All flights at Shanghai’s two main airports were cancelled on Sunday as authorities in the Chinese megacity prepared for a strong typhoon bringing high winds and heavy rain. Typhoon Bebinca is expected to make landfall along a swath of China’s densely populated eastern seaboard between Sunday night and Monday morning, according to Beijing’s emergency management ministry. State broadcaster CCTV reported that all flights at Shanghai’s two main airports would be cancelled from 8 pm on Sunday (1200 GMT) because of the storm. “Affected by Typhoon Bebinca, the traffic capacity of Shanghai’s Pudong and Hongqiao airports has decreased today,” CCTV said.…
Author: Omolemi Eboisetale
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against President Bola Tinubu, demanding a reduction in petrol prices from the current N845 per litre to N600 per litre. The suit, numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/1361/2024, was filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Abuja by SERAP’s lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa. SERAP’s lawsuit challenges the President’s alleged failure to instruct the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to reverse what it terms an “unlawful” hike in petrol prices. Additionally, the organisation is calling for an investigation into corruption and mismanagement within the national oil company. The statement issued on Sunday…
Thousands took to the streets across French cities on Saturday to demand an end to rape and support the main plaintiff in a mass sexual assault trial that has shocked the country. Gisele Pelicot, who is using her married name, has requested the trial of her ex-husband and 50 co-defendants since September 2 be made public to raise awareness about the use of drugs to commit abuse. Dominique Pelicot, her partner of around five decades, has admitted to drugging her for years to rape her or watch her being raped while unconscious by dozens of strangers he recruited online.00 /…
A suspected vandal has been electrocuted while tampering with an exposed live wire in an attempt to steal it from a transformer substation at Commissioners’ Quarters in Damaturu, the Yobe capital. The Communications Officer, Yola Electricity Distribution Company, Blessing Tunoh, made this known in a statement issued in Yola on Saturday. Tunoh said that the company’s Regional Manager, Operations, visited the scene alongside the Maintenance Officer, after receiving the report of the incident. She said that the suspect’s body was evacuated from the substation by the Damaturu police patrol team codenamed: “Operation Haba Maza,” and taken to the Damaturu Teaching…
Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has announced that the Kaduna Smart City project is expected to attract $150 million in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and create over 500,000 indirect jobs. The governor shared this during an interaction with State House correspondents in Abuja, following his visit to Vice President Kashim Shettima to express condolences over the recent flood disaster in Borno State. Governor Sani stated the significance of the project, which he signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for with Huawei Technologies Limited in Beijing, China. The signing was witnessed by President Bola Tinubu and other senior government officials during…
Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has officially dissolved the opposition-dominated National Assembly, setting new legislative elections for November 17, 2024. The 44-year-old leader, who secured a decisive victory in the March 2024 presidential election, made the announcement on national television, stating his intent to pursue the “systemic transformation” he promised voters. President Faye, along with Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, campaigned on a platform of sovereignty and pan-Africanism, resonating with Senegal’s youth, three-quarters of whom are under 35. However, the government has struggled to implement its agenda due to the lack of a parliamentary majority. According to Senegal’s constitution, Faye had…
Ministers from Muslim and European countries along with the European Union’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, gathered Friday in Madrid to discuss how to advance a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “Together, we want to identify the concrete actions that will enable us to progress towards this objective,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez wrote on social network X. “The international community must take a decisive step towards a just and lasting peace in the Middle East,” the Socialist premier added. Sanchez welcomed participants at his official residence before the meeting at the foreign ministry in central Madrid, hosted by…
Comoros President Azali Assoumani was slightly wounded in a knife attack Friday, the presidency said, adding that the attacker had been arrested. “The President of the Republic Azali Assoumani was slightly wounded by a knife while attending the funeral” of a well-known religious leader, it said in a statement. “His injuries are not serious, and he has returned home. The attacker is in the hands of the security services,” it added. Government spokeswoman Fatima Ahamadael told AFP that the attack happened in Salimani-Itsandra, an area on the outskirts of the capital Moroni. “Thank God, his life is not in danger,”…
Spotify, online music streaming platform has announced Afropop sensation, Yemi Alade as its EQUAL Africa artiste for the month of September. Spotify’s Head of Music for Sub-Saharan Africa, Phiona Okumu, disclosed this in a statement on Friday in Lagos. The head of music stated that “Spotify EQUAL Africa programme is dedicated to empowering female voices in Africa, spotlighting artistes who continue to push boundaries with their artistry. “Yemi Alade exemplifies the calibre of talent the programme aims to support. “Spotify is proud to be associated with Yemi Alade and will continue to use the EQUAL Africa programme to support women…
Emmanuel Macron and his former Prime Minister, Edouard Philippe, who hopes to succeed the French president after the 2027 election, made a rare joint public appearance on Thursday to remember eighty years since the liberation of a French port from Nazi occupation. The Normandy port of Le Havre was liberated by Allied troops on September 12, 1944, more than three months after the D-Day landings to the west. But the freeing of Le Havre was shadowed by intense Allied bombardments a week before that devastated the city and left more than 2,000 of its inhabitants dead. The political symbolism was…
Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued a warning about the potential consequences if the United States provides Ukraine with new missile systems. This threat follows recent discussions between U.S. and British officials and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, centered on the prospect of supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles. Speaking to Russian state-controlled television on Thursday, Putin underscored that any increase in Western military support for Ukraine, particularly in the form of advanced missile technology, could lead to direct conflict between Russia and NATO countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom. Putin remarked, “If that’s the case, then taking into…
As the 2024 US Presidential election draws closer, climate change remains a critical point of contention between the two main candidates, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. The first debate between the candidates showcased their starkly contrasting views on climate issues, setting the tone for ongoing discussions leading up to the November 5 election. Trump on Climate Change Donald Trump’s approach to climate change has been consistent with his tenure as president from 2017 to 2021. Notably, Trump initiated the US withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, a global accord aimed at limiting global temperature rise to…