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Author: Cecilia Odey

  • China seizes 4.5 tonnes of drugs in border anti-narcotics enforcement

     

    Drugs

    Beijing, June 25, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) Chinese authorities have seized 4.5 tonnes of various drugs in their efforts to combat narcotics at border ports in the first half of this year.

    The National Immigration Administration (NIA) who announced this on Tuesday said the raid led to the arrest of 381 criminal suspects.

    As of Monday, these operations have successfully cracked 284 such drug-related cases, with 59 cases involving drugs weighing over 10,000 grams each.

    The NIA has ramped up its crackdown on drug-related crime in border areas, with a particular emphasis on stemming drug inflows.

    It planned to further implement measures to bolster anti-drug enforcement.

    These included stepping up investigations into violations, tightening control at border ports, targeting drug-trafficking rings and networks, including their leaders, and enhancing law enforcement cooperation with various countries and regions. (Xinhua/NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey/Maureen Atuonwu

  • EU ministers approve €1.4bn Ukraine military aid using Russia assets

    EU ministers approve €1.4bn Ukraine military aid using Russia assets

    Aid
    Luxembourg, June 24, 2024 (dpa/NAN) EU foreign ministers approved 1.4 billion euros (1.5 billion dollars) in military aid for Ukraine, with the package to be financed for the first time by proceeds from frozen Russian Central Bank assets.

    Top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said this on Monday, ahead of the ministers’ meeting in Luxembourg that the funds needed to reach Ukraine quickly and “avoid any blockage.’’

    The approval came as a welcome boost for Kiev amid Hungary’s ongoing opposition to other packages from an off-budget fund called the European Peace Facility (EPF) worth more than 6 billion euros.

    Each EU member state has a veto on EPF payments and Hungary has been blocking some disbursements related to Ukraine for nearly a year.

    A 5-billion euros support fund is also blocked.

    EU diplomats were not expecting a breakthrough on the EPF deadlock with Hungary.

    As a result, Ukraine military aid from the proceeds is a useful alternative means of support. Careful legal footwork to enable aid

    EU member states first gave their approval to the use the proceeds to buy arms for Ukraine in May however it was unclear when the first payments would flow due to Hungary’s veto.

    A legal analysis noted that as Hungary abstained on the decision to use the frozen assets for Ukraine, and that the new aid is derived from the Russian Central Bank assets and not EU funds.

    Budapest’s veto did not apply.

    Borrell said on Monday that the finances cannot get stopped.

    “It has to be used. We have a legal procedure in order to avoid any blockage.’’

    Hungary opposed military aid for Ukraine fearing an escalation of the conflict with Russia and expresses doubts about Western support for Ukraine, preferring instead to call for a ceasefire.

    However, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has previously linked decisions on aid for Ukraine to freeing up EU funds for Hungary that have been frozen due to concerns about the rule of law.

    Military and financial aid for Ukraine

    The military aid for Ukraine uses the interest and other profits from the assets, but not the underlying assets themselves, which will remain frozen.

    A total of 90 per cent of the money will fund military aid, while 10% will go directly to Ukraine as financial aid.

    Under the agreement, Germany and the Czech Republic have been selected as the first to use the proceeds to provide Ukraine with air defence equipment and artillery shells, EU diplomats said.

    Other EU member states may administer the proceeds in the future.

    According to the European Commission, around 210 billion euros worth of Russian Central Bank assets are frozen in the EU.

    The Brussels-based financial institution Euroclear, which held the lion’s share of the assets, recently announced that the assets had made around 4.4 billion euros in interest in 2023.

    Russian LNG targeted in EU sanctions first

    EU foreign ministers also adopted new punitive measures to crack down on sanctions evasion and stop Russia from obtaining Western technology for making weapons.

    A further 69 individuals and 47 entities linked to the Russian invasion of Ukraine have been sanctioned with an asset freeze and a travel ban to the European Union.

    The new salvo of sanctions target Russia’s multi-billion dollar liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector for the first time.

    These punitive measures ban ports such as Zeebrugge in Belgium from shipping Russian LNG to countries outside the EU after a nine-month transition period.

    Also targeted is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s so-called shadow fleet used to avoid sanctions including 27 specific vessels.

    German opposition to the 14th sanctions package needed to be overcome, EU diplomats said, as Berlin was concerned the 14th sanctions package went too far, especially for subsidiaries.

    EU diplomats said a compromise was reached, allowing measures halting exports to Russia the so-called No Russia clause to not apply to subsidiaries for the time being.

    The issue is to be revisited.

    Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba briefed his EU counterparts on the war situation via video call.

    Western Balkan foreign ministers were also invited to discuss foreign policy. (dpa/NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey/Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu

     

  • India’s Kalaburagi airport receives bomb threat

    India’s Kalaburagi airport receives bomb threat

    Threat
    New Delhi, June 24, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) An airport in India’s South-western state of Karnataka Monday received a bomb threat email, prompting authorities to initiate a search operation, police said.

    According to police, bomb detection and disposal squads along with sniffer dogs were rushed to airport premises.

    However, nothing suspicious was found during the search that was underway until the last reports poured in.

    Kalaburagi airport is about 617 km north of Bengaluru, the capital city of Karnataka.

    A senior police official told the media the airport director received an email from an anonymous sender claiming that a bomb was planted inside the airport premises.

    He said the mail sender threatened to blast the entire airport using a powerful bomb.

    Last week, 41 airports in India and over 50 hospitals in Mumbai city received email threats warning of a bomb on their premises.

    However, all of them were later found to be hoax calls.

    In the backdrop of increasing hoax bomb threat calls to airports, India’s civil aviation security body Bureau of Civil Aviation Security has proposed a five-year flying ban on those who issue such threats.

    Over the past two months, a series of hoax bomb threats have been sent to schools, airports and hospitals across the country including the national capital territory Delhi. (Xinhua/NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey/Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu

     

  • Agency warns of landslide risk in western Japan

    Agency warns of landslide risk in western Japan

    Warning
    Tokyo, June 24, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) on Monday said that heavy rain with thunder is expected in western Japan through Tuesday, calling for vigilance against landslides.

    The weather agency said a warm, damp air mass is flowing toward a seasonal rain front over western Japan, which has made atmospheric conditions very unstable in the region.

    The front is expected to move south to waters off the main island of Honshu, and will then stay around southern Kyushu, according to the JMA.

    Weather officials said up to 150 mm of rainfall is expected for southern Kyushu in the 24 hours though Tuesday morning.

    It said up to 130 mm is also expected for northern Kyushu and 80 mm for the Kinki region.

    The agency warned that even a little more rainfall could increase landslide risks because the ground may already be saturated in some areas, calling on people to be on the alert over risks of landslides.

    Flooding in low-lying areas, swelling rivers, lightning strikes, violent gusts like tornadoes and hailstorms would be experienced. (Xinhua/NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey/Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu

     

  • Stampede at political rally leaves 1 dead, 37 injured

    Stampede at political rally leaves 1 dead, 37 injured

    Stampede

    Kigali, June 24, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) One person was killed and 37 others injured in a stampede at a political rally on Sunday in western Rwanda, the government has said.

    The stampede occurred when people tried to exit from a venue where President Paul Kagame, the Candidate for the ruling Rwanda Patriotic Front, addressed supporters in Gisa, Rubavu District, Western Province.

    The Ministry of Local Government made this known in a statement on Sunday night.

    “A team of health workers at the site did their best to care for the injured but  one person died.  Thirty-seven people were still injured,’’ the statement said.

    Many of the injured were taken to nearby Gisenyi Hospital. Four critically-injured ones were transferred to the main hospital in the capital, Kigali.

    The ministry urged candidates’ supporters to always abide by stipulated guidelines to ensure safety for all.

    Campaign started Saturday in Rwanda ahead of the July 15 presidential and legislative elections, with about 9.5 million Rwandans eligible to vote.

    Kagame is in the race with two others – Frank Habineza of the opposition Democratic Green Party of Rwanda and Philippe Mpayimana, an independent candidate. (Xinhua/NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey/Ijeoma

     

  • 20 bodies found in S. Korea’s battery plant fire site

    20 bodies found in S. Korea’s battery plant fire site

    Deaths

    Seoul, June 24, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) Over 20 bodies were found in South Korea’s battery plant fire site, in which 23 workers had been believed to be trapped.

    Yonhap news agency said this on Monday citing police and the fire authorities.

    The fire broke out at a primary battery plant in Hwaseong, around 45 km south of the capital Seoul, at about 10:31 a.m. local time (0131 GMT).

    The bodies were estimated to be of the 23 workers, who had failed to be reached after the outbreak of fire, among the combined 67 workers on duty.

    Fire-fighters went inside the factory and searched the possible victims after extinguishing a large blaze at about 3:10 p.m. local time (0310 GMT).

    The fire authorities mobilised 159 fire-fighters and 63 pieces of equipment, but they struggled to extinguish the fire because of the difficulty in putting out the flame of lithium batteries.

    Some 35,000 lithium batteries were estimated to be stored on the second floor of the three-story reinforced concrete factory with a total floor area of 2,300 square meters or so.

    Before the internal search operation, one person died after having been found in cardiac arrest.

    Two others were seriously wounded, while four suffered minor injuries such as smoke inhalation. (Xinhua/NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey and Abiemwense Moru

     

  • Sevastopol declares state of emergency after Ukrainian missile strike

    Sevastopol declares state of emergency after Ukrainian missile strike

    Missile

    Moscow, June 24, 2024 (dpa/NAN) One day after a Ukrainian missile attack left four people dead and about 150 injured, authorities in Sevastopol, a port city on the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula, have declared a state of emergency.

    Russian news agencies published a decree issued by Governor Mikhail Razvoshayev on Monday that read.

    “I decree to declare a state of emergency on the territory of the city of Sevastopol until further order.’’

    Four people were killed and 151 injured in the attack, Razvoshayev said, with 79 people still hospitalised.

    Due to the severity of their injuries, 21 people, including 11 children, were to be airlifted to Moscow for treatment, officials said.

    Most of the victims were sunbathing on a city beach in Sevastopol when rocket debris fell and exploded, with no air raid warning preceding the incident.

    Initially, the Russian military claimed responsibility for launching the missile but later retracted this statement, asserting that the Ukrainian missile had targeted civilians.

    This has been met with scepticism, even among Russian military bloggers, as there were several military installations in the vicinity.

    In response to the incident, the affected beach area has been closed for swimming.

    The state of emergency may restrict certain constitutional rights, such as freedom of movement, to ensure public safety.

    The main harbour of Russia’s Black Sea fleet and the Belbek military airfield were both located in the Sevastopol city area.

    Russia’s military used the port and air base in its war against Ukraine, which has been ongoing for more than two years.

    The area has become a target of attacks from the Ukrainian military. (dpa/NAN)  (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey and Abiemwense Moru

     

  • ADB approves $56m grant to Kyrgyzstan

    ADB approves $56m grant to Kyrgyzstan

    Grant

    Manila, June 24, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Monday that it has approved the funding of 56 million dollars to Kyrgyzstan to improve wastewater management.

    The grant would also help to enhance sustainable and inclusive tourism in the Issyk-Kul region, renowned for its tourist appeal and importance.

    The funding comprised a 25-million dollar concessional loan and a 31million dollar Asian Development Fund (ADF) grant.

    The ADF grants ADB’s poorest and most vulnerable members.

    The ADB’s project promised to upgrade the wastewater facility while improving tourism infrastructure in Cholpon-Ata, a resort town that hosts most of Issyk-Kul Lake’s visitors but grapples with an aging wastewater network.

    According to the ADB, a new wastewater treatment plant, pumping stations, and a museum are among the planned projects to preserve the environment and promote tourism in the region.

    The ADB added that the project will also support local authorities in developing a climate-resilient tourism master plan for Cholpon-Ata. (Xinhua/NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey/Ekemini Ladejobi

     

  • Vatican names Prelate Georg Gänswein as ambassador to Baltic States

    Vatican names Prelate Georg Gänswein as ambassador to Baltic States

    Ambassador

    Rome, June 24, 2024 (dpa/NAN) The German Catholic Prelate Georg Gänswein, the former long-time personal secretary to the late Pope Benedict XVI, has been assigned to serve as the Vatican’s ambassador to the Baltic states of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.

    Gänswein, 67, has a strained relationship with Benedict’s successor and the current pontiff, Pope Francis.

    Last June, Pope Francis transferred Gänswein away from Rome and back to his German home town of Freiburg, but did not assign him any new duties or an official office.

    The Vatican announced Gänswein’s new assignment as Apostolic Nuncio in Vilnius on Monday.

    Tensions between Gänswein and Pope Francis broke into public view after Gänswein published a book, “nothing but the Truth: My Life Beside Benedict XVI, immediately after the former pope’s death in December 2022’’.

    In the book, Gänswein expressed his disappointment with Francis and published some private letters.

    The current pope reacted by accusing Gänswein of spreading untruths and showing a “lack of humanity.’’

    Pope Francis also accused Gänswein of having used Benedict XVI, who was born in Germany as Josef Ratzinger and resigned as leader of the Catholic Church in 2013.

    Following his resignation, he held the title of “pope emeritus’’ until his death. (dpa/NAN)  (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey and Abiemwense Moru

     

  • Fire kills 3 children in Vietnam’s Central Highlands

    Fire kills 3 children in Vietnam’s Central Highlands

    Fire

    Hanoi, June 24, 2024 (Xinhua/NAN) Three children died in a blaze in the Vietnam’s Central Highlands city of Da Lat on Monday morning, local media reported.

    The flame engulfed a wooden house at around 10 a.m. while the three children were staying indoors.

    Their mother, who was going out had locked the door when the incident occurred, VnExpress reported.

    Vietnam has reported 1,989 fires and explosions in the first five months this year, killing 36 people and injuring 37 others.

    The fires and explosions also left property losses of 116.3 billion Vietnamese dong (4.5 million dollars), according to the country’s General Statistics Office. (Xinhua/NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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    Edited by Cecilia Odey and Abiemwense Moru

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