Author: Editor

IRANIAN Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has discussed with regional interlocutors a proposal aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz but deferring talks with the US on Tehran’s nuclear programme for later, during a 72-hour diplomatic sprint across three countries seemingly aimed at securing a broader buy-in for the plan. Araghchi on Monday met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg, after visiting Islamabad twice in two days – the two trips sandwiching a meeting in Muscat, Oman. Sources close to these diplomatic efforts told Al Jazeera that senior intelligence officials from several countries were present at the Muscat talks.…

At LEAST 42 people have been killed and 10 injured in fighting between rival ethnic groups in eastern Chad in a conflict that began as a dispute over a water well, officials say. The conflict in Wadi Fira province, initially between two families, is said to have escalated into a cycle of reprisal attacks that spread over a wide area, with villages burned down. Chadian authorities said on Sunday that a delegation led by deputy Prime Minister Limane Mahamat had been sent to the area and the situation had been brought under control. Deadly communal clashes are common in the…

A SMALL passenger plane has crashed in South Sudan killing all on board, the country’s civil aviation authority (SSCAA) said. Officials have sent a team to the crash site for investigations but initial reports suggested the aircraft may have come down “due to adverse weather conditions, particularly low visibility”, the SSCAA added in a statement. The plane crashed about 20km (12 miles) south-west of the capital, Juba, on Monday morning. It took off from Yei at 09:15 local time ( 07:15 GMT) and air traffic control lost contact about 30 minutes into the flight to the capital. Among the 15…

ENZO Fernandez’s first-half header settled a scrappy FA Cup semi-final against Leeds United at Wembley as Chelsea made a winning start after Liam Rosenior’s sacking. Calum McFarlane was put in interim charge until the end of the season and will now lead Chelsea out against Manchester City on Saturday, 16 May. Leeds’ hopes of reaching a first FA Cup final since they lost to Sunderland in 1973 were dashed as they were left to regret missed chances that might have turned a tight game in their favour. Daniel Farke’s side had the game’s first big opportunity when Brenden Aaronson raced…

A SUSPECT has been taken into custody following a shooting incident at a high-profile media gala attended by US President Donald Trump in Washington, with authorities confirming he will face federal charges on Monday. Gunshots rang out on Saturday night during the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner at the Washington Hilton Hotel, shortly after the welcoming speech, according to AFP reporters and eyewitnesses. Security operatives responded immediately, as tactical teams with weapons drawn moved to the stage where Trump was seated alongside First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other cabinet members. The dignitaries were swiftly evacuated.…

ISRAEL has issued new forced evacuation notices for areas in southern Lebanon, ordering residents of seven towns that lie beyond its so-called “buffer zone” to leave, ramping up the conflict with Hezbollah despite a US-brokered ceasefire.ceasefire. An Israeli military spokesperson said in a statement on X on Sunday that the Lebanese armed group was violating the ceasefire ⁠and that Israel would act against it, telling residents to head north and west. The towns are north of the Litani River, in an area where Israeli troops have continued military operations despite the ceasefire. They lie outside of what Israel has declared…

MALI’s Defence Minister, General Sadio Camara. has been killed during coordinated attacks on military sites nationwide, sources told Al Jazeera. The news on Sunday came the day after his residence in the garrison town of Kati came under attack during simultaneous attacks by an al-Qaeda affiliate and Tuareg rebels. Camara was a central figure in the military government that seized power after back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021. “He was one of the most influential figures within the ruling military leadership and had been seen by some as a possible future leader of Mali,” said Al Jazeera’s Nicolas Haque, who…

JUST hours after the Zambian government said it had taken possession of ex-President Edgar Lungu’s body, a court in South Africa – where Lungu died – has ordered the body to be returned. It is the latest twist in a 10-month saga over what should happen to his remains following a long-standing feud between Lungu and his successor, President Hakainde Hichilema. The government has long maintained that, as a former head of state, Lungu should be honoured in the country and buried alongside his predecessors in the special presidential burial ground in the capital, Lusaka. But Lungu’s family wanted a…

NICO Gonzalez’s stunning strike fired Manchester City into the FA Cup final as Pep Guardiola’s men produced a late fightback to beat Southampton 2-1 on Saturday. The Saints appeared heading towards a first FA Cup final since 2003 when Finn Azaz’s brilliant finish put the Championship side in front 11 minutes from time. However, City avoided the same fate that Arsenal suffered in the quarter-finals to remain on course for a domestic treble. Jeremy Doku’s deflected effort quickly levelled before Gonzalez rifled in from long range three minutes from time. The defeat ends Southampton’s 20-game unbeaten run that has propelled…

ISRAELI attacks have killed at least four people in southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh district, the state news agency reports, as Israel continues to pummel the country in defiance of a three-week extension of a ceasefire with Hezbollah. In a statement on Saturday, Lebanon Ministry of Public Health’s emergency operations centre said two Israeli raids on a truck and a motorcycle in the town of Yohmor al-Shaqif killed four people, the Lebanese National News Agency reported. Al Jazeera’s Heidi Pett, reporting from the city of Tyre, said the attacks were carried out north of the Litani River, below which Israel has unilaterally…

UNITED States President Donald Trump was evacuated from the White House correspondents’ dinner in Washington, DC, after shots were fired outside the event. Trump was rushed offstage at the Washington Hilton hotel on Saturday evening after gunfire broke out outside the ballroom where the annual media gala was taking place. The president, First Lady Melania Trump, and Trump’s Cabinet were unharmed in the attack. In a news conference after the incident, Trump said a man armed with multiple weapons had charged a security checkpoint and was “taken down” by the Secret Service. Trump described the suspect as a “very sick…

EXPLOSIONS and sustained gunfire have been reported in Mali’s capital, Bamako, as armed groups launched co-ordinated attacks across the country. Mali’s military said on Saturday evening that efforts to repel the attacks were under way, and some militants had already fled. Fighting has also been reported around Kati, home to a major military base outside the capital, as well as in Gao and Kidal in the north, and the central cities of Sevare and Mopti. One analyst described it as the largest jihadist attack in years. Mali has for years been plagued by insurgencies by groups affiliated with al-Qaeda and…

PIRATES have hijacked an oil tanker with 17 crew that was sailing near the Somali coast, according to multiple security officials who spoke to the BBC. The ship, Honour 25, was overrun late on Wednesday by six gunmen, when it was approximately 30 nautical miles offshore, the officials said. Until three years ago piracy had almost disappeared in this stretch of the Indian Ocean once notorious for hijackings, but it has since made a comeback with fishing trawlers or container ships targeted. The seizure of a tanker headed for the Somali capital, Mogadishu, is likely to increase anxiety in the…

REAL Madrid’s slim title hopes suffered another setback as they squandered two points against Real Betis by conceding a 93rd-minute equaliser. With five games remaining, they now sit eight points adrift of La Liga leaders Barcelona. The title seems all but out of reach for Alvaro Arbeloa’s side with Barca able to extend their lead to 11 points if they beat Getafe on Saturday. Vinicius Jr had given Real the lead in the 17th minute at Estadio La Cartuja de Sevilla when Federico Valverde’s drive from outside the box was spilled by Betis goalkeeper Alvaro Valles and the Brazilian reacted…

ISRAELI forces have killed 12 Palestinians in attacks throughout Gaza, medical sources in the enclave tell Al Jazeera, as Israel continues its daily violations of the ceasefire struck last year. An Israeli attack on a police vehicle on Friday killed at least eight people, including three civilian bystanders, in Khan Younis. A separate attack in Gaza City also killed two police officers. Two other people were killed in the bombing of a house in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza. Gaza’s Ministry of Interior called on the international community on Friday to intervene and end the Israeli targeting of local police…

THE US State Department is offering up to $10 million for information on the leader of the Tehran-backed Iraqi armed group Kataeb Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS), which Washington designates as a terrorist organisation. US officials said in a social media post Thursday that they were seeking information on KSS leader Hashim Finyan Rahim al-Saraji, also known as Abu Alaa al-Walai. The group has “killed Iraqi civilians and attacked U.S. diplomatic facilities in Iraq, as well as attacking U.S. military bases and personnel in Iraq and Syria”, Washington said. The post notes “you could be eligible for relocation and a reward” for…

GHANA has summoned South Africa’s top envoy to the country over reported “acts of intimidation and harassment” against its citizens and other African migrants in the southern African nation. Earlier this week, video clips were shared online showing vigilante groups attacking and confronting people they believed were in South Africa illegally – in one of them they challenge a Ghanaian man over his status. Xenophobia has long been an issue in South Africa and has been accompanied by occasional outbursts of deadly violence. Ghanaian officials have met the man in the video to offer him support and also urged citizens…

KENYAN President William Ruto has faced a social media backlash after publicly suggesting that Nigerian-accented English was incomprehensible and required a translator. Addressing Kenyans living in Italy on Monday, Ruto said: “If you listen to a Nigerian speaking, you don’t know what they are saying – you need a translator,” while boasting that Kenyans spoke “some of the best English in the world”. His remarks drew fierce condemnation from Nigerians and other Africans online who accused the Kenyan leader of demeaning a fellow African nation. “English is a colonial language, not a measure of intelligence, capability, or national progress,” wrote…

THE Federal High Court in Abuja, on Friday, adjourned the alleged money laundering case filed against former Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State until May 6 for continuation of trial. Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned the hearing to allow the former governor’s lawyer, Joseph Daudu, SAN, continue with the cross-examination of EFCC’s 12 prosecution witness (PW-12), Abdullahi Jamilu. Jamilu, who was giving his initial statement to the anti-graft agency to “refresh his memory,” said he made the statement to the EFCC on May 10, 2022. The witness, while being cross-examined by Daudu, told the court that it was the only statement…

FORMER Ivory Coast international footballer Aboulaye Traore has been sentenced to three years in jail for rape, an Ivorian women’s rights group reported. Nicknamed Ben Badi, the striker won the 1992 African Cup of Nations with the Elephants and remains a very popular figure in the West African country. In a statement, the Ivorian League for Women’s Rights said that the Bouake court handed down the three-year sentence on Wednesday, hailing a “significant advance in the fight against impunity for sexual and sexist violence”. Besides the jail term, the court ordered “the payment of 15 million CFA francs to the…