Author: Press Room

A mounting diplomatic row between Ecuador and Colombia intensified on Thursday, with Bogota recalling its ambassador after Quito announced 100 percent tariffs on imports from its South American neighbor. The two countries have been engaged in a trade war for months, with Ecuador accusing Bogota of failing to combat drug trafficking and illegal mining along their shared border. “Our ambassador to Ecuador must return immediately,” Colombian President Gustavo Petro said in an X post responding to Ecuador’s leader Daniel Noboa, a staunch ally of US President Donald Trump. “The next cabinet meeting will be held at a location on the…

The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Wednesday donated 10,000 disposable sanitary pads to schoolgirls in Kogi State under her Renewed Hope Initiative. The donation was made in Lokoja during the launch of the “Flow With Confidence” initiative, a programme aimed at promoting menstrual health education and providing sanitary products to schoolgirls across the country. Represented by the wife of the Kogi State Governor, Sefinat Ododo, the First Lady said the initiative also includes the distribution of 370,000 disposable sanitary pads to girls in rural communities across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. She explained that the intervention,…

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria has called on the Federal Government to deploy excess crude oil revenue to subsidise local refineries as a way of cushioning the impact of rising fuel prices on Nigerians. President of the Congress, Festus Osifo, who made the call during a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, warned that the price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called Petrol, could climb to as high as N2,000 per litre if urgent measures were not taken. Osifo said the persistent increase in the pump price of petrol, driven by global crude oil price volatility and exchange rate…

A frontline governorship aspirant under the platform of the African Democratic Congress, Jibril Sabo Keana, popularly known as JSK, has formally declared his intention to vie for the office of Governor of Nasarawa State in the 2027 general elections. Arewa PUNCH Correspondent reports that during a pre-declaration address at the ADC Secretariat in the Keana Local Government Area of the state, the Wakilin Keana, Jibril Sabo Keana, formally presented his Letter of Interest to vie for the governorship seat of Nasarawa State in 2027—anchoring his vision on a bold promise: Development, Security and Progress – DSP. Speaking before party leaders,…

The Kaduna State Government has inaugurated a 17-member task force to track and prevent the diversion of nutrition commodities, in a move aimed at strengthening accountability and ensuring life-saving supplies reach vulnerable women and children across the state. Speaking during the inauguration in Kaduna on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Planning and Budget Commission, Mukhtar Ahmed, said the committee was constituted following concerns that some nutrition supplies were not getting to their intended beneficiaries. He noted that the government and development partners had, over the years, invested heavily in the provision of nutrition commodities across the state. Ahmed, however, stressed that…

Delta Air Lines has entered a partnership with Amazon, an agreement aimed at transforming the in-flight internet experience for millions of passengers, in a move both companies say will redefine how people stay connected in the air. According to a statement made available to The PUNCH by the airline, under the agreement, Delta will deploy Amazon’s low-earth orbit satellite network, known as Leo, across hundreds of its aircraft, beginning with an initial rollout on 500 planes from 2028. The airline believed that the initiative would significantly improve internet speed, reliability, and onboard digital services. Delta says the collaboration builds on…

A former Iranian foreign minister, Kamal Kharazi, died Thursday from wounds suffered in US-Israel strikes on April 1, Iranian media reported. Kharazi, 81, had been serving as the head of the Strategic Council for International Relations, which is part of the foreign ministry. The veteran diplomat, “who was injured in a terrorist attack carried out by the American-Zionist enemy a few days ago, died a martyr tonight,” the Mehr and Isna agencies reported on Telegram. His wife was killed in the strike on their home in Tehran, the media reported. Kharazi was Iran’s envoy at the United Nations in New…

Galatasaray coach Okan Buruk has admitted there is a slight chance that Victor Osimhen will make the squad to face Gençlerbirliği next week, Soccernet.ng reports. ​Osimhen has been sidelined with a hand injury for the past three weeks. He sustained the injury during Galatasaray’s UEFA Champions League clash against Liverpool prior to the international break, which necessitated surgery to accelerate his recovery process. The 27-year-old striker even extended his hospital stay to facilitate a speedier rehabilitation. ​In the meantime, Osimhen has returned to personalized training. As previously reported, the Super Eagles star is expected to wear a special protective brace…

A Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Abidoye Gbadegesin, has called for stronger healthcare systems and policy reforms to safeguard maternal and child health in Nigeria. He made the call in Lagos on Wednesday while delivering the institution’s 120th inaugural lecture titled, “Safeguarding the Continuation of the Human Race: Challenges and Prospects in Maternal and Child Health.” The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the don described obstetrics and gynaecology as a critical medical specialty focused on the care of women during pregnancy, childbirth, the postpartum period, and overall reproductive health. According to him, obstetrics…

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons on Thursday said it rescued a 36-year-old woman from alleged spousal abuse in Asokoro Extension, Abuja. In a statement shared by the agency on their official X account on Thursday, NAPTIP said the rescue was carried out by its Rapid Response Squad following credible information about the incident. The agency said the suspect, identified as Mr. Godwin, a 48-year-old man and husband of the victim, was reported to have physically assaulted her. It added that the couple had been married for 22 years. According to the statement, both the suspect…