Michel Kafando 72, The new interim President of Burkina Faso

72-Year-Old Kafando previously served as Burkina Faso's ambassador to the United Nations and was once the nation’s foreign minister.
Following negotiations between political and military leaders in Burkina Faso, a former diplomat, Michel Kafando has been chosen as the country's interim president.
72-Year-Old Kafando previously served as Burkina Faso's ambassador to the United Nations and was once the nation’s foreign minister.
He was appointed after the signing of a charter which specified the details of the year-long transition which would precede the conduct of democratic elections in the country.
Kafando was appointed after negotiations by a special panel which consisted of religious, military, political, civil and traditional leaders.
The interim president will not be eligible to contest in the elections which will be held next year.
Burkina Faso’s former President, Blaise Compaore was forced to step down on October 31 after an attempt to extend his 27-year tenure led to unrest and a military takeover.

I’ll Not Succumb to consensus Candidate - Atiku

Former Vice president and a presidential aspirant of All Progressive congress (APC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has ruled out the possibility of determining the party’s presidential flag bearer by consensus.
Atiku told newsmen in Bauchi on Sunday that it was ‘too late’ to select a candidate among the aspirants, by consensus.
“It is too late for the party to think of holding a consensus forum for its presidential aspirants but rather, it should conduct a delegate conference where we will fight it out,” said Abubakar.
According to him, it is one of the tenets of best practices in democracy for candidates to be allowed to test their popularity.
Commenting on his relationship with the former president of the country, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Abubakar said that they related very well.
“In spite of my disagreement with Obasanjo on political ground, there is personal cordial relationship between us; I visited him last week at his Ota Farm,” he said.

2014 Meteor Shower: Where To View Leonid Meteor Shower Peak Online On November 18

Skywatchers can observe the 2014 Leonid meteor shower either on a dark and remote location or indoors during its peak on Tuesday, Nov. 18. Weather disturbances or light pollution can hinder the meteor shower peak but the viewers can still experience the sky display through two online viewing courtesy of NASA and Slooh.

According to a Space.com report, there will be two free Webcasts starting on Monday night, Nov. 17, coming from the Slooh Community Observatory and NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). The Slooh Space Camera will begin their live-stream on the 2014 Leonid meteor shower at 8 p.m. EST (0100 GMT) with feature views of the dark sky from the observatory telescopes in the Canary Islands as well as in Prescott, Arizona.

The NASA Webcast is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. EST (0030 GMT) with a telescope view of the meteor shower display coming from the space agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. The 2014 Leonid meteor shower Webcasts courtesy of NASA and Slooh can also be watched on Space.com.

However, the Leonid meteor shower peak is expected to be a weak display due to low activity this 2014. "We're predicting 10 to 15 meteors per hour," Dr. Bill Cooke of the Meteoroid Environment Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center declared in a written statement.

To best view the meteor shower display, the NASA expert suggested that sky watchers should wait until after midnight on Tuesday, Nov. 18, since the peak of the Leonid meteor shower is set to take place just before dawn. The moon will be rising at about 2:40 a.m. local time but its diminishing crescent will not hamper the meteor shower peak viewing experience.

Jim Todd, planetarium manager at Portland's OMSI,

"The good news is that, this year, the waning crescent moon won't substantially interfere on the peak, but the less good news is that the meteor shower is much weaker than around the turn of the millennium and perhaps only a dozen meteors will be seen per hour," Jim Todd, the planetarium manager at Portland's OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry), shared in a BeachConnection.net report.

For outdoor viewing of the 2014 Leonid meteor shower, sky watchers are recommended to lie down on their back, look up at the dark sky and have patience while waiting for the display to appear. The chances of observing a meteor streaking across the sky will be reduced due to local light pollution or other obstructions such as tall trees or buildings so viewers are suggested to find a location far away from bright city lights or urban areas.

OBJ is Nigeria’s problem — Bakare

Latter Rain Assembly in Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, on Sunday, said former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, would be told some home truth in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

Bakare said this was necessary before the nation collapses on him (OBJ), accusing him of being responsible for the numerous problems Nigeria is passing through now.

The cleric, who spoke about the lofty dreams of the country’s founding fathers, as well as his growing up and personal dreams for same Nigeria, but which had become unattainable due to antics of some cabals, strongly canvassed that a transition arrangement be put in place, stressing that holding election in 2015 was not feasible because of Boko Haram insurgency.

Bakare said this while speaking with newsmen, shortly after delivering a speech, entitled: “The Nigeria of My Dream” at a well attended church service to celebrate his 60th birthday.

Former governor of Ogun State, Chief Gbenga Daniel, was among the dignitaries that attended the service, which took place at the Latter Rain Assembly in Ogba, Lagos.

The pastor, who said he would be a keynote speaker at the 176th anniversary of International Student Day, courtesy of Ogun State government, said: “He who wants to hear, let him hear. I am going to drum what needs to be drummed. I think Obasanjo needs to hear some things before the house collapses on him, because he is responsible for the problems we face now.”

The event, holding at the Cultural Centre, is expected to be attended by dignitaries, including the former head of state, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari, who is also a presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC); Professor Pat Utomi, among others.

Speaking further, Pastor Bakare, who is also the convener of Save Nigeria Group (SNG), while expressing fears about the possibility of holding 2015 general election, contended that it was better that the country took care of 2014 before talking about 2015.

According to him, there is no wisdom holding an election without dealing with the fundamental problems of the country, suggesting that what should be of concern now should be how to put in place a transition government, with a mandate of a maximum of two years, during which it would address the problems confronting the country currently.

Bakare, who insisted that the current security challenges in the country did not support holding a nationwide poll in 2015, declared that “it appears we are putting the cart before the horse. With the situation in the country, I do not think our primary concern should be 2015 elections.

“But you cannot win with politicians. If you ask this government to please gather people around and let us have an interim arrangement, they would be shouting elongation. If we go to elections, there would be trouble. So, I think some people who are capable and have integrity and character may have to be summoned to say, let us sit down and think of the way forward

“We need a transition government and the time frame should be two years, maximum. We need it like yesterday and believe me, there would be foreign power that would help us also, because we have gone outside the shore of this country also to talk to people who know the real clear present danger that face us.

“We need it like yesterday, but you can’t force your will upon people. He who has ear to hear, let him hear and if he doesn’t hear, a constitution that would not bend will break,” he said.

On the controversy trailing the 2015 presidency, Bakare insisted that no part of the nation had the right to say it was its turn to rule the country perpetually, declaring that none was a servant to the other.

“Nothing stops us from having six Dubai in the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria if we have thinkers; if we have men who know how to think through and who can pre-engineer the whole process in a short while.

“Dubai, once upon a time came, to Nigeria to borrow money. Once upon a time for three years, we paid the whole civil service fee of Trinidad and Tobago. There would be no Angola today if Nigeria did not sow a seed of $30 million.

“We have made other people rule and now I challenge the people today to rise up. Let the best, the brightest, the fittest and the most competent accept responsibility and let’s put the thinkers into power,” he counselled.

Addressing the issue of Boko Haram insurgency and the inability of the military to curtail the menace, Bakare said “we have wasted resources and everyone that have been in charge of past budgets must be held accountable.”

A female Suicide bomber kills at least 12 in a Nigerian phone market

A female suicide bomber blew herself up on Sunday, killing at least a dozen people in a cellphone market in Azare, a town in Nigeria's Bauchi State where a similar attack at a bank last week killed seven, witnesses said.

No one claimed immediate responsibility for Sunday's blast, but Boko Haram, which has waged a bloody five-year campaign to establish an Islamic state in northern Nigeria, is suspected of having carried out a wave of attacks this week.

The group has also seized two towns and occupied a third in the country's northeast region since it rejected a ceasefire announced last month by the government.

"I was near the market when I heard a loud sound inside. After a while we rushed to the scene of the blast. I saw lots of people in the ground and blood all over the place," said local resident Ibrahim Ahmed, adding that he had counted at least 12 bodies.

"The severed head of the female suicide bomber was later found, and a crowd of boys took it to the front of the Emir's palace and set it on fire," he said. An official at the town's hospital said six bodies were brought in and four other people had later died there of their injuries.

Another witness at the market, Shehu Aminu, said: "I got to the scene immediately after the blast. I saw about 20 bodies just lying in blood. Only one person I noticed that was moving."

The state's government and police officials were not immediately available to comment.

At least seven people were killed on Nov. 7 by a blast outside a branch of the First Bank of Nigeria in Azare. Police said at the time that they believed a female suicide bomber was responsible for the explosion.

Azare is about 100-km (60 miles) west of Potiskum, where a suicide bomber blew himself at a school in Monday, killing 48.

Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan, who is seeking a second term in a February 2015 election, has vowed to defeat the Islamist militants, who are seen as the biggest security threat to Africa's largest economy and top oil producing nation.

Boko Haram, whose name means "Western education is sinful", has attacked schools, abducted hundreds of students and killed thousands in its fight for an Islamist state.

Putin says he left G20 early because of 'need to sleep'

Tony Abbott and Vladimir Putin hold koalas at the summit

US President Barack Obama has warned Russia risks deeper isolation from the global community unless it takes a different path on Ukraine.

He was speaking at the end of a tense G20 summit.

Mr Obama said if Russian President Vladimir Putin "continues down the path that he is on, violating international law, providing heavy arms to the separatists in Ukraine.... then the isolation that Russia is currently experiencing will continue".

Mr Putin left Australia early today after a difficult summit, saying he left slightly early because he needed to get some sleep.

Mr Putin left before the final communiqué from the weekend talks was issued, but attended the annual forum's wrap-up lunch and praised the "constructive" discussions.

Speaking at a news conference just before flying out of Brisbane, he thanked Tony Abbott for hosting the event.

The Australian Prime Minister had threatened to confront him over the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 over Ukraine in July.

Mr Putin added in comments reported by the RIA Novosti news agency that the decision to leave Brisbane early had nothing to do with tensions over Ukraine.

Instead, he wanted to catch up on some sleep ahead of a full day's work in Russia tomorrow.

"We need nine hours to fly from here to Vladivostok and another nine hours from Vladivostok to Moscow," he said.

"Then we need to get home and return to work on Monday. There's a need to sleep at least four to five hours."

Brazil 'cannibal trio' sentenced

A judge in north-eastern Brazil has sentenced three people to 20-23 years in jail after they were convicted of killing a woman and eating her.

Jorge Beltrao Negromonte da Silveira received 23 years while his wife, Isabel Cristina Pires, and his mistress, Bruna Cristina Oliveira da Silva, were sentenced to 20 years.

The trio allegedly sold pastries made from the woman's flesh to neighbours.

They also confessed to killing two more women and will be sentenced later.

The defendants' lawyers said they would appeal against Friday's sentences.

The three, arrested in the city of Garanhuns in April 2012, were convicted of murder, desecration and concealment of a body.

'Purification ritual'

Local media named the victim as Jessica Camila da Silva, who was homeless and was no relation to Bruna Cristina Oliveira da Silva.

The group allegedly lured their victims to their house by saying they were looking for a nanny.

The trio admitted in court to killing and eating their victim as part of a purification ritual. But they denied allegations that they consumed and sold the flesh in "empada" pastries.

Human remains were found in the back garden of the house the three shared.

Police also found a 50-page book written by Mr Negromonte called Revelations of a Schizophrenic. In the document he claimed he heard voices and was fixated by killing women.

At the time of their arrest, the trio claimed to be part of a group that supported "the purification of the world and the reduction of its population".