Israeli troops kill Palestinian in overnight West Bank raid

BETHLEHEM, West Bank — A Palestinian official says Israeli troops have shot and killed a Palestinian during an overnight raid in the West Bank.
Bethlehem Governor Jebren al-Bakri says 19-year-old Jihad al-Jafari was shot in the chest Tuesday morning on the roof of his house in the Deheisha refugee camp as he was watching a disturbance below. Palestinians showed footage of the body being taken to hospital.
The Israeli military says troops on a “routine activity” were attacked with rocks and firebombs in the camp. The military says troops tried to “disperse the turmoil” and, feeling their lives were in danger, opened fire at one of the instigators. It said one Israeli soldier was lightly wounded in the clash.
Israeli troops often carry out overnight raids searching for suspected militants.

Army Must Defend Nigeria, Not The Tenure Of Any Politician – Oshiomole

Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole says that the Nigerian Army must remain loyal to the nation and not to defending the tenure of an individual.
The governor said this while receiving the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 2 Division of the Nigerian Army, Ibadan, Major General Sanusi Muazu. He noted that no political office holder should get so desperate and try to use the military to boost personal ambition.
“The reason this has become an issue is because of the nature of our politics and the way political actors have put their personal interests over and above national interest. Presidents and governors would come and go, whether they are good or bad. Even the Armed Forces commander would come and go but the institution of the Nigeria Armed Forces will remain. Once we can distinguish between the person and the office, the institutions and the player, we may not have crisis.
“I believe that the forthcoming elections with all the tension that people are raising, the speculation that Nigeria will have crisis, to me I have seen all these before and the God that created this country will ensure that after all the fog, the weather will be clear. Nigeria will remain.
“It is the peace and security of the part that determine the character of peace and security of the whole. The Armed Forces must see themselves as the Nigerian Armed Forces and not the Armed Forces of the Commander in Chief, or of the governor. The Commander in Chief is to be elected by very ordinary people.
“The right of the people to vote for who will be president is a right that must be defended and upheld. Once the process is clean, the outcome does not matter. In a democracy, the people deserve the kind of president they want. He is a product of election and not an imposition.
“So, I ask you to do all you can to keep that confidence, that the army understands that its mandate is to defend the territorial integrity of the Nigerian nation and not the tenure of any political office holder regardless of the level,” Oshiomole said.

John Dumelo – “If I Date Yvonne Nelson, It Won’t Last”

Fans have been urging them to date so this questions were bound to come up sooner or later.
The hunky handsome Ghanaian actor, John Dumelo has opened up on his relationship with Yvonne Nelson.
He told the Nigerian Tribune: –

The truth is that Yvonne and I have been good friends for a long time. Apart from the fact that we are colleagues who take our jobs seriously, we also look out for ourselves like good friends do. I think by now, you should know that we are very good friends. She has come out to deny the rumor several times, so let’s move to the next questions…

So you think things cannot work between you two like she has said?

As I said, she’s been a fantastic friend over the years and a lot of people think that we should date…like she rightly said I don’t think it will last.

Do you have a girl friend?

Yes, I have one.

Can you mention her name?
I’m dating. I will not tell you who the person is. If I mention name, trouble go come ooo.
At what age do you think you would settle down with her?

I believe there is time for everything and I am very confident that time will come when it will come. So, I can only say that I will settle down when it feels right. I am a man who likes to plan before venturing into anything, right now I am concentrating on my career, at the right time, I will settle down. I guess that’s what everybody wants to say or hear now.

Are you pressured to get married?

I think the pressure to get or not to get married comes with age. All will happen in due season. Sometimes, the thought of getting married scares me. The divorce rate these days are just crazy. What’s wrong? People marry for the wrong reasons?.

Can you ever cheat on your wife?

I am not married yet, so I can’t tell you what married men do behind their wives. All I can I say is that I am still single and I hope to get married one day to a beautiful woman and start a beautiful home together. I am still single; when I am married you can ask me this question.

You are a s*x symbol, somehow. Do you engage in it often?

Hmmm as for this question…I am thinking…

One Direction named UK's biggest act for third year in a row - YAY!

Big news for 1D

Yay for One Direction – they’ve been named the UK’s biggest boyband for the third year in a row.
It seems there’s no stopping Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson as the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s Global Recording Artist Chart (very posh!) shows they outsold all other British acts for another year, yet again.
Their latest album Four topped the charts in a whopping 85 countries and the band’s creator-type-bloke, Simon Cowell, is laughing all the way to the bank very pleased, according to The Sun.
He said: “I am absolutely delighted and immensely proud that One Direction were the biggest UK act in the world in 2014.
“To accomplish this for a third year in a row is a fantastic achievement – and especially pleasing as this latest album also highlighted the band’s skills as songwriters.”
Aww, he’s like a proud dad.

Central Africa to join fight against Boko Haram

Nigerian Soldiers in Hong

The Economic Community of Central African States on Monday sought to collaborate with the Economic Community of West African States to fight the Boko Haram Sect.
ECCAS made this known on Wednesday at a meeting with Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport in Abuja.
Representing ECCAS were President Denis Sassou N’Guesso of the Republic of Congo and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of the Republic of Equitorial Guinea.
President N’Guesso told journalists after the meeting that discussions included the Ebola crisis and the security challenges – particularly ravaging the West and Central Africa regions.
He said all three leaders condemned the insurgency, its destructive activities such as indiscriminate killing of peoples and the wanton destruction of properties, the abduction of innocent women and children, especially young school girls, who might have been turned to sex slaves.
Mr. N’ Guesso said they had come on a solidarity visit as well as to work out modalities on how to assist Nigeria combat the issue of Boko Haram.
“We will study the situation together and put in place a security architecture to see how we can coordinate all our actions to put out and eradicate the Boko Haram, which has been spreading in a very grave manner. We look forward to peace, security and development in Africa,” he said.
The ECCAS delegation is expected to proceed to Ghana for further consultations with Ghanaian President, John Mahama, who is also the chairman of ECOWAS.
The meeting with President Jonathan is coming on the heels of a meeting held in Cameroon’s capital city, Yaounde, where representatives of ECCAS committed to spend $86 million to fight Boko Haram. Nigeria, who was to be an observer was however absent at the meeting.
“Like you know at the last meeting of the Africa Union, the Heads of State took some very important decisions principally to check the Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria, Niger, Cameroun and Chad.
“Following the meeting of the African Union, the Economic Community of Central African Countries had a meeting recently in Yaoundé to address particularly the Boko Haram challenge in Africa and to see the possibility of ameliorating the grave situation. It’s on that platform that we met with our friend President Jonathan of Nigeria.
“We are here because we have been mandated by the Heads of State of the Central African Community to be here, and show our solidarity to the people of Nigeria and the government of Nigeria, and to our brother and friend, President Jonathan”.
“And after here, we are on a mission to Accra to meet with President John Mahama of Ghana, who is the Chairman of ECOWAS,” said Mr. N’ Guesso.
He said the ECCAS would use all political, military and diplomatic efforts to disarm Boko Haram. “We have no doubt that we have arrived at a mechanism for coordinating all our actions for effectiveness,” he said.
He commended the President Jonathan as well as the security forces for the recent successes recorded in overcoming attacks by Boko Haram.
“We hope that the framework that we are going to put in place will give us a better and more effective result against Boko Haram”.
Boko Haram crisis that has bedevilled the North-Eastern past of Nigeria spilled into neighbouring nations, notably Cameroon, Niger and Chad. The three neigbouring countries recently formed a military alliance to fight the group whose ideology is basically against western education.

Omenka storms Cape Town Art Fair with his best four

It is going to be a real showcase for South Africa’s and the continent’s fast growing and vibrant contemporary art economy as the 2nd edition of the Cape Town Art Fair kicks off in South Africa. And in line with its mission of ensuring sustainable presence for African art within a global context, one of the leading art gallery in Nigeria, Omenka gallery will from February 26 to March 1, participate in the Art Fair scheduled to hold at the Avenue, V & A Waterfront, Cape Town.
Omenka will present recent works by four leading contemporary African artists Joel Mpah Dooh (Cameroon), Duke Asidere (Nigeria), Gerry Nnubia (Nigeria), and Ndidi Emefiele (Nigeria). The four artists differ in their primary point of investigation.
Among them, Joel Mpah Dooh is preoccupied with experimentation and has enjoyed international critical acclaim with his paintings and multi-med
ia works.
The artist is inspired by the tactile reality of his environment though he is mostly an inner traveler. Mpah Dooh works on paper, canvas, corrugated iron and most recently acrylic sheets, while incorporating earth, paints, clay, packaging, wood, and chalk to explore the fragility of individual human identity and how we reinvent ourselves while moving and evolving in the city.

Asidere’s work engages contemporary African politics. Through visual metaphors, the artist comments on the everyday human drama that surrounds him; political, social, psychological or cultural. Furthermore, he adds an element of surprise to these sketches of human drama by infusing them with irony and humour.

Asidere’s broad oeuvre ranges from headless or limbless figures and faces of strangely hybrid beings to densely populated urban landscapes, accentuated with thick strokes of vivid colour.

He has recently turned to car enamel paint, which he applies with a spray gun to produce emotionally charged works that retain figurative subject matter, and at the same time emphasize abstract qualities. Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of Asidere’s style is his simplicity of form and expressive line, which he achieves with an economy of means.
Gerry Nnubia offers critical possibilities for painting, and explores the tensions between form and formlessness vital to the tenets of modernism with his “acrylic flow”. Nnubia’s technique involves the skillful manipulation of his medium to a liquid viscous flow often assimilating accidental occurrences and temperature adjustments, depending on the effect sought.
Emefiele also adopts the historic practice of using the human figure symbolically, dating back to the sculptures and paintings of ancient Egyptians, whose “god-like” pharaoh was often depicted much larger than ordinary mortals, his erect, stiff posture signifying his unyielding majesty and authority.
The heads of her female figures are large, bearing semblance to those of traditional Yoruba sculptures, carved disproportionately to other parts of the human body to emphasize its function as the seat of wisdom, upon which the destiny of an individual is carried. Here, the female body becomes a contested site and an important source of information, through which she challenges established notions of beauty.
Overall, the exhibition has a strong contemporary outlook and engages the traditions of African art history, resulting in iconic imagery that captures intense and challenging moments. Omenka is a leading art gallery in Nigeria and represents a fine selection of established and emerging contemporary African and international artists working in diverse media.
Omenka participates in major events like Art Dubai, Joburg Art Fair, Cape Town Art Fair, Cologne Paper Art, Docks Art Fair, Lyon, LOOP, Barcelona, Art14, and 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair. Additionally, Omenka encourages a cross fertilization of ideas by collaborating with leading galleries across the world to bring the work of many international artists to Nigeria, often for the first time. Omenka Gallery also organizes several workshops and residencies to encourage curatorial and professional artistic development.

Don’t rear animals in residential areas, LASEPA warns Lagosians

The General Manager of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), Mr Adebola Shabi, has condemned rearing of animals in residential areas saying it constitutes a huge environmental menace.
According to him, the 1979 Constitution allows people to have pets such as dogs and cats but not to keep a large number that are capable of constituting a nuisance.
He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that animals’ urine and excreta always constituted a public nuisance noting that the sanitation unit of the Ministry of Environment deals with the issue as part of sanitation offence.
“‘Rearing of animals in residential areas is now a big issue as it constitutes a lot of environmental problems. Animal wastes like urine, excreta and other body fluids is not good for humans.
By the time water touches the waste, it forms filter polypore.
The wastes can also degrade to an ammonia substance which is dangerous to human beings,” he said.

The Kidnapping of my aide is political – Amaechi

Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, said on Monday that the abduction of his Deputy Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Freddy Ndigbara was politically motivated.

Ndigbara, who also anchors Amaechi’s programmes within and outside Government House, Port Harcourt, was kidnapped by unknown gunmen, who stormed a rally of the All Progressives Congress in Kaani Ward Six, Khana Local Government Area.
The hoodlums had come in a red Toyota Highlander, shot into the air, before going for their target (Ndigbara) and forced him into a waiting vehicle.
But Amaechi, who spoke through the Chief of Staff, Government House, Chief Tony Okocha, explained that the dastardly act had political undertone.
The governor stated that Ndigbara and one of the political leaders in Kaani, Mr. Celestine Akpobari, were able to convert over 5,000 members of the Peoples Democratic Party to the APC.
Amaechi pointed out that there was nothing wrong or extraordinary in what his aide did since the country was in a political setting where the electorate are being wooed from one political party to another.
He said, “Of course, Freddy Ndigbara’s abduction is politically motivated. We are aware that Ndigbara, in league with the Celestine Akpobari, was able to convert over 5,000 PDP members to APC.
“There is nothing wrong or extraordinary in what he (Ndigbara) did because we are in a political setting where the inthing now is to win political converts. Winning new convert was what Freddie did before he was kidnapped.”
The governor, however, appealed to his aide’s abductors to release him unconditionally, insisting that Ndigbara meant no harm to anybody as an APC member.

Court Adjourns Fani-Kayode’s Money Laundering Trial

A Federal High Court in Lagos has further adjourned till February 24 and 25, 2015, the trial of a former Minister of Aviation, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, who is facing money laundering charges.

Fani-Kayode’s trial was stalled on Monday owing to the absence in court of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s prosecutor, Mr. Festus Keyamo.
The trial judge, Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, had adjourned till Monday for the ex-minister to open argument in his own defence against the charges of financial impropriety levelled against him.
Though the accused was in court and had proceeded into the dock upon calling the case, a counsel representing the EFCC, Mr. Somadina Okore, however stood up and pointed the attention of the court to a letter written by Keyamo asking the court for an adjournment.
Okore said, “Most respectfully, my Lord, earlier before now, the prosecutor in this matter, Mr. Festus Keyamo, has written a letter to this honourable court, informing the court that he is appearing before a Federal High Court in Yola today. He is praying this honourable court to vacate today’s date to allow him to appear and prosecute this case in person.”
Responding, Fani-Kayode’s lawyer, Mr. Wale Akoni (SAN), said he was aware of the letter and that he had no objection to the request for an adjournment. He also reminded the court that the matter was adjourned till Monday and Tuesday, adding that if it was convenient for the court, his client would go and return on Tuesday to stand trial.
In the circumstance, Ofili-Ajumogobia adjourned till Tuesday and Wednesday for continuation of trial.
Fani-Kayode was arraigned before Ofili-Ajumogobia on 40 counts bordering on money laundering to the tune of about N100m.
The EFCC alleged that while he held sway as the Aviation Minister and the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Fani-Kayode, at various times carried out several financial transactions and dealt in cash in excess of N500,000 without going through any financial institution.
The anti-graft agency said the alleged offence contravened Sections 15(1) (a) (b) (c) (d) and 15 (2) (a) (b) of the Money Laundering (prohibition) Act, 2004.
But Fani-Kayode, who is now spearheads President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election campaign, had pleaded not guilty to the charges, following which the prosecution was asked to open its case and adduce evidence in support of the allegations.
However, at the closure of the prosecution’s case on July 10, 2014, the accused on August 5, 2014 submitted a no-case application, arguing that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against him and thus prayed the court to dismiss the charges and set him free.
Ruling on the no-case application on November 17, 2014, Ofili-Ajumogobia dismissed 38 of the 40 counts and discharged Fani-Kayode on the charges.
The judge, however, said the accused would need to prove his innocence in respect of counts 25 and 26 of the charges.
The counts read, “That you, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode on or before September 20, 2006, while serving as Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in Lagos within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, made a transaction exceeding N500,000 which was not done through financial institution, by accepting cash payment of N1m, which sum was further paid into your personal account number, 103450252601 with First Inland Bank PLc Apapa branch, now FCMB, through one Supo Agbaje, your administrative staff, now at large.
“That you, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode on or before September 20, 2006, while serving as Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in Lagos within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, made a transaction exceeding N500,000, which was not done through financial institution, by accepting cash payment of N1.1m, which sum was further paid into your personal account number, 103450252601 with First Inland Bank PLc Apapa branch, now FCMB, through one Supo Agbaje, your administrative staff, now at large.”
Fani-Kayode’s trial began in December 2008 before Justice Ramat Mohammed, from whom he secured bail in the sum of N200m with two sureties in like sum.
The case file was subsequently passed on to Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako, following the transfer of Mohammed from the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court.
Ofili-Ajumogobia took over the case from Murtala-Nyako on February 11, 2013.

Obasanjo Holds Crucial Talks with the Gambian, Sudanese Presidents

Olusegun Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has held crucial talks with President Yahya Jammeh of The Gambia and his Sudanese counterpart, Omar al-Bashir. 

Obasanjo, who was one of four African leaders invited to private talks with President Jammeh after the 50th Independence Anniversary of The Gambia, briefed reporters on his visit saying discussions centered on the recent coup attempt, security in The Gambia and the future of the nation’s economy.

“One of the points that we looked at together is what this country has going for it,” Obasanjo said. “There is relative peace, relative stability, relative continuity and relative security. These are necessary ingredients to fast track development and growth as a democratic country.

“This is why I said to my brother (President Jammeh) that nothing stops The Gambia from being the Switzerland of West Africa. Switzerland is a small country but it is a great country. Gambia is a small country but it is on the path of being great.”

He added that  it is in the interest of all Africans that The Gambia grows to become a great country.“I, therefore, hold myself ready to be a partner in pursuance of that great objective,” he said.

After the meeting with Chief Obasanjo, President Jammeh held further talks with the Presidents of Ghana, Mauritania and Equatorial Guinea.

The President of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, also hosted Obasanjo in Khartoum to discuss insecurity and instability in Africa, especially the crisis in Libya which has adversely affected other parts of Africa.

Briefing local and international media after the private meeting which lasted over 30 minutes, Chief Obasanjo said the meeting provided both leaders opportunity to examine peace and security issues in Africa, particularly the situation in North Africa.“Peace, security and stability which are fundamental to the development of any nation must be our preoccupation,” Chief Obasanjo said. 

“We must do everything possible to ensure that all over Africa, and particularly in North Africa, efforts are made to guarantee peace, security and stability no matter where the need arises.

“My brother (President al-Bashir) and I have agreed to work together with other partners to ensure that stability is achieved in the region and across the continent,” he added.

Obasanjo chairs the Africa Union’s commission of inquiry on South Sudan and has been a leading advocate of peace and security in Africa.

In the 1990s, he initiated the Conference on Security, Stability Development and Co-operation in Africa (CSSDCA), a policy development process created to function within the framework of the African Union and adopted at the 36th Session of the Assembly in Lome, Togo, in July 2000.

FG, Poly Lecturers Meet to Avert Strike

Minister of Education, Ibrahim Sheikarau

Damilola Oyedele in Abuja

The Federal Government, represented by officials of the Ministry of Education and of the Labour and Productivity Ministry would hold a meeting with the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics in a bid to avert the indefinite strike which starts Wednesday.

The union, following a two week ultimatum which expires Wednesday is set to down tools over the failure of the government to honour an agreement reached four years ago for revamping the tertiary sub-sector.

The President of ASUP, in a conversation Monday disclosed that the meeting will hold Tuesday to discuss the issues.

He disclosed that the union would meeting with members of the Education committee in the House of Representatives this afternoon.

The union is demanding the withdrawal of a circular from the Ministry of Education suspending CONTISS 15 in Polytechnics. It is also demanding the dissolution of the governing councils of the Federal Polytechnics Oko, Anambra and in Ado Ekiti for autocratic activities.

Other grievances of the union include the continued discrimination against Polytechnic graduates in Public Service and in the labour market in Nigeria, the non release of the White Paper on the Visitation to Federal Polytechnics, the non implementation of CONTISS 15 Migration for the Lower cadres and its arrears as from 2009 when the salary structure was approved and the non establishment of a National Polytechnics Commission (NPC) and the wrongful continued recognition of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) as the regulatory body for Polytechnics.

Others are the non-constitution of Governing Councils for some Federal Polytechnics by the Federal Government, the snail-pace of the review of the Federal Polytechnics Act by the National Assembly and the gross under funding of the Polytechnic sub sector and continued lopsidedness in the disbursements of TETfund grants and other interventions clearly designed to the disadvantage of the polytechnic sector.

Troops arrest terrorists in Baga

Troops involved in the ongoing counter-terrorism operation in the North-East have arrested a number of terrorists who disguised as women in Baga, Borno State.

Baga, the headquarters of the Multi-National Joint Task Force, was captured by the insurgents in January but was recaptured by the Special Forces on Saturday.

The Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, who stated this in a statement on Monday, did not give the exact number of the terrorists arrested, who disguised as women.

Olukolade had said in an earlier statement on Sunday that troops were screening a group of people, mostly women in Baga, to ascertain their true identities and to find out whether they were supporters of the deadly sect or not.

The Defence spokesman said the troops had arrested many terrorists hiding in Baga apart from those captured during the battle to liberate the town.

Olukolade, who added that several arms and bombs, hidden on locations within Baga, were recovered, stated that those in custody were being interrogated.

He said, “The cordon and search in Baga has revealed some terrorists disguising as women. The searches are also yielding more discoveries of arms, especially bombs, hidden in various locations, especially in Baga town.

“Apart from those captured in the course of fighting, many arrests of terrorists hiding in the town are being made and troops are still busy interrogating the suspects.”

He explained that the Nigerian Air Force had intensified the bombardment of terrorists’ strongholds in Gwoza, Bama and the Sambisa Forest in consonance with the mandate to flush them out of the a

Death toll in Bangladesh ferry accident hits 65

Rescuers place bodies of victims on a boat after a ferry accident on the Padma River in Manikganj district, Bangladesh, Feb. 22, 2015. Death toll in Bangladesh's ferry accident in Bangladesh's western Manikganj district on Sunday rose to 65 as rescuers found 24 more bodies inside the hull of the ferry early Monday, a police officer said. (Xinhua/Shariful Islam)

At least 65 people died in a ferry accident in a river in Bangladesh’s western Manikganj district on Sunday, after another 24 bodies were found, local media reported on Monday.
Most of the new bodies were found after the ferry was lifted, local media quoted officials as saying. Forty-one bodies were recovered by rescuers late Sunday night.
Rescuers were still searching the river for the missing.
The ferry carrying around 150 people was found sank after it was hit by a cargo ship in the Padma River. Some of the passengers swam to safety.
Deputy commissioner of Manikganj, Rashida Ferdousi, told Xinhua earlier that 20,000 taka (257.2 U.S. dollars) had been given to families of each dead person as grant for burial.
The official said three people, including the captain of the cargo ship, had been arrested for hitting the passenger ferry.
A five-member committee has been formed to inquire into the accident and will submit a report within a week. Bangladeshi President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Khaleda Zia have expressed their shock for the loss of lives and condoled families of victims.
Ferry services in Bangladesh do not maintain lists of passengers and no one is able to tell exactly how many passengers a ferry carries.
Ferry and boat accidents are common in Bangladesh, which is crisscrossed by about 250 rivers. Ferry is still a key means of transport in the country. Most of the ferries are often overcrowded.
At least 138 bodies were recovered after a ferry capsized in Munshiganj district in March 2012. Enditem

Egypt dissolves 169 Muslim Brotherhood NGOs

Egypt‘s Ministry of Social Solidarity on Monday ordered the dissolution of 169 non-governmental organizations affiliated with the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood, state-run Ahram Online reported.
The move comes in line with a previous ruling issued by the Court of Urgent Matters banning the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood and ordering the seizure of all the group’s assets, the ministry said in a statement.
In December 2013, the Egyptian government termed the Muslim Brotherhood, the power base of ousted president Mohamed Morsi, as a terrorist organization, following a number of deadly attacks across the country.
The government attributed the attacks to members of the group.
In February 2014, an Egyptian court also designated the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.
Egypt has been facing a growing wave of anti-security terrorist attacks in the Sinai Peninsula and other parts across the country following the removal of Morsi in July 2013.
A crackdown on Morsi’s supporters left hundreds of them dead. Thousands more have been arrested and are being tried.

Russia Offers Iran Latest Anti-aircraft Missiles

latest Antey-2500 missiles

Russia has offered Iran access to its latest Antey-2500 missiles, after a deal to supply less powerful S-300 missiles was dropped under Western pressure, the head of Russian state defense conglomerate Rostec said on Monday according to media reports.

Sergei Chemezov said Tehran was now considering the offer, TASS news agency reported. Russia scrapped a contract to supply Iran with S-300 surface-to-air missiles under Western pressure in 2010, and Iran later filed a $4-billion international arbitration suit against Russia in Geneva, but the two countries remain allies.
The United States and Israel lobbied Russia to block the missile sale, saying it could be used to shield Iran’s nuclear facilities from possible future air strikes. There was no immediate response to Chemezov’s comments from Iran, Israel or the United States.
“As far as Iran is concerned, we offered Antey-2500 instead of S-300. They are thinking. No decision has been made yet,” Chemezov was quoted as saying. Rostec includes state-owned arms exporting monopoly Rosoboronexport, which has the sole right to export and import arms in Russia.

Colombian Woman Changes Name To ABCDEFG HIJKLMN OPQRST UVWXYZ

A Colombian woman said she has won her long-term battle with the government to allow her change her name to the entire alphabet. UPI reports:
The woman, a university art teacher and fetish model previously — but not originally — known as Ladyzunga Cyborg, 36, said her government ID card now officially lists her with the fist name ABCDEFG HIJKLMN and the last name OPQRST UVWXYZ.
She said it took her a year of arguing with the Colombian National Registry to officially get her new name, which she said was chosen for being unusual and hard to pronounce. “I started looking for a name that nobody had in Colombia, or the world, so I thought ABCDEFG HIJKLMN OPQRST UVWXYZ,” she told the Las2orillas website. “I’ve changed my name so people wouldn’t know it’s me.”
“It’s not because I was disturbed by it, but because I wanted to always bring an element of surprise,” she said. Daniel Molano, from the Colombian National Registry, said the name should not have been rejected in the first place.
“If a civil notary had refused to modify her name in the civil registry, he would have broken his work obligations,” he said. “Basically, no matter how unusual, this is something that should always be allowed.”

Karma! Commuter Tells Man To F**k Himself, Turns Out He Insulted His Job Interviewer

This is why it pays to be nice. According to HR executive, Matt Buckland (pictured above), he said a man pushed past him and told him to go ‘f*** himself’ as they were both getting off a packed train at Monument Station in central London on Monday Feb. 16th. He said the man insulted him because he’d stood aside to let a woman off the train. Thinking he was deliberately standing in the way, the man, a job seeker, pushed him aside and told him to f**k off.

“I was on my way into work on the Tube on Monday morning during rush hour. I stood to one side to let a lady get by, and ended up blocking a man momentarily. I think he thought I was just standing in his way. He pushed and I turned, I explained I was getting off too but he pushed past and then looked back and suggested I might like to f*** myself, which might have been true but not before a few cups of coffee’ he told Buzzfeed.

Well, guess what? Hours later, the same man walked in for an interview at investment firm Forward Partners where Mr Buckland is a senior executive and head of recruitment.

The job seeker , who was interviewing for the role of web developer at the firm, didn’t recognize Buckland as the man he’d disrespected earlier in the day so Buckland said he started to ask him train-related questions until the penny dropped.

“I think it crept up on him slowly as my questions became more and more tube related.’

Buckland said the man didn’t get the job and not because he held the incident against him, but because he wasn’t suitable for the job.

‘It would be easy to hold something like this over someone in an interview, but for me interviews aren’t about that. By the end of the interview we laughed it off and we’re both happy. The candidate didn’t get the job, though, and maybe now he’ll maintain a better attitude in the morning since he just might need some help from a fellow commuter one day.’ Buckland said

Mother Drank Own chest Milk While Her 7-Week-Old Son Died Of Starvation

A mother who was arrested on charges of murder for allowing her 7-week-old child to die of starvation, told police that she drank her own chest milk, police in Oregon said. Read more from Worldwideweirdnews:

The Douglas County sheriff’s Office said that they have arrested 26-year-old Stephen Michael Williams Jr. and 21-year-old Amanda Marie Hancock, 21, both of Glendale, after being accused of allowing their baby to die of starvation.
According to the police investigation, the couple showed extreme indifference to human life by denying food and medical care for Data Toria Hancock.
If convicted of murder, they face life in prison. The couple’s other 2-year-old son was placed under protective custody. During questioning, the mother told investigators that she allowed men to watch how she drinks her own chest milk. The two said that they fed the baby milk several times a day, and they don’t know why the baby died. An autopsy performed by the medical examiner’s office determined that the baby died of starvation.

5-Year-Old Boy Who Claims He Lived Past Life As Woman Who Died In A Chicago Fire, Proves It

Luke Ruehlman is a healthy 5-year-old boy. Yet, he’s already had a lifetime of experiences according to him — he has even died! The Huffington Post reports:

At least, that’s what he claims. In a bizarre series of TV interviews, Ruehlman has managed to convince at least a few people that he lived a past life as Pam Robinson, an African-American Chicago woman who died in a fire at the Paxton Hotel in 1993.
Ruehlman started weirding out his stay-at-home mom, Erika, at the age of 2, when he started talking about a mystery woman named Pam. Later, she would ask him directly who the heck Pam was. “He turned to me and said, ‘Well, I was,'” she told Fox 8 . “[He said] ‘Well, I used to be, but I died and I went up to heaven. I saw God and then eventually, God pushed me back down and I was a baby and you named me Luke.'”
Ruehlman also reportedly said he traveled by train in Chicago. The Cincinnati family didn’t know anyone named Pam, and Luke had never been to the Windy City. His mom was baffled. She investigated further and found Pam Robinson, who was one of 19 people who died in a 1993 hotel fire.
Robinson’s family declined to comment on the story. The boy’s odd ability to remember places he’s never been is intriguing, to be sure. If this sounds amazing, it’s not that unusual on the show that revealed this story, Lifetime’s “Ghost Inside My Child” — and the last time we checked up on one of the show’s reports, it was a mess.

Man Arrested Over Wife’s Disappearance In 1978

Almost 40 years after a woman disappeared from a small Northern California town, her husband has been arrested on suspicion of killing her and then disposing of her body. AP reports:

Marvin Gail Owens, 62, was taken into custody in Keith County, Nebraska, on a warrant issued by officials in California. Owen’s wife, Deborah, was last seen Nov. 19, 1978, in Oroville. Two days later, Owens reported his wife missing. The mother of two hasn’t been seen since.
Evidence has been recovered from the couple’s Oroville home, said Butte County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jason Hail, who declined to elaborate. He said that investigators also conducted fresh interviews with the couple’s daughters, who were raised by Owens and are now adults. “It was important for us to talk to them about things told to them as they grew up about their mom,” Hail said. “That’s certainly a factor in all of this.”
Owens remained in Lincoln County Jail on Friday with bail set at $1 million. Butte County District Attorney Michael Ramsey said Owens appeared in a Nebraska courtroom Friday, and he did not challenge his extradition to California, where he will face the murder charge. Butte County officials expect to bring Owens to California next week, Ramsey said, noting the long investigation. “It’s been a slow slog over the decades,” he said.