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Dec 25, 2017

Osinbajo continues fuel scarcity tour, visits Apapa [PHOTOS

December 25, 2017 No Comments

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Monday continued his “on the spot” assessment of the fuel scarcity situation in Lagos.
Osinbajo visited Petroleum Depots of Total and Oando in Apapa.
He was accompanied by Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu and Babatunde Fowler, the Chairman of Federal Internal Revenue Service (FIRS).
In his remark, Osinbajo reassured Nigerians that the government was working round the clock to end the problem at once.
He then met with oil executives in a close-door session before his departure.
Osinbajo paid similar visits to some filling stations on the Island in Lagos on Sunday.He was at Oando, Pandora filling station at Elegushi and Heyden Petroleum near Victoria Garden City, VGC.
“It’s such a shame that Christmas has been, to some extent, with this sort of discomfort,” Osinbajo told those present.
“This is deeply regretted, and l know that, despite the resilience and strength of people in Lagos and the Nigerian people, we would see ourselves through this and will enjoy our Christmas and have a great new year.
“We are trying to move as quickly as we can. Obviously, people have gone through a lot of pain and anguish in the past few days, and that is deeply regretted.
“We are trying to do what we can to move as quickly as possible and there is certainly enough products to be able to solve the problem.
“We will be able to solve the problem; the short period of scarcity is quite a bit of burden, but we know that so long as products are enough and the trucks coming out and feeding the stations, this will be over very soon,” he added.

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US Navy deletes weird tweet reading ‘Julian Assange’ as his account resurfaces

December 25, 2017 No Comments

The US Navy deletes a strange tweet reading “Julian Assange,” explaining later that it was an "inadvertent keystroke."
The navy’s page on Twitter issued an explanation Monday, saying someone had “caused” the WikiLeaks founders’ name to be tweeted.
The navy’s strange tweet came after Assange's account resurfaced after a brief absence from the social media platform.
It further boasted that it was “quickly deleted” without providing a solid reason as why.
"This morning, an inadvertent keystroke by an authorized user of the U.S. Navy Office of Information's Digitial [sic] Media Engagement Team caused the trending term 'Julian Assange' to be tweeted from the Navy's official Twitter account," the US Navy tweeted. "The inadvertent tweet was briefly posted for a few second before it was quickly deleted by the same authorized user. The inadvertent tweet was sent during routine monitoring of trending topics."  
The move triggered response from the WikiLeaks, which posted a screenshot of the deleted tweet, noting “the use of quotation.”
The navy’s strange tweet came after Assange's account resurfaced after a brief absence from the social media platform.
A Pro-Assange demonstrator stands with a placard at a vigil to mark the fifth anniversary of Julian Assange's arrival at the Embassy of Ecuador in London on June 19, 2017. (Photo by AFP) 
Assange took refuge in Ecuador’s Embassy in the British capital of London in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden after Swedish prosecutors issued a European arrest warrant against him. Assange has denied the rape accusations, and says the claims are part of an attempt to ultimately have him extradited to the United States, where he could be charged over WikiLeaks’ release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In February last year, a United Nations panel — the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention —  ruled that Assange’s confinement to the embassy “should be brought to an end” and he should be compensated for his “deprivation of liberty” over the years.

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Christmas: It’s a shame that Nigerians are suffering to get fuel – Osinbajo

December 25, 2017 No Comments

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has said it is a shame that Nigerians are celebrating Christmas amid a serious fuel scarcity.
Osinbajo’s spokesperson, Laolu Akande, quoted the vice-president as saying this, when he visited Oando and Heyden filling stations in Lagos.
“It’s such a shame that Christmas has been, to some extent, with this sort of discomfort,” Osinbajo said.
“This is deeply regretted, and l know that, despite the resilience and strength of people in Lagos and the Nigerian people, we would see ourselves through this and will enjoy our Christmas and have a great new year.
“We are trying to move as quickly as we can. Obviously, people have gone through a lot of pain and anguish in the past few days, and that is deeply regretted.
“We are trying to do what we can to move as quickly as possible and there is certainly enough products to be able to solve the problem.
“We will be able to solve the problem; the short period of scarcity is quite a bit of burden, but we know that so long as products are enough and the trucks coming out and feeding the stations, this will be over very soon.
“I am going around with the Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources here in Lagos to ensure that first, the trucks are being loaded from all the depots, and also looking at the filling stations to see that things are moving on very well.
“The GMD of the NNPC is also working in Abuja to see that things are moving quickly and we are moving around the country. So we expect that it will be resolved very quickly.”​
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US secures $285 million cut in UN budget

December 25, 2017 No Comments

US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley (L) and US President Donald Trump wait for a meeting on United Nations Reform at UN headquarters in New York, September 18, 2017. (Photo by AFP)
The administration of US President Donald Trump says it has negotiated a major $285 million cut in the United Nation’s 2018-2019 budget.
The US mission at the UN said in a statement on Sunday that the “significant cost savings” would better suit Washington’s priorities across the globe.
“In addition to these significant cost savings, we reduced the UN’s bloated management and support functions, bolstered support for key US priorities throughout the world, and instilled more discipline and accountability throughout the UN system,” the statement read.
The UN General Assembly had agreed on a $5.4 billion operating budget for 2016 and 2017. This was separate from the world body's budget for peacekeeping missions, which went as high as $7.8 billion in 2017 alone.
The US currently provides about 22 percent of the annual budget—around $3.3 billion per year. The Trump administration has been seeking to reduce Washington’s stake in the budget.
US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said that the budget cut was a “big step in the right direction” for Washington. The former South Carolina governor said she will continue to explore “ways to increase the UN’s efficiency while protecting our interests."
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US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley speaks on the floor of the General Assembly on December 21, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by AFP)
“The inefficiency and overspending of the United Nations are well known,” Haley said. “We will no longer let the generosity of the American people be taken advantage of or remain unchecked. This historic reduction in spending – in addition to many other moves toward a more efficient and accountable UN – is a big step in the right direction.”
The US Republicans have long been calling on the UN to be more supportive of American policies. The criticism was amplified days ago, after the global body overwhelmingly voted in support of a resolution that opposed Trump’s controversial move in recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as the "capital" of Israel.
Ahead of the vote, Trump threatened to cut foreign aid to nations who supported the UN resolution. Haley even warned that the US would be “taking names.”
The 193-nation assembly went ahead and adopted the resolution in a decisive 128 to 9 vote, with 35 abstentions.

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More US troops to hit frontlines in Afghanistan

December 25, 2017 No Comments

A US Marine looks on as Afghan National Army soldiers raise the Afghan National flag on an armed vehicle during a training exercise to deal with IEDs (improvised explosive devices) in Helmand province, August 28, 2017. (Photo by AFP)
More American troops are gearing up to hit the frontlines in Afghanistan, says General John Nicholson, who commands US forces in the country.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Nicholson said US troops levels in Afghanistan were slated to increase dramatically under President Donald Trump’s new strategy to extend the military campaign that began in 2001.
There are “well over 1,000 advisers out at any given time,” Nicholson said. “Next year, however, this will increase dramatically.”
The general said the new plan required deploying more US advisers in the battlefronts alongside Afghan military forces.
“Those teams [the Army brigade] will be backed up by US combat enablers, not only for the protection of our own force, but for support of Afghans as well,” Nicholson said.
The commander hailed the Trump administration’s new South Asia approach as a “game changer,” saying it had already begun to pay dividends.

PressTV-US dropped 751 bombs in Afghanistan last month
The US military dropped 751 bombs in Afghanistan last month, the highest monthly number since 2010.
Under the new strategy, the US Army’s 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade (SFAB) will also be deployed to the conflict-ridden country this spring. The new unit is tasked with training and advising forces from US allies.
The SFAB is currently under training to work with joint terminal attack controllers — US military personnel specialized in calling in close-air support.
“Any deployment to Afghanistan is inherently dangerous, and our soldiers, in particular those of the SFAB, are well-trained and prepared to handle themselves in a variety of operational environments,” said Colonel Joseph Scrocca, a spokesman for the XVIII Airborne Corps.
There has also been a major increase in the number of missions carried out by the US air force, as American aircraft have tripled the number of munitions dropped on purported militant targets across the country.
Militant revenue from narcotics
The number of airstrikes and sorties are expected to increase even as more troops begin to ramp up efforts that Washington says are aimed at defeating Taliban and Daesh militants. Nicholson said the US forces were also focused on cutting Taliban’s revenue from cultivating poppy crops.

PressTV-‘US invaded Afghanistan to protect poppy crops’
The US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 was largely to protect the heroin industry and exploit the country's valuable minerals, says an American scholar.
Afghanistan is the world's top cultivator of poppy, from which opium and heroin are produced. Taliban militants are heavily involved in the poppy cultivation and opium distribution especially in areas under their control.
Despite the US claim, the opium production in the country rose by 87 percent and stands at a record level of 9,000 metric tons (9,921 US tons) so far this year, compared to 4,800 metric tons (5,291 US tons) in 2016, according to a recent survey by the Afghan Ministry of Counter Narcotics and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

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UK charity group warns of horrifying situations for homeless people

December 25, 2017 No Comments



A tent set up by a homeless person near Trafalgar Square, London (Getty Images)
A UK-based charity group raises the alarm about the number of homeless people in Britain, saying some ten thousands sleep rough in the country.
Crisis puts the number of “hidden” rough sleepers at 9,100 besides 9,000 more who are sleeping on the streets and 120,000 who will have to stay in temporary accommodation during the festive season.
The agency also said that the number of hidden homeless is expected to further increase by 47 percent to reach 13,400 during the next decade if no action is taken. The figure has already risen by 57 percent since 2011, when it stood at 5,800.
Commenting on the finding, which is based on research by academics at Heriot Watt University, chief executive Jon Sparkes said the homeless are at risk of being "hidden from help and trapped in horrifying situations."
Some of the people forced to sleep on public transport or in tents told Crisis they were worried about their safety due to a rise in violence.
“I sleep in the buses, mainly because I can’t see sleeping in the street as… safe. It’s not safe because I have been harassed, I have been kicked. It’s really not a life. It’s like dying every day,” said a homeless man named Benji.
Another person, Paul, said he had been woken up in his tent and thrown over a subway “at Christmas time.”
“You get more trouble at Christmas, I believe, than any other time. It’s supposed to be a happy time.”
Sparkes said that “the evidence we are publishing today shows how it is possible to end rough sleeping for good.”
“For those living in tents and on public transport this battle can last even longer, because they often end up forgotten, hidden from help and trapped in horrifying situations.”
The price for renting a home in England has risen three times faster than wages since 2010, according to a public spending watchdog.
Britain has been pushing painful austerity measures since 2010 to cap its budget deficit, targeting key benefits helping the homeless.
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Peru’s president pardons ex-leader Fujimori, citing his health

December 25, 2017 No Comments




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Peru’s President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski has granted a medical pardon to former strongman, Alberto Fujimori, who was behind bars for corruption and rights abuses, triggering protests in the capital, Lima.
In a statement released on Christmas Eve, Kuczynski, pardoned Fujimori, 79, for “humanitarian reasons.”
Fujimori was convicted in 2009 to 25 years in prison for human rights abuses and financial crimes “proven beyond all reasonable doubt,” according to a three-judge panel.
Kuczynski, who had vowed as a candidate not to pardon Fujimori, based his decision on a medical review that found Fujimori suffers from “a progressive, degenerative and incurable disease,” according to the statement.
Fujimori is a deeply divisive figure in Peru. Many consider him as a brutal dictator, while others regard him as a hero who saved the country from an economic crisis and bloody leftist insurgency during his rule.
In reaction to the move, anti-Fujimori protesters took to the streets in downtown Lima, waving pictures of the victims of the government’s crimes from 1990 to 2000.
Two anti-Fujimori congressmen, Alberto de Belaunde and Vicente Zeballos, also said they were also resigning over the presidential pardon, local media reported.
Critics denounced the pardon as a result of pressure on Kuczynski by Fujimori supporters in Congress.
Meanwhile, supporters of Fujimori also gathered outside a clinic in Lima, where he is hospitalize, to celebrate the pardon.
Fujimori was taken to hospital late on Saturday after suffering a severe drop in blood pressure and abnormal blood pressure that put his life at risk, according to his doctor, Alejandro Aguinaga, who denied allegations it was a ruse to legitimize a pending pardon.
Political play out
The presidential pardon could trigger one of the biggest political realignments in the Peruvian government and Kuczynski might reshuffle the cabinet as early as this week, according to a government source.

Police officers stand outside the hospital were Peru's ex-president Alberto Fujmori is hospitalized in Lima on December 24, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Despite Fujimori’s downfall, the right-wing populist movement that Fujimori built in the 1990s has remained one of the most potent political forces in Peru.
His eldest daughter, Keiko, leads the opposition party Popular Force that controls Congress, while his youngest son, Kenji, has courted ties with Kuczynski’s government.
“We’re eternally grateful to you,” Kenji said on Twitter, noting that he was speaking for Fujimori’s family.
On Thursday, Kenji led a surprise defection in Popular Force that narrowly saved Kuczynski from a motion to remove him from office in the wake of a graft scandal.
“To save his own skin he cut a deal with Fujimori’s supporters,” said Veronika Mendoza, a leftist leader who competed against Kuczynski in last year’s presidential election.
Kuczynskis has repeatedly denied allegations that a promise for a pardon was part of any political negotiation.

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