Author: Elizabeth Jenrola Oso

Pete Hegseth, the United States defence secretary, has reportedly halted a crucial shipment of military aid to Ukraine, citing unsubstantiated fears that America’s weapons stockpiles have become dangerously depleted. The aid package, which included air defence missiles and precision munitions, had been pledged during Joe Biden’s presidency to support Ukraine’s resistance against Russia’s full-scale invasion, launched in 2022. The Pentagon’s sudden reversal, however, has sparked widespread concern and confusion among US allies and members of Congress. According to a report by NBC, the decision to suspend the shipment was made unilaterally by Hegseth, a former Fox News weekend host and…

World leaders from India, the United States and Taiwan paid tribute on Sunday to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, as he marked his 90th birthday, a milestone that casts a renewed spotlight on the future of Tibet and rising tensions with China. The revered figure, who calls himself a “simple Buddhist monk”, celebrated the occasion in India, where he has lived since 1959 after fleeing Tibet during a failed uprising against Chinese rule. Thousands of Tibetans followed him into exile, and today he remains the symbolic heart of the Tibetan struggle for cultural and religious autonomy. Tibetans…

In a striking shift that raises questions about the ideological direction of BRICS, neither Russia’s President Vladimir Putin nor China’s President Xi Jinping will attend the upcoming summit in Brazil, set to begin on Sunday. This marks a rare absence for both leaders, who have historically been staunch advocates of the bloc once seen as the developing world’s alternative to the G7. Xi, 72, has been a fixture at BRICS summits for over a decade. This year, however, he will be replaced by Premier Li Qiang, with Chinese officials citing scheduling conflicts as the reason, though no further explanation has…

The Home Office has announced a “nationwide blitz” targeting asylum seekers who are working illegally, following political uproar over reports that some individuals living in asylum hotels have been delivering food for major gig economy platforms. In a statement issued on Monday, the department said it would launch “a major operation to disrupt this type of criminality”, focusing on enforcement across the gig economy, particularly among delivery riders. The move comes amid rising concern from ministers over the use of shared or borrowed accounts to sidestep work restrictions placed on asylum seekers awaiting decisions on their claims. “Strategic, intel-driven activity…

³Donald Trump has announced that discussions with China over a possible deal involving TikTok are set to begin on Monday or Tuesday, stating that the United States “pretty much” has a deal in place for the sale of the popular short-video app. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday, the US president said, “I think we’re gonna start Monday or Tuesday … talking to China, perhaps President Xi or one of his representatives – but we pretty much have a deal.” Trump added that he and Xi Jinping had recently invited each other for state visits, saying he…

Hamas has said it responded on Friday “in a positive spirit” to a US-brokered ceasefire proposal for Gaza and expressed readiness to enter fresh talks on implementing the deal, which includes the release of hostages and the beginning of negotiations toward a permanent end to the nearly 21-month conflict with Israel. The announcement followed President Donald Trump’s unveiling of what he described as a “final proposal” for a 60-day ceasefire. The plan, revealed earlier this week, outlines conditions under which hostilities would temporarily halt, with an aim to lay the groundwork for a lasting resolution. In a statement posted on…

More than 20 people, including nine police officers and a firefighter, were injured on Friday morning following a massive explosion at a petrol station in the Prenestino district of eastern Rome

Ukraine has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of “publicly humiliating” Donald Trump after Russia launched a record-breaking overnight missile and drone assault on Kyiv, just hours after a phone call between the two leaders. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the seven-hour attack as a “deliberate act of terror” that offered a chilling glimpse into “how Moscow interprets diplomacy”. The timing, he said, made it clear that the strike was a direct response to the Trump-Putin conversation. The assault was one of the most intense of the entire war, involving more than 550 drones and ballistic missiles. The Ukrainian capital spent the…

The executive director of UNAids has issued a grave warning that HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths are set to soar in the coming years following what she describes as “seismic” cuts to US aid spending. Winnie Byanyima, head of the global agency tackling HIV and AIDS, said in an interview at the UN international development summit in Seville that if the funding loss becomes permanent, the world could face an additional 6 million HIV infections and 4 million AIDS-related deaths by 2029. “This is a deadly funding crisis, a global response knocked off course,” said Byanyima. “This is a pandemic,…

The U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for the Trump administration to deport eight men, most of whom have no connection to South Sudan, to the war-ravaged African nation, despite warnings they may face torture, persecution, or death upon arrival. The court’s decision, handed down Thursday, follows a contentious legal battle over whether immigrants can be deported to third countries with which they have no ties. The conservative majority ruled in favour of the administration, reversing a lower court’s order that required the government to give deportees a chance to express “reasonable fear” of danger before being removed. Only…