IRAQ/U.S. & UGANDA

The withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq left thousands of mercenaries from Uganda and Angola out of work. Now many of them are trading in their Pentagon paychecks for ones from the U.S. State Department. The withdrawal is a boon for the private security industry, whose mercenary-employees will likely undertake more quasi-military functions such as defusing explosives and providing armed response teams, plus guard the U.S. State Department establishments and responsibilities in Iraq. The U.S. has long outsourced the Iraq occupation to troops from Uganda and Angola. According to sources, Ugandan servicemen serving private military companies in Iraq have a good reputation, their command of English offers an advantage over Asian and other competitors. However in this billion-dollar industry, Ugandan and Angolan salaries are about $700 a month on average, far less than the $15,000 that Western recruits are paid but 20 times the average income in Uganda or Angola. The U.S. spent $10 billion on private security contractors, according to the U.S. Congressional Budget Office in the first four years of the Iraq occupation; with one private company, Triple Canopy under a five year State Department contract with three more years to go and worth $977 million to protect U.S. diplomats in Iraq.

TUNISIA

Tunisia's new President Moncef Marzouki has been sworn in as the nation turned a new page nearly a year after the uprising that toppled Zine el Abidine Ben Ali in the first of the so-called "Arab Spring" revolutions. "I will be the guarantor of the national interests, the state of laws and institutions. I will be faithful to the martyrs and to the objectives of the revolution," Marzouki said as he took the oath of office with his hand on the Quran. Wearing a burnous, a long traditional woolen clock, he solemnly promised to be President of all Tunisians and to do everything he could to improve the living standard of his compatriots. He paid homage to those who died during the uprising a year ago. "Without their sacrifice, I wouldn’t be here in this place," the former activist said with tears in his eyes. "It was a historic moment that Tunisians will remember for generations to come," he said. The new President outlined a blueprint of the government and political institutions, adding: "We're committed to democracy and we're going to help our friends in Syria and Yemen," our correspondent reported.

SOUTH AFRICA

China has executed a South African woman for drug smuggling, rejecting an appeal by President Jacob Zuma to spare her life. Janice Bronwyn Linden, 38, was executed more than three years after her arrest. South Africa's government said the execution would not affect its close diplomatic relations with China. Ms Linden was arrested in November 2008 after being found in possession of 3 kilos of methamphetamine on her arrival at the airport in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou. She maintained her innocence, saying the drugs had been planted in her suitcase. However, both the Guangdong High Court and the Supreme Court in Beijing rejected her appeal. A spokesman for South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Clayson Monyela, reported that Mr. Zuma had intervened in a bid to commute the death sentence to a life sentence. "All the necessary interventions were done at every possible level, even the highest ones," Mr. Monyela said. The Chinese authorities will hand her ashes to her family, following her cremation, in accordance with an arrangement made between the two states, he said.

ISRAEL/AFRICA

Israel's government has approved a $167m plan to stem the flow of African migrants who cross into the country through its porous border with Egypt. Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel's Prime Minister said he would make a trip to Africa where he will discuss the repatriation of migrants. Israeli sources said he was likely to travel to Kenya, Uganda and possibly South Sudan in February 2012. The Israeli government puts the number of African illegal workers at more than 52,000. Activists however accuse the government of misrepresenting, they say, these are legitimate asylum seekers. Netanyahu said the overwhelming majority of infiltrators are not refugees escaping persecution, but instead have come to Israel seeking better economic opportunities. Most of the migrants come from Eritrea and Sudan, and cross into Israel through Egypt's Sinai desert. Israel is building a fence along its frontier with Egypt to block the migrants. The government has also announced the construction of detention facilities to hold migrants.

SENEGAL

Abdoulaye Wade, Senegal's 85-year-old President, has accepted his party's nomination to run for a third term in next year's presidential election, a day after one person died in clashes between his supporters and protesters opposed to his candidacy. Local media reported the deadly shot may have been fired by the main opposition Socialist Party's youth wing leader in response to an attack by thugs hired by the ruling party. President Wade, first elected into office in 2000, accepted the nomination at a special meeting of delegates of his ruling Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS) in Dakar.

DRC/USA

The U.S. State Department issued a following statement regarding the DRC elections: “Based on the observations of the teams fielded by the U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa, the views shared by other diplomatic missions, and organizations such as The Carter Center, we believe that the management and technical execution of these elections were seriously flawed, lacked transparency and did not measure up to the democratic gains we have seen in recent African elections. It is not clear, however, whether the irregularities were sufficient to change the outcome of the election… We believe that a rapid technical review of the electoral process by the Congolese authorities may determine ways to provide more credible results, shed light on whether irregularities were caused by lack of organization or fraud, and provide guidance for future elections. The United States stands ready to provide technical assistance for such a review.”