The Zanzibar Revolution

Tensions seem to have reached a head in the newly independent Sultanate of Zanzibar recently as at 3:00 AM local time on the 12th of January, some 800 poorly armed Zanzibari men stormed the police station at Unguja, overwhelming the poorly trained but better armed Arab Police men with sheer force of numbers. Tension had been steadily rising ever since the beginning of the decolonization plans for Zanzibar had begun, as the Arab parties were able to gerrymander the voting districts in order to ensure the local Africans were disenfranchized, and the Arab elite would remain in control. This was proved in the most recent elections right before independence as the Afro-Shirazi Party despite recieving 53% of the popular vote, but only recieved 13 of the 31 seats in Parliament. This, combinded with funding cuts of schools in black majority areas has lead to a feeling of intense hatred toward the Arab and South Asian population of the small Sultanate by the local Africans.

Four hours later, and the insurgents had stormed into the capital of Zanzibar Town, and a man who only referred to himself as "The Field Marshall" called upon the native blacks to rise against the Imperialists that had taken their homes, and to kill as many Arabs as they possibly could, though he also called for them to refrain from the killing of whites still living in Zanzibar. Vast amounts of looting and murder of the Arab and South Asian land and shop owners occured in the 12 hours of street fighting in the capital. Though deeply afraid by the ensuing riots and insurgency, many of the British nationals who had remained in key government positions until Zanzibarian replacements could be found decided to remain on the island, so as to not make the already chaotic situation even worse. Of special note was Police Commissioner J.M. Sullivan of the Mallindi Police Station, who lead his officers in a fierce defense against the insurgents, only surrendering long into the day after the station ran out of ammunition. Sullivan then lead his entire Police Force out and down the street to commandeer a boat for their escape to British land. Meanwhile, the Americans on the island, unknowing of the orders the insurgents received to not harm any whites, established an evacuation point in the English Club in Zanzibar Town until the USN could reach them. During his travel to the evacuation point, American Diplomat Don Peterson described how he witnessed "a gang of African men storm the house of an Arab, behead him in public with a panga, followed by screams from within his house as his wife and three children were raped and killed, followed by the same scene being repeated at the next house of an Arab, followed by yet another and another" While describing the actions of the insurgents as a genocide upon the Arab and South Asians on the island.

As the day turned into the next, it became clear that the insurgents had succeeded in their revolution, the Sultan of Zanzibar had fled the country on his personal yacht, the enigmatic "Field Marshall" had been revealed as John Okello, a Ugandan born African who claims that God had ordered him to free the people of Zanzibar and establish a Revolutionary State, he quickly set about doing just that, creating the Revolutionary Council and inviting the Afro-Shirazi Party and the outlawed far left Umma Party to take part in it. Okello was named the leader of the ASP, with the former leader becoming President of the Council, and the leader of the Umma party becoming Minister of External Affairs. Many in the west feared that with the inclusion of the Umma Party the newly declared "People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba" would slip into the Soviet sphere of influence. It would seem that this was not to be however, as President Karume quickly began taking many pragmatic actions, sidelining and disarming Okello and his followers, and established a union with the nearby nation of Tanganyika, forming the new Republic of Tanzania. It remains to be seen if these two can strengthen the bonds of their Union, or if it will break under some future strain.

A Shot in the Mountains

On the 6th of April, the Prime Minister of Bhutan, and Brother-In-Law of the Dragon King, Jigme Palden Dorji was suddenly shot and killed while on a trip to the border of Bhutan and India. It is believed that the Prime Minister was assassinated for his key role in modernizing Bhutan along with his brother in law, and the Dragon King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck is personally investigating the death, and all eyes are focused on the conservative Royal Bhutan Army who were guarding the PM.

A Moroccan in Moscow

A minor diplomatic incident has occured in the Soviet capital of Moscow as around 50 Moroccan students have broken into, and engaged in a sit in the Moroccan Embassy, supposedly over the wrongful death sentence given to 11 men for the attempted assassination of King Hassan II. The embassy authorities have officially requested the Soviet authorities to ignore the extraterritoriality of the embassy and storm inside to remove the students by force. How the Soviets respond however, is still up in the air.

This is America

There has been many events occuring in the American Republic, both legally, such as the cases "Coolidge v New Hampshire" and "'Wesberry v Sanders", as well as culturally with Cassius Clay becoming the Heavy Weight Champion of the World and thereafter changing his name to Muhammad Ali and the introduction of America to the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show, beginning what would later be called the "British Invasion".

However, things are not all grand in the Republic, in New York City despite preparing for the 1964 World's Fair, many black and Puerto Rican groups, claiming that there is de facto segregation in the city, are boycotting the state's public school system. In addition, in the murder trial of prominent NAACP member Medgar Evers the all white southern jury reported that they could not reach a verdict for the defendant Byron De La Beckwith, resulting in a mistrial. And what would really shake the country up, The Great Alaskan Earthquake occurs, the second strongest earthquake in recorded history, and the strongest to hit the North American continent struck Southcentral Alaska, reaching a magnitude of 9.2 on the richter scale. The quake caused extreme damage to the city of Anchorage and so far death estimates have reached 125 dead and many more injured due not only to the earthquake itself, but the tsunami waves that reached as far south as New Zealand, the largest wave being a 220 ft (67 m) wave that hit Shoup Bay.

The Ole Gabonese Switcharoo

Gabon saw a quick successions of coups following President M'ba's dissolution of the national legislature in late January. Many Gabonese Army officers, seeing the President's actions as bordering on tyrannical, decided to take preemptive action, and late in the night took key positions in the capital, as well as arresting President M'ba and temporarily suspending civil liberties. The Revolutionary Committee declared that a provisional government would be formed, without any members of the M'ba administration being involved, and that Abuame would soon take position as President of the Republic.

Despite the Revolutionary Committee declaring that Gabon would continue it's Pro-French policy, it would seem the de Gualle favored following the 1960 treaty signed between Gabon and France, promising French support for the Gabonese government. Using the air forces and paratroopers already stationed within Gabon, France quickly overran rebel positions, secured the safety of M'ba, and received the surrender of the provisional government with minimal casualties, with one French soldier and 20 Gabonese soldiers perishing in the fighting. President M'ba has quickly moved to arrest any suspected of assisting in the attempted coup, declaring that there will be "No pardon or pity, (only) total punishment" for those involved.