My dear fellow Nigerians, Today, as I clock another year in the journey of life, I’m filled with joy and gratitude for the opportunity given me to serve this great nation. I want to take this moment to thank Nigerians for their messages, show of love and prayers on the occasion of my 74th birthday.  I thank all our citizens for their patriotism, solidarity and support for our administration. To those who have taken space in newspapers or paid for air time on radio and television to wish me well, I thank you immensely. I must thank my wife, First...

he Republic of Congo’s constitutional court on Saturday confirmed President Denis Sassou-N’Guesso’s victory in the recent election, granting the 82-year-old leader a fifth term with 94.90% of the vote. “The president Denis Sassou-N’Guesso is elected with 94.90% of the vote, representing an absolute majority,” said Auguste Iloki, president of the constitutional Court, at the end of the hearing. Provisional results announced March 17 by Interior Minister Raymond Zephirin Mboulou had already placed Sassou-N’Guesso in the lead with 94.82% of the vote. Six other candidates challenged the 82-year-old for the top job in the Central African country that boasts one of...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel’s military will widen its ground campaign in southern Lebanon. Speaking at a news conference, Netanyahu said an expansion of the country’s “security belt” in Lebanon is intended to “thwart the threat of invasion and to keep the anti-tank missile fire away from our border.” Israel has been carrying out an invasion of southern Lebanon since Iran-backed Hezbollah began attacking Israel in response to its war on Iran, which it launched alongside the U.S. on Feb. 28. Since March 2, nearly 1,200 people have been killed and more than 3,400 have been...

Myanmar’s military chief Min Aung Hlaing has been nominated for the presidency as parliament convened on Monday, following a general election from which the biggest opposition parties were excluded. Min Aung Hlaing is certain to be chosen, as he was nominated in parliament alongside two loyalists who are very unlikely contenders for president. He has been sanctioned by many Western countries for leading a military coup five years ago. In the ensuing civil war, thousands of people have been killed and millions have been displaced. Large areas of the country remain under the control of armed opposition groups. The general...

Israeli police prevented Catholic leaders from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to celebrate a private Mass on the Christian holiday of Palm Sunday for the first time in centuries, setting off a wave of criticism from the United States and others. Jerusalem’s major holy sites, including the church, are closed because of the ongoing Iran war, as the city has come under frequent fire from Iranian missiles. Early Monday morning, Israel’s police said it had approved a “limited prayer framework” for the church, in consultation with the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. On Sunday, the Patriarchate had called the...

The astronaut who prompted NASA’s first medical evacuation earlier this year said Friday that doctors still don’t know why he suddenly fell sick at the International Space Station. Four-time space flier Mike Fincke said he was eating dinner on Jan. 7 after prepping for a spacewalk the next day when it happened. He couldn’t talk and remembers no pain, but his anxious crewmates jumped into action after seeing him in distress and requested help from flight surgeons on the ground. “It was completely out of the blue. It was just amazingly quick,” he said in an interview with The Associated...

Australian police said they believe they shot dead a suspect Monday accused of killing two police officers and seriously wounding a third in a remote forest region seven months ago. There had been no confirmed sightings of Dezi Freeman, 56, since he allegedly opened fire on police officers who came to serve a warrant at his home near Porepunkah in Victoria state northeast of Melbourne on Aug. 26 last year, Victoria’s Chief Commissioner of Police Mike Bush said on Monday. A man believed to be Freeman was fatally shot by police on Monday at a remote location near Thologolong, around...

Australian police believe they have shot and killed Dezi Freeman after the double-murderer spent seven months on the run. A well-known conspiracy theorist, Freeman gunned down two police officers on his property in the small Victorian town of Porepunkah last August, before fleeing into dense bushland and evading extensive searches. Victoria Police say a man was shot dead after an hours-long standoff at a rural property in the state’s north-east on Monday morning. Chief Commissioner Mike Bush said the man is believed to be Freeman, but formal identification is still underway. “Should [his identity] be confirmed… this brings closure to...