Reuters, Washington
The United States announced on Wednesday the first transfer of a prisoner from the Guantanamo Bay detention center under U.S. President Donald Trump, lowering the prisoner population at a facility Trump has signaled he would like to repopulate.
The U.S. military said Ahmed Muhammed Haza al-Darbi’s transfer to Saudi Arabia reduced the detainee population to 40 from 41. He was the first prisoner to leave the U.S. detention center in Cuba since Jan. 19, 2017 – the day before Trump was inaugurated.
Afghan President launches new ID
Reuters, Kabul
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani launched new electronic ID cards on Thursday and faced immediate opposition in his own government toward a system that has fueled bitter rows over ethnic politics only months before parliamentary elections are due.
The much delayed “e-tezkera” system, named after the local term for identity cards, is intended to reduce fraud, streamline public administration and give a clearer picture of the population by centralizing data on one digitized card.
109 in custody after Paris May Day violence
AP, Paris
French police said 109 people were in custody on Wednesday after violent May Day protests in Paris, correcting an earlier figure of 209 given by Interior Minister Gerard Collomb. Hooded youths had torched a McDonald’s restaurant and several vehicles after joining the traditional May 1 union-led demonstration for workers’ rights. Collomb, who gave the wrong figure in a television interview, promised to boost policing at future protests after facing accusations that the government had been caught unaware by 1,200 trouble-makers.
Another Palestinian killed
AFP, Gaza City
A 19-year-old Palestinian shot by Israeli soldiers during protests and clashes along the Gaza border last week died from his wounds Thursday, the health ministry in the Palestinian enclave said.
The death of Anas Abu Aser brings the toll of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire since protests and clashes along the Gaza border began on March 30 to 49, with hundreds of others wounded from gunfire. Aser was shot east of Gaza City on April 27, health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said.
5 killed in US military plane crash
AFP, Washington
A military cargo plane with five people aboard crashed in the southern US state of Georgia on Wednesday killing all of them, according to officials. The emergency management agency for Chatham County, which comprises the city of Savannah, tweeted that a plane had crashed at a highway intersection.
Georgia National Guard spokeswoman Desiree Bamba told AFP the aircraft was a C-130 carrying five people.
