Headline

Anxiety As Trump Deploys US Nuclear Submarines Near Russia After ex-President’s Comment

Published

1 month ago

August 2, 2025

United States President, Donald Trump, says he has ordered two nuclear submarines to “be positioned in the appropriate regions” after what he called “highly provocative” remarks by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

Trump said he acted “just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances.”

He did not reveal where the submarines are being sent, following standard U.S. military protocol.

Medvedev recently issued threats toward the U.S. in response to Trump’s demands that Moscow agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face strict sanctions.

According to BBC, the U.S. and Russia hold the largest nuclear arsenals in the world, and both maintain fleets of nuclear submarines.

In a post on Truth Social on Friday, Trump wrote: “Based on the highly provocative statements of the former president of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, who is now the deputy chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, I have ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions.”

Trump did not specify whether the submarines were nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed.

Later that day, speaking to reporters, Trump said: “A threat was made, and we didn’t think it was appropriate. So I have to be very careful. I do that on the basis of safety for our people. A threat was made by a former president of Russia. And we’re going to protect our people.”

The Kremlin has not commented publicly, but Moscow’s stock market dropped sharply after Trump’s announcement.

Trump and Medvedev have been trading personal attacks on social media in recent weeks.

Trump has set new deadlines for Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, the latest being August 8. Putin has not shown any sign of complying.

Earlier this week, Trump had mentioned a “10 or 12” day deadline. In July, he warned of heavy tariffs on Russian oil and other exports if Putin did not stop the war within 50 days.

Medvedev, who served as Russia’s president from 2008 to 2012, accused Trump of playing “the ultimatum game with Russia.”

In a post on X, he wrote that “each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war.”

Earlier in July, Medvedev called Trump’s ultimatum “theatrical,” adding that “Russia didn’t care.”

Writing on Telegram on Thursday, Medvedev warned of a “dead hand” threat — a phrase some analysts interpreted as a reference to Russia’s nuclear retaliation system.

Friday’s announcement wasn’t Trump’s first response to Medvedev. On Thursday, Trump called him “the failed former president of Russia, who thinks he’s still president,” and warned him to “watch his words,” adding, “he’s entering very dangerous territory!”

Medvedev has backed Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and remains a vocal critic of the West.

Headline

Court Jails Two For Targeting President With Sorcery

Published

14 hours ago

September 15, 2025

Editor

A Zambian court on Monday sentenced two men to two years in prison with hard labour on charges of attempting to use witchcraft to kill the country’s president.

Mozambican national Jasten Mabulesse Candunde and Zambian village chief Leonard Phiri were arrested in December in possession of charms, including a live chameleon.

Police said they planned to use the charms to harm President Hakainde Hichilema, and they were charged with professing knowledge of witchcraft and possession of charms.

“The motive of the crime was to kill the head of state,” magistrate Fine Mayambu ruled in the capital Lusaka on Monday.

“The convicts were not only enemies of the head of state but all Zambians. I therefore sentence them to 24 months imprisonment with hard labour from the date of their arrest,” he said.

The prosecution said the men had been hired by the brother of opposition MP Emmanuel “Jay Jay” Banda, who is facing trial for robbery, attempted murder and escaping custody.

Headline

Two Nigerians Face Jail Terms In Liberia’s Piracy Trial

Published

14 hours ago

September 15, 2025

Editor

Criminal Court ‘D’ in Monrovia is set to deliver judgment this week in Liberia’s first piracy trial, involving two Nigerian nationals accused of hijacking a cargo vessel in the Gulf of Guinea.

According to court records, the defendants were arrested earlier this year after a Liberia-flagged ship was seized by armed men while transporting goods through international waters. The crew sent a distress signal, prompting international maritime forces to intervene.

The suspects were subsequently transferred to Liberian authorities under global maritime cooperation protocols.

According to Liberia’s news platform, Front Page Africa, the case has attracted attention because Liberia maintains one of the world’s largest open ship registries, yet prosecutions for piracy within its domestic courts have not previously occurred. Under international law, Liberia holds jurisdiction over crimes involving ships registered under its flag.

On Monday, proceedings took a new turn when defense lawyer, Cllr. Bestman Juah, informed the court that the defendants had admitted responsibility for the hijacking and were requesting a plea-bargain arrangement. State prosecutors did not oppose the request, leaving open the possibility of reduced sentences in exchange for full cooperation.

Resident Judge Mameita Jabateh-Sirleaf, who presides over Criminal Court ‘D’, will rule on whether to accept the plea deal and determine the sentencing framework. The ruling could also address deportation measures following imprisonment.

Criminal Court ‘D’ handles cases involving armed robbery, terrorism, hijacking, and other serious crimes, and the piracy trial represents a growing trend of transnational offenses being prosecuted within Liberia’s judicial system.
As of press time, the court has not announced the date for sentencing.

Headline

Spain Cancels $825m Israel Arms Deal Over Gaza

Published

15 hours ago

September 15, 2025

Editor

The Spanish government has cancelled a contract worth nearly 700 million euros ($825 million) for Israeli-designed rocket launchers.

The move comes after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced last week that his government would “consolidate in law” a ban on military equipment sales or purchases with Israel over its offensive in Gaza.

The contract, awarded to a consortium of Spanish companies, involved the purchase of 12 SILAM rocket launcher systems derived from the PULS platform made by Israeli firm Elbit Systems, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Military Balance.

First reported by local media and the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the cancellation was formalised on Spain’s official public contracts platform on September 9.

The following day, Sanchez unveiled measures aimed at stopping what his leftist government called “the genocide in Gaza”.

It includes the approval of a decree imposing a ban on military equipment sales or purchases with Israel due to its military offensive in Gaza, launched after the Hamas attacks in October 2023.

Spain applied the ban as Israel stepped up its military onslaught.

Spain has also formalized the cancellation of another contract for 168 anti-tank missile launchers, which were to be manufactured under license from an Israeli company.

That contract, valued at 287 million euros, had been first reported by the press in June.

According to Spanish daily La Vanguardia, the government is undertaking a broader review to phase out Israeli weapons and technology from its armed forces.

Sanchez has emerged as one of Europe’s most outspoken critics of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Gaza policy.

Relations between the two countries have been tense for months.

Israel has not had an ambassador in Spain since Madrid recognized the state of Palestine in 2024.

Last week, Spain recalled its ambassador to Israel after heated exchanges over Sánchez’s new measures.

The Barcelona-based Delas Centre, a security research institute, estimated in April that since the start of the Gaza war, Spain had awarded 46 contracts worth $1.044 billion to Israeli companies, based on public tender data.