5 personalities sentenced to death by court in Nigeria (Nation)
The death penalty is authorised by Section 33 of the Constitution of Nigeria. Being sentenced to death means a court has officially ordered that a convicted individual be executed as punishment for a crime.
This is a legal penalty for certain serious offences, primarily those involving murder, treason, and armed robbery.
The death sentence is carried out by the state after a court of competent jurisdiction finds the person guilty. Read more
Security analyst questions timing, scope of Boko Haram amnesty (Guardian)
Retired Group Captain and security analyst, Sadeeq Garba Shehu, has raised concerns over Nigeriaโs approach to the deradicalisation and amnesty programmes for Boko Haram fighters, questioning whether the country has met the conditions required under international law to implement such initiatives.
Speaking during an interview on Politics Today on Channels Television, Shehu explained that international frameworks, particularly the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol II, require clear benchmarks for granting amnesty during non-international armed conflicts. He referenced Article 65, which advises that amnesty should be extended โas widely as possibleโ to low-level fighters but only at the end of hostilities.
โIf we take the definition as given by Article 65 of Additional Protocol 2, it says โat the endโ of hostilities,โ Shehu said. Read more
After public outcry, missing Babcock varsity student found (Punch)
A mother, Fijabi Oyindamola Omotayo, who sought public assistance on Saturday over her missing son, Oladipupo Siwajuola attending Babcock University, Ilishan Remo, has announced that her boy has been found.
Omotayo disclosed this in a Facebook post on Saturday.
She said, โMy son has been found.โ
The Director of Marketing and Communications for the university, Dr Joshua Suleiman, also confirmed to our Correspondent on Sunday that the school has received the cheering news.
Asked to confirm the Facebook post announcing that Siwajuola had been found, Dr Suleiman in a terse WhatsApp message said, โYes, we are awareโ Read more
Inflation erodes banksโprofits, jerks up costs (Vanguard)
As the monetary policy and macroeconomic environment evolve under the current Federal Governmentโs fiscal reforms, there are indications that the banking industry is now battling with cost pressures.
The banks are recording rising operating expenses (OPEX) likely driven by inflationary pressures in the economy while high interest rate monetary policy environment pushes up the banksโ interest expenses.
The combined effect is already manifesting in the financial results of leading banks in 2025 with unaudited first quarter (Q1โ25) results of leading banks in Nigeria as approved by Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, last week showing negative performance in their various cost metrics. Read more
8 years after presidential order, 24-hour port operations still elusive (Leadership)
Nigeriaโs eight-year pursuit of 24-hour operations at its seaports is yet to be realised.
In 2017, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, through an Executive Order, directed the management of the seaports across the country to operate round the clock to enhance the prompt clearing of cargoes.
In the executive order he signed in May 2017 when he was the acting president, Osinbajo directed Apapa Port to begin 24-hour operations within 30 days. Read more
Student Loan: No โฆ71b missing, stolen from scheme, NELFUND I
insists (Channels)
The Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) insists no money is missing from the student loan scheme despite claims to the contrary.
A recent report had alleged that some schools were diverting money meant for the scheme operated by NELFUND. That prompted the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to launch an investigation into the matter.
However, NELFUNDโs Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Akintunde Sawyerr, said the fund has a clean bill of health. Read more
Kyari: I served with fear of God, ready to give account of my stewardship (DailyTrust)
Mele Kyari, immediate past Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), says he served with the fear of God.
Since the major reshuffle in the oil firm, there have been different reports on the tenure of the former GCEO.
According to a report, N80 billion was found in the account of one of the sacked refinery Managing Director who worked under Kyari. Read more
Brazil police thwart bomb attack on Lady Gaga concert (BBC)
Brazilian police said they thwarted a bomb attack planned for Lady Gaga’s concert on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday.
The Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro state, in co-ordination with the justice ministry, said suspects had recruited participants to carry out attacks using improvised explosives and the plan was aimed at gaining notoriety on social media.
The person responsible for the plan and a teenager were arrested, the police said. Read more
Japan & China accuse each other of violating airspace near disputed islands (CNN)
Japan and China have accused each other of violating the airspace around the Japanese-controlled East China Sea islands, which Beijing also claims.
The latest territorial flap came as both appeared to have warmer ties while seeking to mitigate damages from the US tariff war.
Japanโs Foreign Ministry said in a statement it lodged a โvery severe protestโ with Beijing after a Chinese helicopter took off from one of Chinaโs four coast guard boats, which had entered Japanโs territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands. The helicopter violated Japanese airspace for about 15 minutes on Saturday, the ministry said. Read more
Oops!: 2026 Oscars, L.A. Marathon were set for the same date. Hereโs who moved (Billboard)
The Oscars made the announcement on Monday, March 17: Comedian Conan OโBrien, who had earned top marks for hosting the 2025 Oscars, would be returning as host of the 2026 Oscars on Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Most of us focused on the host announcement, which was made far earlier in the year than is typical, but Murphy Reinschreiber, COO of the McCourt Foundation, which operates the L.A. Marathon, immediately zeroed in the date, which was the same as the already-announced date of the 2026 L.A. Marathon, which is typically held on the third Sunday in March.
The McCourt Foundation had announced its 2026 marathon date on March 15, one day before the 2025 marathon and two days before the Oscars made their announcement. Read more
The Vatican installs chimney to signal the selection of the next pope (NPR)
Workers attached a chimney atop the Sistine Chapel on Friday, ahead of the election process for the next pope.
The chimney, which is attached to the chapel before a new pope is elected, will signal to the public the election of Pope Francis’ successor.
With the death of Pope Francis last month, cardinals, senior members of the Catholic Church, will gather on Wednesday, May 7, for what’s known as a “conclave” to determine the next pope and head of the some 1.4 billion Catholics around the world. There are currently 135 cardinal electors, and to join the conclave, cardinals must be under 80 years old. Read more
Catholic community reacts to Trump’s AI image of himself as the pope (ABC)
An AI-generated image of President Donald Trump dressed as the pope is drawing criticism from some Catholics after it was posted on social media just days before the papal conclave to select the next pontiff begins in Rome.
The image, which was shared on Trump’s social media and the official White House account on Friday evening, shows an AI-generated image of the president wearing papal clothes and sitting on a throne.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York, was asked by reporters about the image after he had finished a service at a church in Rome on Sunday. In his response, Dolan used the Italian words, “brutta figura,” meaning the post was embarrassing. Read more
Israelโs Netanyahu vows response to Iran after Houthi attack on airport (AlJazeera)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised to respond to an attack from Yemenโs Houthi rebels that hit Ben Gurion International Airport, adding that Iran would also face consequences from the strike.
A ballistic missile launched by the Iran-allied Yemeni rebel group hit the perimeter of the airport on Sunday, damaging a road and a vehicle and causing air traffic to stop, according to photos and footage verified by Al Jazeera.
The Israeli military confirmed its defence system failed to shoot down the projectile on Sunday morning despite several attempts to intercept it, adding that an investigation was under way. Eight people were injured, according to paramedics. Read more
U-20 AFCON: Nigeria, Morocco share spoils in Group B cracker (Channels)
Nigeriaโs Flying Eagles and Morocco battled to a goalless draw on Sunday in a Group B clash at the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
In a game that both sides were almost evenly matched in possession, Nigeria took a point home, boosting their chances of reaching the knockouts.
The Flying Eagles will have Daniel Bamenyi to thank for holding down the defence line. The defenderโs heroics deservedly earned him the Man of the Match prize following his display at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo, Egypt. Read more
Explosive Naoya Inoue recovers from knockdown to stop brave Ramon Cardenas (BoxingScene)
Naoya Inoue thrillingly stopped Ramon Cardenas in eight rounds to defend his undisputed junior-featherweight title and reintroduce himself to the US audience in the most emphatic of fashions.
Sundayโs fight at the T-Mobile Arena, on the occasion of Cinco de Mayo weekend, represented his first outside of his home country of Japan since June 2021, when in conditions undermined by the Covid pandemic he stopped the Filipino Michael Dasmarinas.
He has since consistently enhanced his reputation as one of the worldโs very finest active fighters, and did so again throughout the course of an entertaining fight with the gutsy Mexican-American Cardenasโฆ Read more
Real Madrid-Celta Vigo: Mbappe brace keeps LaLiga title hopes alive (AlJazeera)
Kylian Mbappe struck twice as Real Madrid held off Celta Vigo with a thrilling 3-2 win to stay within sight of LaLiga leaders Barcelona, whom they face next weekend.
After the Catalans scraped a comeback win at Valladolid on Saturday, Madrid survived a late Celta fightback a day later to maintain the four-point gap ahead of next Sundayโs Clasico.
Defending champions Madrid, in second place, were left clinging on at the Santiago Bernabeu against a Celta side seventh and hoping to qualify for European football next season. Read more
‘Fire in my belly’ led to team orders controversy – Hamilton (BBC)
Lewis Hamilton says a double controversy over team orders at Ferrari during the Miami Grand Prix was triggered because he has “still got fire in my belly”.
The seven-time champion asked to be let past team-mate Charles Leclerc to try to attack Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli in the race, and when he did not receive an answer fast enough said: “Take a tea break while you’re at it.”
It was one of two team orders incidents at Ferrari during the race. A few laps later, when Hamilton had failed to make sufficient impression on Antonelli and was not going to be able to catch him before the end of the race, the team asked him to let Leclerc back ahead. Read more
Aryna Sabalenka defeats Coco Gauff to win record-equaling Madrid Open title (CNN)
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka won a record-equaling Madrid Open title on Saturday, defeating the USAโs Coco Gauff 6-3, 7-6 (3) in the final.
With the win, Sabalenka equaled Petra Kvitovaโs record three titles in Madrid, and secured her 20th career title. It also further consolidated her spot as world No. 1, following a dominant start to the year in which she has reached four consecutive finals, and won a tour-leading 31 matches.Meanwhile, Gauff, who could have leapfrogged over Iga ลwiฤ tek to take the world No. 2 spot with a win, remains the No. 3 seed in the rankings. Read more