Ekiti State - Police Arrest Pastor, Four Others For Robbery/ Car Snatching

Five men were paraded by Ekiti State Police Command on suspicion of committing various crimes, including robbery, car snatching and other.

According to the information provided by he Ekiti Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Victor Babayemi, all the suspects were paraded at the Police Headquarters in Ado Ekiti.

 

Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz Expecting Second Child



Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz’ family is getting bigger. The superstar couple has announced that they are expecting their second child together.

A beaming Alicia took to Instagram on her fourth wedding anniversary to reveal that she is pregnant, and show off her baby bump.

Philadelphia Orchestra to stage concert marking 35th anniversary of China-U.S. ties

 

 

The Philadelphia Orchestra on Tuesday said that it will stage a concert in November to mark the 35th anniversary of establishment of China-U.S. diplomatic relations.

At a press conference at the Chinese Embassy in the United States, the orchestra's President Allison Vulgamore said that the concert will be held in Philadelphia on Nov. 7 as part of the orchestra's North American tour during the second half of 2014.

Smartphone Sales Slow- Samsung Profit Falls

Samsung Electronics Co. reported a bigger-than-expected fall in second quarter profit on Thursday and said it was uncertain if earnings from its handset business would improve in the current quarter.

Samsung warned earlier this month that the second quarter would be its worst in two years as rapid growth in smartphone sales had faded. The company particularly struggled to compete in cheap smartphones, currently the fastest growing part of the global smartphone business. Samsung shares dived 4 percent in Seoul.

 

Israel's Military Called Up An Additional 16,000 Additional Reservists

Israel's military called up an additional 16,000 additional reservists, taking their total to 86,000, as military operations in the Gaza Strip continue, an army spokeswoman said Thursday.

"The army has issued 16,000 additional mobilization orders to allow troops on the ground to rest, which takes the total number of reservists to 86,000," said the spokeswoman, according to the French news agency AFP.

Israel's security cabinet, which met for five hours Wednesday, unanimously decided to pursue attacks against Hamas "terrorist targets" and other operations to destroy a network of tunnels used by the Islamist movement between Gaza and Israel, public radio said.

Another meeting of the cabinet, which comprises eight ministers, will be held Thursday afternoon, the radio added.

Meanwhile, Israel pressed ahead with its Gaza offensive saying it was days from achieving its core goal of destroying all Islamist guerrilla cross-border attack tunnels, but a soaring Palestinian civilian toll has triggered international alarm.

While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet on Wednesday approved continuing the assault, Israel also sent a delegation to Egypt, which has been trying, with Washington's blessing, to broker a cease-fire.

Gaza officials said at least 1,361 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have now been killed in the battered enclave. Israel has lost 56 soldiers to Gaza clashes and three civilians to Palestinian shelling.

Early Thursday, plumes of smoke could be seen rising above Gaza City following another night of airstrikes and heavy tank shelling by Israel. 

The sound of explosions and planes flying overhead continued to be heard across the city as the sun rose. 

Overnight, several large explosions lit up the sky. 

The Israeli military said it is targeting Hamas command centers, rocket launchers and weapons arsenals. 

 

S. Sudan Warring Parties Ready for Another Round of Talks

New peace talks between South Sudan's warring parties have been delayed by at least a day, as the two sides prepare for another round of negotiations.  Hopes for a lasting peace are pinned to the process, which has repeatedly failed to end the seven-month conflict.

The talks between South Sudan's government and the rebel opposition were scheduled to resume Wednesday in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

South Sudan government spokesman Michael Makuei Lueth says negotiators, just getting back to work after the Eid holiday break, needed more time to prepare for the talks.  But he says they do expect to have a team ready in the coming days.

The negotiations were initially due to resume last month, but were delayed because of opposition demands that civil society and diaspora groups be allowed to take part as stakeholders.

Lueth says the government has no issue with those demands.

"For us, as the government, we don't care as to who participates and who does what.  What we want is peace.  So if increasing the number of the participants and so forth or the stakeholders will bring peace so be it," he said.

Two spokesmen for the opposition also confirmed the talks had been delayed at the government's request, but that their side is ready to resume negotiations when called.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed in South Sudan since a political conflict between President Salva Kiir and his main rival Riek Machar descended into inter-ethnic violence in December.

​The two sides have agreed to three separate cease-fire agreements in talks organized by the East African group of nations IGAD, but all of the deals have been violated soon after signing.

David Deng, research director for the South Sudan Law Society, says there is measured optimism about these talks, despite their failure to produce a lasting deal so far.

"I think people are sober in terms of how they assess the possibilities for peace coming out of the process, but at the same time hopeful and I think aware that there's no other game in town and there's a lot riding on this process," he said.

An agreement in June called for a transitional government that was to be established by the second week of August.  But, because of delays to the negotiations and continued fighting, that deadline is unlikely to be met.

Deng says in order for the two sides to move toward substantive matters of reconciliation, there must first be a lasting ceasefire.

"A very important thing to watch out for is the responses of the groups on the ground in the coming days and weeks. And if we can see them hold off in terms of aggressive action toward one another, then hopefully that can leave enough room for parties to begin engaging on some of these political questions moving forward," he said.

According to the United Nations, more than one million South Sudanese have been displaced by violence since the conflict began, while aid agencies have warned that some parts of the country are at risk of falling into famine.

 

Serena Williams fighting fit after Wimbledon illness scare

Serena Williams, a 17-time grand slam champion, disorientated, unsteady on her feet and unable to serve properly on Court No. 1.

Her doubles match alongside sister Venus lasted just three games, with Serena unable to get the ball over the net when it was her turn to serve.

 But now, as she prepares to return to action at the WTA's Stanford tournament, the 32-year-old says the commotion caused by her viral illness had taken her by surprise

 

Nasir El-Rufai Loses Son To The Cold Hands Of Death

The former Minister Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, announced on his facebook page the sudden death of his son Hamza El-Rufai “From Allah we came and to Him we shall return. Please join our family in praying for the repose of the soul of my son Hamza El-Rufai who died this morning in a motor accident in Abuja.”

Hamza studied at University of Virginia and the United World College of the Atlantic according to his information on his page on social media.
This is the second time in three years that the El-Rufai family is losing someone so young, having lost eldest daughter, Yasmine, who in November 2011 fell to a neurological attack while leaving her bathroom.

Another Bomb blast In Kano

A bomb blast has occurred close to Buhari Square adjacent to Shoprite shopping mall in Kano. A bomb blast has occurred again close to Buhari Square adjacent to Shoprite shopping mall in Kano killing the bomber and injuring six other persons.

The bombing carried out by a lone female suicide bomber estimated to be 19 years of age took place at the Trade Fair complex opposite Shoprite shopping mall in Kano.

The police said the second explosion that rocked Kano at 1:40pm was also detonated by a suicide bomber just like the first.

It was gathered that security cordon around Trade Fair complex and Shopite prevented a bomber the access to facilities, made her detonate outside target.

Governor of Niger State Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu on Sunday Tells Nigerians What To Do About Boko Haram.

Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu who is also the Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, made the call in his Sallah message to Nigerians on behalf of the forum through a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Israel Ebije.

The governor, who called on Nigerians to be more security-conscious, also advises against violence saying; “violence is never part of our culture”. 

“Nigeria is a great country and we must ensure that it continues on the part of greatness by making sure that we all believe and have confidence in ourselves again because like all artificial trends, the insurgency will soon be a thing of the past” he said.”

The Governor, who has become famous for condemning the activities of the radical sect, Boko Haram had on July 8, 2014 described the sect’s activities as unIslamic.

Ebola Virus- Arik Air Suspends Flight Operations To Liberia, Sierra Leone

 

Following the death of a Liberian, Patrick Sawyer, who reportedly died of Ebola disease last week at First Consultants Medical Centre Ltd, Obalende, Lagos State. Arik Air has announced suspension of its flight operations to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The airline operator also advised Federal Government to immediately suspend all inbound flights into Nigeria from any of the Ebola affected countries.

The suspension will be in force until further notice. This decision is a pre-cautionary measure aimed at safeguarding the precious lives of Nigerians. Arik Air is taking this important measure as a concerned corporate citizen bearing interest of Nigerians at heart.

Three in custody for 3-year-old boy’s shooting

 

Two gangbangers armed with a gun were throwing bottles and looking for trouble outside a family’s home in Brighton Park Friday night, police say.

But when one of them started shooting and everyone ran, someone got forgotten — a 3-year-old boy, “left alone in the front yard” according to a police report.

And tiny Jason Ares was stuck in the hip and the abdomen by stray bullets that police believe were intended for his mother’s roommate.

As the little boy recovered from surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital Saturday night, police had three suspects in custody in connection with the 10 p.m. shooting in the 4400 block of South Sacramento. But nobody had been charged with the latest shooting of an innocent Chicago child.

Jason’s relieved mother, April Steve, said she believed the gunman was shooting at her home in retaliation for a recent gang-related shooting. But she denied that her boyfriend and roommate had gang ties, and adamantly rejected the allegation in the police report that her son was alone when was shot.

“That’s not true — he was in the backyard with me and my boyfriend,” Steve said.

“We were just in shock because we was in the backyard hanging up clothes and then it happened so fast. We just grabbed each other and ran in circles, like cockroaches.”

Steve said one of the men came so far as to enter the gangway and fire shots.

“We didn’t know who he was aiming at. Once we heard we tried to get the boy into the house,” she said.

Police believe her roommate was the intended target. The gunman first approached him as he walked home and asked him a question using a gang reference, according to a police report.

The roommate didn’t answer and continued to walk into the gangway next to his home, the report states. But when he warned Steve and her boyfriend about the man, all four, including the child, went into the front yard anyway, according to the report.

First a bottle was thrown at the roommate by one man, then another man wearing a black hoodie took out a gun and began firing.

April Steve’s roommate ran into the gangway, according to the report, which didn’t indicate where April Steve and her boyfriend were at the time of the shooting.

“At this time Jason was left alone in the front yard when he was struck by two projectiles,” the report said.

Sandra Steve, the boy’s aunt, said the toddler was in shock when he was shot. “He told his mom ‘Get the medicine. Get the band aids,” the aunt said.

She added that Jason underwent surgery on Friday and was doing better and that his mom has been at his bedside since the shooting. The boy is expected to remain in the hospital for several days, she said.

Dokubo-Asari - Buhari stage-managed Kaduna bombing

 

Self-acclaimed Niger Delta warlord and leader of Niger Delta Peoples Salvation Force (NDPSF), Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari has opened a fresh page on last Wednesday’s assassination attempt on former Head of State, General Mohammed Buhari (retd) by suspected Boko Haram insurgents.

Dokubo alleged that Buhari stage-managed the attack on himself in order to attract public sympathy and paint President Goodluck Jonathan as a bad leader.

The former President of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), who addressed the media in Abuja, added that Buhari and his group would fail in their conspiracy and desperation to take over power from Jonathan.

Claiming he knew Buhari so well, Asari said the former Head of State was not known to ride in a bullet-proof car prior to the incident, alleging that the use of an armoured SUV in his convoy started recently which confirmed his allegation. However, he noted that he did not wish death on Buhari.

His words: “That attack was stage-managed. Buhari and his group stage-managed it. First, Buhari was not using a bullet-proof car before. I know Buhari very well. Why did he use bulletproof car that day? He did not die. None of his aides died.

Victim’s sister died of Ebola three weeks ago

Patrick Sawyer is the second member of his family to die of Ebola virus in three weeks,according to information from Monrovia.

The degree of contact between the two is now being investigated by Liberian health ministry officials said yesterday. Liberia’s finance minister Amara Konneh confirmed that Sawyer was a consultant for the country’s finance ministry.

 

 

Kim Kardashian's Bikini at the south border

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West seem not to be satisfied with honey moon still headed for south of the border once again. more bikini pix for Kim.