Author: Editor

A TRUCK driver shot dead three Israeli guards at a border crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan Sunday before being “eliminated”, Israel’s military said, as it pounded Gaza with new strikes. Jordan’s interior ministry identified the shooter as Jordanian national Maher Diab Hussein al-Jazi, citing “preliminary investigations”. The rare attack at the Allenby Bridge crossing comes amid soaring violence in the West Bank with major Israeli raids and attacks by Palestinians, and against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas Gaza war, now in its 12th month. The military said “a terrorist” reached the crossing area, also known as the…

THOUSANDS of people have taken to the streets in the Pakistani capital, demanding the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has been behind bars for more than a year on what his party calls are politically motivated charges. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party organised the rally in Islamabad on Sunday, marking its first show of strength since the disputed national and regional elections in February. Images and videos posted on the social media platform X showed Khan’s supporters marching towards the capital from various parts of the country. “We will not rest until Khan is released from jail,”…

SUDAN’s military-led government has rejected a call by a UN fact-finding mission for the deployment of an international force to protect civilians from the country’s ongoing civil war. Sudan’s warring parties had committed “harrowing” human rights violations against civilians, the UN mission reported. Thousands of people have been killed and nearly eight million displaced since conflict broke out in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The two had jointly staged a coup, but then fell-out, plunging Sudan into a civil war. “Given the failure of the warring parties to spare civilians, it is imperative…

ALGERIA’s incumbent President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, 78, has been re-elected to the position with an emphatic vote, says the country’s electoral authority. “Of 5,630,000 voters recorded, 5,320,000 voted for the independent candidate Abdelmadjid Tebboune, accounting for 94.65 percent” of Saturday’s vote, National Independent Authority for Elections (ANIE) head Mohamed Charfi told reporters in the capital Algiers on Sunday. Army-backed Tebboune’s challengers included conservative Abdelaali Hassani Cherif, who won 3 percent of the ballots, and socialist Youcef Aouchiche, who won 2.1 percent. Hassani Cherif’s campaign said polling station officials had been pressured to inflate results and alleged failures to deliver vote-sorting records…

LEE Carsley started his reign as England’s interim manager with a Uefa Nations League win against the Republic of Ireland, with Declan Rice and Jack Grealish both scoring against the country they used to represent. Carsley, also a former player for the Irish Republic, is in charge of England for at least two games following Gareth Southgate’s departure after Euro 2024. And he had a largely untroubled start as the Three Lions overcame a lively atmosphere at a sold-out stadium in Dublin. Rice, who played three senior friendlies for the Republic of Ireland before switching allegiance in 2019, silenced the…

WOMEN and children are among 31 killed in the Gaza Strip as Israel bombs northern, central, and southern areas in its relentless onslaught. There’s been a spike in tensions between Israel and Hezbollah after three paramedics were killed by Israeli fire in southern Lebanon on Saturday. A building in Kiryat Shmona took a direct hit, but no injuries were reported, the army radio station said. Hezbollah has claimed a number of attacks on northern Israel since Saturday, including on Kiryat Shmona and an Israeli army base. The armed Lebanese group says it is responding to an Israeli attack that killed…

MORE than 100,000 left-wing demonstrators rallied across France on Saturday to protest against the nomination of the centre-right Michel Barnier as prime minister and denounce President Emmanuel Macron’s “power grab”. The interior ministry said 110,000 people took to the streets nationwide, including 26,000 in Paris, while one leading left-winger put the turnout across France at 300,000. Rallies took place in cities across France including Nantes in the west, Nice and Marseille in the south and Strasbourg in the east. Macron on Thursday appointed Barnier, a 73-year-old former foreign minister who acted as the European Union’s Brexit negotiator, as prime minister,…

DNA testing will begin on Monday to identify the bodies of children who died in a fire at a Kenyan boarding school, local authorities have said. At least 21 children, with an average age of nine, are believed to have died, with one official telling journalists some of the bodies were burnt beyond recognition. The fire broke out in a dormitory housing 156 boys at the Hillside Endarasha Academy around 23:00 local time on Thursday. Firefighters were delayed by bad roads, but people living nearby rushed to help with rescue efforts. Officials say 17 children remain unaccounted for – with…

THIRTEEN people have been killed and 45 injured in a road accident in northern Ivory Coast, after a tanker truck crashed into a bus, rescuers and local media said Saturday. A bus carrying passengers and a petrol-filled truck on the opposite lane collided on Friday where the road’s width had been narrowed by a freight truck parked without indicators, said Police Secours, a platform monitoring deadly accidents in the country. The vehicles crashed around 2300 GMT on the highway between Bouake and Korhogo, two large cities in northern Ivory Coast. “The collision between the bus and the tanker set off…

IN the heart of Nigeria’s vibrant business landscape, PANA Holdings stands as a beacon of integrity, unwavering in its commitment to ethical excellence. With steadfast dedication to transparency, accountability and fairness. It has cultivated a culture that  not only prioritizes trust but embodies it. PANA Holdings began with a simple yet profound promise to conduct business with the utmost honesty, fostering relationships built on mutual trust and an unwavering reliability. As it navigates the complexities of Nigeria’s dynamic market, its integrity remains the cornerstone of its operations, guiding every decision, every action and every interaction. Recognized by The Guardian one…

AFTER a week of intense competition for medals by paralympians from different continents of the world, the 2024 Summer Paralympic Games, which began on August 28, will end tomorrow, September 7, in Paris, France. Team Nigeria, after a dismal showing in the 2024 Paris Olympics, is being represented at the ongoing Paralympics by a contingent of 35 athletes who are accompanied by a team of coaches and medical personnel. In view of the painful fact that the Nigerian Olympic contingent had posted another barren outing in spite of the huge government support, the 2024 Paralympic Games became a significant opportunity…

KEVIN de Bruyne scored twice as Belgium beat Israel behind closed doors in Hungary for a winning start to their Uefa Nations League campaign. Several Belgian cities refused to host the home game over security fears relating to the Israel-Gaza war. In October, a gunman killed two Swedes before Belgium’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Sweden at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, which hosts most of their games. In Debrecen, De Bruyne sidefooted Belgium into the lead following a cutback from Manchester City team-mate Jeremy Doku. But Israel levelled when Anan Khalaili’s header took a huge deflection off Timothy Castagne…

IN the four days between Monday and Thursday this week, 110 Palestinians were reported killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza and 230 people were injured, the United Nations reports. Among the most deadly attacks this week was an Israeli strike on a residential building in central Gaza City on Tuesday that killed nine people, including at least five children and one woman, UN’s OCHA said in its latest situation report. A children’s nursery was also hit in Jabalia, in northern Gaza, on the same day killing seven people. Humanitarian workers on the ground in Gaza are also warning of “widespread…

THE sentencing of former United States President Donald Trump in a criminal hush money case has been delayed until after the November presidential election. New York Judge Juan Merchan announced on Friday that he would move the sentencing date, previously scheduled for September 18, to November 26. This is the second delay in the sentencing hearing, which was originally set for July 11. Merchan explained the new date was chosen to reflect Trump’s candidacy in the upcoming election. “The imposition of sentence will be adjourned to avoid any appearance — however unwarranted — that the proceeding has been affected by…

A FIRE ripped through the dormitory of a boarding school in central Kenya, killing 17 boys who were sleeping and injuring 14 others, police and government officials said. The death toll could rise, police warned on Friday, following the disaster at Hillside Endarasha Primary School in Nyeri county, as the survivors are being treated in numerous hospitals. Government spokesman Isaac Mwaura said the boys were in grades 4 to 8, putting their ages at about nine to 13 years. The dormitory housed 156 boys. Vice President Rigathi Gachagua said 70 pupils remained unaccounted for, although he added that some may…

CHINESE President Xi Jinping has pledged to create “at least” one million jobs in Africa as he seeks to position Beijing as the development partner of choice for the Global South. Speaking at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation on Thursday, Xi said China would provide African countries 360 billion yuan ($51bn) in new financing and support 30 infrastructure projects to boost connectivity across the continent. Addressing delegates from more than 50 African nations gathered in Beijing for the forum, he said 210 billion yuan ($29.6bn) of the financing would be disbursed through credit lines and at least 70 billion yuan…

CRISTIANO Ronaldo became the first player to score 900 top-level career goals as Portugal kicked off their Nations League campaign with victory over Croatia. The 39-year-old volleyed in from the edge of the six-yard box in the 34th minute to double Portugal’s lead from Nuno Mendes’ deep cross. It was a record-extending 131st goal for Portugal, coming 20 years after his first, and the veteran sank to his knees in an emotional celebration. Manchester United full-back Diogo Dalot had put Portugal ahead early on but later turned the ball into his own net as Croatia responded before the break. As…

ISRAEL will cease to exist if United States Vice President Kamala is elected to the White House in November, former President Donald Trump has claimed. Addressing Jewish donors in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Thursday, the Republican nominee claimed that Harris would “totally abandon” Israel as president and that “terrorist armies” would wage war to “drive Jews out of the Holy Land”. “You are going to be abandoned if she becomes president, and I think you have to explain that to your people. Because they don’t know it. They have no idea what they are getting into,” Trump said in a…

GERMAN police shot and killed a man who opened fire on them with a vintage rifle near the Israeli consulate in Munich on Thursday in what they treated as a foiled attack on the diplomatic mission.Authorities identified the gunman, who was killed in a hail of police bullets, as an 18-year-old Austrian man but did not immediately comment on media reports that he was a known extremist. German news site Spiegel Online and Austrian media said that he had been investigated last year for allegedly spreading Islamic State group propaganda, but that the case had been dropped. While the motive…

CHINESE leader Xi Jinping on Thursday pledged over $50 billion in financing for Africa over the next three years, promising to deepen cooperation in infrastructure and trade with the continent as he addressed Beijing’s biggest summit since the pandemic. More than 50 African leaders and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres are attending this week’s China-Africa forum, according to state media. African leaders already secured a plethora of deals this week for greater cooperation in infrastructure, agriculture, mining, trade and energy. Addressing the leaders at the forum’s opening ceremony in Beijing’s ornate Great Hall of the People on Thursday, Xi hailed…