Nigeria's democratic evolution

April 02, 2015 - Daily News Briefing

The peaceful transfer of power is a landmark for Africa's most populous nation and an important example for Africa.

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Lufthansa's chief executive said Wednesday it will take "a long, long time" to understand what led to a deadly crash in the French Alps last week — but refused to say exactly what the airline knew about the mental health of the co-pilot suspected of deliberately destroying the plane. Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr and the head of its low-cost airline Germanwings, Thomas Winkelmann, visited the crash area Wednesday amid mounting questions about how much the airlines knew about co-pilot Andreas Lubitz's psychological state and why they haven't released more information about it.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D) of New Jersey was indicted on Wednesday on corruption charges, a US Justice Department spokesman said. Menendez, 61, was indicted in New Jersey along with Florida ophthalmologist Dr. Salomon Melgen on one count of conspiracy, one count of violating the travel act, seven counts of bribery and three counts of honest services fraud, the DOJ spokesman said, adding the senator was also charged with one count of making false statements.

Islamic State militants infiltrated a Palestinian refugee camp in Damascus on Wednesday, marking the deepest foray yet by the extremist group into the capital, seat of President Bashar al-Assad's power, Syrian opposition activists and Palestinian officials said. Jordan, meanwhile, closed its only functioning border crossing with Syria, following heavy clashes on the Syrian side between rebels and government forces.

California Gov. Jerry Brown, acting in the face of a devastating, multi-year drought, ordered the first statewide mandatory water restrictions on Wednesday, directing cities and communities to reduce usage by 25 percent. Brown, who made the announcement at a ski resort in the Sierra Nevada mountains, said the move, which comes as California reports its lowest snowpack levels on record, would save some 1.5 million acre-feet of water over the next nine months.

On Wednesday, Thailand lifted martial law, which had been in place for nearly 10 months. The day before, the military-installed prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, said he will invoke a special security measure in the junta-imposed interim constitution called Article 44. Critics say it gives Prayuth unchecked authority over all three branches of government and absolves him of any legal responsibility for his actions.

Nigerians celebrated Muhammadu Buhari's electrifying victory in presidential elections Wednesday but sobering challenges confront their next leader, from an Islamic uprising to widespread poverty and graft. Buhari made history in Africa's most populous country as the first opposition party candidate to win elections, ending President Goodluck Jonathan's bid for another term. For a former major general who three decades ago led Nigeria following a coup, it was an amazing transformation to a democratically elected president.

As thousands mourned a slain prosecutor, Turkey's prime minister pledged Wednesday to track down accomplices to the two assailants who had kidnapped the official, saying they were making phone calls abroad during the hostage standoff. Two members of a banned left-wing group, DHKP-C, held a prosecutor hostage in an Istanbul courthouse for six hours Tuesday, and all three died in a shootout between the hostage-takers and police.

President Obama on Wednesday created the first-ever sanctions program to penalize overseas hackers who engage in cyber spying and companies that knowingly benefit from the fruits of that espionage, potentially including state-owned corporations in Russia and China. The order was the latest attempt by his administration to come up with options short of direct retaliation to deal with a growing cyber threat coming from both nations and criminal groups. It gives the US the authority to sanction individuals and companies, though no specific penalties were announced.

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.

To send a comment to the Editor, email editor@csmonitor.com.

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.

To send a comment to the Editor, email editor@csmonitor.com.

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