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Court Strikes Out PDP's Case Against Defecting Governors

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<b>An Abuja Federal High Court on Friday struck out a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, urging the court to sack its five governors who defected to APC.</b></div>
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Delivering his ruling, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, held that the suit’s originating processes were invalid because they were wrongly issued and served on the defendants.</div>
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“This suit is struck out as the originating summons has been declared invalid.</div>
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“It is preposterous, audacious and breath-taking for the plaintiff to argue that the defendants sued individually in personal capacity, could be served through the office of the party to which they defected.</div>
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“Having been described as governors of their respective states, who carry out most of their functions in their states’ capitals, it was wrong to assume that they reside or operate from APC headquarters in Abuja.</div>
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“Since APC is not a party in the suit meant to sack the governors, it is wrong to provide the APC’s address as the place where the governors could be served,’’ Mr. Kolawole ruled.</div>
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PDP had in Dec. 2013 sued governors: Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Abdulfatai Ahmed (Kwara).</div>
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The PDP also joined the impeached Adamawa Governor, Murtala Nyako, whose name was removed from the suit shortly after his impeachment and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as defendants.</div>
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The party had through its counsel, Alex Izinyon, prayed the court to declare the defecting governors’ seats vacant, and order INEC to conduct elections to replace them.</div>
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Mr. Kolawole further upheld the argument of the governors’ counsel that the originating processes, issued by the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, meant for service outside jurisdiction ought to be endorsed.</div>
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He held that the PDP acted in violation of the provisions of Section 96 of the Sheriff and Civil Processes Act (SCPA) with respect to the serving of court processes.</div>
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The party ought to have applied for and obtained the court’s leave before engaging in substituted service, the judge said.</div>
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The News Agency of Nigeria reported that the party had served the originating processes on wrong address, which it claimed was the headquarters of the APC, which the court later set aside.</div>
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PDP again obtained an ex-parte order for substituted service of the originating processes through newspaper publication, which it published on July 3, 2014 in ThisDay newspapers.</div>
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The governors faulted the procedure adopted by the PDP in serving them, arguing that the plaintiff failed to obtain the leave of the court to serve them through substituted means.</div>
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<b>Credit: NAN</b>

Court Strikes Out PDP's Case Against Defecting Governors

An Abuja Federal High Court on Friday struck out a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, urging the court to sack its five g...

Tinubu to Pick APC Vice Presidential Candidate

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<b>Muhammadu Buhari, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has conceded the picking of his running mate to Bola Tinubu, national leader of the party, <i>TheCable</i> can report. </b></div>
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This has in effect diminished the chances of Chibuike Amaechi, Governor of Rivers State, who was all along tipped to be the vice-presidential candidate. </div>
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Further discussions are going to be held this weekend, but a quick decision may not be reached. </div>
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The party still has up till December 18 to submit the name of the nominee to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). </div>
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Buhari’s decision to give Tinubu the slot is apparently based on the voting population of the south-west which he is banking on to upstage the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2015 presidential election.</div>
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 “Politics is not winner-takes-all. Tinubu worked round the clock to deliver a huge chunk of votes to Buhari in the primary, and it is only fair that he is honoured in return,” an aide to Buhari told <i>TheCable</i>. </div>
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Tinubu,<i> TheCable</i> can further report, has not foreclosed the choice of anyone as the VP candidate, but he is opposed to Amaechi – although the Rivers governor has made the biggest financial contribution to Buhari’s campaign. </div>
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An APC chieftain from the south-west told <i>TheCable</i>: “Rumours that Amaechi has been chosen as the running mate are not true in any form. The running mate will be announced soon.” </div>
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The chieftain further told <i>TheCable</i>: “If the party exco settles for a Muslim/Muslim ticket, Tinubu himself will be the number one choice. If not, then Adams Oshiomhole stands the best chance among the rest.” </div>
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He ruled out Babatunde Fashola, governor of Lagos, who is also a Muslim. </div>
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The Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole is now the favourite for the running mate slot, after <a href="http://nigerianewsroom.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/meet-apcs-vice-presidential-contenders.html">his chances</a> increased from 80% to 89%, while <a href="http://nigerianewsroom.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/meet-apcs-vice-presidential-contenders.html">Amaechi’s chances</a> dropped from 90% to 50%.</div>
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<b>Credit: <a href="http://www.thecable.ng/just-buhari-concedes-vp-slot-tinubu">TheCable</a></b>

Tinubu to Pick APC Vice Presidential Candidate

Muhammadu Buhari, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has conceded the picking of his running mate to Bola T...

[JUST IN]: Suicide Bomber Caught in Jos

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Reports just reaching us indicate that a suicide bomber has been caught in Jos.</div>
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Sources say the suicide bomber was caught with his explosives along Shagari Corner, Katako Road. This fresh story came in while residents are yet to recover from the twin explosions that rocked the city’s commercial center yesterday.</div>
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Details coming up shortly.</div>

[JUST IN]: Suicide Bomber Caught in Jos

Reports just reaching us indicate that a suicide bomber has been caught in Jos. Sources say the suicide bomber was caught with his ...

[MUST READ]: How and Why Buhari Won APC Ticket

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By <b>Sodiq Yusuff</b>, <i>TheCable</i></div>
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It is all over. Muhammadu Buhari has beaten Atiku Abubakar to the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC). It was a fairly predictable outcome, but in politics 24 hours could make all the difference. </div>
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Fears in Buhari’s camp that Atiku could get the ticket had heightened as the convention approached, but any doubt about where the pendulum would swing disappeared on Wednesday when 12 governors met and endorsed Buhari for the ticket. </div>
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Atiku had his own strategy, hoping that his extensive nationwide tour and rounded experience in party primaries would swing the game in his favour - moreso as there are only 14 APC governors, meaning other states were there for the taking. But his strategy did not work out. Buhari carried the day. </div>
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Atiku did not even come second - that slot went to Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Governor of Kano State, who surprised everybody by his big showing. </div>
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How did Buhari do it? Or, rather, how did Buhari’s supporters do it? <i>TheCable</i> gives you a lowdown.</div>
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<b>TINUBU’S 10 MEETINGS IN 4 HOURS</b> </div>
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Bola Tinubu, APC national leader, played a major role in galvanizing support for Buhari among thousands of delegates. <i>TheCable</i> had reported as far back as October that Tinubu had thrown his weight behind the retired general, and despite all the intrigues that eventually ensued - with the possible candidature of Aminu Tambuwal, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, showing up along the way - the former Governor of Lagos State still stuck to his Plan A. </div>
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Tinubu and Atiku are battle-tested. They know each other very well, from the days of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) led by the later Shehu Musa Yar’Adua. PDM were reputed as masters of delegate votes. Tinubu and Atiku needed to cancel each other out to determine whose camp would pick the ticket. The stage was set on Tuesday as delegates started arriving Lagos from different parts of the country. </div>
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To checkmate Atiku, Tinubu got all the governors in his camp to team up with the governors in Buhari’s camp. They met with him at his office on Adeola Odeku Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, till the early hours of Wednesday, where all the details were worked out. In the next four hours, Tinubu criss-crossed Lagos, holding meetings with key delegates, some via teleconference. In total, he held 10 meetings within four hours to finalise the voting in favour of Buhari. </div>
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Most of the meetings, which took place over the phone, were held at Eko Hotel; Lagos Governor’s residence at Isaac John Street, Ikeja; Tinubu’s residence at Bourdillon Street, Ikoyi; and Lagos House, Marina, where key officials and delegates were gathered together for negotiation. Significantly, Atiku’s supporters were left out of the meetings.</div>
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<b>THE OBASANJO VS ATIKU FACTOR</b> </div>
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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is not a supporter of Buhari - they have been political opponents since 1999 - but he would prefer Buhari to Atiku, whom he took to the cleaners in his latest memoirs, <i>My Watch</i>. Obasanjo had nothing terribly bad to say about Buhari in the book, but he savaged Atiku ruthlessly. </div>
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Obasanjo’s first choice for APC ticket, <i>TheCable</i> understands, was Tambuwal. But when northern leaders persuaded Tambuwal to go for Sokoto governorship and not undermine Buhari in the race, Obasanjo wanted support for his ally, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, the governor of Kano state. Again, he met a brick wall. It became clear to him that he had to live with either Buhari or Atiku - and the choice was not difficult to make, although he is not expected to openly campaign for Buhari because of his grudges against the Katsina-born retired general. </div>
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“We studied Obasanjo’s body language and came to the conclusion that Buhari was the only realistic choice for us,” a Commissioner from the south-west told <i>TheCable</i>. “Obasanjo will never support Atiku, and Kwankwaso was not going to win. We concluded that he will not be able to launch an all-out attack against Buhari like he would do to Atiku or Jonathan.” </div>
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APC has been courting Obasanjo for a while, and several of its leaders pay regular visits to him in Abeokuta in trying to build the opposition party. Although he keeps saying he remains in the PDP and would never defect, Obasanjo is also at war with the ruling party’s hierarchy and has been openly criticising President Goodluck Jonathan.</div>
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<b>DOLLAR VERSUS DOLLAR</b> </div>
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Atiku is easily one of the richest Nigerians, and as a politician, he has never been afraid to spend money. Since time, delegate elections in Nigeria have always witnessed the sharing of money. The struggle to be a delegate is as fierce as contesting for an elective office because of the fringe benefits. The biggest fear in Buhari’s camp was that Atiku could get the ticket by his generosity to delegates. </div>
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However, Buhari’s supporters did not go to sleep. On Wednesday morning, a southern governor (Rotimi Amaechi) flew in raw cash, in Naira and Dollar, to dilute Atiku’s financial influence. Although some delegates were shielded from Atiku, the former vice-president had devised his own way of reaching them. But despite gaining access to most of them, he was outspent in the welfare department. </div>
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A delegate told <i>TheCable</i> that he got $2,000 from one camp and $3,000 from another, and even though he did not reveal who gave the money, he gave a hint: “Pro-Buhari governors were encouraged to take care of their delegates better than Atiku. Our governor took good care of us. To be fair to Buhari, he knew nothing about the welfare distribution.”</div>
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<b>ATIKU’S PAST ‘SINS’</b> </div>
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Tinubu is yet to forgive Atiku for abandoning the opposition ranks in 2010 and returning to the PDP in order to contest the 2011 presidential election after the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. </div>
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When Atiku fell out with Obasanjo toward the end of their tenure in 2007, Tinubu provided him a platform to contest in the presidential race, having been completely blocked from the PDP. </div>
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Atiku joined the Action Congress, ran for the election, lost to Yar’Adua but stayed back in the party to build a credible opposition to the PDP ahead of the 2011 elections. However, when Yar’Adau died, Atiku went back to the PDP, perhaps calculating that his interests were better served by the party in power. But he lost to Jonathan in the primary. </div>
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He still remained in the PDP, maybe believing that Jonathan would do only one term, but when it became clear that Jonathan was going to run again, he defected to APC, but Tinubu was not impressed. In fact, the impression of Atiku worsened in the polity. </div>
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“He wants to reap where he did not sow. If he had remained with us in 2011, the party would have been built around him, no doubt about that. He would have had a fair chance. But we are also thinking he is a desperate politician by going up and down, back and forth. More so, Nigerians perceive him differently when it comes to corruption. It was always going to be a problem for us,” an APC chieftain from Lagos told <i>TheCable</i>, maintaining that Tinubu had nothing personal against Atiku.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2bwjPucSGmsWEQC4rYSMhgTAz9S7HvD0ezefLHdJXNbJuWv98d-JH8AP17Gtb2LHS93mMgkuYepPIe-HItVHOXVMUTB1deIDPWCn5lI12uqBEzE_IDOjtTuAJwSSVUQB1YDdV2p_CJpQ/s1600/Buhari-Campaign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2bwjPucSGmsWEQC4rYSMhgTAz9S7HvD0ezefLHdJXNbJuWv98d-JH8AP17Gtb2LHS93mMgkuYepPIe-HItVHOXVMUTB1deIDPWCn5lI12uqBEzE_IDOjtTuAJwSSVUQB1YDdV2p_CJpQ/s1600/Buhari-Campaign.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b>SAI BUHARI! SAY BUHARI! </b></div>
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Very key to the decision of the APC hierarchy to back Buhari is that he is a very popular politician in northern Nigeria: his name alone has consistently fetched 12 million votes in the north without any discernible political structure. It is thought that if he can get the necessary backing in the south, it would be a matter of cat walk to Aso Rock for him. With the south-west fully behind him, and with bits and pieces of votes from the south-east and south-south, Buhari will be primed to win the presidential election in 2015. </div>
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“We were convinced that Buhari could win the presidential election, but never convinced that Atiku could defeat Jonathan. It was a no-brainer at the end of the day. Buhari is the man for the job!” the chieftain concluded. </div>
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It was also noted among the party hierarchy that Buhari has been rebranded: less number of Nigerians now view him as a religious fanatic, while more and more southerners are now seeing him as a better alternative to Jonathan. The actual numbers will be determined on February 14, 2015, though.</div>
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<b>Credit: <a href="http://www.thecable.ng/10-meetings-4-hours-obasanjos-book-reasons-buhari-won-apcs-ticket">TheCable</a></b></div>
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[MUST READ]: How and Why Buhari Won APC Ticket

By Sodiq Yusuff , TheCable It is all over. Muhammadu Buhari has beaten Atiku Abubakar to the presidential ticket of the All Progres...

Palestinians Mourn Slain Minister

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghFAdjHcagNMPvQF6ZiG_-o76MluE5-9rmhdex_f4MmXQYVZnaPHvn2DpRvFjOCdNdWngZkutc5ilvPTY0HuvbtvR6Vb_HDbQfMWKVmsR9MLA1RyVUFE40iELMqNZLCZ5_rHEtWE5MBE0/s1600/Ziad+Abu1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghFAdjHcagNMPvQF6ZiG_-o76MluE5-9rmhdex_f4MmXQYVZnaPHvn2DpRvFjOCdNdWngZkutc5ilvPTY0HuvbtvR6Vb_HDbQfMWKVmsR9MLA1RyVUFE40iELMqNZLCZ5_rHEtWE5MBE0/s1600/Ziad+Abu1.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Thousands of Palestinians have gathered to mourn a senior official who died in a confrontation with Israeli troops, as the army sent reinforcements to the occupied West Bank and braced for unrest.</span><br />
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Palestinian officials accused Israel of being responsible for the death of minister Ziad Abu Ein, who died shortly after an Israeli border policeman shoved and grabbed him by the throat during a protest north of Ramallah in the West Bank.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqyLgAIMiolV6Cu5PX5nsyytkbAFR5y7828_murpO-epW8rgCC3BzfKdOyG6jkmyayUvQeeP7-c2I6t9Cukh6mqshsn6qdrEgxEk3UIkSZfY9jOgkymghzxj8nMfDkpUvdXqfRvzY_XJ0/s1600/Ziad+Abu2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqyLgAIMiolV6Cu5PX5nsyytkbAFR5y7828_murpO-epW8rgCC3BzfKdOyG6jkmyayUvQeeP7-c2I6t9Cukh6mqshsn6qdrEgxEk3UIkSZfY9jOgkymghzxj8nMfDkpUvdXqfRvzY_XJ0/s1600/Ziad+Abu2.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The late Ziad Abu Ein (L) being held by the throat by an Israeli border policeman (Photo: SkyNews Arabia)</td></tr>
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On Thursday, thousands of Palestinians gathered to mourn Abu Ein, whose body was laid to rest at El Bireh’s cemetery in the West Bank. A funeral procession, carrying the father of four, first made a stop at the Muqata – the presidential compound – for prayers.</div>
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Palestinian flags were flown at half-mast, and Quranic verses boomed from speakers. Hundreds of people converged on the Muqata, carrying yellow Fatah banners and pictures of Abu Ein.</div>
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Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also took part in the procession.</div>
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Ehab Bseiso, a government spokesman, also said that the results of an autopsy carried out by a team of Palestinian, Jordanian and Israeli doctors showed Abu Ein did not die of natural causes.</div>
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“We hold Israel fully responsible for the murder of Abu Ein,” Bseiso said.</div>
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The Palestinian minister of health Jawad Awad said the autopsy, showed evidence of bruising in the neck, strikes to the face, and blockage in the coronary artery.</div>
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The Israeli authorities however, disputed those claims, saying the autopsy showed Abu Ein, also a senior Fatah official, had a pre-existing heart condition.</div>
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“The death of Ziad Abu Ein was caused by a blockage of the coronary artery [one of the arteries that supplies blood to the heart] due to haemorrhaging underneath a layer of atherosclerotic plaque. The bleeding could have been caused by stress,” a preliminary Israeli autopsy report said.</div>
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On Wednesday night, Abbas held a meeting with members of the PLO’s executive committee and Fatah officials, in which he said that “all options are open to discussion and implementation” to respond to Abu Ein’s death.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPyOZdLA9S-Bf8mXAl6eR81aH4PWY8otLUN3aSsqOMdXuQ-3DJ74rrDUnL4TobzT1siSFzVmNfoxXrFTa3osXTWZ6a1QsUyABkX5R5ne5tDTnBNxZNveaUystQ14GYBQk63YajKbCCD7U/s1600/ziad-abu-ein-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPyOZdLA9S-Bf8mXAl6eR81aH4PWY8otLUN3aSsqOMdXuQ-3DJ74rrDUnL4TobzT1siSFzVmNfoxXrFTa3osXTWZ6a1QsUyABkX5R5ne5tDTnBNxZNveaUystQ14GYBQk63YajKbCCD7U/s1600/ziad-abu-ein-.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Palestinian security members carry the coffin of senior Palestinian official Ziad Abu Ein during his funeral in Ramallah</td></tr>
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A follow-up meeting was to be held on Friday to discuss these options, which include heading to the International Criminal Court and joining more international bodies, chief Palestinian negotiator Sa’eb Erekat said.</div>
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“Netanyahu cannot continue to have a cost-free occupation,” Erekat said. “There are major steps to be taken, including to have the Israeli government resume its responsibilities as the full occupying power, which will include suspension of the security cooperation.”</div>
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On Wednesday, Abu Ein and a group of Palestinian and foreign activists were in Turmus Aya, a village northeast of Ramallah, planting olive tree saplings. The group was met with teargas and stun grenades, and Abu Ein was grabbed in the neck by a soldier. Shortly thereafter, he collapsed, clutching his chest. He died in a Ramallah hospital.</div>
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“There was no Palestinian violence whatsoever, not even stone-throwing,” said Amin Shoman, head of the higher committee for prisoners affairs, who was in Turmus ‘Aya with Abu Ein. “Soldiers struck and tear-gassed him, and didn’t allow us to evacuate him to the hospital fast enough,” Shoman claimed.</div>
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<b>Credit: Al Jazeera</b>

Palestinians Mourn Slain Minister

Thousands of Palestinians have gathered to mourn a senior official who died in a confrontation with Israeli troops, as the army sent rein...

Protest in Cotonou Over Local Election Delays

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhbKxkJZKMFWglTwxD3ErbUlCFLOPULllffhCiwHlsxgNvJeVafFNZ2QBFWY2xU67BJgBtcg6qzNbf0W36SkQwvV019v7Urp7rV0NeyYLMEbIevCs2MT4DE4laaX0BlyqWYGKJu7AYo3A/s1600/Cotonou+Protest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhbKxkJZKMFWglTwxD3ErbUlCFLOPULllffhCiwHlsxgNvJeVafFNZ2QBFWY2xU67BJgBtcg6qzNbf0W36SkQwvV019v7Urp7rV0NeyYLMEbIevCs2MT4DE4laaX0BlyqWYGKJu7AYo3A/s1600/Cotonou+Protest.jpg" /></a></div>
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Cotonou (AFP) - Several hundred people took to the streets of Benin's economic capital on Wednesday to demand the holding of long-delayed local elections postponed over problems with voter registration.</div>
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"Enough is enough. (Benin President Thomas) Boni Yayi and his henchmen have to organise elections. Go now and leave us our democracy," shouted one protester in Cotonou.</div>
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Local elections -- last held in 2008 and at which Boni Yayi suffered heavy losses -- were due to have been held across the tiny West African state in March 2013 but have been pushed back.</div>
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Many of the protesters were dressed in red in a symbol of what they said was their anger at the continued delays but with wider scepticism about the government's motives for the postponement.</div>
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Benin's digitised electoral roll system descended into chaos during the last presidential elections in 2011 when more than 1.5 million people could not find their names on the list.</div>
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The government in the nation of roughly 10 million people has since been trying to fix the problem but the country's main opposition has suggested it is a delaying tactic to allow Boni Yayi to cling to power.</div>
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Parliamentary elections are due to be held next year and for a new president in 2016, with Boni Yayi at the centre of claims that he is looking to change the constitution to secure a third term.</div>
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The protesters whistled and blew trumpets, holding banners proclaiming "Viable elections or get out!" and "Too much fraud, too many lies. Stop! We want elections."</div>
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"The situation is alarming and we have to demand that the regime respects the constitution and the people who want elections," Lazarre Sehoueto, from Benin's main opposition grouping, told AFP.</div>
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Pascal Todjinou, secretary-general of the General Confederation of the Workers of Benin union, said the matter should be dealt with by the country's constitutional court.</div>
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People were at the mercy of a system "favourable to the regime of Boni Yayi, who wants to take advantage of the uncertainty to stay in power after 2016," he added.</div>
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<b>Credit: <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/protests-benin-over-local-election-delays-002309174.html">Yahoo! News</a></b>

Protest in Cotonou Over Local Election Delays

Cotonou (AFP) - Several hundred people took to the streets of Benin's economic capital on Wednesday to demand the holding of long-d...

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