UN’s Ban seeks halt to Libyan fighting
TRIPOLI, Libya – UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon traveled Saturday to Libya to support a reconciliation process between warring factions there, calling on a renegade general fighting Islamist militias in its east to stop his operations and on armed groups to leave the capital’s airport.
Ban was in Libya days after the UN launched a reconciliation process that seeks to resolve the bloody rift that has left their oil-rich North African nation deeply split with two separate parliaments and governments.
Stressing the need to end the fighting, Ban appealed to all armed groups to put their weapons down, saying that a military solution will not be sustainable.
Hundreds attend dictator’s funeral
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Hundreds of people attended the funeral of former dictator Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier on Saturday, displaying lingering respect for a man who was widely reviled for repression and corruption during his 15 years in power.
Mourners paused to pay their respects in front of Duvalier’s coffin draped with Haiti’s red-and-blue flag before greeting his partner Veronique Roy, his ex-wife Michele Bennett and their two children.
Members of Haiti’s elite and former officials of Duvalier’s regime arrived in luxury SUVs, joining more humble citizens in ill-fitting suits, and quickly filled the chapel on the grounds of the Saint-Louis de Gonzague school in the Delmas district of Port-au-Prince. Representatives for President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe attended, as did former President Boniface Alexandre. Lamothe was out of the country, while Martelly, whose administration is considered to be close to Duvalier, was in Haiti but did not attend the funeral.
London mayor warns of terror threat
LONDON – British counterterrorism forces are monitoring “thousands” of potential extremists in the capital’s metropolitan area, London Mayor Boris Johnson said in a newspaper interview published Saturday, as police continue to question five men arrested on suspicion of terrorist offenses.
His comments came as police chiefs warned police officers throughout Britain to use extra care because of an increased threat to their personal safety.
The Daily Telegraph quoted Johnson as saying the security forces in the London area are involved in “thousands of operations” every day. He said the number of people being watched is in the low thousands.
Johnson’s comments suggested the number of potential extremists is higher than had been previously believed. He said many of the estimated 500 fighters who had gone from Britain to Syria to support Islamic State group militants there had come from the greater London area – posing a security threat if they return after having received training in explosives and weapons use.
Associated Press
