iNTERNATIONAL Archives - Page 8 of 15

US recovers over $53m in bribes to Diezani, expects $16m more

March 31, 2023March 31, 2023 Aminu Imam

The United States (US) Department of Justice has announced the final resolution of two civil cases of foreign corruption offences and were laundered in and through the United States, among which is involving the payment of bribes to Nigeria�s former Minister for Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke. The announcement was made by the US Justice Department, in an issued statement on its website on Wednesday, by the US Assistant Attorney-General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department�s Criminal Division. The US State Department is seeking the forfeiture of various luxury…

US hikes student, tourist visa fees by 15%

March 30, 2023March 30, 2023 Aminu Imam

The United States (US) Department of State has increased non-immigrant visa application fees, including travel visas by, 15 percent. In an issued statement yesterday, the US Department said the fee for B-1/B-2 visitor visas, Border Crossing Cards for Mexican citizens aged 15 and above, and student and exchange visitor visas will increase from $160 to $185. Also, the fees for certain non-immigrant visas for temporary workers (H, L, O, P, Q, and R categories) will increase from $190 to $205. Meanwhile, the fee for treaty traders, treaty investors, and treaty…

�10 names on our visa ban watch list� � UK

March 28, 2023March 28, 2023 Aminu Imam

The United Kingdom, (UK), has said no fewer than 10 individuals are on its watch list following the outcome of the 2023 general elections. British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ben Llewellyn-Jones, disclosed this while reacting to controversial comments made by a former minister of aviation and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Femi Fani-Kayode. Fani-Kayode, in a series of tweets, was said to have used words and phrases deemed derogatory, divisive and inciting against the opposition. The former minister had tweeted: �The single greatest lesson that the 2023…

Earthquake: Saudi deposits $5bn in Turkey�s central bank

March 7, 2023March 7, 2023 Aminu Imam

Saudi Arabia yesterday said it was depositing $5 billion in Turkey�s central bank, a potentially major boost as the country grapples with inflation and damage from last month�s earthquake ahead of presidential elections. The Saudi tourism minister and board chairman of the Saudi Fund for Development, Ahmed Al Khateeb, signed an agreement with Turkish central bank governor, Sahap Kavcioglu �to make a significant $5 billion deposit�, the Saudi government said, in a statement. �This deposit is a testament to the close cooperation and historical ties that exist between the Kingdom…

Buhari attends UN conference in Qatar

March 5, 2023March 5, 2023 Aminu Imam

President Muhammadu Buhari will on Saturday, March 4, leave for the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LCDs) in Doha, the capital city of Qatar. This follows an invitation by the Emir of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The conference which is from 5th to 9th March, 2023, under the theme: �From Potential to Prosperity,� holds once in a decade and provides an opportunity to garner the support of the international community for accelerating sustainable development in the LDCs as well as assist…

Nigerians, others attacked in Tunisia as President Saied calls black Africans �criminals�

March 5, 2023March 5, 2023 Aminu Imam

Several Nigerians, as well as their Ivoriens, have fled their homes in Tunisia in the face of state-sanctioned attacks, taking refuge on the premises of their country�s embassy. They were attacked by Tunisian nationals, as President Kais Saied continues to deepen discrimination and unfair prejudice against dark-skinned people from Africa. Saied recently announced that sub-Saharan migrants were on a mission to weaken the country�s Islamic Arab identity and their presence in the country has to end. �There is a criminal plan to change the composition of the demographic landscape in…

UN warns of acute malnutrition in Nigeria, 14 other countries�

January 15, 2023January 15, 2023 Aminu Imam

The United Nations (UN) agencies have called for urgent action to protect the most vulnerable children in 15 countries, hardest hit by an unprecedented food and nutrition crisis. The call was made in a statement issued by five UN agencies. The UN had listed some countries that are hardest hit by the unprecedented food and nutrition crises. According to the statement, conflicts, climate shocks, the ongoing impacts of Covid-19 and rising costs of living are leaving increasing numbers of children acutely malnourished. It said the five UN agencies are: Food…

Israeli army kills 2 Palestinian near Jenin

January 14, 2023January 14, 2023 Abdul-Azeez Ahmed Kadir

Two Palestinian were killed in an Israeli military operation near the Palestinian town of Jenin on Saturday. According to unanimous reports from both sides, the Palestinian men fired shots from a moving car at Israeli soldiers, who returned fire. The men, aged 23 and 24, were fatally wounded, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The Israeli army said the soldiers were on an anti-terrorist mission. An M-16 rifle was found on the two attackers after the incident. The Israeli soldiers were not injured. Jenin is considered a Palestinian stronghold. The…

British Prime Minister condemns �cowardly� execution of British-Iranian

January 14, 2023January 14, 2023 Abdul-Azeez Ahmed Kadir

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was �appalled� by Iran�s decision to execute British-Iranian dual national, Alireza Akbari. �This was a callous and cowardly act, carried out by a barbaric regime with no respect for the human rights of their own people,� Sunak wrote on Twitter. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly also took to Twitter, saying the �barbaric act� deserved �condemnation in the strongest terms.� �This will not stand unchallenged,� Cleverly wrote. Iran had sentenced the former top politician to death earlier in the week over espionage charges.

Saudi Arabia lifts pandemic restrictions on Muslim Hajj pilgrimage

January 11, 2023January 11, 2023 Aminu Imam

Saudi Arabia is lifting restrictions imposed on the Muslim Hajj pilgrimage in 2023, after the coronavirus pandemic forced a downsizing of the annual event for three years. According to officials Saudi Press, the Minister in charge of the Hajj, Tawfiq al-Rabiah, said that the numbers of pilgrims would return to pre-pandemic figures with restrictions, including age limits, being lifted. Before the pandemic, around 2.5 million Muslims from all over the world usually gathered every year for the Hajj, Islam�s largest congregation, in the holy city of Mecca. In 2020, only…