Author: damazah@gmail.com

The election season is only a few months away. Campaigns for the Presidential and National Assembly elections will commence in a matter of days. The country will enter a cycle that will significantly affect commercial retail property more than most other asset classes. Evidence over the years has revealed a recurring pattern: retail operators have encountered it three times before this century. Understanding this pattern accurately is crucial, rather than dismissing or exaggerating it. Nigeria’s election cycles often influence investment patterns. Examining the 2011, 2015, and 2019 elections shows that real estate activity tends to decrease before voting and then…

For years, scientists have known that the gut microbiome of people with Alzheimer’s differs from that of healthy people. What remains unclear is whether these differences are a consequence of the disease, contribute to it, or simply accompany it. It is possible that part of the puzzle lies not in the gut bacteria themselves but in the molecules they produce, which end up circulating throughout the body.A team of scientists believes it has found one such molecule. In a study published in Nature Communications, the researchers identified imidazole propionate (ImP)—a compound produced by certain gut bacteria—as a possible link between…

Prime Minister Andy Burnham exchanged messages with a person posing as the chief of staff to US President Donald Trump.Downing Street has declined to comment on the security breach, first reported by Politico.Politico reported that officials said Burnham communicated with the person claiming to be Susie Wiles “before becoming suspicious that the contact was illegitimate” and claimed only a “few messages” were exchanged.A government spokesperson said: “We do not comment on national security matters.”It is understood the communication between Burnham and the person posing as Wiles was in the form of messages and there was no conversation between the two.”No…

Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris has dropped his deputy, Umar Tafida, as his running mate for the 2027 governorship election over what the All Progressives Congress (APC) described as legal hurdles arising from litigation over their 2023 election. But an aide to the deputy governor has disputed the party’s claim that Mr Tafida was consulted and consented to the decision, presenting a conflicting account of how the replacement was made. Mr Idris has selected Ibrahim Augie, a former commissioner for finance, as his new running mate. The decision was announced on Sunday at the Presidential Lodge in Birnin Kebbi during…

Juventus have agreed a deal with Tottenham for Guglielmo Vicario to join on an initial loan after the Italian side decided against a move for Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martínez.Vicario is set to leave Spurs having lost his place as Roberto De Zerbi’s No 1 to Antonin Kinsky, with the agreement with Juventus containing an option to make the Italy goalkeeper’s move permanent next year for £8.6m. Martínez had been linked with the Turin club after Villa agreed a deal to sign Parma’s Zion Suzuki for around £30m but Juventus saw a €10m offer rejected over the weekend and decided to…

Tributes are flooding in for Hayden Panettiere, the Scream and Heroes star who has died aged 36. David Arquette and Melissa Barrera, who appeared on screen with Panettiere in the Scream franchise, all took to social media to post messages. Arquette, who plays the loveable Dewey in Scream, posted simply: “I love you Hayden,” while Barrera, who acted with Panettiere in Scream VI, wrote: “Rest in peace sweet Hayden.” Selma Blair, the Legally Blonde and Hellboy actress, wrote: “Blair wrote: “I love you. Don’t be gone. Please,” before following up with two similar messages. Blair had a small uncredited role…

The African Union’s (AU) decision to reopen its Sudan liaison office signals a commitment to resolving the war that has ravaged the country for over three years. It also shows that the organisation is unwilling to cede ground in the crisis to external actors. The AU and many international and regional organisations withdrew their staff in April 2023 when fighting erupted in Khartoum. AU personnel were relocated to its headquarters in Addis Ababa, forcing the organisation to conduct virtual shuttle diplomacy with Sudan’s warring parties. While AU liaison offices typically focus on conflict prevention, peacebuilding, regional integration and advocacy, the…

In the past month, three earthquakes of magnitude 7 or above have struck Indonesia, Colombia and Mexico, killing hundreds of people. In June, two powerful quakes seconds apart levelled swaths of northern Venezuela.The run of disasters has prompted a question asked after every cluster of big earthquakes: Is the Earth shaking more than it used to?In this visual explainer, Al Jazeera examines a decade of earthquake data to see how 2026 compares and explains how and where earthquakes strike.The 10 largest earthquakes of 2026According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), there are about 20,000 earthquakes recorded globally each year,…

US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Jared Kushner has arrived in Israel, where he is expected to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.It comes after Kushner held rare talks with Hamas to discuss the implementation of the US-backed Gaza peace plan.Last month, Trump’s Board of Peace said it had reached agreement for the “complete disarmament” of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza. Last week, Israel rejected Trump’s 15-point plan, which also calls for Israeli troops to withdraw and for Gaza to be rebuilt under a new civilian Palestinian administration. Eight Muslim countries issued a statement on…

Peter Thiel, a venture capitalist and co-founder of Palantir and PayPal, appeared in the Epstein files, with the latest release showing correspondence between and about the two.Stephanie Keith | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesOil producer Vista Energy jumped in premarket on Monday after it was revealed that billionaire Peter Thiel’s hedge fund had acquired a stake in the Argentine company.Thiel Macro LLC reported that it owned almost 1.2 million American Depository Shares of Vista Energy, worth about $76 million, as of the second quarter ending June 30, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Filing published on Friday.…