“They called me from a hidden number yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon at around 16 minutes past 12, and demanded 1 billion naira ($621,848) as a ransom for the students. They said [the ultimatum] will only last for three weeks or 20 days from the date they kidnapped the children and if there’s no action from the government, they will kill all ...

After a meeting of regional Caribbean leaders on Monday, Henry agreed to leave power once a transitional council had been set up to lay the foundations for future elections, following weeks of violence in Haiti where social order has all but collapsed. “We will not deliver the country to just a group of people without following the procedure. We are ...

Sam George, the driving force behind Ghana’s harsh anti-LGBTQ legislation, portrays himself as a guardian of gay Ghanaians. But despite his claims, the bill, signed into law late last month by Ghana’s parliament, imposes severe penalties merely for identifying as LGBTQ, with fines or up to three years in prison. Someone convicted of “promoting” gay rights can get up to ...

After two nail-biting and explosive test flights in 2023, a SpaceX Starship rocket is back on the launchpad at the Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas. The deep-space rocket system is aiming to make it through an hour-long integrated flight test. If successful, the spacecraft will splash down in the Indian Ocean, putting the gargantuan vehicle in a position to move ...

Researchers in India have for the first time documented how Asian elephants bury dead calves. Five calves were found buried on their backs in drainage ditches in tea gardens in northern Bengal, according to a new study. The burials were documented in areas home to fragmented forests and agricultural lands such as tea gardens, said Roy. Herds of elephants use ...

Russia is holding a presidential election that is all but certain to extend Vladimir Putin’s rule throughout this decade and into the 2030s. The vast majority of votes will be cast over three days from 15 March, though early and postal voting has already begun, including in occupied parts of Ukraine where Russian forces are attempting to exert authority. But this is not a ...

Russians are heading to the polls over the next three days for a presidential election that is set to hand Vladimir Putin a fifth term in power as he faces opponents carefully curated by the Kremlin and who pose no real threat to his legitimacy. Russians will vote from Friday until Sunday across the country’s 11 time zones – from the far eastern ...

A 12-year-old Palestinian boy was shot and killed by a border police officer in Shuafat refugee camp in occupied east Jerusalem, according to hospital officials and an Israeli police spokesperson. The Israeli police spokesperson said police forces responded to a “violent disturbance” at the refugee camp and a border police officer fired “towards a suspect who endangered the forces while ...

Pro-Ukrainian groups of Russian fighters claimed to have launched cross-border attacks in two regions of Russia on Tuesday, hours after Kyiv fired a wave of drones at targets across the country. The group, comprising a few hundred battle-hardened, anti-Kremlin Russian volunteers fighting as part of Ukraine’s armed forces, also said it had destroyed an armored personnel carrier inside Russia. A ...

The embattled prime minister of Haiti, Ariel Henry, has said he will resign after weeks of mounting chaos in the Caribbean nation, where gangs have been attacking government structures and social order is on the brink of collapse. Henry said in a video address late Monday that his government would leave power after the establishment of a transitional council, adding, “Haiti needs peace. ...