The Ethiopian army has launched coordinated attacks on all fronts against forces from the northern Tigray region.

They said the government was using artillery, tanks, jets, and drones in an attempt to “reinvade” the region.

Meanwhile, a senior rebel source said Tigray forces were holding their ground. The Ethiopian government has not confirmed any fighting, and a communications blackout makes independent verification impossible.

READ ALSO: Former President Doctor Goodluck Johnathan to commission General Hospital in Ikot Ekpene local government Area today

 Asked if a ground offensive had been launched, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s spokeswoman Billene Seyoum said the government had a responsibility to protect its citizens across the country from acts of terrorism but gave no further details.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!

By Jane Uwa

Over 100 music students and teachers have fled Afghanistan in a nail-biting flight from Kabul over the fear of the Taliban’s taking over the country and cracking down the music.

About half of the group consists of women and girls, intending to fly to Portugal with the support of the government there, But the success of the operation was in doubt until the last moment.

READ ALSO: President Muhammadu Buhari sues for peace and stability in Ethiopia amid challenges

The Taliban, who banned music outright during their brutal and oppressive rule from 1996 to 2001, swept back into power on August 15 and promised a more moderate brand of rule this time though they have made clear that they will run Afghanistan within the restrictive limits of their interpretation of sharia law.

Fumio Kishida has formally taken office as Japan’s new prime minister, succeeding Yoshihide Suga who resigned after just one year in office.

64year old Kishida, won the race to lead Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) last week.

Reports say he will face a range of tough issues, including post-pandemic economic recovery and threats from North Korea. He will also hope to help his party regain popularity after its unpopular push to host the Tokyo Olympics.

Germany’s center-left Social Democrats (SPD) are edging towards election victory, as projected results look increasingly bleak for the party of outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Merkel’s successor, Armin Laschet, is still vowing to form a government, but his conservative CDU party has seen its worst performance in history.

The SPD currently leads by a small margin, but the results are not yet final. Their leader Olaf Scholz says his party has a clear mandate to rule.

READ ALSO: Imo State Police Command arrest 54-year-old man for conniving with wife to murder son

IN THE UK – The government is to suspend competition law to allow oil firms to target fuel deliveries at petrol stations following recent panic buying.
Officials said the move would make it easier for companies to share information and prioritize parts of the country most at need.

It follows days of long queues at the pumps after fears of disruption to the fuel supply sparked panic buying. Ministers are also considering deploying the Army to deliver fuel.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!

By Saviour Robert

France President, Emmanuel Macron has disclosed that the head of the Islamic State group in Sahara, Adnan Al-Sahrawi has been killed by French troops.

The group is blamed for most attacks in the Sahel, including the targeted killing of French aid workers in 2020. The Sahel stretches from Senegal in the west to Somalia in the east.

President Macron called Sahrawi’s death another major success in France’s fight against terrorist groups in the region.

ELSEWHERE; Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that dozens of people in his inner circle at the Kremlin, Russian equivalent for White House, has tested positive for coronavirus.

READ ALSO: Norway’s left-wing opposition wins the general election

Earlier this week, the 68-year-old Putin said he was self-isolating after announcing an outbreak among members of his entourage.

Russian authorities have gone to great lengths to protect Putin who has been vaccinated with Russia’s homegrown Sputnik COVID-19 vaccine since the start of the pandemic.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!

The Taliban have announced an interim government in Afghanistan, declaring the country an “Islamic Emirate”. 

Reports say the new cabinet, entirely male, is made up of senior Taliban figures some of whom are notorious for attacks on US forces over the last two decades.

READ ALSO: Akwa Ibom state governor Udom Emmanuel approves release of appointment letters to 1000 recruited secondary school teachers

Meanwhile, the new government will reportedly be led by Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, one of the movement’s founders, who is on a UN blacklist.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!

China has formally revised its laws to allow couples to have up to three children, to boost the birth rate.

In 2016, the country had scrapped its decades-old one-child policy to replace it with a two-child limit. However, China had announced in May 2021 that it would allow couples to have up to three children, in a major policy shift.

The United States has given conditions for recognising a Taliban government in Afghanistan.

US Department spokesman, Ned Price, said that the US would only recognise a Taliban government in Afghanistan if it respects the rights of women and denounces extremist movements such as Al-Qaeda.

READ ALSO: Former US President Donald Trump calls on President Joe Biden to resign over swift takeover of Afghanistan by Taliban militants

According to them, “a future Afghan government that upholds the basic rights of its people, that does not harbor terrorists and that protects the basic rights of its people including the basic fundamental rights of half of its population – its women and girls — is a government the U.S would be able to work with.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!

Former US president Donald Trump has called on his successor Joe Biden to resign over the swift takeover of Afghanistan by Taliban militants, as US troops withdrew from the country after nearly 20 years on the ground.

Trump in a statement, also criticized Biden over a surge in Covid-19 cases in the United States and domestic immigration, economic and energy policies.

Reports say The Taliban have reconquered Afghanistan in a lightning surge 20 years after they were toppled by the US invasion.

READ ALSO: Federal government to lift Twitter ban soon

They took control of Kabul yesterday, more than two weeks before the August 31 deadline set by Biden to complete the withdrawal of American troops from the country.

It was allegedly under Trump that the US brokered a deal with the Taliban in Doha in 2020 that would have seen the US withdraw all its troops by May 2021, in exchange for various security guarantees from the militants and when Biden took power earlier this year, he reportedly pushed back the deadline for the withdrawal and set no conditions for it.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!

United Nation’s climate science panel says it will today Monday unveil its much-anticipated projections for temperature and sea-level rises less than three months before a crucial climate summit in Scotland.

Reports say after two weeks of virtual negotiations, 195 nations approved the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) comprehensive assessment of past and future warming in the form of a “summary for policymakers”.

The text — vetted and approved line by line, word by word — is likely to paint a grim picture of accelerating climate change and dire threats on the horizon.

READ ALSO: Federal government postpones second phase of COVID 19 vaccination indefinitely

ELSEWHERE; Wildfires have continued to rip through the Greek island of Evia, prompting residents to flee to safety by sea.

More than 2,000 people have reportedly been evacuated already, with elderly residents carried on to ferries. Greece is experiencing its most severe heatwave in 30 years in which temperatures have spiked to 45 Celsius.

Do join our Telegram Channel so you don’t miss any updates !!