At Least 10 Killed As French High-Speed Train Derails & Catches Fire Near Strasbourg

TGV train derailed and crashed in a canal outside Eckwersheim near Strasbourg, eastern France, November 14, 2015

At least 10 people have been killed and 32 injured as a train derailed and caught fire in Eckwersheim near Strasbourg in France, according to officials. A high-speed TGV train derailed in Eckwersheim in the Bas-Rhin department of Alsace in northeastern France mid-afternoon on Saturday.

Officials said that out of the injured, 12 are in serious condition.

Tensions Flare As Niger Opposition Candidate Arrested On Return

A photo taken on November 6, 2013 shows Hama Amadou, then head of Nigers' parliament, delivering a speech at the Parliament House in Niamey, Niger ©Issouf Sanogo (AFP)

Opposition Niger presidential candidate Hama Amadou was arrested Saturday on his return from a year in exile over allegations of baby trafficking, a party colleague said.

"He was arrested on leaving the plane. Police presented him with a warrant issued for his arrest," said lawmaker Amadou Salah.

The former prime minister and national assembly president fled the country in August last year to escape baby trafficking charges.

2-IN-1 STORY: Pro-Biafra Protests May Destabilize Nigeria, Defence Minister Warns; Sorry, Biafra Died Over 40 Years Ago — Igwe Alex Nwokedi

The Indigenous People of Biafra on a Peaceful Protest over the Arrest of the Director of Radio Biafra, along Ikwerre road in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Photo: Nwankpa Chijioke

Minister of Defence, Mohammed Dan Ali, has warned that the current wave of pro-Biafra agitations in parts of the South-East of the country may escalate and constitute threat to national unity. “Nigeria is currently facing many indices of destabilization,” the Minister said yesterday when he resumed duties at the Ship House, headquarters of the Ministry of Defence in Abuja.

According to him, the Federal Government in collaboration with what he described as stakeholders should brainstorm and come up with a roadmap in order to abort any processes that may destabilize the nation.

Egypt's Woes Erode El-Sissi's Image Of Invincibility

In this Saturday, Sept. 20, 2015 photo, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi confers with an aide before an interview with The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Cairo. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

Startling public criticism in Egypt points to how the aura of invincibility that President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has long enjoy appears to be eroding. The criticisms spring from multiple fronts - complaints over neglect by officials, an economy that hasn’t seen dramatic improvement and now worries over tourism following the crash of a Russian jet in Sinai. 

The criticism was blunt — and startling, since it came from a TV presenter on a state-owned station that, like most other media in Egypt, usually has nothing but praise for Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, the country's general-turned-president.  

Presenter Azza el-Henawy demanded el-Sissi take action after deaths from floods in areas north of Cairo last month that many blamed on neglect of infrastructure by authorities. She said corruption was being ignored and addressed the president, saying, "As long as no one is held accountable, you will be just talking and making promises and we will get no results ... This is why the people are fed up."

UPDATE: Reaction From Around The World To Paris Attacks

A man walks past a TV screen, which shows French President Francois Hollande speaks about Friday's shootings and explosions in a news program, at Yamada Denki discount store in Tokyo, Saturday, Nov. 14, 2015. A series of attacks targeting young concert-goers, soccer fans and Parisians enjoying a Friday night out at popular nightspots killed more than a hundred of people in the deadliest violence to strike France since World War II. President Hollande condemned it as terrorism and pledged that France would stand firm against its foes. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

World leaders are reacting to the deadliest violence to strike France since World War II. Some of their views:

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

Obama is calling the attacks on Paris "outrageous attempt to terrorize innocent civilians" and is vowing to do whatever it takes to help bring the perpetrators to justice.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Obama said he would not speculate about who was responsible.

He called the attacks a "heartbreaking situation" and an "attack on all of humanity."

Fear Heightens In South-East As Biafra Agitators Step Up Protests, Recruitment

Misguided or activists? Indigenous People of Biafra agitators

*Iwuanyanwu, civil war veteran, other Igbo leaders condemn protesters

In the manner that a gentle breeze snowballs into whirlwind, the agitation of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), which began as an innocuous event, appears to have assumed a disturbing dimension. In the last one week, the agitators have staged series of protests across the region and parts of Delta State, paralyzing commercial activities in the process.

Findings showed that the development has caused anxiety among the people who now fear that the agitation may compound kidnapping, armed robbery and other anti-social activities that have bedevilled the region over the years, and metamorphose into acts of terrorism if it is not nipped in the bud quickly.

NUPENG Establishes Marine Units To Fight Sea Pirates, Others

The Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, has established a marine units in Akwa Ibom State, to provide intelligence information to intensify the fight against sea pirates, pipeline vandals and oil thieves. The maritime units, which were established in Oron and Ibeno Local Government Areas of the state as Marine Equipment and Oil Suppliers, would monitor all forms of illegal activities being carried out within Nigeria’s territorial waters, including those of sea pirates.

Unit Branch National Chairman, Mr. Best Ose, who disclosed this on Friday, explained that with the establishment of the marine divisions, the activities of the sea pirates, pipeline vandalism and other forms of criminal activities on the country’s waterways would be reduced.

UPDATE: Terrorists Kill At Least 160 in Paris; Worst Attack in West Since 9/11

Bodies litter the streets of a Paris alley after a string of terror attacks in the French capital which led President Francois Hollande to declare a national state of emergency (Christian Hartmann/Reuters)

Terrorists killed at least 160 people in Paris on Friday, most of them inside a music theater, in the deadliest attack on a Western city since 9/11. More than 100 people were killed in the Bataclan theater after four terrorists detonated explosive vests around 12:30 a.m. French police raided the concert venue two hours after terrorists took hostages.

A concertgoer told CNN that two terrorists entered the theater and began firing randomly at people for ten minutes.

“They didn’t shout anything. They didn’t say anything,” Julien Pearce said. “They were in masks and wearing black clothes and they were shooting at people on the floor, executing them.”

Venezuela Drug Scandal Reverberates As Elections Kick Off

Opposition members hold big face cutouts depicting jailed Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma, during a campaign group rally for congressional candidates, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Nov. 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

It's the story of the year or no story at all, depending on where one falls on Venezuela's hyper-polarized political spectrum. Venezuelan officials kept silent Friday on the arrest this week of two nephews of first lady Cilia Flores on U.S. drug trafficking charges.

The South American country's opposition leaders, meanwhile, made the news the focus of their rallies to mark the launch of the campaign season for crucial Dec. 6 congressional elections. The two young men were arrested in Haiti on Tuesday on charges of conspiring to smuggle cocaine into the United States. They are being held in New York without bail.

Buhari Sets Target For Ministers

President Muhammadu Buhari addressing ministers before their swearing-in in Council Chambers, Aso Villa

President Muhammadu Buhari has set target for his ministers, according to The Punch report. Buhari had, on Wednesday, administered oaths of office on 36 ministers whose appointments had earlier been confirmed by the Senate. After assigning portfolios to them, the President presided over his first Federal Executive Council meeting where he told the ministers to see their appointments as a call to duty.

A top government official told our correspondent on Friday that the President expects the ministers to be on the same page with him in his bid to deliver on the promises he made to Nigerians.

He said the President would be assessing the ministers’ performance personally and through the Office of the Chief of Staff.

TERROR IN PARIS: 60 Killed, 100 Held Hostage, Released

There was a shootout at a restaurant on the Rue Bichat, two explosions near the Stade de France sports stadium and another shooting at the Paris Bataclan concert hall tonight

A series of coordinated terror attacks in the heart of Paris have left dozens of people dead and wounded. Dead bodies littered the streets of the French capital after at least 11 were killed in a shootout in a Korean restaurant on the Rue Bichat. 

French Special Forces evacuate people, including an injured man holding his head, as people gather near the Bataclan concert hall following fatal shootings

Another 15 in the Paris Bataclan concert hall where terrorists are said to be holding more than 100 people hostage. The gunmen shouted 'Allah Akbar' and opened fire when they burst into the theatre, one witness said. There were also two explosions outside the Stade de France sports stadium where the French football team are playing a friendly match against Germany tonight.

DOPING IN SPORT: Russia Banned From International Action After IAAF Council Members' 22-1 Vote

Yelena Isinbayeva urged the IAAF not to issue a blanket ban on Russian athletes

Russia has become the first country to be banned from international competition due to doping offences after a meeting of IAAF Council members on Friday night. Officials voted 22-1 in favour of the provisional sanction, which comes in the wakes of damning revelations of cover-ups by the World Anti-Doping Agency last week.

The move - which is almost certain to be made permanent by a disciplinary panel - will see Russia lose hosting rights to next year's Race Walking World Cup and the World Junior Championships, due to take place in Cheboksary and Kazan respectively.

But while, as it stands, the sanction also rules Russia out of competing in next year's Rio Olympic Games, early indications are that the Russians will accept their punishment and work towards fulfilling the criteria required in order to be reinstated in time.

Modi Set To Address 60,000 At Wembley Stadium; India PM Lunches With The Queen Before Wembley Extravaganza

The Queen meets Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Buckingham Palace

Tens of thousands of Narendra Modi fans are set to pack Wembley Stadium as he continues the first visit to the UK by an Indian prime minister for a decade. The huge rally will come after Mr Modi lunches with the Queen at Buckingham Palace and attends further meetings with business leaders as part of a trade drive.

Mr Modi was welcomed by the Master of the Household, the Queen's representative, as he entered the Palace.

Problems Fashola, Amaechi, Kachikwu Have To Tackle

Kachikwu, Amaechi and Fashola (NAIJAGRAPHITTI MONTAGE)

Dilapidated infrastructure, erratic power supply and moribund refineries are some of the problems inherited by Babatunde Fashola, Rotimi Amaechi and Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu in the ministries of Works/Power/Housing, Transportation/Aviation and Petroleum Resources.   Adeyinka Aderibigbe  and Emeka Ugwuanyi  capture what the trio must do to make the difference.

Going by the applause their announcements as ministers of Petroleum Resources and Power drew at the swearing of ministers at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Wednesday, Dr. Emmanuel Kachikwu, Mr. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and Mr. Babatunde Fashola have their jobs cut out for them.

Kachikwu (Minister of State), who doubles as the Group Managing Director (GMD), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Amaechi, former Rivers State governor and now (Transportation, who combines Aviation)  and Fashola, who combines Power with the ministries of Works and Housing, face some herculian tasks.

Reason: The tasks ahead are enormous in view of the huge debts and challenges they are inheriting in the two ministries. They would constantly be on the spot.

South African University Switches From Afrikaans To English

In September protesters said argued teaching in Afrikaans was a remnant of apartheid BBC

South Africa's University of Stellenbosch is switching its teaching from Afrikaans to English from 2016. The statement by the rector of the university added that in university residences students should speak in English.

BBC News reports that it follows a campaign by students calling for a review of the use of Afrikaans, which developed from the descendants of Dutch, German and French settlers who arrived in the 17th Century.

Campaigners felt that the continued use of Afrikaans, associated with the minority apartheid government, was a symbol of continued racism.

‘Historical’: 6,300 Holocaust Victims’ Papers Found In Hungarian Home

© Joseph Eid / AFP

About 6,300 registration forms belonging to Holocaust victims have been discovered in a crack in a wall of a Budapest home. The building is in the center of the Hungarian capital, near the parliament.

While renovating his apartment on the fourth floor of the building, the owner examined a crack in the wall, and found a cavity filled with thousands of documents.

₦18.7bn Benue Teachers’ Salaries Paid Into Unknown Account

Justice Elizabeth Kpojime

The Justice Elizabeth Kpojime Commission of Inquiry, which resumed sitting at the Makurdi High Court Four on Wednesday, said the Benue State Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs paid ₦18.7bn meant for primary school teachers’ salaries into an unknown account with First Bank in Makurdi.

Testifying before the commission, the Permanent Secretary of the Bureau, Mr. Emmanuel Ikpe, who could not give a satisfactory explanation on the identity of the owner of the bank account, appealed to the commission to invite the former Special Adviser of the Bureau during the period under investigation, Mr. Solomon Wombo, and the then Permanent Secretary, Mr. Asen Sambe, to give the required clarifications.

Kenya Army 'Making Money From Somali Sugar Taxes'

Kenya's army denies it is making money out of Somalia's charcoal (Image credits: AFP)

A Kenyan pressure group says it has new evidence of the Kenyan military's involvement in the illegal sugar and charcoal trade in Somalia. In a report, the Journalists for Justice group says the Kenya Defence Forces, part of the African Union force in Somalia, make about US$50m (£33m) a year from taxing charcoal as it leaves Somalia and sugar as it comes in through the port of Kismayo.

They also enable militant Islamist group al-Shabab to keep making money, as it too taxes charcoal and sugar coming in and out of the areas it controls in Somalia.

Congo-Brazzaville Opposition Figure 'Shot' In France

AFP

A former senior security official in Congo-Brazzaville, who is exiled in France, has been shot and badly wounded in a Paris suburb, a French official has said, the AFP news agency reports. Ferdinand Mbaou, a 59-year-old former colonel, was attacked by "an individual who shot him in the back near his home", said Yves Jannier, the chief prosecutor in Pontoise.

The gunman escaped, AFP reports.

UN Moves To Prevent 'Possible Genocide' In Burundi; Condemns Burundi Killings, Threatens Possible Sanctions

Six months of crisis in Burundi ©I. Vericourt / S. Malfatto, sim/jfs/gil (AFP)

The United Nations moved Thursday to pull Burundi back from the brink of "possible genocide," adopting a resolution that called for urgent talks and laid the groundwork for peacekeepers to be sent to stop the killings. The UN Security Council unanimously adopted the French-drafted measure that strongly condemned the wave of killings, torture, arrests and other rights violations in the central African nation.

The resolution requested that Secretary General Ban Ki-moon present options to the council within 15 days on "the future presence of the United Nations in Burundi" to help end the crisis.

UN officials are drawing up plans including rushing UN peacekeepers from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Burundi, or deploying a regional force under the African Union, if the violence spirals out of control.

The Football League Renames Itself As The English Football League

The Football League will be re-branded

The Football League will be renamed the English Football League (EFL) at the end of the current season. The governing body is undergoing a "comprehensive corporate and competition re-branding" and will be known as the EFL for the start of the 2016-17 campaign.

It will also unveil just its fourth different logo in 127 years to fit in with the re-branding while the three divisional titles - The Championship, League One and League Two - will be retained and incorporated into the new brand.

China Discovers Undersea Gold Reserves Estimated At US$16.4bn

© Bobby Yip / Reuters

A huge deposit holding at least 470 tons of gold has been discovered beneath the seabed of the East China Sea. The largest deposit is located two kilometers below sea level in an area with estimated reserves of at least 1,500 tons of gold. It was discovered in the Laizhou city which has the largest gold reserves in China. More than 2,000 tons of gold has been found there recently.

“It’s very difficult to locate and set up the drilling platforms at sea,” said Ding Zhengjiang, the deputy director of the Shandong Provincial No. 3 Institute.