Namibia today joined the international community

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Namibia today joined the international community in observing the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.

The Executive Director in the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, Audrin Mathe, said the day is observed under the theme ‘Protecting Media to Protect Democracy.’

“Namibia has made great strides in ensuring press freedom as ranked 18th globally and second on the African continent by the Reporters Without Borders 2022 World Press Freedom rankings,” he said in a statement availed to the media.

He further said the National Assembly and the National Council recently passed the Access to Information Bill, which is awaiting the president’s certification before it becomes law.

“We view access to information legislation as a cornerstone of freedom. As a country that fosters the values and principles of press freedom, this day reminds us to speak out against any form of injustice against journalists globally,” Mathe stated.

NAMPA

2 (LUSAKA, 02 NOV, XINHUA) – The Zambian government today announced that the country has realized the goal of fully vaccinating 70 percent of the eligible population against COVID-19.

‘We are proud to announce to the nation, and the world at large, that our joint efforts have led to over 75 per cent of eligible citizens being fully vaccinated,’ Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema said.

While attributing the achievement to the support from local people, the Zambian president warned against complacency and called for continued efforts.

Beatrice Mutali, the United Nations (UN) resident coordinator in Zambia, thanked the Zambian government for ensuring that those eligible get vaccinated.

Zambia launched the COVID-19 vaccination program in April 2021, which was initially targeted at people aged over 18. In December 2021, children aged 12 and above were included in the program.

XINHUA

3 (TEHRAN, 02 NOV, AFP) – Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei today accused the United States of seeking to manipulate the people by supporting protests sparked by Mahsa Amini’s death.

The Islamic republic has been rocked by six weeks of protests that flared over Amini’s death after her arrest in Tehran for an alleged breach of the country’s dress code for women.

In a joint statement last week, Iran’s intelligence ministry and its Revolutionary Guards’ intelligence services accused the United States of conspiring with its allies to ‘spark riots’ in the country.

‘The reports of intelligence agencies show that the enemy had established a plan for Tehran and the country’s large and small cities,’ Khamenei said, referring to the United States.

He was speaking to a group of schoolchildren, invited to mark the anniversary of the start of the 1979 hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran.

AFP

4 (JERUSALEM/RAMALLAH, 02 NOV, XINHUA) – Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian today after he carried out a car-ramming attack at a checkpoint near the West Bank city of Ramallah, the Israeli army and Palestinian health ministry said.

The Palestinian man drove to the Maccabim checkpoint, hit an Israeli officer and wounded him seriously, the Israeli army said in a statement.

The man then got out of his car and tried to attack the officer with an axe before he was ‘neutralized,’ the army statement added.

The killed Palestinian man was identified by the Palestinian health ministry and local sources as Habes Rayyan, 54, from the village of Beit Duqqu, northwest of Jerusalem.

A video clip published on social media platforms shows the alleged entire process of the incident.

XINHUA

5 (ATHENS, 02 NOV, AFP) – Greece’s coastguard today said it had recovered 14 bodies from two migrant boat sinkings earlier this week.

Thirteen of the bodies were found near the island of Evia today, a day after a sailboat believed to be carrying nearly 70 people sank in stormy seas, a coastguard spokeswoman told AFP.

A body had also been recovered Tuesday in another accident off the Greek island of Samos, where a dinghy from the Turkish coast capsized with 12 people on board.

Over 40 people are feared missing in the Evia incident with another seven missing in the Samos sinking.

Greece, Italy and Spain are destinations for people fleeing Africa and the Middle East in search of safety and better lives in the European Union.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency