Author: Editor

SENEGAL’s president has told the BBC he does not regret delaying this year’s elections, a move that sparked deadly protests. Macky Sall said he did not make the decision alone – he was responding to concerns raised by parliamentarians. After a violent backlash, many feared the relatively stable nation was slipping into political crisis. But the attempt to push the election back by 10 months was blocked by Senegal’s top court. The vote will now take place on Sunday – a month after it was initially due. “I have no apology to make, I have done nothing wrong,” President Sall…

Q – I was going to travel on a particular day, so I broke the fast in my house then I had intercourse with my two-week old new bride. What do I have to do? Please note that I thought that the expiation was to make up that day only, I did not know that it is fasting for two consecutive months or feeding ten poor persons. Ali Abba Inuwa, Kaduna A – The evidence from the Qur’an and Sunnah, and scholarly consensus, indicates that the traveller may break the fast of Ramadan, then make up the number of days…

MANCHESTER United teenager Kobbie Mainoo has earned his first England call-up for their forthcoming friendlies against Brazil and Belgium. Mainoo is emerging as one of United’s brightest young stars in a breakthrough season for the 18-year-old. Established in United’s central midfield after 20 impressive appearances this term, Mainoo has been rewarded with a promotion to the England squad as they build towards Euro 2024. Mainoo moved into Gareth Southgate’s senior group having initially been named in the England Under-21 squad. “Kobbie Mainoo has received his first call-up to the England senior squad,” England’s Football Association said in a statement said…

GAZA’s two million people are experiencing “severe levels of acute food insecurity”, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said. This was first time an entire population had been so classified, he said when questioned by the BBC about conditions in the territory. Mr Blinken called on Israel to prioritise providing for those in need. UN agencies have said north Gaza could face famine by May without a pause in the fighting and a surge in aid. Mr Blinken’s warning came during a trip to the Philippines as US officials announced that he would travel to the Middle East, his…

POLICE in Haiti have killed at least three people while repelling an attack on the country’s central bank. A “group of criminals” targeted the Bank of the Republic of Haiti (BRH) on Monday, an employee told AFP, leaving up to four dead and a guard injured. The bank itself thanked security forces for “protecting our community”. Haiti has been rocked by weeks of violence after gangs raided prisons, released thousands of inmates and forced the prime minister to resign. In a statement on X, BRH said: “Following an incident yesterday near [our] site on Rue Pavee, security forces and the…

AN ELITE unit of South Africa’s police has raided the Johannesburg home of the speaker of parliament, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, over corruption allegations. She has been accused of soliciting bribes in return for awarding contracts when she served as defence minister. “The Speaker steadfastly upholds her strong conviction of innocence,” said a statement from parliament. The police unit was acting on behalf of state prosecutors who have been carrying out an investigation. The statement from parliament said that the police “conducted a search and seizure procedure” at Ms Mapisa-Nqakula’s residence, adding that she “welcomed the investigators into her home, co-operating fully”…

UGANDAN security forces are on high alert after they said fighters from an IS-linked group entered the country at the weekend. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) militants are planning attacks in urban areas, places of worship, schools and public events, according to the army. It urged the public to remain vigilant “to avoid being victims of ADF terror”. The ADF has been linked to a series of deadly attacks in Uganda, including targeting a school last June. The group was originally formed in Uganda in the 1990s by people disgruntled with the government’s treatment of Muslims. But after being routed…

Q – Salaamu Alaikum Ya Sheikh. I had an affair with a man a week to my wedding with a different man. Some months later I discovered that I am pregnant for the first man not my husband. I had a miscarriage and later became pregnant for my husband. Until now nobody knew about this, at times I feel like confessing. My question here is please how valid is my marriage and how does this affect my child Islamically? Anonymous, Abuja A – If this immoral action came after the marriage contract was done, even if it was before the…

NOTTINGHAM Forest have been docked four points for breaching Premier League financial rules, the English top flight announced on Monday, dropping the club into the relegation zone. The Premier League said in a statement that Forest had admitted breaching the profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) threshold of £61 million ($77.5 million) by £34.5 million. They are the second top-flight team to be penalised for PSR breaches this season after Everton were hit with a 10-point penalty in November, which was reduced to six on appeal. The Goodison Park club are still waiting to discover if they will be hit with…

HAMAS leader Marwan Issa died in an Israeli air strike, White House official Jake Sullivan has said. As deputy military commander, Mr Issa would be Hamas’s most senior leader to die since the war began on 7 October. The Palestinian group, which controls Gaza, has not officially commented on reports of his death. On Monday, US President Joe Biden held a high-stakes call with Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, about the war’s direction. Israeli media sources have reported that Mr Issa was killed in an Israeli air strike that targeted a tunnel complex under the Nuseirat refugee camp in central…

CHINESE President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to Vladimir Putin on Monday, telling his Russian counterpart his re-election “fully reflects the support of the Russian people”, Beijing’s state media reported. With 99 percent of polling stations having submitted results, Putin had secured 87.33 percent of all votes cast, official election data showed Monday, according to state news agency RIA. It was a record victory for Putin in a presidential election where he faced no genuine competition, with the polls criticised by several Western nations as neither free nor fair. “Your re-election fully reflects the support of the Russian people…

A BILL seeking to decriminalise Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in The Gambia has passed its latest parliamentary stage, known as the second reading. Though FGM was criminalised in The Gambia in 2015, some seeking to overturn the ban argue that it violates religious freedom and is against the country’s cultural practices. The bill will now go to a committee of MPs for further consideration. Survivors of FGM and activists had hoped it would be thrown out. They said that not only did the practice cause lifelong damage but it was also against a woman’s right to bodily autonomy. They have…

ALL schools have been ordered to close in South Sudan, as it prepares for a heatwave in which temperatures could reach an exceptional 45C (113F). Authorities said children should stay indoors and that the extreme weather could last for at least two weeks. Deaths “related to excessive heat” have already been reported, officials said on Saturday. Residents in parts of the capital Juba sweltered without electric fans on Monday as the heat sparked power cuts. The streets of Juba, home to over 400,000 people, were largely quiet in the afternoon as local media reported temperatures of 41C (106F). It is…

THE Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says voice and data services affected by undersea cable cuts along the Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal coasts have been restored. In a Monday statement, the NCC Director of Public Affairs, Rueben Muoka, said that services have now been restored to approximately 90% of their peak utilization capacities. “Following the disruption on March 14, 2024, which affected data and voice services due to cuts in undersea fibre optics along the coasts of Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal, we are pleased to announce that services have now been restored to approximately 90% of their peak utilization capacities,” the…

A FEDERAL High Court, Abuja has ordered Binance Holdings Limited to provide the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission with comprehensive data or information on all persons from Nigeria trading on its platform. Justice Emeka Nwite granted the interim order after ruling on the ex-parte motion moved by the EFCC’s lawyer, Ekele Iheanacho. “The applicant’s application dated and filed 29th February 2024, is hereby granted as prayed. “That an order of this honourable court is hereby made directing the operators of Binance to provide the commission with comprehensive data/information relating to all persons from Nigeria trading on its platform,” the judge…

Q: Salaamu Alaikum Ya Sheikh. If a calamity befalls a Muslim, how can we know whether it is a punishment for his sins or a test to raise him in status? Nasiba Ahmed Koki, Kano A: Praise be to Allaah. According to the Qur’an and Sunnah, there are two direct causes for calamities and trials, in addition to the wisdom of Allah, may He be exalted, in what He wills and decrees.  The first reason is: Sins and acts of disobedience that the person has committed, whether they constitute kufr or are no more than regular sins or are major…

FA Cup holders Manchester City will face Chelsea in the semi-finals at Wembley, while Manchester United’s reward for their thrilling win against Liverpool is a meeting with second-tier Coventry. Sunday’s draw for the last four raised the prospect of a repeat of last season’s all-Manchester FA Cup final, which City won 2-1. Treble-chasing City eased through to the semi-finals with a 2-0 victory over Newcastle on Saturday. Chelsea needed two stoppage-time goals to beat Championship promotion chasers Leicester 4-2 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. United came from 2-1 and 3-2 down to beat Liverpool 4-3 at Old Trafford on Sunday…

ISRAELI forces have launched an overnight raid on the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, with reports of tanks and heavy gunfire at the facility. An Israel Defense Forces spokesperson said the IDF was carrying out a “high precision operation in limited areas” of the hospital. The IDF said “senior Hamas terrorists have regrouped” inside the hospital and are using it to launch attacks. Eyewitnesses described a state of panic inside the complex in Gaza City. In a recorded call with his brother posted on a WhatsApp group, one man said: “Tanks are surrounding us. We are hiding inside the tent. We…

AT least 21 people were killed and 38 injured on Sunday when a bus collided with a fuel tanker truck and burst into flames in southern Afghanistan. Traffic accidents are common in Afghanistan, due in part to poor roads after decades of conflict, dangerous driving on highways and a lack of regulation. “Twenty-one people were killed… in a traffic accident between a passenger bus, a tanker and a motorbike” on a main highway through Grishk district in southern Helmand province, Mohammad Qasim Riyaz, a spokesman for the provincial governor, told AFP. Of the 38 people injured, 11 were seriously hurt,…

NIGER’s junta has ended a military agreement that allowed US personnel to be deployed in the country. Saturday’s announcement came in the week that a delegation from Washington had been in Niamey for talks with the country’s military leadership. The US used its base in Niger to monitor regional jihadist activity. This latest announcement by the junta, in power since last July, comes as it moves closer to Russia and after French troops were kicked out in December. “The US presence on the territory of the Republic of Niger is illegal and violates all the constitutional and democratic rules which…