experience recruited by the county for the festive season.

"I want to assure Mombasa residents and all visitors around of their safety and security. Yes accidents do happen but we have everything under control.

"Let us not focus on the negativity, but rather focus on the efforts made by the county to beef up safety and security," Nassir said.

 

He confirmed that he had spoken to families of the deceased and those recuperating in hospital, but urged the media to allow them mourn in private.

Earlier on Monday, the Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime affairs Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya banned swimming along the beaches of the Indian Ocean past 5pm following the death of two family members. 

"We don’t expect to see anyone at the beach past 5.30pm, and we have made this decision after wide consultations with different stakeholders," Mvurya said.

He spoke after touring Diani beach in Kwale county. The CS was accompanied by Kenya Maritime Officials led by chairman, Hamisi Mwaguya, alongside government officials and members of the Kenya Redcross Society led by Mombasa chairman, Mahmoud Noor.

The CS also said they have directed that all boats operating in the ocean be inspected to ensure safety. 

"We want all the boats to have safety gear such as floaters because we have realised that some have vests that even look like reflector jackets," he said.

Nassir, however, said that Mombasa county will consult the CS over the ban saying that some functions were devolved.

"Waziri has good reasons for the ban. But we shall have consultations with him to see how we can improve on the safety. I'm alive to the fact that the move will affect some businesses," he said. By ONYANGO OCHIENG, The Star

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has said that the government of DR Congo should negotiate with the M23 rebel group, which launched a renewed offensive in May this year.

Speaking at a press conference, Museveni also said Congo-based foreign militias, such as the ADF from Uganda, FDLR from Rwanda and RED-Tabara from Burundi, will not repatriate peacefully. “We shall force them,” he said.

ALSO READ: M23 withdraws from Kibumba positions

He said that over 120 of local groups operating in eastern Congo “came up because of the vacuum of power there.”

“For the M23, it is part of the other Congolese groups; there are M23,

Mai Mai, CODECO...,” he said, adding that the local groups “should be negotiated with.”

In respect to resolutions of the November summit of regional leaders in Luanda, the M23 recently began withdrawing from some key positions in North Kivu province, a move the group said was “done in the name of peace.”

The Luanda summit also ordered the foreign armed groups, like the ADF which launched attacks on Ugandan territory this month, to disarm and unconditionally repatriate to their countries of origin.

However, President Museveni believes the armed groups will not respect the calls.

ALSO READ: Museveni blames DR Congo crisis on 'illegal guns since independence'

The Ugandan army has been fighting the Islamist ADF rebels in Ituri province.

“The groups like the ADF will not come back peacefully. We shall force them,” Museveni said.

“Like we have seen recently, because we are hitting them badly in eastern Congo, recently they tried to come back through Ntoroko; you saw what happened to them the whole group was wiped out.”

ALSO READ: Uganda army 'in final touches' ahead of DR Congo deployment

For the foreign armed groups, Museveni said: “We are encouraging the Congolese government to negotiate with them to bring them back peacefully to normal life and if they refuse then we shall use force on them.”  By , New Times

Protesters demonstrate outside the Rwanda High Commission against the Home Office's plan to relocate illegal immigrants to Rwanda. PHOTO | WIKTOR SZYMANOWICZ | ANADOLU AGENCY

Rwanda could become a processing centre for several Northern and Western European countries currently under internal pressure to curb illegal immigration.

This week, a UK court validated plans by the UK government to resettle migrants in Rwanda despite outrage over the plan by human rights activists who dragged the government to court, claiming its migration partnership with Rwanda signed in April this year is illegal and violates human rights. 

Reading the summary of the ruling, Lord Justice Lewis said: “ The court has concluded that it is lawful for the government to make arrangements for relocating asylum seekers to Rwanda and for their asylum claims to be determined in Rwanda rather than in the United Kingdom.”

However, he ordered the UK Home Office to reconsider cases of eight individuals who were due to be deported on the first flight which had been scheduled in June.

While an appeal by individual asylum seekers, activists, and migrant NGOs is expected to be lodged on January 16, the UK government says it is "ready to defend against any further legal challenges".

UK opposition MPs have criticised the plan and challenged the cost of the scheme, saying it is too costly. The UK already made £120m ($144.8m) upfront payment to Rwanda. In October 2022, London-based The Times reported that an extra £20m ($24.1m) had been paid, bringing the total cost to £140m ($168.9m). By BERNA NAMATA, The East African 

Protesters demonstrate outside the Rwanda High Commission against the Home Office's plan to relocate illegal immigrants to Rwanda. PHOTO | WIKTOR SZYMANOWICZ | ANADOLU AGENCY

Rwanda could become a processing centre for several Northern and Western European countries currently under internal pressure to curb illegal immigration.

This week, a UK court validated plans by the UK government to resettle migrants in Rwanda despite outrage over the plan by human rights activists who dragged the government to court, claiming its migration partnership with Rwanda signed in April this year is illegal and violates human rights. 

Reading the summary of the ruling, Lord Justice Lewis said: “ The court has concluded that it is lawful for the government to make arrangements for relocating asylum seekers to Rwanda and for their asylum claims to be determined in Rwanda rather than in the United Kingdom.”

However, he ordered the UK Home Office to reconsider cases of eight individuals who were due to be deported on the first flight which had been scheduled in June.

While an appeal by individual asylum seekers, activists, and migrant NGOs is expected to be lodged on January 16, the UK government says it is "ready to defend against any further legal challenges".

UK opposition MPs have criticised the plan and challenged the cost of the scheme, saying it is too costly. The UK already made £120m ($144.8m) upfront payment to Rwanda. In October 2022, London-based The Times reported that an extra £20m ($24.1m) had been paid, bringing the total cost to £140m ($168.9m). By BERNA NAMATA, The East African 

A LEAKED report from United Nations experts has accused Rwanda of carrying out military operations against the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Rwanda has long denied accusations from Kinshasa that it has had direct involvement in the conflict in the DRC or that it has provided support for the M23 rebels.

But UN experts said that there was “substantial evidence” of direct Rwandan army intervention and that it had supplied weapons, ammunition and uniforms to the rebels.

The M23 militia group has captured swaths of territory in the DRC’s eastern region since it re-emerged again late last year.

Although Rwanda has repeatedly denied that it supports the rebels, the United States and France, along with other Western countries, have agreed with the DRC’s assessment.

According to the report by UN experts, Rwanda’s military intervened to reinforce the M23 as well as to combat the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, who carried out the 1994 Tutsi genocide in Rwanda.

Rwanda provided troop reinforcements to the M23 “for specific operations, in particular when these were aimed at seizing strategic towns and areas,” the report said.

According to the report, Rwandan troops also led joint attacks with M23 fighters against Congolese positions in May.

The 236-page document for the UN security council is expected to be published soon.

The M23 first came to international prominence when it captured the eastern Congolese city of Goma in 2012 before being driven out and going to ground the following year.

But the rebels re-emerged in late 2021 after they claimed the DRC had ignored a promise to integrate them into the country’s army.

The M23 has since captured swathes of territory in eastern North Kivu province, which borders Rwanda.

The UN Refugee Agency said earlier this year that more than 5.6 million people have been displaced in the DRC. Morning Star

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