Headline
Russia-Ukraine War: 15 Latest u Updates As Moscow Declares Partial Ceasefire

Russia announced a ceasefire Saturday to allow residents of two Ukrainian cities that were surrounded by Russian forces, including the strategic port city of Mariupol, to evacuate.
Russian forces have been operating in Ukraine since February 24.
As of Friday night, no fewer than 775 Nigerians had been flown back to the country. The first batch comprising 415 persons arrived from Romania in the morning while the second batch, comprising 180, arrived from Poland at about 6:30 pm. Another 180 arrived in the third batch.
They were all received at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. One more batch was being expected from Hungary and Poland as of the time of filing this report.
Here are the latest developments in Russia’s war in Ukraine as compiled by The PUNCH:
– Ceasefire in two cities –
Russia’s defence ministry announces a ceasefire to allow civilians in the besieged port city of Mariupol and the town of Volnovakha to evacuate. Mariupol’s mayor Vadim Boychenko says evacuations will begin at 0900 GMT.
The strategic city of 450,000 people on the Azov Sea, which has suffered intense shelling, has been without electricity, food, water and heating for days in the depth of winter.
– Nuclear plant fire –
A fire at Europe’s biggest nuclear power station at Zaporizhzhia is put out, with Ukraine accusing Russia of “nuclear terror” in shelling the plant.
Russian troops later take over the site of the reactors, which generate a fifth of Ukraine’s electricity, after firefighters say they were prevented from reaching the blaze for hours.
– West slams ‘recklessness’ –
At a United Nations Security Council meeting, the US ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield says Russia’s “reckless” overnight attack “represents a dire threat to all of Europe and the world”.
READ ALSO: Ukraine: UK Asks Citizens To Leave Russia
Moscow’s UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia denies that Russian forces had shelled the plant, saying the statements “are simply untrue”.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, offers to travel to Ukraine to negotiate with Ukraine and Russia on ensuring the safety of nuclear sites.
– More talks planned –
One of Ukraine’s negotiators says a third round of talks with Russia on ending the fighting is planned this weekend.
Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says Moscow is ready for dialogue over Ukraine if all its demands are met
– Jail threat to journalists –
Award-winning Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta says it will stop reporting on the war and the BBC says it is suspending the work of its journalists in Russia as President Vladimir Putin signs a law imposing harsh jail sentences for the publication of “fake news” about the invasion.
– ‘Not over soon’ –
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warns that the war in Ukraine “may not be over soon” and that the US and European allies must sustain tough pressure on Russia until it ends.
– G7 threatens further sanctions –
G7 foreign ministers warn that Russia will face further “severe sanctions” for its invasion, and call on Moscow to stop its attacks near nuclear power plants.
– NATO rejects no-fly zone –
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg says the alliance will not impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine after Kyiv calls for one to help stop Russia’s bombing of its cities.
– Russia isolated –
Russia is more isolated than ever after a historic vote at the UN Human Rights Council for a probe into violations committed during the war on Ukraine, with only Eritrea siding with Moscow.
– 47 killed in northern city –
Forty-seven people have been killed following a Russian air strike in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, regional authorities say.
READ ALSO: Russia-Ukraine War: Nigerian Students Narrate Ordeal Say ‘We Saw Hell’
– ‘Numerous rapes’: Kyiv –
Ukraine’s foreign minister claims there have been “numerous cases” of Russian troops raping Ukrainian women and calls for an international tribunal on war crimes.
– More than 1.2 million flee –
More than 1.2 million people have fled Ukraine into neighbouring countries since Russia invaded last week, the UN says.
– Stocks sink, gas, oil soar –
Global stock markets fall, gas prices reach a record high, and oil prices soar as investors fear the risk of an escalation after Russia attacked the nuclear power plant.
– Hunger threat –
The United Nations’ World Food Programme warns about a looming food crisis in Ukraine in conflict areas, while disruptions in production and exports could lead to food insecurity globally.
Headline
UK Police Arrest Asylum Seeker Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed

The UK police on Sunday arrested an Ethiopian asylum seeker and convicted sex offender, whose crimes had sparked anti-immigration protests, after he was accidentally released from prison in an embarrassing blunder by British authorities.
London’s Metropolitan Police said officers arrested Hadush Kebatu in the north of the capital on Sunday morning, nearly 48 hours after he was mistakenly freed around 30 miles (48 kilometres) away.
Kebatu, 38, had served the first month of a one-year sentence for sexually assaulting a teenage girl and a woman, but was reportedly due to be deported when the Prison Service error occurred on Friday.
His high-profile case earlier this year in Epping, northeast of London, sparked demonstrations in various English towns and cities where asylum seekers were believed to be housed, as well as counter-protests.
READ ALSO:UK Police Hunt Asylum Seeker Mistakenly Freed For Sex Offence
Commander James Conway, who oversaw the manhunt for him, said “information from the public” led officers to the Finsbury Park neighbourhood of London, where he was found.
“He was detained by police but will be returned to the custody of the Prison Service,” he added.
Kebatu is now expected to be deported.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Friday he was “appalled” by the “totally unacceptable” mistake that saw him freed rather than sent to an immigration detention centre.
The Telegraph newspaper said he was wrongly categorised for release on licence and handed a £76 ($101) discharge grant.
READ ALSO:Alleged Misappropriation: MFM Accuses UK Agency Of Discrimination
Police had appealed Saturday for Kebatu to turn himself in, after reports emerged that he had appeared confused and reluctant to leave the prison in Chelmsford, eastern England.
A delivery driver described seeing Kebatu return several times in a “very confused” state, only to be turned away by staff and directed to the railway station.
The driver told Sky News he saw Kebatu outside the jail, asking, “Where am I going? What am I doing?”
“He was starting to get upset, he was getting stressed,” the driver said.
READ ALSO:UK Is A Home, Not Hotel, Kemi Badenoch Tells Immigrants, Starmer’s Govt
The father of Kebatu’s anonymous teenage victim told the broadcaster that “the justice system has let us down.”
Police arrested the asylum seeker in July after he repeatedly tried to kiss a 14-year-old girl and touch her legs, and made sexually explicit comments to her.
He also sexually assaulted an adult woman, placing a hand on her thigh, when she intervened to stop his interactions with the girl.
He was staying at the time at Epping’s Bell Hotel, where scores of other asylum seekers have been accommodated, and which became the target of repeated protests.
AFP
Headline
Madagascar Revokes Ousted President’s Nationality

Madagascar’s new government has stripped ousted president Andry Rajoelina of his Malagasy nationality in a decree published Friday, 10 days after he was removed in a military takeover.
According to AFP, the decree means that Rajoelina, who was impeached on October 14 after fleeing the island nation in the wake of weeks of protests, would not be able to contest future election.
The decree published in the official gazette said Rajoelina’s Malagasy nationality was revoked because he had acquired French nationality in 2014, local media reported, as photographs of the document were shared online.
READ ALSO:Madagascar’s President Denounces ‘Coup Attempt’ As Gen Z Protests Escalate
French broadcaster RFI said it had confirmed the decree with the entourage of the new prime minister, Herintsalama Rajaonarivelo, who signed the order.
The decree cited laws stipulating that a Malagasy who voluntarily acquires a foreign nationality loses their Malagasy nationality.
Rajoelina’s French nationality caused a scandal when it was revealed ahead of the November 2023 elections, nearly 10 years after it was granted.
READ ALSO:Madagascar Passes Bill To Castrate Child R*pists
It triggered calls for him to be disqualified but he went on to win the contested polls, which were boycotted by opposition parties.
The 51-year-old politician fled Madagascar after army Colonel Michael Randrianirina said on October 11 his CAPSAT unit would refuse orders to put down the youth-led protest movement, which security forces had attempted to suppress with violence.
Rajoelina said later he was in hiding for his safety, but did not say where.
Randrianirina was sworn in as president on October 14, pledging elections within two years.
Headline
Kamala Harris Hints At Running For President Again

Former US vice president Kamala Harris said in a British television interview previewed in Saturday that she may “possibly” run again to be president.
Harris, who replaced Joe Biden as the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate but lost to Donald Trump, told the BBC that she had not yet decided whether to make another White House bid.
But the 61-year-old insisted she was “not done” in American politics and that her young grandnieces would see a female president in the Oval Office “in their lifetime, for sure”.
READ ALSO:FULL LIST: Trump, Kamala, Netanyahu, Others Shortlisted For 2024 Time’s Person Of The Year
“I have lived my entire career a life of service, and it’s in my bones, and there are many ways to serve.
“I’ve not decided yet what I will do in the future, beyond what I am doing right now,” Harris told the British broadcaster in an interview set to air in full on Sunday.
The comments are the strongest hint yet that Harris could attempt to be the Democratic Party nominee for the 2028 election.
READ ALSO:Kamala Harris Secures Democratic Presidential Nomination
The interview follows the release of her memoir last month, in which she argued it had been “recklessness” to let Biden run for a second term as president.
She also accused his White House team of failing to support her while she was his deputy, and at times of actively hindering her.
AFP
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