Schengen Visa Denials Hit 89,000 For Nigerians In Two Years
The PUNCH has obtained data indicating that nearly half of Nigerians who applied for visas to enter the Schengen Area of Europe during the previous two years were turned down. Out of 192,741 visa applications from Nigerians in 2022 and 2023, 89,344 were turned down, translating to a rejection rate of 46.35 percent. Official data from the European Commission and the...
Colombian Guerrilla Conflict Claims 80 Lives, Displaces Thousands
Over 80 people, including civilians, have been killed in a new wave of guerrilla violence in Colombia amid a stalled peace process, and 11,000 people have been displaced in just four days, officials said Sunday. As residents fled for their lives, the army deployed some 5,000 troops to the cocaine-growing Catatumbo region at the center of a fast-escalating territorial war. The...
Bitcoin Hits Record Above $109,000 Awaiting Trump
As Donald Trump, who has indicated plans to de-regulate the cryptocurrency industry, gets ready to take office as US president, Bitcoin reached a record high above $109,000 on Monday. Bitcoin surged to reach an all-time peak of $109,241 ahead of Trump’s inauguration ceremony before falling back to $107,765 at around 0740 GMT. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has soared since Trump won...
Deadly Blaze Claims Eight Lives At Serbian Retirement Home
Eight people were killed and seven injured when a fire broke out early Monday at a retirement community outside of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. Luka Causic, a police officer overseeing the emergency response, said there were around 30 people inside when the fire broke out at 3:30 am (02:30 GMT). “Unfortunately, eight individuals lost their lives in the fire. I...
China Executes Man For Deadly 35-Victim Car Attack
China executed a man Monday who was responsible for the deadliest mass attack in the nation's history, a car rampage in November 2024 that killed 35 people in the southern city of Zhuhai. On November 11, Fan Weiqiu, 62, deliberately drove a small SUV through crowds of people exercising outside a sports complex, also injuring 45 in China’s worst such...
Trump Vows ‘Invasion Of US Borders’ Will Stop By End Of Monday
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump promised supporters on the eve of his swearing-in ceremony that he would begin enacting anti-immigration policies on the first day of his second term in office. “By the time the sun sets tomorrow evening, the invasion of our borders will have come to a halt. “All the illegal border trespassers will, in some form or another, be...
Billions In Aid Needed To Revive Gaza — UN
On Monday, the United Nations announced that, according to its estimates, rebuilding Gaza following the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant organization Hamas would require billions of dollars. A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect on Sunday, suspending a 15-month-old war that has devastated the Gaza Strip and inflamed the Middle East. According to Israeli tallies, the Hamas attack...
President Trump Shuts Down Migrant Appointment App Minutes After Inauguration
Minutes after the new president took office on Monday, Trump administration officials shut down a mobile app designed for migrants to schedule appointments at the U.S.-Mexico border. By disabling the CBP One app, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials effectively canceled all pending appointments made by migrants without visas who were seeking entry into the United States through legal ports of entry. This...
Donald Trump Sworn In As 47th President
Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States at the Capitol Rotunda, marking a political comeback after being convicted of felonies. The United States was launched on a fresh course of disruption and division on Monday as Donald Trump was sworn in as its 47th president, promising a blitz of executive orders, a radical shake-up of the global order and...
Trump Dismisses Four Officials In First Truth Social Post
Four senior government officials appointed by Joe Biden have been fired by US President Donald Trump, who has hinted that more actions will follow. He made this announcement in his first Truth Social post since his inauguration as the 47th President of the United States. “Our first day in the White House is not over yet! My Presidential Personnel Office is...
