Author: Chronicle Editor

A knife attacker killed two people and injured 18 in a rampage in southwest China, state media reported, the latest such attack in recent years. The man, aged 30 and believed to be suffering from mental health problems, is in police custody after the assault in Guizhou Province, according to the official Xinhua news agency. All twenty victims were rushed to hospital after the attack, but two later died, said the report. Few other details were available. Knife attacks are not uncommon in China. In January a man armed with a kitchen knife stabbed 11 children at a kindergarten in…

France’s new President Emmanuel Macron says he was ready for his “moment of truth” with US counterpart Donald Trump — when they shook hands for the first time. “You have to show you won’t make little concessions, even symbolic ones,” Macron, 39, told the French weekly Journal du Dimanche on Sunday. Footage of the handshake as the pair met for lunch at the US embassy in Brussels ahead of a NATO summit on Thursday has gone viral. As cameras rolled, Macron held on tight to Trump’s notorious power grip as the two men sat next to each other, the Frenchman’s…

Europe “must take its fate into its own hands” faced with a western alliance divided by Brexit and Donald Trump’s presidency, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday. “The times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out. I’ve experienced that in the last few days,” Merkel told a crowd at an election rally in Munich, southern Germany. “We Europeans truly have to take our fate into our own hands,” she added. While Germany and Europe would strive to remain on good terms with America and Britain, “we have to fight for our own destiny,” Merkel…

A 19-year-old woman has been sentenced to death by village elders in Pakistan’s Punjab province for allegedly having an illicit relationship with her cousin after she accused him of raping her at gunpoint. The incident happened on Friday in Rajanpur, a rural district about 400 kilometres from provincial capital Lahore. Shumaila escaped from the village after she came to know of the panchayat’s decision and reported the matter to police. She has denied having any illicit relationship with her cousin Khalil Ahmed and alleged that he raped her at gunpoint when she was sleeping at her house. “I could not…

Acting President at the G7 Summit cites energy and talent of youths as sources of optimism Africa is undeterred by the failures of the past and the continent is motivated by the incredible energy and talent of its bustling youthful population, according to Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN. Prof. Osinbajo spoke today at the G7 Summit special outreach forum on Africa with selected African nations and leaders including Nigeria, Guinea, Tunisia, Niger, Ethiopia and Kenya. According to him, “Africa is confident of the future because we have learnt,…we are investing more in education, insisting on good governance and holding ourselves…

British Airways resumed some flights from Britain’s two biggest airports on Sunday after a global computer system failure sowed chaos, leaving planes grounded and thousands of passengers queuing for hours. BA said it aimed to operate a near normal schedule of flights from Gatwick airport and the majority of flights from Heathrow on Sunday, but Heathrow Airport told passengers not to travel to the airport unless they were rebooked on other flights. It said it expected further delays and cancellations of BA flights on Sunday. “We are continuing to work hard to restore all of our IT systems and are…

Kidnappers of six pupils of Lagos State Model College, Igbonla in Epe have demanded a N400 million ransom for their release. They are understood to have got in touch with the parents of the kidnapped children to make the demand. But Governor Akinwunmi Ambode told pupils at a parade to mark this year’s Children’s Day at the Agege Stadium, Lagos that government would do all within its power to get the children out of the kidnappers’ den unhurt. He said yesterday celebration would be incomplete without rescuing those innocent pupils and returning them to school to continue their education The…

Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika sacked his tourism minister days after he was appointed to the post, the presidency said, with one television channel claiming he had a criminal record. A terse statement from the presidency, carried by the APS news agency, did not say why Bouteflika had fired Messaoud Benagoun, who became minister of tourism and crafts just three days earlier. Algerian media had criticised Benagoun’s appointment, claiming that the 38-year-old had never had a job before joining the new government that was formed on Thursday. On Sunday, private television station Enahar claimed Benagoun held a fake university diploma and…

Diego Costa claims he will only leave Chelsea to return to Atletico Madrid this summer, turning his back on long-term speculation of a blockbuster move to China. Costa scored 22 goals this season in firing Chelsea to the Premier League title for the second time in three seasons at the club. Yet, the Brazilian-born striker has struggled to settle in London and had a training ground bust-up with Chelsea boss Antonio Conte in January fuelling rumours he could be the latest star of European football to be snapped up by China’s football boom. However, after losing out to Arsenal in…

No fewer than 50 popular artistes have been lined up to perform at the grand finale of Lagos at Fifty. Lagos@50 celebration will witness a thunderous entertainment at Eko Atlantic on Sunday. The listed artistes who will perform in the night of Sunday are juju music maestros – King Sunny Ade and Evangelist Ebenezer Obey as well as the legendry Highlife patriarch, Sir Victor Olaiya. Others are Davido, Phyno, Olamide, Humble Smith, Adekunle Gold, Lil Kesh, Partoranking, ‘Mr Capable’ Banky W, Runtown, Vanessa, MI, Eedris Abdulkareem, Mr. Eazi, DJ Spinall and Waka Music star, Queen Salawa Abeni. Also expected are…