Author: Opalim Lifted

The US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has officially been terminated, 18 months after its creation. President Donald Trump appointed Elon Musk, the American billionaire and founder of Tesla Inc., in November 2024 to lead DOGE, an initiative created to improve efficiency and cut costs within the US government. At the time, Trump was the president-elect. After assuming office in January 2025, Trump signed an executive order formally establishing DOGE. The initiative was slated to expire on July 4, 2026. Under Musk, DOGE launched sweeping efforts to reduce the federal workforce and overhaul agencies, including United States Agency for International…

Iranian leaders joined prayers on Sunday over the casket of the late Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, during a second day of funeral ceremonies, but his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, was conspicuously absent. The elder Khamenei ruled the Islamic Republic from 1989 until he was killed, aged 86, in an airstrike on the first day of the US-Israeli war with Iran on February 28. Officials, including President Masoud Pezeshkian and Revolutionary Guards chief Ahmad Vahidi, joined Sunday’s ceremonies, along with huge crowds paying their final respects in Tehran. However, Mojtaba has not appeared in public since his appointment in early…

England produced their best display of the World Cup amid the passion and emotion of the Azteca Stadium to secure a dramatic victory over Mexico and set up a quarter-final against Norway. On a night of sheer sporting theatre, with the game delayed by an hour because of severe storms, Thomas Tuchel’s side even survived Jarell Quansah’s red card early in the second half to record one of their finest wins in recent years. Mexico had lost only two of 89 competitive games at their Azteca fortress, but England’s cool approach early on allowed them to take command when the…

Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, Waidi Shaibu, says troops are making “tremendous progress” in efforts to rescue the 39 schoolchildren and seven teachers abducted in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State. Speaking during an interactive session with media executives in Port Harcourt as part of activities marking the 2026 Nigerian Army Day, Shaibu said military operations to secure the victims’ release are ongoing. The victims were kidnapped on May 15 when armed men attacked three schools in Oriire LGA, abducting 39 pupils and seven teachers, including the principal of one of the affected schools. The incident shocked the country…

An official in the US White House asked Gianni Infantino, FIFA president, to review Folarin Balogun’s red card ban, the Associated Press has reported. According to the report, a person familiar with the development said that a high-ranking US official called Infantino about the matter. The source, however, did not share who specifically made the call and when. The revelation comes a few hours after FIFA announced an unprecedented decision to suspend Balogun’s one-match ban for one year. Balogun was sent off in the 64th minute of the round-of-32 match between the US and Bosnia & Herzegovina for a dangerous…

Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal has reiterated that his administration will not negotiate with bandits, insisting that criminal groups must either surrender or face the full weight of the law. Represented by his Chief of Staff, Mukhtar Musa, the governor made the declaration on Sunday during the inauguration of the secretariat of the Association of Zamfara State Indigenes Residing in Kaduna. “The governor will never negotiate with bandits. Those willing to surrender should do so or face the law,” Musa said. Lawal said his administration would continue supporting military operations by providing logistics, equipment, ammunition and other operational assistance to…

Erling Haaland’s second-half double helped Norway stun five-time winners Brazil and book their place in the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time. Brazil were left to rue Bruno Guimaraes’ missed penalty in the first half as Haaland, who had a quiet game until that moment, stole ahead of centre-back Gabriel to meet a cross from Andreas Schjelderup and put Norway ahead in the 79th minute. The Manchester City striker then sealed Norway’s progress with a superb low drive from outside the box in the 90th minute. Brazil were awarded a second penalty in the dying seconds of…

China has released Jin Mingri, pastor and founder of Zion Church, from prison after nearly nine months. Mingri’s case was raised by US President Donald Trump during his state visit to China in May. Trump said he discussed the pastor’s imprisonment with Chinese President Xi Jinping and asked him to reconsider the case. The US president also sought clemency for Jimmy Lai, the imprisoned Hong Kong democracy activist. “I think he’s giving very serious consideration to the pastor,” Trump said on his way back from Beijing, referring to Mingri, but added that Lai’s case would be more difficult. ChinaAid, a…

The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has renewed his call for President Bola Tinubu to resign, citing the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) claim that Nigeria failed to include about ₦8.83 trillion in public spending in its 2025 budget. The renewed demand follows comments by Christian Ebeke, the IMF’s resident representative in Nigeria, who said the unrecorded expenditure amounts to about two per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). According to the IMF, the omission makes Nigeria’s fiscal deficit appear smaller than its actual borrowing requirements. In a statement issued on Sunday, Obi described…

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s claim that Nigeria excluded public spending equivalent to two percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) from recent national budgets. In a statement on Saturday, Atiku said that with Nigeria’s economy estimated at about ₦441.5 trillion, the two percent gap represents roughly ₦8.8 trillion spent outside the official budget process. His comments followed remarks by Christian Ebeke, the IMF’s resident representative in Nigeria, who said the discrepancy makes…