Author: Chronicle Editor

South Africa’s president has condemned travel bans enacted against his country and its neighbours over the new coronavirus variant Omicron. Cyril Ramaphosa said he was “deeply disappointed” by the action he described as unjustified and called for the bans to be urgently lifted. The UK, EU and US are among those who have imposed travel bans. Omicron has been classed as a “variant of concern”. This is because early evidence suggests it has a higher re-infection risk. The heavily mutated variant was detected in South Africa earlier this month and then reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) last Wednesday.…

Japan, the world’s third-biggest economy, will close its borders to all foreigners, while Australia’s plans to re-open to skilled migrants were also in doubt as nations scrambled on Monday to rein in the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. Markets regained some composure as investors await more details of the variant following a freefall last week after news of its emergence ignited fears that fresh curbs could upend a nascent economic revival from a two-year pandemic. Potentially more contagious than prior variants, Omicron, first identified in South Africa, has been found in Australia, Belgium, Botswana, Britain, Canada, Denmark,…

Three people have been reportedly killed in a two-vehicle accident on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Sunday. According to the Ogun Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), the accident occurred near Sapade in the state of Ogere. Mr Ahmed Umar, Sector Commander, verified the accident to reporters in Ota, Ogun. He disclosed that one other individual was injured in the accident. Umar stated that five people were engaged in the collision between a Nissan automobile with the registration number GH 597 LND and a Mack truck with the registration number SMK 499 XU. Two bandits killed by police along…

An infamous bandit in Kaduna State’s Chikun Local Government Area has been killed, according to police. The Kaduna State Police Command announced this in a statement on Saturday, noting that the achievement was accomplished through a collaborative effort with other security agencies. Muhammed Jalige, a spokesman for the Kaduna police, revealed that the agents searched a facility in the Sabon Tasha area of Chikun local government where the suspected bandits were reported to have resided based on solid intelligence. While the raid was underway, Jalige stated that the suspected bandit, sensing danger, attempted to flee by shooting irregularly, resulting in…

Manchester United prepared for the arrival of interim manager Ralf Rangnick by earning a battling point against Premier League leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. United, under the caretaker charge of Michael Carrick with Rangnick’s appointment expected to be confirmed imminently, kept Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench and mounted a large rearguard action until Jadon Sancho hit Chelsea on the break five minutes after half-time. Sancho pounced on poor control from Jorginho to race clear and beat Edouard Mendy with a composed finish after the hosts had dominated possession. Chelsea were stung into action and Jorginho made amends for his error…

The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has flagged off at two centres in Yobe State free medical outreach for 2021 for the less privileged who need treatment for some medical conditions but could not afford the cost. Lawan flagged off the event both at the Specialist Hospital Gashua on Saturday to cover three Local Government Areas (Bade, Jakusko and Yusufari) and also at the Federal Medical Center, Nguru on Sunday to cover the remaining three Local Government Areas (Nguru, Karasuwa and Machina) that make up the Yobe North Senatorial District. Also, on Sunday, the Senate President flagged off free…

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Faruk Yahaya has directed troops of the Nigerian Army to sustain offensives against insecurities by insurgents and bandits in Nigeria. Yahaya gave the directive while addressing troops during an operational visit to 23 Brigade Yola on Saturday. He urged them to continue to eliminate the criminals to the point of surrendering. Yahaya’s directives were made known in a statement by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu, in Abuja. He assured the troops of his commitment to addressing all challenges confronting the troops to perform optimally. AIB submits report on the crash that…

Paris St-Germain came from behind to beat 10-man Saint-Etienne and move 14 points clear at the top of Ligue 1. After Neymar had an early finish ruled out for offside, Denis Bouanga gave St Etienne a 23rd-minute lead. Timothee Kolodziejczak was sent-off for a foul on Kylian Mbappe and Marquinhos headed PSG level from the resulting free-kick before half-time. Angel di Maria curled in with 11 minutes left and Marquinhos added a third for the visitors in added time. Bouanga’s opener, confirmed by VAR after initially being flagged offside, was the 11th time Mauricio Pochettino’s PSG have conceded the opening…

Manchester City midfield pair Ilkay Gundogan and Fernandino were on target as Pep Guardiola’s Premier League superiority over West Ham continued. City has now won 10 out of 11 top-flight meetings with the Hammers under the Spaniard. In a game played in a snowstorm before half-time, skipper Gundogan provided the decisive moment after 33 minutes when he turned home a deflected Riyad Mahrez effort at the far post. It was the Germany midfielder’s third goal of the season – and his second in four league games – and was followed up in the final minute by Fernandinho, who had only…

Jamie Vardy scored twice as Leicester beat Watford in a hugely entertaining match to ruin Claudio Ranieri’s return to the King Power Stadium. Ranieri was in the opponents’ dugout for the first time since guiding the Foxes to the 2015-16 Premier League title and received a great reception from the home fans. But in a chaotic and thrilling game played in blizzard conditions, his current side played a big part in their downfall. There looked to be no danger when Jonny Evans launched a free-kick forward, but William Ekong ducked under the ball, and that allowed James Maddison to fire…