Connect with us
Seeking To Avert Wider Middle East War

U.S. Secretary Of State Due In UAE, Saudi, Israel, Seeking To Avert Wider Middle East War

More Videos

Published

on

U.S. Secretary Of State Due In UAE, Saudi, Israel, Seeking To Avert Wider Middle East War—-Antony Blinken will hold talks in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on Monday before heading on to Israel after warning that the Gaza war could spread across the region without concerted peace efforts.

Israel vowed to continue fighting until Hamas was eliminated.

Blinken was in Jordan and Qatar on Sunday at the start of a five-day diplomatic effort in the Middle East seeking to avert a wider war in the region.

He is also due to visit the West Bank and Egypt this week.

“This is a moment of profound tension for the region.

“This is a conflict that could easily metastasise, causing even more insecurity and suffering,” Blinken told a news conference in Doha before heading to Abu Dhabi.

Blinken said he would tell Israeli officials that it is imperative they do more to prevent civilian casualties in Gaza and that Palestinian civilians must be allowed to return home and not be pressed to leave Gaza.

Jordan’s King Abdullah urged Blinken to use Washington’s influence over Israel to press it for an immediate ceasefire and warned of the “catastrophic repercussions” of Israel’s continued military campaign.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to continue fighting.

“The war must not be stopped until we achieve all the goals: the elimination of Hamas, the return of all our hostages, and ensuring that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel,” he said at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday.

“I say this to both our enemies and our friends,” he added.

Amid global concern over the death and destruction in Gaza and widespread calls for a ceasefire, Israeli public opinion remains firmly behind the operation aimed at wiping out the Hamas group that rules Gaza, although support for Netanyahu has fallen sharply.

Israeli officials say some 1,200 people were killed and 240 taken hostage in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, the deadliest day in the country’s history, and accounts of atrocities that later emerged left a sense that its survival is at stake.

More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas.

Israel’s offensive since has so far killed 22,835 Palestinians in Gaza, Palestinian health officials said on Sunday, after 111 dead and 250 wounded were added to the tally over the past 24 hours.

During the weekend, residents reported intense gun battles in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis, as well as in central districts of the densely populated enclave.

Israeli strikes on houses in Khan Younis killed 50 people, health officials in the hospital there said on Sunday.

An Israeli air strike on a car near Rafah in southern Gaza on Sunday killed two Palestinian journalists, according to health officials in Gaza and the journalists’ union there.

Central Gaza has been the focus of a heavier Israeli ground and air offensive in the past two weeks, with residents reporting tank shelling as explosions lit the skies overnight on Sunday.

The fighting has displaced most of Gaza’s 2.3 million population, with many homes and civilian infrastructure left in ruins amid acute shortages of food, water and medicine.

In a post on social media platform X, Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri lamented that Arab and Islamic countries had yet to back South Africa’s call for genocide proceedings against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

“We feel pain that the Arab and Islamic countries have not yet submitted any request to the International Court of Justice against the Zionist genocide in Gaza or supported the request of the State of South Africa in this regard,” he said.

“‎We hope that there will be a remedy, otherwise this official silence will constitute a mandate for the occupation to eradicate what remains of Gaza.”

Israel denies targeting civilians and says Hamas militants deliberately embed themselves among civilian populations.

Hamas, which is backed by Iran and is sworn to Israel’s destruction, denies that.

On Sunday, Blinken and Qatari officials discussed efforts to free hostages still believed to be held by Hamas after an earlier agreement mediated by Qatar broke down, something that the Qatari prime minister said was affected by the recent killing of a top Hamas leader.

On his trip, Blinken also aims to press hesitant Muslim nations in the Middle East to prepare to play a role in the reconstruction, governance and security of Gaza if and when Israel manages to eliminate Hamas, a State Department official said earlier.

Outside Gaza, there was more violence in the occupied West Bank, where hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israeli soldiers and settlers over the past weeks.

Israel’s military said Israeli aircraft fired on Palestinian militants who had attacked troops in the city of Jenin, and Palestinian health officials said seven Palestinians died in the strike.

An Israeli border police officer was killed and others wounded when their vehicle was hit by an explosive device during operations in Jenin, Israeli officials said.

Israeli emergency services also said Israeli police killed a young Palestinian girl in a car at a West Bank crossing when they opened fire on another car suspected of a ramming attack.

Facebook 0 Twitter/X 0 LinkedIn0 WhatsApp0 0Shares

Trending News

SHOCKING !! Oluyin Of Iyin-Ekiti In DSS Net Over Alleged Suspicious Demand for Governor’s Used Chair

Published

on

SHOCKING !! Oluyin Of Iyin-Ekiti In DSS Net Over Alleged Suspicious Demand for Governor’s Used Chair

 

The Department of State Services (DSS) has invited the Oluyin of Iyin-Ekiti, Oba Adeniyi Adeola Ajakaiye, for questioning after he made a quiet but suspicious demand for the chair used by Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji during a thanksgiving service at Babamuboni Memorial Anglican Church, Iyin-Ekiti.

According to leaked correspondences exchanged between Babamuboni Anglican Church and Oluyin’s Palace, Governor Oyebanji had attended an event on May 31, 2026 at the invitation of Senate Leader, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, an indigene of Iyin-Ekiti few days to the state’s gubernatorial election.

How Oluyin of Iyin-Ekiti Strangely Demanded Governor’s Seat

It was gathered that after the church program, the Oluyin of Iyin Ekiti, Oba Ajakaiye quietly and specifically requested for the chair which the Governor sat on during the church program.

The church’s Vicar who suspected a mischief by the Oluyin’s palace politely declined the estranged and bizzare request.

According to the church, the decline made Oba Oluyin furious who immediately influenced the untimely transfer of the church’s vicar, Ven. Dr. Samuel Sunday Agunbiade from the church.

The Palace, in a letter addressed to the church , insisted that the governor’s seat be surrendered for “royal custody and appropriate traditional rites.”

In the said letter from the Oluyin-in-Council to the church, they strangely said that “the replacement chair to be commissioned henceforth shall be placed under strict and adequate guard at all times, to avert any future desecration or recurrence of such grave oversight against the sanctity of the stool.”

Meanwhile, the request which has been described as barbaric and bizarre in Nigeria’s political and religious history, immediately raised suspicion and outrage within the community.

The Position of the Anglican Church

The Anglican Church, in its formal reply, rejected the demand, stressing that church property is held in trust under ecclesiastical governance. It further explained that the chair no longer existed, having already been dismantled and incorporated into the altar furnishing.

According to the church, “Consequently, the Church is not at liberty to surrender, transfer, or remove dedicated Church property for external purposes outside the procedures prescribed by ecclesiastical authority.

“As custodians of these properties, we are duty-bound to preserve and administer them in accordance with the doctrine, discipline, and governance of the Church.”

REQUEST FOR THE REMOVAL OF THE CHURCH CHAIR TO THE PALACE nnnnn_040357

Despite the stance of the church to strictly adhere to its ecclesiastical responsibilities and constitutional obligations, the palace persisted.

Outrage in Iyin-Ekiti as Residents React

Residents of Iyin-Ekiti alleged that the monarch’s insistence was not cultural but sinister with claims that the chair might be for ritual manipulation against the governor whom at the time was preparing for his re-election.

They noted that the DSS invitation to the Oluyin underscores how seriously the security agency views the matter stressing that there are sinister motive behind the estranged act.

It was equally gathered that the fallout extended to the church leadership. Ven. Dr. Agunbiade, the vicar who stood firm against the palace’s demand, was transferred under circumstances widely perceived as punitive.

Residents noted that while governors, presidents, and dignitaries have attended church services across Nigeria and Ekiti State in particular for decades, never has a demand been made for their chairs to undergo “traditional rites.”

They described the incident as mischievous while calling for a thorough investigation by the DSS to unravel the mystery and sinister motives behind the bizzare request of the monarch.

Facebook 0 Twitter/X 0 LinkedIn0 WhatsApp0 0Shares
Continue Reading

Sports

JUST IN: Maresca Suffers Arsenal Defeat Again as Manchester City Lose Community Shield 3–0

Published

on

JUST IN: Maresca Suffers Arsenal Defeat Again as Manchester City Lose  Community Shield3–0—-Enzo Maresca’s competitive debut as Manchester City manager ends in disappointment as Arsenal cruise to victory in Cardiff and lift the Community Shield.

Enzo Maresca’s first competitive match in charge of Manchester City ended in a nightmare as Arsenal swept aside the FA Cup holders 3–0 to claim the 2026 Community Shield at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

The defeat means Maresca has suffered another setback against Arsenal, having previously faced the Gunners during his time at Chelsea. But this loss will carry particular significance, coming in his first competitive game since taking over from Pep Guardiola at City.

Calafiori Strikes Inside 24 Seconds

Arsenal needed less than a minute to take control.

Riccardo Calafiori opened the scoring after just 24 seconds, finishing from Myles Lewis-Skelly’s delivery to give Mikel Arteta’s side a dream start. It was reported as the fastest Community Shield goal in 58 years.

The early goal immediately put City under pressure and gave Arsenal confidence as they looked to exploit the uncertainty surrounding Maresca’s new-look side.

Havertz Doubles Arsenal’s Lead

Arsenal continued to dominate and eventually doubled their advantage in the 28th minute.

Kai Havertz found the net after goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma failed to deal convincingly with the situation, leaving Arsenal with a commanding 2–0 lead before half-time.

City struggled to generate a sustained attacking response, with Arsenal’s defensive organisation limiting the opportunities available to Erling Haaland and Phil Foden.

Ødegaard Completes the Rout

The Gunners completed the victory early in the second half when captain Martin Ødegaard added a third goal.

Christos Tzolis was involved in another Arsenal attacking move, while Ødegaard produced a composed finish to effectively put the contest beyond City’s reach.

Arsenal’s defence then held firm to preserve a clean sheet and secure a convincing victory.

A Nightmare Start for Maresca

The result could hardly have been more difficult for Maresca.

The Italian was appointed as Guardiola’s successor after City entered a new era following the Spaniard’s departure. The Community Shield represented Maresca’s first competitive opportunity to demonstrate that he could lead the club back to the top of English football.

Instead, Arsenal exposed several weaknesses in his team, particularly in defensive organisation and their ability to control the match after falling behind.

Maresca had previously said one of his ambitions at City was to close the gap on Arsenal, who finished as Premier League champions last season. His first competitive meeting with the Gunners therefore provided an immediate test of that ambition.

Arsenal Send Early Warning

For Arteta and Arsenal, the victory provides an early statement ahead of the new Premier League campaign.

The Gunners looked sharp, aggressive and confident, while their new additions and returning players fitted smoothly into Arteta’s system.

The Community Shield does not determine the Premier League title race, but Arsenal’s performance will undoubtedly strengthen belief among their supporters that the champions are ready to defend their crown and compete for further silverware.

For Maresca, however, there is now plenty of work to do.

Manchester City’s new era has begun with a heavy defeat, while Arsenal have already sent a clear message to their rivals: they are ready for another fight at the top.

Facebook 0 Twitter/X 0 LinkedIn0 WhatsApp0 0Shares
Continue Reading

Trending

Facebook 0 Twitter/X 0 LinkedIn0 WhatsApp0 0Shares