EBOLA OUTBREAK: 5 Months After Infection, Man Spreads Ebola Via Sex

Dr. Sakoba Keita, Guinean National Coordinator for Ebola Response

Health officials now think Ebola survivors can spread the disease through unprotected sex nearly twice as long as previously believed.

Scientists thought the Ebola virus could remain in semen for about three months. But a recent case in West Africa suggests infection through sex can happen more than five months later.

Based on the case, officials are now telling male Ebola survivors to avoid unprotected sex indefinitely. They had previously advised using condoms for at least three months.

Crime And Mystery Writer Ruth Rendell Dies At 85

Ruth Rendell: “I do what I can to get people reading” (Image: Daily Mail; Quote source: thetimes.co.uk)

Prolific crime and mystery writer Ruth Rendell, perhaps best known for her Chief Inspector Wexford novels, died Saturday, said her publisher, Penguin Random House. She was 85.

Rendell had suffered a serious stroke in January.

She was one of Britain's most popular crime novelists.

Rendell wrote more than 60 best-selling books, written both under her own name and the pseudonym Barbara Vine. Her works have been translated into more than 20 languages. 

The author made her name with her Inspector Wexford novels, starting with 1964's From Doon with Death, which found her a wider audience when they were televised with George Baker in the title role.

Her Inspector Wexford series was made into a popular TV series, winning her many new fans and accolades.

Senate Presidency: Nobody Has Been Picked, Say Northeast Senators

Senator Danjuma Goje (Gombe Central)

The campaign for the position of Senate President in the forthcoming 8th National Assembly took a dramatic turn yesterday with 12 senators-elect from the Northeast geo-political zone stating emphatically that nobody from the zone has been picked for the exalted office.

They spoke in apparent reaction to the news that APC senators-elect from both the Northwest and Southwest geo-political zones have endorsed Dr Ahmed Lawan from Yobe North in the Northeast zone for the number three position.

Boko Haram: Military 'Frees Another 234 Women And Children'

Another 234 women and children have been rescued from Boko Haram militants in Nigeria, the military has announced.

It said the operation took place on Thursday in the vast Sambisa forest - a militant hideout - in the north-east of the country.

It was not immediately clear if any of more than 200 girls abducted from a school in Chibok in April 2014 were among those freed.

Nearly 300 women and children were freed by the army earlier this week.

NKURUNZIZA'S BRINKSMANSHIP: Burundi Protesters Call For A Two-Day Pause In Demonstrations

300 civil society groups have called for the demonstrations

Burundi protest organizers on Saturday called for a two-day halt to demonstrations against President Pierre Nkurunziza's move to seek a third term, which they says violates the constitution and endangers the peace deal that ended a civil war in 2005.

There have been six straight days of protests in the capital Bujumbura, marking the biggest political crisis in the small, landlocked nation in the heart of Africa since the ethnically fuelled civil war came to an end.

But the demonstrations which started on Sunday have lost momentum in the last few days, with the number of people taking to the streets dwindling. The presidency has called the protests an "insurrection".

Okonjo-Iweala: I Haven’t ‘Disowned’ PricewaterhouseCoopers

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, says she has not “disowned” audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers as has been claimed in some media reports.

According to Okonjo-Iweala, her recent statement denying the allegation that she appointed the firm to audit the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), does not amount to disowning the firm.

Palace Says Duchess Of Cambridge Gave Birth To Baby Girl

Members of the media gather outside the Lindo Wing at St. Mary's Hospital in anticipation of Kate, Duchess Cambridge giving birth to her second child, London, Saturday, May 2, 2015.  (AP Photo/Tim Ireland)

Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, has given birth to a baby girl, royal officials said Saturday. 

Kensington Palace said a brief statement that Kate "was safely delivered of a daughter" at 8:34 a.m. London time (0734 GMT), less than three hours after she was admitted to a hospital.

The baby weighs 8 pounds 3 ounces (3.7 kg). The palace added that Kate and her child are both doing well, and that William was present for the birth.

It's A Girl! Kate Middleton, Duchess Of Cambridge, Gives Birth To Her Second Child Following Three-Hour Labour

New mother: The Duchess of Cambridge, pictured here in Margate (left) and London (right) last month, has given birth to a girl (Photo: Press Association).

QPR Star, Rio Ferdinand's Wife Rebecca Dies After A Short Battle With Cancer

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand announced his wife Rebecca, left, died this morning

Former England captain Rio Ferdinand said this morning that his 'soulmate slipped away last night' announcing the death of his wife Rebecca.

The 35-year-old mother of three died at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London following a short battle with cancer. 

The QPR defender announced the tragic news on the club's website this morning. The QPR defender released a statement today on the club's official website.

WORKERS’ DAY: Workers Beg Buhari To Raise Minimum Wage As Ekwunife, Melaye Back Improved Welfare For Nigerian Workers

May Day celebration in Abuja

Nigerian have workers appealed to the incoming government of Muhammadu Buhari to devise a means of improving the welfare of workers so as to engender industrial harmony. Speaking with NAN in separate interviews in Abuja on Friday, the respondents decried the fact the minimum wage still remained N18, 000 despite the harsh economic condition in the country. They were speaking after the May Day celebration in the Federal Capital. They advised the incoming government to institute an automatic minimum wage review mechanism in line with realities.

Duchess Of Cambridge Goes Into Labour

The Duchess of Cambridge was admitted to hospital at 0600BST this morning in the early stages of labour.

She was accompanied by her husband, Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge.

"VICTORY RALLY": Thousands Expected In Baltimore, Maryland, USA Rallies, Now Celebratory

This photo provided by the Baltimore Police Department on Friday, May 1, 2015 shows, top row from left, Caesar R. Goodson Jr., Garrett E. Miller and Edward M. Nero, and bottom row from left, William G. Porter, Brian W. Rice and Alicia D. White, the six police officers charged with felonies ranging from assault to murder in the death of Freddie Gray. (Baltimore Police Department via AP)

A massive march planned for Saturday to protest the death of a man in police custody is now being billed as a "victory rally" after Baltimore's top prosecutor filed criminal charges against the six officers involved in the man's arrest.

The thousands of marchers who are expected to hit the streets this weekend will now do so to celebrate the decision by State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby to charge the officers with felonies ranging from assault to murder, and encourage continued peaceful demonstrations.

Freddie Gray's death from spinal injuries a week after his April 12 arrest provoked riots on the streets of West Baltimore on Monday and quickly became a rallying cry against police brutality and social inequality in the city. Mosby's announcement on Friday triggered celebrations on those same streets.

US Denies Visa To Nun Set To Testify About ISIS Atrocities

Sister Diana Momeka (Image from adriandominicans.org)

Conservative commentators are up in arms over the State Department’s decision to deny a visa to a Catholic nun who was part of an Iraqi delegation supposed to testify before Congress about Islamic State (ISIS) atrocities.

The US consulate in Erbil rejected the visitor visa application of Sister Diana Momeka earlier this week, saying she was “not able to demonstrate that [her] intended activities in the United States would be consistent with the classification of the visa.” 

However, visas were given to all the other members of the delegation scheduled to speak in Washington about the Islamic State’s persecution of minorities of the region, including Shia Muslims and Yazidis. Meetings have been arranged for the group before the House and Senate foreign relations committees, with State Department and USAID officials, and with various NGOs.

A HAVEN FOR PAEDOPHILES? ‘Horribly Possible’: More Child-Rape Cases By Peacekeepers Could Emerge —UN

Reuters/Luc Gnago

Following shocking revelations of child sexual abuse by French peacekeeping troops in the Central African Republic, the UN has warned that it is “horribly possible” that information about more such cases may emerge.

As the investigation continues into the alleged French crimes and troop misconduct, UN human rights spokesman, Rupert Colville admitted that “it is possible, it’s horribly possible,” that further inquiries will reveal more unreported instances.

The French investigation followed numerous reports of sexual exploitation and abuse of children by the French military before the establishment of MINUSCA – the United Nations peacekeeping operation in Central African Republic. The period under investigation is December 2013 through June 2014. Colville called the allegations “abhorrent” and “utterly odious.”

Controversy As Jonathan Shuns May Day

President Goodluck Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday stayed away from this year’s rally of the International Workers’ Day popularly known as May Day.

The rally was jointly organized by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) at the Eagle Square in Abuja.

The Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, could not be reached for clarification yesterday on the President’s absence at the rally, as he did not pick his telephone or reply to text messages sent to his telephone as at press time.

But security sources at the Presidency told our correspondent that Jonathan’s plan to attend the rally was cancelled because the President had an emergency engagement.

Mark Laments Poor Electricity Supply In Nigeria

President of the Senate, David Mark (Photo: Naijagraphitti Imagebank)

Senate President, David Mark, on Friday, decried the epileptic power supply in the country in spite of promises made by investors in the wake of the privatization of the sector.

Mark, according to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Paul Mumeh, stated this while hosting the management team of the Electricity Management Services Limited in Abuja. He said, “In spite of the high expectations and promises on account of the privatization of the power sector, Nigerians have yet to feel the positive impact of the sector.”

17 Goals That Will Shape The UN's Response To Global Poverty, World Hunger —Megan Ranney, Mashable

Image: UNDP Afghanistan

If you had the power to change the world for good, where would you start? Protecting the environment? Providing education for girls in developing countries? Working to eradicate disease?

The UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals are designed to guide the policies that will change the world for the better, framing global agendas and guiding political action for the next 15 years.

These Sustainable Development Goals are larger and more ambitious than the UN's previous Millennium Development Goals, designed not only to tackle global poverty and world hunger, but to address long-term issues like climate change and sustainable infrastructure.

Arrests Rise In Burundi Protests; Protesters Vow To Remain

Demonstrators walk in the Musaga neighborhood of Bujumbura, Burundi, Friday May 1, 2015. Anti-government street demonstrations continued for a sixth day in protest against the move by President Pierre Nkurunziza to seek a third term in office. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

About 500 students spent the night outside the U.S. Embassy in Burundi's capital, asking the U.S. for protection as street protests went into their sixth day Friday against President Pierre Nkurunziza's decision to seek a third term.

In the Musaga neighbourhood, protesters marched past many smouldering barricades while brandishing wooded sticks and metal bars. They tried to reach a major road but were stopped by a cordon of riot police. The demonstrators turned in their sticks, sang the national anthem and after a minute of silence marched back into the neighbourhood.

6.8 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Papua New Guinea: USGS

An earthquake with magnitude of 6.8 jolted Papua New Guinea.

A 6.8 magnitude earthquake hit off Papua New Guinea today, 106 kilometres (66 miles) south-southwest of the town of Kokopo, the US Geological Survey said, just a day after a 6.7 magnitude tremor in the region.

The earthquake hit at 8:06 am (local time) GMT, 693 kilometres northeast of the Pacific nation's capital Port Moresby, in the New Britain region at a depth of 57 kilometres.
The USGS had initially reported the earthquake's magnitude at 7.1 with a depth of 53 kilometres, but later revised its strength and distance from PNG.

There were no tsunami warnings, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said.

Thousands Of South Koreans Protest Over Govt Labor Policies

Members of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions shout slogans while raising banners reading "Better Working Condition" during a May Day rally near the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, May 1, 2015. Thousands of workers rallied to demand better working conditions and urge companies to stop using temporary employees. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Thousands of South Koreans marched in Seoul on Friday for a third week to protest government labor policies and the handling of a ferry disaster that killed more than 300 people a year ago.

Demonstrators occupied several downtown streets and sporadically clashed with police officers, who created tight perimeters with their buses to block the marchers. In several streets, protesters tried to move the buses by pulling ropes they tied near the vehicles' wheels and police responded by spraying tear gas. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

Gregory Mertens Dies Three Days After Collapsing In Sporting Lokeren Game

Sporting Lokeren have announced the death of their defender Gregory Mertens, who collapsed during a reserve match on Monday. Photo: Eurofootball/Getty Images

The Sporting Lokeren defender Gregory Mertens has died in hospital, three days after he collapsed during a reserve match.

The 24-year-old, who had played for Belgium at Under-21 level, had been in a coma since going into cardiac arrest early in a game against Genk on Monday night.

The Lokeren spokesman Herman Van de Putte said Mertens’ condition continued to worsen and the player’s family had agreed with doctors to switch off the life support system.

Mertens began his senior career at Cercle Brugge in 2011 before he made the move to Lokeren in January last year. He made his debut as a late substitute in a 3-0 victory over his former club on 18 January 2014 and made 30 further appearances for the first team, including three Europa League games earlier this season.

A club statement said: “Today something happened which no one could ever dare to predict. Much too soon, we are saying goodbye to Gregory Mertens.

“We are a football club. Everyone in and around the club lives and breathes football. But suddenly something happens which makes us realize football is just football. Today is such a time.”