These are the headlines we are tracking for you in this episode of On the News Line:
Trump, Tillerson contradict one another on N Korea
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says Washington has maintained direct channels of communications with North Korea even as there is no let-up in tensions between the two arch-enemies and amid continued bellicose name-calling by their leaders. The US president Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un have traded insults non-stop over the past weeks, each accusing the other of not being level-headed. But Tillerson’s announcement that the White House is looking for a way to sit at the negotiating table with North Korea has made observers confused as to where the US stands with regard to the crisis on the Korean peninsula.
Cameroon unrest result of marginalizing minority
Over a dozen were killed by security forces in Cameroon earlier this week as demonstrators in the country’s English-speaking regions rallied in support of independence. The demonstrations came as a months-old movement against perceived marginalization by the Francophone-dominated government gathered pace. There have been calls for dialog between the government and the English-speaking minority that reside in the northwest and southwest parts of the country. However, few are optimistic that a government-led dialogue would be helpful.