THE English Football Association’s decision to back Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the 2034 World Cup was “not difficult” after organisers gave “a lot of commitments”, its chair Debbie Hewitt says. Saudi Arabia was confirmed as host of the men’s tournament on Wednesday by football’s world governing body Fifa. Organisers have insisted everyone will be welcome, but the country has been criticised for its human rights violations, women’s rights abuses and the criminalisation of homosexuality. However, Hewitt told BBC Radio 5 Live that England’s FA asked “a lot of questions” before supporting the bid. “It wasn’t a difficult decision -…
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JOURNALISTS in Damascus says Israeli air strikes that shook the Syrian capital on Friday night targeted the headquarters of the army’s fourth division and a radar battalion in the nearby countryside. Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Damascus and other towns and cities across the country on Friday to celebrate the fall of Bashar al-Assad. The Arab League has condemned Israel’s grab for Syrian land in the buffer zone between the two countries. Jordan is scheduled to host an emergency summit on Syria, which will be attended by top diplomats from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt,…
DOCTORS treating Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva after surgery this week to stop a hemorrhage inside his head took him out of intensive care on Friday but kept him hospitalized. Lula, 79, “remains in the Hospital Sirio-Libanes, in Sao Paulo, under semi-intensive care,” they said in a public medical update. The update came after doctors performed emergency surgery on Tuesday to drill through Lula’s skull to relieve pressure built up because of bleeding in protective intracranial membranes. The injury was linked to a blow to the head Lula suffered in October, when he fell in a bathroom in…
NIGER Rpublic’s military government has suspended the BBC for three months, accusing it of spreading fake news that could destabilise social peace and demoralise troops fighting insurgents. Niger’s Minister of Communication Raliou Sidi Mohamed announced that the decision would take effect immediately. BBC programmes, including in Hausa, the most spoken language in Niger, and French, are broadcast in the country through local radio partners, reaching 2.4 million people in the country this year – about 17% of the adult population. Although BBC radio programmes have been suspended, the website is not blocked and the radio can still be accessed on…
RWANDA is bidding to host a Formula 1 grand prix, the country’s President Paul Kagame says. F1 is keen to hold a race in Africa and talks with Rwanda have been known about for some months. The FIA, F1’s governing body, is hosting its general assembly and prize giving in the Rwandan capital Kigali, and Kagame chose its opening to put his official seal on the grand prix project. Kagame said: “I am happy to formally announce that Rwanda is bidding to bring the thrill of racing back to Africa, by hosting a Formula 1 grand prix. “A big thank…
SECOND-HALF substitute Rasmus Hojlund scored twice as Manchester United fought back to earn a 2-1 win at Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday. The hosts took the lead shortly after half-time, but Hojlund levelled on 62 minutes, six minutes after replacing Marcus Rashford, when the Danish striker tapped in Amad Diallo’s deflected shot. Two minutes from time, he beat Plzen goalkeeper Martin Jedlicka again with a clinical finish, turning around his marker after United captain Bruno Fernandes had found him inside the box with a clever free-kick. Matej Vydra, a former Watford, West Brom, Reading, Derby and Burnley…
PALESTINIAN authorities have said that at least 33 people were killed in an Israeli strike on the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, as Israel continues to conduct devastating attacks across the strip. The Government Media Office in Gaza called the Thursday attack a “barbaric and heinous massacre”, noting that most of those killed hailed from the al-Sheikh Ali family. “The [Israeli] occupation army knew that this is a residential block with many apartment buildings housing dozens of civilians, children, women and displaced people,” the office said. Medics told the news agency Reuters that Israeli fire struck a postal office…
INDIAN chess prodigy Gukesh Dommaraju is toast of his nation after he beat China’s Ding Liren to become the game’s youngest-ever world champion at 18 years of age. Gukesh lived up to his tag as favourite in this year’s World Chess Championship final in Singapore on Thursday to smash a record held by Russia’s Garry Kasparov, who was 22 when he became world champion in 1985. It was a dream come true for the bearded teenager, who six years earlier declared: “I want to become the youngest world chess champion.” Gukesh became India’s youngest grandmaster aged 12 years, seven months…
ETHIOPIA and Somalia have agreed to end their bitter dispute over Addis Ababa’s plans to build a port in the breakaway republic of Somaliland following talks in Turkey. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed the “historic agreement”, which he said would eventually ensure landlocked Ethiopia’s access to the sea. At the press conference he held hands with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who both agreed to respect one another’s “sovereignty”. The two neighbours have been at loggerheads since January when Ethiopia signed a maritime deal with Somaliland – which Somalia considers as part of…
UGANDA’s President Yoweri Museveni, 80, has defended the use of military courts to try civilians – following an outcry over the arrest and trial of opposition leader Kizza Besigye. His 68-year-old rival has been charged in a military court with possession of pistols and attempting to purchase weapons abroad – accusations he denies. Besigye, who was abducted while visiting Kenya last month and forcibly taken to Uganda, found out on Tuesday that he would be spending Christmas in custody as his trial has been delayed until January. Museveni said any crime involving a gun was dealt with in a military…
CHINA jailed two more former top football officials for bribery on Wednesday, court statements showed, following a sweeping crackdown on corruption in the domestic game. Liu Yi, who was secretary general of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), was handed an 11-year sentence and fined 3.6 million yuan ($497,000) for taking bribes, a court in central Hubei province said. A separate court in the same province said Tan Hai, former head of the CFA’s referees management office, was given six and a half years and a 200,000 yuan fine. “The property he obtained will be clawed back in accordance with the…
AT least five people have been killed in Israeli attacks on several towns in southern Lebanon, the country’s Health Ministry has said, amid a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. “An Israeli enemy drone strike on the town of Ainata killed one person and wounded another,” the ministry said. An “Israeli strike on the town of Bint Jbeil killed three people,” while a third “on Beit Lif killed one person”, it added. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the attacks. Israel’s army escalated its attacks on Lebanon in late September after more than 11 months of…
THE father and stepmother of a 10-year-old British-Pakistani girl were found guilty Wednesday of her murder in a gruesome case of child abuse that shocked the UK and triggered an international manhunt. Urfan Sharif, 42, and Beinash Batool, 30, were convicted of Sara Sharif’s murder after she was found dead at her home last year, having suffered extensive injuries including broken bones, burns and bite marks. Her uncle Faisal Malik, 29, was also found guilty of causing or allowing her death after a week of jury deliberations at London’s Old Bailey criminal court. The sentencing for the “extremely stressful and…
A COURT in France has found French-Cameroonian author Charles Onana guilty of downplaying the Rwandan genocide. The 60-year-old writer was fined €8,400 ($8,900; £7,000) and Damien Serieyx, his publishing director from Éditions du Toucan, was ordered to pay €5,000. They are also required to pay €11,000 in compensation to human rights organisations that that filed the suit. The Paris court ruled that Onana’s writings violated France’s laws prohibiting genocide denial and incitement to hatred, noting that France would “no longer be a haven for denialists”. In just 100 days in 1994, about 800,000 people were killed in Rwanda by ethnic…
POLICE in Ghana have arrested more than 100 people – mostly opposition supporters of President-elect John Mahama – over acts of lawlessness. Supporters of the newly elected president who want jobs have allegedly attacked some state institutions, looted properties, and engaged in disturbances that have left some police and military personnel injured. The irate supporters also torched two electoral commission offices due to a delay in announcing the outcome of Saturday’s elections and disagreements over some parliamentary results. Mahama has condemned the vandalism and called on President Nana Akufo-Addo and security agencies to “act decisively” in addressing the violence. Vice-President…
THE Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Edo State, Jarrett Tenebe, has defended Governor Monday Okpebholo after the governor faced public backlash for stumbling over budget figures during the presentation of the 2025 Appropriation Bill to the State House of Assembly on Tuesday. A video of the governor’s budget presentation which shows his repeated attempts to correctly state the budget’s total amount went viral on social media. In the video, Okpebholo appeared flustered, saying, “The Edo State 2025 Appropriation Bill of 6 billion… 650… 605 billion… 76 thou… 76 million… “Let me take it again. 506 billion… 605 billion……
CHAMPIONS League group phase leaders Liverpool virtually sealed a place in the last 16 with a tight 1-0 victory at Girona on Tuesday after Mohamed Salah struck from the penalty spot. Liverpool have made a stunning start in the competition under coach Arne Slot, winning all six of their matches to move provisionally five points clear of second-placed Inter Milan. The English giants, six-time winners of the competition, were given a tough night by Champions League debutants Girona, who fell to a fifth defeat and are on the verge of elimination. Teams finishing in the top eight will avoid an…
DOZENS of wounded patients at the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza are at risk of dying due to lack of food and water, Palestinian health authorities have said. The Ministry of Health in Gaza said late on Tuesday that 60 patients were “at risk of death”. “The humanitarian situation inside the hospital has become extremely dangerous, as the wounded lack basic needs, which increases their suffering under the difficult conditions imposed by [Israeli] forces,” the ministry said in a statement on Telegram on Tuesday. The hospital is located in Beit Lahiya in the north of the Gaza Strip, which has…
THE United States offered a $10 million reward on Tuesday for information leading to the arrest of a Chinese man and co-conspirators wanted for hacking computer firewalls. Guan Tianfeng, 30, is believed to be living in China’s Sichuan Province, according to the State Department. An indictment charging Guan with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud was unsealed on Tuesday. The Treasury Department said it had imposed sanctions on the company Guan worked for, Sichuan Silence Information Technology Co Ltd. Guan and co-conspirators at Sichuan Silence allegedly took advantage of a vulnerability in firewalls sold by…
ZAMBIA’s top court has barred former President Edgar Lungu from standing for re-election in 2026. The Constitutional Court ruled that the 68-year-old politician had already served the maximum two terms allowed by law. Lungu was first elected president in January 2015 to serve the remaining 20 months of his predecessor’s term. President Michael Sata had died in office in October 2014. Lungu had argued that this should not count as he did not serve a full five-year term. But the court disagreed – reversing previous rulings that had cleared him to run three years ago when he lost to Hakainde…