Two dead, 5 missing after flash flood at Kenyan park

Yahoo – AFP, September 1, 2019

A view of Kenya's Hell's Gate National park in 2012 (AFP Photo/TONY KARUMBA)

Nairobi (AFP) - Six tourists, including a foreigner, and their guide were swept away Sunday after a flash flood at Kenya's Hell's Gate national park, the Kenya Wildlife Service said, confirming at least two dead.

Two bodies were recovered but the five others remained missing, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said on Twitter, adding that the search and rescue operation would continue through the night.

"It is with deep sorrow that we announce a tragedy in Hell's Gate National Park," it said.

"The victims are five Kenyans, local guide and a non-resident (foreigner)," it added.

The missing were part of a group visiting Hell's Gate -- where the 2003 film "Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life" was shot -- when they were swept away.

Two survivors from the group alerted park rangers, who sent out a search party.

There was no sign of the others, Rift Valley police chief Marcus Ochola told AFP.

A police officer said on condition of anonymity they were missing, "presumed dead", based on witness accounts of two survivors.

The KWS tweeted that a helicopter was due to arrive from Nairobi to help with the search and rescue operation. The gorge had been closed to the public because of heavy rains.

Hell's Gate, named by 19th-century explorers, is around 100 kilometres (60 miles) northwest of the Kenyan capital Nairobi and just south of Lake Naivasha.

Its spectacular scenery inspired the Disney animation "The Lion King".

The park, established in 1984, is also home to three geothermal stations.

Ethiopian churches oppose gay travel company's tour plans

Yahoo – AFP, 3 June 2019

Anti-gay: Ethiopia is one of the majority of countries in Africa where same-sex
relations are illegal

Ethiopia's religious leaders on Monday urged the government to block a US gay travel company from touring the country's ancient sites, and one group warned visiting homosexuals could face violence.

The Chicago-based business, Toto Tours, which describes itself on its website as "the only gay tour company in existence", told AFP it has received death threats since announcing a 16-day trip to Ethiopia, which includes numerous historical religious sites.

Their itinerary has sparked ire in Ethiopia, which like many in Africa is deeply homophobic and has strict anti-gay laws, punishing homosexual acts with up to 15 years in prison.

"Tour programmes and dating programmes that try to use our historical sites and heritage should be immediately stopped by the Ethiopian government and we urge Ethiopians supporting these sinful and evil acts to desist from their acts," Tagay Tadele of the Inter-Religious Council of Ethiopia told journalists.

The council counts seven Islamic and Christian denominations as members.

An influential Ethiopian Orthodox organisation, the Sileste Mihret United Association, also held a press conference Monday to condemn the tour company.

"Homosexuality is hated as well as being illegal in Ethiopia. Toto Tours are wrong to plan to conduct tours in our religious and historical places," the organisation's vice chairman, Dereje Negash, told AFP.

"If Toto Tours comes to Ethiopia where 97 percent of Ethiopians surveyed oppose homosexuality, they will be damaged, they could even die," he said.

Dan Ware, the president of Toto Tours, said the company had been "terribly misunderstood", in an email to AFP.

Map of sub-Saharan Africa showing the 28 countries with anti-homosexuality 

laws, according to Human Rights Watch

"Our company is not aimed at spreading values contrary to local cultures when we travel around the world. We are simply an organization where like-minded people can travel comfortably together to experience the world's most precious wonders.

"We come with only the greatest respect and humility."

He said the tour had been advertised on the company's social media pages and spotted within Ethiopia, leading to "death threats", and called for protection for the tour group from both the US State Department and the Ethiopian tourism ministry.

"This is terrible discrimination, and when the word of this spreads internationally, as it is most likely to do, it will have a negative impact on the important tourism industry in Ethiopia."

He said that by the time the tour takes place in October "the eyes of the entire world will be on the people of Ethiopia to see what happens to us."

Twenty-eight out of 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa have laws penalising same-sex relationships, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Some countries, like Angola, Mozambique and Seychelles, have moved to scrap anti-gay laws.

However Kenya's high court earlier this month refused to do so, in a major blow to gay activists on the continent.

Anti-gay: Ethiopia is one of the majority of countries in Africa where same-sex relations are illegal

Map of sub-Saharan Africa showing the 28 countries with anti-homosexuality laws, according to Human Rights Watch.

Morocco arrests Swiss man over links to hiker murder suspects

Yahoo – AFP, December 29, 2018

The High Atlas mountains, where Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, and 28-year-old
Norwegian Maren Ueland were found dead at an isolated hiking spot on
December 17. (AFP Photo/FADEL SENNA)

Rabat (AFP) - A Swiss man living in Morocco was arrested in Marrakesh on Saturday, for alleged links to suspects in the recent murder of two female Scandinavian hikers, authorities said.

The man is "suspected of teaching some of those arrested in this case about communication tools involving new technology and of training them in marksmanship", Morocco's central office for judicial investigations said in a statement.

The counter-terror organ added he subscribed to "extremist ideology" and also has Spanish citizenship.

The ongoing investigation into the double murder uncovered the man was involved in the "recruitment of Moroccans and sub-Saharans to carry out terrorist plans in Morocco", the statement said.

Danish student Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, and 28-year-old Norwegian Maren Ueland were found dead at an isolated hiking spot in the High Atlas mountains, south of Marrakesh on December 17.

The two women were beheaded, authorities have said.

Ahead of Saturday's arrest, Moroccan authorities had previously arrested 18 people for alleged links to the murders.

The four main suspects were arrested in Marrakesh and belonged to a cell inspired by Islamic State group ideology, Morocco's counter-terror chief Abdelhak Khiam told AFP this week.

But none of the four had contact with IS members in Syria or Iraq, he said.

The head of the suspected cell is 25-year-old street vendor Abdessamad Ejjoud, according to investigators.

He was identified in a video filmed a week before the double-murder, in which the four main suspects pledged allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, according to authorities.

The killings have shaken Norway, Denmark and Morocco. Another video circulated on social networks allegedly showed the murder of one of the tourists.

Morocco, which relies heavily on tourism income, suffered a jihadist attack in 2011, when a bomb blast at a cafe in Marrakesh's famed Jamaa El Fna Square killed 17 people, mostly European tourists.

An attack in the North African state's financial capital Casablanca killed 33 people in 2003.

Moroccans pay homage to slain Scandinavian hikers

Yahoo – AFP, December 22, 2018

A Moroccan girl places a flower during a vigil for the two Scandinavian hikers,
who were killed in Morocco's High Atlas mountains, outside the Danish Embassy
in Rabat on December 22, 2018 (AFP Photo/FADEL SENNA)

Rabat (AFP) - Crowds of Moroccans gathered Saturday to mourn two Scandinavian hikers brutally murdered by suspected jihadists in the High Atlas mountains.

Hundreds of people paid tribute to Danish student Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, and 28-year-old Norwegian Maren Ueland outside the embassies of their homelands in the capital Rabat.

Signs laid out or put by those gathered read "RIP Maren and Louisa", "Terrorism has no religion or nationality" and "Sorry".

A minute of silence was held in the presence of diplomats from Denmark and Norway.

In the southern village of Imlil, near where the bodies of the two hikers were found, hundreds of people paid their respects, while dozens more laid flowers and lit candles in tourist hub city Marrakesh.

A Moroccan man places a candle during a vigil for the two Scandinavian hikers, 

who were killed in Morocco's High Atlas mountains, outside the Danish Embassy

in Rabat on December 22, 2018 (AFP Photo/FADEL SENNA)

The grisly killings have shaken Morocco, where tourism is a cornerstone of the economy.

The bodies of the two women were found Monday after they had pitched their tent at an isolated mountain site around two hours' walk from Imlil.

One of them was beheaded, according to a source close to the investigation.

Thirteen people have been detained across the country in connection with the killings, which the authorities have classified as a "terrorist act".

The Danish and Norwegian ambassadors to Morocco have thanked the public and authorities in the country for their support and messages of condolence.

Hotspots, not trouble spots: Africa seeks tourism boom

Yahoo – AFP, Gregory WALTON, September 19, 2018

Tanzania's Zanzibar has become a magnet for tourists in the past decade (AFP 

Photo/GULSHAN KHAN)

Cape Town (AFP) - Africa draws just five percent of the world's tourists despite boasting attractions ranging from the Pyramids and Victoria Falls to wildlife safaris and endless strips of pristine beach.

But the continent's huge potential can be unlocked by eco tourism, cultural experiences, domestic travel and political stability, said experts at an African tourism conference hosted by Airbnb in Cape Town last week.

"When you look at the success stories, it's those countries who've embraced trends," said the African Tourism Association's (ATA) managing director Naledi Khabo who spoke at the summit.

"When you look at some countries which have made sustainability a focal point, like Tanzania, or Rwanda, they're very attractive for certain travellers."

Eco-friendly safaris and carbon-neutral lodging draw increasing numbers of tourists from Europe and North America.

The number of tourists visiting Tanzania has more than doubled since 2006 to above one million contributing 14 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), according to Tanzania Invest.

Tourism is now the second largest driver of growth in Kenya, home to some of the
world's most visited safaris (AFP Photo/ROBERTO SCHMIDT)

Khabo, who speaks for the African tourism sector, said other success stories included South Africa, "which is promoting the diversification of their products beyond the safari".

South Africa has witnessed a boom of experience-based tours, taking travellers to disadvantaged township and rural communities as well as wine farms and game lodges.

Abigail Mbalo founded the 4RoomEkasi concept to showcase food and lifestyles in South Africa's black communities to visitors

"We tapped into the development of tourism in rural and township spaces," she said. "We are now starting to see cultural inclusivity. Those areas have been untapped."

'A safe place to travel'?

Tourism is a major employer of poor black South Africans and accounts for nearly 700,000 jobs -- a rare success story in a country with an unemployment rate of almost 27 percent.

The World Bank, which spoke at the tourism summit, praised the emerging trend for community-based travel projects like Mbalo's for creating opportunities for women and young people.

Cultural tourism is becoming more of a trend across Africa (AFP Photo/

ANDREW KASUKU)

"Every new business, destination, route or visitor creates opportunity for local people," said the World Bank in a statement.

While many African destinations have courted foreign visitors' hard currency, Kenya has invested heavily in promoting "staycations".

The country moved to promote domestic travel after dips in foreign arrivals following violent unrest and criminal attacks in recent years.

"We have managed to develop the domestic market. Twenty-one percent of Airbnb occupancy is domestic market. It's benefiting us," said Kenya's Tourism Minister Najib Balala at the conference.

Tourism, now the second largest driver of Kenya's GDP growth, was worth $1.2 billion in 2017.

But many countries on the continent have struggled to woo foreign visitors fearful of political instability and violence.

"The biggest challenge is perception," said Khabo. "Sometimes there is a real threat and sometimes it's just perceived."

Adventure tourists keen to see gorillas up close are flocking to Rwanda (AFP 

Photo/Ivan Lieman)

Rwanda's transformation

Rwanda is one country that has successfully transformed its global image. The small east African nation was torn apart by a genocide in 1994 but has since established itself as a high-end destination.

"Tourism is the number one foreign exchange earner, which is amazing to see in a country like Rwanda," said Rosette Rugamba who was appointed by President Paul Kagame as head of Rwanda Tourism from 2003 to 2010.

"It is a huge contributor to the image-building of our country."

Zimbabwe, which is home to some of Africa's best game and Victoria Falls, has enjoyed a boost in visitor numbers since long-serving despot Robert Mugabe resigned in November.

While the number of foreign visitors to Victoria Falls jumped nearly 50 percent in the first quarter of this year, the country still operates far below its tourist potential.

"The onus is on African governments and tourism boards to be more proactive in addressing perceptions," added Khabo.

Visitor numbers to Egypt plunged after the 2011 revolt (AFP Photo/FETHI BELAID)

One African country that has seen its tourism industry squeezed is Egypt, once a magnet for travellers that has since the 2011 revolt seen visitor numbers plummet, despite the huge draw of the Pyramids and the Red Sea.

Another is the Democratic Republic of Congo, which for years has been riven with often deadly political and ethnic unrest.

"There's an enormous amount the DRC has to offer" including gorillas, pristine national parks, and smouldering volcanoes, said tourism author Anita Mendiratta, who spoke at the conference.

"That's limited now because of the safety and security."