Author: Editor

ABOUT 200 members of Afghan special forces, trained and funded by the UK, face imminent deportation to their Taliban-controlled homeland, the BBC has learned. The figures – gathered by a network of Afghan veterans – reveal the scale of what one former UK general calls a “betrayal” and a “disgrace”. The soldiers fled to Pakistan, which now says it will expel Afghan refugees. The UK says it has brought thousands of Afghans to safety. Gen Sir Richard Barrons, who served the British Army in Afghanistan over 12 years, told BBC Newsnight that the failure of the UK to relocate these…

POLLING stations opened Sunday for Egyptians to vote in a presidential election overshadowed by war in neighbouring Gaza and with little doubt that the incumbent Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will secure a third term. In a country gripped by the most severe financial crisis in its recent history — inflation has hovered near 40 percent after the currency lost half its value and drove up the cost of imports — the economy is the crux of Egyptians’ concerns. Even before the current crisis, about two-thirds of the country’s nearly 106 million people were living on or below the poverty line. Before…

TWO people have been killed and seven others injured in a “deliberate attack” on an aid convoy in Sudan’s capital Khartoum, the Red Cross has said. The vehicles – which the charity said were “clearly marked with a Red Cross emblem” – were due to evacuate over a hundred civilians. The wounded included three charity staff, the International Committee for the Red Cross said. In a statement they said they were “shocked and appalled”. Sudan’s civil war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces is now in its eighth month. Earlier on Sunday, the East African regional body…

MANCHESTER United manager Erik ten Hag said the humiliating 3-0 home Premier League defeat by Bournemouth left him “annoyed” and “disappointed” and admitted his side were “not good enough to be consistent” as their season lurched into another bout of soul-searching. The latest setback is as bad as any experienced during Ten Hag’s tenure, with skipper Bruno Fernandes calling the performance “not acceptable”. Ten Hag, meanwhile, described United’s start as “no good” and “poor”. Once they had fallen behind to Dominic Solanke’s fifth-minute effort, they never seriously threatened an equaliser. Coming seven days after the performance at Newcastle that was…

JUDE Bellingham continued his remarkable start at Real Madrid by scoring his 16th goal in 18 games – but it was not enough to earn the La Liga leaders victory over Real Betis. England midfielder Bellingham, 20, slotted in after controlling a delightful pass from Brahim Diaz over the Betis defence after 53 minutes. But Aitor Ruibal hit a stunning equaliser from outside the area. It means Girona can go top with victory at third-placed Barcelona on Sunday. Bellingham, who last month became the first player to score in each of his first four Champions League appearances for Real, now…

A SENIOR United Nations (UN) aid official has warned that half of Gaza’s population is starving, as fighting there continues. Carl Skau, deputy director of the UN World Food Programme, said only a fraction of supplies needed have been able to enter the Strip – and nine out of 10 people cannot eat everyday. Conditions in Gaza have made deliveries “almost impossible”, Mr Skau said. Israel says it must continue air strikes on Gaza to eliminate Hamas and bring Israeli hostages home. Israel Defence Forces spokesman Lt Col Richard Hecht told the BBC on Saturday that “any death and pain…

THE family of Mahsa Amini have been banned from flying to France to collect a top human rights prize in her honour. Ms Amini’s parents and brother were stopped from boarding their flight and had their passports confiscated, their lawyer said. They were travelling to Strasbourg to be presented with the EU’s Sakharov Prize – which has been awarded posthumously to Ms Amini. Their lawyer said they were banned from leaving despite having valid visas. Ms Amini’s death last year sparked protests unlike any the country had seen before. She died in hospital in Tehran on 16 September 2022, three…

THE Democratic Republic of Congo’s leader has taken his rhetorical attacks on his Rwandan counterpart to another level by comparing him to Adolf Hitler. Félix Tshisekedi said Paul Kagame was behaving like Hitler, and added: “I promise he will end up like Hitler”. Mr Tshisekedi who is campaigning for re-election, was addressing a rally in Bukavu, close to the Rwandan border. He has often accused Rwanda of backing rebels in the east of his country, which it has always denied. The spokesperson for Rwanda’s government described the Congolese president’s comments as “a loud and clear threat”. With the vote less…

TURKEY has issued an international arrest warrant for the son of Somalia’s president, after he allegedly ran over a motorcycle courier, who later died. A police report said Mohammed Hassan Cheikh Mohamud collided with the courier in broad daylight in Istanbul. Police say he was driving a car which reportedly belonged to the Somali consulate there. Turkey imposed a travel ban on Mr Mohamud but officials believe he has already fled the country. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Istanbul’s mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu shared grainy CCTV footage of the 30 November incident. A car can be seen…

THE Katsina State Police Command on Tuesday said it rescued sixty-nine (69) kidnapped victims and neutralised three suspected kidnappers in the state. This is part of the recent achievements recorded by the command from November 1st – 30th, 2023. The command also recovered 185 rounds of 7.62 live ammunition, 90 rounds of 5.56mm live ammunition, (making a total of 275 live ammunition), 13 AK-47 magazines, and 57 bags of maize. The Police Spokesman, Aliyu Sadiq, in a press briefing held at the Command Headquarters, Katsina explained that, within the period under review, 81 cases of major crimes such as armed…

VICE Chancellor of the University of Jos (UNIJOS), Plateau State, Prof Tanko Ishaya has stated that over 20 lecturers in the institution have died due to severe stress from shortage of manpower. The vice chancellor, in a briefing in Jos, as part of activities marking his two years in office, stated that apart from deaths, the institution has also lost many of its lecturers through retirement and the ‘Japa’ syndrome that has made many of them leaving the country for greener pastures. “For well over five years now, we have not been able to carry out recruitment exercises to fill…

CRISTIANO Ronaldo marked the 1,200th professional match of his career by scoring one goal and assisting another for Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr. The 38-year-old tapped in Sadio Mane’s cross and later set up team-mate Otavio in a 4-1 win over Al-Riyadh. Ronaldo thanked all those who have helped him reach the landmark – but added that he was “not done yet”. The Portugal forward is the Saudi Pro League’s top scorer with 16 goals in 15 games this season. Former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton is acknowledged as holding the record for the most competitive professional appearances in the men’s game…

MANCHESTER United manager Erik ten Hag said the onus is on Jadon Sancho to do what is required to facilitate his return to the club’s first-team squad. Sancho, 23, has been training away from the first team after claims he was made a “scapegoat” following his omission for September’s defeat at Arsenal. Ten Hag said at the time he had been excluded because his training performances were below standard. “He knows what he has to do, it is up to him,” Ten Hag said. Ten Hag said Sancho, who joined United from Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund for £73m in July…

SALVOES of rockets were launched Friday at the US embassy in Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, the mission said, the latest in a flurry of such attacks amid the Israel-Hamas war. “A multi-rocket attack was launched at US and Coalition forces in the vicinity of Union III and the Baghdad embassy complex” without causing any reported casualties or damage, a US official said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. The United States leads an international coalition battling jihadists in Iraq and neighbouring Syria, and its forces have come under repeated attack in recent weeks. The attacks come against the…

UN secretary general António Guterres has spoken about the “serious risk to the maintenance of international peace and security” in the Gaza conflict, citing the spillover of hostilities in “the occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen”. He triggered Article 99, prompting a UN Security Council vote on Friday, because he believes this is a very urgent matter which must be brought to the attention of the council. The Israeli government detests the UN and they detest the secretary general. The Israelis rejected his description, claiming Mr Guterres is in fact the threat to world peace because he is…

BURUNDI’s Supreme Court sentenced ousted prime minister Alain-Guillaume Bunyoni to life in prison on Friday on charges including attempting to overthrow the government and threatening the life of the president, a judicial source said. Bunyoni, whose trial opened three months ago, was prime minister from mid-2020 until September 2022 when he was fired, days after President Evariste Ndayishimiye had warned of a “coup” plot against him. He was “sentenced to life imprisonment (on charges)… including plotting against the head of state to overthrow the constitutional regime”, a judicial source told AFP on condition of anonymity. The army general was also…

FORMER Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma has been questioned at police headquarters in the capital, Freetown, over a failed coup attempt. Mr Koroma, who governed the country for just over 10 years, arrived at around 10:00 local time at the criminal investigations department under a heavy police and military escort. It was not clear how long the interrogation lasted but the former president later posted a statement on social media that questioning would continue on Saturday. “I maintain an open mind, place my trust in due process and the rule of law to prevail,” he said. Police summoned Mr…

ICONIC Brazilian club Santos, cradle of late football legend Pele, were relegated to the second division Wednesday for the first time in their history, just shy of the first anniversary of his death. Santos suffered a 2-1 defeat at home to Fortaleza in their final league match of the season, sealing their fate as the last of the four teams condemned to the “B Series” league next year. The home of Pele and Neymar finished their lackluster season in 17th place, on 43 points — one shy of Bahia, who dodged relegation with a 4-1 win over Atletico Mineiro, and…

ISRAELI forces have killed at least 17,177, people, including 7,112 children and 4,885 women, in Gaza since 7 October, according to a statement from the health ministry in Gaza on Thursday. It added that from Wednesday to Thursday morning, 350 Palestinians have been killed. More than half of the said casualties were women and children and it did not take into account that at least 46, 000 people have been injured and at least 7,600 people are missing, the statement added. The UN said 1.87 million people – more than 80% of Gaza’s population – have been driven from their…

DENMARK’s parliament on Thursday adopted a law criminalising the “inappropriate treatment” of religious texts, effectively banning Qur’an burnings after a series of desecrations of Islam’s holy book sparked anger in Muslim countries. The bill, which prohibits “inappropriate treatment of writings with significant religious importance for a recognised religious community”, was passed with 94 votes in favour and 77 opposed in the 179-seat Folketing. “We must protect the security of Denmark and the Danes. Therefore, it is important that we now have better protection against the systematic insults we have seen for a long time,” Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said in…