Author: Opalim Lifted

Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei, has emerged as one of the strongest contenders to lead Iran following his father’s death. Iran’s powerful clerical body, the Assembly of Experts, is expected to choose the country’s next supreme leader. One of its members, Ahmad Khatami, told Iranian state media on Wednesday that the council hopes to vote “at the earliest opportunity”. Ali Khamenei, who ruled Iran for more than three decades, died at 86 in Tehran during the opening wave of missile strikes linked to the escalating conflict involving the United States and Israel. Race To…

President Bola Tinubu has constituted a five-member delegation to represent Nigeria at the burial of Jesse Jackson in the United States. Jackson, a pioneer civil rights figure in the US, died on February 17, 2026, at the age of 84. According to a State House press release issued on Wednesday, the delegation will deliver the president’s message of condolences to the Jackson family during the final burial rites. George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, will lead the team. Other members are Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs; Hannatu Musawa, Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative…

Pedro Sánchez, Prime Minister of Spain, has declared that his government will not support actions that violate international law or threaten global peace, amid rising tensions with the United States. Sánchez made the remarks on Wednesday after Donald Trump announced plans to halt all trade with Spain following a dispute over military cooperation. The row began on Monday when Spain reportedly denied the US permission to use jointly operated military bases on its territory for potential strikes against Iran. Reacting to the decision, Trump criticised Spain on Tuesday, describing the country as “very uncooperative” and a “terrible partner”. The US…

A group of stakeholders within Nigeria’s student movement has written an open letter to Bola Tinubu, alleging large-scale corruption and criminal infiltration in the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS). In the letter dated Wednesday, the petitioners alleged that the Minister for Youth Development, Ayodele Wisdom; the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Student Engagement, Asefon Sunday Dayo; and two former NANS leaders, Akinteye Babatunde and Lucky Emonefe, diverted federal government interventions intended for students. Central to the petition are claims that about 50 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses donated by the Federal Government to ease…

The United States (US) embassy in Abuja has cancelled all visa appointments scheduled for Wednesday, March 4, due to a “potential for protests” in the nation’s capital. The embassy said in a statement posted on X on Wednesday that it would contact applicants on how to reschedule. On Monday, members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shi’ites, staged protests in several states over the killing of Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, during recent US-Israeli strikes on Tehran. Demonstrators were seen in Lagos, Kano, Niger, Sokoto, Gombe and Kaduna states condemning the joint military action by the…

The United States Embassy  in Abuja has issued a fresh security alert to American citizens in Nigeria, warning of a possible protest in Abuja amid rising tensions linked to the ongoing US/Israel-Iran conflict. The advisory follows a global caution issued by the United States Government on Monday, urging citizens worldwide including those in Nigeria to exercise increased vigilance due to the escalating Middle East crisis. In a post shared on X on Wednesday, the embassy warned there is “a high potential for protests in Abuja today”. The mission noted that previous demonstrations of a similar nature have resulted in violent…

Iran has announced that slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei will be buried in the holy city of Mashhad, his birthplace and one of the country’s most sacred destinations. The 86-year-old, who led the Islamic Republic for 36 years, was killed during a wave of US-Israeli attacks on Saturday, according to Iranian state-linked media. The Fars news agency reported on Tuesday that Khamenei will be laid to rest in Mashhad, Iran’s second-largest city, where his father is buried at the revered Imam Reza shrine. Before the burial, authorities will hold a “large farewell ceremony” in Tehran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps…

The University of Calabar (UNICAL) has suspended nine students over examination malpractice and the forgery of results. In a statement on Tuesday, Chukwuka Icha, the university registrar, said the decision to suspend the students was reached at the 252nd Senate meeting, following reports presented by the ad hoc Senate Committee on Examination Malpractice and the Senate Students’ Disciplinary Committee. According to him, while five students were suspended for examination malpractice, the other four were found to have submitted forged results to the university. “After reviewing the reports and recommendations of the committees, the management resolved that the affected students should…

A 200-level medical student of the University of Ibadan (UI), Ifeoluwa Wisdom Akinmade, has died after reportedly ingesting a harmful substance suspected to be Sniper. The death was announced on Monday by the University of Ibadan Medical Students Association (UIMSA) in a statement signed by its president, Folusho Olu-Adegbola, and general secretary, Babatunde Dauda. “It is with deep sorrow and heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our brother and colleague,” the association said, urging students to keep his family and loved ones in their prayers. According to reports circulating on X, including a post by Ibadan-based influencer Hon.…

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has confirmed the UK is deploying helicopters equipped with counter-drone systems to Cyprus following a conversation with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides. The UK will also send the HMS Dragon, one of the Royal Navy’s six Type 45 air defence destroyers, to the Eastern Mediterranean. The announcement follows a suspected Iranian drone attack on a British airbase in Cyprus, which the Ministry of Defence described as causing “minimal” damage. Monday’s incident came shortly after Starmer pledged UK support to the United States in its conflict with Iran, despite initial concerns over international law. Starmer stated, “The…