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THE Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) have accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of attacking worshippers in a church in Omdurman, a city adjacent to the capital Khartoum. The army in a statement on Sunday claimed RSF shot at worshippers in the Blessed Church in Omdurman against international humanitarian law and established customs. But in a Twitter post, RSF denied that it had attacked the church and instead accused an “extremist group” aligned with the SAF of being behind the attack. The force also accused SAF of “assassinating” an official of a football federation, Amir Hasaballah, and other killings in…

KENYAN government officials have visited herder communities in the south-west after nearly a dozen lions were recently killed after attacking livestock. The officials, including the tourism minister and Kenya Wildlife Service officials, met residents of the Mbirikani ranch amid escalating human-wildlife conflicts that led to the killing of 11 lions by herders living near the Amboseli National Park. The minister, Peninah Malonza, said the government was working to ensure pending claims by the community seeking compensation for wildlife attacks were settled. She urged the local people to embrace a “peaceful and harmonious co-existence with wildlife” even as their concerns were…

THE Federal High Court in Lagos has adjourned indefinitely an application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), seeking a stay of execution of the ruling that lifted a forfeiture order on some assets linked to the Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello. Justice Nicholas Oweibo adjourned the hearing of the application sine die because the matter is now before the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal. On April 26, Justice Oweibo struck out a suit by the EFCC seeking the final forfeiture of the assets based on the provisions of Section 308(1) of the 1999 Constitution. The…

BARCELONA sealed their first La Liga title since 2018-19 with four games to spare after a stylish win at the home of city rivals Espanyol. Barca were 3-0 up by half-time, Robert Lewandowski scoring his 20th league goal of the season before Alejandro Balde, 19, doubled the lead. Lewandowski added the third before Jules Kounde’s header made it 4-0. Espanyol did reduce the deficit through Javier Puado and Joselu but remain in trouble near the bottom of the table. Barcelona have 85 points, 14 more than nearest rivals Real Madrid, with 12 points left to play for. It is their…

THE Gunners’ hopes of a first league title in 19 years were realistically ended as goals from Julio Enciso, Deniz Undav and Pervis Estupinan left them still four points adrift of Manchester City, who have three games left to secure the one win they need to win the league. A dominant City’ trouncing of Everton pushes them to the brink of a fifth Premier League title in six seasons The encounter was expected to be a feisty affair and off the whistle, both sides were eager to show their desire for victory, however, an unmarked Julio Enciso struck the first…

TURKEY’s battle for the presidency looks set to go to a run-off, with both contenders adamant they have victory in their grasp. After 20 years in power, Recep Tayyip Erdogan stood on the balcony of his party HQ saying he was convinced he would win another five. Everything appeared to have fallen into place for his opponent Kemal Kilicdaroglu to win. But incomplete results put him behind the president in the first round. And Mr Erdogan’s alliance could also be heading for a majority in parliament. For months, Turkey’s disparate opposition parties had pooled their resources in a bid to…

BELARUS’ leader Alexander Lukashenko has missed a major state celebration, further fuelling health speculation. The autocratic politician, 68, usually speaks publicly at the annual National Flag, Emblem and Anthem Day event but his prime minister read a message on his behalf on Sunday. Last week, Mr Lukashenko left Moscow soon after Victory Day parade, skipping lunch with President Vladimir Putin. Mr Lukashenko looked visibly tired, and his right hand was bandaged. He was last seen in public laying flowers in the capital Minsk during Belarus’ own Victory Day celebrations on 9 May – a few hours after returning from the…

CHILDREN were targeted as the first to be starved to death in the final days of a Christian doomsday cult in Kenya, according to fresh accounts emerging. Police investigating an apparent mass suicide have so far exhumed 201 bodies in a forest in the nation’s southeast. A former deputy preacher of the cult told the New York Times that children were killed first, ordered “to fast in the sun so they would die faster.” Women and men were next to follow the suicide plan, Titus Katana said. Mr Katana – who is helping police with the investigation – also described…

HEAVY fighting between warring parties has continued in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and other cities ahead of the ceasefire talks on Sunday. Residents say the Sudanese army has pounded civilian areas, while the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has occupied civilian properties. Clashes were reported in Khartoum, neighbouring Omdurman and Geneina in the Darfur region. War between the country’s army and the RSF started nearly a month ago. One resident Hani Ahmed, 28, said it was worse in the morning compared with the past two days. “You could clearly hear the tanks and the RSF were patrolling the streets more than…

REAL Madrid warmed up for their decisive Champions League semi-final visit to face Manchester City with a 1-0 win over Getafe on Saturday in La Liga. The champions’ slim victory ensured leaders Barcelona must beat city rivals Espanyol on Sunday in Cornella to be able to clinch the title this weekend. Marco Asensio broke the deadlock in the 70th minute with a deflected strike from distance, in a game of few chances which did not get pulses racing. Carlo Ancelotti rotated heavily to keep his key players fresh ahead of the second leg battle with Pep Guardiola’s City, following the…

PARIS Saint-Germain closed in on a record 11th French league title with a 5-0 home win over Ajaccio on Saturday as Lionel Messi received a mixed reception on his return from suspension. Fabian Ruiz opened the scoring on 22 minutes at the Parc des Princes and Achraf Hakimi added a second goal before Kylian Mbappe struck twice shortly after half-time. Mohamed Youssouf compounded a miserable night for the Corsicans with an own goal for PSG’s fifth, while Hakimi and Ajaccio midfielder Thomas Mangani were sent off after a late bust-up. PSG need four points from their final three games —…

TURKS vote on Sunday, in the most pivotal elections in their modern history, to decide if Recep Tayyip Erdogan remains as president after 20 years in power. His main rival, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, promises to scrap many of the powers acquired by President Erdogan after he survived a failed coup in 2016. Buoyed by a broad opposition alliance, he has a real chance of victory. But this race has become so intense that campaigning went up to the wire. President Erdogan was filmed stretching election rules by addressing worshippers at Saturday evening prayers in Istanbul. Turkey’s 64 million voters go to…

UKRAINIAN President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Pope Francis and Italy’s prime minister on Saturday as part of a diplomatic tour also involving Germany, as Berlin unveiled a huge new weapons package ahead of an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive. “An important visit for (the) approaching victory of Ukraine!” Zelensky tweeted as he arrived in Rome, on his first visit to EU and NATO member Italy since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Zelensky was due to travel on Sunday to Berlin, a German government source said, where the defence ministry earlier Saturday announced a new weapons package worth 2.7 billion euros ($2.95…

ONE of Sudan’s most prominent singers, and the country’s biggest female musician, Shaden Gardood, has been killed in crossfire in the Sudanese city of Omdurman. Gardood died amid clashes between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Friday. The 37-year-old’s death came only one day after the warring parties signed a deal to alleviate civilian suffering. Fighting erupted in Sudan in April over a vicious power struggle within the country’s military leadership. Gardood lived in the al-Hashmab neighbourhood, where RSF presence has increased in recent days. Her niece, Heraa Hassan Mohammed, confirmed her death on Facebook…

AT least 11 people have been killed in militia clashes in the western Democratic Republic of Congo, officials said Saturday, as a province in the restive region declared a curfew to respond to the violence. “Mobondo” militants attacked the village of Batshongo, in Kwango province, late on Friday, said provincial government spokesman Adelar Nkisi, referring to a militia from the Yaka community. Two soldiers, one police officer and two civilians were killed in the attack, Nkisi told AFP, adding that the soldiers had been “practically chopped to pieces”. But later on Saturday, the spokesman said the death toll had risen…

MANCHESTER City’s Erling Haaland has scooped the Football Writers Association men’s Player of the Year award in his first season. Haaland won by a large margin after a blistering season with 51 goals to his name and still chasing a treble in the Champions League, Premier League and the FA Cup The Norwegian striker left second-placed Bukayo Saka in the dust at the polls after securing over 82% of the votes, the biggest berth in the EPL In third place was Saka’s Arsenal colleague Martin Odegaard while Kevin De Bruyne of City was fourth and Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford was…

MANCHESTER United can attract “quality players” this summer despite uncertainty over the club’s ownership, says manager Erik ten Hag. He said it was difficult to convince players to move to Old Trafford after he took charge at the end of last season. “I see a big difference in comparison with last year,” Ten Hag said. “Now many players see the project, what’s going on, the dynamic and the ambition.” Last summer midfielder Casemiro joined from Real Madrid for £70m and United also signed midfielder Christian Eriksen, forward Antony and defenders Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia during the summer transfer window.…

JUST days after anointing King Charles III, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was prosecuted in court for speeding, it emerged on Friday. The offence occurred on October 2, and the leader of the worldwide Anglican communion tried three times to pay the £300 ($375) fine in order to avoid court action, a Lambeth Palace spokesperson said. “He has all the paperwork to prove that he has tried to pay. Admin errors seem to be causing problems,” the spokesperson told AFP. “He hadn’t been notified that it had gone to court.” After the fine went unpaid, a court prosecution followed automatically…

ISRAEL has killed a sixth senior leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in an air strike in the Gaza Strip, as fighting between them escalated. It said Iyad al-Hassani had directed the militant group’s operations since his predecessor was killed on Tuesday. Friday’s strike, which medics said also killed another person, followed a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza, some of which reached near Jerusalem. The chances of an imminent ceasefire appeared slim after the exchange. However, a Palestinian official familiar with the talks taking place in Egypt told the BBC that Egyptian officials “presented this evening a new proposal…

SOUTH Africans were left angry and baffled on Friday after the US accused their country of secretly shipping arms to Russia, a charge that triggered both a government rebuke but also the announcement of an inquiry. US ambassador Reuben Brigety on Thursday said Washington was confident weapons and ammunition had been laden onto a Russian freighter that docked at a Cape Town naval base. The explosive remarks drew an angry response from President Cyril Ramaphosa, who however did not deny the charge but said a retired judge would lead an investigation into the matter. The move was welcomed by the…