ABUJA: Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu called on Sunday for a suspension of protests against a cost of living crisis, saying this would create an opportunity for dialogue, his first public comments since frustrated citizens took to the streets last week.
Amnesty International has said at least 13 people were killed in clashes with security forces on the first day of protests on Thursday. Police denied using excessive force and said seven people had died as of Saturday — four from an explosive device during a march in northeast Borno state, two who were hit by a car and another who was shot by a guard when protesters looted a shop.
In a televised broadcast, Tinubu called for an end to violence in several states since the protests started, saying he was always open for dialogue.
“My dear Nigerians, especially our youth, I have heard you loud and clear. I understand the pain and frustration that drive these protests, and I want to assure you that our government is committed to listening and addressing the concerns of our citizens,” he said.
Nigerians have been mobilizing online to organize protests against economic hardship and bad governance and have called for a cut in petrol prices and electricity tariffs, among several demands.
Tinubu, in office since May 2023, defended his economic reforms, which have included a partial end to petrol and electricity subsidies and devaluation of the naira, as necessary to reverse years of economic mismanagement.
He government revenues had more than doubled to 9.1 trillion naira ($5.65 billion) in the first half of this year while 68 percent of revenue now went to debt servicing, down from 97 percent before he took office in May last year.
The government was also ramping up spending on infrastructure projects, started a loan scheme for university students and was building thousands of housing units across Nigeria’s 36 states, the president said.
“But we must not let violence and destruction tear our nation apart,” said Tinubu.
Nigeria’s president calls for end to protests against economic hardship
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Nigeria’s president calls for end to protests against economic hardship
- Nigerians have been mobilizing online to organize protests against economic hardship and bad governance
London’s Muslim mayor among top targets of online abuse: Study
- Sadiq Khan, ex-PM Sunak received most abuse out of prominent British politicians monitored by researchers
- ‘The sheer number and strength of racist comments toward politicians is terrifying’
LONDON: London’s Muslim Mayor Sadiq Khan and former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak were the biggest targets of online abuse during the UK’s recent general elections, a study has found.
Among the abusive messages were racist slurs and attacks, University of Sheffield researchers found.
Khan and Sunak received the most abuse out of 14 politicians monitored as part of the study, The Guardian reported on Monday.
Of the 14, the five who received the most abuse were Khan, Sunak, current Prime Minister Keir Starmer, MP Diane Abbott and former Home Secretary Suella Braverman.
More than 6 percent of all responses to the five politicians between May 1 and July 30 were clearly abusive, totaling 85,000 posts.
The five received an “extraordinarily fast” response rate, the researchers said, with abusive replies to their posts appearing within one to two minutes of publication on average.
The study covered a range of abuse, from mild posts accusing the politicians of lying to personal attacks, racist and sexist language.
Researchers highlighted examples of racist abuse sent to Sunak and Khan, including being told to “go back to where they came from.”
The three issues most frequently used to send abusive messages were democracy, foreign affairs, and borders and immigration.
Researchers said: “Our analysis shows very clearly the ways in which people vent their anger at world events, such as the Israel-Hamas war, by lashing out at politicians as a way of finding someone to blame. We saw the same thing during the pandemic and events such as terrorist attacks.
“The sheer number and strength of racist comments toward politicians is terrifying in a supposedly tolerant country like the UK.
“While any politician needs to have a thick skin, those from racial minorities really need a suit of armour to survive the vicious racial attacks from those who do not support their views.”
The volume of abuse recorded by researchers saw a sharp uptick in June as election campaigning was in full swing.
Spikes were recorded in the days leading up to voting day on July 4, as well as following the first televised debate between Sunak and Starmer.
Pope Francis arrives in East Timor on first papal visit since independence
- About 97 percent of East Timor’s 1.3 million population identify as Catholic
- The pontiff will lead a Mass for hundreds of thousands of Timorese on Tuesday
JAKARTA: The people of East Timor excitedly welcomed Pope Francis on the streets of Dili on Monday, as he arrived for the first papal visit since the young country’s independence in 2002.
East Timor, also known as Timor-Leste, is Francis’ penultimate stop on his four-nation tour of Asia. With around 97 percent of the population identifying as Catholic, the country of 1.3 million people has the second-largest Catholic population in the world, after the Vatican.
The 87-year-old pontiff was met at the airport by President Jose Manuel Ramos-Horta and a group of schoolchildren dressed in traditional outfits upon his livestreamed arrival. On his motorcade route into town, crowds waved Vatican and Timorese flags and toted yellow and white umbrellas — the colors of the Holy See — as they greeted the pope.
“We use this opportunity to show the world that even though we are one of the poorest countries (and) we still struggle … (the) Pope’s visit is one of our priorities,” Ross Merry da Gloria, a youth activist based in Dili, told Arab News.
She said she felt “very lucky and privileged,” to witness this papal visit, adding that many other Timorese traveled from other parts of the country to the capital for the occasion.
“With this visit, it’s like a faith booster for us,” Da Gloria said. “His visit gives us some hope for a better future.”
Francis’ visit came on the heels of the 25th anniversary of the UN-backed referendum that paved the way for East Timor’s independence from Indonesia.
He is the first pope to visit the country since then, following St. John Paul II’s trip in 1989.
The tiny Southeast Asian country has struggled with rebuilding its infrastructure and economy since independence. Some 42 percent of Timorese are living in poverty and around 47 percent of children under 5 years old are stunted because of malnutrition, according to UN and official data.
Afonso Corte Real, former advisor and chief of staff to former Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak, said Francis’ visit would have a positive impact on citizens as the country struggles with unemployment, malnutrition and education opportunities.
“It is really a positive moment for us, especially to boost the morale,” Real told Arab News.
Hundreds of thousands of Timorese are expected to attend an open-air Mass with the pope on Tuesday in Taci Tolu before he leaves for Singapore the next day.
“The celebration of the Solemn Mass in Taci Tolu will be a special moment of faith and unity for all Timorese,” the government said in a statement.
Krishna Chandra Aditya, a university student from Dili, is among those who will participate in the Mass with his family members.
“The family (and I are) very happy because this is the pope’s visit, once in our lives,” Aditya told Arab News.
“I hope the pope’s visit can go smoothly and peacefully.”
Fuel tanker explosion in Nigeria kills at least 52
LAGOS: A fuel tanker exploded after colliding with a truck carrying passengers and cattle in northern Nigeria’s Niger State killing at least 52 people, a rescue agency said on Monday.
Photographs released by the Niger State Emergency Management Agency or SEMA showed workers burying more than a dozen blackened and charred bodies of victims from Sunday’s early morning incident.
Images showed burned-out shells of the vehicles, one still billowing with smoke and flames after the incident in Niger’s Agaie local government district.
Ibrahim Husseini, spokesman for the Niger SEMA, told AFP the victims were given a mass burial following the accident and explosion.
“The incident occurred when a petrol tanker loaded with PMS (fuel) collided with a trailer truck loaded with travelers and cattle,” a SEMA statement said.
Two other vehicles, a crane and a pickup van, were also involved, it added.
Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago expressed sadness over the “colossal” loss, urging local residents to remain calm.
More than 50 cattle were also burnt alive.
Fuel tanker explosions are common in Africa’s most populous nation, where roads can be poorly maintained, and residents often look to siphon off fuel following accidents.
According to the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), more than 5,000 people died in road accidents in Nigeria in 2023, compared to nearly 6,500 the previous year.
But according to the World Health Organization, the figures do not take into account accidents not reported to the authorities.
It estimates annual road accident deaths in Nigeria to be nearly 40,000, in a report published last year.
Deadly fires and explosions also happen in the fuel and oil infrastructure in Nigeria, one of the continent’s largest crude producers where petroleum theft is a major issue.
Two years ago, around 110 people died when an illegal oil refinery exploded in the south of the country.
Nigeria recently has faced serious fuel shortages after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPCL) said it was struggling with debts to suppliers.
A sudden increase in fuel prices by NNPCL last week has added to the financial burden for Nigerians already coping with a cost-of-living crisis.
UK rejects Afghan family’s request to join son, 13, in Britain
- Boy was evacuated from Kabul in 2021 amid Taliban takeover
- His family, who risk Taliban reprisal, were refused family reunion visa this year
LONDON: The visa of an Afghan family hoping to be reunited with their 13-year-old son in the UK has been rejected by the Home Office.
In 2021, Ahmad, then aged 10, was brought to the UK during the evacuation from Afghanistan as the Taliban retook the country, The Guardian reported.
About 15,000 British nationals and eligible Afghans were transported from the country.
But Ahmad’s family remain in Afghanistan, and the 13-year-old’s father says his life is at risk over his past work for a company linked to the Western presence in the country.
Last year, they applied for a UK family reunion visa, which the Home Office rejected in June this year.
A letter sent to Ahmad’s father, seen by The Guardian, claims that the rejection would not breach the right to a family life.
“You have failed to show any exceptional dependency between you and your sponsor (Ahmad) … As such I am satisfied that this refusal has not breached your right to a family life,” the Home Office letter said.
It also claimed that the family were not at “exceptional” risk in Afghanistan, based on Ahmad’s father being able to obtain identity documents from Taliban government ministries.
Ahmad has been living with extended family since arriving in Britain and has started school.
His father told The Guardian: “My life is in danger because I worked with foreign forces … The decision from the Home Office made us very upset. We felt that we had the right this country would allow us to reunite with our child.
“It’s been for the past three years that we are missing one member of our family and his place is empty in our life, and that is our son.”
Now the family are being represented in a legal appeal by a pro bono initiative for Afghans.
The scheme is run by the refugee charities Safe Passage International and Refugee Legal Support.
Helena Cullen, Ahmad’s lawyer, said that the 13-year-old is one of about 80 children who were split from their family during Britain’s Afghanistan evacuation.
“This family was tragically separated during the chaos of Operation Pitting and have been fighting to reunite for the last three years, battling many hurdles just to get their family reunion application submitted,” she said.
A separated families visa route announced by the UK government in July may offer fresh hope for Ahmad’s family and others, she added.
Ahmad is reportedly depressed and suffering from deteriorating mental health, said Dr. Wanda Wyporska, CEO of Safe Passage International, citing the charity’s legal and safeguarding experts.
The boy’s aunt, whom he lives with in the UK, said that she was shocked by the Home Office’s decision.
“We all know that children need their parents, especially when they are this age.”
The Home Office said in a statement on the case: “All applications are carefully considered on their individual merits and in line with the immigration rules.”
Several passengers injured as plane skids off Indonesia runway
JAYAPURA: A plane with 48 people aboard skidded off the runway in Indonesia’s remote eastern region of Papua on Monday, police said, injuring several passengers.
The Southeast Asian archipelago has a poor aviation safety record, and Papua is covered in mountainous terrain where flying is hampered by frequent poor weather.
The ATR-42 aircraft belonging to Trigana Air was taking off from an airport in the remote Yapen Islands regency to Papuan capital Jayapura on Monday morning when it skidded off the runway.
The flight was carrying 42 passengers, including a baby, and six crew.
“Praise God everybody survived and has been taken to a hospital for a health checkup,” local police chief Ardyan Ukie Hercahyo said in a statement.
“We are investigating the incident and coordinating with related parties to ensure this will never happen again.”
The local search and rescue agency said in a statement that some passengers were injured and traumatized by the incident.
Indonesia relies heavily on air transport to connect its thousands of islands, but Papua is a particularly difficult area to reach.
In 2015, a Trigana Air plane crashed there, killing all 54 people on board.
