Arsenal move seven points clear after Brighton win, Man City draw with Forest

Premier League title race tilts Arsenal’s way as Manchester City draw with Nottingham Forest; Newcastle halts Manchester United’s run; João Pedro hat trick powers Chelsea; West Ham takes vital derby win. Arsenal opened a seven-point cushion over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League after a scrappy 1-0 win at Brighton, capitalizing on City’s 2-2 home draw with struggling Nottingham Forest. The Gunners have played one game more, but Wednesday’s swing tightens their grip on a title fight defined by thin margins. At…

Africans Displaced by Attacks as Israel, Iran and U.S. War Escalates

South Africa’s government on Monday urged citizens stranded in the Middle East to “take immediate advantage” of the resumption of limited commercial flights out of the region, while Kenya Airways announced special repatriation services between Nairobi and Dubai to help passengers displaced by days of attacks. The moves follow a period of disruptions that left many travelers unable to leave and prompted several African governments to coordinate emergency measures. South African officials appealed to nationals in affected…

Tragic Landslide at Congo Coltan Mine Claims Over 200 Lives

Landslide at Rubaya Coltan Mine Claims Over 200 Lives in Eastern DR Congo In a tragic turn of events, a landslide triggered by heavy rains at the Rubaya coltan mine in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has resulted in the deaths of at least 200 individuals, with reports indicating that around 70 of the victims were children. The catastrophic incident has raised serious concerns about safety regulations in the mining sector and the ongoing conflict in the region. The Congolese Ministry of Mines confirmed the…

Nigeria Halts Cashless Airport System Following Travel Interruptions

Tinubu Suspends Cashless Payment System at Nigerian Airports President Bola Tinubu has directed Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo to suspend the cashless payment system recently implemented by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) at major airports, including those in Lagos and Abuja. The decision comes in response to widespread complaints from travelers who reported long queues and delays caused by the new system. Reflecting on the situation, Keyamo stated that the president emphasized the importance of…

Somali Olympic Committee Accuses Sports Minister of Undermining Country’s Sports Governing Body

Somalia’s Olympic Committee accuses sports minister of interference, escalating power struggle in Mogadishu MOGADISHU — Somalia’s National Olympic Committee on Wednesday accused the country’s sports minister of attempting to disrupt its work and interfere in the administration of national sports, deepening a public rift between two institutions at the heart of Somali athletics. In a statement, the Olympic body alleged the minister orchestrated “fake contacts” to undermine its operations and tried to take control of its…

Israeli forces mount renewed airstrikes across Iran’s capital, Tehran

Israel launches strikes on Tehran as regional conflict widens; U.S. says it sank Iranian warship near Sri Lanka Israel said it launched a wave of strikes on Tehran before dawn Friday, escalating a fast-spreading conflict that has rippled across the Middle East and beyond, disrupted vital energy routes and drawn in global powers. The Israel Defense Forces said it began a “large-scale wave of strikes against infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime across Tehran,” while also hitting targets in Lebanon and intercepting…

Oil prices hold steady as markets anticipate easing geopolitical tensions

Oil prices steady as U.S., Israeli strikes on Iran snarl Hormuz shipping and force Iraq output cuts Oil prices were steady after sharp swings Wednesday as U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran escalated the conflict and left shipping through the Strait of Hormuz effectively shut for a fifth day, disrupting vital Middle East oil and gas production and trade. Brent crude fell 0.3% to $81.13 a barrel around 4 p.m. GMT, while West Texas Intermediate slipped 0.4% to $74.30. Both benchmarks had closed Tuesday at recent highs—Brent…

Israel and Iran trade new strikes as Middle East war widens

Israel struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon before dawn and said it intercepted a fresh barrage of Iranian missiles, as a widening war waged by the United States and Israel rippled across the Middle East with new disruptions from the Strait of Hormuz to Iraq and Turkey. Explosions rocked Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, hours after Israel warned residents to flee. The Israeli military said it was working to down missiles fired from Iran, despite recent U.S. claims that strikes had severely degraded Tehran’s…

Somalia’s Bay Villagers Displaced by Drought Fear a Future Without Education

‘No school, no food’: Drought pushes Bay region children out of class and into Baidoa’s camps BAIDOA, Somalia — At night in a camp on the edge of this bustling regional capital, Hassan Isaq Sabri counts his children as they file into borrowed huts to sleep. The adults bed down outside. By morning, he will borrow 20 liters of water from neighbors and begin the daylong search for a meal — and for a way to keep his four school-age children from slipping further behind. “My children had a good education before,” said Hassan, 55,…

Harvey Weinstein Rape Retrial Begins April 14, According to Publicist

Harvey Weinstein to be retried April 14 on rape charge after jury deadlock, publicist says Disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein will face a retrial beginning April 14 on a third-degree rape charge involving Jessica Mann, his publicist said, reviving a count on which jurors previously deadlocked after a volatile partial retrial last year. The judge in that case declared a mistrial when the jury foreperson refused to return for further deliberations amid a feud inside the jury room, halting the proceedings before a verdict…