World

Comedian Volodymyr Zelensky sworn in as Ukrainian president

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 13 0

Comedian Volodymyr Zelensky has been sworn in as Ukraine’s new president at a ceremony in the capital Kiev. In his inaugural speech, he said ending the conflict with Russian-backed rebels in the east would be his top priority. Mr Zelensky, who has no previous political experience, scored Read More

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Trump threatens ‘official end of Iran’ if it wants to fight

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 13 0

As tensions escalate between the U.S. and Iran, President Donald Trump warned the Islamic republic on Sunday that a fight would result in its demise. “If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran,” he wrote in an afternoon tweet. “Never threaten the United States again!” Trump’s statement comes just three […]Read More

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Zimbabwe dismisses concerns about ‘expired’ anti-retrovirals

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 17 0

Zimbabwean authorities have tried to allay fears that anti-retroviral drugs being dispensed by public health facilities six months after their expiry were harmful to users, state-linked newspaper The Herald has reported. This is after people living with HIV/Aids came forward to say that a consignment of the drugs, which initially expired in June 2018 and […]Read More

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Zuma and arms firm in bid to quash corruption case

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 27 0

South Africa’s former President Jacob Zuma and representatives of French arms company Thales are due to appear in court in an attempt to have all corruption charges against them dismissed. The allegations centre on a $2.5bn ($1.96bn ) deal to modernise South Africa’s defence forces in the late 1990s in which Mr Zuma is accused […]Read More

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Transgender woman shot, killed in US weeks after assault

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 14 0

A transgender woman has been fatally shot in Dallas, Texas, according to local police. Muhlaysia Booker, 23, was found dead on a street on Saturday morning, and police are investigating the case as “homicidal violence”. Police said it is unclear if her shooting was a hate crime or motivated by retaliation. Last month, Ms Booker […]Read More

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U.S. may scale back Huawei trade restrictions to help existing customers

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 16 0

The U.S. Commerce Department said on Friday it may soon scale back restrictions on Huawei Technologies after this week’s blacklisting would have made it nearly impossible for the Chinese company to service its existing customers. The Commerce Department, which had effectively halted Huawei’s ability to buy American-made parts and components, is considering issuing a Read More

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Brexit: Theresa May plans ‘bold offer’ to get support for deal

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 14 0

Theresa May has said a “new and improved” Brexit deal will be put to MPs when they vote on the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill in early June. Writing in the Sunday Times, Mrs May said the bill will be a “bold offer”. Extra protections for workers are expected to be among the proposals, with Mrs […]Read More

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Trump’s new immigration plan doesn’t make any sense

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 16 0

President Donald Trump unveiled his vision for a major reform to the legal immigration system Thursday, calling for the slashing of family-sponsored visas in favor of those for highly skilled and educated workers. The White House is betting that the idea of slowing family-based migration while raising the number of high-skilled migrants will unify the […]Read More

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Egypt explosion: Tourists on bus injured near Giza pyramids

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 12 0

An explosion targeting a tourist bus has injured at least 16 people near the Grand Egyptian Museum, next to the pyramids in Giza. South African tourists are among the injured. Most of those hurt suffered minor injuries, while three were treated in hospital, officials say. A device went off close to the museum fence as […]Read More

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Switzerland gun control: Voters back EU regulations

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 13 0

Voters in Switzerland have backed a tightening of gun laws to conform with European Union regulations. Almost 64% of voters in Sunday’s referendum supported tougher restrictions on semi-automatic and automatic weapons, final results show. Switzerland is not an EU member, but risked removal from the open-border Schengen Area if it had voted “no”. Nearly Read More

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Malawi’s president makes final plea for re-election in tight race

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 12 0

Malawi’s President Peter Mutharika made a last-ditch bid to win re-election on Saturday as candidates for next week’s hotly contested election wrapped up their campaigns at rival rallies across the country. Former law professor Mutharika, 78, is trying to secure a second five-year term in Malawi, a southern African country heavily dependent on foreign aid […]Read More

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Google suspends some business with Huawei after Trump blacklist – source

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 14 0

Alphabet Inc’s Google has suspended business with Huawei that requires the transfer of hardware and software products except those covered by open source licenses, a source close to the matter told Reuters on Sunday, in a blow to the Chinese technology company that the U.S. government has sought to blacklist around the world. Huawei Technologies […]Read More

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Snarling orange ‘Trump baby’ blimp to mock U.S. president in Britain, protesters say

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 15 0

A blimp depicting Donald Trump as a snarling, nappy-wearing orange baby will fly outside Britain’s parliament when the U.S. president makes a state visit next month if protesters can raise 30,000 pounds ($38,000) for advocacy groups. At the invitation of Queen Elizabeth, President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are due in Britain on June […]Read More

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China’s top diplomat calls for U.S. restraint on trade, Iran

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 14 0

China’s senior diplomat Wang Yi told U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday that recent U.S. words and actions had harmed the interests of China and its enterprises, and that Washington should show restraint, China’s foreign ministry said. Speaking to Pompeo by telephone, Wang said the United States should not go “too far” in […]Read More

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Rocket fired in Iraqi capital, no casualties

Kobina Nyame May 20, 2019 14 0

A rocket was fired in Iraqi capital Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone, which houses government buildings and foreign embassies, but caused no casualties, the Iraqi military said on Sunday. A blast was heard in central Baghdad on Sunday night, Reuters witnesses said and two Baghdad-based diplomatic sources also said they heard the blast. “A Katyusha rocket […]Read More

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Trump breaks silence amid Alabama abortion ban row

Kobina Nyame May 19, 2019 14 0

US President Donald Trump has outlined his “strongly pro-life” views on abortion amid controversy over strict new laws passed in several states. Mr Trump said he was against abortion except in cases of rape, incest or a “serious health risk” to the mother. His stance on what is a divisive election issue in the US […]Read More

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Bodies of ‘twins’ found in clean-up of Kenya river

Kobina Nyame May 19, 2019 21 0

Kenya’s authorities say the bodies of two babies, thought to be twins, have been found during a clean-up of a river in the capital, Nairobi. This is the eighth such discovery in recent months. Officials believe the bodies are being dumped in the city’s rivers as a result of abortions, which are illegal in most […]Read More

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Boeing admits flaw in 737 MAX simulator software

Kobina Nyame May 19, 2019 17 0

American aircraft manufacturer Boeing admitted that there were defects in its 737 MAX flight simulators’ software that is used to train pilots, following two deadly crashes involving the aircraft. The company said Saturday that the flight simulator software could not reproduce certain flight conditions such as those at the time of the Ethiopian Airlines crash […]Read More

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Deaths, ashes in wake of Ivory Coast ethnic violence

Kobina Nyame May 19, 2019 22 0

Nine people have died and at least 84 injured in Beoumi, a small town in central Côte d’Ivoire, following ethnic violence for three days this week between indigenous (Baoulé) and non-indigenous (Dioula or Malinké, northern nationals) populations. An altercation between a taxi driver (Malinke) and a commercial motorbike rider (Baule) on Wednesday turned into a […]Read More

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Prince William opens up about the loss of his mother

Kobina Nyame May 19, 2019 20 0

Prince William has opened up about the loss of his mother, Princess Diana, saying he felt “pain like no other” after her death in a car accident in 1997. Speaking in a BBC documentary about mental health, the Duke of Cambridge said British people — particularly men — should feel comfortable talking about mental health […]Read More

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DR Congo reports alarming increase in Ebola cases – IFRC

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 22 0

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has had an “alarming increase” in Ebola cases in recent weeks and the international community must urgently up its response, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said Thursday. “Despite some successes in containing the outbreak, there has been an alarming increase in new cases Read More

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Somalia’s Al Shabaab changes tactics, uses home-made explosives

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 25 0

A United Nations report has revealed that Somali Islamist insurgents are making their own explosives to mount more frequent and deadly attacks. The findings are a blow for internationally backed efforts to fight the al Shabaab insurgency, which has repeatedly carried out attacks in East Africa and launched dozens in Somalia this year despite a […]Read More

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Ohio State doctor abused at least 177 students; report finds

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 28 0

A longtime Ohio State University doctor sexually abused at least 177 students over the course of two decades, according to a year-long independent investigation released Friday. Dr. Richard Strauss served as a clinical and medical faculty member at the school from 1978 to 1998, which included a stint as the athletics team physician from 1981 […]Read More

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Austria minister Heinz-Christian Strache resigns amid video scandal

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 22 0

Austria’s Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache has resigned a day after secret video footage mired him in a corruption scandal. The video appeared to show Mr Strache discussing government contracts with an alleged Russian investor in return for campaign support. He also appeared to hint at a potentially illegal donation system for the far-right Freedom Party he Read More

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Syrian army ‘kills terrorists’ in Idlib countryside

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 21 0

The Syrian army is launching “intensive strikes on dens of Jabhat al-Nusra,” a group formerly affiliated with al Qaeda, in a village in southwestern Idlib province Sunday, Syrian state media is reporting. The escalation in violence in Syria’s last rebel-held province in recent weeks has prompted the displacement of more than 180,000 people in the […]Read More

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Florida mayor suggests putting immigrants up at Trump hotels

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 21 0

A Florida mayor suggested putting immigrants up in Donald Trump’s hotels after administration officials informed leaders they were planning to fly immigrants from the border to two Democratic counties in the state. “This is irresponsible policy. To bring hundreds of people here every week without providing the necessary resources to house and feed them is […]Read More

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Prince William opens up about mental health pressures

Kobina Nyame May 18, 2019 23 0

The Duke of Cambridge has said he felt “pain like no other pain” after the death of his mother, Princess Diana. Prince William made the disclosure in a BBC TV documentary about mental health. He said the “British stiff upper lip thing” had its place when times were hard, but people also needed “to relax […]Read More

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Insecurity: Atiku ‘schools’ Buhari govt on how to end killings

Ama Serwaa May 17, 2019 15 0

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, 2019 presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has reacted to the killing of 20 people in Katsina State by unknown gunmen. About 20 people at three villages in Kankara Local Government Area of Katsina State were killed by the unknown gunmen on Tuesday. Reacting to the incident, Abubakar called on the Federal […]Read More

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International cyber-crime gang busted

Kobina Nyame May 17, 2019 27 0

An international crime gang which used malware to steal $100m (£77m) from more than 40,000 victims has been dismantled. A complex police operation conducted investigations in the US, Bulgaria, Germany, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. The gang infected computers with GozNym malware, which captured online banking details to access bank accounts. The gang was put together […]Read More

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South African president promises to embark on economic reforms

Kobina Nyame May 17, 2019 32 0

President Cyril Ramaphosa has pledged that his government will focus on economic reforms in order to unlock the economic potentials and create jobs in South Africa. In a discussion with Goldman Sachs for Sub Saharan Africa CEO Colin Coleman on Wednesday in Johannesburg, Ramaphosa said fixing the economy first would solve other pressing problems. “The […]Read More