A Russian warship fires during celebrations for Navy Day in the Black Sea port of Sevastopol, Crimea, July 26, 2015. (Reuters)
Russian warship and a submarine have fired four cruise missiles from the Mediterranean to hit ISIS manpower and equipment near the Syrian city of Palmyra, Russian news agencies cited the Defense Ministry as saying on Wednesday. Russia had warned the United States, Turkey and Israel before launching the missiles, the ministry was quoted as saying.
The Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu
The Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, says the demand for the secession of the South East from Nigeria is because the nation seems not to be functioning and can never function. Kanu said this in an interview with Al-Jazeerah ,to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Biafran war yesterday May 30th.
Speaking in the living room at his Father's house in Umuahia, Abia state, Kanu said Nothing seems to be working in Nigeria. There is pain and hardship everywhere. What we're fighting [for] is not self-determination for the sake of it. It's because Nigeria is not functioning and can never function." " Kanu who was granted bail last month, says he doesn't care if he is flouting one of the terms for his bail which prohibits him from granting media interviews.
"I don't care. I can't go outside to call for a press conference. I can't go on Biafra Radio to broadcast. I can't allow large [groups of] people to basically congregate outside to see me … it's like asking me not to breathe," he said
Kanu decried the perceived marginalization of the Ibos in Nigeria, saying that they have been prevented from aspiring to assume important positions in the country such as President, Inspector General of Police, Chief of Army Staff amongst others
"I'm not allowed to contest for the presidency of Nigeria because I'm Igbo. I'm not allowed to aspire to become the inspector general of police because I'm Igbo. I'm not allowed to become chief of army staff because I'm Igbo. What sort of stupid country is that? Why would any idiot want me to be in that sort of country?" he said.
Gal Gadot, she's an Israeli who served in the Israeli military
A security official said a formal request for a ban has not yet been received. A ban would require a recommendation from a six-member committee from the Ministry of Economy, a process that has not yet began, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporter.
The premiere of Wonder Woman is scheduled for Wednesday in at least one cinema in Beirut. Posters of the movie and digital billboards have sprouted up around the Lebanese capital.
Lebanon is officially at war with Israel and has a decades-old law that boycotts Israeli products and bars Lebanese citizens from traveling or having contacts with Israelis. The two countries have been through a number of wars, including a particularly devastating one in 2006 that battered Lebanon's infrastructure and left hundreds dead.
A group called Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel-Lebanon has pressed an effort against the movie. On its Facebook page, the campaign said Gadot was a soldier in the Israeli army and has expressed support for Israel's military policies against the Gaza Strip, a coastal Palestinian territory run by the militant group Hamas.
"The state took the right decision," Samah Idriss, a member of the boycott campaign told The Associated Press. "We now await the implementation. ... Even if it is one hour before the show, they should ban it anyway"
This happened on Tuesday afternoon around the Gbagada axis of Lagos State, the kidnapper was caught when he tried to kidnapped a baby and the baby's Grandma.
According to an eye witness to spoke to LIB, 'the mother of the little baby just parked, left the Granny and baby in the car so she could use a nearby ATM.
She left the car engine on and before she returned the kidnapper entered the car and was drove off'.
An eye witness said, 'thank God for this soldier guy that just chased him down with a motorbike and it was really rough. The car somersaulted and the baby and grandma were both rescued with little injuries'.
The kidnapper has since been handed over to the Police.
"Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light" (Amos 5:18).
The judgment of God upon sinners is imminent. It is going to be a day of catastrophe and calamity, gloom and misery, desolation and astonishment and indeed, a day of a lamentation and confusion. It is a day that no sinner would wish to pass through. This day of outpouring of God’s fury, indignation and wrath upon the world is referred to as the day of the Lord in the Scripture. The day of the Lord as depicted in the text will be the time when the Lord will make the day dark, dismal, and gloomy upon all impenitent sinners and backsliders. A sinner who escapes one calamity will be pursued and overtaken by another. The people of Israel copied the crimes and iniquities of their forefathers by going into idolatry. God frowns at hypocrisy as well as the pretence of piety. God could not be bribed with music or offerings. For the sin and impenitence of Israel, the nation will grieve. Weeping will be heard throughout the land. Their situation will go from bad to worse. The day of the Lord will be for the nation, a day without a ray of hope. Their hypocritical offerings and melodious songs were rejected by God. For this reason, they would go into slavery in exile. Moreover, they would lose their pride and glory as they would go into captivity. To escape the fiery indignation of God on the judgment day, sinners need to repent of their evil ways, come to Christ through repentance, while backsliders should make their ways right with God. The Lord wants to see a river of righteous living flowing all over the land. Even so, He desires that His saints will "hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end".
A top White House communications staffer has resigned as President Donald Trump considers a major staff overhaul.
The departure of Michael Dubke, Trump's communications director, comes as aides say Trump has grown increasingly frustrated by allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and revelations of possible ties between his campaign and Moscow.
Trump tweeted Tuesday: "Russian officials must be laughing at the U.S. & how a lame excuse for why the Dems lost the election has taken over the Fake News."
Dubke wrote in a statement that it had been an honor to serve Trump and "my distinct pleasure to work side-by-side, day-by-day with the staff of the communications and press departments."
Dubke's last day has not yet been determined.
A Republican consultant, Dubke joined the White House team in February after campaign aide Jason Miller — Trump's original choice for communications director — withdrew from consideration. Dubke founded Crossroads Media, a GOP firm that specializes in political advertising.
Dubke is the latest White House staffer to leave this administration as scrutiny intensifies over contacts Trump staffers may have had with Russian government officials during the campaign and transition period.
White House counselor Kellyanne Conway told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Dubke resigned before Trump left for his international trip earlier this month, suggesting that his departure is not linked to any pending shake-ups.
But his departure raises questions about whether previous Trump loyalists are headed to the White House. Trump has entertained formally bringing back his former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie.
Bossie told Fox News' "Fox & Friends" that the Trump administration has reached out to him but hasn't offered him a job yet.
"They have talked to many people, including me," Bossie said. He later added: "It's an ongoing conversation and that's a fair way to put it."
In an interview on Fox News on Tuesday, Conway said Dubke "made very clear that he would see through the president's international trip, and come to work every day and work hard even through that trip because there was much to do here back at the White House."
Dubke's hiring was intended to lighten the load on Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, who had also been handling the duties of communications director during Trump's first month in office. Trump has privately pinned some of the blame for his administration's rough start on the White House's communications strategy.
While overseas, Trump's longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying investigations into Russian interference in the election and his associates' potential involvement. More attorneys with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts, to help the White House in the weeks ahead.
The latest revelations to emerge last week involved Trump's son-in-law and top aide, Jared Kushner. Shortly after the election, Kushner allegedly discussed setting up a secret communications channel with the Russian government to facilitate sensitive discussions about the conflict in Syria.
The intent was to connect Trump's chief national security adviser at the time, Michael Flynn, with Russian military leaders, a person familiar with the discussions told the AP. The person wasn't authorized to publicly discuss private policy deliberations and insisted on anonymity.
Flynn handed in his resignation in February after it was revealed he misled top White House officials about his contacts with Russian officials.
The disclosure of the back channel has put the White House on the defensive. Just back from his nine-day trip to the Middle East and Europe, Trump dismissed recent reports as "fake news."
Trump also has renewed his criticism of Germany following Chancellor Angela Merkel's suggestion that her country needs to adopt a more independent stance in world affairs.
Trump posted a tweet Tuesday saying "we have a MASSIVE trade deficit with Germany, plus they pay FAR LESS than they should on NATO & military. Very bad for U.S. This will change."
A military officer with the (5BN) at Burma Camp in Accra was on Monday, May 29th, lynched by residents of Denkyira Boaso of the Central region who mistook him for an armed robber.
Captain Maxwell Mahama who is commander of a military detachment in the area was jogging along the Denkyira Boaso-Diaso road when he asked some women for direction. He was not in a uniform.
The women reportedly called the Assembly man who organized the youths of the town to lynch him. They later burnt his body.
Meanwhile, Ghana Armed Forces have commenced investigations into the murder. The incident has sent heightened anxiety within the town after the perpetrators of the heinous crime realised the deceased was a military man on official duty.
The Armed Forces in a statement signed by the Director of Public Relations, Col. Aggrey-Quarshie said a fact-finding team led by the Chief of Army Staff is proceeding to the area to gather more information about the development.
"A high-powered fact-finding team led by the Chief of the Army Staff is proceeding to the scene of the incident to ascertain the facts of the case."
He said they were collaborating with the police and other security agencies to bring perpetrators to book.
“GAF is working closely with the police and other security agencies to unravel the full facts of the case.”
According to the Armed Forces, its “Initial report indicates the officer was lynched by locals of Denkyira-Obuasi in the Central Region whilst he was jogging at about 08.30 am on Monday 29 May 2017, under circumstances yet to be verified.”
"The officer was the detachment commander of our troops on operational duties in the general area."
The Armed Forces has also urged its personnel to remain calm as the due procedure is taken to bring the perpetrators to book. More photos below...
Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia buried a man neck-deep and stoned him to
death allegedly for cheating on his two wives. Dayow Mohamed Hassan,
44, was killed in the southern village of Ramo Adey in front of hundreds
of onlookers.
Moalim Geedow, the regional governor representing the al
Qaeda-linked insurgency, said Hassan was buried in a hole then pelted
with stones.
He said: 'The man was married with two wives and
children. He was publicly stoned to death today for committing adultery
according to the Islamic sharia. The man had a third woman who was a
divorcee. He did not have her according to sharia. He deceived her,
saying that he went to a sheikh and that he married her. However, when
the woman got pregnant, the two families debated and there was no trace
of valid matrimony. The court ruled he did not marry her legally and he
was stoned to death."
Since 2006, Al-Shabaab has been fighting a
violent insurgency in Somalia to overthrow the government and impose its
own strict interpretation of Islamic law. In recent years the terrorist
group has lost control of many towns and cities to a 22,000-strong
force of African Union peacekeepers. However, the group retains a
presence in many villages and remains capable of launching deadly
attacks.
This will not be the first time a man is being
partially buried and then stoned to death for adultery by Islamist
militants. In 2009, in the same Somalia, Mohamed Abukar Ibrahim, a
48-year-old, was buried in a hole up to his chest and pelted with rocks
until he died in Afgoye, some 20 miles south-west of the capital of
Mogadishu.
The Russian president also thanked Saudi Arabia for its role in cooperation between OPEC and the oil-producing countries. (Al Arabiya)
Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced, after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday, that Saudi Arabia and Russia have achieved a lot together and still have more to do.
Salman also stressed that “there are no contradictions between Riyadh and Moscow in the oil market.”
For his part, Putin said that his country is waiting for Saudi King Salman’s visit to Moscow. He also stressed the importance of the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Russia, saying that “energy agreements are of great importance to the two countries.”
The Russian president also thanked Saudi Arabia for its role in cooperation between OPEC and the oil-producing countries.
During a recent visit to Germany, Brazil legends Cafu and Lucio were accompanied by the FIFA Confederations Cup trophy, which will be up for grabs in Russia between 17 June and 2 July.
The two former world champions, who between them made more than 200 appearances for A Seleção and hoisted the Confederations Cup trophy aloft in 1997 and 2005/2009 respectively, took the opportunity to discuss Germany’s chances and share their thoughts on the tournament.
Looking ahead to Russia 2017, Lucio, who played in four editions of the Tournaments of Champions (2001, 2003, 2005 and 2009), said: “Germany have a young and hungry side, as we’ve come to expect from them, and they’ll be fighting for the title.” Recalling his memories from the tournament, he added: “The Confederations Cup was a landmark in my career. The semi-final against Germany in Nuremberg in 2005 and scoring against the USA in the 2009 final are experiences that stay with you.”
Cafu said: “The Germany squad is packed with an amazing amount of talent. They might be young but they’ve shown what they can do on the international stage and in the Bundesliga, and they’ll be looking to back that up now in the Confederations Cup. For many of them it will be their first major championship with their 'A' national team, which at same time means a great responsibility as they will be representing the current world champions.”
Lucio, who played for both Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen during his stellar career, looked back with fondness on his time in Germany. “I had eight incredible years here, and it was a time when German football came on leaps and bounds," he said. "They’ve been reaping the rewards of that development in the last few years.”
Die Mannschaft take on Australia in their opening match of the competition in Sochi on 19 June, and Cafu is expecting Germany to contribute to what he believes will be a high-class tournament in general: “As well as Germany’s young stars you’ve got players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Alexis Sanchez, Arturo Vidal and Chicharito [Javier Hernandez], to name but a few, all of which means the fans can expect some top-quality football at the Confederations Cup. The match between Germany and Chile, for example, looks like it might be a cracker. They’re two teams who like to play attacking football.”
Paulo Dybala has long been hailed as Lionel Messi’s successor in the Argentine setup. The 23-year-old earned a €32 million transfer to Juventus at the start of the 2015 season after impressing at Palermo and has not looked back since.
The fleet-footed Argentine rose to stardom after his scintillating display against Barcelona in the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions League, which literally knocked out the Blaugrana from the competition. Dybala scored a brace in the first-leg of the tie as Juventus won the game 3-0 and Barcelona needed to overturn this deficit in the second leg but Messi and company fired blanks, ensuring that the Catalan outfit’s Champions League journey came to an end.
Dybala has long been linked with big-money moves to Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona, and while the Argentine has pledged his long-term future to the Turin giants, we all know anything can happen in the world of football and it seems to be only a matter of time before he ends up at the shores of Spain.
(Dybala All 19 Goals For Juventus - 2016-17)
1 His nicknames
Paulo Dybala has two very interesting and intriguing nicknames – ‘La Joya’ which means ‘The Jewel’ and ‘El pibe de la pensión’ which translates to ‘The kid that creates the pension’. He got the nickname ‘El pibe de la pension’ after his father’s untimely death, which forced him to move out of his house and shift to Cordoba’s guesthouse.
While the second of his nickname is a bit too complicated, the former was endowed on the Juventus striker by Argentine journalist Marcos Villalobo. The story goes that during Dybala’s early years, Villalobo was in attendance during a game in which the fleet-footed forward was playing and mesmerized by the exploits of the youngster he named him ‘La Joya’, for the striker was like a rough diamond. The nickname has subsequently been adopted by the fans and his teammates.
Dybala’s former teammate and world’s most expensive transfer, Paul Pogba, had a different nickname for the former Palermo star. The Manchester United midfielder used to call Dybala – Square R2 – the buttons on the playstation controller that allows one to turn and shoot.
2 He could have represented Poland or Italy but chose to represent Argentina
La Joya had the option to choose between three countries to represent on the international stage – Argentina, Poland and Italy. Dybala’s grandfather was Polish and had to flee the countryside during World War II before he settled in Argentina.
The Juventus striker had the opportunity to represent Gli Azzurri because his family also had roots in the country through his maternal side. Dybala’s maternal grandmother – Da Messa – was from the Province of Naples and he has also obtained Italian citizenship.
However, the forward chose to represent Argentina – as he feels Argentine and always dreamt of representing La Albiceleste.
3 His footballing idols
Dybala hails from Argentina, a nation known for producing great footballers and as such the Juventus striker had a lot of superstars to choose his idol from. However, rather surprisingly, his role model is not Diego Maradona or Lionel Messi – it is Italian legend Andrea Pirlo.
In his documentary, titled ‘La Joya’, Dybala revealed that Pirlo was his favourite footballer growing up and was also his role model. However, Pirlo is not the only footballer to have influenced the fleet-footed striker, as ‘La Joya’ claimed that growing up he idolised the legendary Argentine midfielder, Juan Roman Riquelme along with Barcelona and Brazil legend – Ronaldinho. Now we know where those fancy tricks come from, don’t we?
4 The story behind his Juventus jersey number
When Dybala arrived at Juventus from Palermo, he was used to wearing the #9 jersey. However, the jersey was occupied by Alvaro Morata in Turin and he had to choose another number. The Argentine opted for the #21 jersey, which had just been vacated by the legendary Andrea Pirlo, who had moved to the MLS. Long before Pirlo, even the great Zinedine Zidane had donned the #21 jersey at Juventus and thus Dybala considered it to be an iconic number.
Explaining his decision to wear the #21 jersey, Dybala had said in an earlier interview, via Sport English: “At Instituto I always played with No.9. At Palermo, too, and when I arrived here it was taken by Morata and he wanted to keep it. Pirlo had just left, an idol who was wearing [No.21]. The No.21 is like the No.10 at Juve, an important number. It was a test because I wanted to test myself against the weight of a number that represents so many thins here."
5 The reason behind his celebration – Dybalamask
Dybala celebrates his goals in two ways. The first, a Messiesque celebration with two fingers pointing towards the sky, which is his way of dedicating his goals to his late father Adolfo Dybala – who lost his battle against Pancreatic cancer when Dybala was young. However, it is his second celebration which has caught the eye of the world – the ‘Dybalamask’.
When he dons the Dybalamask, he covers his face – below the nose – with his hands in a manner which is akin to what a mask does. So what exactly does the celebration mean? Well, we will leave it for the Argentine to explain: “Dybalamask is really simple: it's the mask of a gladiator! When we struggle, sometimes we must wear our warrior mask to be stronger, without losing our smile and kindness!”
6 Like Lionel Messi, Dybala had a national team full debut to forget
We all know Lionel Messi was sent off within seconds of making his La Albiceleste debut back in 2005 but almost 11 years later Paulo Dybala faced a similar situation. In a 2018 World Cup qualifier against Uruguay – which also marked the return of Messi from retirement – Dybala, making his first start for his country, was sent off towards the end of the first half.
The Argentine was booked first in the 29th minute and then in the 45th minute. The then 22-year-old Dybala immediately broke into tears and was inconsolable as he trudged off the pitch. It took some calming words from the 5-time Ballon d’Or winner to help Dybala get over the setback.
Speaking about the incident he had said: "Leo Messi told me to be calm, that these things happen, that it was not my fault but the referee's. I felt good, comfortable playing with Messi. We had spoken in training about how I was going to play, depending where Leo was positioned, I would change with him. If he was in the middle.“
At least four people and an unborn fetus were killed in a crush, with 25 others injured, as thousands of football fans tried to force their way into the Honduran national stadium for the league final, authorities have said.
A spokesman for University Teaching Hospital said that the victims died from suffocation and multiple broken bones from being trampled.
The fetus died when its mother suffered severe injuries, hospital spokesman Miguel Osorio said.
The stampede happened as police fired tear gas at Gate 11 of Estadio Tiburcio Carias Andino in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital, as fans tried to push their way into the jammed venue to watch the game between Motagua and Honduras Progreso, officials said.
A police statement said the match appeared to have been oversold. It said the stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000, was already full while crowds of fans were still outside brandishing tickets.
People became angry when they couldn't enter and began forcing their way in, the statement said.
About 600 police officers were guarding the stadium and used water cannon and tear gas trying to push back the crowds.
Motagua won the game 3-0, but with both clubs, as well as the league, releasing statements afterwards offering their deepest condolences to the families of the bereaved and injured.
The official Motagua statement denied that the club had oversold the game but that fake tickets had allowed other fans to gain entry to the stadium.
