Do you have any idea of what is going on in Zimbabwe? And has been for quite some time? I've not chosen to make any effort to note the African news that I semi-regularly follow, but I think it is time for that to change. Expect a bit more. I don't know how much insightful commentary I can add, but I can at least point to goings on of interest.
In ZImbabwe, we have a situation of a long term leader who won't seem to go away even though many people seem to want him to. There was an election recently, and that may have been co-opted by the ruling party. And this, today:
The bodies of four opposition activists have been found near the Zimbabwe capital, after being abducted, the Movement for Democratic Change says.
An MDC spokesman accused supporters of President Robert Mugabe of being behind the deaths, ahead of next week's poll.
The body of Harare's recently elected opposition mayor's wife has also reportedly been found, badly burnt.
Meanwhile, in Nigeria ... I have a contact with Nigerian connections who tells me things that I never blog about. I assume that would be dangerous. Perhaps this person will guest blog here some day. All I will say is that what we see in international news outlets of what is going on in the oil fields of Nigeria is a tiny tip of a very large and scary ice berg.
Oil company Royal Dutch Shell says it has temporarily stopped production at its main offshore oilfield in Nigeria, following a militant attack.
The raid took place overnight on the Bonga oil platform about 120km (75 miles) off the coast of the Niger Delta, the company said.
It is the first attack on the oilfield, which normally produces about 200,000 barrels a day.
Attacks in the inshore Niger Delta have helped drive up world oil prices.
Nigeria's valuable offshore oilfields had always been considered difficult for most militants to attack, the BBC's Alex Last reports from Lagos.
But for the first time in the early hours, gunmen in boats reached the Bonga installation, Shell's flagship project.
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It's interesting that there are no frenzied claims of secret intelligence about WMDs in Zimbabwe, no flaming rhetoric about how evil Mugabe is, no impassioned pleas to the UN explaining why we simply must invade that sovereign state immediately to free the oppressed people of that nation.
Oh yeah, no oil.
In the past, Congo and Zambia were vital in the same way, because of cobalt. I'm not sure if Zim has cobalt. BUt cobalt is no longer as important as it once was, I guess.
Do you keep up with Somalia by any chance? If Hell existed, it'd look like Somalia.
I'm surprised that such a question even need be asked. The shenanigans by Mugabe and ZANU-PF are common news items here in Australia. Maybe it is because Zimbabwe is a former member of the Commonwealth of Nations, and there is sizable population of white Zimbabweans in Australia, such news is relevant to us. Or this another example of US insularity in general, and of news in particular?
Stephen: It is news here and many people are concerned. But it is not daily news and moderately important things can push it aside.
Australia is linked to southern Africa more than the US is, so it can't be entirely blamed on US insularity.
Well, OK, it can be. Anyway, that is why I've posted this.