She’s the subject of a criminal investigation into misappropriation of funds when she was chief executive of Angola’s state-owned oil company Sonangol.

Isabel Dos Santos was given the Sonangol job by her father Jose Eduardo Dos Santos when he was President of Angola.

Exploiting  that special relationship made her Africa’s richest woman with a fortune of $2,2- billion.

Angola’s seeking to recoup money from her.

Dos Santos, who lives in London, says she’s the victim of a politically motivated witch hunt.

Dozens of personal and corporate bank accounts she hold in Portugal have been seized by Lisbon authorities along with those of her husband Sandika Dokolo.

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Portugal’s Euro Bic bank has cut ties with the daughter of former  Angolan President Josè Eduardo Dos Santos.

Portuguese authorities are investigating media reports citing 70 000 leaked documents of how Isabel Dos Santos illegally used her family ties to become Africa’s richest woman.

Angola’s prosecution service says it will use all possible means to bring Dos Santos back home to face prosecution.

She currently lives in London from where she denies any impropriety and says she is the subject of a politically-inspired witch hunt.

International financial services company Price Waterhouse Cooper says  heads could roll over its links with Dos Santos.

Euro Bic is probing the transfer of tens of millions of dollars by the former president’s daughter. 

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Speaking at the end of the NATO summit in London, Macron says the Sahel leaders must address anti French sentiment about its role in Africa.

France is the only Western country with a substantial military presence in Africa.

It sent in troops to prevent Mali being overrun by Jihadis in 2013.

It still has 4 500 soldiers helping the so called Sahel G5 comprising Mali, Niger, Mauritania, Chad and Burkina Faso.

French President Emmanuel Macron says if those troops are stay there, African leaders must affirm that they need them.

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He calls the ousted Zimbabwe president a classical example of  a liberator who betrayed the values of the struggle he championed.

Lord Hain says he does not feel grief about Robert Mugabe’s death in Singapore at the age of 95.

“I can’t say that I’m sorry because he betrayed every one of those values of the freedom struggle of democracy, human rights and social justice and came to preside over a corrupt regime,” he said.

He recalls how during meeting in London in 1999, Mugabe patted him on the knee and called him “one of us” for his anti-apartheid activism.

The following day he viscously attacked then then British Minister blaming him for a gay rights activist making a citizen’s arrest on Mugabe for his notorious homophobia.

Lord Hain went on to advocate sanctions against Mugabe for his human rights abuses.

The post Lord Peter Hain says history will judge Robert Mugabe harshly appeared first on Jean-Jacques Cornish.

Corrupt officials in Ghana and Madagascar are allowing millions of the endangered trees to be cut down and sent to furniture makers in China.

It takes more than 100 years for a rosewood tree to grow.

Seven years ago Ghana banned the export of locally grown rosewood.

But since then, the Environmental  Investigation Agency says the 540 000 tons of the commodity – that’s 23 500 containers full – have been sent to China.

The London and Washington-based EIA says corrupt officials allowed the felling six million rosewood trees to enable this amount of trafficking.   

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Somalia’s ambassador to Nairobi has been expelled and the Mogadishu authorities have withdrawn their envoy to Kenya.

The east African neighbours are arguing about a gas and oil rich triangle of the Indian Ocean. It covers an area of 100 000 square kilometers.

Somalia denies Kenyan claims that the prospecting rights to this triangle were sold at a Somali  investment  conference in London last week.
Kenya’s demanding the Mogadishu authorities withdraw a map show to investors that indicates the disputed piece of Ocean belongs to Somalia.

The matter has to be adjudicated by the International Court of Justice.

Kenya’s lost its case disputing the court’s jurisdiction in the matter

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Mining company Gem Diamonds says it could be worth as much as half a billion rand.  mm

Gem Diamonds unearthed the D-colour stone at the Letseng mine in the mountain kingdom and described the 910-carat find as of exceptional quality.

The company’s  chief executive Clifford Elphick says.

this top quality diamond is the largest to be mined to date It’s  a landmark discovery.”

Mining analyst at Liberum Capital Ben Davis speculates in a research note to investors that the diamond could be worth as much as $40 million.

Gem Diamonds shares in London were up 14 percent from the market open to £0.92 a piece.

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There were many of us who did not believe – whatever the reliable wire services were reporting – that Robert Mugabe was going to step down as Zimbabwe’s President yesterday.

Interestingly, we were invariably those who have met and spoken to the 93 year old.

Robert Mugabe is probably the most stubborn man I have met.

In the days when his political star shone bright, he could afford to be.

In our first interview in Maputo 41 years ago, he said his  Mozambique host Samora Machel has taught him the invaluable lesson to retain white farmers and entrepreneurs.

In power 15 years later, to ward off a threat from a burgeoning opposition he launched land grab that turned his country from the regional bread basked into the continental basket case.

At the Lancaster Conference in London in 1979 he had his host Lord Carrington, the British Foreign Secretary over a barrel.

Every time deadlock loomed, Mugabe would pack his papers and lead his team out.

He knew there could be no settlement without him.

On the few occasions I spoke to him in Harare, Mugabe knew he had the whip hand with overwhelming support from the military and the ruling party.

This enabled him to insult and belittle British premier Tony Blair, Botswana’s President Ian Khama and anyone else he perceived as a dangerous opponent.

Many years have passed and the glaring defiance has evidently dimmed.

He has repeatedly overplayed his hand. And, more fatally, he has allowed his South African-born typist wife to play hers.

Approaching his 94th birthday, the longest serving head-of-government on the planet has obviously not grasped the reality that his actions, and those of his wife, have stripped him of friends, allies and supporters.

Mugabe will be impeached this week.

The ruling ZANU PF will make sure of it.

So will Zimbabwe’s military, desperate to avoid having the African Union officially characterise its actions as a coup which would automatically red-card the country.

What Mugabe will not be be able to do is effect a dignified exit.

And he will find it infinitely more difficult to achieve the shelter he is seeking in Singapore for himself and his wife, who has been expelled from Zanu PF.

Some find this sad.

The majority, however, are saying what Zimbabweans finally dare to go to the streets to declare: good riddance.

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