DONALD Trump has renewed his threat to “blow up” a range of civilian infrastructure in Iran, including all of the country’s desalination plants, in a move that would threaten the water source for millions of people and that experts say would be illegal. The United States president has been regularly warning Iran about possible US strikes against energy and electricity facilities, but on Monday, he added water stations to the list of targets. “The United States of America is in serious discussions with A NEW, AND MORE REASONABLE, REGIME to end our Military Operations in Iran,” Trump wrote in a…
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SPAIN has closed its airspace to planes of the United States involved in the US-Israel war on Iran, the latest step in the country’s opposition to the conflict. Defence Minister Margarita Robles confirmed the airspace closure to reporters on Monday after Spain’s El Pais newspaper first reported on it, quoting military sources. “This was made perfectly clear to the American military and forces from the very beginning. Therefore, neither the bases are authorised, nor, of course, is the use of Spanish airspace authorised for any actions related to the war in Iran,” Robles said. “I think everyone knows Spain’s position;…
THREE people, two women and a man, have been confirmed dead after a three-storey building that was being used as a church collapsed on worshippers in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, on Sunday. Interior Minister Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak said 20 others, most of them women and children, had been rescued and were being treated in various hospitals. There was a “90-95% certainty” that no-one remain trapped inside, he added. Emergency teams worked through the night under floodlights searching for victims inside the structure’s remains. The cause of its collapse, which happened after heavy rain, is unknown, with the interior minister saying investigations…
SOMALI federal troops Monday wrested control of the key city of Baidoa after clashes with forces loyal to the head of the region, whose mandate Mogadishu says expired four years ago. Deeply fractured Somalia’s central government accuses the South West State president, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, of having illegally extended his rule, which, in theory, expired in 2022. The fighting comes after Laftagareen opposed a reform of the Somali constitution, adopted in early March, which extends the presidential term from four to five years and introduces the election of Somali MPs and senators by direct universal suffrage instead of the…
MINISTER of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has resigned from his position in the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, setting the stage for his anticipated bid in the 2027 governorship election in Bauchi State. News Point Nigeria gathered that Tuggar submitted his resignation letter on Monday around noon, in compliance with a presidential directive mandating political appointees with electoral ambitions to step down before the March 31, 2026 deadline. Sources close to the former minister confirmed that the resignation is a strategic move to enable him contest the Bauchi governorship election under the platform of the All Progressives Congress…
FORMER Governor of Kano State, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has formally resigned from the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) with immediate effect. In a press statement announcing his resignation on Sunday, Kwankwaso expressed his profound gratitude for the honour and privilege of serving as the NNPP’s national leader and its presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections. As a committed and bonafide member of the party, he, however, admitted that it was not an easy decision to make. “However, considering the current trajectory of the nation’s political landscape, which calls for strategic realignment, I have found it necessary to identify…
TOTTENHAM parted company with coach Igor Tudor by mutual consent on Sunday after just seven games in charge as they battle to stay in the Premier League. Tudor lost five of those matches in a 44-day reign to leave Spurs out of the Champions League and hovering just one point above the relegation zone in the Premier League. The 47-year-old did not appear in front of the media after last weekend’s damaging 3-0 defeat to fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest after learning of his father’s death just after the game ended. “We can confirm that it has been mutually agreed for…
THE Pentagon is preparing for weeks of limited ground operations in Iran, potentially including raids on Kharg Island and coastal sites near the Strait of Hormuz, according to United States officials quoted by The Washington Post newspaper. The plans, which fall short of a full invasion, could involve raids by special operations and conventional infantry troops, the Post reported on Saturday, exposing US personnel to Iranian drones and missiles, ground fire, and improvised explosives. Whether President Donald Trump would approve any of those plans remains uncertain, according to the report. “It’s the job of the Pentagon to make preparations in…
ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed his country’s military to further expand invasions of southern Lebanon, as regional tensions spike amid the United States-Israeli war on Iran. “I have just instructed to further expand the existing security buffer zone. We are determined to fundamentally change the situation in the north [of Israel],” Netanyahu said in a video statement from the Northern Command on Sunday, pushing forward his country’s stated bid to replicate the “Gaza model” of occupation. Netanyahu’s announcement came as Israeli forces advanced in multiple areas of southern Lebanon in a concerted push towards the Litani River in…
AN attack by Sudanese paramilitaries on South Kordofan has killed at least 14 people, including five children and two women, according to a medical group. The Sudan Doctors Network said the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their allies in the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North shelled residential areas in the city of Dilling in an attack that lasted hours, leaving at least 23 others wounded, including seven children. The military, which this year broke an RSF siege on the city that saw supplies cut off and frequent bombardment, said it fended off the attack on the capital of South Kordofan province.…
SHOPS, restaurants and cafes in Egypt have been told to close early as part of a raft of temporary measures to combat soaring energy prices caused by the Iran war. Retail and dining premises will have to close by 21:00 (19:00 GMT) each night for the next month, beginning on Saturday. The “exceptional measures” introduced by the Egyptian government also include dimming street lights and roadside advertising, as well as a return to home working for one day a week in April for many. Egypt has been particularly affected by the Middle East conflict and the effective blockade of the…
SENEGAL coach Pape Thiaw insisted Friday that “trophies are won on the pitch” when asked about the decision to strip his team of the Africa Cup of Nations title and declare Morocco the champions. “I am focused on my job. It is important to not be distracted. Everyone knows we are the champions of Africa,” Thiaw told reporters at a press conference in Paris, ahead of his team’s friendly meeting with Peru on Saturday at the Stade de France. “We are going to keep working hard to try to win more trophies. It is clear in our minds that trophies…
ISRAEL has struck a uranium processing facility in the central Iranian city of Yazd, the Israeli military confirmed, in an escalatory move that comes as regional diplomats have been attempting to broker an agreement to halt the joint US-Israeli war on Iran. The Israeli Air Force said it hit a plant used to extract raw materials essential to the uranium enrichment process, describing it as a “unique facility” in Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization confirmed the strike, but said there were no casualties or radiation leaks. Friday marked day 28 of the conflict, and the assault on Yazd…
A GROUP of Iran-linked hackers have said that they successfully gained access to the personal emails of Kash Patel, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), sharing photographs and documents from the United States official online. The Handala Hack Team said on Friday that Patel would “will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims”. The news outlets Reuters and CNN confirmed the breach, citing unnamed security officials and people familiar with the matter. The FBI and Department of Justice have yet to comment on the incident. The hacking appears to have released some documents…
SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa has downplayed reports that his invitation to the forthcoming G7 summit in France has been withdrawn, saying non-attendance by a country outside the bloc should surprise no-one. Reports on Thursday claimed the US had put huge pressure on France to rescind Ramaphosa’s invitation to the summit scheduled for June. They claimed US President Donald Trump had threatened to boycott the summit if the South African leader attended. “The invitation to the G7 does not mean that you’re being snubbed if you’re not invited or you’re being ignored,” said Ramaphosa. France has, however, denied yielding to…
THE United Nations General Assembly has voted to recognise the enslavement of Africans during the transatlantic slave trade as “the gravest crime against humanity”, a move advocates hope will pave the way for healing and justice. The resolution – proposed by Ghana – called for this designation, while also urging UN member states to consider apologising for the slave trade and contributing to a reparations fund. It does not mention a specific amount of money. The proposal was adopted with 123 votes in favour and three against – the United States, Israel and Argentina. Fifty-two countries abstained, including the United…
KYLIAN Mbappe moved to within one goal of equalling France’s all-time top goalscoring record as his side beat Brazil in a friendly at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts, USA. Mbappe was sent through on goal by Ousmane Dembele in the 32nd minute and dinked the ball over onrushing Brazil keeper Ederson. It was Mbappe’s 56th goal on his 95th appearances for his country – only Olivier Giroud with 57 goals in 137 caps has scored more for the two-time world champions. The 27-year-old was substituted for Marcus Thuram in the 66th minute having had two further half chances, dragging two shots…
AN Israeli air strike has killed the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy, Israel’s defence minister says. The assassination of Alireza Tangsiri was carried out on Wednesday night and targeted other “senior officers of the naval command”, Israel Katz said on Thursday in a video statement. “The man who was directly responsible for the terrorist operation of mining and blocking the Strait of Hormuz to shipping was blown up and eliminated,” he said. Since the start of the United States-Israel war on Iran on February 28, Israel has announced the assassination of several top Iranian officials, including…
UNITED States President Donald Trump has pushed back a self-imposed deadline for attacks on Iran’s power grid to April 6, citing progress in negotiations to end the ongoing war in the country. Thursday’s announcement comes as the president continues to pressure Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for oil traffic. “As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 PM, Eastern Time,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. “Talks are ongoing and,…
ONE of the key military figures convicted of crimes against humanity for his involvement in Guinea’s 2009 stadium massacre has died in custody, authorities say. Aboubacar Sidiki Diakité – also known as Toumba – died early on Wednesday in hospital following a medical emergency, the prison administration said. He was serving a 10-year sentence for his role in one of the darkest episodes in Guinea’s history in which more than 150 people were killed in the capital, Conakry, as they demanded an end to military rule. At least 109 women were also raped. While in custody, Diakité remained a controversial…