Around 40 soldiers killed in attack on Chad military base, presidency says

Chad's junta leader Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno looks on during the closing ceremony of the National Sovereign Inclusive Dialogue (DNIS) forum, in N'Djamena on October 8, 2022. (AFP)
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Updated 28 October 2024
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Around 40 soldiers killed in attack on Chad military base, presidency says

DAKAR: Around 40 soldiers were killed in an attack on a military base in Chad’s Lake region on Sunday, the central African country’s presidency said on Monday.
President Mahamat Idriss Deby launched an operation to track down the assailants, the statement said.
The presidency did not name the group responsible for the attack. The region is often attacked by the Boko Haram insurgency, which erupted in northeast Nigeria in 2009 and spread to the west of Chad.


Kenyan prosecution welcomes detention of UK ex-soldier over woman’s murder

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Kenyan prosecution welcomes detention of UK ex-soldier over woman’s murder

Robert James Purkiss, 38, was remanded in custody by a judge after being arrested on Thursday
Purkiss is wanted in Kenya on suspicion of killing 21-year-old Agnes Wanjiru in 2012

NAIROBI: Kenya’s prosecution service on Saturday welcomed the detention of a British ex-soldier accused of murdering a woman in the east African country more than a decade ago.
Robert James Purkiss, 38, was remanded in custody by a judge after being arrested on Thursday, Britain’s National Crime Agency said in a statement.
Purkiss is wanted in Kenya on suspicion of killing 21-year-old Agnes Wanjiru in 2012, in a case that has caused diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
The body of the young mother was found in a septic tank two months after she reportedly went partying with British soldiers at a hotel in Nanyuki, a town in central Kenya where Britain has a permanent army garrison.
Kenya’s Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) welcomed the “significant development” in a statement on X, adding it was a result of an “extensive and coordinated effort” between the British and Kenyan authorities.
The ODPP “reiterates its unwavering commitment to pursuing justice for Agnes Wanjiru and her family, in collaboration with international partners, to ensure that those responsible are held fully accountable,” the statement added.
In September, a Nairobi High Court judge issued an arrest warrant for Purkiss, with local prosecutors saying extradition proceedings would be initiated to bring him before a Kenyan court.
Purkiss appeared in court on Friday, saying he did not consent to being extradited, the Press Association news agency reported.
The judge rejected his application for bail and ordered him to appear before the court again on November 14.