Author: Editor

JANUARY to March 2023 was the deadliest first quarter for central Mediterranean migrants since 2017, the United Nations said Wednesday, with 441 lives lost as crossings to Europe soar. The UN’s International Organization for Migration said delays in state-led search and rescue (SAR) operations played a part in several fatal incidents in the perilous sea crossing from north Africa. And the IOM said the 441 known deaths in the first three months of the year was likely an undercount of the true number. “The persisting humanitarian crisis in the central Mediterranean is intolerable,” said IOM chief Antonio Vitorino. “With more…

THE US believes the UN Secretary General is too willing to accommodate Russian interests, according to fresh revelations in classified documents leaked online. The files suggest Washington has been closely monitoring Antonio Guterres. Several documents describe private communications involving Mr Guterres and his deputy. It is the latest from a leak of secret documents, which US officials are scrambling to get to the bottom of. The documents contain candid observations from Mr Guterres about the war in Ukraine and a number of African leaders. One leaked document focuses on the Black Sea grain deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey…

A MALARIA vaccine developed by Britain’s Oxford University is to be used in Ghana, the first time it has received regulatory clearance anywhere in the world. “The vaccine has been approved for use in children aged 5-36 months, the age group at highest risk of death from malaria,” the university said in a statement. “It is hoped that this first crucial step will enable the vaccine to help Ghanaian and African children to effectively combat malaria,” it added. Professor Adrian Hill, chief investigator of the R21/Matrix-M vaccine programme and director of the university’s Jenner Institute, said it marked the “culmination…

MALI Terrorists affiliated to the Islamic State group have taken over a village in Ménaka – a region that is now largely under militants control. The Islamist militants seized another village – Tidermene – on Monday night following months of fighting. A local official who fled to the regional capital Ménaka confirmed the capture and said the insurgents were moving around the village with weapons. Since early last year, Islamic State in the Greater Sahara has launched a major offensive in the area as well as in Gao – another region of northern Mali. There have been battles with the…

Real Madrid 2 v Chelsea 0 CHELSEA have it all to do if they are to advance to the Champions League semi-finals after losing to holders Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. Karim Benzema’s tap-in – his 90th goal in the competition – gave Real boss Carlo Ancelotti the perfect start against his former club. Real Madrid struggled to add to their lead before Ben Chilwell was shown a straight red card in the 59th minute for fouling Rodrygo as the Brazil forward threatened to go clean through on goal. Chelsea produced a battling performance but Real scored what could be…

NUHU Clark, a member-elect for Chibok constituency in the Borno House of Assembly, is dead. According to reports, the deceased died in India on Monday, while undergoing treatment. Babakura Abbajatau, The state Commissioner for Home Affairs, Information, and Culture, confirmed the development in an interview with NAN in Maiduguri on Wednesday. Abbajatau said that the state government would soon make an official statement after speaking with the family of the deceased. While mourning the deceased, the Borno Deputy Governor, Umar Kadafur, described the death as a huge loss to his immediate family, people of Southern Borno and the state at…

THE potential sale of Manchester United has gone to a third round of bidding. Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim and Ineos owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe both submitted a second bid to buy the Old Trafford club last month, with Finnish entrepreneur Thomas Zilliacus also saying he had submitted a bid. The Glazer family, who bought the club for £790m in 2005, announced they were considering selling in November. The Americans have established a valuation of £5bn-6bn for United. The second stage ended last month with uncertainty over whether the process had reached the point of exclusivity being granted. It is understood…

LIVERPOOL will not pursue a move for Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham this summer because of the money involved. The 19-year-old has been heavily linked with the Reds but any move for the England international could cost in excess of £100m at least. The size of the deal compared to the changes needed at Liverpool mean they do not consider it a viable option. The Reds are eighth in the Premier League and 12 points off the top four. Their struggles this season have seen manager Jurgen Klopp state there will be changes at the club in the summer and…

FORMER US president Donald Trump, having been criminally charged in New York, pledged Tuesday to “never drop out” of the 2024 race for the White House, and insisted Joe Biden is not fit to run again. The Republican real estate magnate, facing 34 felony counts in New York over alleged hush money paid to an adult film actress, told Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson that nothing would prevent him from running — even a conviction. “I’d never drop out,” he said. “It’s not my thing. I wouldn’t do it.” Trump, 76, in his first major interview since being arrested and…

TWITTER boss Elon Musk said running the social media network has been “quite a rollercoaster” and acknowledged “many mistakes” along the way, six months after he bought the company for $44 billion. In a live interview with the BBC after agreeing to a last-minute invitation for the “spontaneity” of it, Musk appeared to tacitly acknowledge that one of those errors was the decision to label the broadcaster’s account “government-funded media”. He said he would change the designation on the BBC’s Twitter handle after the broadcaster objected. “We want it as truthful and accurate as possible –- we’re adjusting the label…

CHAD’s ambassador to Germany has been expelled in a retaliatory move by Berlin after the Central African nation kicked out the European nation’s ambassador last week. Germany’s foreign ministry on Tuesday said Chad’s Mariam Ali Moussa has to leave the country within 48 hours. “We regret that it had to come to this,” Germany’s foreign ministry said on Twitter. German ambassador to Chad Jan-Christian Gordon Kricke left the country last Saturday after the military government expelled him. Chad ordered Mr Kricke out of the country for what it said was due to his “impolite attitude” and “lack of respect for…

AN Egyptian official has described as “utterly baseless” allegations in leaked Pentagon documents that Cairo planned to secretly produce and supply Russia with 40,000 missiles. The denial, by an unnamed source, has been carried by several pro-government news channels. The documents were obtained by the Washington Post from a leaked trove of US defence department papers. As part of the denial, the official was quoted as saying Cairo did not take sides in the Ukraine war. The Kremlin described the allegations as “just another canard”.

Man City 3 v Bayern 0 MANCHESTER City took a giant stride towards the Champions League semi-finals with an outstanding performance to overpower Bayern Munich at Etihad Stadium. Erling Haaland, inevitably, was on target with his 45th goal of the season to make him the highest scorer in all competitions in a single campaign since the Premier League began 30 years ago, surpassing Mohamed Salah and Ruud van Nistelrooy. City, however, gave a powerful all-round team display and Bayern, under new coach Thomas Tuchel, face a mountainous task to turn this quarter-final around in the second leg at the AllianzArena.…

THE House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on Oil Theft is inviting several high-ranking officials in the Federal Government over its investigation into the alleged loss of over $2.4 billion in revenue from illegal sale of 48 million barrels of crude oil export in 2015. Some of the officials invited on Tuesday to answer questions are the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed; and the Secretary General of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, News Point Nigeria reports. Also summoned are the acting Accountant General of the Federation, Sylva Okolieaboh; and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), among others. The committee is…

ZAMBIAN side Zanaco FC have sacked Emmanuel Amuneke, with just six games left to the end of the season. “The Board of Directors and Management of Zanaco Football Club wishes to announce that the Club has separated with the Consultant Coach Mr. Emmanuel Amuncke and the Assistant Coach Mr. Emeka Amadi with immediate effect,” the club’s Chief Executive Officer Modest Hamalabbi said in a late Monday statement “The Club has also separated with the Head Coach, Mr. Kelvin Kaindu.” They thanked the coaches for their services and wished them well in their future endeavours. Following the development, Zanaco appointed Wedson…

BAYERN Munich manager Thomas Tuchel admits he is having sleepless nights before his side’s Champions League meeting with Manchester City. Tuchel returns to England for the first time since he was sacked by Chelsea in September when City host the quarter-final first leg on Tuesday (20:00 BST). In 10 previous meetings, Tuchel has only beaten a side managed by Pep Guardiola on three occasions. “I will try to go to bed early. I hope I will be able to sleep,” he said. “The best preparation is sleep but sometimes it is hard to get that sleep when you’re thinking about…

FIVE people died when an employee opened fire at a bank in Louisville, Kentucky, and livestreamed the attack on Instagram, police say. The victims were aged between 40 and 64. Among nine others injured was a rookie police officer who had graduated to the force just two weeks ago. The officer was shot in the head and is still critical after brain surgery. Police responded within three minutes, and fatally shot the attacker in an exchange of gunfire. The shooting took place at the Old National Bank in the city centre at about 08:30 local time (12:30 GMT). Caleb Goodlett…

THE US and the Philippines are holding their largest-ever joint military drills a day after China concluded large-scale exercises around Taiwan. Over three days, China’s military rehearsed blockades of Taiwan in response to the island’s leader meeting the US House Speaker last week. Washington criticised China’s display of firepower as disproportionate, while Taiwan President Tsai said it was “irresponsible” and she had the right to make visits to the US. The US drills had been earlier planned. Filipino and US officials say the drills show their commitment to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region that is open and free.…

SUDANESE civilian groups and the ruling junta have missed Tuesday’s deadline to form a civilian-led transitional government amid disagreements on security reforms and other issues. According to a timeline set up by the parties, a new prime minister would have been announced on Tuesday as well as other officials of a civilian-led government. The deadline lapsed after the parties failed to sign a final transition deal on 1 and 6 April over disagreements on the integration of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) into the army. A joint committee from the military and RSF, which was set up to discuss…

ELON Musk’s SpaceX company has delayed the launch of Kenya’s first earth observation satellite by 24 hours citing unfavourable weather conditions at the launch base in California. The satellite named Nation- 1, or Taifa -1 in Swahili, was to be deployed aboard a Falcon 9 rocket alongside other satellites from other countries. A statement from the Kenya Space Agency said the delay was due to “unfavourable upper-level wind conditions” that would “affect the rocket’s flight trajectory”. The launch is now expected to take place on Wednesday 12 April at Vandenberg Air Force Base. The main mission of the satellite will…