Headline

Gaza War Rages On Christmas Eve As Biden Urges Caution

Published

2 years ago

December 24, 2023

Israel pushed on Sunday with its military campaign to destroy Hamas over the October 7 attacks, as the focus of the deadly combat shifted to southern Gaza where most displaced Palestinians are trapped.

US President Joe Biden stressed the “critical need” to protect civilians, in a call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who vowed Israel would “continue the war until all of its goals have been achieved”, officials said.

As heavy fighting raged on, the Israeli army said it had struck another 200 targets in the past 24 hours in the besieged Palestinian territory where it is seeking to defeat Hamas and free remaining hostages.

The army said 153 troops had died in Gaza since it launched its ground invasion on October 27. Ten soldiers were lost in battles on Saturday, one of the deadliest days for the Israeli side.

“This is a difficult morning, after a very difficult day of fighting in Gaza,” said Netanyahu. “The war is exacting a very heavy price… but we have no choice but to keep fighting.”

The army said soldiers had raided a northern Gaza compound near schools, a mosque and a clinic and found “explosive belts adapted for children, dozens of mortar shells, hundreds of grenades and intelligence documents”.

Hamas rejected those claims as lies meant “to justify their massacring of innocent civilians and their destructive aggression that has affected the entire infrastructure… in the already blockaded Gaza Strip”.

The bloodiest ever Gaza war broke out when Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7 and its Islamist militants killed about 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

The gunmen also seized around 250 hostages, 129 of whom are believed to remain in Gaza following the exchange of captives for Palestinians prisoners during a week-long truce late last month.

Israel’s withering military campaign, including massive aerial bombardment, has killed 20,424 people, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

Vast areas of Gaza lie in ruins and its 2.4 million people have endured dire shortages of water, food, fuel and medicine due to an Israeli siege, alleviated only by the limited arrival of aid trucks.

Eighty percent of Gazans have been displaced, according to the UN, many now shielding against the winter cold in makeshift tents and forced into the south of Gaza even as ground fighting comes closer.

Near the far southern Gaza city of Rafah, Umm Amir Abu al-Awf, 27, suffered wounds to her hand and legs in a strike on her house early Sunday.

“Who won?” she said. “Nothing has been achieved except killing civilians… They keep saying Rafah is safe. It is not safe. Nowhere is safe. Every house has a martyr and injured.”

‘More hatred, less peace’
Israeli military spokesman Jonathan Conricus indicated that forces were close to gaining operational control in northern Gaza and that now “we focus our efforts against Hamas in southern Gaza”.

Fighting has raged in the main southern city of Khan Yunis, the birthplace of Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ leader in Gaza and the man Israel holds most responsible for the October 7 attack.

Elsewhere, Palestinian rescuers scrambled again to pull survivors and bodies from the rubble of a destroyed residential building, after a strike hit in the central city of Deir al-Balah.

“I was praying when a huge explosion occurred,” said Yazan Moqbel, a wounded man whose sister was still under the broken concrete. “Rubble fell on us. I didn’t know what happened.”

The head of the UN refugee agency, Filippo Grandi, urged an end to the suffering in the third month of the war.

“For aid to reach people in need, hostages to be released, more displacement to be avoided and above all stop the appalling loss of lives, a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza is the only way forward,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“War defies logic and humanity, and prepares a future of more hatred and less peace.”

On Friday, the United States allowed the passage of a UN Security Council resolution that effectively called on Israel to allow “immediate, safe and unhindered” deliveries of life-saving aid to Gaza “at scale”.

World powers had wrangled for days over the wording and, at Washington’s insistence, toned down some provisions — including removing a call for a ceasefire.

One displaced Gazan, Ahmad al-Burawi, now living in Rafah in southern Gaza, said: “We just want to return to our lands, that’s all. We want a solution… People are dying.”

Silent Christmas

As the war rages on, Christians around the world celebrate Christmas Eve, and festivities are usually held in the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem where they believe Jesus was born.

But this year the city is almost deserted, with few worshippers around and no Christmas tree erected, after church leaders decided to forego “any unnecessarily festive” celebrations, in solidarity with Gazans.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas voiced hope Christmas would mark “a cessation of the Israeli war against the Palestinian people in Gaza, as well as across the occupied Palestinian territories”.

The Gaza war has heightened tensions across the Middle East, where Israel faces a range of enemies — Iran-backed armed groups in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen that have voiced strong support for Hamas.

Cross-border fire has erupted almost daily between Israel and Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah movement.

And Yemen’s Huthi rebels have fired at cargo vessels in the Red Sea, leading the United States to build a naval taskforce to deter the missile and drone strikes.

The US military said four drones had targeted the USS Laboon, but had been shot down, and that an Indian-flagged tanker was hit and sent out a distress call.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Ali Bagheri, denied the Islamic republic was orchestrating the campaign, saying the Huthis act on their “own decisions and capabilities”.

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, in an interview published Sunday, branded Iran “a thoroughly malign influence in the region and in the world”.

AFP

Headline

Genocide: U.S. Lawmaker Alleges Tinubu Lying, Protecting Own Interest

Published

1 hour ago

November 18, 2025

Editor

Riley Moore

…Congress to debate ‘Christian Persecution’ in Nigeria on Thursday

United States (U.S.) lawmaker, Riley Moore, has dismissed President Bola Tinubu’s denial of the targeted killing of Christians as “completely false”.

Moore said Tinubu’s denial was to “protect his interests,” adding that Nigeria’s political leaders were “complicit” in the killing of Christians.

In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Moore noted Tinubu’s statement, claiming that the “characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality” as incorrect.

Meanwhile, the Congress will, on Thursday, debate the persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

This was as International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule (Intersociety) raised fresh claims 99 Christians were, again, killed in Nigeria in 14 days.

“Unfortunately, that is completely false. There are states in Nigeria that have blasphemy laws. People are facing the death penalty for blasphemy against Islam,” the U.S. lawmaker said. “I know President Tinubu is in a difficult position, and trying to protect his interests there in the country. But they are complicit in this to some degree or another for a statement like this.”

Moore cited the case of an Adamawa Christian farmer, Sunday Jackson, who was sentenced to death for defending himself against a killer herdsman.

“There is serious persecution in Nigeria,” Moore said.
CONGRESS is set to convene a hearing on Thursday to examine allegations of widespread persecution of Christians in Nigeria, following President Donald Trump’s recent decision to redesignate the country as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).

The session will be led by Congressman Chris Smith, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, and a vocal advocate for stronger U.S. action on reported religious violence in Nigeria.

Smith previously introduced a congressional resolution naming the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore as responsible actors in several attacks. The resolution recommends visa bans and asset freezes against members of the groups.

It also called on White House to classify “Fulani-Ethnic Militias” operating in states such as Benue and Plateau under the Entities of Particular Concern (EPC) framework established by the International Religious Freedom Act.

Witnesses scheduled to testify include Jonathan Pratt, senior bureau official at the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs, and Jacob McGee, deputy assistant secretary at the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour.

A second panel is expected to feature Nina Shea, senior fellow and director at the Centre for Religious Freedom; Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of the Makurdi Catholic Diocese; and Oge Onubogu, director and senior fellow for the Africa Programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.
INTERSOCIETY alleged in a statement yesterday that 99 Christians were killed within the last 14 days.

It stated that the killing occurred between October 28 and November 11, adding that 114 others were kidnapped by the group that carried out the action, called Jihadist militants.

The report was signed by the Head, Intersociety, Emeka Umeagbalasi, and two human rights lawyers, Joy Igboeli and Ogochukwu Obi.

Headline

Trump Unveils Fast-track Visas For World Cup Ticket Holders

Published

2 hours ago

November 18, 2025

Editor

President Donald Trump on Monday unveiled special fast-track visas for people with tickets to the 2026 World Cup — but his administration warned it was no guarantee of entry to the United States.

The United States has promised a seamless experience for next year’s tournament despite concerns that Trump’s border crackdown could hurt fans.

“For those who intend to join us for the World Cup, I strongly encourage you to apply right away,” Trump said as he announced the scheme in the Oval Office with Gianni Infantino, the boss of global soccer body FIFA.

Infantino — who has repeatedly appeared at Trump’s side since the Republican’s return to the White House in January — said the so-called “FIFA Pass” was a “very important announcement.”

“If you have a ticket for the World Cup, you can have a prioritized appointment to get your visa,” Infantino said.

“We’ll have between five and 10 million people coming to America from from all over the world to enjoy the World Cup, and with this FIFA pass, we can make sure that those who buy a ticket, that are legitimate football fans or soccer fans, they can come and attend the World Cup in the best conditions.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio however issued a warning to those hoping to come for the tournament.

“Your ticket is not a visa,” Rubio said at the announcement. “It doesn’t guarantee admission to the US. It guarantees you an expedited appointment, you’re still going to go through the same vetting.”

Rubio said ticket holders would get an interview within six to eight weeks under the plan but urged people to act now.

“Don’t wait till the last minute,” he said.

Trump has made the World Cup a centerpiece event of both his second presidency and the 250th anniversary of US independence next year.

But the giant sporting extravaganza has not escaped the political turmoil caused by Trump’s hardline stance on a host of issues.

Trump has raised the possibility of moving games from certain host cities amid a crackdown on what he says is crime and migration in some Democratic-run cities.

The draw for the World Cup is due to take place in Washington on December 5.

FIFA will present a new peace prize on the same day, with widespread speculation that it it could go to Trump.

Headline

Nigerian Jailed Six Years In U.S. For Sextortion

Published

1 day ago

November 16, 2025

Editor

Imoleayo Samuel Aina, also known as “Alice Dave,” a 27-year-old Nigerian national, has been sentenced to six years in federal prison following his conviction on multiple charges connected to the sexual extortion and subsequent death of a young man in Pennsylvania.

The sentence, handed down by United States District Judge Joel H. Slomsky, includes 72 months of incarceration, five years of supervised release, and a restitution payment of $3,250. Aina had earlier pleaded guilty to cyberstalking, interstate threats to injure reputation, receiving proceeds of extortion, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and wire fraud.

Aina and his co-defendant, Samuel Olasunkanmi Abiodun, were initially arrested in Nigeria in July 2024 and subsequently extradited to the United States. Another co-defendant, Afeez Olatunji Adewale, remains in Nigeria pending extradition. Abiodun, 26, was sentenced to five years in June 2025 for his role in money laundering and wire fraud related to the same sextortion scheme.

U.S. Attorney David Metcalf described Aina as “the driving force behind this sextortion scheme, which left a young man, and then his family, traumatised.” He added, “The Department of Justice won’t just stand by when innocent victims in the U.S. are harmed by criminal scammers overseas. As this case shows, we can — and we will — find, prosecute, and hold accountable these insidious sextortionists who terrorise people for money.”

Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office, emphasised the wider message of the prosecution. “This case is a powerful reminder of the profound harm sextortion inflicts on young people and their families, and of our unwavering commitment to pursuing those who perpetrate it.

“Whether you are in the United States or operating from abroad, the FBI and our partners will relentlessly pursue you. If you exploit our youth, we will bring you to justice.”

The investigation, conducted jointly by the FBI and the Abington Township Police Department, was supported by multiple international and Nigerian authorities, including Nigeria’s Attorney General, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and the Ministry of Justice’s International Criminal Justice Cooperation Department.

Aina’s co-defendants played complementary roles in the scheme. Abiodun functioned as the financial intermediary, while Adewale, who remains in Nigeria, faces charges of money laundering conspiracy and wire fraud.

Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Brown, prosecuting the case, noted the international collaboration required to secure Aina’s extradition and conviction. “This prosecution demonstrates that national borders do not shield those who exploit and defraud others. Those who choose to target the vulnerable should understand that justice will reach them, regardless of location,” he said.