Author: Opalim Lifted

The United Kingdom (UK) has imposed fresh sanctions on Russian-linked networks accused of recruiting Africans and Middle Easterners, including Nigerians, to fight in the war in Ukraine. In a statement released by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, the UK government said 35 individuals and entities had been sanctioned over activities linked to Russia’s military operations and drone production. Among those sanctioned is Polina Alexandrovna Azarnykh, who the UK said was backed by the Russian state and involved in facilitating the movement of recruits from countries such as Nigeria, Egypt, Iraq, Morocco, Syria and Yemen into Russia before deployment to…

Colombian pop star Shakira has unveiled her official song for the 2026 World Cup. The 49-year-old, behind hits such as Whenever, Wherever and Hips Don’t Lie, teased Dai Dai on Thursday as the anthem for this summer’s tournament in the US, Mexico and Canada. Shakira posted a one-minute video on Instagram from Brazil’s Maracana stadium to tease the track that is out on 14 May and also features Nigerian singer Burna Boy. It marks Shakira’s second official World Cup anthem after Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) for the 2010 tournament in South Africa. She also had the second theme…

Freiburg are through to their first European final after beating 10-man Braga in Thursday’s Europa League semi-final second leg. Leading 2-1 from the first leg, the visitors were reduced to 10 men when Mario Dorgeles – scorer of Braga’s last-gasp winner in Portugal – was shown a straight red card for a professional foul on Jan-Niklas Beste. Freiburg soon made their numerical advantage count, taking the lead on the night when Jean-Baptiste Gorby’s attempted clearance rebounded off Lukas Kubler’s knee before trickling over the line via the inside of the far post. The opening goal may have been slightly fortuitous,…

Crystal Palace created club history as they defeated Shakhtar Donetsk in the Conference League semi-finals to move into their first ever European final. The Eagles led 3-1 after the first leg a week ago in Poland, and thought they had stretched their advantage when Yeremy Pino raced through and slotted a calm finish into the net. However, the winger was ruled offside following an extremely tight offside decision when he collected Jean-Philippe Mateta’s flick-on. But, at a raucous Selhurst Park for the second-leg tie, Palace took the lead in the 25th minute. Adam Wharton’s powerful 25-yard strike was pushed away…

Aston Villa demolished Nottingham Forest’s hopes to charge into the Europa League final and edge closer to ending a 30-year major trophy drought. John McGinn’s late double added to Emi Buendia’s penalty and Ollie Watkins’ opener to complete Villa’s comeback against Nottingham Forest after last week’s 1-0 first-leg defeat. The hosts booked a final against Bundesliga side Freiburg, who beat Braga 4-3 on aggregate, in Istanbul on 20 May. Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery is chasing his fifth Europa League title, having joined the club as a serial winner of this competition. His team will be looking to lift…

Nigeria is rapidly becoming a major centre for humanitarian response operations as insecurity, violent conflicts and mass displacement continue to worsen across the country, the Nigerian Red Cross Society has said. Speaking during the World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day activities in Abuja, the National President of the organisation, Oluyemisi Adeaga, disclosed that about 3.7 million Nigerians have been displaced due to rising insecurity and violent clashes across different parts of the country. Adeaga warned that the growing humanitarian emergencies are stretching the organisation’s capacity, as the number of vulnerable people in need continues to rise without corresponding increases…

China has sentenced two former defence ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, to death with a two-year reprieve over separate corruption convictions. The sentences were handed down on Thursday by a military court in Beijing after investigations that lasted nearly two years. Under Chinese law, a death sentence with a two-year reprieve is reserved for some of the country’s most serious offences, including major corruption and violent crimes. In most cases, the sentence is later commuted to life imprisonment if the convicted person does not commit further offences during the reprieve period. According to the court ruling, both Wei and…

The World Health Organization (WHO) has assured the public that the hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius is not the start of another global pandemic. Speaking during a press briefing on Thursday, WHO officials stressed that hantavirus spreads very differently from COVID-19 and currently presents a low global public health risk. Maria Van Kerkhove said the situation should not be compared to the coronavirus outbreak. “I want to be unequivocal here. This is not SARS-CoV-2. This is not the start of a Covid pandemic. This is an outbreak that we see on a ship,” she said. Van Kerkhove explained…

A renewed violent clash has broken out between residents of Ishi and Itale communities in Ibaji Local Government Area of Kogi State, leaving an undisclosed number of people feared dead and several houses destroyed. The latest violence, which reportedly began on Wednesday afternoon, lasted for about 24 hours before security operatives from the anti-riot squad attached to the Idah Area Command intervened. The two communities have been locked in a long-running dispute over farmland and fishing ponds, with repeated attempts at peace failing to end the conflict. Sources said the apex Igala socio-cultural group, Ukomu Igala, had earlier mediated between…

Joseph Tegbe, minister of power has dismissed reports claiming he promised to fix Nigeria’s troubled national power grid within three months. In a statement issued on Thursday, his spokesperson, Adeola Adelabu, described the reports as inaccurate and misleading. According to the statement, Tegbe never made such a commitment during his Senate screening on May 6, 2026. The clarification followed widespread reports suggesting the minister pledged to completely resolve the country’s long-standing grid instability within three months of taking office. Adelabu said Tegbe had instead explained that timelines for reforms in the power sector were still being developed and would depend…