Gambians vote as authorities cut internet and phones, shut land borders
President Yahya Jammeh takes no chances as Gambians vote in tightly controlled election
Banjul — Gambian authorities cut the internet, barred international calls and sealed land borders for an election on Thursday that poses the first serious challenge to President Yahya Jammeh since he seized power in a coup 22 years ago. Jammeh, who this week said only Allah can remove him from office, has pledged to rule the tiny riverside West African nation for "a billion years". He has made frequent headlines by claiming to have a herbal cure for HIV/AIDS that only works on Thursdays, declaring Gambia an Islamic republic and threatening to slit the throats of homosexuals. A Western diplomatic source said the National Intelligence Agency had informed them that internet and phone outages would last until Sunday. The same source said that land borders had been shut, but sea and air remained open. Reuters could not independently verify the border crossing closures. Dressed in flowing white robes, carrying strings of prayer beads and surrounded by soldiers, Jammeh voted in the capital...
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