Author: Editor

NIGER’s former prime minister Hama Amadou, known as “the Phoenix” for his talent for political comebacks, has died in Niamey aged 74, his family announced on Thursday. Newspaper L’Enqueteur said the “giant of Nigerien politics” had died overnight on Wednesday to Thursday in the capital after contracting malaria. Tributes poured in on social media for Amadou, who was premier from 1995 to 1996 under President Mahamane Ousmane and again from 2000 to 2007 under President Mamadou Tandja. He then became speaker of parliament from 2011 to 2014 under President Mahamadou Issoufou. “Hama Amadou marked the history of our country with…

RAPINHA scored a stunning hat-trick as Barcelona hammered Bayern Munich 4-1 on Wednesday in a blockbuster Champions League group clash. The Catalans had lost their last six games against Bayern but outplayed the six-time winners at the Olympic stadium with Robert Lewandowski also on the scoresheet, while England star Harry Kane struck for the visitors. Hansi Flick, who was in charge of the Bundesliga side in a humiliating 8-2 romp over Barca in 2020, led the Catalans to an emphatic triumph which indicated they may be capable of winning the trophy for the first time since 2015 after a decade…

LEBANON’s Health Ministry said at least one person was killed and five wounded as Israel carried out at least 17 strikes on Beirut’s suburbs overnight. Israel’s attack levelled six buildings in Beirut’s southern suburb of Laylaki in what Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Beirut described as a “very violent night” of strikes that began without warning. Also, UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese has said Israel’s declaration that six Al Jazeera journalists are members of armed groups “sounds like a death sentence” and has called for their protection. The Committee to Protect Journalists has said it is aware of the accusations against…

RUBBISH carried by a North Korean balloon has landed on South Korea’s presidential compound, authorities have said, in the second such incident in recent months. South Korea’s presidential security service said in a statement on Thursday that a balloon sent from across the inter-Korean border dumped rubbish onto the compound in Seoul’s Yongsan district, but no dangerous items or materials were discovered. South Korea’s Dong-A Ilbo and Chosun Ilbo newspapers reported that the balloon contained propaganda leaflets ridiculing President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife. The incident comes after Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of the North Korean leader…

BRITISH actor Idris Elba has told the BBC that he will relocate to Africa within the next decade as part of his plans to support the continent’s movie industry. The 52-year-old star of the hit series The Wire is behind nascent projects to build a film studio on the Tanzanian islands of Zanzibar as well as one in the Ghanaian capital, Accra. Born in London, Elba, whose mother is from Ghana and father from Sierra Leone, has a strong attachment to Africa. He wants to leverage his star power to back its burgeoning film business as he says it is…

SOUTH African rugby star Siya Kolisi and his wife Rachel have announced their divorce after more than a decade together, leaving their fans heartbroken. The two often shared their love for each other and their family on social media, and were admired by many South Africans, who saw them as one of the country’s power couples. The news of their split has caused a frenzy on social media, with fans expressing shock that their celebrated marriage is ending. The pair have asked for respect and privacy as they try to “navigate this transition”. Siya Kolisi was captain of the national…

THE much-awaited cabinet reshuffle of President Bola Tinubu began on Wednesday with the sacking of five ministers and the nomination of seven new ones for Senate confirmation. The President also re-assigned 10 ministers to new ministerial portfolios and appointed seven new ministers for Senate confirmation. Tinubu nominated Bianca Odumegu-Ojukwu as the Minister of State Foreign Affairs, while Nentawe Yilwatda as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, officially bringing an end to the tenure of suspended Betta Edu. The President also nominated Maigari Dingyadi as the Minister of Labour and Employment, Jumoke Oduwole as the Minister of Industry, Idi…

VINICIUS Junior scored a sublime hat-trick as Champions League holders Real Madrid came back from two goals down to hammer Borussia Dortmund 5-2 on Tuesday. After a shock stumble at Lille in their previous European match, Madrid crushed Dortmund, in a repeat of last season’s final, with a superb second half display. Carlo Ancelotti’s side claimed a record-extending 15th Champions League crown at Wembley and, as in that match, struggled in the first half against the Bundesliga side, who went two goals up through Donyell Malen and Jamie Gittens. However, Antonio Rudiger and Vinicius pulled Madrid level with two goals…

ISRAEL’s war on Gaza has set back development indicators such as health and education by nearly 70 years, a new United Nations report has found, with millions more Palestinians falling below the poverty line. In a report published on Tuesday, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) said the overall Palestinian economy is now 35 percent smaller compared with a year ago at the start of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, with unemployment “potentially rising” to an estimated 49.9 percent. The UNDP research showed the Human Development Index (HDI) for Gaza, a measure of “average achievement in key dimensions of human development”, is…

AN E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald’s quarter pounder hamburgers has sickened dozens of people in the United States, including one fatally, health officials have said. At least 49 people have fallen ill in 10 states, with most cases concentrated in Colorado and Nebraska, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday. Most of the people who fell ill reported eating the quarter pounder hamburger at McDonald’s before getting sick, the CDC said. Health authorities have yet to determine the specific ingredient that may have caused the outbreak. “McDonald’s is collaborating with investigation partners to determine what…

THE Republic of Ecuador on Tuesday decided to suspend its recognition of the so-called “rasd,” initially acknowledged in 1983 with the establishment of a so-called embassy in 2009. Ecuador’s Foreign Minister, Gabriela Sommerfeld, conveyed the decision to her Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, during a phone call. She also confirmed that a notification letter had been sent to the so-called representation of the separatists in Quito. This decision aligns with the momentum driven by His Majesty King Mohammed VI in recent years, to enshrine the Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara and the Autonomy Plan as the sole basis for resolving this…

RUSSIA’s embassy in Sudan has said it is investigating reports that a cargo plane with Russian crew was shot down in Darfur, a key battle ground in the civil war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The aircraft, identified as a Russian-made ilyushin Il-76, was on a mission to deliver equipment and medicine to the army-held city of el-Fasher, military sources told Sudanese media. On Monday, the RSF said it had downed a Russian-made plane flown by the Egyptian military that it accused of bombing civilians – though it was identified as an Antonov. Egypt denies…

THE Speaker of Ghana’s parliament has suspended proceedings indefinitely following chaotic scenes in the chamber over a row about which party holds the parliamentary majority. Last week, it was discovered that four MPs had switched allegiance and would run for different parties in the 7 December general election. Speaker Alban Bagbin then declared that their seats were vacant, arguing that the constitution does not allow MPs to defect. In a finely balanced parliament, that decision – which is being challenged in court – means that the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has become the majority party. Last Friday, President Nana…

THE Executive Director of the Niger State Motor Vehicle Administration Agency, Doctor Bako Mohammed, has declared that the recent Federal High Court ruling prohibiting the Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO) from stopping vehicles on the road does not apply to the state. This statement was made during a press conference in Minna, North Central Nigeria, ahead of the National Conference on Standardization and Harmonization of Vehicle Testing and Licensing. According to Doctor Bako, the state governor is constitutionally empowered to formulate laws guiding vehicular movement within the territory. This stance, he argued suggests that Niger State will continue to operate its…

JUVENTUS say their English X account was hacked after a fake post was published announcing the signing of Real Madrid midfielder Arda Guler. The post showed a photograph of the 19-year-old Turkey international at an airport with the caption: “Welcome to Juventus, Arda Guler. The rising star of football is now part of the Juventus family.” But the Serie A club later clarified the situation on their Italian X account, external, saying their English account had been “compromised” and to ignore the “false information” published. Even if Juventus wanted to sign Guler they would be unable to do so until…

THE Lebanese armed group has said it has bombed the Glilot base of military intelligence unit 8200 in the suburbs of Tel Aviv with a “qualitative missile salvo”. Earlier, Hezbollah said it bombed the Nirit area in Israel’s Tel Aviv suburbs with missiles, seemingly referring to a separate attack. The Israeli military has said there have been no casualties reported so far. Hezbollah’s statement came after videos verified by Al Jazeera’s Sanad agency showed smoke rising near the Beit Aryeh settlement located north of the occupied West Bank and east of Tel Aviv after sirens sounded in three settlements in…

PERUVIAN ex-President Alejandro Toledo has been sentenced to more than 20 years in prison, the latest Latin American leader to be jailed in connection with the Odebrecht construction firm corruption scandal. Toledo was convicted of taking $35m in bribes from the Brazilian construction firm in exchange for a freeway construction contract, and was sentenced to 20 years and six months in prison on Monday. “I want to go to a private clinic. I ask you please to let me get better or die at home,” Toledo said at a hearing last week, saying that he was dealing with health issues…

CAMEROON’s 91-year-old President Paul Biya has been seen in public for the first time in six weeks amid speculation about his ailing health. His absence from the public eye led to unfounded rumours of his death. But on Monday afternoon state television showed footage of the president’s arrival at the airport in the capital, Yaoundé, on a flight from Switzerland. The government had banned the media from discussing the health of Biya – in power since 1982 – classifying it as a matter of national security. Rumours of his death have been circulating on and off for the past two…

MOROCCO’s Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said Monday that a recent proposal by a United Nations envoy to partition the disputed territory of Western Sahara was “unacceptable”, citing past rejections of similar plans. In a closed session of the UN Security Council last week, Western Sahara envoy Staffan de Mistura proposed dividing the territory between Morocco and the pro-independence Polisario Front in order to resolve a decades-old conflict. Bourita said de Mistura had already made the proposal in a visit to Morocco in April, which the kingdom had rejected. “Morocco has not and will not even accept hearing the proposal, because…

MANCHESTER City snatched a controversial 2-1 win at Wolves as John Stones’ last-gasp goal was given after a VAR review to send the champions to the top of the Premier League on Sunday. Pep Guardiola’s side trailed to Jorgen Strand Larsen’s surprise opener for Wolves early in the first half. Josko Gvardiol dragged City back on level terms before the interval and, with just seconds left in stoppage time, Stones headed the visitors to a dramatic sixth win in eight league games this season. Bottom of the table Wolves claimed Stones’ goal should have been disallowed for offside and interference…