Succes Masra jailed for ‘hate speech’, says lawyer
N’Djamena — Chad’s former prime minister and opposition leader Succes Masra has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after he was convicted of disseminating racist and xenophobic messages that incited violence, his lawyers said.
Masra is a staunch opponent of President Mahamat Idriss Deby, who nonetheless served as prime minister in Deby’s interim government for about five months before running against him in a May 2024 election.
Chad’s prosecutor launched an investigation against him in May in relation to a clash in which dozens were killed in the southern town of Mandakao that month.
In addition to 20 years in prison, Masra was ordered to pay a fine of 1-billion CFA francs ($1.8m), said Kadjilembaye Francis, one of his lawyers said. The lawyer said his team planned to appeal. Reuters
UN nuclear watchdog to visit Iran, no access to sites
A senior official from the UN nuclear watchdog will fly to Iran for talks on Monday, but no visit to nuclear sites is planned, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Sunday.
Since Israel and the US launched military strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites, inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency have been unable to access Iran’s facilities, despite IAEA chief Rafael Grossi stating that inspections remain his top priority.
Iran has accused the agency of effectively paving the way for the bombings by issuing a damning report on May 31, which led the IAEA’s 35-nation board of governors to declare Iran in breach of its nonproliferation obligations.
Last month, Iran enacted a law passed by parliament suspending co-operation with the IAEA. The law stipulates that any future inspection of Iran’s nuclear sites by the IAEA needs approval by Tehran’s Supreme National Security Council. Reuters
Western Turkey hit by magnitude 6.1 earthquake
Bengaluru — An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 struck western Turkey on Sunday, the country’s disaster management authority AFAD said, while local media said the quake was felt across multiple provinces.
The AFAD said the quake occurred at about 7.53pm local time in the Balikesir province, near Turkey’s biggest city Istanbul. There were no immediate reports of casualties, but several buildings collapsed during the quake.
Interior minister Ali Yerlikaya said on X that emergency teams had started inspections around Istanbul and the neighbouring provinces. Reuters
Fire at chlorine factory in France causes alarm
Paris — A fire broke out at a chlorine factory in southern France on Sunday, raising the risk of toxic fumes and prompting authorities to order nearby residents to stay indoors. The plant, operated by HydraPro, is used to produce chlorine for swimming pools. T
he local authority urged anyone within a kilometre of the factory to stay inside and close their doors and windows. “As the winds are blowing north, the smell of chlorine can be felt,” the prefecture said, though it noted the smell itself was not a public safety risk.
The plant is classified a “seveso” site under a directive that requires EU member states to identify factories that handle dangerous substances. Firefighters have been dispatched and are expected to be joined by a specialised team, the local authority said. Reuters
Kuwait signs $3.27bn power plant project contract
Kuwait — The Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects signed contracts on Sunday with Saudi’s ACWA Power and the Gulf Investment Corporation for phases 2 and 3 of the Al-Zour North power plant.
The value of these phases of the power plant exceeds 1 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($3.27bn), the Kuwaiti authority's director-general said. Asmaa Al-Mousa said that the investors, not the government, will bear the cost. The signing ceremony on Sunday sets in motion one of the country’s biggest electricity projects as it seeks to address severe electricity shortages. Reuters
Mexico takes on Adidas over indigenous shoe
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Mexico City — Mexico wants Adidas to work more closely with it after Mexican-American designer Willy Chavarria caused a stir by “plagiarising” an indigenous-inspired sandal.
Chavarria recently released the “Oaxaca slip-on” shoe, a shoe sole topped with the weave of Mexico’s huarache sandals. Critics in Mexico argued the shoe uses the name of the southern Mexican state, a major manufacturer of the traditional leather sandals, while Chavarria's design is manufactured in China and indigenous artisans received no credit or benefit from the multinational firm.
Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said the government was looking into it and deputy culture minister Marina Nunez confirmed that Adidas had contacted Oaxacan officials to discuss “restitution to the people who were plagiarised”. Reuters
France pushes on with cutting two national holidays
Paris — Prime Minister Francois Bayrou has set a deadline for the scrapping Easter Monday and Victory Day holidays, two big French national holidays, newspaper Les Echos reports, as the government seeks ways to narrow its repeated budget deficits.
Bayrou wants the process concluded by September 30 at the latest. The long-time debt hawk, whose minority administration is walking a political tightrope, made the headline-grabbing proposal in July, when he outlined a series of deficit-reduction measures worth€43.8bn next year aimed at lowering France's debt. The proposal lead to an outcry from parties on the left and far right. Reuters
Iran threatens planned Trump corridor in Caucasus
Dubai/Moscow — Iran threatened on Saturday to block a corridor planned in the Caucasus under a regional deal sponsored by US President Donald Trump, Iranian media reported, raising a new question mark over a peace plan hailed as a strategically important shift.
A top Azerbaijani diplomat said earlier that the plan, announced by Trump on Friday, was just one step from a final peace deal between his country and Armenia, which reiterated its support for the plan. The proposed Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity would run across southern Armenia, giving Azerbaijan a direct route to its exclave of Nakhchivan and in turn to Turkey. The US would have exclusive development rights to the corridor.
It was not immediately clear how Iran, which borders the area, would block the corridor but the statement from Ali Akbar Velayati, top adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, raised questions over its security. Reuters
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