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President Tinubu Assures ECOWAS of standby force, other plans actualization

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Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has urged leaders of the West Africa sub-region to rise above coups d’état and threats to democracy.

Tinubu’s presidential spokesman, Dele Alake, disclosed this on Sunday in a statement following the emergence of Tinubu as the chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at the ongoing 63rd Ordinary session in Guinea Bissau.

The President of Africa’s most populous country avowed that insecurity and creeping terrorism are stunting the progress and development of the West African region.

He noted that the threat to peace in the region had reached alarming proportions with terrorism and an emerging pattern of military takeover that now demanded urgent and concerted actions.

Tinubu emphasised the need to embrace kinetic and non-kinetic operations, including preventive diplomacy, to end regional insecurity.

He pledged to harmonise all strategies and resources towards actualizing lasting peace in the region.

“On peace and security, the threat has reached an alarming level and needs urgent actions to address the challenges. Indeed, the region’s progress and development will remain elusive without a peaceful environment. In this regard, we must remain committed to utilising all regional frameworks to address the menace of insecurity.

“There is also the Regional Plan of Action on Fight Against Terrorism 2020–2024 and the operationalization of the ECOWAS standby force on fight against terrorism.

“I will ensure that we harmonise these plans and mobilise resources and the political will towards actualizing the initiatives. As terrorists do not respect boundaries, we must work collectively to have an effective regional counterterrorism measure,” he stated.

International

India’s Gen Z protesters force out education minister

The latest education protests erupted in May after NEET, India’s biggest medical entrance exam, was cancelled following a question paper leak, forcing nearly two million students to retake the test. More than 20 students died by suicide, with their families blaming the scandal.

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Indian’s Gen Z protesters have forced out the education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation on Saturday, after more than a week of intense street protests.

In the words of 22-year-old Sakhi, a student activist in Delhi, “for the first time, it felt like we can make things happen through protests”.Soon after Pradhan quit, social media seized on an old video of a senior Modi minister boasting that “resignations do not happen in our government”, reflecting the confidence of the nationwide youth movement that had demanded his exit.

The latest education protests erupted in May after NEET, India’s biggest medical entrance exam, was cancelled following a question paper leak, forcing nearly two million students to retake the test. More than 20 students died by suicide, with their families blaming the scandal.

The outrage was channelled by the satirical Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), an online campaign launched after India’s chief justice likened unemployed people with “fake and bogus degrees” to cockroaches.

Its founders staged a sit-in in Delhi, demanding Pradhan’s resignation, education reforms and compensation for the bereaved families.

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Spain and France wildfires force more than 300,000 to flee as Macron calls crisis meeting

The fire, which began in the Southwest of France in Gironde on Wednesday, has burned 42,000 hectares and has forced one of the largest evacuations in France’s history.

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Spain’s Military Emergencies Unit (UME) and Castilla-y-Leon unit’s firefighters battle a fire in a forest next to La Atalaya residential area in El Tiemblo, 80 kms west of Madrid, on July 25, 2026. (Photo by Cesar MANSO / AFP via Getty Images)Cesar Manso | Afp | Getty Images

Wildfires are ravaging southern France and spreading into Spain, forcing more than 300,000 people to flee ahead of further expected heatwaves during the week.

French President Emmanuel Macron is set to hold a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday, while Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will visit areas hit by fires in Valencia, in the East of Spain.

The fire, which began in the Southwest of France in Gironde on Wednesday, has burned 42,000 hectares and has forced one of the largest evacuations in France’s history, according to French broadcaster France 24 and local news outlets.

The wildfires have also affected 77,000 hectares of the Avila and Toledo areas in Western Madrid.

The situation remains highly unfavorable,” France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on X on Saturday, according to a Google translation.

“At the start of the night, in Gironde, the fire became extremely virulent and unpredictable again, generating its own wind and spreading erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area. By the end of the night, it had calmed down somewhat.”

Source: CNBC

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UK List Items Visitors Can And Cannot Bring

The updated guidance warned that failure to comply with customs regulations could lead to confiscation of goods, fines or even prosecution.

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[File photo] UK PM, Andy Burnham

The United Kingdom has released updated lists of items travellers can and cannot bring into the country.

The updated guidance warned that failure to comply with customs regulations could lead to confiscation of goods, fines or even prosecution.

In the new listings while visitors are allowed to bring a range of personal belongings into the UK without paying customs duty or tax, strict limits apply to alcohol, tobacco and the value of other goods.

Certain items are also completely banned, while others require permits or licences before they can be imported.

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