HOW THE UAE BACKS GENOCIDE IN SUDAN

Independent climate reporter Rachel Donald (@planetcritical) breaks down how the United Arab Emirates (UAE) might be behind the deaths of thousands of innocent people in Sudan's Darfur region through what she describes as the UAE's proxy, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Donald explains the importance of Sudan's rich mineral deposits and location as motives for the UAE to work with the paramilitary force that, until 15 April 2023, worked alongside the Sudanese army as part of a civilian-military council to transition the country to civilian rule. Now, for more than a year, the RSF has been battling the army in the streets, creating a humanitarian crisis for 25 million—more than half the population—and displacing over 8 million Sudanese.

Continued…. Moreover, Donald links Russia, the US, and the European Union in profiting off the UAE's actions in Sudan and ignoring civil society groups that have called for those governments to hold the UAE accountable for its blood money.

All in all, a complicated game of realpolitik has cost more than 15,000 lives in Sudan over a year of conflict, according to US estimates. Plus, the UN recently said about 700,000 children in Sudan will suffer from acute malnutrition. 

This video is over 6 minutes long but worth watching until the end.

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SLAVERY DIDN'T STOP AFRICANS FROM BEING AFRICAN

As African people scattered across different countries and continents, we often get caught up in diaspora wars. We may argue about who has the right to which cultural representations and the distinctions between Jamaicans, Brazilians, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Haitians, Africans in the United States, and so on.

But how often do we reflect upon European conquest, enslavement and colonisation stripping us of our right to choose our identities and national affiliations?

Pan-Africanism is the ultimate act of self-determination because it rejects the colonial borders Europeans have imposed on Africans and allows us to define ourselves on our terms.

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TO UNDERSTAND CONGO, TALK TO THE CONGOLESE

The key to understanding the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) starts with simply talking to the Congolese people, according to Kambale Musavuli, a native of the central African country. 

Musavuli, one of the DRC’s leading cultural and political voices, says many misunderstand the resources conflict due to affinities some people have with the West that can cloud their thinking.

That’s why our man, Erick Gavala, has taken fact-finding trips to the DRC to hear from the people on the ground. His visits capture a snapshot of the harrowing situation in one of the world’s deadliest conflicts. Over 8 million people are internally and externally displaced, and 25 million—a quarter of the DRC’s population—need food, water, housing and healthcare.

Continued….. Fighting between government troops and the M23 rebel group has killed dozens of Congolese in the eastern region. However, the total death toll since the 1990s is more than 6 million. The UN reports the M23 has used sophisticated weaponry, such as surface-to-air missiles supplied by Rwanda. As foreign powers sponsor the Congo’s conflict and many players pursue its timber and minerals, the long-suffering Congolese people bear the brunt.

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AFRICANS CHOOSING DEATH OVER SLAVERY

The Igbo landing is considered America’s first Freedom March, and is one of the most tragic acts of resistance. It’s the story of African slaves who took their own lives in May, 1803, after briefly breaking free from their captors. An example of the horror and sorrow inflicted on millions of Africans shipped across the Atlantic to be sold as slaves in the Americas.

Despite the historical significance, the site of Igbo Landing is not well preserved or commemorated. Investigative news website Mother Jones reported in 2022 there was still no permanent marker on St Simons Island where the tragedy unfolded.

It should not be forgotten, nor should the impact of the appalling European salve trade which is still felt today. Nations that benefitted should pay reparations to the victims of descendants, but still refuse to do so.

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WILL WHITES EVER MANAGE WITHOUT OPPRESSING BLACKS?

Garrison Hayes is a storyteller who specialises in history and race. In this clip, he brilliantly responds to a racist question someone asked him on X/Twitter: Will Blacks in the US ever be ‘self-sufficient’?

He politely points out that numerous African communities in the US built all the infrastructure they needed and were well on their way to prosperity when Whites came along and attacked and destroyed everything.

The real question, in Hayes’ view, is this: when will Whites ever be ‘self-sufficient’ and not have to oppress Blacks?

What’s your answer?

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Our African proverb this week is Ugandan. It suggests that in life-or-death circumstances, everyone can do ‘brave’ things. But that doesn’t make the person doing them truly brave.

What more is needed for true bravery?

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U.K. STILL LENDING ARMS TO GRIM REAPER ISRAEL

Author, activist and medical student Mikaela Loach is known for speaking out against climate injustice.

However, in this recent BBC interview, the sister lends her voice to the more than 2 million Palestinians under Israeli bombardment and an escalated siege since 7 October in the Gaza Strip. 

The Jamaica-born, UK-based activist called out the UK government for continuing to sell arms to Israel in the face of what the International Court of Justice ruled in January as 'plausible' g*n*cide. Loach also took it back to the annals of history to show that Israel's oppression of Palestinians didn't begin on 7 October, but since 1948, when Israeli settlers expelled about 750,000 Palestinians after establishing the state of Israel with the UK's support.

So far, Israel has k*lled more than 35,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, primarily women and children.

Listen in.

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PART 1: FRANCE IS NOTHING WITHOUT AFRICA

France maintains significant economic interests in Africa, particularly in sectors such as energy, mining, agriculture and telecommunications. Africa is also an important trading partner for France. French companies export goods and services to African markets, while also importing natural resources and raw materials from the continent.

However, recent military coups in Africa - in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger - have seen France’s influence wane on our continent, making its neocolonial exploitation (on which it depends) harder to maintain.

Continued….. Some are speculating that France is getting so desperate that President Macron is preparing to gamble everything. In this clip, Isa - a TikTok content creator and all-round commentator on things geopolitical - explains why he thinks France will try to escalate Russia’s war on Ukraine into a Third World War… to save itself, or make sure everyone else goes down with it!

That might sound like a bit of a leap from losing influence in the Sahel, but hear Isa out and let us know what you make of his theory in the comments.

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Kenya’s high-flying President, William Ruto, has defended the use of a private jet. He reckons it was the cheapest option for his state visit to the US, despite costing his taxpayers $1.5m. And he insists using national carrier, Kenya Airways, would’ve been more pricey!

Well, hasn’t taken long for people to call him out. One calculation said Ruto and four of his top officials could’ve booked a first-class return ticket on the national carrier for $4,500 each. He could’ve put the rest of his 30+ entourage in economy for $1.300 each, making a grand total of $60,000. Throw in a hotel bill of $600 per person for three nights and the total price of his state visit could’ve been around $80k.

Ruto insists his extravagant spending spree meets with his ‘determination for us to live within our means.’ All this while announcing tax hikes. Jeez, can he not see why people are angry?

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MALCOLM X ON U.S. COMPLICITY IN DRC

Here, Pan-Africanist Malcolm X responded to a CBS News reporter asking about the 24 November 1964 covert Belgian-US paratrooper operation called 'Operation Dragon Rouge,' which killed two dozen out of 1,000 European and US hostages in the short-lived People's Republic of the Congo capital, Stanleyville (later Kisangani). The effort involved DRC troops and apartheid-era South African mercenaries.

Congolese rebels loyal to former revolutionary Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba (1925-61) opposed then-Prime Minister Moïse Tshombe (1919-69), a one-time Katanga separatist leader complicit in Lumumba's 1961 assassination. The rebels used hostages to shield villages from US-supplied aerial bombings.

While Western media called the rebels 'cannibals,' and 'savages,' they identified themselves as 'simbas' (Swahili for 'lions'). Their attempt was part of a broader effort, the 'Simba Rebellion,' that took place between 1963 and 1965.

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DEMO BRANDS BLINKEN: ‘SECRETARY OF G*NOCIDE’

Here’s a scene that’s become a familiar sight. Furious demonstrators yell ‘war criminal’ and ‘Secretary of G*nocide’ at US Secretary Antony Blinken . He was confronted by pro-Palestinian supporters ahead of a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. It was then interrupted several times by protesters, while others stood silently and held up their hands covered in red paint.

U.S officials have faced regular protests during congressional appearances since Israel launched its war on Gaza. Blinken reiterated US support for Israel’s destruction of the besieged enclave, which has killed over 35,000 Palestinians in seven months.

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Many African Liberation Day (ALD) events were held throughout the US this weekend. And it’s a tradition that started on May 27th, 1972, when around 60,000 people turned out at meetings across the country. One of the biggest attracted 25,000 at Washington’s National Mall, just a couple of miles from the Capitol. It boasted a full roster influential speakers, including Ralph Abernathy, Max Stanford, Angela Davis, and Kwame Ture.

The idea to host such events stemmed from trip of a group of Black activists to Mozambique’s liberated areas the summer before.