‘Trump didn’t follow legal proceedings to launch this war’
FG Monitoring Middle East Situation, No Nigerian Will Be Endangered, Says NiDCOM
The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) says the Federal Government is working to ensure the safety of Nigerians in the Middle East amid the crisis in the region.
NiDCOM’s Director of Media, Public Relations and Protocols, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, gave the assurance in a statement on Tuesday.
The commission said Nigerian authorities are monitoring the situation and have received calls “from a few Nigerians in Qatar, UAE, and Iran enquiring about preparations for evacuations when it becomes necessary.
“The fact of the matter is that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working with all relevant agencies for appropriate steps, while appealing to Nigerians in the affected countries to follow the travel advice as issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and contact the emergency numbers provided by the ministry.
“Nigerians in affected countries should be rest assured that the federal government is monitoring the situation and will take necessary steps to ensure no Nigerian life is endangered,” the statement read in part.
On Saturday, the Federal Government advised Nigerians in the Middle East, especially in Iran, to take extra security precautions in the wake of tensions in the region.
“All Nigerians in Iran and affected Gulf countries are advised to remain extremely vigilant and conscious of their surroundings at all times,” a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs read in part.
“Avoid areas known to be strategic, military, or government installations, as these could be potential flashpoints.”
“We wish to assure the general public that the safety and well-being of Nigerian citizens abroad remains the top priority of the Federal Government,” the ministry said while calling on parties involved in the conflict to de-escalate tensions.
UN chief warns of Israeli-made humanitarian crisis in Gaza amid war on Iran
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for Israel to reopen Gaza’s border crossings, which have been closed by Israel since its forces launched a war against Iran with the United States.
“It is imperative that all crossings be reopened … as soon as possible,” Guterres’s spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday. “In recent days, our partners have been forced to ration fuel, prioritise life-saving operations, albeit in reduced capacity as our local stocks are going down.”
Recommended Stories
list of 3 itemsend of list
Dujarric said there were some stockpiles in Gaza but “when the doors are shut, we obviously stretch whatever we have to make it last longer.”
The Rafah crossing into Gaza from Egypt, the only gateway for Palestinians in Gaza to the outside world that does not pass through Israel, had reopened for the movement of people on February 2, allowing a limited number of people to leave for the first time in months and a trickle to return to the devastated enclave to reunite with family.
Thousands of Palestinians need urgent medical attention outside Gaza but have not yet been allowed to leave.
Israel shut down the crossing again on Saturday as it launched attacks on Iran, citing “security adjustments”. The crossing is considered vital for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the evacuation of critically ill patients.
Israeli authorities said late on Monday that they would reopen the Karem Abu Salem crossing, known as Kerem Shalom to Israelis, to allow for the “gradual entry of humanitarian aid” into the territory. That crossing sits at the intersection of the Gaza Strip boundary with the Israeli and Egyptian borders and was also shut on Saturday.
The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) expressed optimism on Tuesday. “The crossings will be opened, and that is timely for us, and we need to get in aid as fast as we can,” Samer Abdel Jaber, the WFP’s regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, told reporters.
Gaza is wholly dependent on fuel brought in by trucks from Israel and Egypt, and a lack of supplies puts hospital operations further at risk and threatens water and sanitation services.
Since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, Israeli border restrictions have depleted stocks of medicines, reconstruction materials, food and water inside the Strip, worsening conditions that were already dire after years of an Israeli blockade.
A UN inquiry in September found genocidal intent in Israel’s war on Gaza, a landmark moment after nearly two years of war. In 2023, South Africa filed a case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague against Israel, accusing it of conduct in Gaza that was tantamount to genocide. That case is ongoing.
West Bank tensions spiral
In the meantime, Israeli forces have continued the closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem for the fourth consecutive day on Tuesday.
Palestine’s Jerusalem Governorate reported that the army prevented worshippers from entering the mosque, citing a state of emergency.
The compound, the third holiest site in Islam, was sealed off on Saturday morning, hours after the Israeli-US military offensive on Iran began.
For a second consecutive day, Israeli forces raided the Askar refugee camp east of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, shutting down its entrances and searching several homes.
Last month, the Israeli government approved a plan to claim large areas of the West Bank as “state property” if Palestinians cannot prove ownership, prompting a regional outcry and accusations of “de facto annexation”.
Maritime insurers cancel war risk cover in Gulf: Will it spike energy cost?
Insurance companies are cancelling war risk coverage for vessels in the Middle East Gulf as the widening United States/Israel-Iran conflict disrupts shipping, leaving tankers damaged or stranded and at least two people dead.
The conflict entered its fourth day on Tuesday with US and Israeli attacks continuing on Iran, which has retaliated by attacking US assets and other infrastructure in Gulf countries.
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman has ground to a near halt after vessels in the area were hit as Iran retaliated against US and Israeli strikes.
What has happened in the Strait of Hormuz?
A commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Monday that the strait was “closed” and that any vessel attempting to pass through the waterway would be set “ablaze”.
At least five tankers have been damaged, two personnel killed and about 150 ships stranded around the strait.
The disruption and fears of prolonged closure have caused oil and European natural gas prices to jump, with Brent crude futures up as much as 13 percent as the conflict triggers multiple oil and gas shutdowns in the Middle East.
About 10 percent of the world’s container ships are ensnared in the broader backups, and cargo could soon start piling up at ports and transshipment hubs in Europe and Asia, Jeremy Nixon, CEO of container carrier Ocean Network Express, known as ONE, said on Monday.
The tankers are clustered in open waters off the coasts of major Gulf oil producers, including Iraq and Saudi Arabia, as well as LNG giant Qatar, according to ship-tracking data from the MarineTraffic platform.
IRGC said the Honduran-flagged Nova was burning in the Strait of Hormuz after being hit by two drones, Iranian news agencies reported on Tuesday.
The US-flagged product tanker Stena Imperative was damaged by “aerial impacts” while berthed in the Middle East Gulf, the vessel’s owner, Stena Bulk, and its US manager, Crowley, said in a statement on Monday. The impact killed a shipyard worker.
On Sunday, a projectile hit the Marshall Islands-flagged product tanker MKD VYOM, killing a crew member as the vessel sailed off the coast of Oman, its manager said, and two other tankers were also damaged.
Also on Sunday, a projectile hit the Gibraltar-flagged oil bunkering tanker Hercules Star, which supplies fuel to ships, off the UAE coast, manager Peninsula said in a statement. The tanker returned to anchor in Dubai on Sunday morning and the crew were safe, Peninsula added.
How are maritime insurers reacting?
As a result of these incidents, marine insurers are cancelling war risk coverage for vessels, and the overall cost of shipping oil from the region is set to surge further.
Insurance companies including Gard, Skuld, NorthStandard, the London P&I Club and the American Club said cancellation of war risk cover would take effect from March 5, according to notices dated March 1 on their websites.
These cancellation notices mean shipping companies with vessels in the region will need to seek new insurance cover, likely at much higher cost.
“As a result of this fast-moving situation, each underwriter is invariably increasing rates or, in some instances, for vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, even declining to offer terms right now,” said David Smith, head of marine brokers McGill and Partners.
War risk premiums have risen as high as 1 percent of the value of a ship in the past 48 hours, from about 0.2 percent last week, industry sources said on Monday, which adds hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs for every shipment. For example, for a tanker worth $100m, the war‑risk premium for a single voyage would jump from roughly $200,000 to about $1m.
“The (war insurance) market is facing what is essentially a de facto close of the Strait of Hormuz, based primarily around perception of threat rather than a tangible blockade,” said Munro Anderson of marine war insurance specialist Vessel Protect, part of Pen Underwriting.
Meanwhile, costs of shipping oil from the Middle East to Asia – already at a six-year high amid escalating US-Iran tensions and attacks on ships near the Strait of Hormuz – are therefore set to rise even more as the widening Iran conflict deters shipowners from sending vessels to the region, market sources and analysts said.
Why is war risk insurance so important?
War risk insurance is crucial because it covers losses caused by war and terrorism, which are explicitly excluded from standard marine, aviation and property policies.
How could this impact insurance rates?
Marcus Baker, the global head of marine at Marsh, told The Guardian newspaper in the UK that insurance rates could rise by 50 to 100 percent, or even more.
For instance, before the crisis, a ship might pay about 0.25 percent of its value as war‑risk insurance. Now, the cost could rise to 0.5 percent of its value, marking a 100 percent increase, or 1 percent of its value, marking a 300 percent increase.
Why is the Strait of Hormuz important?
The strait carries about one-fifth of oil consumed globally as well as large quantities of gas from Gulf producers like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait and, especially, Qatar. Any disruption affects gas markets in Asia and Europe.
The strait could be reopened if the conflict reaches a ceasefire, or if there is a visible US‑led or multinational naval presence to escort or protect shipping.
Historically, Iran has at times raised the cost and risk of using the strait, but has not implemented a complete closure.
How does this impact energy costs?
If the insurance costs increase the way Baker suggests, this would make every journey through the strait more expensive, and in turn raise the cost of delivered oil and LNG. Higher oil and energy prices will in turn mean higher fuel, electricity and heating costs.
The strait’s closure comes at the same time as Qatar’s state-run energy firm and the world’s largest LNG producer, QatarEnergy, announced that it had halted LNG production after its operational facilities in Ras Laffan and Mesaieed in Qatar were hit, sending gas prices soaring in Europe and Asia. Iranian officials have publicly denied targeting QatarEnergy.
WRU has ‘lost argument’ over plans – Senedd chair
- 28 Comments
The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) has “lost the argument” over the future of the professional game, says a group of politicians.
Delyth Jewell MS has written to WRU chair Richard Collier-Keywood after he appeared before the Welsh Government’s sport and culture committee last week.
Committee chair Jewell admitted Welsh rugby is in a “perilous state” but urged the governing body to find an alternative approach or risk “losing the soul” of Welsh rugby.
“No programme of change can be achieved without building a consensus for change,” she wrote.
- 3 days ago
- 9 January
- 13 February
An Extraordinary General Meeting of the WRU has been called by member clubs amid uncertainty over the plans that will impact Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets.
The governing body intends to have one club in the east, one in Cardiff and one in the west, sparking turmoil, protests and legal action.
WRU chief executive Abi Tierney has admitted she “does not feel safe” in her job due to social media abuse and Jewell said the committee recognised WRU bosses had faced heavy criticism that was “unduly harsh”.
But the Plaid Cymru MS added: “The WRU must recognise that it has lost the argument over the future of the professional game.
“We were alarmed to hear you [Collier-Keywood] tell us that you have no plan B should your current proposals not progress as planned.
“Were this the case, it could represent a significant dereliction of duty. We urge you to find an alternative approach that continues to stabilise the finances of the Union and maintains confidence, whilst rebuilding trust with clubs and supporters.”
Last week Collier-Keywood admitted the governing body had struggled to bring the professional sides on board with their plans.
The WRU chair, who appeared along with director of the community game Geraint John and senior independent director Alison Thorne, maintained that financial struggles meant that a three-team model was the only way forward for the game.
“The people of Wales feel a deep sense of ownership, pride and emotional connection to the game. That connection must be respected and nurtured,” wrote Jewell.
Related topics
- Welsh Rugby
- Wales Sport
- Rugby Union
- 19 hours ago
- 2 days ago
- 5 hours ago
‘I take marathon training seriously but Ramadan is more important’
Harry Poole
BBC Sport journalist
A marathon training block is tough enough. Fasting while preparing to take on the world’s best over 26.2 miles is harder still.
Mahamed Mahamed is among a talented generation of British male distance runners closing in on Mohamed Farah’s national record over the marathon distance.
But, as he builds towards this year’s London Marathon, the 28-year-old is currently finishing his sessions as late as 1am as he attempts to balance the demands of training at altitude with observing Ramadan.
Mahamed, fourth on the UK all-time list, has ignored advice to postpone his fasting while training to improve his personal best of two hours seven minutes and five seconds.
“Some people think I shouldn’t [fast while training],” Mahamed told the Press Association.
“Especially now, because I’ve got a competition coming up, they think I should focus on training for now and then maybe fast.
- 26 January
- 2 days ago
Mahamed has based himself in the town of Ifrane in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains as he builds towards April’s race.
The location allows him to train safely under the floodlights of the track at night, alongside other Muslims currently observing the Islamic holy month of Ramadan by not eating or drinking during daylight hours.
At their longest, Mahamed’s days extend into the early hours of the morning. He will head out for his first session at around 4pm, then break his fast and attend mosque before completing a second session.
Once he is adequately refuelled, Mahamed will sleep for an hour or two and then wake for more food at about 4am, before returning to bed to top up on sleep.
“It’s a little bit hard,” Mahamed admitted.
“I take my job seriously, but Ramadan is the most important for me. It makes me focus as well. It makes me understand who I am and what I could do.”
Mahamed is among four active British marathon runners to have clocked under 2:08, alongside triathlete Alex Yee, Emile Cairess and Philip Sesemann, in what he describes as a “new era” cohort.
Related topics
- Athletics