Author: damazah@gmail.com

The US government had recently designated Gilman as wrongfully detained.Published On 11 Aug 202611 Aug 2026A former US Marine has been freed by Russia and is due to arrive back home in the United States after being held for four years.Robert Gilman, 32, is expected to land at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington, DC, on Tuesday night, US President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social platform. Gilman had been detained in 2022 over an alleged altercation with a police officer. Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to release him “very much on a humanitarian basis”, Trump wrote, adding…

President Donald Trump said a US Marine held in a Russian prison, whose health was reportedly in extremely poor condition, has been released.”After my discussions with President Vladimir Putin, Russia has agreed to release him, very much on a Humanitarian Basis,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that no prisoner swap took place.In 2022, Gilman, who is from Massachusetts, was arrested for allegedly kicking a police officer while aboard a train. He had recently been moved from prison to a civilian hospital in Russia after going into a catatonic-like state.Trump said the 32-year-old was on a flight back to the…

Chris Oshiafi  PAC Research, one of Nigeria’s leading research outfits, has identified financial architecture, digital innovation, regulatory reforms and political commitment as critical to addressing Africa’s more than $100 billion unmet trade finance gap. The research outfit said digital payment systems, blockchain-enabled trade infrastructure, factoring and supply chain finance could significantly widen access to trade finance across the continent, but stressed that their effectiveness would depend on regulatory reforms, legal harmonisation, institutional capacity and sustained political commitment. The recommendations are contained in its latest policy brief, titled “Financial Architecture, Digital Innovation, and Inclusive Growth: Contemporary Trade Finance Solutions for Africa,”…

The emissions from powering data centers rightly get a lot of attention. But new research from former Microsoft sustainability workers cautions that the way artificial intelligence enhances productivity in the oil and gas industry could be much more damaging to the planet.Published last week in the journal npj Climate Action, the research finds that AI use could significantly increase global energy emissions simply by enabling the fossil fuel industry to produce more oil and gas. At the low end, the research finds that the additional yearly emissions could be equal to Mexico’s; at the high end, AI boosting the fossil…

By Enitan Abdultawab The African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Osun State, Najeem Salaam, has expressed confidence that voters will back him in Saturday’s election, saying his track record makes him the candidate best placed to end political thuggery and restore peace in the state Speaking at Arise News’ Town Hall ahead of the election, Salaam said Osun residents were tired of political violence and would support the candidate and party they believed could guarantee peace. “Osun people do not want thuggery again because they see us and study as the most peaceful party. They also know the only candidate…

A growing global trade in mummified human remains has been described by academics as “a real mummy’s curse” that poses a serious health risk to its enthusiasts and the postal services they use.Research into the secretive buying and selling of centuries-old human body parts including hands, feet and heads found alarming risks from dormant microorganisms and the toxic materials used to preserve the remains.A peer-reviewed academic article, The Real Mummy’s Curse: Health Risks Associated With the Sale and Trade of Mummified Remains, published in the International Journal of Cultural Property and online by Cambridge University Press, paints what the academics…

The Seattle Mariners will look to snap a four-game losing streak when they visit the New York Yankees on Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium. Seattle dropped its fourth straight on Sunday, falling to the Tampa Bay Rays, while New York fell 2-1 to Atlanta in extra innings. The Mariners (56-63) are 23-34 on the road this season. The Yankees (66-52), who will be without star sluggers Aaron Judge (ribs) and Giancarlo Stanton (calf), are 29-26 at Yankee Stadium in 2026. Bryan Woo (8-8, 4.31 ERA) takes the mound for Seattle, while Ryan Weathers (4-7, 4.25 ERA) starts for New York. Visit…

A remake of Possession is set to take over theaters. Paramount is set to release filmmaker Parker Finn‘s reimagining of the 1981 supernatural feature on June 11, 2027. Callum Turner, Margaret Qualley, Diego Calva, Madeline Brewer, Emory Cohen, Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Paul Dano round out the cast. Finn (Smile) helms Possession from his own script that is based on writer-director Andrzej Żuławski’s original film. The 1981 feature centered on a woman going through a divorce who begins exhibiting bizarre behavior. More to come.

Nollywood actress Rita Edochie has responded to the defamation lawsuit filed against her by her colleague, Judy Austin, challenging Austin to produce her marriage certificate to actor Yul Edochie. PREMIUM TIMES gathered that Austin sued Rita and her former husband, Emmanuel Obasi, seeking ₦1 billion in damages and other reliefs from each of them. In the suit filed through her lawyer, Anozie Obi of Rubicom Legal Partners, Austin asked the court to compel Rita to publish a full and unreserved retraction and apology in two national newspapers and on her social media platforms. The newspaper reported that Rita opposed the…

Kehinde Sowole writes on how Temi Popoola and NGX Group are turning economic reform into capital formation Every era of economic reform produces two kinds of figures. There are the reformers themselves, the presidents, ministers and governors who take the political risk of change. And there are the interlocutors: the institutional leaders who translate reform into confidence, policy into capital, and government ambition into market reality. Nigeria’s current reform era has no shortage of the first kind. What has become increasingly evident is the emergence of the second, and few embody that role more convincingly today like Temi Popoola, Group Managing…