Author: damazah@gmail.com

The death toll from the twin earthquakes that turned entire residential neighbourhoods into piles of rubble in Venezuela has risen to 1,943. AFP reports that the disaster also injured more than 10,500 people and displaced around 15,000 Venezuelans. The earthquakes, which measured 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude, struck Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, and the southeast of Yumare last week. Rescue efforts continue for thousands of people who remain missing or trapped beneath the rubble, although the critical 72-hour window for rescuing victims after a natural disaster passed on Saturday evening. Authorities believe that tens of thousands of people are…

The new 210-member parliament takes shape, marking a historic shift after decades of Assad family rule.By AFP and The Associated PressPublished On 1 Jul 20261 Jul 2026The first parliament in Syria’s post-Assad era has taken shape with the release of a list of 70 legislators picked by President Ahmed al-Sharaa.The inauguration of the new parliament on Wednesday shows the country is moving ahead with drafting laws as the nation works on recovering from decades of iron-fist rule under longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, who was ousted in December 2024 after more than 13 years of civil war, which killed about half…

The man tasked with reforming the controversial Job-ready Graduates (JRG) program says he will not recommend any interim measures to reduce the $50,000 cost of arts degrees, despite calling the scheme a failure.Under the scheme introduced by the Morrison government, costs for science and maths courses were slashed to encourage students to take up Stem subjects, while arts and humanities fees rose sharply. The change led to university enrolments of students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds falling in some arts subjects, with critics warning of a “segregated” higher education system.Barney Glover, the new head of the Australian Tertiary Education Commission (Atec),…

•FTSE Russell delays Nigeria’s Frontier Market status   over T+1 concerns By Peter Egwuatu The Nigerian stock market ended June on a bearish note, with investors losing a whopping N13.3 trillion in the value of their investments listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on a month-on-month (MoM) basis, the highest monthly loss recorded in the first six months of 2026. Despite the sharp decline in June, equity investors recorded a gain of N44.8 trillion in the first half of 2026 (H1’26), reflecting improved capital gains. Market analysts attributed the bearish performance in June to sustained profit-taking in blue-chip and fundamentally sound…

Donald Trump has again been accused of “brazen crypto corruption” after financial disclosures revealed his family’s cryptocurrency ventures generated more than $1bn in his first year back in the White House.Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate banking committee, said the figures showed why US Congress needed to act. “The crypto legislation heading to the Senate floor must prevent the President, Vice President, senior administration officials, members of Congress, and their families from profiting off the crypto industry,” she said. “If it does not, it will only turbocharge Donald Trump’s brazen crypto corruption.”Juliana Stratton, the Illinois lieutenant governor and…

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has criticised what she called a missing £5bn in the defence investment plan, saying outgoing prime minister Sir Keir Starmer was leaving a mess for his successor.The long-awaited plan announced on Tuesday includes £15bn to boost the UK’s defences, but Defence Minister Luke Pollard told the BBC the next chancellor will need to find an extra £4.7bn in this autumn’s Budget to fund the proposals.At Prime Minister’s Questions, Badenoch asked whether Andy Burnham, who is widely expected to take over as PM on 20 July, had agreed to the plan.Sir Keir accused Badenoch of “faux outrage”…

The immediate past chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Lagos State chapter, Babajide Saheed, has challenged the interpretation of figures showing that Lagos recorded 10,430 new HIV cases in 2025, arguing that the data reflects routine HIV testing rather than newly diagnosed infections. Mr Saheed made the clarification on Channels Television during The Morning Brief show on Wednesday while reacting to figures from the ”State of the Health of the Nation Report 2025,” which have sparked widespread discussion on social media. The report indicates that Lagos recorded 10,430 new HIV cases in 2025, the highest among Nigeria’s 36 states…

England saw its warmest June and second warmest on record for the UK according to the Met Office. The month was hot by day and hot by night with June mean temperatures reaching 17.1C, nearly 3C above average. Frequent tropical nights, in which temperatures fall no lower than 20C, helped push mean temperatures up.The UK’s highest June temperature on record of 37.7C (99.9F) was set on Friday 26 June 2026 at Lingwood, Norfolk smashing the previous high of 35.6C (96F) set in 1957 and equalled in the infamous 1976 heatwave.A rare red extreme heat warning was issued for parts of…

England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt has confirmed her return from injury for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final against South Africa on Thursday, live on Sky Sports.Sciver-Brunt reinjured her left calf after starring in the win over Ireland a fortnight ago and missed England’s remaining group-stage matches against Scotland, West Indies and New Zealand as a result. Her absence has not been felt as England made it five wins from five matches as they cruised into the last four but, after batting in the nets on Wednesday morning, Sciver-Brunt will return to the XI at The Oval. Please use Chrome…

Innovative producer Nils Hartmann has stepped down as executive vice president of Sky Studios Italy, following a 23-year stint at the Comcast-owned pay-TV service during which he shepherded many Italian TV series that made their mark around the world. In his capacity as director of original productions at Sky Italia, Nils Hartmann spearheaded the creation of shows that have taken Italian TV to the next level, including “Romanzo Criminale” (“Crime Novel”); the gritty “Gomorrah” franchise, which is Italy’s all-time top TV export; Paolo Sorrentino’s outrageously fun “The Young Pope”; Stefano Sollima’s cocaine trafficking drama “ZeroZeroZero”; finance-world thriller “Devils,” starring Patrick…