Author: Editor

A COURT in Tanzania has charged opposition party leader Tundu Lissu with treason after his arrest at a public rally in which he called for electoral reforms. The charges against the chairman of the Chadema party will bring new scrutiny to President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s bid for re-election in October as critics accuse the government of cracking down on the opposition. The opposition leader was forced into a police vehicle late on Wednesday after he had finished addressing a public rally in Mbinga in southern Tanzania. “I came here, we held a peaceful meeting and now I understand the tactics…

RAPHINHA equalled Lionel Messi’s club record for goal involvements in a single Champions League campaign as Barcelona thrashed Borussia Dortmund to take command of their quarter-final tie. The Brazilian forward scored and assisted twice to reach 19 goal involvements in the competition this term, the same as Messi achieved in the 2011-12 campaign. Raphinha’s 12th European goal of the season gave Barcelona a deserved first-half lead, before Robert Lewandowski struck twice after the break and Lamine Yamal added a fourth to put the Spanish side on course for the semi-finals. The hosts ran riot in the early stages and could…

AT least 35 Palestinians are killed, 55 wounded and 80 missing in a series of powerful Israeli air strikes on Shujayea district in northern Gaza City. Medical charity Doctors Without Borders says an Israeli attack hit close to its clinic in the so-called safe zone of al-Mawasi in southern Gaza. “The death toll from the Shujaiya massacre has risen to 23 martyrs, including eight children and eight women,” the agency’s spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP, adding that more than 60 people were wounded. “There are still people trapped under the rubble.” Ayub Salim, a 26-year-old Shujaiya resident, told AFP he…

A SENIOR figure in France’s main right-wing party has sparked outrage in France by suggesting “dangerous” foreigners who refuse to leave the country should be sent instead to wind-swept French islands off Canada in the north Atlantic. French politics have shifted to the right in recent months, with the government increasingly picking up far-right talking points such as security and immigration. Algeria has refused to take back nationals France has ordered to leave, including a 37-year-old man who went on a stabbing rampage in the French city of Mulhouse in February, killing one person. “I suggest dangerous foreigners under order…

KENYA’s government urged vigilance on Wednesday as it tackles a cholera outbreak that has killed at least five people, a health ministry official said. Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that spreads through contaminated food and water and typically causes severe diarrhoea, vomiting and muscle cramps. It is especially dangerous for young children. The East African nation reported dozens of cases in the aftermath of massive floods that swept over parts of the country last year. “The government is asking you to be extremely vigilant of your surroundings… to deal with a cholera outbreak that has now claimed over five…

THREE Americans convicted for their role in a failed coup in Democratic Republic of Congo last year have been sent home to the US to serve the rest of their jail terms. The three were originally sentenced to death by a military court before their sentences were commuted to life in prison last week. US Department of State spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the three were “in our custody”. The repatriation comes as the US and DR Congo explore a deal to exploit the central African country’s huge mineral wealth. Last week, US President Donald Trump’s senior adviser for Africa visited…

ARSENAL stormed to a stunning 3-0 win over Champions League holders Real Madrid as Declan Rice’s free-kick masterclass left the Gunners within touching distance of a place in the semi-finals. Rice scored two majestic free kicks in the second half of the quarter-final first leg at the Emirates Stadium. Mikel Merino added Arsenal’s third goal before Real’s Eduardo Camavinga was sent off for kicking the ball away in the closing minutes to leave the Spanish giants in disarray. The brilliance of Rice’s brace cannot be understated, with even Real keeper Thibaut Courtois — usually so inspired on Champions League nights…

UNITED Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has spoken out about the dire humanitarian situation unfolding in the besieged Gaza Strip, saying “civilians are in an endless death loop” amid renewed Israeli bombardments and a ban on the entry of much-needed aid. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Guterres rejected a new Israeli proposal to control aid deliveries in Gaza, saying it risks “further controlling and callously limiting aid down to the last calorie and grain of flour”. “Let me be clear: We will not participate in any arrangement that does not fully respect the humanitarian principles: humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality,” Guterres…

BANGLADESHI police said Tuesday they arrested a lawyer who served as a senior prosecutor at a court that sentenced militant leaders to death under the rule of ousted hardline prime minister Sheikh Hasina. The case is the latest in a string of detentions of people who had held senior positions during Hasina’s rule, who is herself wanted on charges of crimes against humanity for the killing of hundreds of protesters during the unrest that toppled her government last August. Tureen Afroz was arrested on Monday night on charges of attempted murder, in a case linked to the student-led uprising, said…

SOUTH Sudan has said it will now allow the entry of a man deported from the US, in a dramatic climb down aimed at defusing a visa row between the two countries. On Saturday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the US would be revoking US visas for all South Sudanese. He said it was a response to South Sudan’s refusal to accept the return of its citizens being removed from the US. In its initial reaction, South Sudan’s foreign ministry said the move was based on a case involving someone who had been incorrectly identified as South…

AT least 50 hippos and other large animals have been killed by anthrax poisoning in Africa’s oldest national park, its director has said. Photos shared by the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo show the motionless animals floating along the Ishasha River. Park officials say they first started appearing last week. The exact cause of the poisoning is unknown but tests have confirmed the presence of anthrax. Park director Emmanuel de Merode said work was under way to recover the animals and bury them to prevent further spread, but it was difficult because there were no excavators.…

WE are very encouraged by public reactions, rejoinders and the positive and otherwise feedbacks we have received following our first press release on this subject matter. And, as we promised, in this and the subsequent releases we shall provide more insights and answers to those questions that the National Hajj Commission, NAHCON may not wish the Nigerian public to know. What impresses us most was the advent of new crooked and rent-seeking Associations, defending the Commission probably to be gifted a Hajj seat that would be financed through the hard-earned monies of the same poor pilgrims they claim to be…

REAL Madrid’s attacking superstars need no introduction but behind them lies a soft, vulnerable underbelly which Arsenal aim to exploit on Tuesday in a Champions League quarter-final first leg clash. Carlo Ancelotti’s forwards have not always been able to varnish over the team’s defensive deficiencies, as was the case in a 2-1 defeat by Valencia on Saturday in La Liga. The surprise loss left Real Madrid four points behind leaders Barcelona and was their 10th of the season across all competitions. Last year as Madrid became Spanish and European champions, they suffered just two all season. Ancelotti in part attributes…

ABED Shaat drifted off to sleep on Sunday night, exhausted after covering Israeli air strikes all day. The 33-year-old freelance photographer had returned to a tent in front of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza where he’d been based along with other journalists since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza. Then, they were jolted awake. “I woke up to the sound of a huge explosion nearby,” Shaat said. “My colleagues and I immediately rushed out of the tent. [I had] my mobile phone to film. “The strike had directly hit the journalists’ tent across from us. I…

THE European Commission is to discuss with the European Union (EU) member states and its international partners the level of the implementation of sanctions against Russia and Belarus on April 8. “Tomorrow, April 8, Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union, Maria Luis Albuquerque, will chair the seventh meeting of the High-Level Group on Union Restrictive Measures (sanctions). “These meetings assess the EU’s ongoing efforts to ensure that the unprecedented sanctions imposed on Russia and Belarus achieved their objectives.’’ The commission said in a statement on Monday. In the morning, high-level representatives of the EU member states…

ALGERIA has closed its airspace to all flights to and from Mali as the row over a drone that was shot down close to their common border escalates. On Sunday, Mali accused its northern neighbour of being a sponsor and exporter of terrorism after Algeria attacked one of its drones last week. A strongly worded statement from Mali’s foreign ministry challenged Algeria’s earlier explanation that the unmanned surveillance aircraft had violated its airspace. The statement described the downing of the drone as a “hostile premeditated action”. Algeria described the allegations as “lacking in seriousness [and they]… warrant no attention or…

TORRENTIAL rains and floods have killed at least 33 people in Kinshasa – the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo – according to officials. “The republic will not abandon you,” President Félix Tshisekedi promised victims on Monday, saying he had called a government crisis meeting. Desperate residents are trying to flee the floodwaters by wading, swimming or paddling to safety in homemade canoes. The city is home to 17 million people and sits on the Congo river, which is one of the biggest in the world and stretches across the country. Flooding is common – the river recently reached…

PARIS Saint-Germain clinched the Ligue 1 title on Saturday with a 1-0 win at home against Angers as they prepare for a Champions League quarter-final showdown with Aston Villa. PSG needed just a draw in front of their own fans to be confirmed as champions again, having started the day a huge 21 points clear of nearest challengers Monaco with seven matches left. Desire Doue’s strike early in the second half decided the game in PSG’s favour, allowing Luis Enrique’s team to take the title with six matches still to play. It is a fourth consecutive Ligue 1 title for…

TENS of thousands of Moroccans have taken to the streets to protest against Israel’s punishing assault on Gaza and its people, also directing their anger at the United States and its support for the 18-month-long war. In one of the country’s largest demonstrations in months, protesters filled areas of the capital Rabat on Sunday, trampling on Israeli flags, holding banners of assassinated Hamas leaders, and waving posters combining displaced Palestinians with US President Donald Trump. Organisers denounced Israel’s military campaign, which has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians, and displaced hundreds of thousands again, since it shattered a ceasefire with intensive…

A MANHUNT is under way after three bodies were found in a residential building in a village in western Germany. The suspect fled when officers arrived at the scene in Weitefeld, Westerwald, and is on the run, a police spokesperson told the German Press Agency. The victims were a family, police said, and include a 47-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman and a 16-year-old boy. Police advised residents in the surrounding area to stay at home, and warned people not to pick up hitchhikers, local media reported. German outlet Bild reported that a special task force was on site and a…