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BREAKING
Sheikh Qassem: Our supporters make up more than half of Lebanon's population, and all of these people are united under the banner of protecting Lebanon, its Resistance, its people, and its integrity.
Sheikh Qassem: There will be no phased handing in of our arms. [The Israelis] must first enact the agreement before we start talking about a defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: Be brave in the face of foreign pressures, and we will be by your side in this stance.
Sheikh Qassem: Stripping us of our arms is like stripping us of our very soul, and this will prompt us to show them our might.
Sheikh Qassem: We will not abandon our arms, for they gave us dignity; we will not abandon our arms, for they protect us against our enemy.
Sheikh Qassem: The US efforts we are seeing are aimed at sabotaging Lebanon and constitute a call for sedition.
Sheikh Qassem: If you truly want to establish sovereignty and work for Lebanon’s interests, then stop the aggression.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States, which is meddling in Lebanon, is not trustworthy but rather poses a danger to it.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States is preventing the weapons that protect the homeland.
Sheikh Qassem: The government’s latest decision [on the disarmament of the Resistance] is non-charter-based, and if the government continues down this path, it is not faithful to Lebanon’s sovereignty.

'Hands off Africa!': Pope Francis decries Western exploitation

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News websites
  • 1 Feb 2023 12:52
  • 3 Shares
2 Min Read

Congo is rich in diamonds, gold, copper, cobalt, tin, tantalum, and lithium. Mining projects, as a result, have produced inhumane conditions for workers, especially children, not to mention environmental massacres.

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  • Pope Francis is welcomed by Congolese citizens upon his arrival (AFP)
    Pope Francis is welcomed by Congolese citizens upon his arrival (AFP)

On his trip to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Tuesday, Pope Francis denounced the West's exploitation of natural resources and "economic colonialism" of Africa.

During his speech in the capital of Kinshasa, he said, "Hands off the Democratic Republic of the Congo! Hands off Africa! Stop choking Africa! It is not a mine to be stripped or a terrain to be plundered," as he condemned the "terrible forms of exploitation, unworthy of humanity" in the Congo.

The pope further described what is currently happening in the DRC a "forgotten genocide", calling the country a "diamond of creation". 

"It is a tragedy that these lands, and more generally the whole African continent, continue to endure various forms of exploitation," he continued, as he demanded foreign powers to recognize their economic "enslavement" of the Congo. 

Congo is rich in diamonds, gold, copper, cobalt, tin, tantalum, and lithium. Mining projects, as a result, have produced inhumane conditions for workers, especially children, and environmental massacres.

Related News

Rwanda's Kagame sworn in for fourth term

Nearly 50 killed in east DR Congo crackdown on anti-UN protest

The world turns a blind eye to Africa when it doesn't need it

On a separate yet related note, the Pope took a jab at wealthy nations for not batting an eye at the tragedies occurring in the African continent.

"One has the impression that the international community has practically resigned itself to the violence devouring it (the Congo). We cannot grow accustomed to the bloodshed that has marked this country for decades, causing millions of deaths," he said.

The DRC has been plagued with violence and conflict for quite some time, especially with the presence of severely armed groups such as the M23. This has led millions of people to flee their homes.

Read more: 10 killed, 39 wounded in church bomb attack by IS group in DR Congo

According to UN statistics, approximately 5.7 million people are displaced in the Congo, and 26 million suffer from hunger as a result. 

 "The poison of greed has smeared its diamonds with blood," the pontiff said, moving on to the West and the rest of the world for the "catastrophic things that were done over the centuries to the detriment of the local peoples".

  • DRCongo
  • DRC
  • economy
  • West
  • Africa
  • Congo
  • Pope Francis

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