Author: Editor

SOUTH African police said they have arrested some 1,000 undocumented migrants working in gold mines in the northeast of the country. A police spokesman for the Mpumalanga province, where the week-long sweep took place, told AFP there could be more arrests because there were still illegal miners underground. “As they are coming out, they have been taken,” said the spokesman, Donald Mdhluli, on Friday. The police operation, which started on Monday, targeted clandestine mining near the village of Barberton, close to the borders of Eswatini and Mozambique. The Sheba Mine is owned by Barberton Mines, which said in a statement,…

MANCHESTER United are trying to complete a statement move for elite Paris Saint-Germain star Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sky Sports have confirmed, with the potential transfer fee having been revealed and an Old Trafford goalkeeper’s future now ‘in doubt’. Donnarumma joined PSG on a free transfer in July 2021 after AC Milan failed to tie him down to a new contract. Since then, the giant 6ft 5in keeper has managed 56 clean sheets in 161 appearances for PSG. Donnarumma has helped his club to win four Ligue 1 titles, two French Cups and three French Super Cups. He also played a starring…

STARVATION is spreading across the Gaza Strip, and the only organisation on the ground mandated to provide food aid stands accused of grave rights violations and the targeting of civilians. The controversial United States and Israel-backed GHF took over aid distribution in Gaza in May, after Israel eased its total blockade of the Strip. Since then, the United Nations says, more than 1,300 Palestinians have been killed trying to reach food. Many have been purposefully shot by Israeli soldiers or US security contractors hired by GHF, according to testimonies from whistleblowers published in the media. Still, in desperation to get…

US President Donald Trump ordered the deployment of two nuclear submarines Friday in an extraordinary escalation of what had been an online war of words with a Russian official over Ukraine and tariffs. Trump and Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s security council, have been sparring on social media for days. Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform abruptly took that spat into the very real and rarely publicized sphere of nuclear forces. “Based on the highly provocative statements,” Trump said he had “ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish…

WITH just a month to the Second Africa Climate Summit (ACS2), the African Union has reiterated the urgent need for global partners to bridge the continent’s climate finance gap, disclosing that Africa requires $3 trillion to meet its climate goals. Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment at the African Union Commission, Moses Vilakati, made the call during a virtual media briefing on the forthcoming summit scheduled for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Themed “Accelerating Global Climate Solutions and Financing for Africa’s Resilient and Green Development,” ACS2 aims to shift Africa from dialogue to action by turning climate pledges…

SOUTH African scientists have launched an anti-poaching campaign in which rhino’s horns will be injected with a radioactive material. The group, from the University of the Witwatersrand, said the process is harmless to rhinos but will allow customs officers to detect smuggled horns as they’re transported across the world. South Africa has the largest rhino population in the world, and hundreds of the animals are poached there every year. The university’s venture, called the Rhisotope Project, cost around £220,000 ($290,000) and involved six years of research and testing. “At least one animal a day is still being poached,” James Larkin,…

SUPER Eagles forward Victor Osimhen has completed his permanent switch to Turkish giants Galatasaray in a deal worth €75 million. Galatasaray announced the signing of the Nigerian, who spent last season on loan from Napoli, on Thursday. “Regarding the transfer of professional footballer Victor James Osimhen, an agreement has been reached with his club, SSCN Napoli SPA. “In this context, a net transfer fee of €75,000,000 will be paid to the player’s former club,” the club wrote on their social media pages.” The 26-year-old inked a four-year deal with the Turkish champions and will be paid €15 million per season.…

NIGERIA’s D’Tigress will play Cameroon in the quarter-final of the 2025 Afrobasket in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Cameroon beat Angola 85-64 on Wednesday to set up the last eight tie with the defending champions. Nigeria, on the other hand, won two of their matches against Rwanda and Mozambique to seal a quarter-final berth. The D’Tigress are targeting a fifth consecutive Afrobasket title, a feat that would make them the first team to get such a record in the competition. Cameroon defeated the Nigerians in the 2015 semi-final of the competition. But the West Africans have since that loss gone unbeaten, winning…

PALESTINIAN mothers in the Gaza Strip are desperately trying to feed their newborns as Israel’s punishing blockade on the besieged enclave has led to dire shortages of infant formula, with some resorting to filling bottles with water and whatever food they can find. Dr Kahlil Daqran told Al Jazeera on Thursday that as supplies of formula run out, many mothers are often too malnourished to breastfeed their infants. “In the Gaza Strip, we have thousands of children being starved because there is no milk for children under the age of two,” Daqran said. “These children, their mothers also have malnutrition…

MICROSOFT has accused one of the Russian government’s premier cyber-espionage units of deploying malware against embassies and diplomatic organisations in Moscow by leveraging local internet service providers. In a blog post on Thursday, Microsoft Threat Intelligence said the campaign by Russia’s Federal Security Service, also known as the FSB, “has been ongoing since at least 2024”. The effort “poses a high risk to foreign embassies, diplomatic entities, and other sensitive organizations operating in Moscow, particularly to those entities who rely on local internet providers”, Microsoft said. The analysis confirms for the first time that the FSB is conducting cyber-espionage at…

AN unreasonable storm is brewing in Kenya over the latest proposals to control the sale and consumption of alcohol, including raising the minimum drinking age from 18 to 21. The sweeping proposed upright rules, unveiled on Wednesday, include a ban on purchasing alcohol in supermarkets, restaurants and on public transport. The online sale and home delivery of alcoholic drinks as well as celebrity endorsements will also be outlawed. The authorities have defended the planned measures as necessary to address substance abuse especially among the youth. But many Kenyans, including those in the alcohol industry, have criticised the proposals as misguided…

AT least 22 people, including a police officer, have been killed and 200 others injured in protests against a rise in the price of fuel that began on Monday, Interior Minister Manuel Homem has said. Police say more than 1,200 people have also been arrested in what began as a strike by taxi drivers against the price hike and then escalated into one of the most widespread and disruptive waves of protest the country has seen in recent years. Businesses, including major supermarkets, remain closed and many people have opted to stay at home. Doctors at public hospitals in the…

MANCHESTER United are pursuing a deal for Benjamin Sesko after settling on the RB Leipzig striker as their preferred target. United have been in contact with Leipzig after deciding to prioritise their interest in Sesko over Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins. They have yet to submit a formal bid. Newcastle have also identified the 22-year-old Slovenia international as their primary target, with Alexander Isak expressing his desire to leave St James’ Park. Leipzig are likely to demand at least €80m (£69m) for Sesko, who was the subject of serious interest from Arsenal earlier in the window before the north London club…

RELENTLESS Israeli attacks continue with more than 80 Palestinians, including 71 aid seekers, killed since dawn across the Gaza Strip. Gaza hospitals record seven new deaths from “famine and malnutrition” raising the total hunger-related death toll to 154 since October 2023. Meanwhile, Canada has joined several Western countries in announcing its intention to recognise a Palestinian state amid the continuing Israeli atrocities unfolding in Gaza. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney made the announcement on Wednesday. He explained that Ottawa had been hoping that a two-state solution could be achieved through a negotiated peace process, but that approach was “no longer…

UNITED States President Donald Trump has announced a 25 percent tariff on Indian goods, as well as an unspecified penalty for the country’s purchase of Russian oil and military equipment, as the unending war in Ukraine frustrates the White House. Trump announced the trade moves – which he said will come into effect on Friday – on his Truth Social account on Wednesday, saying they are necessary to reverse a long-running trade imbalance. “While India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high,” Trump wrote. The president…

THIRTEEN children died last month as a result of the severe shortage of food at a displacement camp in war-torn Sudan’s East Darfur state, medics have said. The Sudan Doctors Network, a professional organisation with members working inside Lagawa camp, reported “deteriorating humanitarian conditions” and widespread malnutrition – a hunger crisis caused by the 27-month civil war that has devastated the country. Located in the city of el-Daein, the settlement is home to at least 7,000 people and has been subjected to repeated attacks by armed groups. Famine was first identified last year in a camp in Sudan’s western region…

TANZANIA has barred foreign nationals from owning and operating mainly small-scale businesses, sparking concern and a backlash from neighbouring Kenya. The new directive prohibits them from 15 sectors including mobile money transfers, tour guiding, small-scale mining, on-farm crop buying, beauty salons, curio shops and establishing radio and TV operations. Trade Minister Selemani Jafo explained that foreigners had increasingly become involved in the informal sector and areas better filled by Tanzanians. Locally the move has generally been welcomed amid growing concerns that foreigners, including Chinese nationals, have been encroaching on smaller trades. Last year, traders at Dar es Salaam’s bustling Kariakoo…

NIGERIAN music star, Burna Boy was a surprise guest at Buckingham Palace, London on Tuesday where England’s Lionesses celebrated their triumph at the 2025 Women’s Euros. Burna Boy was ushered on stage by the compere and former England star Alex Scott who said, “Three years ago in Trafalgar Square you [Sarina Weigman] said, ‘I am not ready to dance, the music was not quite right.’ “The surprise right now, we know who your favorite artiste is, he is in the building, so we want to see you dance. Please give it up, everybody, for Sarina’s favorite artist. Burna Boy is…

THE Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a global hunger monitoring system, warns the “worst-case scenario of famine” is now unfolding in Gaza as Israel blocks vital aid. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has told his cabinet that the United Kingdom will recognise the state of Palestine by September unless Israel takes “substantive steps” to end its war on Gaza and commits to a lasting peace process. According to a government statement issued after an emergency cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Starmer said the move could come before the United Nations General Assembly in New York unless Israel agrees to a…

AT least 27 people, including 16 inmates and a pregnant woman, have been killed in Russian air attacks on mostly southeastern Ukraine, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and regional officials. The attacks came overnight on Tuesday, a day after United States President Donald Trump set Russia a new deadline of “10 or 12 days” to reach a peace deal in its war on Ukraine or face tough new sanctions, shortening a 50-day deadline he had set earlier this month. Ivan Fedorov, head of the military administration in Zaporizhia, on Tuesday said Russia carried out eight overnight air attacks on his…