Tech giant, Meta has announced that it’s first store will be officially open in Burlingame, California starting from 9th of May.

This was disclosed in a statement made by the company’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg.

He said, “Meta’s first store is opening in Burlingame, California on May 9! You can experience Quest 2 and project what you’re experiencing onto a big wall for your friends.

“It’s a great way to see how our products connect people today and get a sense for what’s coming as we build towards the metaverse.”

See pictures below..

Twitter’s board has accepted an offer from billionaire Elon Musk to buy the social media company and take it private, the company announced on Monday, April 25.

“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,” Musk said as he confirmed the deal in a statement included in the press release announcing the $44 billion deal. “I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”

The cash deal at $54.20 per share is valued at around $44 billion, according to the press release. Twitter will become a private company once the deal is complete.

Twitter shareholders will receive $54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter common stock that they own upon closing of the transaction. The purchase price represents a 38 percent premium to the company’s closing price on April 1, the day before Musk announced he had amassed a 9 percent stake in the company.

Musk said he wanted to make Twitter “better than ever” by introducing new features, making its algorithms open source, stamping out bots and authenticating “all humans”.

He added: “Twitter has tremendous potential — I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”

After Musk first made his offer for the platform on April 14, Twitter launched a poison pill to limit his ability to build a substantial shareholding. But the board was forced to the negotiating table at the weekend after he unveiled a $46.5bn financing package for the deal.

“The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon’s proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing,” said Bret Taylor, Twitter chair.

He added: “The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.” If completed, the deal would be one of the largest leveraged buyouts on record. 

Republicans are hopeful that the deal could pave the way for Donald Trump to return to the platform after the former president was banned for repeatedly breaching its rules around hate speech and misinformation.

“I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means,” Musk tweeted earlier on Monday.

Infamous terrorist, Osama bin Laden planned to attack the US with charter jets and train derailments after 9/11, papers obtained by US Navy Seals after his assassination have revealed. 

The documents gotten after bin Laden’s 2011 execution by the US military, revealed how he encouraged that private jets, rather than passenger planes, be used after the September 2001 attacks which shocked the whole world.

Bin Laden, a trained engineer with the CIA also encouraged his followers to cut 12 meters from train tracks in the US in order to kill hundreds.

The plot was previously mentioned in 2011, when it was claimed bin Laden had been hoping to send a packed train careening off a bridge into a valley.

 ‘Rather than hijack a plane, operatives should charter one for their next attack on the U.S. If that’s too difficult, they should target U.S. railways,’ Osama bin Laden wrote in a letter to he head of al Qaeda’s international terror unit, Islamic scholar Nelly Lahoud explained during a 60 Minutes interview that aired Sunday, April 24, on CBS.

‘He wanted to have 12 meters (40 feet) of steel rail removed so that, this way, the train could be derailed,’ Lahoud . ‘And we find him, explaining the simple toolkit that they could use.’

‘You could use a compressor. You could use a smelting iron tool,’ bin Laden instructed his followers while giving specifics on how to cut out bits of track. 

Thousands of bin Laden’s personal letters and notes were confiscated 11 years ago by a team of two dozen Navy SEALs sent to Pakistan to capture and kill the terrorist.  

The letters were declassified by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency in 2017. 

Lahoud says she has been studying the documents ‘line by line’ for several years.

She argued bin Laden was surprised at America’s reaction to the series of airline hijackings that took the lives of nearly 3,000 people on September 11, 2001.

‘Al Qaeda did not anticipate that the United States would go to war,’ Lahoud said of bin Laden’s letters.

He reportedly thought the U.S. would respond with a ‘limited airstrike,’ but did not suspect it ‘would go beyond that.’

‘He thought that the American people would take to the streets, replicate the anti-Vietnam war protests and they would put pressure on their government to withdraw from Muslim majority states,’ she explained.

The letters also revealed that in November 2002, when U.S. intelligence officials were concerned that Al Qaeda was planning ‘spectacular attacks’ that would result in ‘mass casualties,’ bin Laden was hiding and ‘absolutely not’ running the terrorist group, Lahoud alleged.

‘He’s very eager to replicate the 9/11 attacks in the United States,’ she says of the letters he penned in 2004. ‘You know he is mindful that now the security conditions are very difficult at airports.’

‘The weakness, failure, and aimlessness that befell us were harrowing. We Muslims were defiled and desecrated. Our state was ripped asunder, our lands were occupied, our resources were plundered,’ a young Al Qaeda associated named Tawfiq wrote to bin Laden at the time.

‘I’m gonna tell you the truth as it is. And I know that some of the brothers here are not telling you everything in detail because they don’t want to upset you, particularly because of the delicate situations in which you find yourself with…’

Leaked photos have shown nuclear-capable Kalibr missiles being loaded onto a Russian submarine for a possible attack against Ukraine. 

Lethal Kalibr strategic missiles were spotted being put onto a Veliky Novogorod diesel-electric submarine, which is thought to be heading to Ukraine to potentially be used in the invasion.

Ukraine Now Telegram channel said in its report; 

“Russian Kalibr-type cruise missiles were loaded onto the Veliky Novgorod diesel-electric submarine – the very ones bombing the peaceful cities of Ukraine”

The loading several days ago came ahead of a mission by the submarine in the Black Sea. 

Ukraine’s Yug operation command said: “By blocking shipping, conducting surface situation detection and aerial reconnaissance, [the Russians] continue to carry the threat of a missile attack on almost the entire territory of Ukraine.”

Russian defence minister Sergey Shoigu has boasted that deployment in Syria from the Caspian Sea “confirmed a high effectiveness of the missiles at major distances of nearly 1500 km (932 miles).”

It comes after a new British submarine worth £1 billion loaded up with missiles in a warning to Putin. The Kalibr can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads. 

Conventional warheads are believed to be on the pier where the submarine is tethered in Sevastopol, in Crimea, annexed from Ukraine in 2014. The Kalibr has already been used in the current war to target Ukraine.

The missile is however prone to misfiring as seen last year from a warship on Russia ’s Pacific coast.

A video showed how a missile fired from frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov rose, and rotated alarmingly before crashing into the sea.

A voice of an officer making the film from the air is heard saying “Look, the sea is burning”.Eventually the Kalibr missile burned out in the Pacific Ocean, as the warship sped away.

Following a ballistic missile launch on Wednesday, Putin issued a chilling warning to the West as he boasted of a “big, significant event” for Russian defence.

The Russian leader referred to the Sarmat ICBMs ballistic missile which could be launched by this autumn, with the ability to travel 11,000 miles and carry 10 or more nuclear warheads.

Putin also announced that the Sarmat will “ensure Russia’s security from external threats and make those who try to threaten our country with aggressive rhetoric think twice.”

Twitter’s board reportedly met Elon Musk over the weekend to discuss his $43bn (£33.6bn) offer to buy the social media platform.

After Musk first revealed his bid, Twitter’s management announced a “poison pill” strategy to push off a potential hostile buyout.

A takeover bid is considered to be hostile when a person or business tries to take over another company against the wishes of the target firm’s management hence a ‘poison pill’ is adopted.

The move stops anyone from having more than a 15% stake in the company by allowing others to buy additional shares in the firm at a discount.

Musk, who owns a more than 9% stake in Twitter, has lined up a $46.5bn financing package for his bid, according to a regulatory filing.

Musk says he plans to finance his bid with his personal money and also the backing of US lender Morgan Stanley and other financial institutions.

And details of how Musk was planning to secure his funding made Twitter’s 11-member board seriously consider a possible deal, according to Reuters, the New York Times and Bloomberg  reports on Sunday night, April 24.

 
The reports add that after Musk’s disclosure of his plans for the social media platform, a number of Twitter shareholders reportedly contacted the company’s board urged it not to miss the opportunity for a potential deal.

Police in Paris have opened fire on a vehicle that tried to hit them – killing two occupants and injuring a third, according to local media.

The incident happened near the Pont Neuf – in the centre of the French capital – on Sunday night.

It is believed that the vehicle’s driver, and a passenger sitting in the front seat, were those who died.

A woman who was sat in the back seat has been taken to hospital – and reports suggest bullets hit her arm.

A witness told Le Figaro newspaper: “A car was parked in the wrong direction along the Vert-Galant square on the Pont Neuf, the police approached to control the individuals present in the vehicle by pointing automatic weapons at him.

“The driver rushed off towards the police at full speed. The police fired immediately.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky revealed on Saturday what kind of events might force his country to withdraw from peace negotiations with Moscow.

During a press conference held at one of Kiev’s metro stations amid the ongoing Russian offensive in Ukraine, Zelensky was asked how Kiev would respond to potential independence referendums in the territories controlled by Russian forces. The president insisted that it would force him to stop any talks with Moscow.

“If our people are destroyed in Mariupol, if a referendum, a pseudo-referendum, is announced in any new pseudo-republics of Ukraine, Ukraine will withdraw from any negotiations process,” Zelensky said.

Two days ago, Moscow announced the capture of Mariupol. However, President Vladimir Putin called off the assault on the Azovstal factory, which remains the last holdout of Ukrainian forces, including the fighters of the neo-Nazi Azov regiment, in the strategic port city.

Russian troops should “seal the area so that a fly cannot get through,” Putin instead ordered. Zelensky, meanwhile, admitted that at the moment Ukraine is not able to recapture Mariupol militarily and that the holed-up fighters there are aware of that.

Zelensky reiterated his wish to conduct direct talks with Vladimir Putin, as “the war can be stopped by the person who started it.” He explained that, as he thinks, direct negotiations could be a more effective way to reach peace than speaking via mediators.

“I want to stop the war and end it. There is a diplomatic path and a military one. Any healthy person chooses the diplomatic path because he knows that even if it is difficult, it can prevent the loss of millions of people,” Zelensky said.

Putin, meanwhile, has not ruled out a personal meeting with Zelensky, but stressed that it would depend on the progress of talks between the negotiating teams.

Commenting on the upcoming visit by UN Security General Antonio Guterres to Moscow, Zelensky claimed that it is not logical that he would travel to Russia before speaking to Kiev, but the Ukrainian leader expressed his readiness to conduct talks with Guterres as well.

Ukraine’s conditions for a peace settlement, according to Zelensky, remain the same: security guarantees for Kiev and “the fate of Donbass and Crimea,” the independence of which Kiev has categorically refused to recognize.

“I think there are no more issues,” he said.
Meanwhile, Zelensky said, the Ukrainian forces would keep fighting and, depending on weapons supplies from the West, will be recapturing territories which had been captured by the Russian forces.

“My position as president is: whatever they [Russian forces] occupy, we will return. It will not be a matter of 8 years, like from 2014, it will be immediate. This is a matter of weapons. If we have enough of them, we will immediately begin to recapture the occupied territory,” he said.

Russia has repeatedly warned NATO against sending arms to Ukraine and stated that it would consider arms convoys to be legitimate military targets. It also says that “pumping up” Ukraine with weapons will only lead to more casualties.

Since the launch of Russia’s military offensive on Ukraine, Moscow and Kiev have accused each other of hampering civilian evacuations, as well as committing war crimes and violating international law. Several rounds of peace negotiations have not yielded any significant progress.

Russia attacked the neighboring state in late February, following Ukraine’s failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements, first signed in 2014, and Moscow’s eventual recognition of the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. The German and French brokered protocols were designed to give the breakaway regions special status within the Ukrainian state.

The Kremlin has since demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.

A 27-year-old Nigerian man identified as Victory has died after he allegedly jumped from 21st floor of his condominium in Malaysia.

It was gathered that the incident happened at Mutiara ville (21st floor. Block F2) in Cyberjaya on Tuesday afternoon, April 19, 2022. 

The reasons for his action are unknown, however, police are currently investigating the incident. The deceased hailled from Agbor in Delta State. 

Meanwhile, family members including one Prophetess Peach Joshua, claimed that Victory was pushed off the building.

One Peter Rocly who claimed to have lived in the building and witnessed the incident said the deceased was murdered. 

A disgraced former Honduran president was on Thursday April 21, extradited to the U.S. to face drug and arms charges.

Juan Orlando Hernández, the once-powerful former president, was handcuffed as he boarded an airplane with agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to face legal proceedings in New York City.

He faces a three-count indictment charging drug importation and weapons offenses.

In court documents, U.S. prosecutors alleged Hernandez was involved in a “corrupt and violent drug-trafficking conspiracy to facilitate the importation of tons of cocaine into the United States.”

Prosecutors charge that Hernandez received millions of dollars from drug cartels, including from notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. They allege he used the money to finance his political campaigns and engaged in voter fraud in the 2013 and 2017 Honduran presidential elections.

Hernández was arrested at his home in Tegucigalpa in February at the request of U.S. authorities. He was shackled and paraded in front of journalists, a sight many Hondurans never imagined seeing.

Honduras’ Supreme Court rejected his appeal of a judge’s decision in favor of extradition.

U.S. prosecutors have accused Hernández of fueling his political rise with money from drug traffickers. The payments were  allegedly made in exchange for Honduran authorities allowing them to operate or for information helping them to evade interdiction.

Hernández has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. In a video message released Thursday, he said, “I am innocent; I have been and I am being unjustly subjected to prosecution.”

He has said he is the victim of drug traffickers he extradited who are now lying to seek revenge.

Henry Osorto Canales, a retired National Police commissioner who is now an analyst, said that while the extradition was an embarrassment for Honduras, it was also a historic day.

“This is a start because it has begun with the largest political piece that the country had and logically the rest of the pieces are going to fall, at least those closest (to Hernández),” Osorto said.

Hernández’s brother Tony Hernández, a former congressman, was sentenced to life in prison in the same U.S. court on essentially the same charges.

Juan Orlando Hernández took office in January 2014 and held the presidency until this January, when Xiomara Castro was sworn in as his replacement. Castro campaigned on rooting out Honduras’ corruption and Hernández was seen as the largest target.

On Wednesday, Honduras’ Supreme Court denied an appeal from the former chief of the National Police, Juan Carlos Bonilla Valladares, better known as “El Tigre” or “The Tiger.” He was arrested after Hernández at the request of U.S. prosecutors on similar charges and is expected to be extradited in the coming weeks.

U.S. prosecutors allege Bonilla assisted the movement of tons of cocaine through Honduras, working with Hernández and his brother Tony Hernández, both co-conspirators in the case in the Southern District of New York.

Half of the total foreign nationals arrested for involvement in illegal drug smuggling in Himachal Pradesh between 2017 and 2021 are from the African nation,l Nigeria

This is according to the state police data.

Hindustan Times reports that police data shows that from 2017 to 2021, a total of 72 foreign nationals have been arrested for their involvement in the narcotics trade in the hill state. Of these, 36 were Nigerian nationals, followed by 15 from other African countries, 14 Europeans, four Americans, two from the Middle East and one from an Asian country.

“We are concerned about the involvement of foreigners in the illicit drug trade in Himachal. Of the 72 foreigners arrested between 2017 and 2021, seven have jumped bail,” said Sanjay Kundu, director-general of police (DGP). “We are taking steps to expedite their trials.”

According to the narcotics control wing of state police, most of the Nigerian nationals arrested for supplying drugs to Himachal were operating from Delhi.
Nigerian nationals from India’s capital are actively involved in the smuggling of chitta (adulterated heroin) into Himachal, resulting in a multifold increase in the trade, police said. The majority of the peddlers from Himachal are in the age group of 16 to 26 years, police data suggests.

“There are three types of networks active in Himachal. One is being run by Punjab-based smugglers, another by Africans and the third one is being operated from Uttar Pradesh,” said Gaurav Singh, superintendent of police, narcotic control wing. “Our main focus is to nab the smugglers, along with local conduits.”

Data also highlighted that in the last five years, the state police have arrested 8,122 Indian nationals and 80 foreigners under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

Chitta has made inroads even in the rural pockets of areas that attract a higher footfall of tourists, especially in Shimla, Kangra, Una, Sirmaur and Solan. The problem is more acute in the areas bordering Punjab, a senior officer said.

“Chitta smugglers have spread their tentacles in the rural regions. The government needs to play a more proactive role in the coming days as the problem is compounding,” said Narendra Chauhan, president of Anti-Drug Force, a Rohru-based NGO working to motivate women and youth to fight against the drug menace.

“Not only men, but young women too are into drug abuse. The number of visitors at our outdoor patient department (OPD) is increasing by the day. We are even arranging special OPDs only for the addicts,” said Dinesh Dutt Sharma, head of the psychiatry department at the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital.

Dr Sanjay Pathak, CEO, state mental health authority, said, “Multiple drug usage among addicts is on the rise. About 40% of calls received on the drug prevention helpline are related to such cases.”

To curb the menace, the state police have launched ‘Drug Free Himachal’ app that educates users about the harmful effects of narcotics. It has been downloaded by 40,000 people so far. The police are also running an SMS campaign.

“We are constantly reviewing depositions by cops as witnesses in courts to ensure speedy trials in the NDPS cases. Attempts have been made for stricter norms pertaining to bail and confirming identities of sureties,” said the DGP.

The police have also introduced ‘Register 29’ in all police stations of the state to keep tabs on the drug smugglers and their conduits. “We have carried out financial investigations in 22 cases and properties worth ₹12 crore have been attached as well,” an officer said, requesting anonymity.

Ukraine has proposed to hold a “special round” of negotiations with Russia in the besieged city of Mariupol, a top Kyiv official said.

“Yes. Without any conditions. We’re ready to hold a ‘special round of negotiations’ right in Mariupol,” top Ukraine negotiator and presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak said on Twitter.

“One on one. Two on two. To save our guys, Azov, military, civilians, children, the living & the wounded. Everyone. Because they are ours. Because they are in my heart. Forever.”

Another key Ukrainian negotiator, David Arakhamia, said on Telegram that he and Podolyak “are ready to arrive in Mariupol to hold talks with the Russian side on the evacuation of our military garrison and civilians”.

As yet another desperate attempt to evacuate civilians from Mariupol failed Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that “the situation in Mariupol is deteriorating” with thousands of troops and civilians stuck in the city.

Earlier Wednesday, Svyatoslav Palamar, a commander in the nationalist Azov regiment that has been defending the city against Russia’s siege, said his forces were ready to be evacuated together with civilians from the strategic southern port.

“We are ready to be evacuated with the help of a third party from the city of Mariupol with our small arms,” Palamar said in a video posted on Telegram.

He added that the goal was “To evacuate the wounded, get the bodies of the dead out and to bury them with honours on territory not controlled by the Russian Federation.”