Author: Aishatu Osisanya

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – South Korea’s benchmark stock index suffered one of the most violent single-session collapses in its modern history on Monday, plunging more than eight per cent within minutes of the opening bell and forcing the Korea Exchange to activate an emergency trading halt — only the ninth time such a measure has been triggered in the index’s history — before staging a sharp rebound on Tuesday as investors returned to buy the dip. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index, known as the KOSPI, fell 8.29 per cent on Monday June 8, closing at 7,484 points…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy secured the formal backing of Britain, France and Germany on Sunday for a proposal to open direct ceasefire negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow. The move marked a significant diplomatic development and one of the most coordinated European efforts to pursue a negotiated end to the war since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Zelenskyy met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at 10 Downing Street in London, where the four leaders concluded their discussions with a joint…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Voters in Armenia went to the polls on Sunday in parliamentary elections widely regarded as among the most consequential in the country’s post-Soviet history. The outcome is set to determine whether Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan secures a fresh mandate to complete his administration’s sweeping reorientation of the country toward the European Union and away from Moscow. Polling opened at 8 a.m. local time with 18 political parties and alliances competing for at least 101 seats in the National Assembly, in what amounts to the first regularly scheduled parliamentary election in Armenia since 2017. The…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – The Ebola outbreak in central Africa has surged to nearly 500 confirmed cases, with health authorities and international agencies warning that without an urgent and sustained public health response, the epidemic could grow to rival the devastating 2014 West Africa crisis that killed more than 11,000 people. The World Health Organisation reported 452 confirmed cases and 82 deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo as of Saturday, while neighbouring Uganda has recorded 19 confirmed cases and two deaths. The combined toll of 471 cases and 84 deaths represents an increase of 100 cases and…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – An Israeli airstrike has killed a Lebanese army brigadier general, a captain and a soldier in southern Lebanon on Saturday. This development has dealt a significant blow at efforts to preserve a newly agreed ceasefire framework between Jerusalem and Beirut, raising fears of a fresh escalation in a conflict that has already claimed thousands of lives. The Lebanese Armed Forces confirmed that the strike targeted a military vehicle travelling on the road between Khardali and Nabatieh in the Nabatieh area, approximately 70 kilometres south of Beirut. The deaths of three Lebanese army personnel –…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Thousands of residents in Bolivia’s administrative capital La Paz have been lining up for hours in freezing temperatures to buy subsidised chicken, as a month-long blockade by anti-government protesters continues to strangle food and fuel supplies into one of the highest cities in the world, deepening what analysts describe as the country’s worst economic crisis in decades. At the Camacho Market in the heart of La Paz — a city built more than 3,600 metres above sea level in the Andean highlands — scenes of more than 150 people queuing to purchase a single…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Ukraine and Russia carried out their 75th prisoner of war exchange on Friday, with each side releasing 185 service personnel in a swap conducted with humanitarian support from the United States and the United Arab Emirates — the only tangible sign of progress in a conflict where broader peace negotiations remain deeply deadlocked. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the exchange on social media, noting that the majority of the Ukrainians returning home had been held in Russian captivity since 2022, the year Moscow launched its full-scale invasion. Among those released was one civilian, he…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – The world will mark the 53rd edition of World Environment Day on Friday, June 5, with the Republic of Azerbaijan hosting the global commemoration in Baku under the theme ‘Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future.’ — a rallying call the United Nations Environment Programme has paired with the campaign hashtag #NowForClimate. The main ceremony is scheduled to take place at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, where high-level ministerial discussions, public outdoor events, and the formal launch of Azerbaijan’s national climate action campaign are expected to draw global attention to the accelerating…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Efforts to secure a broader ceasefire between the United States and Iran resumed this week despite growing tensions triggered by Israel’s ongoing military operations in Lebanon, raising fears of a wider regional conflict. US President Donald Trump said negotiations aimed at expanding the ceasefire arrangement and addressing security concerns around the Strait of Hormuz were progressing and could yield results before the end of the week. The talks suffered a setback after Iran temporarily withdrew from negotiations, accusing Israel of undermining diplomatic efforts through continued military action in Lebanon. However, international media reports indicated…

LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – The world is on track to exceed the 1.5 degrees Celsius global warming threshold established under the Paris Agreement before the end of the decade, according to a new five-year climate outlook published by the World Meteorological Organisation. The report places the probability of the global average temperature breaching the 1.5-degree ceiling — measured across the period between 2026 and 2030 — at 75 per cent. Scientists regard the threshold as a critical marker, beyond which the risks of irreversible environmental damage, including intensified storms, accelerated ice loss and rising sea levels, increase significantly.…