Headline

Govt Reacts To Report Of Third Mainland Bridge Shaking

Published

4 years ago

November 9, 2021

The Federal Controller of Works in Lagos, Mr Olukayode Popoola, on Monday reassured the public that the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos is structurally okay and safe for use.

Popoola, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, urged Nigerians to disregard rumours that the bridge was shaking, as speculated on social media.

He said a video being used to spread fear on social media is the same one being recycled every year for the past five years to cause panic, adding that, the portion in the video had long been fixed.

He appealed to people who specialise in causing panic to turn a new leaf and stop causing confusion in the state.

Popoola recalled that the Federal Government recently completed the replacement of 12 expansion joints on top of the bridge earlier in February 2021 and rehabilitation works underneath the bridge was ongoing.

He said the massive repairs carried out on top of the bridge earlier in the year represented only 10 per cent of the contract, while underwater repairs account for 90 per cent of the project.

Popoola said the Third Mainland Bridge is very important to the federal government hence, the extra attention accorded the bridge which links the commercial hub on the Island in the state.

“I have gone on Third Mainland Bridge today and have gone round the bridge and there is nothing like that bad portion being circulated.

“I want to put the record straight, this is not the first time such rumours would be going round, it started about five years ago that somebody would just wake up and post this same video on social media and then people begin passing it and then cause panic to road users.

“I want to assure all residents of Lagos and road users that there is no problem with Third Mainland Bridge, it is safe and still comfortable,” he said.

The controller further stated that the bridge is important to the nation “so federal government cannot afford to allow anything happen to it”.

He said that underwater repairs which include replacement of piers, shafts and pile caps was about 20 per cent completed and the work does not affect the movement of vehicles on top of the bridge.

The controller added that the bridge was constantly receiving routine attention in addition to other bridges under various levels of rehabilitation in the state.

Headline

42 Killed In Israeli Attacks, Says Gaza’s Civil Defense

Published

14 hours ago

August 24, 2025

Editor

Gaza’s civil defence agency reported at least 42 people killed in Israeli attacks on Sunday, as the Israeli army prepared for a new assault on the Palestinian territory’s largest city.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said there had been several air strikes around Gaza City — which the military is gearing up to capture — including one in the Al-Sabra neighbourhood that killed eight people.

Attacks were also reported elsewhere across the territory, he said, with the “total tally currently rising to 42 dead”.

The army did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the figure.

“The situation is extremely dangerous… Each day, each minute, there are bombings, martyrs, death and blood — we can’t take it anymore,” Al-Sabra resident Ibrahim Al-Shurafa told AFP, explaining strikes and shelling were ongoing.

“We don’t know where to go. Death follows us everywhere,” he added.

Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency or the Israeli military.

The October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Israel’s offensive has killed at least 62,686 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

AFP

Headline

Venezuela Frees Eight Opposition Leaders

Published

14 hours ago

August 24, 2025

Editor

Venezuelan authorities released eight opposition leaders from jail early Sunday, including a former congressman and two Italian citizens, and granted house arrest to five others, an opposition politician said.

Most of those released had been charged with corruption in opposition-run mayoral offices.

Also set free was Congressman, Amirico de Grazia, detained amid protests that erupted during President Nicolas Maduro’s reelection in 2024.

“Today, several families are once again embracing their loved ones. We know there are many left, and we have not forgotten them; we continue to fight for everyone,” two-time former presidential candidate Henrique Capriles said on X.

Opposition leaders Victor Jurado, Simon Vargas, Arelis Ojeda Escalante, Mayra Castro, Diana Berrio, Gorka Carnevalli, as well as Italian nationals Margarita Assenzo and de Grazia were released, Capriles said.

Nabil Maalouf, Valentin Gutierrez Pineda, Rafael Ramirez, Pedro Guanipa, and David Barroso were placed under house arrest.

The Italian government confirmed the release of de Grazia and Assenzo, who must appear in court to clarify the conditions of their release. It also vowed to continue working on securing the release of other detained Italians.

“We have always said, and we maintain it: we will talk to whomever we need to talk to so that there is not a single political prisoner in our Venezuela!” Capriles added.

AFP

Headline

Russia, Ukraine Exchange Prisoners Of War, Civilians

Published

14 hours ago

August 24, 2025

Editor

Russia and Ukraine each sent back more prisoners of war on Sunday in the latest in a series of exchanges that have seen hundreds of POWs released this year, the two sides said.

Large-scale prisoner exchanges were the only tangible result of three rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul between May and July.

They remain one of the few areas of cooperation between the two countries since Russia’s offensive began in 2022.

“On August 24, 146 Russian servicemen were returned from the territory controlled” by Kyiv, the Russian defence ministry said on Telegram.

“In exchange, 146 prisoners of war of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were transferred” to Ukraine, it added. Ukraine did not confirm any figures for the release.

Russia also said that “eight citizens of the Russian Federation—residents of the Kursk region, illegally detained” by Kyiv were also returned.

Ukrainian forces launched a surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region in August last year, seizing hundreds of square kilometres (miles) of territory in a major setback for the Kremlin.

Russia deployed thousands of troops from its ally North Korea as part of a counterattack but did not fully reclaim the region until April.

Among the Ukrainians released on Sunday was journalist Dmytro Khyliuk, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Khyliuk was kidnapped in the Kyiv region in March 2022. He is finally home in Ukraine,” Zelensky said on social media.

Also freed was former Kherson mayor Volodymyr Mykolayenko, “who spent more than three years in captivity,” Zelensky’s aide Andriy Yermak wrote on X.

“In 2022, he was on the list for return, but Volodymyr voluntarily refused to be exchanged in favour of a seriously ill prisoner with whom he was sharing a cell in a Russian prison,” Yermak said.

AFP