Anti-tank Mine Kills Four Soldiers in Senegal’s Casamance

Anti-tank Mine Kills Four Soldiers in Senegal’s Casamance a

The army has for several months been carrying out security operations against separatist rebels of the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC), who want independence for the region that also borders Guinea-Bissau.

Four Senegalese soldiers were killed when their vehicle ran over an anti-tank mine in the southern region of Casamance, where separatist rebels operate, the army said on Friday.

Three others were wounded in the explosion, which occurred on Thursday in Nord Bignona, near the border with Gambia, the army’s public relations unit said on X, formerly Twitter.

The army has for several months been carrying out security operations against separatist rebels of the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC), who want independence for the region that also borders Guinea-Bissau.

One of Africa’s oldest active rebellions, the MFDC has led a low-intensity separatist campaign since 1982 that has claimed several thousand lives.

The conflict was mostly dormant until Senegal launched a major offensive in 2021 to drive out the rebels.

Casamance, Senegal’s southernmost region, is almost separated from the rest of the country by the tiny state of Gambia.

It has a distinct culture and language derived from its past as a former Portuguese colony.

Senegal’s President Macky Sall has said that ending the rebellion is a priority, and in recent years the government has begun returning Casamance residents displaced by the conflict after announcing the destruction of several rebel bases.

26 Injured As Ukrainian Councillor Detonates Grenades At Meeting

26 Injured As Ukrainian Councillor Detonates Grenades At Meeting

The incident took place Friday morning at the headquarters of the village council of Keretsky in western Ukraine's mountainous Zakarpattia region.

A Ukrainian village councillor set off hand grenades at a meeting, wounding 26 people, national police said Friday, triggering the launch of a terror investigation.

The incident took place Friday morning at the headquarters of the village council of Keretsky in western Ukraine’s mountainous Zakarpattia region.

A video posted by the police on Telegram showed a man dressed in black entering the door of a council meeting during a heated discussion.

He then pulled three hand grenades from his pockets, released the safety pins and dropped them on the floor, triggering explosions as those at the meeting screamed.

“As a result, 26 people were wounded, six of whom are in grave condition,” the police statement said, adding that medics were trying to resuscitate the man who threw the grenades.

Ukraine’s police said the Ukrainian Secret Service (SBU) opened a terrorism investigation.

It also said national police opened a probe into the illegal handling of weapons.

The committee held a live video of its discussion on social media, which showed the man had walked in more than 1.5 hours into the debate and stood by the door before taking out the grenade.

It then showed chaos inside the small room, which went dark and was filled with smoke, with injured people on the floor.

Authorities did not name the man.

Many Ukrainians have access to weaponry due to the war with Russia.

N750/Litre Proposal: World Bank An Enemy Of Nigeria, Says NLC

N750/Litre Proposal: World Bank An Enemy Of Nigeria, Says NLC

The labour union urged the Nigerian government to resist foreign influence in economic policies and prioritise the welfare of its citizens.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has labelled the World Bank an enemy of the country after the financial institution asked the Federal Government to stop the subsidy payment on petrol and raise the cost of the product to N750/litre.

“It is truly a shame that the World Bank has really shown itself to be an enemy of the Nigerian nation. Its continued grandstanding and generation of anti-poor policies and programmes have destabilized many countries of the South, especially nations within the sub-Saharan region,” Ajaero wrote in part in a statement on Thursday.

The union criticised the World Bank’s lead economist for Nigeria, Alex Sienaert, for supporting the unwarranted recommendation during a presentation in Abuja and rejected an increase in petrol prices to N750 per litre.

“We vehemently reject the recent advice by the World Bank urging the Nigerian government to increase petrol prices to N750 per litre,” he said.

“We remind the government that Nigeria should not allow foreign entities like the World Bank and the IMF to dictate economic policies that are detrimental to the welfare of its citizens. It is imperative that our leaders look inwards, tapping into the vast resources and human potential within our nation to address challenges and formulate policies that genuinely uplift the standard of living for all Nigerians.”

While accusing the World Bank of promoting policies that prioritise foreign interests over the well-being of the Nigerian people, the Union advised the government to resist foreign influence in economic policies and prioritise the welfare of its citizens.

“The difficulties and suffering created by the last hike in the price of PMS which was a product of the advice of the World Bank and its sister institution; the IMF is still ravaging the nation destroying in its wake the nation’s industrial base and domestic manufacturing capacity which favours Western metropoles,” the NLC chief added.

The NLC also called on the government to look inward, tapping into domestic resources and human potential to address challenges and uplift the standard of living for all Nigerians.

Highlighting the disparity between international prices and local wages, the labour union cautioned against further increases in PMS prices, describing such a move as a “suicide pill” that would worsen the nation’s economic situation.

Fighting corruption in the downstream petroleum sector, reducing the cost of governance, and reviving domestic refineries rather than heeding the World Bank’s advice, Ajaero insisted should be the Federal Government’s topmost priority.

The Union cautioned the World Bank to steer clear of Nigerian economic policies and allow the country to implement its policies that will be of benefit to yrs citizens.

Duterte Denies Threatening To Kill Congresswoman

Duterte Denies Threatening To Kill Congresswoman

House of Representatives Deputy Minority Leader France Castro has alleged Duterte threatened her life twice in recent months and asked state prosecutors to charge him.

Former president Rodrigo Duterte has denied he threatened to kill a congresswoman and urged state prosecutors to refrain from filing criminal charges against him, according to a deposition made public on Friday.

House of Representatives Deputy Minority Leader France Castro has alleged Duterte threatened her life twice in recent months and asked state prosecutors to charge him.

Duterte sent a written deposition to a Manila prosecutor on Monday after the official summoned him and Castro to present witnesses and supporting documents relating to the first alleged death threat, the justice department said.

“There was never any deliberate intent on my part to single out and threaten complainant, Castro,” Duterte said in the deposition, a copy of which was released to the press by the department’s National Prosecution Service.

The case “must be dismissed”, Duterte added.

Castro had alleged that Duterte committed the crime of “grave threats” under the Cybercrime Prevention Act during two interviews with broadcaster SMNI.

On Friday Duterte said he recounted at an October interview advice he had given to his daughter, Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte, on how she could use intelligence and confidential funds allocated to her office.

“Your first target with your intelligence fund is ‘You, you France’. Tell her, ‘It is you communists who I want to kill’,” Duterte said in the interview.

Duterte said in his deposition that his statements on Castro were just his “opinion and meant only to express… personal suggestion” to his daughter.

Duterte often threatened to kill people, including drug dealers and rights activists, when he was president from 2016 to 2022.

He also frequently labelled critics as communist sympathisers — a practice known as “red-tagging”, which can result in the arrest, detention or even death of the person targeted.

Castro told reporters Friday she expects the prosecutor to decide by next month whether there is enough evidence to charge Duterte in court.

Supreme Court Insists Nnamdi Kanu Must Face Trial, Overturns A’Court Judgement

Supreme Court Insists Nnamdi Kanu Must Face Trial, Overturns A’Court Judgement

In upholding the government’s appeal, the Supreme Court held that Kanu must face trial at the Federal High Court.

The Supreme Court has upheld the Federal Government’s appeal challenging the verdict of the Appeal Court which dismissed the charges against Nnamdi Kanu.

In upholding the government’s appeal, the Supreme Court held that Kanu must face trial at the Federal High Court.

The Supreme Court in the judgement delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, but prepared by Justice Garba Lawal, held that the Court of Appeal was wrong to rule that Kanu could not be tried again based on the illegality perpetrated against him by the Federal Government, following the invasion of his home.

Also, the Court held that although the Nigerian Government was reckless and unlawfully rendered Kanu from Kenya, such unlawful act has not divested any Court from proceeding with trial.

Justice Lawal said that no Nigerian law was cited in the suit seeking Kanu’s release on the grounds of unlawful abduction from Kenya.

According to the Court, at the moment, the remedy for such an action is for Kanu to file a civil matter against the act instead of removing the powers of the courts to continue with his trial for alleged criminal charges.

Kanu was not present in court for the judgement, the latest development in a case that has lasted for years.

Friday’s judgement was delivered amid tight security and followed calls by Ohanaeze and some others for Kanu’s release.

Kanu who is the leader of the proscribed secessionist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has been in detention since June 2021 when he was re-arrested in Kenya and brought back to Nigeria.

He and his legal team have accused the Federal Government of abducting him and illegally bringing him to Nigeria. He has challenged the alleged extraordinary rendition in court.

Upon his re-arrest in 2021, he was arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja on four charges of treasonable felony, conspiracy to commit treasonable felony, terrorism, illegal importation of radio equipment, and defamation of former President Muhammadu Buhari

The charges were later amended to a 15 bordering on terrorism and membership of a proscribed group.

Justice Binta Nyako of the trial court had in her ruling dismissed eight out of the 15 charges, saying that Mr Kanu had questions to answer in relation to the remaining seven charges.

Dissatisfied with the ruling, Mr Kanu appealed to the Court of Appeal, which dismissed the remaining charges and ordered that Mr Kanu be released.

In a twist, the court then granted a stay of execution of its judgment after the Federal Government told the court it would be appealing to the Supreme Court.

Niger Coup Leaders Agree To Transition Terms

Niger Coup Leaders Agree To Transition Terms

The sanctions and suspension of international finance and aid have left Niger, already one of the world's poorest countries, economically hanging by a thread.

Niger’s ruling military has agreed to terms and conditions of a transition back to civilian rule, and will present the plan to a regional bloc, the chief diplomat from mediator Togo announced Thursday.

Speaking on Niger’s national television, Togo Foreign Minister Robert Dussey said he had reached an agreement “on the content and timing of the transition” with Niger’s junta-appointed prime minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine and foreign minister Bakary Yaou Sangare.

“We are ready to present the plan… to the mediating heads of state and the ECOWAS Commission,” he said, referring to the Economic Community of West African States.

After Niger became the latest country in the Sahel to experience a coup with July’s ouster of President Mohamed Bazoum, the regional grouping imposed tough sanctions and suspended trade, while also floating the option of military intervention.

The sanctions and suspension of international finance and aid have left Niger, already one of the world’s poorest countries, economically hanging by a thread.

In October, the military leaders announced a 40-percent cut in the 2023 budget due to the “heavy sanctions imposed by international and regional organisations”.

On Sunday, ECOWAS leaders in Abuja said any easing of the punitive measures against Niger was contingent on a “short transition” period.

The bloc also decided that a committee made up of the presidents of Benin, Togo and Sierra Leone would lead negotiations with the Nigerien military leaders on the commitments to be implemented.

According to Niger’s broadcaster, Tele Sahel, mediator Dussey will return to Niamey in January with his counterpart from Sierra Leone, Timothy Kabba.

ECOWAS said on Thursday that Niger is now “suspended from all decision-making bodies” of the organisation, “until constitutional order is re-established”.

Niger’s military leaders have previously said they want up to three years for a transition back to civilian rule.

Since the coup, Niger — one of the Sahel nations battling long-running and bloody insurgencies by rebels affiliated with Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State group — has rowed back security cooperation with Western partners and expelled French troops based there.

Messi, Bonmati Make Final Shortlist For FIFA Best Player Awards

Messi, Bonmati Make Final Shortlist For FIFA Best Player Awards

Messi was awarded a record-extending eighth Ballon d'Or crown in October in Paris, while Bonmati took the women's prize after starring for Spain in their Women's World Cup triumph.

Lionel Messi and Aitana Bonmati were named as finalists for the FIFA best players of the year awards by world football’s governing body on Thursday.

Messi was awarded a record-extending eighth Ballon d’Or crown in October in Paris, while Bonmati took the women’s prize after starring for Spain in their Women’s World Cup triumph.

Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are the other nominees for the FIFA men’s best player award, with Bonmati’s Spain teammate Jenni Hermoso and Colombian teenage sensation Linda Caicedo also named on the women’s shortlist.

The awards ceremony will take place in London on January 15.

The men’s finalists were named based on performances from December 19, 2022 until August 20 this year, with the women’s decided by achievements between August 1, 2022 and August 20, 2023, the day of the World Cup final.

Messi won his second FIFA best player trophy last year after helping Argentina win the World Cup.

Haaland, who finished second to Messi in the Ballon d’Or voting, scored 52 goals in his first season at Manchester City last term to help the English club to a treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League titles.

France striker Mbappe scored 41 goals in all competitions to help Paris Saint-Germain win Ligue 1.

Bonmati and Hermoso both scored three goals in the tournament as Spain lifted the Women’s World Cup for the first time, while Bonmati also won the Women’s Champions League with Barcelona last season.

Hermoso was forcibly kissed by then-Spanish football federation president Luis Rubiales following Spain’s 1-0 final win over England, sparking a huge controversy and his eventual resignation.

Caicedo, 18, starred in Colombia’s run to the World Cup quarter-finals and has since signed for Real Madrid.