The Federal Ministry of Works has released a travel advisory for motorists following its earlier announcement on a planned replacement of damaged expansion joints on the Kara Bridge, outbound Lagos.
In a Saturday statement signed by the Federal Controller of Works, Ogun State, Engr. Olayiwola Komolafe, maintenance work will commence on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, and is expected to last two weeks, ending on March 24, 2026.
Travel Advisory / Alternative Routes
To reduce traffic congestion during the period of the repair works, motorists have been advised to consider the following alternative routes:
Motorists travelling from Ikorodu to Mowe, Sagamu, and Ibadan are to drive through Shimawa or Mosinmi, while those travelling from Lagos Island can explore the Epe corridor through Ijebu Ode to reach Sagamu, Ibadan, and Mowe.
“Motorists are reminded that a shorter route may not necessarily be the fastest, and they are advised to plan their journeys early, obey traffic management directives, and drive cautiously around the work zone.
READ ALSO: EFCC Hands Over Recovered ₦279m To Wole Soyinka Centre In Lagos
Clashes have erupted as Israeli forces attempted a landing operation along the Lebanon-Syria border, with the armed group Hezbollah saying its fighters were involved, according to Lebanese state-run National News Agency (NNA), as this fierce front in the wider regional war launched by the United States and Israel boils over.
The Lebanese Health Ministry says at least 16 people were killed and 35 were wounded in Israeli air raids on the town of Nabi Chit, in the eastern Bekaa Valley.
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There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which has launched numerous deadly attacks and sent ground troops into southern Lebanon, but not further north in the east, since the Iran-aligned Lebanese group Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel on Monday to avenge the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, joining the war.
This latest reported raid would be the deepest Israeli forces’ incursion inside Lebanon since special unit troops apprehended Hezbollah operative Imad Amhaz from the northern city of Batroun in November 2024.
The NNA said, “Clashes are taking place on the eastern mountain range along the Lebanese-Syrian border … to repel Israeli landing attempts.”
‘Infiltration from the Syrian direction’
The agency gave the location of the incursion as Nabi Chit, in the eastern Baalbek district where Hezbollah holds sway.
Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters had “observed the infiltration of four Israeli enemy army helicopters from the Syrian direction”.
After landing, advancing troops “were engaged by a group” of Hezbollah fighters as they reached the Nabi Chit cemetery, Hezbollah said, noting the use of light and medium weapons.
“The clash escalated after the enemy force was exposed,” it added, saying the Israeli troops launched intense strikes and began to evacuate.
A separate statement said Hezbollah fighters had fired rockets as the Israeli forces withdrew.
Fighters “targeted the evacuation zone in the outskirts of the town of Nabi Chit with rocket fire”, the group said.
Footage shared on social media showed waves of gunfire in the air.
Nabi Chit was the target of at least 13 Israeli air strikes on Friday, according to the NNA, with the Lebanese Health Ministry reporting at least nine people killed.
Lebanon on Monday banned military activities by Hezbollah, but its fighters continue to launch missiles on Israel.
Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr, reporting from the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon, says the Lebanese government is in a difficult position after Hezbollah entered the war and continued its military activities despite the ban.
“Just a few weeks ago, the Lebanese army claimed that it was in operational control over the south of the country,” she said.
“The very fact that Hezbollah fighters are on the front lines in those border villages, engaging in direct combat with the Israeli army, shows that Hezbollah is the most powerful force in that area,” Khodr stressed.
The southern suburbs of Beirut have been under relentless Israeli bombardment for days, forcing the mass exodus of tens of thousands from the densely populated neighbourhood of Dahiyeh.
In the past week, the Israeli military has threatened large-scale enforced evacuation order for southern Lebanon as well, causing a huge exodus of civilians from these areas.
The death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon this week has risen to at least 217 people, the Lebanese Health Ministry said on Friday, adding that an additional 798 people have been wounded and an estimated 95,000 displaced.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said “the consequences of this displacement, at the humanitarian and political level, may well be unprecedented.
Huge explosions have hit several locations across Iran, including the capital, Tehran, as the war that has ignited the Middle East entered its eighth day.
The United States-Israeli attacks sent up clouds of dark smoke in the Iranian capital early on Saturday, and Tehran retaliated by firing missiles at Israel.
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Hours later, the Israeli military announced that it had started a new wave of attacks in Tehran and Isfahan.
The US has warned of a forthcoming bombing campaign that officials said would be the most intense yet in the weeklong conflict, which has already killed at least 1,230 people and is set to cause further casualties daily.
Much of the region has become embroiled in the war, with Tehran not only launching retaliatory strikes on Israel but hitting US assets across the Gulf.
Israel’s military said early on Saturday it had started a “broad-scale wave of strikes” on targets in Tehran.
“Iranians are now waking to day eight since the initiation of the US-Israeli air strikes targeting different facilities and places across the Iranian capital and elsewhere in the country,” said Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi, reporting from Tehran.
Continuous attacks have been occurring since midnight, he said.
“According to the latest reports, Mehrabad, which is one of the two main airports in the Iranian capital, was targeted. The nearby area was said to be affected, as well,” said Asadi.
Meanwhile, attacks have been taking place in other cities across the country – targeting not just military areas or political centres, but also residential areas, schools and hospitals, he added.
Amir-Saeid Iravani, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, told the UN Security Council on Friday that the US and Israel are bombing civilian areas in his country, stating: “These acts constitute clear war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
The continued fighting comes as US President Donald Trump’s administration approved a new $151m arms sale to Israel after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender”.
The United Kingdom has also now allowed the use of its military bases, with the US 146ft B-1 Lancer arriving at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on Friday evening, after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer granted permission for “defensive US action” against Iranian missile sites.
The development comes after Trump and a number of British politicians, including Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, criticised Starmer for a delay in granting permission to use the military bases.
Iran’s UN ambassador, meanwhile, said the country would “take all necessary measures” to defend itself.
Iran’s strategy to ‘keep Israelis in shelters’
Meanwhile, Iran has continued to strike back at Israel.
The Israeli military said early on Saturday that it had detected another round of Iranian missile fire headed towards Israel, and a series of explosions were heard in Tel Aviv following the launches from Iran.
Missiles were also detected heading towards other parts of the country, including southern Israel.
“Since midnight, the Israelis have detected at least five ballistic missile launches coming into Israel from Iran,” said Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim, reporting from Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
George Russell took an imposing pole position as Mercedes dominated the first qualifying session of a new era of Formula 1 at the Australian Grand Prix.
The Briton led team-mate Kimi Antonelli by 0.363 seconds and was 0.785secs clear of Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar in third place.
Max Verstappen crashed on his first lap to leave a degree of doubt as to the extent of Mercedes’ superiority, but it was an impressive start to a new period of regulations by the former champions.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was fourth fastest, with the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris separating him from his team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
Briton Arvid Lindblad, 18, made an impressive start to his F1 career but a final lap that did not live up the standards he had set until then in the weekend left him behind Racing Bulls team-mate Liam Lawson in ninth place.
Aston Martin, who had been the story of the weekend for all the wrong reasons amid a litany of unreliability, eventually salvaged some respect with Fernando Alonso qualifying 17th.
Russell imperious as Antonelli has incident-packed day
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Russell had looked the most likely to deliver pole all weekend and he was imperious all session.
He said: “A lot of simple things in the past, like race starts and pit stops, are a hell of a lot more challenging with these new cars. I said: ‘Let’s just have a clean session because who knows what’s going to happen to tomorrow.’ But we’re in the best place we can be.”
Antonelli had an incident-packed day, starting with a heavy crash in final practice that left his team working against time to get his car ready for qualifying.
There was also a team error in sending him out for the final session with both cooling fans still in his sidepods.
They fell out at the first corner and one was hit by Norris, leaving the track strewn with debris and causing the session to be stopped.
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Hadjar steps up and improvement for Aston Martin
Frenchman Hadjar said he was surprised to be third, expecting Ferrari to be ahead of him, but on his debut for the Red Bull team he did what so many of his predecessors could not and delivered when Verstappen hit trouble.
The four-time champion spun off and crashed at Turn One on his first lap of the session when his rear axle locked, catching him by surprise.
He was shaking his hands after he climbed out of the car, because he had held on to the steering wheel on impact, but said nothing was broken.
“I have no idea (what happened),” he said. “I just arrived to Turn One and the rear axle just completely locked up out of the blue while hitting the pedal, so this is something very weird that I’ve never experienced in F1 before. So just need to understand what went wrong.”
He will start 20th, ahead only of the Williams of Carlos Sainz and Aston Martin of Lance Stroll, neither of whom were able to take part in the session after reliability problems in final practice.
Behind the Racing Bulls, the new Audi team had a strong session with Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg taking 10th and 11th places, with the Haas cars of Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon 12th and 13th.
Bortoleto missed a chance to start higher because his car broke down on the way back to the pits after the second knockout session.
Alonso took the opportunity to underline how much difference finally managing to complete some laps had made to a team that were five seconds off the pace on Friday by reducing that to 2.5secs in qualifying.
“The whole winter has been a little bit with that feeling that there is much more to come, especially on the chassis side,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“We feel more or less OK in the corners and we feel we could be in the top 10 easily and then we cannot put laps together in the winter.
“Here, thanks to a more normal second and third practice, we found two seconds easily just because we ran.
When the United States-Israeli attack on Iran was launched last weekend, an unexpected peace broker stepped forward in the form of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, leader of the world’s largest Muslim country.
The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on social media: “Indonesia calls on all parties to exercise restraint and to prioritize dialogue and diplomacy.
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“If agreed by both parties, the President of Indonesia is prepared to travel to Tehran to carry out mediation,” it said.
But President Prabowo’s offer to help mediate between the sides has provoked debate across Indonesia, coming at a time of increased criticism of his approach to foreign policy and warm ties with the Trump administration.
“I’m puzzled as to why this idea wasn’t vetted before being made public,” Dino Patti Djalal, Indonesia’s former deputy foreign minister and former ambassador to the US, said in a statement on Instagram.
“It is highly unrealistic,” Djalal said.
Others agreed, adding that the offer could further alienate Indonesians already wary of the president’s perceived cordial relationship with US President Donald Trump.
“It is clear that any negotiations between Iran and the US have completely ended, so to propose this seems to be not reading the room,” Ian Wilson, a lecturer in politics and security studies at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia, told Al Jazeera.
“Domestically, people are likely to interpret this as a further alignment with Trump and therefore Netanyahu,” Wilson said.
In recent months, Prabowo has faced domestic scrutiny after volunteering to deploy 8,000 Indonesian troops to Gaza as part of an International Stabilization Force under the umbrella of Trump’s Board of Peace (BOP) – a so-called “international peacekeeping” organisation of which Israel is also a member.
Indonesia does not have any formal diplomatic relations with Israel, and has long supported an independent Palestine.
Joining Trump’s board and offering to participate in the US president’s plan for Gaza has not gone down well domestically.
“Indonesia is being used to legitimise the BOP’s dystopian plan to divide Gaza into quadrants and bypass the role of the United Nations,” Wilson said.
“For Indonesia to be involved fundamentally betrays its longstanding tradition of being a principled voice for the Global South, and its approach to foreign policy, which historically has been deeply respected,” he said.
‘Bebas-aktif’ – ‘independent and active’
Indonesia was one of the founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement during the Cold War, which saw the country adhere to a “bebas-aktif” or “independent and active” approach to foreign policy for decades, avoiding the major power blocs while actively working for peace and the national interest.
Over the years, this has included Indonesia’s attempts to broker peace in a number of global conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war.
But Indonesia’s membership of Trump’s Board of Peace amid Israel’s genocide in Gaza, and now the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran, could present an unprecedented test for Prabowo’s approach to foreign policy, experts said.
“The Foreign Ministry’s statement on the attack was regrettably naive,” said Sarbini Abdul Murad, director of the humanitarian group, Indonesia for Peace and Humanity.
While the president had offered to mediate, little was said about the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Sarbini said, pointing out that neighbouring Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had condemned the assassination of Khamenei by US and Israeli forces.
“The death of Ali Khamenei went unanswered,” he said
“Indonesia is at a crossroads in its foreign policy,” Sarbini added.
Indonesia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sugiono – who, like many Indonesians, uses a single name – said in a post on social media on Wednesday that Prabowo had expressed his deepest condolences to Iranian President Masoud Pezehkian on “the passing” of Khamenei.
‘Many Indonesians sympathise with Iran’
While Indonesia has entrenched support for Palestine, the relationship with Iran is rather more complicated.
About 87 percent of the country’s 270 million population follows Islam, and the majority of Indonesia’s Muslims are Sunni.
Iran has the world’s largest Shia population, which follows a different branch of Islamic theology with differing views on aspects of Islamic political theory and history.
“Previously, there was anti-Shia sentiment among Sunni in Indonesia,” said Made Supriatma, a visiting fellow with the Indonesia Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore.
“However, many Indonesians sympathise with Iran. This is not always out of solidarity with fellow Muslims, but rather because of anti-Israel and anti-American sentiment, which has long been high,” Supriatma said.
Though many Indonesians support Iran, it is not on the same scale as Palestine, when thousands of people attended demonstrations across Indonesia at the start of the genocidal war on Gaza. Protests against the current war on Iran are mostly confined to “chatter on social media”, Supriatma said.
Many Indonesians have expressed sympathy for Iran and anger towards the US for what they see as an unprovoked attack on Iran, said Yohanes Sulaiman, a lecturer in politics, security and foreign policy at Indonesia’s Universitas Jenderal Achmad Yani.
A mourner poses next to a portrait of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US-Israel strikes, during the signing of a petition committing to international justice values, held at the Iranian ambassador’s residence in Jakarta, Indonesia, on March 5, 2026 [Bay Ismoyo/AFP]
But many are likely unaware of what is taking place inside Iran, including the “anti-regime protests” that recently shook the country, Sulaiman said.
Indonesian housewife Arisha Ishana said she had indeed not heard about any demonstrations in Iran. Despite this, Ishana told Al Jazeera that she supported Iran in the conflict “because they are fellow Muslims”.
Ramadhan, a barista, said he supported Iran’s right to defend itself.
“This conflict was not started by Iran, but by the US and Israel,” he told Al Jazeera, adding that his feelings were not guided by his faith as a Muslim.
“For me, it is not about religion, but about humanity,” he said.
He added that he had been particularly upset by the bombing of a girls’ school in Minab in southern Iran on Saturday, which killed 165 students and staff.
Prabowo to ‘evaluate’ Indonesian role in Gaza plan
Neither the US nor officials in Iran have publicly commented on Prabowo’s mediation offer, although the Iranian ambassador to Indonesia expressed diplomatic appreciation.
Speaking at a news conference on Monday, Ambassador Mohammad Boroujerdi welcomed the offer of mediation but explained that “no steps” had been taken to make it a reality, and lamented that negotiations would likely be fruitless.
“We believe that currently, no negotiations and discussions with the American government will be useful, because they are not bound and do not adhere to any outcomes,” Boroujerdi said.
With growing resentment towards the US among Indonesians generally, and Trump’s Board of Peace and Prabowo’s role in it specifically, researcher Supriatma said the president appeared to be trying to garner support from members of Indonesia’s political elite.
On Tuesday, Prabowo convened a meeting attended by former presidents, vice presidents and political leaders, reportedly to assess the geopolitical and economic impact of the Iranian conflict.
Following the meeting, which ran for more than three hours, according to official reports, Indonesia’s former Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told local media that Prabowo was willing to “evaluate” Indonesia’s role in Trump’s peace board, following the latest events in Iran.
Supriatma said the president appears “cornered” by his own foreign policy decisions.
“He can’t explain why Indonesia needs to join the BOP and, in my view, he doesn’t have a clear stance on Indonesia’s position on the United States and Israel,” Supriatma said.
“His pro-American position and seemingly tolerant approach to Israel is indeed not popular in Indonesia,” he said.
“But how long will this last? That is the question,” he added.
The Six Nations trophy catching fire after round three is a sobering analogy for where England find themselves in this year’s tournament.
The title aspirations of one of the pre-tournament favourites had gone up in flames well before the end of February.
Mauled at Murrayfield. Terrorised at Twickenham. Can pride be salvaged by beating Italy in round four in Rome?
Emerging victorious from the Eternal City, though, is no longer a straightforward task – particularly for visitors who have a dire away record in the Six Nations in recent seasons.
Poor tourists
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England’s current run of four defeats in five away games is their joint-highest tally of losses over a five-match period in the entirety of the Six Nations era.
In the five championships since last winning the title in 2020, England have won just four of their 13 fixtures on the road, losing all eight combined in Edinburgh, Dublin and France.
England do have a 100% record in Rome – but the Azzurri are no longer the accommodating hosts of old.
Stamina, style, scrum power. World-class players like Tommaso Menoncello in wonderful form. Defensive resilience and aerial threat.
Italy have already beaten Scotland at home in this tournament and will be targeting a first ever win against an England side whose vulnerabilities have been exposed in the past few weeks.
England are the only team in the Six Nations who have never lost against Italy, but former England winger Ugo Monye believes that record will be tested on Saturday afternoon.
“I am not sure if I’ve ever considered a Test against Italy as a pivotal match for England, but it is this year,” he said. “Italy are a proper, proper outfit.”
England boss Steve Borthwick has made his feelings on the error-strewn performances of rounds two and three clear by making nine changes, along with three positional switches – the most by an England team in the Six Nations era.
The move is not without risk as untested combinations take to the field in a must-win match.
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England’s confused identity
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England entered round two on a run of 12 successive wins and yet the setbacks against Ireland and Scotland were of a team suddenly unsure of their identity.
The suggestion that England kick too much is synonymous with Borthwick’s threeyear reign although moving away from a kick-based strategy has had adverse consequences in recent weeks.
According to Opta data, England ranked second bottom for kicks in play (44) and bottom for kick metres (1,025m) across the past two rounds and suffered convincing defeats in both.
An attack that was only outscored by South Africa last year has malfunctioned, conceding 16 turnovers at crucial times in the opposition 22, along with 32 turnovers because of unforced errors.
But perhaps the biggest failings on England’s rap sheet have been those of a ragged defence.
Borthwick’s men have conceded 24 line-breaks so far, with 58% of those coming in the 10m channels. An unrivalled 30% of their 74 missed tackles have also come out wide.
The secret is out – to beat England, play fast and play with width, a blueprint that Monye believes Italy are capable of replicating.
“Italy have the opportunity to threaten England, because it would seem that against teams that love to play wide England, at the moment, don’t have an antidote against that,” he said.
England’s new backline to face Italy
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Italy’s stamina and scrum power
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The speed of Italy’s development has increased significantly since the arrival of Gonzalo Quesada as head coach following the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Aggression in defence. Style in attack. And the ability to compete for 80 minutes.
“Historically, Italy have been good for the opening 20, the first half,” said Monye, who won 13 England caps between 2008 and 2012.
The Azzurri’s only real failing in this tournament so far has been an inability to fully exploit the chances they have created.
They were the only team to score fewer points per visit to the opposition’s red zone (0.7) than England (1.6) in rounds two and three, resulting in competitive defeats in Dublin and Lille.
Missed opportunities against Ireland proved particularly costly in a match of fine margins, although Italy’s scrum once again stood out.
After smashing Scotland’s pack at the Stadio Olimpico they fractured an Irish front row boasting three-time British and Irish Lion Tadgh Furlong at Aviva Stadium.
The Azzurri have won a higher rate of scrums on the opposition feed (19%) than ever before in this championship, including two against France.
England’s scrum has also been impressive. A key battle awaits.
“At times, Italy’s scrum got the better of South Africa in the autumn,” said Monye.
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Menoncello in blistering form
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Italy, scrum and all, are likely to provide an even sterner test on Roman soil.
Quesada’s home win rate of 50% across all Tests is the highest of any Italy head coach in the Six Nations era, with the victory against Scotland last month preceded by an autumn triumph over Australia.
Italy’s 27-24 loss to England in their most recent meeting in Rome two years ago is their narrowest margin of defeat in all 35 years of this fixture.
The scoreline was admittedly flattering, with Italy scoring a converted Monty Ioane try with the clock in the red, although Quesada and his men will not have forgotten how that contest began.
Italy scored two early tries to lead 17-8 with 30 minutes on the clock.
After half an hour against Scotland in February, England were 17-0 down. Against Ireland at the same stage, the score was 22-0.
England simply cannot afford to make such a slow start once again on Saturday afternoon against a side boasting formidable firepower.
Menoncello has been in the kind of blistering form in midfield that saw him win the player of the tournament award two years ago, leading this championship for average gain (8.7m) and dominant carries (75%).
Only France duo Matthieu Jalibert and Thomas Ramos have made more offloads than Italy utility back Leonardo Marin (8), while number eight Lorenzo Cannone has been the competition’s most ferocious defender, setting the bar for dominant tackles (10).
England must avoid ‘playing with fear’
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It would remain a huge shock for Italy to finally topple England for the first time in 32 Test meetings, even after the loss of influential scrum-half Alex Mitchell and centre Ollie Lawrence to injury.
England scored seven tries in this fixture at Twickenham last year and have had two weeks to lick wounds and reconnect with the winning formula that brought so much success in 2025.
The loss of Mitchell and Lawrence along with the decision to drop George Ford, Henry Arundell and Freddie Steward means that England field an entirely different backline from the one that faced Ireland.
Monye says that bringing in fly-half Fin Smith, who started the 2025 win against Italy at Twickenham, for Ford was the right call and believes England will be targeting a convincing win.
“It’s not just about result anymore; it’s about result and performance,” he added.
