Author: Elizabeth Jenrola Oso

The death toll from attacks by a rebel group in Colombia’s Catatumbo region has risen to 60, the country’s human rights office has said. Rival factions have been vying for control of the cocaine trade in the region – which sits near the border with Venezuela – for years. The Ombudsman’s Office said the latest violence involved the National Liberation Army (ELN) – the largest armed group still active in Colombia – and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which signed a peace treaty with the state in 2016. The attacks broke an uneasy truce between the guerrilla groups,…

Since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, destruction and devastation in Gaza have been widespread. So has death: 45,000 people have been killed in this conflict, including more than 300 aid workers and more than 1,000 medical professionals, according to tallies by the United Nations, (UN). It has also been especially deadly for the people documenting it. At least 160 journalists, translators, fixers, and others who help with news gathering have been killed, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. It has been the deadliest period for reporters since the organization began keeping track in 1992, and the vast…

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have intercepted a 26-year-old nursing student attempting to smuggle 76 wraps of cocaine to India. The suspect, Esther Onyinyechi Uzodinma, a second-year nursing student at Noida International University in Uttar Pradesh, India, was apprehended just hours before her scheduled flight from Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, to Delhi. A statement issued by NDLEA’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi on Sunday, said the arrest took place on Thursday, 16th January 2025, following an intelligence-led operation. He said NDLEA operatives had earlier intercepted 31-year-old Cosmas Okorie along the Okene-Lokoja highway in Kogi State. Babafemi…

As the law banning TikTok in the United States (U.S.) came into force on Sunday, the app has suspended its operations throughout the country. President John Biden signed the bill into law in April 2024. According to global reports, the popular app has over 170 million monthly American users. The law bans new downloads from Apple’s App Store and the Google Play app store, and also makes it “unlawful” to update the app. This means existing users could keep the app on their phones, but it would never update. TikTok is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance. The law banning TikTok requires…

The Amai community in Ukwuani Local Government Area of Delta State was thrown into deep grief and fear as a 70-year-old man, Mr Aghanti, and his daughter, 50, Mrs Atagoshi, were reportedly beheaded over a land dispute. The gruesome incident occurred after the suspect allegedly lured the victims into the bush under the pretext of discussing the land issue. Their headless bodies were later discovered in the bush. According to PUNCH, the woman, a secondary school teacher, had earlier purchased a piece of land in the community, which some individuals subsequently claimed. Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer…

A woman was arrested after doing a nude photoshoot on a popular seaside sculpture in Mexico. Olga Larrea was seen in video footage stepping on the base of the La Perla sculpture in the city of La Paz on Friday, Jan. 17, and quickly removing her dress as a photographer prepared to take snaps. The 30-year-old then hurled her dress at the photographer and climbed atop the monument. She posed on the sculpture as traffic along the two-lane avenue next to the boardwalk slowed and bystanders looked on in shock. Larrea then signalled to her photographer to hand her her…

Canadian businessman and investor, Kevin O’Leary, has offered TikTok’s owners $20 billion in cash to buy the platform. Recall a bipartisan bill, which President Biden signed, called ”TikTok a threat to national security” and forced ByteDance, the platform’s Chinese parent company to divest from the platform or sell it in order for TikTok to remain in American app stores. ByteDance’s deadline is Sunday. The Supreme Court ruled Friday on TikTok’s challenge to the law, upholding the ban. During a Friday appearance on Fox News’s “America’s Newsroom,” O’Leary made note of the fines that could be in store for any provider…

Legendary Fuji musician, Wasiu Ayinde, fondly called Kwam 1, has lost his mother, Alimotu Shodiya Anifowoshe. She was aged 105. Mama Anifowoshe passed away in the early hours of Saturday in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State. The old woman’s passing comes just four days after the death of the former wife of the famous musician, Hafsat Anifowoshe, who passed away at age 65 after battling an undisclosed illness. The death of the singer’s mother was announced via an Instagram post on his media page. “With heavy hearts, we announced the passing of King Ayinde’s beloved mother. May her soul rest in…

Mrs. Edna Ibru (née Park), the former First Lady of Delta State and Miss Nigeria 1964, has passed away at the age of 80. She died on Wednesday in a London hospital after a brief illness. Edna, who was the first Nigerian and African to represent Nigeria at the Miss Universe competition, was the wife of Olorogun Felix Ibru, the first civilian Governor of Delta State from 1991 to 1992. The Ibru family, hailing from Agbarha-Otor Kingdom in Delta State, confirmed her death in a statement issued by her son, Dr. Paul Ibru, which was shared with journalists in Warri…

Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi, has successfully undergone eye surgery at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), receiving widespread commendation for promoting the quality of healthcare available in public institutions. Sharing his experience on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, Abayomi expressed gratitude to the medical team, led by Prof. Bola Adekoya and Dr. Rosemary Ngwu for their expertise in conducting the oculoplastic procedure. He described the surgery as painless and praised the professionalism of the LASUTH Eye Department. The post read, “Huge thanks to the incredible oculoplastic surgeons in the Eye Department, especially Prof. Mrs. Bola…