World

Trump-Russia: Special counsel Robert Mueller delivers report

Kobina Nyame March 23, 2019 15 0

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has submitted his long-awaited report on alleged collusion between Russia and President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. The Attorney General William Barr will now summarise the report and decide how much to share with Congress. A justice department official Read More

World

One more to go: AU celebrates Ethiopia’s ratification of AfCFTA

Kobina Nyame March 23, 2019 7 0

Ethiopia’s parliament on Thursday approved the membership of the country into the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), bringing the number of ratifications across the continent to 21. The African Union Commissioner for Trade and Industry, Albert Muchanga took to Twitter to celebrate the news, describing the decision as timely and historic. ‘‘One more Read More

World

Brazilian ex-president arrested in corruption probe

Kobina Nyame March 23, 2019 8 0

Former Brazilian President Michel Temer has been arrested in São Paulo as part of a massive corruption investigation. Mr Temer, a 78-year-old lawyer who was in office from 2016 to 2018, is being investigated in several cases. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing. His arrest was considered imminent after he lost his legal protection when […]Read More

World

Two US soldiers killed in Afghanistan

Kobina Nyame March 23, 2019 6 0

Two US service members have been killed while serving in Afghanistan, Nato says. They were killed on Friday but the names of the victims will be withheld until 24 hours after their families have been notified. The deaths bring the number of US service members killed in Afghanistan this year to four. It comes amid […]Read More

World

Trump North Korea sanctions tweet sparks confusion

Kobina Nyame March 23, 2019 8 0

US President Donald Trump has not ordered the withdrawal of recently imposed sanctions against North Korea, administration officials say. Mr Trump caused confusion on Friday when he tweeted that “additional large-scale sanctions” would be withdrawn. It was thought he was referring to the treasury’s move to blacklist two China-based shipping companies Read More

World

Celebrating Chinua Achebe, the “Father of modern African Literature”

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 29 0

Before he came to be given the informal title “Father of modern African Literature,” Chinua Achebe grew around stories: stories told in and around his home and later in school. It was such stories that opened him up to worlds he did not know – those he described as ethereal and remote. The same stories […]Read More

World

Millions of Facebook passwords exposed internally

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 19 0

The passwords of millions of Facebook users were accessible by up to 20,000 employees of the social network, it has been reported. Security researcher Brian Krebs broke the news about data protection failures, which saw up to 600 million passwords stored in plain text. The passwords that were exposed could date back to 2012, he […]Read More

World

Connecticut woman sues Harvard for ‘profiting’ from images of her enslaved relatives

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 16 0

A Connecticut woman has sued Harvard University for allegedly making money out of early images of African slaves who she claims are her ancestors. Tamara Lanier, who filed a lawsuit Wednesday in Massachusetts, claims that the images, which were taken in 1850, depict an African man called Renty, who was her great-great-great-grandfather, and his daughter […]Read More

World

Top Guaido aide detained in Venezuela

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 17 0

Venezuelan intelligence agents have detained a senior aide to opposition leader Juan Guaidó after a raid on his Caracas home. Mr Guaidó has demanded the immediate release of his chief of staff Roberto Marrero, whose whereabouts are unknown. The nearby home of opposition legislator Sergio Vergara was also raided. He was briefly detained. The operation […]Read More

World

Brexit: Departure date pushed back by at least two weeks

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 16 0

Theresa May has been granted an extra two weeks to come up with a Brexit solution after talks with EU leaders. The UK’s departure date had originally been set for 29 March. If Mrs May can get her withdrawal deal through Parliament next week, that date will be pushed back to 22 May to give […]Read More

World

Ethiopian plane crash site is called ‘Bad Luck’

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 23 0

The people who live near the crash site of Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 have been mourning for the 157 victims of the crash. They were the first to arrive at the scene on the morning of 10 March and saw how the plane nose-dived to the ground. But there is something which went largely unnoticed […]Read More

World

France to return African treasures to Benin

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 22 0

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday agreed to return 26 cultural artefacts to Benin “without delay”, a move that could put pressure on other former colonial powers to return African artworks to their countries of origin. The decision — which Macron said should not be seen as an isolated or symbolic case — came as […]Read More

World

Syria condemns Donald Trump’s Golan remarks

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 22 0

Syria has condemned as “irresponsible” US President Donald Trump’s comments that it was time to recognise Israel’s sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights. A statement published by the Syrian state news agency said it showed the “blind bias” of the US towards Israel. It said Syria was determined to recover the area “through all Read More

World

New Zealand falls silent for mosque victims

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 12 0

New Zealand has broadcast the Islamic call to prayer and observed a two-minute silence in ceremonies to mark a week since the Christchurch attacks. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern joined thousands of mourners near the Al-Noor mosque, one of two places of worship targeted in last Friday’s shootings. Addressing the Muslim community she said: “New Zealand […]Read More

World

Nicaragua agrees to free all opposition prisoners

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 14 0

The Nicaraguan government has agreed to release all opposition prisoners within 90 days in a bid to restart stalled peace talks. Mediators said the government would free more than 700 people detained since anti-government rallies began last April. A crackdown on the protests has left more than 300 people dead. The agreement also called for […]Read More

World

Alesha killer finally admits rape and murder

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 11 0

The 16-year-old schoolboy convicted of the murder of Alesha MacPhail has finally admitted his crime. During his trial, Aaron Campbell had repeatedly denied he abducted, raped and killed the six-year-old on the Isle of Bute last July. However, his lawyer told the High Court in Glasgow ahead of sentencing that Campbell had admitted the crimes. […]Read More

World

Woman walks two hours to donate to cyclone victims

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 11 0

People in Zimbabwe’s capital Harare have been donating food, clothes and other household essentials to victims of Cyclone Idai at the Presbyterian church. One of the volunteers at the church, Natalie Detering, told the BBC she was taken aback as a woman turned up just before 07:00 local time, having walked for roughly two hours […]Read More

World

Cyclone Idai: 15,000 people still need to be rescued

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 12 0

Some 15,000 people still need to be rescued from the devastation caused by Cyclone Idai, Mozambique officials say. The cyclone victims there are stranded by catastrophic flooding and are clinging to roofs or stuck in trees, charities say. In the port city of Beira, aid workers say there are only two to three days of […]Read More

World

China chemical blast death toll rises to 47

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 11 0

The death toll in a huge blast at a chemical plant in eastern China has jumped to 47, with 90 injured, according to state news agency Xinhua. The powerful explosion followed a fire at the factory which produces fertiliser. China’s earthquake administration reported a tremor equivalent to 2.2-magnitude at the time of the blast. The […]Read More

World

Obama calls for solidarity towards victims of Cyclone Idai

Kobina Nyame March 22, 2019 14 0

Former United States president Barack Obama on Wednesday called upon Americans and citizens of the world to help families affected by the floods in the Midwest of the country, and Cyclone Idai in Southern Africa. In two tweets shared on his official Twitter account, Obama shared articles showing different ways in which to help the […]Read More

World

Burundi detains girls for scribbling on president’s photo

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 14 0

Three schoolgirls in Burundi risk being jailed for five years for scribbling on President Pierre Nkurunziza’s photo in their textbooks, says campaign group Human Rights Watch (HRW). HRW said the three were arrested last week and are awaiting trial after being charged on Monday with insulting the head of state. The agency also said the […]Read More

World

Egypt sues novelist for insulting state

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 23 0

The bestselling author Alaa Al Aswany has said he is being sued by military prosecutors in Egypt for insulting the President, armed forces and judiciary. Aswany, who lives in the US, said the lawsuit was connected to his last novel – The Republic, As If – and columns he had written for Deutsche Welle Arabic. […]Read More

World

Christchurch mosque shootings: New Zealand to ban military style weapons

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 21 0

New Zealand will ban all types of semi-automatic weapons and assault rifles following the Christchurch attacks, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said. The announcement comes less than a week after 50 people were killed at two mosques, allegedly by a lone gunman. Ms Ardern said she expected new legislation to be in place by 11 […]Read More

World

Mozambique cyclone deaths hit 217 over 3,000 rescued – Minister

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 19 0

Mozambique’s Minister of Land and Environment has given updated figures arising from the deadly cyclone Idai that ravaged the southern African country late last week. According to the minister, the official death toll stood at 217, a figure significantly lower than a projection by president Filipe Nyusi who told state media earlier this week, that […]Read More

World

US Air Force deploys B-52 bombers to Europe in message to Russia

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 21 0

The US Air Force recently deployed six nuclear-capable B-52 bombers to Europe for “theater integration and flying training” exercises with regional allies and NATO partners — a move viewed as sending a strong message to Russia, which is celebrating the five-year anniversary of its military annexation of Crimea. A bomber task force of B-52 Read More

World

Brexit: Theresa May at Brussels EU summit to urge short delay

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 20 0

Theresa May will make a direct plea to EU leaders later asking to postpone Brexit for three months, hours after telling the British public a delay was “a matter of great personal regret”. At an EU summit in Brussels, she will try to persuade the other 27 countries to delay the UK’s exit beyond 29 […]Read More

World

Cyclone Idai: ‘15,000 people still need to be rescued’

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 14 0

Some 15,000 people still need to be rescued from the devastation caused by Cyclone Idai, Mozambique officials say. The cyclone victims there are stranded by catastrophic flooding and are clinging to roofs or stuck in trees, charities say. In the port city of Beira, aid workers say there is only two to three days of […]Read More

World

UK returns Ethiopian emperor’s hair

Kobina Nyame March 21, 2019 22 0

The British National Army Museum has returned to the Ethiopian government the hair locks of Emperor Tewodros II – more than 150 years after they were taken during the invasion of the African state. Ethiopians sang and danced as the two pieces of hair were handed over to Culture and Tourism Minister Hirut Weldemariam at […]Read More

World

May in Brussels to urge short Brexit delay

Steve Darko March 21, 2019 16 0

Theresa May will make a direct plea to EU leaders later asking to postpone Brexit for three months, hours after telling the British public a delay was “a matter of great personal regret”. At an EU summit in Brussels, she will try to persuade the other 27 countries to delay the UK’s exit beyond 29 […]Read More

Entertainment World

R. Kelly asks judge for permission to play Dubai concerts

Steve Darko March 21, 2019 25 0

R&B star R. Kelly has asked a US court to let him travel to Dubai to perform concerts next month. According to a motion filed in Cook County Circuit Court, Mr Kelly also plans to meet members of the United Arab Emirates’ royal family. The embattled singer faces 10 charges of sexual abuse involving four […]Read More