Author: Editor

ISRAEL has halted the entry of all humanitarian aid into Gaza and threatened Hamas with more “consequences” if the Palestinian group does not agree to extend the now-ended phase one of their fragile ceasefire agreement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Sunday that “the entry of all goods and supplies to the Gaza Strip will be halted,” accusing Hamas of refusing to accept a framework for the continuation of talks proposed by US special envoy Steve Witkoff. “Israel will not allow a ceasefire without a release of our hostages,” the statement said. “If Hamas persists in its refusal,…

KEIR Starmer will tell European leaders that they need to face the “brutal reality” and increase defense spending, as the British prime minister seeks to use his line into the White House to keep the trans-Atlantic alliance from breaking apart over Ukraine. The British premier will deliver the message to representatives from more than a dozen other long-time American allies on Sunday during a European security summit in London, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The event was made all the more urgent by US President Donald Trump’s spectacular falling out with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Starmer…

THE army of the Democratic Republic of Congo has accused Rwanda of dressing up prisoners in military uniforms in an effort to pass them off as newly-captured rebels linked to the Rwandan genocide. It comes after Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo said they had captured fighters from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) – a militia founded by ethnic Hutus who took part in the 1994 genocide against Rwanda’s Tutsis. But the DR Congo military said a video allegedly showing the handover of 20 FDLR rebels at a border crossing was “faked”. M23 fighters have…

THE love life of South Africa’s Zulu king has the country agog – and has scandalised his socially conservative subjects as he messes with tradition by seeking a divorce. Polygamy is part of Zulu culture, but King Misuzulu kaZwelithini has taken the unusual step of going to court to divorce his first wife, Queen Ntokozo kaMayisela. “Everyone was puzzled. People were not expecting the king to go so far as to file for divorce,” Prof Gugu Mazibuko, a cultural expert at South Africa’s University of Johannesburg, told the BBC. “In Zulu culture, there is no divorce. You are not supposed…

SUSPECTED bandits posing as operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have reportedly abducted 10 people from White Hill Hotel on Shiroro Road, Chanchaga Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State. A security analyst and counter-insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, quoted intelligence sources as saying that the incident occurred at about 4:58 a.m. on Tuesday, February 27, 2025. The armed men reportedly stormed the hotel, claiming to be EFCC personnel on an official operation. “It was gathered that the suspects disabled the hotel’s CCTV cameras before entering guests’ rooms one by one and forcibly taking away 10 individuals to…

Q – Salaamu Alaikum. Please can Mallam tell me more about the easy acceptance of du’a in Ramadan? Amir Nasir Wamakko, Sokoto A – Abu Saeed Khudri (Radhiyallahu anhu) relates that Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu Alaihil Wasallam) said, “Everyday and night of Ramadan Allah sets free a great number of souls from Jahannam. And for every Muslim during everyday and night there is a time when his dua is certainly accepted. Apart from this Hadith, there are many others stating that the dua’s is accepted at the time of if’taar. Unfortunately at that time we are so engrossed in eating if’taar…

GOALKEEPERS who hold on to the ball beyond eight seconds will be punished by conceding a corner from next season after a rule change by football’s lawmakers IFAB. As the rules currently stand, ‘keepers are supposed to be sanctioned with an indirect free-kick if they hold on for more than six seconds. However, the offence is rarely penalised. A trial allowing keepers to hold on for eight seconds has been active in a number of competitions this season, with the final five seconds counted down by the referee’s hand. “The amendment means that if a goalkeeper holds the ball for…

AS the first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza draws to a close, negotiations on the next stage, aimed at securing a permanent truce, have so far been inconclusive. Hamas on Saturday rejected Israel’s “formulation” of extending the first phase of the ceasefire instead of proceeding to the second phase as originally planned, calling it unacceptable. Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem told Al Araby TV that no talks were being held for a second ceasefire phase even as the first phase is due to expire on Saturday. Qassem said Israel bears the responsibility for not starting second phase negotiations, accusing…

AT least 37 people have been killed and dozens more injured in a crash involving two buses in the western Potosi region of Bolivia, police and local authorities have said. The accident happened on Saturday at 7am local time (11:00 GMT) on the route between the cities of Uyuni and Colchani, when one of the vehicles swerved into the oncoming lane. Uyuni is the gateway to the Salar de Uyuni, a major tourist attraction and the world’s largest salt flat at more than 10,000sq km (3,900sq miles). “As a result of this fatal accident we have 39 people injured in…

A YOUNG child has died of the Ebola virus in Uganda, the second victim of an outbreak that was announced in late January, the health ministry said on Saturday. On Tuesday, the east African country confirmed it had recorded 10 cases of the Sudan Ebola strain of the often deadly virus — including that of a nurse at Mulago National Referral Hospital, who had died. On Saturday, it announced an “additional positive case” had been detected at Mulago. The deceased, a child of four and a half, was “a resident of Kibuli (in the capital, Kampala) linked to the primary…

MORE than 500 mpox patients have fled clinics in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo over the last month amid the current conflict. Officials at Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), a leading health agency on the continent, have said they are worried as the missing patients risk spreading the highly contagious disease that is suspected to have killed at 900 people in DR Congo last year. The patients fled from facilities in Goma and Bukavu – two cities that descended into chaos as they were seized by the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels over the past weeks. “We were…

Q: Salaamu Alaikum Ya Sheikh, what, exactly, does moderation in Islam mean? Marwa Abdallah, Bauchi A: Amin Alaikil Salaam, What Allah requires from a Muslim is not overly burdensome. He prescribes moderation in every walk of life. I remember a conversation I recently had with my neighbor and friend who happens to be a non-Muslim. I had just returned from an Islamic conference. When she came to know about it, she looked worried, and asked: “No one advocates extremism at these sorts of things, do they?” I almost laughed, but realizing the seriousness of her concern, I reassured her that…

LAST month, Sufian Abu Ghassan joined hundreds of thousands of Palestinians defiantly trekking back to their battered neighborhoods after a ceasefire paused Israel’s 15-month war on Gaza. The 70-year-old was relieved that Israel’s mass killing of Palestinians had stopped, for now. However, he knew the mass destruction brought on by Israel’s war would make life difficult. His taxi business was destroyed, his home damaged, and there are hardly any provisions in Gaza, even drinking water. At least he and his family had survived Israel’s carpet bombing and siege and starvation tactics and had returned to northern Gaza, the only home…

META on Thursday said it had laid off 20 workers for leaking information to the media, as the social media giant faces pressure over the recent political shift of its boss Mark Zuckerberg towards US President Donald Trump. “We tell employees when they join the company, and we offer periodic reminders, that it is against our policies to leak internal information, no matter the intent,” a Meta spokesperson said, confirming a story first reported in The Verge. “We recently conducted an investigation that resulted in roughly 20 employees being terminated for sharing confidential information outside the company, and we expect…

THE US government’s sudden decision to axe funding for HIV programmes is a “wake-up call” for South Africa, the country’s health minister has told the BBC. Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, responding to US termination notices issued late on Wednesday, said the cuts could lead to deaths, but he had instructed state-funded clinics to ensure no patient went without life-saving drugs. There is chaos as many affected organisations scramble to find alternative help for some 900,000 HIV patients by the end of the day. “Instead of a careful handover, we’re being pushed off a cliff,” said Kate Rees from the Anova Health…

NIGERIA will host the first African edition of Investopia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) global investment platform, in September 2025 at Eko Atlantic City, Lagos, according to a statement on the Investopia website. The summit aims to strengthen economic ties between Africa and the Middle East while positioning Nigeria as a destination for global investors. Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment Jumoke Oduwole said the event reflects Nigeria’s emergence as an investment hub. “Hosting Investopia Africa 2025 in Nigeria reaffirms our transformation into a leading investment hub. Our reforms are creating a stable, transparent, and high-growth economy. We look forward…

Q – Salaamu Alaikum, Ya Sheikh, how could the Shaytaan appear to the disbelievers in the battle of Badr when he is chained up during Ramadan and the battle was in Ramadan? Aminu Harisu Kaugama, Jigawa. A – Amin Alaikal Salaam, it is well-known in the books of tafseer and seerah that the Shaytaan was present at the battle of Badr and that he appeared in the form of Suraaqah ibn Maalik. That is mentioned in the commentary on the verse in which Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning): “And (remember) when Shaitan (Satan) made their…

ISRAEL is attending talks on Thursday with the Palestinian group Hamas on moving to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreed between the two in January, according to Egypt, which is hosting the talks. But even as the talks get under way, Israeli officials have made it clear they are seeking to change the terms of the agreed-upon three-phase deal, jeopardising its success. Under the terms of the deal, the first six-week phase – scheduled to end on March 1st – would see the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from Gaza’s main population areas, an increase in humanitarian aid…

NORTH Korea has carried out test launches of strategic cruise missiles to send a message to “enemies” about its counterattack capabilities, state media has said. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un presided over the missile drills in the Yellow Sea on Wednesday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on Friday. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed that it had detected and tracked the launches in a statement later in the day. Pyongyang carried out the drills to warn “enemies, who are seriously violating the security environment of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and fostering and escalating the…

AT least 11 people have been killed and 65 wounded when explosions rocked the city of Bukavu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during a rally for the M23 rebel group and their supporters, the leader of the rebel alliance says. The DRC’s presidency, which says neighbouring Rwanda is backing the rebels, said in a post on X that “several” deaths occurred on Thursday and blamed “a foreign army illegally present on Congolese soil”. Corneille Nangaa – who is the leader of the Congo River Alliance, which includes M23, and who had himself been present at the…