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THE International Criminal Court will open two cases against Russian officials over the invasion of Ukraine, the New York Times reported on Monday. A spokeswoman for the office of ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said it “offers no comment about this story.” In its report the New York Times said the first case involved Russia’s alleged abduction of Ukrainian children, who were then sent for adoption or to re-education camps. The second case alleges that Russian forces deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure such as power and water plants with missile attacks. The court would also seek arrest warrants for several people, said…

SIX Zimbabweans, all suspected armed robbers, escaped from custody while on transit on Monday morning after their accomplices engaged South African police in a shoot-out. In a statement, South African police said they have launched a manhunt for the “heavily armed” suspects who freed the six prisoners during the gunfight. The daring attack was staged some 120 kilometres south of Beitbridge – a border town near Zimbabwe. “People are advised not to approach the suspects under any circumstances as they are considered dangerous but must instead call the police,” South African police said. Zimbabwe has the largest migrant population in…

SOUTH African Health Minister Joe Phaahla has said the death of at least four patients can be “attributed directly” to an ongoing nationwide strike action by health workers. He has warned that this number may grow, as his team continues to assess clinical reports and visit affected health centres. Strike action by the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) from last week saw the shutdown of some hospitals, with workers being violently barred from entering and patients in need of care being turned away. The army has now been deployed to key hospital entrance points to stop the…

THE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has noted with concern the recurrent fire incidents in the past few days, which have affected some communities and markets. According to a statement signed by the Director-General NEMA, Mustapha Habib Ahmed, Monday, it is on record that the unfortunate incidents have been characterized by complete razing down residential buildings, markets and other public buildings thereby leading to loss of lives and livelihoods. “Fire, like any other disaster has been part of human existence, but the frequency and impacts of this in recent weeks has necessitated a serious concern and call for action by…

THE Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) says it will continue to arrest and prosecute those involved in the production and circulation of fake redesigned Naira notes. The Commandant-General of the corps, Ahmed Audi, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday that the number of cases of circulation of fake Naira notes had become worrisome. He warned perpetrators to desist, adding that the corps would not relent, but continue to arrest and prosecute those involved in economic sabotage of the country. According to him, in less than a month, the corps had arrested and seized fake Naira…

ARSENAL restored their five-point advantage at the top of the Premier League in outstanding fashion with a ruthless victory at Fulham. Mikel Arteta’s side responded to Manchester City’s narrow victory at Crystal Palace on Saturday night by wrapping up this win by half-time as they opened up a 3-0 lead with a devastating attacking display. Gabriel Martinelli had already had a goal narrowly ruled out for offside by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), before defender Gabriel headed in Leandro Trossard’s corner after 21 minutes – the first of a trio of assists for the Belgian. Trossard then crossed for Martinelli…

REAL Madrid say they will support the corruption charges faced by Barcelona over money paid to the vice-president of Spain’s referees’ committee. Real are prepared to “defend their interests” when proceedings are opened. On Friday, a court heard Barcelona have been indicted for “corruption”, “breach of trust” and “false business records”. Prosecutors allege Barca paid 8.4m euros (£7.4m) to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira and his company in return for favourable refereeing decisions. Barcelona, who deny any wrongdoing, acknowledged the payments were made to Dasnil 95 between 2001 and 2018. The Catalan club described the company as “an external technical consultant”…

SAUDI Arabia has executed a Jordanian man whose family say he was tortured into confessing to drugs charges. Hussein Abu al-Khair, 57, had eight children and was a driver for a wealthy Saudi. He was arrested in 2014 while crossing the border from Jordan into Saudi Arabia, accused of smuggling amphetamines. He was later sentenced to death, after a trial criticised by Amnesty International as “grossly unfair”. His sister, Zeinab Abul Al-Khair, said he had told her from jail that he had been strung up by his feet and beaten. “He never imagined a forced confession would be allowed in…

THOUSANDS of demonstrators staged fresh protests in Greece on Sunday as anger grows over the country’s deadliest rail crash, ratcheting up pressure on the government over the tragedy. Protesters flooded Athens’ Syntagma Square in front of parliament, waving banners that read “We won’t forget, we won’t forgive” and “We will become the voice of all the dead”. Fifty-seven people, many of them students, were killed when a passenger train and freight train collided head-on in central Greece on February 28. Four railway officials have been charged but public anger has focused on long-running mismanagement of the network, and the country…

SUSPECTED rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces have killed at least 17 people in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo – the second mass killings in less than a week. They also set fire to buildings during the dawn raid on Kirindera in North Kivu province. On Wednesday, 45 people were killed during a raid on two villages by the same rebels – who are said to have links to the Islamic State group. Peace talks have been tried, but the international response to the crisis in eastern DR Congo is to send in more soldiers. The Ugandan army has…

ABOUT 30 migrants were missing and presumed drowned after the overcrowded boat they were on capsized during a rescue attempt by a cargo ship off Libya’s coast, Italy’s coastguard said. Seventeen migrants were saved and a search was underway for the missing after the early-morning attempted rescue in a search-and-rescue zone under the jurisdiction of Libya, the coastguard said. “During the rescue operations… the boat capsized during the transfer of the migrants: 17 people were rescued and recovered by the (cargo) vessel while approximately 30 migrants were missing,” said the coastguard. The latest disaster in the Mediterranean comes exactly two…

THE Nigerian Immigration Service, NIS, has handed over 11 victims of human trafficking to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP Sokoto. The service spokesman, Tony Akuneme, said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja. Mr Akuneme, a controller of corrections, said that the victims were repatriated back to Nigeria by the Niger Republic Police and handed over to the Nigeria Immigration Service at the Illela Border Command. According to him, the Comptroller of Immigration, Illela Border Command, Ado Rano-Sabo revealed this on Friday March 10 while handing the victims over to the Zonal Commandant…

THE Dangote Articulated Truck Driving School has graduated 50 trainees who have passed through a specially designed and rigorous educational curriculum. The articulated truck driving school at Obajana in Kogi State is Nigeria’s first and only accredited truck driving academy. The school was commissioned last year by the former Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Dr. Boboye Olayemi Oyeyemi, who described it as a significant step towards taming the menace of auto crashes involving articulated trucks in Nigeria. Speaking at the graduation ceremony, the Divisional Director Transport (DDT), Mr. Ajay Singh, said the new Batch C graduates…

THE remains of the late Senate President in the Second Republic between 1979 and 1983, Senator Joseph Wayas, have yet to be buried 14 months after death. News Point Nigeria reports that Wayas died in December 2021. Following the demise, the Cross River State Governor, Prof Ben Ayade, inaugurated a funeral committee immediately to plan for his burial. The committee was chaired by a two-time Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Kanu Agabi. However, after over a year, the late Wayas has yet to be laid to rest as family sources said there was no finance to attend…

FOLLOWING their triumphs in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, the Beach Soccer AFCON and the African Nations Championships in Algeria, Senegal have now added the U-20 AFCON title to their glittering trophy collection. The Teranga Cubs of Senegal defeated the Young Scorpions of Gambia 2-0 at the Cairo International Stadium Saturday. Goals from Soulayemane Faye and Mamadou Camara in either half were enough to give the Cubs their first-ever title on four attempts. They now become the first African country to simultaneously hold the continent’s most prestigious prizes. It will be noted that Senegal have played in three consecutive…

REAL Madrid secured their first La Liga win in three matches as they came from behind to beat Espanyol. Espanyol started positively as Joselu put the Catalan strugglers ahead after eight minutes. But goals from Vinicius Jr and Eder Militao turned Real’s fortunes around, and they saw out victory with a late Marco Asensio strike. Real, who are six points off the top with an extra game played, face leaders Barcelona in El Clasico next weekend. Carlo Ancelotti’s usage of Eduardo Camavinga as a makeshift left-back proved unwise as he was beaten on the wing by Ruben Sanchez, who provided…

NAPOLI bounced back from last weekend’s loss to Lazio to continue their apparent cruise towards the Serie A title with victory over Atalanta. Luciano Spalletti’s side were kept quiet in the first half by an Atalanta side who defended in numbers. But second-half goals from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Amir Rrahmani secured their 22nd league win of the season. Napoli are now 18 points clear at the top of the table with 12 league games left. Atalanta sit in sixth. Victor Osimhen, Serie A’s top scorer with 19 goals, twice came close to an opener after the break but saw a…

HUNDREDS of thousands of Israelis have taken part in what some are calling the biggest protest in the country’s history. Protests against government plans for a radical overhaul of the judicial system have been running for 10 weeks. Record numbers of demonstrators turned out in cities such as Haifa, while about 200,000 are believed to have taken to the streets in Tel Aviv. Critics say the reforms will undermine democracy. But Benjamin Netanyahu’s government says planned changes are better for the electorate. Organisers said as many as 500,000 pro-democracy protesters took to the streets nationwide on Saturday, in what the…

A BABY given less than a 10% chance of surviving when she was born at 22 weeks has beaten the odds and is thriving, her parents have said. Imogen weighed 515g (1lb 1oz) when she was born at Swansea’s Singleton Hospital on 6 September. Now, after 132 days in hospital, the six-month-old is back home in Bridgend. Her mother Rachel Stonehouse, 28, said: “Imogen has gone through so much and more than we will ever go through in our lifetime and she smashed it.” The world’s most premature surviving baby is thought to be Curtis Zy-Keith Means from the USA,…

POPULAR South African artiste, Costa Tsobanoglou, professionally known as Costa Titch, has passed on. The ‘Big Flexa’ rapper reportedly died while thrilling fans at the Ultra Music Festival held in Johannesburg on Saturday. In videos making rounds on the internet, the singer fell down during the performance, but continued singing after he was picked up by his bodyguard. He however slumped a second time and had to be carried off stage. South African media personality, Phil Mphela, confirmed the news via Twitter late night on Saturday. Mphela wrote in his tweet, “RIP: Costa Titch. Nelspruit-born artist and dancer, real name…