Author: Editor

AN airport staff strike grounded hundreds of flights all over Italy on Saturday, affecting 250,000 travellers in one of the world’s top tourist spots. Some 1,000 flights, both domestic and international, were cancelled as a result of the strike by ground crew, who are demanding a new collective contract, six years after the previous one expired, according to airport and airline authorities. The strike was due to last from 10:00 am (0800 GMT) to 6:00 pm (1600 GMT). The airport in Rome, saw some 200 flights cancelled, authorities said. Flights by Malta Air, which handles transfers for popular budget carriers…

IN a strong warning to the opposition, Kenya’s President William Ruto has said “protests will no longer take place in our nation. The one they have planned for Wednesday will not be possible.” He was speaking to supporters in Naivasha, central Kenya, two days after at least 10 people died during clashes between protesters and security forces. Opposition leader Raila Odinga has launched a series of demonstrations against tax rises, including the doubling of the tax on fuel, that were signed into law last month. “Elections ended on 9 August last year. You cannot look for the leadership of this…

ZIMBABWE’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa has signed a bill into law that imposes penalties on Zimbabweans who are found to have wilfully harmed the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe. The controversial patriotic bill faced widespread opposition from lawyers and activists describing it as a grave assault on human rights. It comes weeks before a crucial general election which the opposition believe will not be free or fair. The law imposes sentences ranging from fines to the death penalty for those who take part in meetings which encourage international military action or trade boycotts. President Mnangagwa and much of his inner…

YOU may have seen it. The list, of course. Those who think that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not moving fast enough to appoint ministers have offered to help. They have composed their own ministerial list for him and shared it on social media. It’s trending now. Just one look at it, however, and you would know that it’s an improbable list, even for a Banana republic. It didn’t make sense. Going by the list, not a few commentators are already relishing the prospects of Adams Oshiomhole as Minister of Works; Nasir El-Rufai as Minister of Interior; and Nyesom Wike…

ADDICTION to sleeping pills in football is “much wider than people realise”, according to former Oxford United psychotherapist Gary Bloom. Everton midfielder Dele Alli said he spent six weeks in rehab for sleeping pill addiction and mental health issues. Bloom was the first psychotherapist to work at an English club. Former Liverpool goalkeeper Chris Kirkland agreed, saying, “Addiction is a massive problem in football.” During an emotional interview with The Overlap podcast, Dele talked about the abuse he suffered as a child before being adopted at 12. And in talking about his own addiction to sleeping tablets, he added that…

FORMER Manchester City and France footballer Benjamin Mendy broke down in tears on Friday, as a UK jury cleared him of sex offences, ending a three-year court ordeal. Mendy, 28, put his head on his knees and wiped away tears on hearing the verdict at the end of the three-week trial at Chester Crown Court in northwest England. The jury of six men and six women took around three hours and 15 minutes to reach their not guilty verdicts on one count of rape and another of attempted rape. The star footballer, who would have faced a lengthy jail term…

THE Covid-19 pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis and the war in Ukraine have pushed 165 million people into poverty since 2020, the United Nations said Thursday, calling for a pause in debt repayments for developing countries. Because of these shocks, 75 million people will have fallen into extreme poverty, defined as living on less than $2.15 a day, between 2020 and the end of 2023 — and 90 million more will fall below the poverty line of $3.65 a day, according to a study published by the United Nations Development Program. “The poorest suffer the most and their incomes in 2023…

MUCH of southern Europe is baking in extreme heat, with Greece seeing temperatures of 40C (104F) or more. The Acropolis, the country’s most popular tourist attraction, was closed during the hottest hours of the day to protect visitors. Potentially record temperatures are expected next week as another heatwave approaches. The European Space Agency (ESA) says Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Poland may see extreme conditions. The ESA monitors land and sea temperatures via its satellites. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Europe was 48.8C in Sicily in August 2021. There are also fears in Greece of a greater risk of…

SOUTH Africa’s ex-President Jacob Zuma travelled to Russia last week for health reasons, his foundation says. “He will be returning to the country once his doctors have completed their treatment,” its statement said. The announcement comes a day after the Constitutional Court upheld a ruling that Zuma was granted medical parole unlawfully in September 2021. He had been released from prison after serving less than eight weeks of a 15-month sentence. Zuma, now aged 81, had been jailed for failing to attend an inquiry into corruption during his presidency. He was forced to resign because of the allegations in 2018…

MAALIM is traumatised by what he saw in Sudan’s western region of Darfur, before he fled across the border to Chad. “If the people who I worked with know I have shown you these photos and videos, or even that I filmed them, I am a dead man,” he tells me as he whips out his phone to show me harrowing pictures of scattered corpses in the city of El Geneina. We have changed his name for his own safety. Before leaving the country, he was part of a group of people tasked with removing corpses from the streets and…

BARELY 24 hours after a Federal Capital Teritorry High Court sitting in Abuja ordered the release of the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, from detention, another court has nullified his arrest, detention and interrogation by the Department of State Services (DSS). In a judgment upon an Originating Motion on Notice brought before the Court by Emefiele, against Incorporated Trustees of Forum for Accountability and Good Leadership, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Inspector General of Police, State Security Service (SSS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria, the…

JUSTICE Hamza Muazu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, has issued a one week ultimatum to the Department of the State Security Service (DSS) to either charge the detained suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele to Court or set him free. The Judge issued the order while delivering ruling in a fundamental human rights suit instituted against the DSS and others by Emefiele. The judge said Emefiele hasn’t shown that his arrest and investigation is unlawful, but noted that it is within his right to get fair hearing. Justice Muazu further stated that…

CARLO Ancelotti will stand trial for tax fraud after the Real Madrid coach allegedly failed to declare image rights earnings in 2014 to the Spanish tax office. A Spanish judge said Ancelotti had “acknowledged” the actions which deprived the country’s treasury of 386,361 euros ($428,000), in a court document seen by AFP on Wednesday. “It is evident that there are sufficient indications to consider the deeds under investigation could constitute an alleged offence against the public treasury,” said the judge in her findings. Ancelotti had declared his earnings as Real Madrid coach in the 2014 tax year but not earnings…

SAUDI Arabian club Al-Hilal have signed Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic for a reported £34m, making him their third big summer signing. The 28-year-old Serbia international has signed a three-year deal. One of four clubs owned by the country’s public investment fund, Al-Hilal spent £47m to sign Wolves captain Ruben Neves and a reported £17m on Chelsea centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly. Milinkovic-Savic spent eight years with Lazio, scoring 69 goals in 341 games. Former Benfica boss Jorge Jesus took over as manager this summer. Al-Hilal have won a record four Asian Champions Leagues and 18 Saudi titles – but only finished third…

VETERAN news anchor Huw Edwards was on Wednesday revealed by his wife as the BBC presenter accused of paying for explicit images but police said no criminal offence had been committed. Vicky Flind said in a statement that her husband was “suffering from serious mental health issues” and was now “receiving in-patient hospital care where he will stay for the foreseeable future”. At the same time, Metropolitan Police issued a statement saying that there was “no information to indicate that a criminal offence has been committed”. The furore has been frontpage news and the lead story on radio and television…

TESLA boss Elon Musk has announced the formation of an artificial intelligence startup. The new company is called xAI, and includes several engineers that have worked at companies like OpenAI and Google. Mr Musk has previously stated he believes developments in AI should be paused and that the sector needs regulation. He said the start-up was created to “understand reality”. It is unclear how much funding the entity has, what its specific objectives are or what kind artificial intelligence the company wants to focus on. The company’s website says the goal of xAI is to “understand the true nature of…

IN a clear sign of their seriousness to end the escalating conflict in Sudan, four East African states, led by Kenya, are pushing for the deployment of a regional force to protect civilians and ensure that humanitarian aid reaches millions of people trapped in the war zone. But getting the agreement of the warring factions will be a tough call, as they have shown no interest in anything other than military victory since the conflict broke out in mid-April. The military, headed by Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, controls most of eastern and central Sudan, and is fighting to hold on…

FIVE bodies were found under rubble on Tuesday after two buildings collapsed a day earlier in the Guinean capital Conakry, the government said. The buildings fell Monday around 1700 GMT in the southern suburb of Matoto, a government spokesperson said in a statement Tuesday. “The government offers its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to the injured,” it said. The Minister of Justice had ordered a judicial investigation, it said. Rescue teams had recovered four bodies within 24 hours of the accident, Togba Isaac Kolie, head of the Civil Protection Service,…

THE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on Wednesday received 146 stranded Nigerians from Niamey, Niger Republic. Dr Nuraddeen Abdullahi, NEMA Co-coordinator, Kano Territorial Office, stated this while receiving the returnees at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the returnees arrived at the airport at about 10:35am on board B737-400 SKY MALI Airline plane with registration number UR-CQX. Abdullahi said the returnees were brought back through a voluntary repatriation programme, under the care of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). He said that the programme was meant for distressed persons who left…

KAZUYOSHI Miura, the world’s oldest professional footballer at 56, has extended his stay with Portuguese second-tier side Oliveirense. The ex-Japan striker joined Oliveirense on loan in January from Yokohama and will continue with them on that basis for an undisclosed duration. Miura has played just 28 minutes of football this year, spread over three substitute appearances. Yokohama and Oliveirense have the same Japanese owners. Miura was named man of the match on the final day of the Portuguese season after a 26-minute cameo in a 4-3 win over Leixoes. The opposition manager said the decision was “offensive” and turned it…