Author: Osas Monday

Pope Francis arrived on a three-day visit to South Sudan on Friday to promote peace and reconciliation in the world’s youngest country, traumatised by civil war and scarred by poverty. The “pilgrimage of peace” is the first ever papal visit to South Sudan since the predominantly Christian nation gained independence from Muslim-majority Sudan in 2011 after decades of conflict. The pope, sitting in a wheelchair, was greeted after his plane touched down at Juba airport by a number of dignitaries including South Sudan’s president, Salva Kiir. It follows a four-day visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a brutal…

At least 21 people have been killed in a cattle raid in South Sudan on the eve of a visit by Pope Francis to encourage peace in the conflict-ridden country, local authorities said. Francis is scheduled to arrive on Friday for a three-day “pilgrimage of peace” with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. The church leaders are seeking to promote reconciliation and forgiveness in a predominantly Christian country still burdened by chronic armed violence in the aftermath of a civil war. On Thursday, armed herders killed 21 civilians in a…

NATO on Friday expressed concern that Russia was failing to comply with its last remaining nuclear arms control treaty with the United States. As tensions soar over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leading NATO power the United States has accused Moscow of not meeting its commitments under the decade-old New START pact. On Tuesday, Washington slammed Russia for suspending inspections under the treaty and cancelling talks, but did not accuse its Cold War rival of expanding its nuclear warhead arsenal beyond agreed limits. “NATO allies agree the New START treaty contributes to international stability by constraining Russian and US strategic nuclear…

Qatar has reaffirmed a religious ban on consuming insects in a move that comes after the European Union added new products to its list of approved foods. Insect products do not meet “the requirements of halal food technical regulations”, Qatar’s health ministry said in a statement late Thursday. Gulf Cooperation Council regulations “and the religious opinion of the competent authorities” bans “the consumption of insects, or protein and supplements extracted from them”, it added. The announcement follows “some countries’ decision to approve the use of insects in food production”, Qatar said. It did not identify the countries, but the EU…

Myanmar’s National Defence and Security Council have agreed to extend the country’s state of emergency by six months, state media said Wednesday, likely delaying elections the junta had pledged to hold by August. The post Myanmar extends state of emergency by six months appeared first on The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News.

President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday backed a plan to set up joint military training centres with Belarus, with fears mounting that Minsk could enter the Ukraine conflict to fight with Moscow. In a decree published Tuesday, Putin tasked the defence and foreign ministers to conduct talks with Belarus and sign an agreement to establish the facilities. The document did not specify where they would be based. Minsk allowed Moscow to use Belarusian territory as a launching pad for its Ukraine offensive that began on February 24 last year. Strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko has insisted that he will not send Belarusian…

Pope Francis embarked on his fifth visit to Africa on Tuesday, flying to the Democratic Republic of Congo and then South Sudan to plead for peace in the two violence-plagued nations. The 86-year-old pope boarded the papal plane via elevator before it took off from Rome’s Fiumicino Airport at 8:28 local time (7:28 GMT). It is expected to arrive around 3:00 pm local time at Kinshasa’s Ndjili airport, where thousands of well-wishers are expected to greet the pontiff. It is the first time since 1985 that a pope has visited DRC, a desperately poor country of close to 100 million…

South Africa’s governing ANC party has asked top officials to declare a national state of disaster to end severe electricity blackouts that have wreaked havoc on Africa’s most industrialised nation, its secretary general said Tuesday. Declaring a national disaster would unlock additional funds and resources to “better manage the crisis,” Fikile Mbalula told a news conference after the party’s new executive committee met over the weekend. The years-long crisis of intermittent power cuts has worsened in recent months, with the electricity network operated by the debt-laden state energy firm Eskom failing to keep pace with demand as it struggles to…

China’s Foreign Ministry sought to blame the United States for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, claiming Washington created the conditions that led to the war. Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told reporters on Monday.The spokesperson also condemned the weapons deliveries for inflaming the conflict as it approaches the one-year mark. “The U.S. is the one who triggered the Ukraine crisis and the biggest factor fuelling it and has kept selling heavy and assault weapons to Ukraine, which has only prolonged and intensified the conflict.” Her comments came in response to a question about allegations from the U.S. that…

Officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on Monday said that security measures had been increased ahead of Pope Francis’ visit to the country’s capital, Kinshasa. Several districts of Kinshasa have been cordoned off to protect the pontiff and his papal delegation during the visit. In addition to local police and the army, the country has asked for support from the Vatican’s security services and the U.S. FBI, government spokesman Patrick Muyaya told dpa. Pope Francis is to visit Congo and South Sudan during his six-day international trip that begins with his arrival on Tuesday in Kinshasa, the pope…