Author: Editor

VLADIMIR Putin is set to secure another six-year term as Russian leader this weekend in a vote the Kremlin says will show society is fully behind his assault on Ukraine. In power as president or prime minister since the final day of 1999, Putin has quashed all forms of opposition and dissent, exerting a level of domestic control that ensures the result is in no doubt. Victory in the March 15-17 contest will allow him to stay in the Kremlin until at least 2030, longer than any Russian leader since Catherine the Great in the eighteenth century. The poll comes…

A TV anchor who was acquitted of murder has now been hired for a senior job in the Kenyan government, to the astonishment of some in the country. Jacque Maribe was cleared of murdering a businesswoman called Monica Kimani, who was found with her throat slit. But Ms Maribe’s ex-partner Joseph Irungu, also known as “Jowie”, was found guilty. Giving the verdict last month, the judge said Ms Maribe should instead be prosecuted for giving the police false information. However she has since been appointed as head of communications for Kenya’s Ministry of Public Service, Performance and Delivery Management, prompting…

THE leaders of Libya’s two rival governments have agreed to form a single unified government, signalling progress in ending a political stalemate that has persisted for more than a decade. In a joint statement on Sunday, the leaders said they had agreed on the “necessity” of forming a new unified government that would supervise long-delayed elections and “unify sovereign positions”. The talks were held in Egypt’s capital, Cairo, and were led by the Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit. The negotiation involved the president of the Libyan Presidential Council and the head of the High State Council, both based…

Q – Ya Sheikh, As-Salamu `alaykum. Ramadan is a special month for Muslims. Would you please shed some light on its virtues and blessings and what a Muslim should do to reap its fruits and get closer to Allah? Jazakum Allah khayran. Yunus Aliyu, Abuja A – May Allah reward you abundantly for your keenness to draw near to Him. We invoke Almighty Allah to enable us to reap the fruits of the blessed month, accept our acts of worship, and grant us forgiveness and immunity against the punishment of Hellfire. It is noteworthy that the month of Ramadan is…

PARIS Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique defended his stuttering team after they were held 2-2 by Reims in Ligue 1 on Sunday, a third straight domestic draw which still allowed the reigning champions to go 10 points clear at the top of the table. Kylian Mbappe was rested at kick-off after scoring both goals in PSG’s 2-1 midweek win at Real Sociedad which saw them qualify for the Champions League quarter-finals 4-1 on aggregate. Without him, PSG fell behind to a Marshall Munetsi goal following an error by Achraf Hakimi. They hit back and found themselves ahead thanks to a Yunis…

ISRAELI President Isaac Herzog’s presence at the opening of a Holocaust museum in Amsterdam has sparked protests over Israel’s military operations in Gaza. Activists calling for a ceasefire gathered in a square near the National Holocaust Museum, in the city’s Jewish quarter. Some people protesting were, themselves, Jewish. Both Palestinian and Israeli flags were seen being held by demonstrators. Some protesters climbed onto police vans, and riot police beat them away as they started to throw fireworks and eggs, Dutch media outlet De Telegraaf reported. Signs were seen reading “Jews against genocide”, and “The grandchild of a holocaust survivor says:…

OFFICERS arrested a man who crashed a car into the gates of London’s Buckingham Palace over the weekend, police said on Sunday. The Metropolitan Police said the car “collided with the gates” of the royal residence at 02:30 GMT on Saturday. Armed officers arrested the man at the scene on suspicion of criminal damage and he was taken to hospital, a spokesperson for the force said. They added that no one was injured and enquiries were ongoing to establish the circumstances, the spokesperson added. Security measures at Buckingham Palace, the British royal family’s official residence, are stringent, with the building…

CHADIAN junta-appointed Prime Minister Succès Masra has announced he’ll run for presidency, a week after the leader of the junta, interim president Mahamat Déby announced his own candidacy. Mr Masra, a former opposition leader, signed a reconciliation deal with Mr Déby after his return from exile, before he was appointed prime minister in January. He told supporters at a rally on Sunday that he was seeking the top seat so as to unite the people and “heal hearts”. The opposition have criticised the move, saying it’s a ploy to give the appearance of pluralism to an election which Mr Déby…

TO the casual observer, it seemed like the long-cherished dream of a new single currency for East Africa had come to fruition. An account on X, called “Government of East Africa”, complete with a grey tick suggesting it was the real deal, released an image of a specimen note worth five sheafras, featuring a coat of arms and a space for a signature from a central bank governor. The name sheafra was coined by combining shilling of East Africa and franc – currencies in use in the region. The original posts from last Sunday were viewed more than a million…

SOME residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) were on Sunday thrown into darkness as sabouteurs vandalised the Shiroro-Katampe 330kV transmission line. According to the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), the vandalism of the transmission line makes it the fifth of such incident within February and March this. The incident happened at 9am on Sunday. “Following initial investigations, TCN engineers attempted to restore operation but were unsuccessful,” said a spokesperson for the TCN, Ndidi Mbah. Mbah, in a statement, said efforts were made to identify the fault location, while linesmen were dispatched to physically patrol the suspected area. “During the…

CAPTAIN Ahmed Musa has been left out of the Super Eagles’ squad for the March friendly games against Ghana and Mali with Luton’s Gabriel Osho handed his first Nigeria’s call up. Musa was part of the Nigerian side that reached the final of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) but did not play a single minute in the competition. Osho, who was born to Nigerian parents in England, will have the opportunity to play for the Super Eagles after agreeing to feature for the three-time African champions. Ihefu SC of Tanzanian star Benjamin Tanimu also got his maiden call-up…

KAI Havertz spared Aaron Ramsdale’s blushes as Arsenal earned a statement win over Brentford which puts them top of the Premier League before title rivals Liverpool and Manchester City meet on Sunday. Arsenal, looking to lead the table for the first time since December, went in front through Declan Rice’s flicked header. The home side continued to dominate possession and Havertz skewed wide their best opportunity to go further ahead. But, out of nowhere, the good work in an assured first-half performance was undone by Ramsdale’s error. The England keeper, playing because David Raya was ineligible against his parent club,…

AN international effort is gathering pace to get desperately needed humanitarian relief into Gaza by sea in a bid to counter overland access restrictions blamed on Israel as it battles Hamas militants. The dire conditions more than five months into the war have led some countries to airdrop food and other assistance over the besieged Gaza Strip, but a parachute malfunction turned the latest operation lethal on Friday. Five Palestinians were killed and 10 wounded north of the coastal Al-Shati refugee camp, said Mohammed al-Sheikh, emergency room head nurse at Gaza City’s Al-Shifa hospital. A witness told AFP he and…

A STUDENT has been sentenced to 10 days in jail in Moscow after renaming his wi-fi network with a pro-Kyiv slogan. The Moscow State University student had titled the network “Slava Ukraini!” which means “Glory to Ukraine!”. A Moscow court found him guilty of displaying “symbols of extremist organisations” on Thursday. Since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine, thousands have been handed prison terms or fines for criticising the invasion or supporting Ukraine. The student was arrested on Wednesday morning in Moscow, after a police officer had reported the network name to authorities. According to court documents, officers inspected…

RWANDA’s ruling party on Saturday picked President Paul Kagame as its candidate for the July election, teeing up a contest widely expected to return the longtime leader to office for a fourth seven-year term. The 66-year-old has ruled over the landlocked African nation for decades, winning the presidency in elections in 2003, 2010 and 2017 — with more than 90 percent of the vote. Kagame’s candidacy was unopposed during the Rwandan Patriotic Front congress, which ended Saturday, the party said. Kagame said he had accepted the nomination but urged the ruling party to prepare for transition beyond him. “The burden…

THE US has accused Zimbabwe of harassing, detaining and deporting several of its nationals who were in the country as aid workers. The US Agency for International Development (USAID) said government officials and contractors had been “verbally and physically” intimidated. They were there to “support civic participation, democratic institutions and human rights”, the agency added. But Zimbabwe’s commitment to democratic reform was “hollow”, it said. The Zimbabwean government has not yet commented on USAID’s allegations. On Monday, the US announced fresh sanctions on Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa and other senior government officials, whom it accuses of corruption and human rights…

TWICE in one week, gangs of motorcycle-riding armed men, operating from forests in two different places in the north of the country, kidnapped hundreds of people. First on Wednesday we got news from a remote town in Borno state in the north-east that suspected Boko Haram militants had seized women and children from a displaced persons camp who were searching for firewood. It took several days for the news to emerge because the local mobile phone masts had been destroyed. Then the following day, more than 280 children, aged between eight and 15, and some teachers, were taken away by…

ANTHONY Joshua and Francis Ngannou headlined the Knockout Chaos card on Friday night. Former two-time world heavyweight champion, Joshua, battled the Cameroonian, who knocked down Fury last October. The card had it all, a sublime KO, a title win and a hard-fought draw. Joshua came out fighting and despite Ngannou’s brave efforts, he could barely touch the former heavyweight champion. Joshua knocked Ngannou down three times in the bout with the first coming with 40 seconds left in round one as the British-Nigerian landed a solid right punch on the Cameroonian’s chin and he went down. Ngannou let the referee…

JURGEN Klopp on Friday hailed Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola as the best manager of his lifetime as he prepares his Liverpool team for what could be the final chapter in their captivating rivalry. City have won five of the past six Premier League titles but Liverpool have been their main rivals, snatching the crown in 2020. The two teams are once again locked in a tussle at the top of the table, with leaders Liverpool ahead of the champions by a single point before Sunday’s clash at Anfield. The Liverpool boss said Guardiola, whose team are chasing a second…

A SHIP carrying desperately needed humanitarian aid is expected to set sail this weekend, bound for Gaza. The Spanish vessel, Open Arms, is scheduled to depart from Cyprus – the closest EU country to Gaza – and hope to use a newly opened shipping route. With no functioning port and shallow waters, it is still unclear where the ship will dock when it reaches Gaza. The UN says a quarter of the Strip’s population is on the brink of famine and children are starving to death. The ship, expected to reach Gaza in the next few days, belongs to the…