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Tanzania’s new president, Samia Suluhu Hassan, is sworn in Friday at a ceremony at State House in Dar es Salaam. More photos at arkansasonline.com/320tanzania/.
(AP)
Tanzania’s new president, Samia Suluhu Hassan, is sworn in Friday at a ceremony at State House in Dar es Salaam. More photos at arkansasonline.com/320tanzania/. (AP)

Tanzania swears in 1st female president

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania -- Samia Suluhu Hassan, 61, made history Friday when she was sworn in as Tanzania's first female president at State House, the government offices in Dar es Salaam, the country's largest city.

Dressed in a hijab and holding up a Quran with her right hand, Hassan took the oath of office, administered by Chief Justice Ibrahim Jumavowing, in which she vowed to uphold the constitution of the East African country.

The inauguration was witnessed by members of the Cabinet and Tanzania's former presidents Ali Hassan Mwinyi, Jakaya Kikwete and Abeid Karume. The former heads of state were the only ones in the room wearing facemasks to protect against covid-19.

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Hassan's inauguration comes two days after she announced the death of President John Magufuli, who had not been seen in public for more than two weeks. Magufuli had denied that covid-19 was a problem in Tanzania, saying that national prayer had eradicated the disease from the country. But weeks before his death, Magufuli acknowledged that the virus was a danger in the country.

Although it was announced that Magufuli died of heart failure, exiled opposition leader Tundu Lissu says the president died of covid-19.

Bosnia denounces Russia NATO warning

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Bosnian officials on Friday denounced a Russian warning that it will take action if the country takes steps toward NATO membership.

The Russian Embassy in Sarajevo had said a day earlier that "in case of practical rapprochement" of Bosnia and NATO, "our country will have to react to this hostile act."

It was not clear from the statement what action Russia might take against Bosnia, which has long proclaimed membership in the Western military alliance and in the European Union a strategic goal.

Zeljko Komsic, the Croat member in Bosnia's tripartite presidency, said Moscow's statement represents "a veiled threat" not only against Bosnia, but also against its Western allies, including the United States.

"It's clearly a geopolitical game which Russia is playing to stop the expansion of NATO in Europe," Komsic said.

Bosnia is part of NATO's Membership Action Plan, an advisory and assistance program designed for countries wishing to join the alliance.

Bosnia, Kosovo and Serbia, a Russian ally, remain the only Western Balkan nations that are not NATO members. Montenegro joined the alliance in 2017 while North Macedonia became a member last year.

Mexican convoy attacked; 13 people die

MEXICO CITY -- Gunmen apparently from a drug gang ambushed a police convoy Thursday in central Mexico, killing eight state police officers and five prosecution investigators in a hail of gunfire, authorities said.

The massacre of the 13 law enforcement officers in the State of Mexico was the country's single biggest slaying of law enforcement since October 2019, when cartel gunmen ambushed and killed 14 state police officers in the neighboring state of Michoacan.

The Thursday ambush sparked a huge search for the killers in a rural, gang-plagued area southwest of Mexico City, which is surrounded on three sides by Mexico State. The dead law enforcement officers worked for the state.

While Mexico State contains suburbs of the capital, it also includes lawless mountain and scrub lands like the one where the attack occurred.

There was no immediate indication as to what gang or cartel the gunmen might have belonged to. Several operate in the area around Coatepec Harinas, where the attack occurred.

Drone strike hits Saudi Arabia oil facility

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- A drone attack struck an oil installation in Saudi Arabia's capital of Riyadh on Friday, the Saudi state-run news agency reported, igniting a blaze at the facility deep in the kingdom's territory.

The dawn attack caused no injuries and it did not disrupt oil supplies, according to the official Saudi Press Agency. The kingdom is facing more frequent airborne assaults as Saudi-led coalition forces battle Iran-backed Houthi rebels across the southern border in Yemen. Most recently, drones struck Ras Tanura, the country's largest crude oil refinery with capacity of 550,000 barrels a day, raising concerns about the expanding capabilities of Saudi Arabia's regional foes.

Details about Friday's attack remained slim, and authorities did not name the impacted facility. Aramco, the kingdom's oil giant, does have a refinery just southeast of Riyadh. That refinery produces gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other products for consumption around the kingdom's capital.

The Saudi statement did not blame the Houthis for Friday's attack. But a few hours earlier, Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yehia Sarie reported the group had fired six drones at an unnamed Aramco facility in Riyadh, in what he described as a "high-accuracy hit." Riyadh lies over 600 miles from Yemen's soil, but the rebels have fired drones and missiles at the Saudi capital before.

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