Headline
World Records That Tumbled In 2022
Published
3 years agoon
By
Editor
From roasting temperatures to rocketing energy prices and millions of refugees fleeing Ukraine, 2022 was a year of extremes.
AFP looks back at some of the records smashed:
Food and energy prices
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February caused a massive jump in energy and food costs, with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s Food Price Index hitting a historic peak in March and the cost of gas in Europe reaching record highs.
The eurozone annual inflation climbed steadily to 10.6 percent in October, the biggest increase since the index began in 1997.
READ ALSO: Buhari Leaving Nigerians More Vulnerable Than When He Came 2015 – Kukah
Refugees
The war also triggered the biggest wave of refugees in Europe since the end of World War II. More than 7 million Ukrainians fled to other European countries and a further 6.9 million were displaced internally, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR.
Globally, the number of displaced people exceeded 100 million for the first time.
Burning up
Europe sweated through its hottest summer on record, with records tumbling in many countries, including England where the mercury topped 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for the first time. Forest fires linked to the hotter, drier conditions also guzzled more land than ever before in Europe — over 600,000 hectares.
Hail of missiles
North Korea fired a record number of missiles into the Sea of Japan in response to large-scale joint military exercises staged by South Korea and the United States.
A particularly intense peak saw 23 missiles fired in 24 hours on November 2.
Farewell Queen
After 70 years on the throne, Britain’s longest-serving monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, passed away on September 8, aged 96.
Before her massive state funeral, an estimated quarter of a million people queued round the clock to view the coffin as it lay in state.
READ ALSO: Three Foreign NGOs Stop Work In Afghanistan After Taliban Ban On Women Staff
Musk mayhem
It was a big year for Elon Musk, the world’s richest man whose fortune was estimated by Forbes at close to $200 billion at the start of December.
The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX added Twitter to his portfolio for $44 billion and swiftly caused controversy, by firing half the staff and unbanning people who had been thrown off the platform, including Donald Trump.
New artistic heights
The art collection of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, which included works by Cezanne, Klimt and Van Gogh, was sold by Christie’s for $1.62 billion, the biggest amount ever for an art auction.
Marilyn Monroe was a big hitter too, with one of her photo portraits by Andy Warhol selling for $195 million, making it the most expensive 20th century artwork.
Tennis titans
When Rafael Nadal won the French Open for the 14th time, the Spanish ace raised his own record of Grand Slam titles to 22, ahead of Novak Djokovic (21) and Roger Federer (20).
It was also a year of farewells with two of the sport’s greatest players calling time on their glittering careers: Federer and Serena Williams, who has 23 Grand Slams to her name.
Jet-setting Swift
The 10th album by the US megastar, “Midnights”, caused such a frenzy that Spotify broke down as more fans sought to listen to it over a single day than any other album.
Ten of its tracks were listed in the top ten Billboard Hot 100, also a first.
Less glorious for Swift was her topping the list for the “worst private jet CO2 emission offenders” among celebrities for her extensive private jet use.
READ ALSO: 2023: Why I Shut Down Atiku’s Campaign Office In Port Harcourt – Wike
In August when she was awarded the unenviable prize, she had already clocked up 170 flights in her private jet.
Eight billion humans
In November the world’s population — which numbered 2.5 billion in 1950 — exceeded eight billion, according to the UN.
AP/CHANNELS TV
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Headline
‘They Checked My Instagram’ – Nigerian Lady Breaks Down After Landing In U.S, Denied Entry
Published
15 hours agoon
June 29, 2025By
Editor
A Nigerian businesswoman has taken to social media to share her frustration and heartbreak after being denied entry into the United States, despite holding a valid visa.
In a video recorded on her return flight to Nigeria, the visibly distraught woman revealed that she was travelling to Texas for a trade fair.
She said she possessed a B1/B2 visa, which allows travel for both tourism and business meetings.
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However, upon arrival in the U.S., things took a turn.
“I was denied entrance into the US and that is because my visa [is] a B1–B2 visa which is [for] tourism/business meetings,” she explained tearfully.
“When I landed, I was detained for 24 hours and I was questioned. I told them I was going to exhibit but I did not know any better because the US has your data and your Instagram page.”
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According to her, immigration officials scrutinised her social media activity and private messages, using them to challenge her stated purpose of visit.
“Apparently, my Instagram says different. They even checked all my messages with my customers. The customers I have been telling that we are coming, they can pick up and all of that,” she said through tears.
Headline
Uganda: After 39 Years In Power, 80-year-old Yoweri Museveni To Seek Re-election
Published
21 hours agoon
June 29, 2025By
Editor
Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, has announced his intention to run in the country’s next presidential election, extending a rule that began nearly four decades ago.
In a post on the X platform late Saturday, Museveni said he had “expressed my interest in running for… the position of presidential flag bearer,” for his ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party.
The 80-year-old leader has governed Uganda since 1986 after seizing power following a five-year guerrilla war. Under his leadership, the ruling NRM has twice amended the constitution, allowing him to remain in office beyond term and age limits.
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According to Reuters, right groups have long accused Museveni of deploying security forces and leveraging patronage to hold onto power, an allegation he denies.
Explaining his decision to seek reelection, Museveni said he aims to grow Uganda’s economy to a ”$500 billion economy in the next five years.” According to the finance ministry, the country’s GDP currently stands at about $66 billion.
Uganda is set to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January next year. Museveni’s main challenger is expected to be opposition figure and pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine, who came second in the 2021 election and has declared his intention to contest again in 2026.
Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, rejected the 2021 results, alleging his victory had been stolen through “ballot stuffing, intimidation by security forces and other irregularities.”
Headline
‘Netanyahu Must Go’, Israel’s Ex-PM Calls Leadership ‘Catastrophic’
Published
1 day agoon
June 29, 2025By
Editor
Naftali Bennett, Israel’s former Prime Minister, stated in a televised interview that current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must leave office.
Bennett refrained from saying whether he plans to challenge the longest-serving leader in the country in an upcoming election.
In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 that aired on Saturday, Bennett commented, “Netanyahu has been in power for 20 years… that’s too much; it’s not healthy.”
He called attention to Netanyahu’s “heavy responsibility for the divisions in Israeli society,” highlighting the growing rifts that have emerged under Netanyahu’s leadership, especially regarding his handling of the Gaza war since October 2023.
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Bennett, a right-wing leader who joined forces with Netanyahu’s critics to form a coalition that ousted him from office after 12 consecutive years, insisted that “Netanyahu must go.”
However, the fragile coalition government Bennett led, along with current opposition leader Yair Lapid, collapsed after about a year. This led to snap elections, resulting in Netanyahu regaining the premiership with support from far-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties.
Although Bennett has taken time away from politics, there are rumors of a potential comeback, with public opinion polls indicating he may have enough support to defeat Netanyahu again. Currently, no elections are scheduled before late 2026, but early elections are common in Israel.
In his Saturday interview, Bennett claimed credit for laying the groundwork for Israel’s bombardment campaign earlier this month against Iranian nuclear and military sites.
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The decision to launch attacks against the Islamic Republic “was very good” and “needed,” said Bennett, claiming that the offensive would not have been possible without the work of his short-lived government.
In Gaza, where Israel has waged war since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, Bennett said the military has displayed “exceptional” performance, but “the political management of the country” was “a catastrophe, a disaster”.
Criticising the Netanyahu government’s “inability to decide,” the former prime minister called for an immediate “comprehensive” agreement that would see all remaining hostages freed from Gaza.
“Leave the task of eliminating Hamas to a future government,” said Bennett, who also evaded several questions about whether he intends to run for office.
AFP
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