AN 85-Year-Old British citizen in Sudan was shot and injured by snipers and his wife then died of starvation despite repeated calls for assistance made to the nearby British embassy in Sudan, their family has told BBC News. Abdalla Sholgami lived with his disabled 80-year-old wife, Alaweya Rishwan, just over the road from the UK’s diplomatic mission in Khartoum – an area that saw some of the fiercest fighting at the start of the conflict last month. But the London hotel owner was never offered support to travel from their home to the airfield where evacuation flights departed from, even…
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THE militant al-Shabab group on Friday morning carried out an attack on a Ugandan troops’ base of the African Union Transition Mission (ATMIS) in Bulla Mareer district, in Lower Shabelle region in Somalia. The attack began shortly after morning prayers. It started with a large explosion, believed to be an explosives-laden vehicle. Buulo Mareer is about 110km (68 miles) from the capital, Mogadishu. Residents reported that after the big explosion, two more explosions occurred in the camp, before a fight started between the Ugandan troops and the attackers. Al-Shabab said they captured the camp and killed dozens of ATMIS soldiers,…
THE Boeing 737-800 series aircraft which the Federal Government flew into Abuja for the unveiling of Nigeria Air belongs to Ethiopia Airlines, this newspaper can confirm. The aircraft took off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at 9:55am on Friday and landed at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at 12:43 p.m. Shortly after the aircraft landed, Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation, expressed delight that after “a very long, tedious, daunting and difficult path”, the project had taken off. He later unveiled the aircraft with registration ET-APL at the General Aviation Terminal of the Abuja airport. Checks by this newspaper showed that…
MANCHESTER United sealed qualification for next season’s Champions League with a 4-1 thrashing of beleaguered Chelsea on Thursday. Casemiro, Anthony Martial, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford were on target as the Red Devils moved up to third in the Premier League. A miserable night summed up Chelsea’s season despite spending over £500 million in the transfer market as they slumped to an eighth defeat in 10 games since Frank Lampard returned as interim manager. By contrast, confirmation of a top-four finish rounds off a successful first season in charge for Erik ten Hag after also ending United’s six-year trophy drought…
JOSE Mourinho has claimed Tottenham are the only club he has managed, with which he does not have a connection. The Roma boss was sacked by Tottenham in April 2021 after only 17 months. Before taking charge of Spurs, the 60-year-old Portuguese had managed Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Manchester United. “I hope the Tottenham fans don’t get me wrong but the only club in my career where I don’t have still a deep feeling for is Tottenham,” Mourinho said. “Probably because the stadium was empty, Covid time. Probably because Mr Levy [Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy] didn’t let…
QUEEN Elizabeth II faced a potential assassination threat during a 1983 visit to the United States, newly released FBI documents show. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has released a cache of files relating to the late Queen’s travels to the US, following her death last year. They show how the FBI, which helped secure the monarch’s safety during her visits, worried about IRA threats. The assassination threat was made to a police officer in San Francisco. According to the file, an officer who frequented an Irish pub in San Francisco warned federal agents about a call from a man he…
US President Joe Biden on Thursday nominated General Charles Brown for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, lauding the Black career pilot as a hero who’d not only survived ejecting from a fighter jet into a swamp but fought against racism. If confirmed by the Senate, “CQ” Brown, as he’s known, will become Biden’s senior military advisor. Only the second Black man ever picked for the job, his confirmation — serving alongside Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin — would mark the first time that African Americans have simultaneously filled both of the military’s top jobs. “General Brown is a warrior…
SUDAN’s warring sides accused each other on Thursday of being behind breaches of the latest ceasefire that was negotiated by the US and Saudi Arabia, now in its third day. The one-week truce was violated only minutes after it came into effect on Monday night, with residents of the capital Khartoum reporting air strikes and artillery fire shaking the city. There have since been further breaches of the ceasefire agreement, which is meant to allow for much-needed humanitarian aid to reach war-ravaged parts of the north African country. It is the latest in a series of truces that have all…
ONE of four remaining fugitives from the 1994 Rwandan genocide has been captured, UN prosecutors say. Fulgence Kayishema was arrested in South Africa on Wednesday, they said. He is expected to face trial in Rwanda. The former police inspector was charged in 2001 over an incident during which more than 2,000 Tutsi men, women and children were killed inside a Catholic church where they had sought refuge. Some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed in the genocide. According to the indictment, Fulgence Kayishema directly participated in the planning and execution of a massacre of refugees hiding at the Nyange…
NIGERIAN Small and Large business owners can now advertise with ease, as a Nigerian has deviced an app that can work without smart phones and data. We present to you PlugBay. Hear the motivation behind this and how it works. Engineer Azunna Chukwu, was inspired by the need for accessible and unbiased access to skilled persons, advertising and funding. Recognizinf the absence of accurate data on employment in the informal sector and the challenges faced by talented individuals and small businesses. He envisioned PlugBay as a solution to improve access to skills, advertising and funding opportunities worldwide. PlugBay, a groundbreaking…
THE Department of State Services (DSS) says it has uncovered plans by some disgruntled individuals to disrupt activities lined up for May 29 inauguration of new governments in the country. DSS, in a statement issued by its spokesperson, Peter Afunaya, on Thursday in Abuja, said the motive of those planning such act is to undermine security agencies’ efforts at ensuring peaceful ceremonies as well as creating panic and fear among members of the public. The secret police, however, called on Nigerians to remain calm and remain law abiding as security agencies are on top of the situation. The statement reads…
THE House of Representatives is calling for a forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) aimed at unravelling the discrepancies in the importation and supply of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) commencing from 2015 to date. The House reached the resolution after considering the report of its Ad Hoc Committee on Fuel Consumption. Meanwhile, the committee observed that there was no record indicating that a certain volume of PMS was discharged to a particular retail outlet/fueling station or dispensed, hence the difficulty in ascertaining the actual daily consumption of PMS across the country. The House is charging the…
NIGERIA defeated Italy in an end-to-end encounter at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023 on Wednesday, courtesy of Salim Fago Lawal’s diving header and Jude Sunday’s last-gasp finish. The result means the Flying Eagles qualify for the knockout stage on six points while the Azzurri are on three points after two games apiece in Group D. Both sides had chances in the first half, with Tommaso Baldanzi testing the hands of Kingsley Aniagboso. The first goal arrived just after the hour. Half-time substitute Umeh Emmanuel and Gabriele Guarino collided inside the Italian box, but the latter spring straight up…
LAUTARO Martinez scored twice as Champions League finalists Inter Milan came from behind to beat Fiorentina and win their second consecutive Coppa Italia title. Fiorentina opened the scoring at Stadio Olimpico after just three minutes when Nico Gonzales drilled in a cross. Martinez equalised from a tight angle in the 29th minute. The striker got the winner eight minutes later with a volley. Fiorentina face West Ham in the Europa Conference League final on 7 June, while Inter play Manchester City in the Champions League final on 10 June.
THE United States on Wednesday announced the approval of a $285 million sale of a NASAMS air defense system and related equipment to Ukraine as Kyiv seeks to boost protection against Russian strikes. “Ukraine has an urgent need to increase its capabilities to defend against Russian missile strikes and aircraft,” the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement. “Acquiring and effectively deploying this capability will enhance Ukraine’s ability to defend its people and protect critical national infrastructure.” The agency also said the sale will support US foreign policy national security goals by “improving the security of a partner…
FLORIDA Governor Ron DeSantis on Wednesday filed papers to launch his 2024 presidential campaign, teeing up 18 months of acrimony as he and Donald Trump lock horns in what is expected to be an attritional contest for the Republican nomination. DeSantis was considered a rising Republican star, but has seen his prospects dented by months of relentless attacks from the former president, who has surged into a commanding lead despite being engulfed in criminal investigations. The 44-year-old right-winger filed his documentation with the Federal Election Commission ahead of a livestreamed Twitter chat with the platform’s billionaire owner Elon Musk, when…
CHINA’s embassy in Kenya has denied a Reuters news agency report that hackers from the Asian nation attacked key state agencies in Nairobi, including the presidency, to assess whether the country would service billions of dollars owed to Beijing. Reuters had reported that years-long cyber-attacks started in 2019 when the Chinese started closing credit taps to Kenya as debt strains started showing. But in a statement on Wednesday, the Chinese embassy said the report was “far-fetched and sheer nonsense”. “Hacking is a common threat to all countries and China is also a victim of cyber-attack,” it added. The embassy says…
SEPARATISTS gunmen in Cameroon’s restive north-western region have kidnapped over 30 women and injured an unspecified number of others, officials have said. The women were abducted in Big Babanki, a village near the border with Nigeria, for allegedly protesting against a curfew and taxes imposed on them by the separatists. “Around 30 women were kidnapped by separatists [on Saturday morning] – we have not found them yet,” an army colonel told the AFP news agency. Some local media report that the number of those missing was even higher – up to 50 women. Officials said some women were “severely tortured”…
SINGER Tina Turner, whose soul classics and pop hits like The Best and What’s Love Got to Do With It made her a superstar, has died at the age of 83. Turner had suffered a number of health issues in recent years including cancer, a stroke and kidney failure. She rose to fame alongside husband Ike in the 1960s with songs including Proud Mary and River Deep, Mountain High. She divorced the abusive Ike in 1978, and went on to find even greater success as a solo artist in the 1980s. Dubbed the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Tina Turner…
THE Central Bank of Nigeria has revoked the licences of 179 microfinance banks in the country, as well as four primary mortgage banks and three finance companies. This was disclosed in the official gazette of the Federal Government, which was published on the website of the CBN on Tuesday. The gazette said that the licences of the financial institutions were revoked because they “ceased to carry on, in Nigeria, the type of business for which their licences were issued for a continuous period of six months; failed to fulfil or comply with the conditions subject to which their licences were…