Nigeria suspects Islamic State of killing 40 in Catholic church
Abuja, NigeriaReuters Nigerian authorities suspect the insurgent group Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) carried out a massacre in a Catholic church on Sunday in which 40 people were killed, Interior Minister Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola said on Thursday. Assailants wielding AK-47 rifles and explosives attacked the congregation at St Francis Catholic Church in Owo, in […]
Hailing Peter the Great, Putin draws parallel with mission to “return” Russian lands
Reuters Russian President Vladimir Putin paid tribute on Thursday to Tsar Peter the Great on the 350th anniversary of his birth, drawing a parallel between what he portrayed as their twin historic quests to win back Russian lands. “Peter the Great waged the Great Northern War for 21 years. It would seem that he was […]
Updated: Ukraine says troops holding on to Sievierodonetsk, advance in south
Updated: 11amKyiv/Sloviansk, Ukraine Reuters Ukraine said on Thursday its forces were holding their positions in intense fighting in the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk and had retaken ground in the south, targetting gains in the biggest swathe of territory seized by Russia since the invasion started. Russia has concentrated its invasion force around Sievierodonetsk, a small […]
Sri Lanka hit by power cuts after key union goes on strike
Colombo, Sri LankaReuters Swathes of Sri Lanka were hit by electricity cuts on Thursday after a power sector union went on strike opposing new government regulations, compounding hardships as the country tackles a crippling economic crisis. About 900 out of around 1,100 engineers of the state-run Ceylon Electricity Board, Sri Lanka’s main power company, went […]
British Virgin Islands agrees to reforms, avoiding UK rule for now
London, UKReuters Britain on Wednesday said it had agreed a comprehensive plan to reform the governance of the British Virgin Islands without direct rule from London at this stage after an official report found systemic dishonesty in the British overseas territory. While an inquiry in April had recommended the BVI should have its constitution suspended, […]
GreenSight: The ‘Zayit’ or olive
ALVIN JOHNSON looks at the many Biblical mentions of the olive tree…
Worried about Russia, Finnish women sign up to learn defence skills
Hattula, Finland Reuters Just days after Russia attacked Ukraine on 24th February, Finnish entrepreneur Sissi Moberg found herself scouring the internet for courses that could teach her skills to help defend Finland in case of a military attack. “I felt very sad for the Ukrainians. And then I started to worry about Finland and thinking […]
Bangladesh police open investigation into deadly container depot fire
Dhaka, BangladeshReuters Police in Bangladesh on Wednesday opened an investigation into eight officials from a shipping container depot after a blaze killed at least 44 people, including 10 firefighters, and injured around 200 others, officials said. Firefighters put out the blaze at the depot in Sitakunda, 40 kilometres from the south-eastern port city of Chittagong, on […]
Nicaraguan political prisoners held in “horrific conditions”, says lawyer
Managua, NicaraguaReuters Two former presidential candidates are among more than 180 political prisoners in Nicaragua undergoing “the worst kinds of human rights abuses,” their lawyer said Wednesday. One year after Juan Sebastian Chamorro and Felix Maradiaga were arrested ahead of Nicaragua’s disputed 2021 election, neither has spoken to their families and both are being held […]
US seminaries: As religious landscape shifts, reshaped institutions shed their campuses
KATHRYN POST, of Religion News Service, reports on how US seminaries are adapting to changing times…