Dr. Tsegai Medin, head of Research and Ancient Heritage at the Commission of Culture and Sports, announced the discovery of a petrified tree in Adi-Kinzinab, located in the Adi-Quala sub-zone. Dr. Tsegai highlighted that this discovery is part of broader ecosystem findings across the country and might provide evidence of the migration of large mammals that occurred 27 million years ago, prior to the formation of the Red Sea.

Dr. Tsegai further explained that this new find could be contemporary with the remains of the elephant family discovered at Kuda-Felasi in 2008, which offers insights into the area’s ancient environmental structure. He added that further research on the petrified tree will be conducted in cooperation with various partners, and an official report will be released in due time.

Mr. Teklit Gebrezgiabier, Head of Culture and Sports in the Southern Region, urged relevant institutions to protect this significant site as it might contain other valuable ancient remains.

In related news, ancient ceramics, metal ornaments, and what appear to be human bones have been unearthed at Egri-Mekel, where a new dam is currently under construction.

Adi-Kinzinab is situated 8 kilometers east of Adi-Quala, and Egri-Mekel is 5 kilometers south of Mendefera.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.

Eritrean athlete Nazareth Woldu, who holds the national record for marathons, triumphed at the 41st Vienna Marathon, which took place on April 21st. Nazareth completed the race in 2 hours, 24 minutes, and 8 seconds, outpacing her nearest competitor, a Kenyan athlete, by 2 minutes and 14 seconds.

This victory has also earned Nazareth a spot at the upcoming Paris Olympics, scheduled for July this year.

In related news, another Eritrean athlete, Henok Tesfai, achieved sixth place at the London Marathon, held on the same day in London.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.

Two years ago, London announced the Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP), now referred to as the UK-Rwanda Asylum Partnership, which stated that asylum seekers in the UK would be sent to Rwanda before their cases could be heard.

The national Rwandan asylum system would then consider their need for international protection. 

In November 2023, the UK Supreme Court said the policy was unlawful due to safety concerns in Rwanda. In response, the UK and Rwanda created the new bill, declaring Rwanda a safe country, among other stipulations.

Risk of refoulement 

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is working on having the bill passed and recently said that the first flight transporting asylum seekers is set to leave in 10 to 12 weeks, around July, according to international media reports.

However, the UN Special Rapporteurs warned that removing asylum seekers to Rwanda, or anywhere else, could put airlines and aviation authorities at risk of refoulement – the forced return of refugees or asylum seekers to a country where they may face persecution, torture or other serious harm – “which would violate the right to be free from torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”. 

The experts said that “even if the UK-Rwanda agreement and the Safety of Rwanda bill are approved, airlines and aviation regulators could be complicit in violating internationally protected human rights and court orders by facilitating removals to Rwanda.” 

They added that airlines should be held responsible if they assist in the removal of asylum seekers from the UK.

The UN experts have been in contact with the UK Government and national, European and international aviation regulators to remind them of their responsibilities, including under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. 

The UN Human Rights Council appoints Special Rapporteurs to monitor and report on global situations and issues. They serve in their individual capacity, are not UN staff, are independent of any government or organization and are not compensated for their work. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN News.

The Minister of Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa will today, 23 April 2024, visit Medupi and Matimba power stations in Lephalale. 

The visit will commence at Medupi power station where the Minister will inspect progress on the installation of a second hand Stator which was procured from the Netherlands to  refurbished unit 4 which was damaged by an explosion in 2021. 

The visit to Mepudi will immediately be followed by a programme at Matimba power station.

Matimba continues to perform below its planned outputs, and the visit is intended to engage management on a more aggressive approach to improving the stations performance.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Presidency of the Republic of South Africa.