Lata Mangeshkar, one of India’s music icons who defined music and melody for generations with her voice, has died at the age of 92.
She was hospitalised on January 11 after being infected with what her doctor confirmed to be Covid-19, but passed away from multi-organ failure on Sunday, after more than 28 days of hospitalisation.
Ms. Mangeshkar, who was active in the music industry for more than 70 years, saw her voice recorded for music in more than Indian 2,000 films.
Dr. Pratit Samdani, who was treating her at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital, confirmed she passed away after being hospitalised for Covid according to Reuters TV partner ANI.
‘I am anguished beyond words,’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on Twitter.
She will receive a state funeral, and the government will observe state mourning with the flag at half-mast through Monday, the Home Ministry said in a statement.
‘The kind and caring Lata Didi has left us,’ the prime minister wrote, using an affectionate term for older sister.
‘She leaves a void in our nation that cannot be filled. The coming generations will remember her as a stalwart of Indian culture, whose melodious voice had an unparalleled ability to mesmerise people.’
Born in 1929 in pre-independence India, Ms. Mangeshkar began singing in her teens, and in a career spanning 73 years sang more than an estimated 15,000 songs in 36 languages.
She enthralled listeners with her lilting voice and sheer range, singing everything from patriotic songs to romantic numbers, both in films and albums.
Ms. Mangeshkar made her name in music for Bollywood movies. Her big break came when she recorded the hit ‘Aayega Aanewala’ for the movie Mahal (1949).
After that, the Nightingale would go on to become the singing voice for almost every leading lady, according to Britannica.
North Korea hackers have stolen more than £37million worth of cryptocurrency to finance and develop its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, UN experts have said in a new report.
The annual report, by independent sanctions monitors, said there was ‘a marked acceleration’ of Pyongyang’s testing and demonstration of new short-range and possibly medium-range missiles in January, ‘incorporating both ballistic and guidance technologies and using both solid and liquid propellants’.
Investigators found that cyberattacks stole more than £37million of digital assets between 2020 and mid-2021 from at least three cryptocurrency exchanges in North America, Europe, and Asia.
Cyber attacks ‘remain an important revenue source’ for Kim Jong Un’s government and Pyongyang’s nuclear and ballistic missile programme, experts added.
They also said North Korea ‘continued to seek material, technology, and know-how for these programmes overseas, including through cyber means and joint scientific research.’
The report was sent to the U.N. Security Council North Korea sanctions committee on Friday.
This comes following a report by blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis, which said North Korea launched at least seven attacks on cryptocurrency platforms that extracted nearly $400m worth of digital assets last year.
The report, released last month, said: ‘From 2020 to 2021, the number of North Korean-linked hacks jumped from four to seven, and the value extracted from these hacks grew by 40 percent’.
A 2019 United Nations report estimated that North Korea had already been able to spend at least $2 billion from the proceeds of cybercrime on weapons.
Another UN report said North Korean hackers are now extending their money-making activities to stealing military secrets, which they can then sell.
Senate Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe, has said that the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, informed him that he never ordered nor knew about the weekly sit-at-home directive South-Easterners have been subjected to every Monday.
While speaking during the investiture of the 16th President of Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture(ECCIMA), Barr. Jasper Nduagwuike on Saturday, February 5, Abaribe said Kanu told him this when he, alongside some other persons, paid a visit to the IPOB leader in detention. According to him, the sit-at-home has caused businesses to relocate to other regions as a result of insecurity in the region.
“What is happening in the Southeast is a tragedy. Every Monday people sit at home in what they call ‘Holy Monday’. What is holy in making people suffer like this?
IPOB has said countless times that they are not the ones enforcing the order. We don’t know who is enforcing it neither does it seem like we have a way to solve it.
I went with Ike Ekweremadu and two bishops to the DSS to see Nnamdi Kanu and he told us ‘I have never said people should sit at home’. I told him that nobody believes you outside. Because people have said they don’t like it but they keep sitting at home.
There is no way we are going to survive like this. You are sitting at home and the people who you are doing these things for are in Lagos and in Abuja and everywhere and they don’t care. And you are here killing your own.
Aba is known for bringing and opening containers of imported goods on Mondays. So, the problem we’re having today is that because of the sit-at-home, people now go to Port Harcourt, Uyo and Calabar to open their containers. They’re leaving Southeast and moving out to Lagos. When we all leave, who will you blame? The captains of industries are no longer there.”he said
A Texas man shot and killed four of his family members nd wounded three others before turning the gun on himself on Saturday, Feb. 5, police said.
Kevin Milazzo, 41, went on a murderous rampage early Saturday morning, killing his parents, his son and his ex-girlfriend’s 4-year-old child
Just after midnight, officers from the Corsicana Police Department responded to a report that Milazzo had killed his family members. When police arrived at the residence, they found the bodies of an adult male and an adult female who had been fatally shot. Two additional gunshot victims were found and airlifted to a Dallas area trauma center, police said. Their conditions aren’t known at this time.
The deceased victims were later identified as Milazzo’s stepfather, William (Bill) Mimms, 68, and his mother, Connie Mimms, 61. No other information was available about the two other injured victims.
Deputies from the Navarro County Sheriff’s Department responded to a second location at the intersection of Garrity and Shroud Streets in Frost, where they found the bodies of Milazzo’s 21-year-old son Joshua Milazzo and 4-year-old toddler Hunter Freeman – the son of Milazzo’s ex-girlfriend. They had also been shot and killed, according to police.
A woman was also found with several gunshot wounds and was transported to a Dallas area trauma center. She was not identified by police and her condition wasn’t known early Sunday.
Law enforcement was able to locate Milazzo by tracking his vehicle’s GPS system. Corsicana cops, the department’s SWAT team and Navarro County deputies found and approached Milazzo on a rural road after his vehicle’s engine had been remotely shut off by a monitoring service, cops said.
Officers found Milazzo critically injured inside the car with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Matthew Branch, a medical doctor and member of the SWAT team, provided treatment at the scene, according to police.
Milazzo was transported to Navarro Regional Hospital where he died from his injuries.
Children as young as four have been pictured receiving military training at an intensive volunteer boot camp as Ukraine’s military intensifies its defensive efforts in anticipation of a Russian military invasion.
The volunteer boot camp in snow-covered woods outside the capital, Kiev saw young and old people taught the rudiments of military skills.
A child named Taras and his brother Bohdan, both aged four, held wooden assault rifles while men and women in the background trained against Russia.
The children’s mother Iryna, 35, said: ‘I don’t think they understand the war and what is happening but they love everything to do with the military.
‘If they want to be soldiers when they grow up and fight to defend their homeland I will not stop them.’
‘But for now they want to be a fireman and a policeman.’
Iryna’s uncle fought with the Ukrainian Army and died in an explosion during a battle at Debaltseve, Donbas, an area now controlled by Russian separatists.
Iryna added: ‘We did not get his whole body back.’
Another 10 year old child, Yaroslav stood with adults training for Kyiv’s Territorial Defence Force, wielding his wooden effigy assault rifle.
The recruits were hoping to join Kyiv’s 127 Battalion of the Territorial Defence Force.
According to Military rules, the boys cannot sign up as a proper volunteer as he must be at least 18 years-old before he can be considered but another recruit and civil servant Tetiana, from Kyiv, said to the Daily Mail:
‘Yaroslav wanted to be here for training because his dad died five years ago.
‘He is the son of a man who gave his life for Ukraine and now it is good for him to have adult male influence and be here today.’
Peru’s President Pedro Castillo has sacked Prime Minister Hector Valer Pinto three days after appointing him, following allegations of domestic violence.
The leftist Castillo announced the change in a brief television address in which he did not mention Valer Pinto by name.
“I have decided to recompose the cabinet,” the president said, meaning Prime Minister Hector Valer Pinto is out.
Pinto came under pressure after newspapers said his wife and daughter had reported him twice for domestic violence in 2016. He has denied being an “abuser,” and said he was never convicted.
A judge had issued a protective order for his wife. He had said he would stay in his job unless Congress passed a vote of no-confidence.
This is Castillo’s third cabinet reshuffle since taking power in 2021. He said he would reconstitute the cabinet, after leaders in Congress declined to hold a vote of confidence on the Cabinet named on Tuesday February 1. The opposition and some other cabinet members were opposed to Pinto’s presence in the government.
Castillo’s new cabinet still needs to be confirmed through a congressional vote. The prime minister position in Peru is the chief adviser to the president and also presides and helps appoint the rest of the cabinet.
A female Ukrainian sniper who has killed killed at least 10 people while fighting pro-Russian separatists, has vowed to take on Putin’s troops as fears of an invasion rise.
The battle-hardened veteran Olena Bilozerska, 42, has already fought in the blown-up buildings and trenches of contested Donbas, east Ukraine but claims she is willing to do it all again to protect her country.
She says: “You take up a weapon against my country – that’s it, you’re a target. If you don’t take him out in time, he might kill you or one of your comrades.
“If I didn’t shoot in time and the target hid, that’s when I feel angry at myself for missing my chance. And if the target is hit, I feel the pleasure of a job well done.
She says she does not care about the lives of those she killed and she vows she would do it again.
She says: “When the enemy crawls towards our position to kill me, does he think if I have a husband, parents, or kids?
Olena with her husband
“Of course not. And I don’t bother myself with stupid things either. That stuff is for books and movies.
“In real life, anyone who thinks along those lines in battle is already as good as dead.”
Olena Bilozerska became famous back in 2017 when a video was shared online in which she is heard commentating on the “bastards” she kills as she coldly fires shots at them.
The legal counsel to the embattled leader of the Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB), Barrister Ifeanyi Ejiofor has described the fraud story against him which was disclosed in a report by the founder of Due Process Advocates (DPA), Attorney Emeka Ugwuonye as wicked, false and despicable.
Ugwuonye in the report noted that Ejiofor was implicated in a serious case of fraud, forgery, criminal breach of trust by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The human rights attorney in the report also disclosed that the evidence against Ifeanyi Ejiofor is strong and watertight.
But Barrister Ifeanyi Ejiofor in a statement he personally signed, has described the report by Attorney Emeka Ugwuonye as false, evil and despicable.
He said the story was designed to defame his personality.
He however urged his supporters to disregard the report as there is no truth in it.
Ejiofor said, “Good morning ezigbo UmuChineke, Related Posts
“An injurious defamation of my character being circulated on social media was brought to my attention last night.
“I wish to urge you all my noble fans and UmuChineke to disregard any publication aimed at disparaging my person.
“We all know that this is a rude distraction at this critical period, but we will not give in. In due time, truth and nothing but the truth will be exposed.
“The publication is utterly and inherently false in every material particular and was mischievously contrived and masterminded by evil, wicked, despicable and low thinking, treacherous individuals, for selfish and unsalutary reasons, to denigrate and ridicule my person. I have no doubt in my mind whatsoever that some particular individuals, who have constantly and variously demonstrated their treacherous disposition, masterminded, procured, encouraged and goaded the libellous publication. In the fullness of time, I will expose the identity of these traitors to their utter scorn, derision and contempt.
“Meanwhile, I urge you all to remain steadfast and focused on the goal which is to get Onyendu’s release ASAP.
“Thank you all for your continued prayers and supplications to the Almighty Chukwuokike Abiama. Forward ever, backward never.”
The Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Damondardas has told The United Nations General Assemblies to look into the problem affecting the residents of the old eastern region of Nigeria widely known as BIAFRA which is propelling them to push for the separate independent state away from Nigeria.
He maintained that Nigeria is structured in based on the colonial interest stating that Nigeria as Nation does not have the legitimate support of it’s citizens. He further points out the root cause of Nigeria problems as the inability of the past Nigerian Nationalists to restructure and reestablish Nigeria as a sovereign state with the popular legitimacy of it’s citizens on the basis of REFERENDUM which fosters the National cohesive spirit and patriotism.
“The issue of BIAFRA agitation has to be properly addressed; self determination has always been a civil right which is Guaranteed under the international laws. When a region seek to break away from a given country, the first thing to do is to address the problems driving such proposition. If the issue is something that can’t be addressed, partition has to be offered for them to conduct a REFERENDUM a decide their fate. Nigeria’s problems emanated from their earlier political leaders who failed to reestablish themselves after gaining independence in 1960.”
He ended saying that a country that is structured in political, social and economic inequality can never stand “Patriotism is what drives nations to unity, Peaceful coexistence and equity.”
An American hacker ‘in his pyjamas’ has taken down North Korea’s internet in revenge for a cyber attack carried out against him by North Korea’s hackers.
The hacker named only as P4x, launched repeated ‘distributed denial of service’ (DDoS) attacks against North Korea, crippling the country’s government-operated public-access websites and slowing email traffic.
DDoS attacks are attacks that flood a system with fake traffic, consuming available bandwidth and limiting processing capacity of servers so that a website becomes unavailable.
In North Korea just a small number of trusted officials and academics are permitted to use the World Wide Web or browser and only a small number of North Korean websites are connected to the wider global internet.
These include state airline Air Koryo and Naenara – the official web portal of the North Korean government – which spreads state news and propaganda on behalf of the leading Communist Party, headed by leader, Kim Jong Un.
In the last two weeks, these North Korean websites have come under a sustained attack from P4x, with Pyongyang thinking they were facing cyber attacks from a Western power.
North Korean government officials suspected the hacks were being done in response to the recent missile tests that have been carried out by Pyongyang.
But according to Wired Magazine, the DDoS attacks were not the work of the US intelligence agencies of any of the world’s big cyber powers like China, Russia or even the UK.
However, the report says ‘one American man in a T-shirt, pyjama pants and slippers, sitting in his living room night after night, watching Alien movies and eating spicy corn snacks,’ was responsible, .
The magazine added; ‘periodically walking over to his home office to check on the progress of the programs he was running to disrupt the internet of an entire country.’
P4x told Wired he was able to exploit vulnerabilities in North Korea’s out-of-date operating systems, and launch his attacks from the comfort of his own home.
‘It felt like the right thing to do here. If they don’t see we have teeth, it’s just going to keep coming,’ he told the publication. ‘I want them to understand that if you come at us, it means some of your infrastructure is going down for a while.’
He explained that his cyber attacks on the state came after he himself was unsuccessfully targeted by Pyongyang, with DPK hackers attempting to break into his own personal network a year ago to get access to his hacking technology.
He said he was able to catch the breach, then he opened the file the hackers used in an attempt to gain access to his network with a virtual computer (thus isolating the breach), and study it himself. He found the hack had been launched, to his surprise, from North Korea.
He added that he reported the incident to American authorities such as the FBI, but was ignored. ‘If no one’s going to help me, I’m going to help myself,’ he said.
The United Nations has reported 35 countries have been targeted by North Korea hackers in the country, targeting financial institutions and cryptocurrency exchanges – earning an estimated $2 billion.
In 2016, North Korean hackers stole $1 billion from the Bangladesh central bank.
A couple have accused a fertility doctor of using sperm from a stranger during the 1991 insemination procedure that resulted in the birth of their daughter.
Jeanine and John “Mike” Harvey said a DNA test showed their daughter Jessica was not biologically related to her father, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday, Feb. 2.
The Harveys accused Dr. Nicholas Spirtos and Summa Health System of malpractice, negligence and fraud, alleging they failed to “properly collect” and “safeguard” John’s genetic material.
Jeanine said during a virtual press conference: “About 30 years ago my husband and I went to see a fertility doctor for help seeking a baby.
“Our goal couldn’t have been clearer. We wanted a child who is genetically related to both of us. I underwent the in vitro fertilization with the understanding that Mike’s genetic materials would be used in this procedure. Without our knowledge, Dr. Spirtos used a stranger’s sperm.”
The family said it learned of the botched procedure when they bought Jessica a DNA test ahead of her trip to Europe in 2020.
Jessica was expecting to see her father’s Italian heritage represented on her test, but instead found that she was of Irish, English, German, Welsh and French descent.
Jessica Harvey Galloway said: “There are no words to express what I have been through; what my parents have been through. I am still in total disbelief and probably always will be.”
Jessica said she tracked down her biological father through ancestry.com and genealogists hired by her lawyer, and confirmed that the man gave sperm to Dr. Nicholas Spirtos to inseminate his wife on the same day the Harveys were in his office.
Spirtos is still affiliated with the Akron healthcare provider, according to its website.
In a statement to local media outlets, Summa Health said it was taking “this allegation seriously.”
“At this point, we have not met with the family or conducted testing of our own. Given the very limited information that we have and the amount of time that has passed, it remains our hope that the attorneys representing the family will work with us to make that next step a priority,” Mike Bernstein, system director of Corporate Communications for Summa Health System, reportedly said.
Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook shares suffered a historic selloff in trading on Thursday, Feb. 3, causing him to fall out of the Top 10 rich list.
The Facebook founder’s personal net worth dropped approximately $29.7 billion on Thursday, according to Forbes’ real-time calculations.
By the end of trading, Zuckerberg’s on-paper fortune was estimated to be $84.8 billion.
Forbes now has Zuckerberg at No. 12 on the list world’s richest individuals.
Meta shares fell by more than 26% on Thursday to close the day at $237.76 each — wiping off about $232 billion in value, which was the largest one-day drop in market value of any stock in US history, Dow Jones reported, citing its market data.
The social media giant late Wednesday, Feb 2. reported the first quarterly decline in its user base in company history.
Facebook reported 1.929 billion daily users in the fourth quarter, down from 1.93 billion users the previous quarter.
Zuckerberg blamed the decline in user activity in part on increased competition from rival platforms such as TikTok.
“People have a lot of choices for how they want to spend their time and apps like TikTok are growing very quickly,” Zuckerberg said during an earnings call on Wednesday afternoon.
Rochas Okorocha, the former governor of Imo state has stated that he doesn’t see members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra as terrorists but as poorly educated children.
He made the statement while accusing the government of Imo state of mishandling the security crisis; opining that the proscription of IPOB as terrorists was unnecessary.
Speaking on Thursday, February 3 to State House Correspondents in Abuja immediately after a closed-door meeting with President Buhari, Okorocha said;
“Wherever things are not working well, hold the leadership responsible. I was Governor of Imo state for eight years. And within those eight years, there was absolute peace in that land. IPOB did exist. And all these additional forces existed too.
“It is the poor handling by the state government that exacerbated this to what it is today. If I had remained the Governor of the state at this time, you wouldn’t hear what you’re hearing.
“IPOB are our young men, our sons and daughters, and let no Igbo man tell you otherwise. They believe that they have been marginalised in terms of infrastructure and appointments, and they’ve believed this for a long time. But we’re able to assuage them and give them confidence that things will get better.
“But there was no need to have handled the IPOB matter the way it was handled. In the first place, bringing the Air Force and the Army into the matter. Raiding from the air was wrong and completely wrong. Just as it is also wrong for these young men to have gone to the police headquarters shooting and killing people.
“I don’t support any of them either. Today they have turned out to be terrorists. But for me, I don’t see them as terrorists. I see them as children who have not been properly educated on the happenings.”
Asked if the Federal Government shouldn’t have proscribed IPOB, Okorocha responded;
“The activities of IPOB called for that. But it was a needless action to have even started. Something that you can handle and not allow to escalate. If the federal government made them to call them terrorists, it is the state government that made the recommendations and created that image that presented the boys as terrorists.
His comments come after Ipob warned him on Wednesday to stop using the secessionist group for political campaigns.
Nigerian striker, Silas Nwankwo has completed a move to Swedish club, Mjällby AIF from Nasarawa United.
The 18-year-old, who was the joint-Top scorer in the 2020/21 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), penned n a four-year deal until 2025 with the club,
Nwankwo recorded 19 goals with eight assists to share the award with Charles Atshimene of Akwa United.
Hasse Larsson the sports director of Mjallby AIF in a statement in the official website of the club revealed that the club was delighted to have signed Nwankwo.
He said, “It is clear that if you look at his merits as an 18-year-old in a high-speaking language, it is impressive.
“But we are also impressed by his top qualities both in the inverted game with his size but also ability to manage goal chances to goal in the offensive penalty area.
“A player who will need time with a longer contract makes us believe that Silas in the long run can really make a difference for the club.”
Nwankwo is expected to make his debut for Mjallby AIF when they face Akropolis in a Svenska Cupen fixture scheduled for Sunday, February 20, 2022.
Egypt defeated Cameroon 3-1 on penalties to reach the Africa Cup of Nations final, ending the hosts’ hopes of glory on home soil on Thursday night, February 3.
The second semi-final finished goalless after 120 minutes but it was Egypt who were victorious in the shootout.
Egypt had coach Carlos Queiroz sent off after a series of touchline complaints but almost stole victory in the dying minutes of extra-time when substitute Ramadan Sobhi fired across the face of goal but his cross somehow evaded four men in white attacking it.
Cameroon scored first in the shootout before centre-back Harold Moukoudi’s penalty was saved. James Lea Siliki was also denied by Mohamed Abou Gabal in the Egypt goal.
Former Tottenham man Clinton Njie who needed to score to keep the shootout alive, played his wide after a bizarre two-step run-up.
The victory keeps Egypt on course for a record-extending eighth AFCON title, against pre-tournament favourites Senegal.
It will a tough battle between Mohamed Saah and Sadio Mane, who both play for Liverpool in the premier league.
Australian police have revealed two separate incidents of grave sites being disturbed in Australia’s Footscray, an inner-western suburb of Melbourne, were recorded with the suspects yet to be identified.
According to CNN, the police have appealed to the public for information about the theft of human remains from cemeteries, and which they suspect were linked to a “satanic ritual.”
The police said the first theft took place at the Geelong Road cemetery sometime between 7:30p.m. on January 27 and 6:15 a.m. on January 28.
It added that the second incident was said to have taken place between 6:00pm on January 31, and 10:00am on February 1.
Victoria Police said in a statement that officers found the plaque and plasterboard inside a mausoleum had been removed and partial human remains had also been stolen. Related Posts
Police believe that unknown offenders broke into a mausoleum before stealing partial human remains where two human heads were stolen. It is not clear if the two incidents are linked.
However, criminologist Xanthe Mallett said she’d never observed such activity in Australia before.
“It is interesting some of the symbols that have been left around these mausoleums appear to be satanic in nature. I have seen that in the UK, but I have never seen any satanic cult activity in Australia.”
On the first of February this year, Nigerians heard some more dismal news from Rotimi Amaechi, the country’s Minister of Transportation. Blaming China for the delay in some major infrastructural projects, he announced, “We are stuck with lots of our projects because we cannot get money. The Chinese are no longer funding. So, we are now pursuing money in Europe.” From the news report seen, it was not clear if China had suspended disbursements of an already agreed loan, or whether Nigeria was having trouble seeking fresh loans from China to continue with projects. Anyway, getting funding from China is now going to be harder for African countries. In early January 2022, the Financial Times newspaper published an article titled, “China applies brakes to Africa lending” because the risks of defaulting were quite high.
With regards to Nigeria, where does the BLAME truly lie for not being able to get funding from China? Only those who are involved in negotiations for possible loans from China will know what the conditions for giving and getting a loan are, and they would be the ones who would be engaged in writing out loan agreements etc. Negotiations for any Federal loan would involve the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning. Since funding is here being sought for building railways, the Ministry of Transportation would also be involved, so too the Debt Management Office and other relevant agencies. Thereafter, the loan and its conditions would have to be approved by both the Federal Executive Council and the National Assembly. That is on the Nigerian side. The potential lender, China in this case, would also have their own stringent processes and assessments involving their different ministries and agencies. Generally, quite a large number of people would be required in forming a loan agreement, and in scrutinizing it before any funds are released.
From 16th December 2020, Nigeria became a Disputed Project with both national and international implications, including where it concerns any loan-taking by central government. The Notice of the Constitutional Force Majeure proclaimed on that day by the NINAS Movement in Lagos made it very clear, and states, “…BY THIS PROCLAMATION, Let it be known to ALL, including International Money Lenders, that Nigeria is now a Disputed Project and that while the Constituent Components commit to honouring existing International Debt Obligations, WE CAUTION that whatever Obligations that may arise from any Foreign Loans contracted by the Federal Government of Nigeria from the date of this Proclamation may come into controversy. Similarly, all Loans contracted by the Federal Government of Nigeria, containing any Clause that may Cede the Sovereignty of Nigeria or any part thereof in the event of Repayment Default shall be disputed as illicit, and in breach of the Sovereignty of the Federating Units…”
Essentially, being a Disputed Project means that Nigeria under its constitutional arrangement is not creditworthy for lenders. The NINAS Movement were the first to Repudiate the illegitimate 1999 Constitution, a known forgery, but now also many individuals and groups have done so. Late last year, leaders and those who guide the direction that Nigeria takes, in essence Repudiated the 1999 Constitution too in their Communiqué, describing it as “Oligo-military in nature and not representing the collective interest of Nigerians”. They then called on government to begin a process that would end in reworking the Constitution. This took place at a meeting convened by Vision Africa and the Global Peace Foundation on 13 December 2021. Present were political, cultural, and religious leaders from right across the country such as former President Obasanjo, the Sultan of Sokoto, Rev. Pam Yakubu, Sheikh Gumi, Gani Adams, former Governor Obong Victor Attah, Madam Ankio Briggs, and many others.
Given that Nigeria’s constitutional arrangement needs to be Reworked, no lender (or investor) who hopes to get his money back would be keen on lending to Nigeria. Time is passing, insecurity is deepening on all fronts, so the sooner this needed Reworking is done, the better. Those in government, plus senior officials had all sworn an Oath of Office to govern by and uphold the sham, imposed 1999 Constitution in return for huge salaries and lavish living, (plus if they so desire, open access to looting public funds). However, as Nigeria gains pariah status, it is hoped that those personally benefiting from the fraud called the “1999 Constitution” would have a change of heart, consider their end, and show some concern for Nigerians. For, as long as Nigeria remains a Disputed Project, potential lenders will rightly not lend, and sustainable progress will not be possible.
We can fix it. Since Nigeria has no legitimate Constitution to base itself upon, there should be a transitioning process where the Union Dispute is resolved, which, in following due process, is by having a Transitional Government. The NINAS Movement (that Proclaimed the Constitutional Force Majeure) has already put its Propositions on the table, and government at central and state levels are aware of them. Since the 1999 Constitution has been Repudiated, its life cannot be renewed by taking it to the next General Elections. So that means halting preparations for General Elections in 2023 even if temporarily, for transitioning. During the time-bound Transitional Government, elected officials and governance structures would remain as they are, with some adjustments. There would then be self-determination Regional Referendums whose outcomes would form the basis of Reworking new constitutional arrangements.
Nigeria is hanging on a Repudiated and illegitimate 1999 Constitution, so any lender, whether it be China or Europe (or any other country) will have to bear the consequences of lending to a Disputed Project. Due to that imposed 1999 Constitution Nigeria has now finally collapsed. Do not let it crash out!
Ndidi Uwechue is a British citizen with Igbo heritage from the Lower Niger Bloc. She is a retired Metropolitan (London) Police Officer, she is a signatory to the Constitutional Force Majeure, and she writes from Abuja.
The International Space Station (ISS) will continue working until 2030, before plunging into the Pacific Ocean in early 2031, National Space Agency (NASA) has revealed .
In a new report, the US space agency said the ISS will crash into a part of the ocean known as Point Nemo, which is the point furthest from land on planet Earth, also known as the spacecraft cemetery.
According to NASA, many old satellites and other space debris have crashed there, including the Russian space station Mir in 2001.
The ISS which is a joint project involving five space agencies has been in orbit since 1998. More than 3,000 research investigations have taken place in its microgravity laboratory.
But the license to operate ends in 2024 and any extension must be agreed by all partners including Russia who have complained of being hampered by US sanctions on Russia.
Nasa says the plan to retire the ISS marks a transition to the commercial sector for activities in low-Earth orbit – the area of space close to Earth.
“The private sector is technically and financially capable of developing and operating commercial low-Earth orbit destinations, with Nasa’s assistance,” said Phil McAlister, director of commercial space at NASA Headquarters.
Nasa says it hopes to create a “robust, American-led commercial economy in low-Earth orbit”.
According to Nasa, it will save $1.3bn (£956m) by transitioning to the private sector for activities in low-Earth orbit, money which instead can be spent on deep space exploration.
Corpse of a lady identified as Alice Wasike has been recovered after a night of intimacy in her home.
Wasike’s naked body was found lying on the floor of her house in Bamburi masters area of Mombasa, Kenya, with an unconscious man lying on top of her body.
Neiighbours told journalists that the mother of three had brought an unknown man to her house for fun before she was found dead at about 6:00 am.
Police investigations also revealed that Wasike, 30, said to be a sex worker had brought home a man in his early 30s who is believed to have disappeared upon realizing Wasike had passed on during intimacy.
The police report read;
“It’s highly suspected that she was having some good time with a man she had met while out there having fun and brought him back home. It is suspected she died while having sex since there are no visible injuries in her body and the suspect at large upon noticing that she had passed on. The unknown man fled from the scene”
It still remains unclear how the second man was found lying on top of the deceased. Kisauni Sub-county police Commander Juma Fondo said that her demise is being treated as “sudden death” since no physical injuries have been found on her body.
Juma said;
“There are so many theories coming up at this stage. However, the matter has since been handed to the DCI to piece together all those theories and establish what really killed her but at this stage, her death has been recorded as sudden death until completion of investigations.”
Wasike’s corpse has been taken to Coast General Hospital mortuary and is currently awaiting postmortem
Cristiano Ronaldo’s girlfriend Georgina Rodriguez is starring in her own Netflix docuseries, I Am Georgina, and in the show, a vast array of Ronaldo’s £18m supercars at his £5m Madrid home were displayed for his fans to see.
The snippets from the programme show the supercars lined up exquisitely in the garage, with Ronaldo’s £2m Bugatti Chiron at one end of a shot.
In the snippets from the reality show, cameras displayed his £2m Bugatti Chiron, his Ferraris and McLarens.
The Portuguese’s limited-edition Bugatti Centodieci is worth £8.5million – his most expensive super-car . Overall, Ronaldo’s total value of supercars is around a staggering £18million
Ronaldo is believed to be one of only 10 people worldwide who own the supercar.
The Centodieci reportedly has 1600 horsepower, and can reach a top speed of 236mph.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner says his favourite make is his vast array of Bugattis, while he also has two of every single brand of car.
Next to the Chiron are Ronaldo’s £500,000 Ferrari 599 GTO, a McLaren Senna worth £750,000, and then two Rolls-Royce motors: the Cullinan worth £300,000 and the Phantom Drophead coupe which costs around £500,000.
The second shot in the series shows five more supercars, most notably a Mercedes G-Wagon Brabus worth £600,000, which was a present to Ronaldo from Rodriguez.
Also recorded are a £1.5m Bugatti Veyron, a Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG worth £200,000, a bright orange McLaren MP4-12C (£200,000) and a Lamborghini Aventador (£270,000).
The Netflix show, centred around Ronaldo’s long-term girlfriend Rodriguez, 28, comically sees the model moan that their Wi-Fi never works in their house, despite the pair having four routers.
There are other cars that didn’t make the Netflix cut too, such as a silver Ferrari, a Mercedes AMG GLE 63, and a black Mercedes.
A doctor in Benue state has been accused of removing the ovaries of an 18-year-old girl, Dooyum Lanna, during an operation to remove her appendix.
SaharaReporters reports that Dooyum who first had her menstruation at the age of 14, started experiencing abdominal pain each time her period came by the time she was 16 in May 2019.
Worried about the situation, her father, 72-year-old Kparevfa Lanna, took her to an acclaimed medical doctor named Agber Kwende in the Gaav Konshisha Local Government Area of Benue State, for immediate treatment.
Sadly, the events that soon followed compounded their misery as the doctor allegedly removed the girl’s ovaries and damaged other vital organs in her reproductive system, leaving her with a bigger crisis to deal with after that period.
More than two years after that terrible experience, Dooyum , who is a Senior Secondary School 1 pupil of Rose Asase College, Gboko East, Benue State, has been experiencing the absence of menstruation and constantly falling ill. Recent diagnosis and scans revealed that her fallopian tube was already shrinking, an indication that she may never be able to conceive.
“I feel sick all the time. Apart from headache, I still experience abdominal pain.
My education has been affected also. I feel sad all the time. I cannot have kids in the future, so what is my essence in life. I feel like ending it,” she said
Narrating how the situation has affected the entire family, her father, a farmer, said that he had spent over N100,000 trying to get a solution for his daughter’s health condition without luck. According to him, efforts to get justice for his child and have the quack doctor punished for his negligence have been frustrated by the police, who granted him bail and have been siding with him, allegedly.
“All the time we have gone back to the quack doctor to complain of the damage he had done, he chased us away. We have been to more than four hospitals looking for solution and they keep telling us that her ovaries had been removed. After we reported the matter to the police, the doctor was briefly arrested but released the following day.
Since that period, the police have not been clear on the way forward. We want justice for our daughter. Her future has been affected, she must be compensated for what the man did to her” he said
When contacted, the doctor, Kwende, refused to comment on the issue.
Though a formal complaint was lodged at the Gboko Central Police Station, the state command had yet to initiate an investigation into the issue.
The leader of the Islamic State (IS) group has been killed in an overnight US special forces raid in north-west Syria, President Joe Biden has announced..
Qurayshi detonated a bomb that killed himself and members of his own family “in a final act of desperate cowardice”, the president said.
The operation by US special forces targeted a two-storey residential building on the outskirts of the opposition-held town of Atmeh, which is in northern Idlib province and is close to the border with Turkey. Biden ordered the use of special forces, a much riskier alternative rather than a drone strike, as he wanted to limit casualties.
Biden said the death of Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi had “removed a major terrorist threat to the world”.
Syrian first responders said they found the bodies of 13 people after the raid including children.
The region is a stronghold of jihadist groups that are fierce rivals of IS, as well as Turkish-backed rebel factions fighting the Syrian government.
The US government said President Biden was first briefed by US military commanders more than a month ago on the operation to capture or kill Qurayshi, also known as Hajji Abdullah.
Intelligence reports by the CIA had revealed that Qurayshi was living with his family on the second floor of the residential building in Atmeh and that he never went outside no matter what, instead using couriers to despatch his orders to IS cells in Syria and elsewhere.
Another family not believed to be connected to IS or aware of Qurayshi’s presence lived on the ground floor.
As special forces started the raid on Thursday, February 3, Biden was monitoring from the White House situation room as multiple helicopters arrived in Atmeh.
Local sources said the US special forces faced stiff resistance on the ground, and that they came under fire from anti-aircraft guns mounted on vehicles as they approached. Gunfire and shelling were heard for two hours before the helicopters left.
US government officials said the family living on the ground floor – a woman, a man and a number of children were evacuated to safety at the start of the raid.
However as the raid started, Qurayshi then “exploded a bomb that killed him and members of his own family, including women and children”, according to Reuters news agency.
“While we are still assessing the results of this operation, this appears to be the same cowardly terrorist tactic we saw in the 2019 operation that eliminated al-Baghdadi,” they added.
Recall that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Qurayshi’s predecessor, killed himself and three children by detonating an explosive vest during a US special forces raid.
The US officials said a protege of Qurayshi barricaded himself and members of his own family on the first floor as the attack started. The militant and his wife then battled the US troops until they were both killed, they added. Afterwards, a number of children came out of the building and were safely removed.
Also the Pentagon said at least two individuals who opened fire at one of the helicopters from elsewhere during the raid were also killed.
Biden during a press conference on Thursday afternoon said all Americans involved in the operation returned safely.
According to thr AFP news agency, the residential building had blood-splattered walls, charred ceilings and a partly collapsed roof.
The White Helmets, also known as the Syria Civil Defence, said in a statement that its first responders reached the building at 03:15 and recovered the bodies of 13 people, including six children and four women.
They also found an injured girl whose other family members were killed in the raid, the organisation said. She was taken to hospital along with a man who was injured when he approached the building during the clashes to see what was happening, it added.
IS named Abu Ibrahim al-Qurayshi as the group’s new leader and “caliph” at the end of October 2019, four days after the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. It did not provide his real name or a photograph.
The US later identified him as a veteran Iraqi jihadist – who was born in Mosul in 1976 and known by the noms de guerre Hajji Abdullah, Amir Mohammed Said Abdul Rahman al-Mawla and Abdullah Qardash – and offered a $10m ($7.3m) reward for information.
President Muhammadu Buhari has called for increased access to modern contraceptive methods across the country to address the nation’s rising population.
The President made the call at the launch of the revised National Policy on Population for Sustainable Development at the State House in Abuja on Thursday February 3.
Buhari explained that the overall goal of the policy is to improve the quality of life and standards of living of all Nigerians. He also inaugurated the national council on population management, which will be chaired by him.
The President said;
“The policy emphasizes the urgency to address Nigeria’s sustained high fertility rate, through expanding access to modern family planning, counselling and commodities as well as promote births spacing.
“This will enable Nigeria to achieve rapid fertility control, improve the health of women, adolescents, newborn and children, and other population groups.”
The President in a statement issued by his spokesman, Femi Adesina, also said that Nigeria’s population which is the largest in Africa, seventh globally and among the few whose fertility is still growing, is hinged on a youthful population.
According to him, more than 72 percent of the youths are below 30 years while half of the female population are in their reproductive years (15-49 years).
Buhari also explained that other highlights of the revised population policy underscore the importance of investing in quality education of young people (particularly girls), human capital development, advancing holistic effort to achieve significant demographic transition.
He said;
“The Revised Population Policy is rich with all necessary information that will guide the implementation of Nigeria’s Mid-term and Perspective Development Plan.
“It will further address concerns of the large population of young people who are our pride, our future and assets to drive our development efforts.”
African billionaire, Aliko Dangote’s jointly owned automobile company, Dangote Peugeot Automobiles Nigeria Limited (DPAN) has commenced assembling operations in Nigeria.
According to officials from the facility, between 2022 and 2023, DPAN will deploy the Land Trek, 3008, 5008 and the new 508 into the system with the help of their newly built Green field plant.
Dangote Group which earlier expressed interest in the Peugeot plant finally receives approval from the regulator. The company which has an assembly capacity of 120 vehicles per day has so far recruited Nigerian youth to undertake several duties geared towards the success of their operation.
The company said, “With the New Green Field Ultima Assembly Plant, a lot is being done by DPAN to ensure visibility of the Peugeot brand and availability of spare parts to the network and the generality of Nigerians. DPAN will be encouraged by our technical partner to reposition the brand in the short, medium, and long term as we ensure customer satisfaction and sustainability.
“This dream has started with the re-launch of the Peugeot brand in Nigeria as well as the local assembly of the 301 at our new Kaduna plant and thereafter the introduction of the Landtrek, 3008, 5008 and the new 508…Nothing is being spared to enable market recapture, hence all hands are on deck to ensure not just survival but also continued growth in a market with potential for cars in excess of 100,000 units per year and growing.”
Dangote Peugeot Automobiles Nigeria Limited (DPAN), according to Wakanda is jointly owned by African billionaire Alhaji Aliko Dangote, the Kaduna and Kebbi State Governments and also a technical partner called Stellantis Group.
Obinna Iyiegbu, also known as Obi Cubana and the Chairman of Cubana Group has started the construction of roads in his community in Anambra State.
One of the road, Afor Oba Old Road, is said to be under construction already, with many indigenes of the community praising his magnanimity.
The club magnet who shared the ongoing road construction on his official Facebook page received a lot of comments, with many hailing Cubana for his kind gesture, while others simply praised him with his many traditional titles.
What manner of wealthy man is this? Only an Igbo man can do this. Daalu okpataozuoroha. Okpole Yankee. Ife dika gi akokwana Anambra State; these were some of the praises showered on the businessman.The road being reconstructed is said to be a vital road, leading to a popular market in the Oba community of Anambra State, where Obi Cubana hails from.
South Africa’s tax authority has exposed a $1.8billion gold scam, in which coins and jewelry were illegally smelted into gold bars for sale overseas, a watchdog said on Thursday.
Between 2012 and 2020, the scammers bilked the government for 24.4 billion rand (1.8 billion dollars, 1.4 billion euros) by defrauding the tax system, the amaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism said.
In the scam, companies illegally smelted gold coins, old jewelry, and nuggets from small-scale miners into gold bars for export, amaBhungane said.
Sale of gold within South Africa carries a tax, but gold exports do not.
So the companies created fake invoices to claim that they had paid tax, the report said. When the gold was exported at zero tax, they submitted the invoices to the South African Revenue Service (SARS) to claim billions of rand in fraudulent refunds, the investigators said.
A total of 65 companies are implicated, but two of them claimed tax refunds of more than eight billion rand in 2019 alone.
“In that year, the scheme allegedly involved amounts of gold equal to an astonishing 70 percent of all gold legally mined in South Africa in 2019 – again only counting the activities of these two players,” the report said.
The revenue authority has not publicly discussed the cases, but investigators pieced together the story from court records and other documents.
SARS was once one of the country’s best-performing agencies. An anti-corruption panel last month revealed how SARS was gutted during Jacob Zuma’s 2009-2018 presidency.
U.S. Army soldiers who refuse to be vaccinated for COVID-19 will soon be discharged, the military branch announced Wednesday February 2.
The Army said it will “immediately begin separating Soldiers from the service” who refuse to be vaccinated or who don’t have an approved or pending request for exemption.
“Army readiness depends on Soldiers who are prepared to train, deploy, fight and win our nation’s wars,” said Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth. “Unvaccinated Soldiers present risk to the force and jeopardize readiness.”
Soldiers who are discharged for refusing to be vaccinated “will not be eligible for involuntary separation pay” and may have to return any unearned special or incentive pay, the Army said.
As of Jan. 26, it said, 96% of active troops have been completely vaccinated, while 3,350 soldiers have refused to get the vaccine. Nearly 5,900 have received temporary exemptions.
Those who have asked for a medical exemption or religious accommodations are temporarily exempt from the vaccination requirement while their requests are being reviewed.
“To date, Army commanders have relieved a total of six Regular Army leaders, including two battalion commanders, and issued 3,073 general officer written reprimands to Soldiers for refusing the vaccination order,” the Army said late last month.
The Pentagon began requiring members of the military to get vaccinated last summer.
The United States president, Joe Biden has ordered 3,000 troops to Poland and Romania to boost the Eastern European NATO allies in the face of what Washington describes as a Russian threat to invade Ukraine, U.S. officials said on Wednesday, February 2.
This comes as Russia has massed more than 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s borders. Moscow denies any plan to invade its neighbour but says it could take unspecified military measures if its demands are not met.
Russian demands include a legally binding promise by NATO never to admit Ukraine, demands the US has rejected.
A Stryker squadron of around 1,000 U.S. service members based in Vilseck, Germany would be sent to Romania, the Pentagon said, while around 1,700 service members, mainly from the 82nd Airborne Division, would deploy from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to Poland. Three hundred other service members will move from Fort Bragg to Germany.
The objective, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said, was to send a “strong signal” to President Vladimir Putin “and frankly, to the world, that NATO matters to the United States and it matters to our allies”.
“We know that he also bristles at NATO, about NATO. He’s made no secret of that. We are making it clear that we’re going to be prepared to defend our NATO allies if it comes to that. Hopefully it won’t come to that.”
Poland’s Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said the U.S. deployment was a strong sign of solidarity.
Also, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the news, saying the alliance’s response to Russia was defensive and proportional. read more
Efforts to reach a diplomatic solution between NATO, Russia and Ukraine have failed, with Western countries describing Russia’s main demands as non-starters and Moscow showing no sign of withdrawing them.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he would discuss the crisis with U.S. President Joe Biden in the coming hours and did not rule out travelling to Russia to meet with Putin. Macron said the priority was to avoid tensions rising.
The Kremlin said Putin told Johnson that NATO was not responding adequately to its security concerns. Johnson’s office said he had told Putin an incursion would be a “tragic miscalculation” and they had agreed to apply a “spirit of dialogue”.
The Kremlin’s statement comes after Johnson had accused Russia of holding a gun to Ukraine’s head.
It also comes after Putin said Washington was trying to lure Moscow into war by insisting on the possibility that Ukraine could join NATO.
“It’s already clear now … that fundamental Russian concerns were ignored,” Putin said on Tuesday. Describing a scenario in which Ukraine joins NATO and then attacks Russian forces, he asked: “Are we supposed to go to war with the NATO bloc? Has anyone given that any thought? Apparently not.”
An anti-vax priest in Italy who said Covid jabs contained the cells of aborted embryos has died from coronavirus.
Rev. Don Paolo Romeo, 51, was a parish priest at Santo Stefano Abbey in Genoa, northern Italy.
He died of complications from the virus after a month in hospital.
Before his death, he endorsed claims that some Covid vaccines were made from cells taken from aborted embryos.
The Santo Stefano Abbey wrote a tribute to him on Facebook which read: ‘Today our beloved Don Paolo has risen to Heaven surrounded by the affection of his relative and the prayer of all his faithful.
‘May the Lord reward him for all the good he has done here on this earth and may he forgive his shortcomings even if there were any.
‘Let us remember Don Paolo with these words of Saint Paolo the apostle, whom he loved: ”I fought the good battle, I finished my race, I kept my faith.
”Now I only have the crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous judge, will deliver me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all those who eagerly wait for his manifestation”.’
The news of Don Paolo’s death came on the same day an elderly anti-vax couple died from the virus within half an hour of each other at a hospital in Villafranca near Verona.
Irma Gilioli, 86, and Annibale Meneghelli, 93, died from complications with the virus 16 days after being hospitalised.
Just last Monday another anti-vaxxer in Italy died of Covid after he tore off his oxygen mask and insisted he did not have the disease. The man, named Luigi Cossellu by local media, reportedly denied the existence of Covid-19 and had refused to get the vaccine.
An Australian billionaire has launched a criminal case against Facebook, alleging the company failed to prevent scam ads that used his image.
Andrew Forrest argues Facebook breached Australian anti-money laundering laws over the spread of cryptocurrency cons, BBC News reports.
Dr Forrest, who is chairman of miner Fortescue Metals, accused Facebook of not doing more to stop the ads, which first appeared in early 2019.
The scams use his image – and those of other celebrities – to promote bogus investments that promise riches.
Although Facebook bans such ads, many still appear on the platform.
Facebook’s owner, Meta, did not comment on Dr Forrest’s case but said it was “committed to keeping those people [scammers] off our platform”.
Dr Forrest said he had also written an open letter to Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg in November 2019, urging him to take more action.
“I’m concerned about innocent Australians being scammed through clickbait advertising on social media,” Dr Forrest said in a statement on Thursday, Feb. 3.
“I’m acting here for Australians, but this is happening all over the world.”
The case will be heard in the Magistrates Court of Western Australia from 28 March. If it is successful, Facebook could face fines or be forced to change its advertising.
Dr Forrest has also filed a civil lawsuit in the US state of California, where Facebook is headquartered.
In that lawsuit he alleges that Facebook “knowingly profits from this cycle of illegal ads”, The Australian newspaper reported.
One victim in Australia had lost $670,000 because of a fake endorsement featuring Dr Forrest, the newspaper said, citing court documents.
In a statement to the media, the social media company said that scam ads violated its policies.
“We take a multifaceted approach to stop these ads, we work not just to detect and reject the ads themselves but also block advertisers from our services and, in some cases, take court action to enforce our policies,” a Meta representative said.
The United Nations has stated that terrorist group, Boko Haram has recruited about 8000 children to help in it’s war against the Nigerian state.
According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) the child recruitment started since the start of the Boko Haram crisis in the North-east in 2009.
While calling for a step-up of effort to protect child victims and witnesses in terrorism-related court proceedings in Nigeria, the UN agency said that some boys and girls were used as human shields and to detonate bombs.
A statement by the agency on Wednesday, February 2, said:
“According to United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s (UNODC) report from the Handbook of Children Recruited and exploited by Terrorist and Violent Extremist Groups since 2009, about 8,000 children have been recruited and used by Boko Haram in Nigeria. Some boys have been forced to attack their own families to demonstrate loyalty to Boko Haram, while girls have been forced to marry, clean, cook and carry equipment and weapons.”
The statement added that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) received consistent reports that some boys and girls were increasingly being used as human shields and to detonate bombs not just in Nigeria but in Cameroon and Niger Republic.
The agency also cited May 2015 as an example of a 12-year-old girl who was used to detonate a bomb at a bus station in Damaturu, Yobe State, killing seven people.
The statement further said that the recently released propaganda video by ISWAP, showing children being taught military skills to train them for fighting and the latest attack on the Chibok community in Borno State by ISWAP are a reminder of the importance to step up the efforts aimed to protect children from terrorist groups.
UNODC added that:
“Thousands of children have since then been recruited, exploited as servants, cooks, spies, in hostilities, and even used to carry out suicide attacks. When these children exit the groups, they have experienced prolonged violence, their bonds to the communities have been severed, and their personal development has been warped. As thousands of people, including children, are currently leaving the ranks of the groups to rejoin society, the urgency of appropriate responses increases.”
96 financiers of terrorism, including 424 associates/supporters of the financiers have been uncovered by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed made the announcement on Thursday February 3, during a briefing on the anti-corruption fight of the President Muhammadu Buhari.
Lai Mohammed also revealed that the fraud unit unmasked 123 companies and 33 bureaux de change linked with terrorism in the country.
The minister said;
“For its part, the analysis by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, in 2020-2021, revealed 96 financiers of terrorism in Nigeria, 424 associates/supporters of the financiers, involvement of about 123 companies and 33 bureaux de change, in addition to identifying 26 suspected bandits/kidnappers and 7 co-conspirators. The analysis has resulted in the arrest of 45 suspects who will soon face prosecution and seizure of assets.
“Also, from its analysis of tax evasion and tax avoidance linked to corruption, NFIU has identified N3,909,707,678,112.43 in VAT and N3,737,918,335,785.82 in Withholding Tax due to the Government. NFIU has also sent 1,165 intelligence reports on cases of corruption, money laundering and other serious offences to 27 domestic agencies for investigation, prosecution and asset recovery.
“On terrorism financing, NFIU had intelligence exchanges on Boko Haram, ISWAP, banditry, kidnapping and others with 19 countries. During the same period, 2020-2021, the organization returned fraudulently-obtained funds totalling US$103,722,102.83, 3,000 Pound Sterling; 7,695 Singapore Dollar and 1,091 Euros to 11 countries of victims who came into the country.”
At least 20 people have died in Argentina after consuming cocaine suspected of containing a poisonous substance.
Cases have been clustered around several towns in Buenos Aires province, officials and local media said on Wednesday February 2.
Another 56 people have been hospitalised, a government source said, adding that more are seeking hospital care in eight of the province’s municipalities due to the toxic cocaine.
The source said the death toll, currently from the towns of Hurlingham, San Martin, and Tres de Febrero, will likely rise further.
Buenos Aires province, the country’s most populous, is home to many suburbs of the national capital of the same name.
Officials believe some of the victims suffered from opioid intoxication, according to a statement from the province’s health ministry released on Wednesday.
The number of those hospitalised with serious illness is “constantly rising,” it added.
Provincial security forces detained some people suspected of selling the drug after the first deaths occurred on Wednesday.
Some local media outlets reported that the cocaine had been “cut” with a toxic substance, likely by a drug gang looking to reduce costs amid a turf war with rival groups.
“We are waiting for the laboratory results and the results of the investigations into the people who have been detained,” Sergio Berni, the province’s security minister, told local television.
The local government of Tres de Febrero said in a statement it was aware of people falling seriously ill due to “allegedly adulterated cocaine” and was working with emergency services and hospitals to prevent more deaths.
A man arrested for stealing two bibles from a city supermarket has presented a shocking defence after pleading guilty to the charges against him.
Upon being arraigned before Milimani Chief Magistrate Susan Shitubi, the suspect identified as Augustine Wanyonyi claimed that he wanted to know more about God and His word after he developed suicidal thoughts, hence the decision to steal the holy books.
Speaking after State Counsel Alice Mathangani read a police report in court that revealed that Wanyonyi went to Naivas Supermarket located along Moi Avenue in Nairobi around 3:00 pm on Monday, January 30, and stole two bibles which he hid inside his pants, the suspect said he had a strong belief that the word of God would break his bondage.
He was captured on CCTV cameras installed in the premises and got arrested when he failed to pay for the items.
The 30-year-old man, according to court records, claimed that he developed suicidal thoughts after his house in Mukuru Kwa Njenga slum was demolished. When asked to explain why he decided to steal the two holy books which cost Ksh2,100, the suspect said he wanted to gift his wife one and use the other one.
Wanyonyi said;
“I stole the Bible so that I could read, understand and preach the word of God instead of committing suicide due to problems I’m facing.”
The prosecutor also told the court that the accused had a previous record of shoplifting and had been charged in December 2021.
The revelation by Mathangani saw the Magistrate order a pre-sentencing report to be filed in court within seven days.
Wanyonyi is scheduled to appear in court for sentencing on February 16.
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons has said that about 60 per cent of female hawkers in Italy are Nigerians.
The disclosure was made on Wednesday February 2, by NAPTIP Director, Training and Manpower Development, Mr Orakwue Arinze, during a two-day training tagged, ‘Vulnerable Women and Victims of Domestic Violence’, which was organised by the agency in conjunction with Joshuel Global Ventures Limited and held in Sabon Gari, Zaria.
Describing the situation as not only pathetic but “highly unacceptable”, the agency noted that the federal government has already done its best by enacting a law in 2015 on violence against persons and criminalising the act.
He said;
“Unless all hands are put on deck to guide parents and the larger society on the dangers of human trafficking and violence against women, the lives of our younger female children will continue to be in danger.”
Arinze also urged state governments and individuals to partner with the agency to rid the society of the menace.
The embattled leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has called on the members of separatist movement to avail themselves in the ongoing peacemaking process.
This was revealed to Journalists in Owerri, on Monday by his lead counsel, Ifeanyi Ejiofor after they had visited Kanu last Thursday at the Department of State Security, DSS, detention facility in Abuja.
He said the peace process, was important because enemies were trying to cause disharmony regarding the struggle for the actualization of Biafra.
Ejiofor said: “Onyendu Mazi Nnamdi Kanu deeply appeals to UmuChineke to avail themselves of the peace initiative presently ongoing and not to be distracted anymore. He further implored all UMUCHINEKE to keep their eyes on the ball because enemies are struggling in vain to entrench disharmony.
“Onyendu reiterates that the ongoing interventions towards peaceful coexistence must be respected, encouraged and abided by.
His call for unity among the entire UmuChineke at all levels, who believe in his peaceful message cannot be overemphasised
“Further, Onyendu extends his warm regards to millions of his fans and followers who have equally remained consistently resolute and focused. He is convinced that the present situation will only last a while and he will emerge victoriously.
“He also used the opportunity to offer special prayers for me in commemoration of my birthday, as he believed most strongly that the future is crystal bright and holds many good tidings. Consistent with our usual request, we crave your unrelentless prayers and supplications to the Almighty Chukwuokike Abiama. It will surely end in Praises”.
A man has been jailed after stealing £312,000 from his sister after being given control of her finances when she developed dementia .
John Longley took all the money of Paula Slights and left her with just £17.50 after a stealing process which took over a four-year period.
He also put his sister at risk of being evicted from her care home as she had no money to pay the fees.
Thankfully, the care home authorities allowed her to stay there until her death in 2018, despite being left with an unpaid bill of £94,770.
According to police, Longley took charge of his sister’s financial affairs with lasting power of attorney in 2012, and stole a total of £312,797.
Slights moved into her care home in Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria, in 2014 but two years later, payments to the facility became ‘erratic’, the court heard.
Mark Stephenson, prosecuting, said that over the following two years a series of cheques bounced.
An investigation showed how Longley had started to make withdrawals of cash from his sister’s account in March 2013.
The court heard the money had ‘clearly not’ been spent on Paula.
With funds from the sale of her house, the court heard that £394,859 had been paid into her account over the years – but her account had just £17.50 in it.
The court heard £153,160 was legitimately paid to the care home.
Because of the lack of funds, the local authority also contributed to her care, paying out £18,428, Mr Stephenson said.
Longley, 80, of Grayrigg, Cumbria, admitted fraud but could not explain where most of the money had gone.
In a victim impact statement, their brother Michael said of his sister:
‘It would have been her wish that the money she made through her hard work and careful living was passed on to her grandchildren to help them on with their lives, which we all know will never happen now.
‘It deeply saddens me that John has done what he has done.
‘I feel a crime of this magnitude and the vulnerable nature of the victim should be treated with the seriousness it deserves.’
Claire Larton, Longley’s lawyer said he had given his son £100,000 to invest in a business which had failed.
She added that he lost his job as a hospital driver in 2012 and he would be ‘incredibly vulnerable’ in a prison setting.
Longley has now been jailed for three years and two months for the single count of fraud.
Sustained airstrikes on terrorists’ enclaves in the Northwest by a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) aircraft, have killed high-profile terrorists’ leaders and their foot soldiers in Katsina State.
According to PRNigeria, the airstrikes executed by the NAF aircraft at Ilela community in Katsina State on Sunday, led to the elimination of several terrorists belonging to the camps of Gwaska Dankarami and Alhaji Abdulkarami, two notorious terrorists’ leaders.
The eliminated terrorists were behind series of attacks around Safana and Dan Musa Local Government Areas of Katsina State.
The strikes were executed after NAF platforms obliterated a rocky cave on the outskirts of Ilela Village, where the terrorists usually retire to and use as safe haven after carrying out attacks on innocent citizens.
An intelligence source confirmed the success of the airstrike that killed scores of terrorists.
“Upon receiving reports of incessant terrorists’ attacks on villages around Safana LGA, especially in Ilela Village where about 12 persons were recently killed and others chased out of the village, the air component of Operation Hadarin Daji deployed Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft to unravel the modus operandi of the terrorists.
“Footages by the ISR platform revealed significant terrorists’ activities in some rocky hills about 1.5 Km Southwest of Ilela and South of Rubu Villages. Further scrutiny of the footage revealed armed terrorists on 19 motorcycles riding along multiple tracks leading into a cave within the rocky hills.
“It was thus evident that footages corroborated earlier Intel from other sources around the location of the rocky cave.
“Accordingly, the Air Component of OPHD dispatched a fighter jet and helicopter gunship in an air interdiction mission to exterminate and infuse maximum casualty on the bandits as well as destroy their enclaves,” he said.
A domestic intelligence operative working with locals told PRNigeria that scores of terrorists were killed during the airstrikes.
“The aircraft engaged fleeing terrorists on motorcycles with bombs in rocky enclaves. At least 43 dead bodies of terrorists were counted within the vicinity including that of Alhaji Shingy, a brother of killed bandit leader Auta
“Several fighters inspired by terrorists’ leaders Dankarami and Abdulkarimu suffered maximum casualties with their logistics and motorcycles demolished during the airstrikes.
When contacted, the NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet told PRNigeria that strikes against terrorist elements will continue for as long as they continue to pose threats to peace-loving Nigerians
“With the level of coordination and cooperation among the services and other security agencies, Nigerians should not be surprised with the high level of successes being recorded through precision strikes aimed at eliminating key terrorists and their foot soldiers.
“We assure Nigerians of the commitment of the air and land components as well as other security agencies towards restoring normalcy in the Northwest and Northeast Regions,” Gabkwet concluded
It’s time now for the “final four” of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), Cameroon 2021.
After the quarterfinals exciting games, Cameroon Indomitable Lions, Burkina Faso Stallions, Egypt Pharaohs and Senegal Teranga Lions completed the “Golden Quartet” of the 33rd TotalEnergies AFCON edition.
The semifinal matches are as follows:
Match 49 – Wednesday 2 February 2022 – 20:00 local time (19:00 GMT) – Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaounde
Burkina Faso v Senegal
Match 50 – Thursday 3 February 2022 – 20:00 local time (19:00 GMT) – Olembe Stadium, Yaounde
Prosecutors have dropped charges against a Missouri high school teacher after she married the student she was accused of having sex with.
In February 2019, former Sarcoxie High School teacher Baylee A. Turner, 26, was charged with having sexual relations with one of her male students following an investigation by the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department in Missouri, US .
Turner, who was 23 years old when the case was brought up, was a first-year English teacher at the high school when she was accused of having sexual intercourse with a student in January 2019.
The relationship led to her resignation from the school.
According to court documents, both Turner and the student acknowledged that they had sex at Turner’s home .
Turner taught English at the Sarcoxie middle school for two years before being assigned to teach high school new students and seniors in 2019.
Assistant prosecutor Nate Dally has now revealed the charge against her was being dismissed after she married the student, whose identity has not been revealed.
Dally said that because the former student now has marital or spousal privilege, he can no longer be compelled to testify against his wife, weakening the state’s case in court.
Missouri state law prohibits sexual contact between teachers and students, regardless of age. Turner was facing up to four years in prison if convicted.
Dally also revealed that Turner has surrendered her state teaching license, which was one of the main goals of the prosecutors.
The Globe reported that Turner was one of six young educators in the state that have been accused of having sex with students in recent years.
Two gay men in Iran have been executed after spending six years on death row.
Mehrdad Karimpour and Farid Mohammadi were hanged in a prison in the northwestern city of Maragheh, some 310 miles away from the capital, Tehran, where they had been convicted on charges of sodomy.
They were sentenced to death for ‘forced sexual intercourse between two men’ in Iran , where homosexuality is illegal
The men’s identities were confirmed in a report by the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) on Sunday. It added state-run outlets in Iran had yet to announce the deaths.
Sheina Vojoudi, who fled Iran and escaped to Germany, told The Jerusalem Post that the country’s prisons are ‘full of people who have committed no crime’.
LGBTQ+ rights campaigner Peter Tatchell also told the publication the execution follows ‘a long-standing regime policy of the state-sanctioned murder of gay men, often on disputed charges after unfair trials that have been condemned by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch’.
He added: ‘The international community must impose Magnitsky sanctions on the regime officials, judges and prison staff who authorized these executions – and on those responsible for the many other human rights cases of abuse in Iran’.
Iranian American journalist Karmel Melamed in a tweet called for ‘outrage’ from the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
He said: ‘The Ayatollah regime in Iran just executed two gay men for the crime of sodomy in Iran. This is Mehrdad Karimpour and Farid Mohammadi who were executed by hanging. Where’s the outrage from @StateDept @SecBlinken @glaad & other LGBT groups in U.S. to this horrific crime?!’
Last May Alireza Fazeli Monfared, 20, who identified as gay and non-binary, was abducted by several male relatives and murdered in Ahvaz, Khuzestan province in Iran.
Speaking about the killing, Amnesty wrote: ‘LGBTI people in Iran face pervasive discrimination, live in the constant fear of harassment, arrest and criminal prosecution, and remain vulnerable to violence and persecution based on their real or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity.
HRANA added that in July 2021, two other men were executed on the same charges as Mr Karimpour and Mr Mohammadi in Maragheh and that last year, Iran executed 299 people, including four convicted of crimes committed as children.
Novak Djokovic’s biographer has claimed that the Serbian will finally take his Covid-19 vaccination after watching Rafael Nadal win a record 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open.
Djokovic was deported from Australia earlier this year before the tournament after he had arrived in the country with a medical exemption to compete unvaccinated. He was in enforced hotel quarantine when Australia’s border force cancelled his visa and he went to court trying to overturn their decision which failed.
But it now appears that Nadal’s victory, combined with other tournaments enforcing stricter rules regarding vaccination, could have changed his mind.
His biographer Daniel Muksch appeared on Austrian TV channel ServusTV and said: ‘What you hear from his environment, I think he’s getting vaccinated.
‘Maybe the final in Melbourne also contributed to that. Rafael Nadal’s 21 is driving him, no question.’
Muksch’s book on Djokovic, called ‘A Lifetime At War’, comes out in March.
Nadal defeated World No 2 Daniil Medvedev in a thrilling final on Sunday, fighting back from two sets down to win the final and overtake both Djokovic and Roger Federer on 21 titles. The other two are level on 20.
Djokovic took to social media to congratulate Nadal, saying: ‘Congratulations to @RafaelNadal for 21st GS.
‘Amazing achievement. Always impressive fighting spirit that prevailed another time.
‘@Medwed33 (Medvedev’s social media handle) gave it his all out there and played with the passion and determination we have come to expect from him.’
30 people have died in a busy market after a high-voltage electricity tower collapsed.
See video:
La RDC en deuil : Ce matin au marché Matadi Kibala dans la commune de Mont Ngafula; Un câble électrique a lâché et a causé la perte de vie de plus ou moins 25 personnes.
PSG superstar, Neymar has won the prestigious Samba Gold award for a record fifth time.
Neymar, 29, received the esteemed prize, which is awarded to the best Brazilian footballer playing outside of the country, for the second consecutive year after registering 17 goals and 18 assists for PSG in 2021.
The prize is given to the best Brazilian footballer playing outside the country.
Since moving to Europe in 2013, Neymar has picked up the Samba Gold award five times over the last nine years.
Before Neymar, Chelsea’s Thiago Silva dominated the Samba Gold award from 2011-13, receiving the gong while plying his trade with AC Milan and PSG.
Neymar was handed the prize in both 2014 and 2015, before earning it again in 2017 after then-Liverpool ace Phillipe Coutinho was named winner in 2016.
Another two Liverpool stars, Roberto Firmino and Alisson, were then awarded the honour in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
US House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi’s son has reportedly been involved in a fraud and bribery scheme that was investigated by the FBI, according to documents obtained by the Daily Mail.
The documents indicate Paul Pelosi, 53, was the homeowner of the flophouse at the center of the fraud and bribery investigation.
Paul Pelosi Jr. signed statements that he was the property owner and ‘the party legally and financially responsible for this proposed construction activity’ at the property known as ‘The Pit’.
Documents show he was applying for one of the same permits that building inspector Bernie Curran and ‘permits expeditor’ Rodrigo Santos have been indicted for in a high-profile public corruption criminal case .Curran and Santos are due in federal court in San Francisco this week according to the FBI.
The Department of Building Inspection form signed by Pelosi Jr from 2017 provides some evidence of his close connection in the case.
The FBI says that Santos arranged for his clients to donate thousands of dollars to Curran’s favorite non-profit in exchange for him ignoring violations that would prevent their buildings from getting city permits.
One client, identified only as Client 9 in court documents, wrote a $1,500 check to the nonprofit to help remove violations from a hotel that was owned by Pelosi Jr’s former girlfriend, Karena Apple Feng.
New documents as well as text messages have created speculation that Client 9 may be Pelosi Jr.
The text messages between the two show Client 9 discussing the donation to Curran’s favorite charity to ease the permit process.
‘I will forward the address to Curran. He will abate it,’ Santos allegedly wrote in September 2017.
‘Please drop off a check payable to Golden Gate Youth [Rugby] Association for $1k. Bernie’s nonprofit.’
‘With pleasure,’ Client 9 replied, and later sent Santos a picture of a $1,500 check with the message, ‘Made the donation and it is being sent today’.
The check was never deposited by the club, and prosecutors have not made any accusations of wrongdoing relating to it.
The charging documents describe Client 9 as ‘an individual working on behalf of the owners of the property located on the 1300 block of Utah Street’.
There is one permit in the DBI system at that address, signed off by Curran on December 7, 2017. The application number on that document matches the number Pelosi Jr wrote on documents dated the same day that were obtained by the Daily Mail.
Pelosi Jr was hired by five firms that were subject to both federal and state probes due to ‘connections to a host of fraudsters, rule-breakers and convicted criminals’.
As at press time, Pelosi has not yet been charged but this ongoing criminal case would be the sixth.
His mother, Nancy is the highest-ranking elected woman in the US while his father is a successful American businessman.
28-year-old Yasmeena Ali, a top porn star from Afghanistan has opened up about the risks she’s taken to pursue sex work after leaving behind her religion and family.
The former muslim said in an interview with The Post that she feels empowered by her kinky occupation, despite her own father purportedly trying to have her killed over it.
Ali said;
“I was surprised when I first started working in this industry with how well women are paid compared to their male co-stars.
“A lot of times women in other industries with higher qualifications and experiences do not get the same paycheck or respect as their male colleagues.”
Ali now clocks over 9 million video views on Pornhub. But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for the former Muslim, who now resides in Eastern Europe. From speaking out about the Taliban to cutting off ties with her family, the brunette beauty revealed the brave meaning behind her X-rated scenes.
Ali was born in Kabul in 1993. After years spent living under oppressive Taliban rule, she immigrated to the United Kingdom with her family in the early 2000s. According to the Toronto Sun, Ali’s father was “granted asylum in the UK for providing British and US troops with translation services during fighting in the Middle East.”
But Ali didn’t find life in England any easier, saying she felt suffocated growing up in a strict Muslim household.
As a teenager, she “escaped” from her family and tied the knot with Jewish photographer David Cohen. She renounced her religion, “unlocked” her sexual side and embarked on a kinky career as an adult actress.
In 2020, Ali was thrust into the headlines after her father and his cousin were arrested for an alleged plot to have her killed because she had “disgraced the family” by getting into porn.
Dad Mohammed Patman and cousin Darya Khan Safi were also said to be outraged that she married a Jew. It’s alleged that in August 2018, Patman flew to Slovakia and was “actively searching” for Ali. A hitman allegedly stated that he would kill the porn star for $70,000. Patman and Safi are now in the process of being extradited to Slovakia.
Ali who is now an atheist told The Post;
“I don’t have any contact with my family and they haven’t told me face-to-face how they feel about my career.
“My parents always instilled fear in me — God, hell, punishments.
“After I left Islam, my father threatened to kill me for tarnishing Islam, the Afghan culture and the family’s honor.
“At the end of the day, it is my life and I don’t care about people’s reactions to my career. I follow my heart and do whatever I want because it is my life, my body and right.”
Earlier this month, Ali sat down with Tommie McDonald for an interview on his “I Hate Porn” podcast.
The adult movie star slammed the Taliban, saying she believes its hypocritical members are secret porn lovers and in some cases, not-so-secret. A “considerable” cache of porn was found on the computers of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after his death in 2011.
She said;
I wouldn’t be surprised [if they watch porn].
“And yet, they restrict the rights of women and police their sexuality.
“Sexually repressed societies are kind of obsessed. When you look at where most of the viewers come from. . . most of them are from Middle Eastern countries and India, for example.”
Ali also told the podcast she felt oppressed in Afghanistan and “saw people being beaten up” for refusing to follow orders from the Taliban. She said there were frequent instances of “domestic violence” and added that gay men in Afghanistan are unable to acknowledge their true sexuality for fear of being murdered.
The erotic entertainer believes she is on the Taliban’s radar, but says they certainly aren’t the only Afghans who have a problem with her unorthodox occupation. Not only is Ali dubbed “Afghanistan’s top porn star,” she’s also been described as the country’s “only porn star,” which underscores the need for more sexual freedom, she said.
Ali told McDonald of Afghans;
“They don’t want Afghanistan to be known for porn.
“They think they own my body and what I can do with my body and I have no right to show it.”
In her interview with the “I Hate Porn” podcast, Ali admitted it took time to shed the feelings of shame she felt about her sexual desires. After fleeing from her family as a teen, Ali says she had to unlearn everything she knew, from the foods she typically ate to the way she dressed. Then came her sexual self-exploration.
After months of practice, the porn star finally reached a climax, saying her first orgasm was “the trigger for a lot of things.”
She added;
“I couldn’t masturbate. I couldn’t have an orgasm
“My first orgasm helped me to relax and explore things.”
Ali who is now exploring many new things, is seen in numerous threesome and girl-on-girl videos available on the internet. In one X-rated clip, Ali is seen performing a sex act on a so-called “grandpa.”
Pushing the envelope with her content isn’t just about servicing her viewers’ fantasies. For Ali, it’s personal.
She said;
“I’ve always been a rebellious person.
“My instinct tells me to be against anything that tries to oppress me.”
The FBI has told Olympic athletes to leave their personal cell phones at home and instead take burner phones to the Beijing Winter Olympics this month, citing the potential for “malicious cyber activities.”
“The FBI urges all athletes to keep their personal cell phones at home and use a temporary phone while at the games. The National Olympic Committees in some Western countries are also advising their athletes to leave personal devices at home or use temporary phones due to cybersecurity concerns at the Games,” the agency said in a notice.
While not aware of “any specific cyber threat against the Olympics” the FBI added that it’s important that those at the games be “vigilant and maintain best practices in their network and digital environments.”
The warning comes amid rising concerns by US national security officials about Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft.
Intelligence officials have also publicly warned that China has created an advanced techno-surveillance state within its borders, using cameras, facial recognition and other technology.
The US believes that US state and local officials, as well as members of business and academia, who travel to China face the risk of having their personal devices hacked.
Due to this threat, the FBI routinely provides so-called defensive briefings to Americans it considers to be at risk of becoming victims of Chinese espionage efforts.
The FBI currently has open over 2,000 counterintelligence investigations into alleged efforts by Beijing to steal American information of technology, according to FBI Director Chris Wray.
“When we tally up what we see in our investigations, there is just no country that presents a broader threat to our ideas, our innovation, and our economic security than China,” Wray said during public remarks at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
Due to the US’ stands off with China, US athletes are allowed to compete in the Beijing Olympics but the Biden administration will not be sending government officials to the games.
The same policy applies for the Paralympic Games, which are also taking place in Beijing. The White House is looking to send a “clear message” that the human rights abuses in China mean there cannot be “business as usual,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
Israel has responded after Amnesty International called it ‘an apartheid state’.
In a new report, Human Rights group, Amnesty International said “Israel enforces a system of oppression and domination against Palestinians. Israeli laws, policies and practices against Palestinians in Israel and the occupied territories amount to apartheid”
The report calls Israel’s act “an institutionalized regime of oppression and domination of the Palestinian population for the benefit of Jewish Israelis”.
Apartheid is a crime against humanity under international law. It’s not the first time Amnesty International has criticized Israel over its alleged maltreatment of Palestinians in Israel.
Responding on Tuesday February 1, Israel, called Amnesty an anti-Semitic, anti-Israel hate organisation, and “absolutely rejects all the false allegations” in the report.
An Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson accused Amnesty of recycling “lies, inconsistencies, and unfounded assertions that originate from well-known anti-Israeli hate organisations”.
“The report denies the State of Israel’s right to exist as the nation state of the Jewish people. Its extremist language and distortion of historical context were designed to demonize Israel and pour fuel onto the fire of anti-Semitism,” they said in a statement.
Apartheid was a policy of racial segregation and discrimination that was enforced by the white minority government in South Africa against the country’s black majority from 1948 until 1991.
Introduced in South Africa in 1948, black people were regarded as inferior and there were no votes for blacks in their national election. Also black people were prevented from owning land in much of South Africa.
Three main international treaties prohibit apartheid, including the 1973 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid.
Over 20% of Israel’s population of 9.45 million are Arabs, many of whom self-identify as Palestinians, while 2.9 million Palestinians live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which Israel occupied in the 1967 Middle East war.
1.9 million Palestinians also live in the Gaza Strip, which Israel pulled out of in 2005 but the UN still considers to also be occupied.
A woman called the police on her biological father after finding out that he created fake social media accounts and has been paying to view her naked photos and videos.
21-year-old Karla Ramirez said her father had been buying her OnlyFans content through two accounts for more than a year.
She said she found out her father was the person behind the accounts while having a phone call sex with the anonymous customer only to hear her mother’s voice in the background during the call.
In a series of TikTok videos explaining the situation, Karla said that the man, who she later figured out is her father, forgot to mute his microphone while on a paid sexual phone call with her.
She wrote on TikTok: “When my dad yes, my DAD has been buying my OF through not one but two accounts, and was a personal client of mine on both accounts for over a year, and the only way I found out is because he called me to ‘play with myself for $150 and I could hear my mum in the back ground talking on the phone.”
In a series of follow-up videos, Karla explained that she’d moved out of her parents’ house when she was just 16 years old, and hadn’t talked to her father in the years since.
Disgusted by finding out that he’d been following her adult content online, she acknowledged she’d suspected something funny about that particular follower for a while.
She said in one video: “I should have just known. I should have just known from the get-go that something was off.”
She went on, explaining that she called the police about the horrific situation, and then rushed to her parents’ house to confront her father.
At her parents’ house, she began to yell at her dad while he allegedly tried to prove his innocence by denying that he had the accounts linked on his phone.
Karla said she never specifically revealed why she was there to her father so “it was just so obvious” as to why he was apologizing preemptively.
She recalled: “I go inside and I started beating him. I’m your daughter you sick f**k and my mom was yelling at me to stop. … He just knew why I was there. It was just so obvious. He already knew why I was there and he was just trying to cover his ass.”
Karla went on to explain that she believes her dad has allegedly been catfishing her ever since she was in middle school by using fake Facebook and Snpachat accounts.
She also alleged that her father sexually assaulted her and put her in a position to be molested when she was a very young girl.
She also revealed in the clip that her father allegedly sent her money to rate his d*ck pictured via Snapchat.
Her story has gone viral on TikTok and it’s being widely shared on other platforms too.
David Beckham has revealed that his wife Victoria has eaten the same meal every day for 25 years.
The 46-year-old said he loves sharing his food with his wife but she only eats grilled fish and steamed vegetables.
He said the one time she tried to eat something else was “one of his favourite evenings.”
Discussing his wife’s eating habits on the River Cafe Table 4 podcast, he explained: “I get quite emotional about food and wine, when I’m eating something great I want everyone to try it.
“Unfortunately I’m married to someone that has eaten the same thing for the last 25 years.
“Since I met her she only eats grilled fish, steamed vegetables, she will very rarely deviate from that.”
He continued: “The only time she’s probably ever shared something that’s been on my plate was actually when she was pregnant with Harper and it was the most amazing thing. It was one of my favourite evenings. I can’t remember what it was but I know she’s not eaten it since.”
Victoria has previously revealed she won’t eat food cooked in oil, butter or sauces, and she doesn’t eat red meat or dairy.
She said her comfort food is a piece of whole grain toast with salt on it and on her birthday she celebrates with a cake made from fruit.
David Beckham went on to say that he enjoys having the house to himself without Victoria at home because he can cook what he wants.
There was heavy gunfire around Guinea Bissau’s State House (Presidential Palace) Tuesday aftetnoon with reported unspecified casualty.
The whereabouts of President Umaro Sissoco Mbalo, who was chairing a cabinet meeting was unknown.
There were also unusual movements of military vehicles near his residence.
According to reports, it looks like the coup in Guinea-Bissau has failed.
A Twitter post from an unverified account in the name of Guinea-Bissau’s President Umaro Sissoco Embalo said he was well and the situation in the country was under the government’s control.
President Umaro Sissoco Mbalo of Guinea-Bissau chairing a cabinet meeting
A post on his official Facebook account also said calm had returned to the capital Bissau.
State television was off the air but there was no immediate official statement on the confused situation which a Bissau resident contacted by phone simply described as “complicated. ”
A journalist interviewed on radio said government officials were at the Palace, while the workers were locked up in a section of the building with their telephones de-activated.
Markets and streets were deserted and some schools were closed with parents worried about the safety of their children and wards.
President Mbalo, a former Prime Minister and opposition leader won a run-off vote in January 2020 after a bitterly contested presidential election.
Guinea-Bissau’s President Umaro Sissoco Embalo
Last October, the military announced that it had foiled a plot to overthrow the government.
Guinea Bissau, with less than two million people, is no stranger to political instability with several coups since its independence from Portugal in 1974.
It is also hub for the trafficking of hard drugs.
Guinea Bissau belongs to the 15-nation ECOWAS region where the military have seized power in three of the member States – Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso – in the last 18 months.
See more photos of scenes from Guinea Bissau on Tuesday below:
Engineers have been said to be the movers and shakers of our contemporary world. Whatever one have chosen to specialize in, be it mechanical, civil, chemical, electrical, or any other form of engineering, the things you’ll help invent, design, and construct will become the staple diets of our global economy for many years to come.
Meanwhile, given the international structure of the industry, it may come as no surprise that more and more budding engineers are choosing to seek out engineering jobs abroad every year. Whether recently graduated or mid-career, a job in engineering abroad can be your opportunity to explore a new part of the world, immerse yourself in a new culture, and travel where your specific skill is most valued.
However, engineering is an extremely lucrative field, where demand outweighs supply in the global workforce; so unlike many other professions, you’ll have the opportunity to go anywhere in the world that most intrigues you, because odds are that engineering job opportunities will be plentiful.
Without further much emphasis, below is the list of the best countries for engineering jobs abroad:
1. Canada
Canada is an infrastructurally sound country with an advanced economy and vast access to natural resources, such as gas and lumber. It also boasts progressive environmental and social legislature, making it a great place to work for engineers who are passionate about these issues. Those looking for petroleum engineering jobs abroad or chemical engineering jobs abroad will benefit from Canada’s resource-rich economy. You will have to become licensed by a professional engineering association in Canada in order to practice, but this will be well worth it as you enter into one of the world’s most dynamic workforces.
2. New Zealand
Down in the southern hemisphere, New Zealand is also a great country to find jobs for engineers abroad. New Zealand has one of the most stable economies in the world, and is a great destination for civil engineers who want to contribute to building a safe structural environment for all to benefit from (those earthquakes have an impact, don’t ya know). New Zealand is a large country with over 4 million citizens, but it still faces an engineering deficit in its work force, meaning that jobs for engineers in New Zealand are many and varied. Bird’s eye view of a Brazilian neighborhood With one of the largest economies in the world still in the process of developing, Brazil is a great place for engineers to get in on the ground floor.
3. Switzerland
Neighboring Germany high up in the Alps, Switzerland can be an equally fruitful destination to seek out engineering jobs abroad. This infamously neutral country is one of the wealthiest in the world, and no small part of this stems directly from its success in innovative engineering. Scientific research and manufacturing are both vital components of the Swiss economy, so mechanical and chemical engineers would do well to look for work abroad in this peaceful European nation.
4. Germany
Crossing the Atlantic, few countries in the world have as rich a history in engineering as Germany. Widely regarded for its booming automobile and pharmaceutical industries, Germany is an extremely lucrative place to find jobs for engineers abroad, especially in the mechanical and biomedical sectors. German universities rank among the best in the world for scientific research, and this spirit of innovation carries over into its professional sectors to make it an attractive destination to look for jobs in engineering.
5. England
Though you’ll need a Tier 5 licensed company to get a paid engineering job, the extra paperwork and effort will make all the difference. Having work experience in England will be invaluable, not to mention you won’t have to worry about a language barrier. Since engineers are in reasonable demand, to continue keeping up with the Jones’ of the developing world, engineering jobs in England will surely pay a livable wage too.
6. India
Moving on to South Asia, India is perhaps the most important emerging country in today’s international landscape. With a population nearing 1.3 billion people, engineers of all different backgrounds and skillsets are valued in India to help lift this potential economic powerhouse further into the arena of global competitiveness. Whether you’re looking for a civil engineering job abroad to help build up the country’s fledgling infrastructure or a biomedical engineering job abroad developing new medicines that can benefit millions, there are no shortage of engineering jobs abroad in India for international aspirants.
7. Japan
Last on our list of best countries for engineering jobs abroad is Japan, a country that has played a leading role in global technology and industry for decades. One of the wealthiest nations in the world, Japan has about as impressive a national infrastructure as there comes, boasting a high-speed railway that connects almost the entire country with punctuality down to the minute. Mechanical, electrical, biomedical, chemical, Japan is another country where engineers of all different backgrounds can find fruitful work.
8. China
To the north, China is soon to overtake the United States as the largest economy in the world, and so it should come as no shock that a talented engineering workforce has played a huge role in its rapid development. The Chinese government invests heavily in infrastructural, scientific, and technological innovation, and is also making a sincere effort to globalize its country into a new international order. Foreign workers are valued highly in China for these reasons, and engineering jobs are plentiful in all sectors of the profession.
About 200 U.S troops have been pictured in Kiev, Ukraine, after they were sent to train the country’s military against an expected Russian invasion.
The troops from the Florida National Guard are training Ukrainian forces to use ‘bunker buster’ rocket launchers amid fears Russia’s President Putin is about to invade after amassing 130,000 soldiers at the border.
US soldiers were seen on a firing range in Lviv, near Ukraine’s border with Poland, on Sunday, January training forces to use M141 Bunker Defeat Munitions – around 100 of which have been sent by Washington as part of military aid shipments aimed at deterring a Russian attack.
‘Bunker buster’ rockets are designed to blow apart concrete, brick and sandbag positions, and have been used by the US since 1999.
Ukraine has also been training its civilians on military warfare incase of an invasion.
The US has also sent 300 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine which are designed to attack Putin’s tanks, with the same weapons sent from Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia. The UK has sent NLAW anti-tank missiles, with British troops also recently pictured training the Ukrainians on how to use them in Kiev last week.
Moscow denies it plans to invade Ukraine and has instead accused military alliance, NATO of trying to attack Russia.
Russia has issued a list of security demands to the US and NATO including that Ukraine be banned from joining the alliance and that forces are withdrawn from ex-Soviet states. .
The US and NATO have since sent two letters to Moscow rejecting those demands but offering other concessions.
A lawyer for Bill Cosby has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject a bid by prosecutors to revive his criminal sex assault case.
The 84-year-old American actor and comedian has been free since June, when a Pennsylvania appeals court overturned his conviction and released him from prison after nearly three years.
The state’s highest court found that Cosby believed he had a nonprosecution agreement with a former district attorney when he gave damaging testimony in the accuser’s 2005 lawsuit. That testimony later led to his arrest in 2015.
Cosby lawyer Jennifer Bonjean says the case rests on a narrow set of facts that should not interest the Supreme Court.
“Notwithstanding the commonwealth’s warning of imminent catastrophic consequences, the Cosby holding will likely be confined to its own ‘rare, if not entirely unique’ set of circumstances, making review by this court particularly unjustified,” she wrote in the 15-page response filed Monday.
Cosby became the first celebrity convicted of sexual assault in the #MeToo era when the jury at his 2018 retrial found him guilty of drugging and molesting college sports administrator Andrea Constand in 2004.
Cosby, a groundbreaking Black actor and comedian, created the top-ranked “Cosby Show” in the 1980s. A barrage of sexual assault allegations later destroyed his image as “America’s Dad” and led to multimillion-dollar court settlements with at least eight women. But Constand’s case was the only one to lead to criminal charges.
Soliu Majekodunmi, the 18-year-old who connived with three of his friends to kill his girlfriend, Sofiyah, for suspected money ritual purposes has said that he learnt the practice through Facebook.
While being paraded before newsmen on Monday, January 31, Majekodunmi said he typed “how to make money ritual” on Facebook and got the detail, adding that the link instructed him to behead and burn a female skull in a local pot.
Majekodunmi added that he conspired with his friend, Mustakeem Balogun, and two others to lure Sofiyah to their apartment in the Oke Aregba area of Abeokuta, where she was killed.
They confessed to killing the girl, claiming that they concluded on money ritual because they wanted to ride exotic cars and live in luxury apartments. The suspects added that they purchased three pigeon eggs known as ‘Eyin Aparo’ in Yoruba language and other fetish ingredients which they added in the local pot.
