THE death toll from a major storm system that has lashed the south-central and eastern US with devastating winds and powerful tornadoes has risen to 18, with dozens of others injured, officials said Saturday. A spokesperson for the emergency management agency in Tennessee, one of the states hardest hit by storms which have struck since Friday, confirmed seven weather-related fatalities to AFP. That came on top of 11 deaths reported earlier in Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama in the south, and Indiana and Illinois in the Midwest. The storm system on Saturday was bearing down on the US east coast, with…
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FOURTEEN miners were missing and feared dead in Burundi on Saturday after flash floods swept into a pit where they were searching for gold, the local government administrator told AFP. Heavy rain in the Mabayi commune in northwest Burundi on Friday sent torrents of water from a swollen river gushing into a pit mine were they were digging, said Nicodeme Ndahabonyimana, the municipal administrator. The 14 miners “did not have time to get out of the holes,” Ndahabonyimana said. Efforts were underway to pump water from the mine shafts to recover the bodies of the trapped miners, he said, but…
THE president of the World Bank has told the BBC that he is concerned about some of the loans China has been making to developing economies in Africa. David Malpass says the terms and conditions need to be “more transparent”. It comes amid worries that countries including Ghana and Zambia are struggling to repay their debts to Beijing. China says that any such lending is done within international rules. Developing countries often borrow money from other nations or multilateral bodies to finance sectors that will grow their economies such as infrastructure, education and agriculture. However steep increases in interest rates…
SIX women and five men from Ethiopia are known to have died in a road accident in Somalia, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) says. They were being transported by smugglers who reportedly planned to take them to Yemen via the port city of Bosaso, the IOM adds. But the lorry carrying them overturned on Tuesday, a short distance from Bosaso. The IOM has only just released the details. Investigations into how it happened are still under way, but at this stage local authorities say they believe the lorry had a mechanical issue and that no other vehicle was involved.…
THE Vice President-Elect, Senator Kashim Shettima paid a courtesy visit to his father and former boss, Malam Mamman Daura (Durbin Daura). Senator Shettima’s relationship with Malam Mamman Daura goes back nearly three decades when the vice president-elect worked with the African International Bank (AIB) as Head of Corporate Banking Department, Kaduna Branch, where Malam Mamman Daura was Chairman of the Board.
THE Republics of Cuba and Nicaragua through their Presidents have joined the growing list of countries congratulating Nigeria’s President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on his victory in the February 25 presidential polls. Also, the Developing Eight Organisations for Economic Cooperation (D8), has also extended felicitations to the President-elect on his electoral success. In a congratulatory letter to Asiwaju Tinubu signed by President Maguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez, the Cuban Government described his election as a reaffirmation of the will to continue to strengthen the historic relations of friendship between the two countries. On its part, Nicaragua expressed her best wishes for Nigeria’s…
BARCELONA are in contact with Lionel Messi about returning to the club, says vice-president Rafael Yuste. The 35-year-old Argentina forward is Barcelona’s all-time top scorer with 672 goals in 778 games and left the Nou Camp for financial reasons in 2021. His two-year contract with Paris St-Germain expires this summer and his preference is thought to be staying with the French club. “Leo and his family know the affection I have for them,” Yuste said. Messi agreed a new deal with Barcelona on reduced wages two years ago, but it was dependent on the club selling players following new financial…
RUNAWAY Serie A leaders Napoli will be without star striker Victor Osimhen due to a groin injury when they host last season’s champions AC Milan on Sunday, his club said Friday. The 24-year-old Nigerian international’s 21 goals in Serie A have propelled Napoli to the verge of their third Serie A title but first since the late Diego Maradona inspired them to the 1990 Scudetto. However, he will have to sit out Sunday’s game after returning from international duty with the club saying: “He complained of a pain in his groin and medical tests revealed the injury.” His status will…
RUSSIA has taken the presidency of the UN Security Council despite Ukraine urging members to block the move. Each of the council’s 15 members takes up the presidency for a month, on a rotating pattern. The last time Russia had the presidency, February 2022, it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It means the Security Council is being led by a country whose president is subject to an international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes. The International Criminal Court – which is not a UN institution – issued the warrant for Vladimir Putin last month. Despite Ukraine’s complaints, the United…
DONALD Trump’s court hearing has been set for Tuesday afternoon, according to the BBC’s US partner CBS News. The former president is expected to fly from Florida on his private plane and hand himself in with federal agents there to protect him. A grand jury has indicted Mr Trump in connection with a $130,000 (£105,000) pay-out to porn star Stormy Daniels. The charges are not yet public, and a lawyer for Mr Trump said on Friday that he too has yet to read the indictment. A law enforcement official told CBS that Mr Trump is expected to fly his private…
THE owners of a Danish ship that was seized by pirates in the Gulf of Guinea last Saturday say the hijackers have now abandoned the vessel, taking some of the 16 crew members with them. Others have been rescued from the Monjasa Reformer, which sails under a Liberian flag. The owners said on Tuesday that the crew had taken refuge in the tanker’s secure room when the five pirates boarded. Those rescued are reported to be in good health and there has been no damage to the vessel or its cargo. The vessel was seized west of Porte Pointe-Noire in…
AT least 10 gold miners have been killed in an accident in northern Sudan, and more than 20 others injured. Local media have blamed the collapse of the gold mine on the use of heavy machinery. Accidents are not uncommon in Sudan’s under-regulated mining industry. Six months ago 11 people died in a similar incident in the same part of north Sudan, while other fatalities have been reported in the western Darfur region and Kordofan in the south. Over two million people are believed to be working in artisanal mining in Sudan.
MANCHESTER United owe £969.6m through a combination of gross debt, bank borrowings and outstanding transfer fees with associated payments, according to new figures. The club released their second quarter results to 31 December on Thursday. Unlike previous years, there was no investors’ call afterwards as a result of the ongoing “strategic review”. This could lead to the sale of the Premier League club. The review itself is centred on how to meet the club’s long-term capital investment needs, specifically for improvements to Old Trafford and the club’s Carrington training ground, and – it is being stressed – is not due…
TOTTENHAM forward Richarlison has denied that he led a player “mutiny” against former manager Antonio Conte. Conte, 53, left Spurs by mutual consent on Sunday after 16 months in charge. Brazil international Richarlison, who joined Spurs from Everton for £60m in July, criticised a journalist for the “awful lie” and apologised to Italian Conte for his performances this season. “I wasn’t a mutiny leader against him, it was quite the opposite,” Richarlison, 25, wrote on Twitter.external-link “I’m sorry I didn’t deliver as much as he expected of me and I didn’t do enough for him to stay. “When he left,…
THE M23 rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo are withdrawing from the eastern border town of Bunagana and are expected to hand it over to Ugandan peacekeeping troops, the group’s spokesperson has said. Ugandan troops believed to be in their thousands were on Thursday afternoon seen crossing into the town. M23 spokesman Major Willy Ngoma told the BBC that they will hand over the town on Friday morning. The withdrawal is part of a deal brokered by regional heads of state and army chiefs following meetings held in Angola, Burundi and Kenya, Mr Ngoma said. The town of Bunagana town…
THE Bank of Ghana has warned the public against using local banknotes as bouquets and hampers when gifting people. Banknotes folded into bouquets and hampers are common gifts during weddings, birthdays and other celebrations in the country. But the practise is making it easier for banknotes to spoil or get defaced, said the director of currency department Dominic Owusu. “Desist from such acts, it is not in line with the policy, so you must stop it. If you want to give a present, go and buy gifts,” Mr Owusu said on Thursday. He said spoilt and worn-out notes are replaced…
AT least 35 people have been killed after falling into a well while offering prayers at a temple in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Fourteen others have been rescued and one person is still missing in the accident that took place in Indore city. Police said the victims were standing on a concrete slab over the well when it collapsed under their weight. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “extremely pained by the mishap”. The incident took place on Thursday during a prayer ceremony organised at Beleshwar Mahadev Jhulelal temple on the occasion of Hindu festival of…
FORMER US President Donald Trump will be charged over hush money payments made to a porn star just before the 2016 presidential election. The details of the case against him have not yet been released. A grand jury has voted to indict him after investigating a $130,000 pay-out to Stormy Daniels in an attempt to buy her silence over an alleged affair. Mr Trump, 76, denies wrongdoing. He is the first serving or former US president to face a criminal charge. The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who has been pursuing the investigation, confirmed that it had contacted…
NIGERIAN military troops have intercepted over 2,000 cows after a fierce gun battle with armed bandits in Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State, PRNigeria reports. Before the interception, the bandits numbering over 500 from the Birnin-Gwari axis in Kaduna State in a convoy of about 100 motorcycles had raided several communities in Mariga. A local community leader, Adamu Warari told PRNigeria that the terrorists, wielding dangerous firearms, had operated ‘freely’ in several communities, razing places of worship, looting houses, killing men, abducting women, and rustling cattle before security agencies were alerted. Adamu Warari said: “The bandits came through Birnin-Gwari…
GOVERNOR Babagana Umara Zulum of Borno State has promised to do more on the area of security, agriculture, food security, job creation and empowerment in his second term. The governor said this shortly after receiving certificate of return at Sir Kashim Ibrahim Collage of Education in Maiduguri, the state capital, on Thursday. He also warned elected state and federal lawmakers that they don’t have luxury of time. Zulum assured people of Borno of his effort to work hundred percent for the benefit of the citizens and residents, irrespective of ethnic or religious differences. “During the last four years, we have…