More than 130 African migrants feared drowned off Djibouti - UN

More than 130 migrants were thought to be missing after two boats capsized Tuesday off the tiny East African nation of Djibouti, the U.N. migration agency said.

Local police had found five bodies and search efforts were underway, the U.N. statement said. Witnesses said the boats were overloaded and large waves caused them to tip over about a half-hour after departing.

The migration agency said its team at the site found an 18-year-old survivor who reportedly boarded a boat with another 130 people, including 16 women. There were no immediate details on the second boat.

Thousands of migrants from the turbulent Horn of Africa region set off every year from Djibouti to cross the Bab al-Mandab Strait for the Arabian Peninsula with hopes of finding work in rich Gulf countries.

The crossing is dangerous, with smugglers in some cases forcing migrants overboard before reaching their destination. Other boats have been fired on as they approach the coast of Yemen, where fighting continues between pro-government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels.

The U.N. migration agency operates a migrant response center in the Obock region where Tuesday morning’s capsizing occurred as well as four similar centers in neighboring Somalia and Ethiopia. According to the nearly 7,000 migrants registered at the centers between January and July 2018, a “vast majority” were Ethiopian, young and male and headed toward Saudi Arabia.

Dangote poorer by $2bn, Adenuga richer by $3.9bn… here are Africa’s billionaires

Aliko Dangote is Africa’s richest man for the eighth consecutive time — although his wealth dropped by $2 billion from $12.2 billion in January 2018 to $10 billion in 2019.
This is according to Forbes’ Africa Billionaires List released on Wednesday.
Mike Adenuga, chief executive officer of Globacom with interests in oil exploration and real estate, moved up to be Africa’s second richest man.
The American magazine said Adenuga’s net worth dramatically increased from $5.3 billion to $9.2 billion.

Abdulsamad Rabiu, chief executive officer of BUA Group, featured on the list for the first time since 2015.
Rabiu’s Kalambaina Cement firm merged with Cement Company of Northern Nigeria, which he controlled, in December 2018. He now owns 97% of the entity.
Kalambaina, which operates a new cement production facility, started selling cement in mid-2018. Separately, Rabiu’s OBU Cement recently expanded its operations, adding a new production line.

Folorunsho Alakija, whose net worth dropped to $1.1 billion from $1.3 billion, was ranked 19th.
The rank was a tie with South African banker, Michiel Le Roux.
Commenting on the reduced net worth of the personalities, Forbes said “buffeted by plunging stock prices and weaker currencies, the number of African billionaires has shrunk to just 20, down from 23 a year ago.
“Four people fell off Forbes’ annual list of the continent’s richest since last year while one returned to the ranks after a four-year absence. All but four members of the list have smaller fortunes than a year ago.”

In a per country ranking, Egypt and South Africa are tied with five billionaires each, followed by Nigeria with four and Morocco with two. Forbes found one billionaire each from Algeria, Angola, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

FA Cup 4th round: Arsenal, Man Utd, Chelsea get opponents

The draw for the fourth round of this season’s FA Cup was conducted on Monday night, shortly after Wolves dumped Liverpool out of the competition.

Arsenal host Manchester United at The Emirates, in what is definitely the tie of the round.

Defending champions Chelsea got another home draw against Sheffield Wednesday or Luton, while Tottenham have a tough away fixture at Crystal Palace.

The matches are due to be played on the weekend of January 26.

FA Cup fourth round draw in full:

Swansea City vs Gillingham
AFC Wimbledon vs West Ham
Shrewsbury/Stoke vs Wolves
Millwall vs Everton
Brighton & Hove Albion vs West Brom
Bristol City vs Bolton
Accrington Stanley vs Derby/Southampton
Doncaster Rovers vs Oldham
Chelsea vs Sheffield Wednesday/Luton
Newcastle/Blackburn vs Watford
Middlesbrough vs Newport County
Manchester City vs Burnley
Barnet vs Brentford
Portsmouth vs QPR
Arsenal vs Manchester United
Crystal Palace vs Tottenham

Arab states snub Syria over summit

Lebanon on Monday resisted mounting pressure from Hezbollah to invite a delegation from Syria to an Arab economic summit next week in Beirut.

Syrian leader Bashar Assad is also unlikely to be invited to the next Arab League summit in Tunisia in March, after a planned meeting to discuss Syria’s readmission to the body was canceled.

The Arab League suspended Syria’s membership in November 2011 and imposed political and economic sanctions over the Syrian civil war. Three months later, the Gulf Cooperation Council states withdrew their ambassadors from Damascus.

However, as the Assad regime solidifies its military victory after seven years of war, with help from Russia and Iran, there is growing pressure to normalize relations.

In Lebanon, the campaign is being led by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah. The group’s parliamentary bloc said it was “in Lebanon’s interest to invite Syria to participate in the Arab Economic
and Social Development Summit,” which begins in Beirut on Jan. 16.

Inviting Syria “would strengthen Lebanon and would be in its strategic interest, especially as current developments are creating a positive Arab atmosphere that is seeing Arab states rushing back to Damascus, and as Syria’s closest neighbor and considering the country’s interests, Lebanon should be at the forefront of efforts to reinforce and strengthen this atmosphere,” Hezbollah said.

If Syria were not invited the summit should be postponed, the group said, but Lebanon rejected both suggestions.

“Lebanon is hosting and organizing the Arab Economic and Social Development Summit but is not the one inviting states. Invitations remain the competence of the Arab League,” Rafiq Chlala, head of the summit’s media committee, told Arab News.

“Syria had not attended the previous Arab summits upon the Arab League’s decision, but it can return to participating by a decision from the Arab League,” he said.

“Lebanon has nothing to do with this issue, and President Aoun has pledged not to postpone the economic summit and to hold it on time.”

President Michel Aoun confirmed that the summit “will be held on time,” and said Lebanon’s failure for the past eight months to form a Cabinet of ministers under Prime Minister Saad Hariri was no reason to postpone it.

“The current government is exercising its powers according to the constitution,” he said.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, have already confirmed their attendance. Other Arab leaders are expected to do so in the next few days.

Delegates will meet initially on Jan. 16 to agree on the topics for discussion and draft a communique. Foreign ministers will meet on Jan. 18, followed by delegation chiefs and national leaders on Jan. 19, before the full summit on Jan. 20.

Fresh audio leaks: Amaechi ‘indicts’ APC, Tinubu, Fashola as failures

Another audio clip of Rotimi Amaechi, Director-General of President Muhammadu Buhari’s campaign organisation, has leaked with the embattled Minister of Transport heard describing Lagos as a ‘glorified village’.

The audio tape was released by Phrank Shaibu, an aide of Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

According to the trending audio clip, Amaechi said there was very little infrastructure in Lagos, especially water and roads, while lamenting the spate of traffic jams in the state.

The Minister’s purported rants subtly indicts the All Progressives Congress (APC) which has controlled Lagos for 20 years through AD, AC, and ACN; the Co-chair of President Buhari’s Campaign Council, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; fellow cabinet minister, Babatunde Fashola; both of who governed the state for 16 years combined.

Amaechi “I live in Abuja, tell me where else we have infrastructure. Lagos is a glorified village. The only difference between Lagos and other cities is the fact that business is in Lagos, everybody is there doing business, so you can at least have food,” he said in the New audio clip.

“If not, tell me what else you have in Lagos? 1,000 plus megawatts. That’s all. That’s what you have. What else do you have? No water, there are no roads. The reason why you meet traffic jams in Lagos is because there are no roads.”