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ISIL-backed rebels killed at least 52 people in eastern DR Congo, UN says

By in News, World News
According to the UN peacekeeping mission (MONUSCO) in the country, rebels supported by ISIL (ISIS) have killed at least 52 civilians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo this month, accusing the M23 rebel group, which is supported by the DRC army, of breaking a recently reached US-mediated ceasefire agreement.

Between August 9 and August 16, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) launched attacks on the eastern North Kivu province’s Beni and Lubero territories, according to a Monday report from MONUSCO, citing fears that the death toll could rise even higher.

Despite a number of peace agreements signed in recent months, the DRC army and the M23 group are engaged in a separate conflict that is raging in the east of the nation. By August 18th, the government and M23 had agreed to reach a permanent peace agreement, but no announcement was made on Monday.

According to MONUSCO, the most recent ADF “violence was accompanied by kidnappings, looting, the burning of houses, vehicles, and motorcycles, as well as the destruction of property belonging to populations already in precarious humanitarian conditions.” According to the spokesperson for the mission, it “pronounced the attacks in the most uncannily terms.”

In the mineral-rich east of the DRC, there are several militias fighting over land and resources.

According to Lieutenant Elongo Kyondwa Marc, a representative of the regional Congolese army, the ADF was attempting to retaliate against civilians after their defeats by Congolese forces.

Over the weekend, the chief of Lubero’s Bapere sector, Macaire Sivikunula, told the Reuters news agency, “When they arrived, they first woke the residents, gathered them in one place, tied them up with ropes, and then began to massacre them with machetes and hoes.”

Authorities in Komanda city, Ituri province, claimed the group, who had reportedly slowed in recent months, killed nearly 40 people last month when it stormed a Catholic church while holding a vigil and shot at many women and children.

In the northeastern DRC, former Ugandan rebels formed the ADF, which has since increased looting and killings. In the 1990s, the group has killed thousands of civilians and increased looting and killings.

The organization relocated its activities to the DRC in 2002 following military assaults by Ugandan forces. It swore allegiance to ISIL in 2019.

At least nine people have died overnight from Saturday through Sunday in an attack on the town of Oicha in North Kivu, according to security and local sources, out of the 52 people who have been killed so far this month.

According to local and security sources, the ADF had already killed at least 40 people in several Bapere towns in North Kivu province just a few days prior.

In response to the additional attacks, MONUSCO announced that it had increased its military presence in a number of sectors and provided refuge for a number of civilians.

‘It’s a really poor decision’ – Moyes upset over controversial penalty

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David Moyes, the manager of Everton, says he is disappointed by the crucial decision to use the video assistant referee, who gave Leeds the lead with a 1-0 victory. James Tarkowski insists he did everything to prevent the late penalty from being conceded.

HIGHLIGHTS: Nmecha’s late penalty earns Leeds United a winning return to the top flight.

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‘A scandal’ – was Leeds penalty correct and what does law say?

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Brendon Mitchell
journalist for BBC Sport
  • 382 Comments

The same refereeing controversies remain throughout the new Premier League season.

Lukas Nmecha’s second-half penalty set the match at 1-0, and Leeds made it a difficult task to win 1-0 over Everton on Monday.

However, the decision to award the spot-kick sparked some debate.

James Tarkowski, a Everton defender, leaped to his left as Anton Stach’s powerful strike arrowed toward the goal, doing so with his arm resting firmly against his side.

The Toffees players became furious as the referee waited for a moment before making a spot-mark.

According to Tarkowski, “I was pretty certain it was going to get overturned as soon as the ref blew.” “Is it a penalty if my arm is by my side?” was my first inquiry. And he replied “no.”

Although I’ve since read that I leaped into the ball, my arm’s presence was unnatural. It’s beyond my comprehension. “Bizarre.”

What are the regulations in law?

An infringement occurs when a player “touches the ball with their hand or arm when it has made their body unnecessarily bigger,” according to Law 12 that governs handball.

The law further states that “a player is regarded as having made their body unnaturally bigger when the position of their hand/arm is not a result of, or justifiable by, the player’s body movement for that specific situation.”

However, this is where it gets murky.

The handball law was actually a little relaxed prior to last season. The Premier League instructed players to restrain their arms by moving with them either firmly behind their backs or with their hands firmly pressed against them.

Their arm or hand’s position will be determined solely based on their body’s movement.

We get the impression that we do too many handballs for derogatory and justifiable things, according to former head of state Howard Webb.

What data are gathered from this quiz?

Tarkowski’s face was covered in guilt, according to the statement.

The decision generated a lot of disagreement among the experts, and there was also some confusion over the law’s actual language.

Former Premier League player Chris Sutton described it as “scandalous” and “absolutely harsh” on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club.

He responded, “That’s not a penalty,” That is not a penalty at all. Who has his arm by his side despite knowing what the directive is.

“We’ll hear David Moyes after,” I predict, “but that’s scandalous.” There is never a fine for that.

Conor Coady, a former Everton defender who is currently based at Wrexham, said: “I don’t like it. I don’t like the rule; I’m not sure what handball is these days.

However, Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher both expressed disagreements on Sky Sports regarding the referee’s accuracy.

“Tarkowski’s face was covered in guilt,” Tarkowski said. He is aware that it is a fine,” Neville said.

“Tarkowski extended his arm to the ball. He blocks it and leans into it. He is aware of his actions, and it is a penalty.

I don’t know where the boy goes, unless you cut him off.

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After the game, Moyes claimed that the referees had a bad weekend and that it was a “really poor decision.”

He told BBC Sport, “I’m really disappointed and I don’t know where he goes unless you cut the boy off.” I’m not sure if the audience is involved.

“I believe this is a very poor choice,” she said. The video assistant referee had a chance to undo it, according to VAR. You can lean with your hands by your sides, if they try to say he was leaning to the ball.

Leeds manager Daniel Farke said he “hopes the referee was right” despite Moyes and Tarkowski’s pleas for Everton’s case.

He told BBC Sport, “I had the impression that it was a penalty.” The home crowd’s roar had an emotional impact, according to the author.

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Deadly Wildfires Rage Across Spain As Record Area Of Land Burnt

By in News, Nigeria News
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Over 20 major wildfires raging across western Spain, where officials claim a record-breaking amount of land has already been burned, were waged on Monday by thousands of firefighters supported by soldiers and water-bombing aircraft.

Southern Europe has been particularly affected by heatwaves and drought brought on by climate change, particularly in Spain and Portugal.

On Sunday, two firefighters died in Portugal and four in Spain, both of whom were killed in road accidents and one in each country.

Virginia Barcones, the country’s civil protection chief, claimed that 23 blazes were “operational level two,” meaning they directly threaten nearby communities.

The western regions of Castile and Leon, Galicia, and Extremadura, where thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes, are where the fires are now in their second week.

Residents expressed frustration with what they thought was limited resources and poor preparation.

No one has been seen in the village of Vilamartin de Valdeorras in the Galician province of Ourense, according to Patricia Vila, 42, who spoke to AFPTV.

Not a single helicopter, not one plane, has escorted water to cool things down a little.

‘Fire Everywhere’ , p.

On August 16, 2025, firefighters from the forest in Castrillo de Cabrera, Spain’s northwestern, battle a wildfire. With army forces assisting with the blazes, Spain continues to battle blazes in the northwest and west of the nation as it enters its third week of heatwave alerts. Cesar Manso/AFP photo

In the province, there were numerous warning signs of the fires, ranging from destroyed homes to ashen forests and soil, to thick smoke that made residents wear masks.

Locals in shorts and T-shirts used water from hoses and buckets to try to stop the spread, and firefighters battled the flames.

According to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), more than 343,000 hectares (848, 000 acres) of land in Spain have been completely destroyed this year, making it the equivalent of nearly half a million football pitches.

Three years ago, the previous record for 306 000 hectares was broken.

Portugal is receiving air support from Sweden and Morocco, while Spain is receiving firefighting aircraft from France, Italy, Slovakia, and the Netherlands.

However, “airborne action” was difficult due to the size, severity, and intensity of the fires, according to Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles.

She continued, “It’s a very challenging, very complicated situation.”

Since the wildfires started last week, thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.

Isidoro, 83, in Vilamartin de Valdeorras, said, “We had to flee because the fire was coming in from everywhere—everywhere, above us, below us, all around.”

‘ At War’&nbsp,

On Monday, about 2, 000 firefighters from across Portugal’s north and center were stationed across the country, with the majority of them residing in the town of Arganil.

Since the start of the year, 216 000 hectares of Portugal’s land have been completely destroyed.

Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro declared that the nation had experienced “unprecedented weather” with high temperatures and strong winds for 24 days.

He continued, “We must win this battle because we are at war.”

Both governments’ officials hoped the weather would improve to help with the firefights.

The heatwave, which has gotten to 45C in some parts of Spain, was coming to an end, according to Spain’s meteorological agency.

A firefighter was killed on Sunday night when his water truck flipped over on a steep forest road and down a slope, according to Castile and Leon officials, days after two other volunteer firefighters were also killed in the area.

A riding school north of Madrid, in Romania, lost his life in a firefight between horses and staff.

A firefighter died in a traffic accident that resulted in the death of two of his colleagues in Portugal, according to Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.

‘I met the creepy doctor charged with supplying drugs to tragic Matthew Perry’

By in Entertainment News, News
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After making an ‘unusual’ visit to his deserted surgery, Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who is accused of providing drugs to Matthew Perry, left one of his former patients with the creeps.

A new documentary examines Matthew Perry’s final days before his tragic death(Image: Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

A reporter and super fan who was at Matthew Perry’s home hours after the star died says she met the doctor charged with supplying drugs to the star and he gave her the creeps.

Katy Forrester has recalled what she saw the day the acting legend died back in 2023 – and the former patient of Dr. Salvador Plasencia says she knew something wasn’t right about him. Matthew’s doctor has pleaded guilty to supplying the Friends actor with ketamine before his tragic death.

Last month, he admitted four counts to a federal court judge in Los Angeles after calling the late actor a “moron” in texts. He was one of five people facing charges related to the 54-year-old’s death two years ago.

READ MORE: Taylor Swift sparks engagement rumours as fans spot Travis Kelce’s lock screenREAD MORE: Real Housewives of London’s Juliet Mayhew hits out at ‘ridiculous’ co-star amid feud

Dr. Salvador Plasencia
Salvador Plasencia’s plea was altered

The former patient has now provided her account and claims to have visited the crooked physician in an “incredibly odd” way. According to the editor of The US Sun, he had given me the creeps. The same man then appeared in a white coat, dressed in a white coat, and joked that he was also the doctor after completing the forms and entering a private room.

When I read the sweeping indictment and realized who I had been treated by, I felt a little ill. It made the hairs on my neck grow out. She continued, “I have also witnessed the all too common Hollywood culture of “dr. shopping,” which involves greedy, immoral doctors selling vile drugs to wealthy and well-known addicts for a sizable profit.

Continue reading the article.
Dr. Salvador Plasencia
Fans still struggle to accept the star’s death two years on(Image: Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

The actor was found unresponsive in a hot tub at his home in Los Angeles on October 28, 2023. He died at 4.17pm on the same day, aged 54. An investigation found the cause of Perry’s death to be ruled as an accident from the ‘acute effects of ketamine’, the exact manner of which came from drowning.

He co-starred with David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and Jennifer Aniston on NBC’s mega hit sitcom for 10 seasons between 1994 and 2004, but he had an addiction problem since then when he played Chandler Bing, one of the biggest stars of his generation.

Following Matthew’s passing, the California-based Plasencia had already been charged. He has admitted guilt on four counts of having illegally distributed the prescription anesthetic. He is currently facing up to 40 years in prison, according to the prosecution.

He had previously entered a not-guilty plea, but the prosecution settled down on three more ketamine distribution counts and two falsifying records in exchange for the guilty pleas.

Prior to the plea, the prosecution detailed the allegations in court and claimed Plasencia’s attorneys had not sold Perry the drug that caused the actor’s death.

They described, and Plasencia admitted, that Perry froze up and his blood pressure spiked when the doctor gave him one injection, but Plasencia still left more ketamine for Perry’s assistant to inject.

He acknowledged in his memoir that watching Friends made him feel like he was going through difficult times because of it. He later said, “I didn’t watch the show, and I haven’t watched the show because I could go, drinking, opiates, drinking, cocaine.”

“My appearance would change as I went season by season.” Because that’s what I see, I don’t want to watch it. I was taking 55 Vicodin per day, weighed 128 pounds, and watched 30 million Friends episodes, which is why I can’t watch the show because I was so thin.

Continue reading the article.

He said, “I used to have a rule that I would never do drugs or drink while working.” “Because I treated the five people I was working with with too highly.” Therefore, my time spent working was never wasted.