UKRAINE has struck gas facilities in southwest Russia’s Orenburg region, more than 1,500km (932 miles) from the Ukrainian border, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Zelenskyy said in his daily video address on Tuesday evening that the attack was a retaliation for Russia’s overnight attacks on Ukraine. “Ukraine has said that we will act symmetrically in response to Russia,” he said. Evgeny Solntsev, the governor of Orenburg – home to one of the world’s largest gasfields and containing industrial infrastructure considered vital to Russia’s military and economy – claimed that nine Ukrainian drones were repelled over the region. The fragments of…
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UGANDA’s President Yoweri Museveni, 81, has been sworn in for a record seventh consecutive term following his landslide victory in disputed elections in January, extending his tenure as one of Africa’s longest-serving rulers. Heavy security, including armoured tanks, were deployed in the capital, Kampala, ahead of the inauguration in what police said were measures intended to maintain public order. Museveni told the crowd that his new term should be regarded as a time for “no more sleep for all Ugandans”. He added that people should focus on creating more wealth and jobs – and build on the progress made over…
SOUTH Africa’s highest court has ruled that foreign nationals cannot reapply for asylum once their application has been rejected. The Constitutional Court said that allowing unlimited repeat applications without proper legislation in place could create a “never-ending cycle”, preventing deportations and causing administrative chaos. Leon Schreiber, the minister of home affairs in South Africa’s coalition government, welcomed the ruling as a “major victory” against the “abuse” of the refugee system. The ruling ends a long-running case that was brought by two nationals from Burundi, who reapplied for asylum in 2018 after their applications were rejected in 2014. The two argued…
TOTTENHAM Hotspur squandered the opportunity to take a significant step towards Premier League safety as they were held to a draw at home by Leeds United. Mathys Tel put Spurs in position to extend their lead over West Ham to four points with a spectacular 20-yard strike five minutes after the break. Spurs’ goal hero then turned villain 16 minutes from time with a reckless bicycle kick inside the area that caught Ethan Ampadu in the head. Dominic Calvert-Lewin equalised from the resulting penalty after a video assistant referee (VAR) review as Spurs failed to make it three league wins…
DONALD Trump says the ceasefire with Iran is “on life support,” after dismissing Tehran’s response to a US peace proposal as “stupid.” The US president’s swift rejection of Iran’s response on Sunday has fuelled concerns that the 10-week-old conflict will drag on, and continue to paralyse shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Referring to the latest proposal, Trump said the ceasefire is “the weakest right now after reading that piece of garbage they sent us.” “I didn’t even finish reading it,” he said. “It’s on life support.” Days after Washington floated a proposal aimed at reopening negotiations, Iran on Sunday…
THE Israeli military said on Monday it had sentenced two of its soldiers to imprisonment after one of them was photographed placing a cigarette in the mouth of a statue of the Virgin Mary in southern Lebanon. An image widely shared online last week showed an Israeli soldier with his arm around the statue of the mother of Christ while holding a cigarette up to her mouth. According to the military, the incident took place several weeks ago in southern Lebanon and was investigated by commanders on the ground. “At the conclusion of the investigation, the soldier documented carrying out…
SOUTH Africa’s parliament is set to establish an impeachment committee to probe allegations against President Cyril Ramaphosa in the “Farmgate” scandal. The lower house of parliament said on Monday that its speaker will set up the body to investigate. The move was ordered by the country’s highest court last week as it revived impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa. The constitutional court on Friday said that parliament’s decision to block an inquiry four years ago into the scandal was inconsistent with the constitution. The impeachment committee will review the evidence against Ramaphosa regarding the scandal, which centres on a large sum in…
THE body of one of two US soldiers who went missing last week during a training exercise in Morocco has been recovered, the US Army announced. The army identified him as 27-year-old 1st Lt Kendrick Lamont Key Jr, a platoon leader and air defence artillery officer from Richmond, Virginia. A Moroccan military search team found Key’s body in the water along the shoreline within about a mile of the cliffs where both soldiers went missing on 2 May. US and Moroccan forces are using ground, air and maritime assets to continue their search for the other missing soldier. Brig Gen…
BARCELONA secured their 29th Spanish league title after beating Real Madrid 2-0 in the Clasico on Sunday. Marcus Rashford and Ferran Torres struck in the first half to help Hansi Flick’s side clinch La Liga in consecutive years, while consigning Madrid to a trophyless season. Barca moved an unassailable 14 points clear of second-place Los Blancos with three matches remaining. This was only the second time the outcome of La Liga has been decided directly by the result of a Clasico, with record 36-time champions Real Madrid winning their first title in 1932 after a draw with Barca. Madrid arrived…
THE Lebanese Health Ministry says Israeli attacks in the past 24 hours have killed 51 people, including two medical workers. “The Israeli enemy continues to violate international laws and humanitarian norms, adding more crimes against paramedics, as it directly targeted two points of the Health Authority in Qalawiya and Tibnin, Bint Jbeil district, in two raids,” the ministry said. A ceasefire, brokered by the United States, is into its third week. The ministry said 2,846 people have been killed across the country since March 2, when Israeli forces began a new military operation. SInce then, the United Nations says at…
DONALD Trump is set to arrive in Beijing on Wednesday evening to discuss the Iran war and other issues with his Chinese counterpart President Xi Jinping. White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said an opening ceremony and meeting will be on Thursday morning, and the trip will conclude on Friday. The US plans to host the Chinese leader during a reciprocal visit later this year. Kelly said that this week’s trip would be of “tremendous symbolic significance” and focus on “rebalancing the relationship with China and prioritising reciprocity and fairness to restore American economic independence”. Trump’s visit, initially…
THE Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has hosted some officials of Sierra Leone’s ministry of education to understudy Nigeria’s centralised admission system. The visiting officials are learning to understand and establish a body similar to JAMB, which would streamline Sierra Leone’s admission process. An X post on Sunday by Fabian Benjamin, JAMB’s spokesperson, said the delegation includes Sarjoh Aziz Kamara, Sierra Leone’s deputy minister of education, Edwin Momoh, vice-chancellor of Ernest Bai Koroma university of science and technology, and Bashiru Koroma, vice-chancellor of Njala university. Benjamin said that the delegation was taken through the examination and admission processes at…
AN attack by armed rebels has killed at least 69 people in Ituri province in the conflict-torn northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), according to security officials. For more than 30 years, the mineral-rich eastern DRC has been a battleground for various armed groups, vying for control of its many mines. Two ethnic groups – the Hema and the Lendu – have been locked in a long-running violent conflict in Ituri, a gold-rich province that borders Uganda and South Sudan. Armed men affiliated with the Cooperative for the Development of the Congo (CODECO) coalition of militia groups,…
GALATASARAY have been crowned Turkish Super League champions after a dramatic 4-2 victory over Antalyaspor, with Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen delivering a decisive performance that secured the club’s 26th league title. The encounter began with high intensity as Antalyaspor stunned the home supporters by taking the lead just before half-time through Soner Dikmen in the 45th minute, piling early pressure on the league leaders. Galatasaray, however, responded strongly in the second half, with Mario Lemina restoring parity in the 56th minute to reignite belief and momentum among the champions-in-waiting. Antalyaspor quickly regained the advantage just six minutes later with a…
ISRAELI attacks across Lebanon have killed at least 23 people despite a United States-brokered ceasefire, now in its third week. In a statement on Saturday, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said an Israeli attack on the town of al-Saksakieh in the southern Sidon district killed at least seven people, including a child, and wounded 15, including three children. Elsewhere, Israeli attacks killed a Syrian man and his daughter in Nabatieh; three people in Nahrain; three in Saadiyat; another three in Haboush; and one in Mefdoun. Later, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that one person was killed when an Israeli…
THE World Health Organization chief said Saturday he had arrived in Spain and would join government officials to oversee the disembarkation of a hantavirus-hit cruise ship in the Canary Islands. “I arrived in Spain, where I will join senior government officials in a mission to Tenerife to oversee safe disembarkation of the passengers, crew members and health experts from MV Hondius cruise ship,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X. Three passengers from the MV Hondius — a Dutch husband and wife and a German woman — have died, while others have fallen sick with the rare disease, which usually spreads…
SOUTH Africa has pushed back against Ghana’s request for a debate at the upcoming African Union summit on xenophobic attacks against African nationals, saying it already acted against recent xenophobic violence. In a statement issued on Friday, the country’s Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation described Ghana’s move to elevate the matter to the African Union as “regrettable,” while insisting it remained open to diplomatic engagement and dialogue. FIRST BANK AD Do you live in Ogijo This comes amid diplomatic tension between South Africa and other African countries, including Ghana and Nigeria. On Thursday, Ghana’s government wrote to the African…
BOTSWANA’s former head of state Festus Mogae has died at the age of 86, President Duma Boko has announced. “Today Botswana mourns a distinguished statesman and patriot whose life was devoted to the service of his country,” Boko announced, adding that Mogae died early on Friday. The former president, who led Botswana from 1998 to 2008, had been in ill health for some time. In a statement last month, the government said he was receiving medical care at a hospital in the capital, Gaborone, without disclosing the nature of his illness. Mogae, the country’s thrid president, is widely credited with…
REAL Madrid announced on Friday that they had fined Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde 500,000 euros ($588,000) each after a training ground clash that left the latter needing hospital treatment. The club did not impose any sporting sanctions on the two players, saying in a statement that the fine “thereby concludes the internal procedures” launched against them. Valverde will miss Sunday’s Clásico against Barcelona as a result of the head injury he suffered during the altercation. The club said he would be out for up to two weeks. Tchouameni took part in training on Friday and could feature at Camp…
FOR 18 months, the family of Eid Nael Abu Shaar, aged 25, a Palestinian man from Gaza, believed this eldest son was dead. They had scoured Gaza for his body, requested a death certificate and erected a tent to mourn his loss ten months after he went missing, but then an unexpected phone call from a lawyer confirmed he was alive and being held in Israel’s Ofer Prison. It ended an agonising year-and-a-half search for Eid, but the revelation highlights the devastating plight of thousands of other families in the Gaza Strip who still await news about their missing relatives.…