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Georgia Election Racketeering Case: Donald Trump Set To Be Arrested

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Donald Trump is to surrender on racketeering charges and likely have his mugshot taken at a Georgia jail on Thursday, setting the stage for a fourth criminal trial next year as he bids to reclaim the White House.

The 77-year-old former president will be arrested at Atlanta’s notorious Fulton County Jail, accused of conspiring with 18 codefendants to try to overturn the 2020 election result in the key southern state.

The booking of the billionaire real estate tycoon in his fourth and final indictment sets up a year of unprecedented courtroom drama as he tries to balance appearing in the dock with hitting the campaign trail.

The arrest comes just hours after Trump spurned a televised primary debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin featuring eight of his rivals for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination — all of whom lag well behind him in the polls.

He managed to steal the spotlight though as the focus of questions, with all but two of the candidates saying they would support Trump as the party’s nominee even if he were convicted in any of the cases.

During a rambling pre-recorded interview with former Fox News talk show host Tucker Carlson — which aired on X, formerly known as Twitter, at the same time as the debate — Trump dismissed the four criminal indictments filed against him as “nonsense.”

He said the Justice Department had been “weaponized” under Democratic President Joe Biden to hamstring his White House bid.

A tight security perimeter has been set up ahead of Trump’s arrival at the Fulton County Jail, an overcrowded facility that is under investigation by the Justice Department for a slew of inmate deaths and deplorable living conditions.

Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who brought the sweeping racketeering case, set a deadline of noon (1600 GMT) on Friday for the 19 defendants to surrender.

‘Proudly Be Arrested’

An exact time has not been given for Trump’s arrival, but the former president said in a post on his Truth Social platform it would be Thursday afternoon.

“NOBODY HAS EVER FOUGHT FOR ELECTION INTEGRITY LIKE PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP,” he posted, using all uppercase letters, adding he will “PROUDLY BE ARRESTED.”

Trump was able to dodge the humiliation of having a mugshot taken during his previous arrests this year: in New York on charges of paying hush money to a porn star, in Florida for mishandling top secret government documents, and in Washington on charges of conspiring to upend his 2020 election loss.

But Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said standard procedure in Georgia is for a defendant to have a mugshot taken before they are released on bond — already set at $200,000 in Trump’s case.

Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, who served as Trump’s personal lawyer when he was in the White House and vigorously pushed the false claims that Trump had won the 2020 election, was booked in the case on Wednesday.

Also facing charges in Georgia are Mark Meadows, Trump’s White House chief of staff, and John Eastman, a conservative lawyer who is accused of drawing up a scheme to submit a false slate of Trump electors to Congress from Georgia instead of the legitimate Biden ones.

Trump is the first US president in history to face criminal charges. The four trials will come during the Republican primary season, which begins in January, and at the height of the campaign for the November 2024 presidential vote.

Special counsel Jack Smith has proposed a January 2024 start date for Trump’s trial in Washington on charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, a campaign of lies that culminated in the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by his supporters.

Trump’s attorneys have countered with an April 2026 start date — well after the 2024 election.

Georgia prosecutors want the racketeering case to begin in March 2024, the same month Trump is scheduled to go on trial in New York on charges of paying hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election.

The Florida case, in which Trump is accused of taking secret government documents as he left the White House and refusing to return them, is scheduled to begin in May.

AFP

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International

Legendary conservationist, Jane Goodall, dies at 91

Despite challenges in the rugged landscapes of Gombe National Park, she pursued her dream of living among and studying wildlife.

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•Dr. Jane Goodall

Dr Jane Goodall, the world-renowned primatologist, anthropologist, and conservationist, has died at the age of 91.

Jane Goodall Institute confirmed her death on Wednesday, stating that she died of natural causes in California while on a speaking tour of the United States.

Goodall’s groundbreaking research on chimpanzees transformed the scientific understanding of humanity’s closest relatives in the animal kingdom.

Beginning her studies in Tanzania at just 26 years old, she documented chimpanzees’ ability to display human-like behaviors such as affection, tool-making, and even conflict, findings that revolutionized ethology and earned her global recognition.

In her reflection on her early discoveries, Goodall once told ABC News: “Their behavior, with their gestures, kissing, embracing, holding hands and patting on the back … the fact that they can actually be violent and brutal … but also loving and altruistic.”

Her fascination with animals dated back to childhood, inspired by books like Doctor Dolittle and Tarzan.

Despite challenges in the rugged landscapes of Gombe National Park, she pursued her dream of living among and studying wildlife.

Her doctoral thesis at the University of Cambridge detailed her first five years of observations.

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Deported Nigerian Claims Ghanaian Officials Abandoned Him in Togo

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A Nigerian man deported from the United States to Ghana has alleged that he is now stranded in Togo after Ghanaian authorities secretly transferred him and five others across the border without informing Togolese officials.

According to on Wednesday, the man, who spoke anonymously, said he was initially held at a military camp in Ghana after being deported last month along with other West African nationals. He claims Ghanaian officials promised to relocate them to better accommodation but instead covertly transported them into neighbouring Togo via a back route.

“They did not take us through the main border; they took us through the back door. They paid the police there and dropped us in Togo,” he said.

The group, which includes three Nigerians, a Liberian, and others, is now sheltering in a hotel in Lomé, the Togolese capital. None of them have valid documentation, and they are relying on hotel staff to help receive financial aid from relatives abroad.

“We’re struggling to survive in Togo without any documentation,” the man told the BBC. “None of us has family here. We’re just stuck.”

He said life in the Ghanaian military camp was “deplorable,” citing poor water, lack of medical care, and harsh conditions. After complaints to authorities, the group was told they would be moved to a hotel. Instead, they were driven to the Togo border and allegedly coerced under false pretenses.

“When we arrived [at the border], we asked what we were doing there. They told us we needed to sign some paperwork to go to a hotel. We didn’t sign anything,” he said.

The man also shared the personal toll of his deportation. “I have a house in the US where my kids live. How am I supposed to pay the mortgage? My kids can’t see me. It’s just so stressful.”

He is reportedly a member of the Yoruba Self-Determination Movement, an organisation campaigning for an independent Yoruba nation in south-west Nigeria. He fears persecution if forced to return to Nigeria and claims he had court-ordered protection in the US, which should have prevented his deportation. The US government has not publicly addressed this claim.

The deportee was part of a larger group of West Africans — including citizens of Liberia, The Gambia, and Togo — who were flown from US detention facilities to Ghana last month. Human rights lawyers representing the group have filed legal action against both the US and Ghana, citing violations of international protection and due process.

Ghanaian officials, including Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, have defended their decision, saying Ghana accepted the deportees based on “pan-African empathy” and denied receiving any financial compensation.

However, the deal — announced by President John Mahama — has drawn criticism from opposition lawmakers, who are now calling for its suspension until it is properly reviewed and ratified by parliament. Despite the controversy, the government is reportedly preparing to receive an additional 40 deportees.

As the legal battle unfolds and diplomatic pressure mounts, the fate of the stranded deportees in Togo remains uncertain.

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Seychelles presidential vote going to runoff, electoral commission says

Herminie, head of the United Seychelles (US) party, secured 48.8% of the vote, while Ramkalawan, of the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS), followed closely with 46.4%, the electoral commission said.

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•Image : (Up) Seychelles opposition leader of the United Seychelles (US) party Patrick Herminie; and the incumbent President Wavel Ramkalawan of the LDS party

The Seychelles presidential election will go to a runoff between opposition leader Patrick Herminie and incumbent President Wavel Ramkalawan after no clear winner emerged in the first round of voting, the electoral commission said on Sunday.

Ramkalawan had been looking to block a comeback by the party that previously dominated politics for four decades in Africa’s wealthiest country per capita.

The western Indian Ocean archipelago is a magnet for investment and security cooperation with China, Gulf nations and India.

Herminie, head of the United Seychelles (US) party, secured 48.8% of the vote, while Ramkalawan, of the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS), followed closely with 46.4%, the electoral commission said.

Neither candidate surpassed the 50% threshold required for an outright victory in the first round.

The US party also made significant gains in the National Assembly, winning 15 constituency seats and an additional four seats through proportional representation, giving it a clear parliamentary majority.

(Reuters).

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