The convict, 40-year-old Kwabena Kissi, was sentenced by the Snaresbrook Crown Court after admitting a charge of fraud by false representation arising from an elaborate deception carried out in July 2022.

Court proceedings heard that on July 5, 2022, Kissi entered a Santander UK branch in Brixton, south London, dressed in a G4S security uniform from a company he had left two years earlier. To conceal his identity, he wore a crash helmet with the visor lowered and a face mask, giving staff the impression that he was a legitimate cash collection officer.

Security camera footage presented during the trial showed bank employees granting him access to a secure area before handing over bags containing cash, believing he had arrived for a scheduled collection.

After receiving the money, Kissi quietly exited the banking hall carrying a briefcase. Investigators told the court that he later changed out of the uniform nearby, transferred the cash into a bin bag and left the area in an Uber vehicle.

Prosecutor Imogen Nelson told the court that the bank’s vault manager, Otis Williams, had prepared £256,000 for collection that day in 11 separate cash bags.

Although one member of staff questioned why Kissi had arrived earlier than expected, he reportedly explained that he had been assigned to “a new route”, an explanation that allayed any immediate concerns.

The deception was only uncovered after Kissi failed to return for a subsequent collection and the genuine G4S cash collection officer later arrived to collect the funds.

The court heard that Kissi departed the United Kingdom for Accra a day after the theft and remained in Ghana for nearly four years, where he reportedly lived with his ailing mother.

However, his attempt to evade justice came to an end when he travelled back to Britain on March 26 this year.

According to investigators, police officers had been monitoring for his return. His arrest was triggered after he booked an Uber using his real name and mobile telephone number—the same handset investigators had linked to the 2022 fraud.

He was arrested shortly after arriving at Gatwick Airport.

During questioning, Kissi initially denied being the suspect and claimed that officers had mistaken his identity. Investigators, however, matched the recovered mobile phone with evidence gathered during the original investigation, linking him directly to the offence.

In April this year, Kissi pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation. A separate count of possessing criminal property was subsequently discontinued.

The sentence brings to an end a case that investigators said involved careful planning, the misuse of a former employer’s uniform and the exploitation of established security procedures to gain the confidence of bank staff before making away with a substantial amount of cash.

• The military-led ‌West African countries announced in September their withdrawal from the ICC, denouncing it as “a tool of neocolonial repression”.
• All three are fighting Islamist ​insurgencies that have seized large areas of territory ​and stepped up attacks on military targets this year. ⁠Rights groups have accused militants as well as ​the armed forces of Burkina Faso and Mali of possible ​atrocities.
• The court is the world’s permanent war crimes tribunal, which prosecutes individuals accused of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the ​crime of aggression when national courts are unwilling or ​unable to act.
• In a statement published on Wednesday, the presidency of ‌the ICC’s governing body confirmed that Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger had submitted withdrawal letters and initiated the one-year process of withdrawing from the Rome Statute, the treaty that ​established the ICC.
• The ​statement said the ⁠move risked weakening global efforts to end impunity and undermining the pursuit of justice. ​It urged the three countries to remain ​committed to ⁠the statute.
• The statement also said the decision to withdraw does not release a state from obligations incurred while it was ⁠still ​a party to the treaty.

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40-year-old Kwabena Kissi walked into a Santander branch in Brixton, south London, on July 5, 2022, wearing a helmet with the visor down, a face mask, and a G4S uniform from a job he had resigned from two years earlier, Snaresbrook Crown Court heard.

CCTV footage played in court showed staff buzzing him into the secure office, where they handed him bags of cash, believing he was on a routine collection.

Kissi calmly walked out with the money in a briefcase, changed his clothes nearby, transferred the cash into a bin bag, and left the scene in an Uber.

Prosecutor Imogen Nelson told the court that Santander’s vault manager, Otis Williams, had bagged up £256,000 for collection that day across eleven bags.

When one member of staff remarked that Kissi had arrived early, he told them he was on a new route, and no suspicion was raised at that point. Staff only grew concerned when Kissi failed to return for a second pickup and realised something was wrong once the genuine G4S courier turned up for the actual collection.

Kissi returned to Accra a day after the theft and lived here with his ailing mother for close to four years.

His scheme, however, fell apart when he returned to the UK on March 26 this year and made the mistake of booking an Uber using his real name and phone number, the same phone he had used during the 2022 heist.

Police, who had been monitoring for his return, arrested him as he landed at Gatwick Airport. He initially claimed mistaken identity, but officers matched the handset to the one used in the original fraud.

In April, Kissi admitted fraud by false representation. A second charge of possessing criminal property was dropped.

His lawyer, Piers Walter, told the court Kissi had gone to Ghana to care for his mother, who was in financial difficulty at the time and has since died of heart failure.

Judge Rosa Dean said she was sceptical that caring for his mother was the real reason for the trip, telling Kissi the evidence pointed to him fleeing to evade detection. She said he had exploited his “inside knowledge” of the bank’s collection routine and left staff badly shaken, though she noted she was glad none of them faced disciplinary action over the fraud.

Detective Constable Stuart Ponder, who led the Metropolitan Police investigation, said CCTV and phone evidence linked Kissi to the getaway vehicle, and that officers feared he might never return to the UK once he left the day after the heist. He said the case showed the force’s commitment to pursuing high-value thefts regardless of how long it takes.

Myjoyonline learnt on Wednesday from a report by The New Indian Express that the three Nigerians allegedly entered the country on medical and tourist visas before engaging in the illicit drug trade.

According to the report, operatives of the Anti-Narcotic Wing of the Indian Central Crime Branch arrested the suspects after they allegedly obtained the drugs from another Nigerian based in Delhi.

The Nigerian suspects were identified as Ambemo Victor, 37; Chime Moses, 36; and Karikari Ames, 33.

The report stated, “The Anti-Narcotic Wing of CCB has arrested four people, including three Nigerian nationals, in two cases of drug peddling in the city.

“Sleuths of the ANW seized 10.27 kg of MDMA crystals and 2.044 kg of hydroponic ganja worth around Rs 23 crore from the accused.

“Acting on a tip-off, the sleuths raided a house within the Madanayakanahalli police limits and arrested the suspects.

“The sleuths seized 10.27 kg of MDMA crystals valued at Rs 21 crore from their possession.

“The accused had come to India on medical and tourist visas. Preliminary investigations revealed that they procured the drugs from another Nigerian national based in Delhi.”

The latest arrests come barely two months after four other Nigerians were apprehended in India over alleged fraud and impersonation offences.

PUNCH Metro reported in May that three of the suspects, identified simply as Chinedu, Sunday and Jules, were arrested by the Gurugram Police over an alleged social media fraud scheme in which they reportedly impersonated women to defraud victims.

The fourth suspect, 49-year-old Uchenwa, was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force.

According to the earlier report, police recovered 19 mobile phones, one laptop, and 18 Indian and international SIM cards from Chinedu, Sunday and Jules.

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Xenophobic attacks: South Africa rejects Ghana’s claim over Ghanaian’s killing

Indiscipline hindering Ghana’s development – Ahafo GPCC Chairman

In a statement issued on Thursday, July 2, South Africa’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mmamoloko Kubayi, who chairs the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration, described the account provided by the Ghanaian authorities as “factually incorrect” and inconsistent with police investigations.

The Ghanaian government had earlier indicated that a Ghanaian citizen was fatally wounded on June 30 amid anti-immigrant protests linked to alleged xenophobic attacks in parts of South Africa.

However, the South African government said police investigations show the victim was attacked a day earlier, on June 29, at his workplace in Nyanga, Cape Town, in what is believed to be a criminal act unrelated to the demonstrations.

According to the Western Cape Police, unknown armed men entered a barbershop where the victim was working, demanded money and shot him before fleeing the scene.

Police believe the attack was linked to extortion and said investigations are ongoing to identify and arrest those responsible.

“The Ghanaian national who was fatally wounded was attacked at his place of work on Monday, 29 June 2026, in an incident that the police suspect as a criminal act, which is totally not linked to the alleged demonstrations,” Minister Kubayi stated.

She added that no deaths had been recorded in connection with the anti-immigrant demonstrations, stressing that isolated criminal incidents occurring during the period should not be conflated with the protests.

The Minister expressed concern over what she described as the continued dissemination of inaccurate information by the Ghanaian authorities and urged that such matters be addressed through established diplomatic channels.

“We regret all loss of life on our shores and would like to send our heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased and assure them that our law enforcement authorities will investigate this matter and bring the perpetrators to book,” she said.

The South African government also rejected suggestions that the killing was an act of xenophobic violence, maintaining that available evidence does not support such a conclusion.

Police investigations into the shooting remain ongoing.

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CDD-Ghana petitions CHRAJ over alleged assault of Nyinahin SHS student

Indiscipline hindering Ghana’s development – Ahafo GPCC Chairman

Emmanuel Sakyi, 31, was twice the legal alcohol limit and on the wrong side of the road when the collision happened in Milton Keynes on 4 December, 2022.

His seven-month-old daughter, Emmanuela, who had been sitting on her mother’s lap on the passenger seat, was seriously injured and died in hospital.

Sakyi, of Garraways, Milton Keynes, was found guilty after a trial of causing death by dangerous driving and was sentenced, in his absence, to 15 years in prison on Monday.

The force is now hunting for the fugitive after the sentencing hearing at Aylesbury Crown Court.

It has warned members of the public not to approach him.

Sakyi was driving his grey Peugeot 508 when it struck a green Fiat 500 between the Bond Avenue and Fenny Lock roundabouts.

During his trial, jurors heard how Sakyi drove for a “considerable distance on the wrong side of the road”.

He then failed to respond to the driver of an oncoming Fiat, who flashed her lights and sounded her horn in an attempt to avoid the crash.

Sakyi fled the scene on foot but was later arrested by officers outside his home.

Emmanuela was taken to Milton Keynes University Hospital and was pronounced dead at 03:32 GMT on 5 December.

A post-mortem examination revealed she died from “blunt force abdominal trauma”.

Det Sgt Ed Crofts, from Thames Valley Police’s serious collision investigation unit, appealed for the public’s help in tracing him.

“This is a devastating case where a child’s life has been lost.

“Our inquiries are focused on ensuring Sakyi faces the consequences of his actions,” he said.

“Anyone with information on Sakyi’s whereabouts is asked to call 101 or make a report online, quoting reference 20260622-2396.”

Police described Sakyi as described as black, of medium build and about 5ft 3in tall (1.6m).

They advised anyone who sees him should not approach him, but instead ring 999.

Vitaly Klitschko declared Friday a day of mourning and said around 90 people were injured. He said an ambulance station was among the places hit in the strikes.

Although previous attacks have killed more people, this latest barrage deployed the largest number of weapons on the capital and hit locations over a very wide area of Kyiv.

Several neighbourhoods were evacuated as strikes rocked buildings throughout the city, hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Russia was preparing an attack.

Moscow said its forces hit what they called military plants in retaliation against attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday that Russia would “continue to increase pressure on the Kyiv regime in order to achieve our set goals”.

Ukraine accused Moscow of targeting civilian areas and said it would be wrong to equate the actions of the “aggressor and a country defending itself”.

Children were among the “significant number” of casualties, Tymur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv’s ​military administration, said.

“The enemy is once again deliberately targeting residential areas and killing civilians,” he said early on Thursday.

Among the places hit by the strikes were a high-rise apartment building with part of the building blown off in south-east Kyiv.

In a video posted on Telegram, Klitschko said rescuers were trying to find, among others, a 15-year-old girl and her family.

‘This is not retaliation’

On the city’s left bank, in Darnitskyi district in south-east Kyiv, two missiles hit a residential area directly, causing devastation.

One missile left a giant crater next to a kindergarten and the buildings all around have been gutted by fire, their metal balconies twisted.

The second missile landed a few steps away and hit the end of a 9-storey block of flats. It has collapsed, sliding off the face of the building, into a heap of concrete. One local told the BBC that several people were missing and they may have been sheltering in the basement.

There are smashed cars, shattered windows and a thick layer of grey ash coating everything and everyone.

Rescuers have been trying to dig through the rubble to reach them as relatives watch, in tears.

Svitlana, who lives next to the building that was hit, told the BBC she was hiding in the corridor during the air raid and heard the explosions.

“It wasn’t scary,” she shrugged, “Because I’ve been through it all before.” She then revealed that she had been badly injured in another Russian strike on another town which killed her mother. Two years later, her son was killed in action fighting for Ukraine.

Oleksiy, his face covered in cuts and blood, told the BBC he had stepped outside to smoke after he heard the first missile, then the second one landed and he was hit by flying glass.

“This is not retaliation by Russia for Ukrainian strikes,” he said, dismissing Moscow’s explanation for its latest attack. “They started this war. This is a residential area. And they targeted it.”

The attack on Kyiv lasted more than 11 hours and came in several waves starting with a drone strike on Kyiv’s historic quarter, setting off a fire in a hotel in the city centre.

At 01:00, dozens of ballistic and cruise missiles were fired. A brief lull preceded another dozen of cruise missiles at 03:00, followed by a swarm of drones which targeted the capital until dawn.

Residents of Kyiv who have lived through four-and-a-half years of war say they have perceived a change in the pattern of Russia’s assaults on the capital over the last two months. Attacks may now happen less frequently – albeit still every few days – but last longer, and seem more powerful and widespread.

Ukrainian military experts described the latest barrage as one of the most challenging assaults for the country’s air defences in recent months.

Aviation expert Bohdan Dolintsev told Ukrainian media that Russia’s technique of using multiple types of weapons within the same time window, and wearing down Ukraine’s defences creates an exceptionally complex challenge for Ukraine’s air defence systems.

Ukraine’s air force said Russia had launched 74 missiles and 496 drones overnight, mainly targeting the capital.

While the country’s air defences were able to repel most of these, 25 ballistics missiles and 12 drones struck 33 locations.

In the wake of the attacks, Ukraine urged allies to send more air defence systems. Zelensky appealed to Washington to grant Ukraine licences to manufacture Patriot defence missiles.

Russia also hit military bases in central and eastern Ukraine, according to the Ministry of Defence.

It claimed to have targeted Ukrainian defence and energy infrastructure in response to what it called “terrorist attacks launched by the Kyiv regime against civilian infrastructure” in Russia.

Kyiv has recently launched long-range attacks on Russian power stations from Moscow to the Black Sea.

The attacks led to a rare confession by Russian President Vladimir Putin that his country was facing fuel shortages.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said it would be “immoral” to justify the Russian strikes by saying they were a response to Kyiv’s long-range attacks on Russia. “In this war, there is an aggressor and a country defending itself,” he said.

Russia controls approximately one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, mostly seized in the first few months of its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Twana Jamal was given a five-year jail sentence in France in 2016, where authorities described him as one of the most successful people smugglers ever caught.

Prosecutors said the Iraqi Kurd, aged 36 at the time, had earned up to £100,000 a week for moving illegal immigrants across the Channel.

Following a tip-off this year, we traced Jamal to the village of Blaby and witnessed him working, driving a car without a licence and apparently using a false name.

Jamal’s presence in the UK raises serious concerns about whether existing border controls are effective in checking asylum seekers who have committed serious crimes overseas.

Immigration officers have told the BBC that since the UK left the European Union, it has become more difficult to check criminal records from some other countries.

We have found more than 20 active smugglers who have reached the UK – some with overseas convictions, and some claiming asylum using false names.

The man known as ‘Pasha’

Our exposure of Jamal came about as part of a BBC investigation which led to the arrest of a leading people smuggler, Kardo Jaf. That story is told in the BBC Radio 4 podcast, To Catch A King.

We received a tip-off that Jamal, another major figure in the trade, was now living and working in the UK. He was described as driving a BMW and looking “very very rich”.

Like Jaf, Jamal was linked to the so-called Ranya Boys, one of a small number of Kurdish gangs who European law enforcement agencies say have come to dominate cross-channel people smuggling over the past 15 years.

Jamal’s trial in France gave us key details about his background. Prosecutors said that from about 2012 until 2016, he had been operating out of the Grand Synthe camp near Dunkirk, charging his customers £4,500-£5,000 to cross to the UK.

At that time, the mode of travel preferred by cross-channel smugglers was freight lorries rather than small boats.

The court also heard that Jamal’s nickname in the camps had been “Pasha” – a Turkish word meaning someone of high rank.

Jamal claimed in the French court that his had been a case of mistaken identity, but he was found guilty and told he faced deportation back to Iraqi Kurdistan after his release.

Despite having served time in a French jail, however, he entered the UK and, when confronted, told us he had applied for asylum and was “still waiting”.

There are several legal barriers to criminals claiming asylum in the UK. The law says anyone who has spent 12 months or more in prison overseas should face a mandatory refusal.

However, it could be that Jamal’s criminal record was not checked, or that he used a false name.

When he was tried in France, the court heard that, as well as “Pasha”, he used several aliases – so many, prosecutors said, that he would write his assumed name inside his baseball cap to remember who he was supposed to be.

‘This city is ours’

We narrowed the search for Jamal with several sources – one of them arranged a call with Jamal under a false pretext and recorded their conversation.

Jamal said he was now based in Leicester, and boasted: “We know everyone in this city, this city is ours.”

He was making “good money”, he continued, and told our contact there was work to be had “moving cigarettes” from a warehouse.

Jamal also admitted driving a car without a licence, but said he was not worried about being investigated or caught.

“No-one touches us here,” he said. “Even the police won’t stop you.”

From this information, we searched for companies in the Leicester area that might be linked to Jamal, and found two mini-marts in Blaby – a village of about 6,000 people on the outskirts of the city.

The mini-marts, both named Candy Corner, are metres away from each other on opposite sides of the high street (by chance, one of them also stands next door to the constituency office of the local Conservative MP).

Over several days last month, we watched comings and goings at the brightly coloured stores, which sell vapes and sweets until late in the evening.

We had a photo from Jamal’s 2016 court appearance in France, which showed him flanked by police and wearing a weightlifter’s vest.

Before long, we saw someone who looked identical, now dressed very smartly in jeans and what appeared to be a cashmere coat.

To confirm it was Jamal, we made an undercover visit to one of the shops where he was staffing the till, and started a conversation.

He introduced himself as “Sultan”, and we noticed he had a tattoo on the back of one hand, which matched one seen on Jamal’s social media (where he calls himself Sultan Pasha).

If he was claiming asylum he should have been neither working nor driving, but we watched him doing both over several days.

‘I don’t care’

Finally, we confronted Jamal at one of the mini-marts, as he swept the pavement outside.

He told us he had never had any involvement in people smuggling and had not been jailed in France. Jamal claimed to have been in the UK since 2009.

When we produced the picture of him in a French courtroom in 2016, he did not deny it was him. However, when we put it to him that it was proof he had been arrested, he replied: “I don’t care.”

Jamal also denied he was working at the mini-mart where we now stood, even though we had seen him behind the till, as well as moving stock in and out of the store.

He refused to tell us his name, although he said the Home Office and immigration service knew it.

When we asked him why he was driving in a car without a valid licence, Jamal’s response was simply: “So what? Did I hit you?”

Sufficient checks?

Jamal’s case is not isolated. Our investigation has found more than 20 other people smugglers living in the UK. Law enforcement officers in Europe have confirmed 15 of those cases – including some with convictions from courts in France, Germany and Belgium.

We learned about one man convicted in France, who is now living in Manchester selling used cars and thought to be still involved in people smuggling.

Another man, also with a French conviction, is based in Blackpool. He has claimed asylum under a false name and boasts on social media of being given leave to remain.

Since Brexit, the UK no longer has a data-sharing agreement with many countries in the EU, making it more difficult to check criminal and immigration records of asylum seekers, according to Lucy Moreton of the Immigration Services Union.

“If we were able to share databases, even if just with our nearest neighbours, with Germany, with Belgium, with Holland and France, say – then, yes, we’d know that they had a conviction for people smuggling,” she said.

Asylum seekers are fingerprinted on arrival in the UK and checked against UK police databases, but these would not necessarily show a conviction from another country.

The Home Office told us: “All asylum claimants are subject to mandatory security checks to confirm their identity for the purpose of immigration, security and criminality checks.”

This point was also made last November by the Minister for Border Security, Alex Norris, who added that to protect the integrity of the checking processes, details about the checks “are not disclosed publicly”.

The Home Office went on to say that the UK has “a number of agreements with countries which enable the sharing of criminal record information”, and that immigration enforcement action is currently at its highest level in history, with arrests for illegal working up 83%.

The feature – which will let people chat without revealing their phone numbers – is expected to be rolled out to WhatsApp’s three billion global users over the next few months.

In a notice, the government asked WhatsApp to explain why action shouldn’t be taken against it under Indian law “for launching a feature that may increase cybercrimes”.

In a statement, WhatsApp said that the feature is not yet live and that it has built in safeguards, including reserving high-profile usernames and ways to detect impersonation and scams.

With more than 850 million users, India is the biggest market for WhatsApp, owned by Mark Zuckerberg-led Meta.

The move is the latest in a series of steps by Indian authorities to scrutinise how global technology companies design and operate their products in the country.

The notice, sent on Wednesday by India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, said it had taken note of WhatsApp’s announcement this week allowing users to reserve unique usernames and, once fully introduced, contact other users by exchanging usernames instead of sharing their phone numbers.

The ministry said it believed the feature “may materially increase the incidence of online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams and impersonation attacks” by allowing criminals to contact potential victims without disclosing their phone numbers.

It also warned that the feature could “facilitate impersonation and identity spoofing”, including of individuals, government authorities, financial institutions and public agencies, by permitting usernames that closely resemble genuine ones.

The notice – a copy of which the BBC has seen – also asked the company “not to roll out this feature until the consultation on this point is achieved to the satisfaction of the government”.

The notice cites provisions of India’s Information Technology Act and the country’s technology rules governing intermediary due diligence, identity theft and impersonation offences.

Cybercrimes and digital fraud are a big concern in India, where millions use digital platforms and payment options every day but often without enough awareness of online safety.

Nearly 102,000 cybercrime cases were registered in 2024, the latest year for which federal data has been published, up by 18% from the previous year. Nearly three-quarters of those cases involved online fraud.

A Meta spokesperson said the company only planned to roll out the feature in phases later this year.

“To protect against impersonation, we have held the highest-profile names – think public figures, government entities, celebrities, verified Meta accounts – so they can only ever be claimed by their legitimate owners and lookalike derivatives of known names are held as well,” said the spokesperson.

The company said users would still need a phone number to create a WhatsApp account and that it had built multiple safeguards into the feature as “layers of defence against scams”.

“Other users need to know the exact username to message you, we will limit how many new people an account can contact, block repeated attempts to guess someone’s username key, and have systems to detect and remove activity showing common impersonation and abuse patterns,” the spokesperson said.

It also said recipients would be shown information about first-time contacts, including whether they were a new account, already in their contacts, shared common groups or were based in another country, to help them decide whether to respond.

The Internet Freedom Foundation, a digital rights organisation, has criticised the government’s notice, saying it had “no clear basis in law”.

In a statement, the organisation argued that the notice amounted to an attempt by the government to decide what software features a company could launch, even though the laws cited by the ministry did not give it that power.

“The power to require prior permission for a feature is not in the [Information Technology] Act, not in the Rules, and cannot be created by a notice,” it said.

The notice is the latest in a series of changes or announcements by India aimed at increasing oversight of global technology companies.

In February, the government amended its rules to require social media platforms to remove unlawful content within three hours of being notified, replacing the previous 36-hour deadline.

Last month, authorities also temporarily banned Telegram during the retest of a national medical entrance examination.

The government argued that features such as username-based interactions and concealed phone numbers created challenges for law enforcement, a position the platform unsuccessfully challenged in court.

They follow Google’s launch of cloud services for the Johannesburg region in 2025.

Here are ​the details of the new initiatives that Google, ​owned by Alphabet, announced at the first Africa Cloud ⁠Summit in Johannesburg.

• Google will establish a connectivity hub in South ​Africa’s Eastern Cape, the first of four planned connectivity hubs ​on the continent.
• The facility will link Africa to Australia via the Umoja subsea cable and to India through a new route, strengthening internet ​resilience and capacity.
• Africa’s first applied AI lab in Ghana will ​pair local startups with Google researchers and provide early access to its ‌AI ⁠models.
• A more than $1 million programme in partnership with UK actor Idris Elba’s Akuna Group will train underrepresented creators in AI-driven storytelling.
• Google’s Economic and Community Development programme and WeThinkCode have committed ​to build a ​3 million ⁠rand ($183,468) digital innovation centre in Soweto, Johannesburg.
• Google also said its startup accelerator programme will back ​15 South African firms as part of Google’s ​pledge ⁠to back 50 African ventures between 2024 and 2028.
• “The AI opportunity for Africa is significant, and Google is committed to doing ⁠our ​part, working with Africans to help Africa ​realise it,” James Manyika, Google’s senior vice president for research and technology, ​told reporters.

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The 79-year-old told NBC in an interview that aired on Wednesday that he received the diagnosis “not long” after an honorary Oscar designation in 2022. While his movements, speech and memories have since slowed, Glover said he still remains active.

“I can live with it in a sense,” Glover said in the pre-taped interview. “I’m sure as it advances, things are going to be different and changing.”

A four-time Emmy winner, Glover is best known for his role in the Lethal Weapon series and The Color Purple film.

In the interview with former NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt that aired on The Today Show, Glover and members of his family said they want to help change the stigma around the disease by speaking out about his condition.

“I think it’s really important for him to have control of his own narrative, of his own life story,” Glover’s daughter, Mandisa, said. “That’s really important. And the time is now. What better time but now for him to speak for himself?”

Glover is just one of some 7 million people in the US over the age of 65 living with Alzheimer’s disease – a type of dementia that affects memory, thinking and behaviour. Symptoms tend to become more severe and interfere with daily tasks.

Older black Americans such as Glover are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s or another dementia as older white Americans, according to the Alzheimer’s Association in the US, which notes that research hasn’t yet identified the cause for the discrepancy.

In the NBC interview, Glover reflected on his acting career, which he began in his early 20s and has since racked up more than 170 credits.

He rose to fame in the 1980s with his role as Detective Roger Murtaugh alongside Mel Gibson as Martin Riggs in the Lethal Weapon films.

Glover was also known for his roles in films including Places in the Heart (1984) and The Colour Purple (1985).

With a passion for social justice, the actor launched a production company to develop and fund politically relevant films.

“We have challenges in the world,” Glover said in Wednesday’s interview. ” I think art becomes a reframe, a way of looking at that, you know?”

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The four, one from the United States, one from Switzerland, and two from France, are members of the controversial Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), also sometimes known as Lefebvrevites after SSPX’s founder Marcel Lefebvre.

The Society rejects key modernising reforms introduced by the Vatican in the 1960s and 1970s, including permission to hold Mass in languages spoken by the congregation, rather than only in Latin.

Pope Leo made a last-minute appeal to SSPX leaders earlier this week not to proceed with the ordination, describing it as a “schismatic act”, which could “tear the seamless garment of Christ”.

But on Wednesday morning, under cool grey Alpine skies, the society defied the Pope – regarded by millions of Catholics as God’s representative on Earth – and proceeded with the ordination.

At least 15,000 people gathered in Écône to watch hundreds of robed priests – carrying candles and crosses, and dispensing incense – progress through the village into a pasture where a large tent had been set up.

There, the four candidates for bishop prostrated themselves before an altar, their heads buried in red velvet pillows. Ceremonial organ music played, the ordination vows were taken, of course, in Latin.

But for these four men, their time as bishops may be very short.

The last time the Society ordained new bishops, in 1988, they were immediately excommunicated.

Although Pope Benedict XVI repealed the excommunication in 2009 in an unsuccessful attempt to heal the rift, Pope Leo is also expected to exclude the new bishops from the Catholic Church.

To some, the Vatican’s objections to SSPX may seem exaggerated; after all, many Churches have separate branches, some more conservative than others. But ordaining bishops without the Pope’s consent is regarded as a serious violation of the unity of the Church.

The split is not just about SSPX’s desire to conduct Mass only in Latin.

The Society, founded by controversial French archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1970, has always wanted to preserve a kind of medieval mystique in which priests, bishops, cardinals, and the Mass itself are seen as somehow closer to God, and therefore separate from ordinary people.

SSPX has consistently defied the Vatican over multiple policies designed to make the Church more accessible and egalitarian, including establishing ties with other religions, recognising the right to religious freedom, and participating in debates over big social and political questions.

It even objected to the Vatican’s decision to have priests face the congregation when holding Mass, preferring the medieval practice of facing the altar, with their backs to the congregants.

SSPX’s Superior General, Davide Pagliarani, denied trying to sustain the rift, telling the congregation in Écône the ordination was taking place “precisely because we love the Pope as the vicar of Christ, as the head of the Church… we don’t want to see the Pope humiliated any more, on the side of false shepherds representing false religions”.

The defiance poses a challenge to Pope Leo, who is relatively new in post.

Although the Society is small, with an estimated 600,000 followers compared with the Catholic Church’s more than 1.4 billion members, it is now represented in dozens of countries, including the US, where it has an enthusiastic following in Kansas.

And SSPX clearly has funds. The ordination was live-streamed on YouTube in seven languages.

The thousands who turned up to witness it were offered baseball caps commemorating “Écône2026”. There were even novelty gift packs of Swiss wine, costing $92 (£80), each bottle labelled with a picture of a mitre, the bishop’s crown-like hat.

So although Pope Leo has made it clear he views the new bishops as illegitimate, and their ordination as a clear attack on the Catholic Church, he may not want to do anything further to make his feared schism any worse.

WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said all contacts of two cases identified in South Africa had now completed their follow-up period, with no additional cases reported.

“Quarantine and follow-up periods have also been completed for everyone in Spain and the Netherlands, including the MV Hondius crew members,” he wrote on X. As of June 25, 30 contacts were still under follow-up, he said.

“The total number of cases remains at 13, including three fatalities.

The situation remains stable, and the outbreak is nearing its end.” WHO “expresses gratitude to all countries involved in the response for their cooperation,” Tedros added. The outbreak of the South American Andes variant of the virus on the small cruise ship sparked global concern.

In total, around 150 passengers, crew members and accompanying experts from 23 countries were on board the Hondius. The WHO believes the chain of infection may have originated with a Dutch couple, who could have contracted the virus ashore in Argentina before boarding the ship.

The ​search is continuing, and ​authorities fear the death toll could rise, ​Coulibaly said.

Neighbouring Ghana has ​also been hit by ‌heavy ⁠rains, with at least 12 people killed after large ​parts ​of ⁠the country and the capital, ​Accra, were ​flooded.

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In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, July 1, the government said it received the reports with “profound shock and sadness” that the 40-year-old Ghanaian was fatally shot in Khayelitsha on Monday, June 30, during demonstrations linked to ongoing xenophobic attacks.

“The Government of Ghana condemns, in the strongest terms, this senseless act of violence and the rising tide of xenophobia targeting African nationals, including Ghanaians, in South Africa. The taking of any life is unacceptable, and those responsible must be brought to justice without delay,” the statement said.

According to the ministry, the Ghana High Commission in Pretoria, acting on its instructions, has formally lodged Ghana’s protest with South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation and filed a complaint with the South African Police Service after confirming the identity of the deceased and informing his family.

The ministry disclosed that an autopsy has since been conducted on the body at the request of the Government of Ghana.

It said Ghana is demanding a full, transparent and expedited investigation into the incident, leading to the arrest and prosecution of those responsible.

The government also urged the South African authorities to strengthen security for Ghanaian nationals living in affected communities.

“The Ministry, through its High Commission in Pretoria, has formally registered Ghana’s protest with the South African authorities and has reiterated our expectation that South Africa, in line with its international obligations, will guarantee the safety, dignity and rights of all foreign nationals on its territory, including Ghanaians,” the statement added.

The ministry further recalled that Ghana has already submitted a petition to the African Union Commission over xenophobic attacks against African nationals in South Africa and expects the matter to be treated with urgency at the Commission’s next statutory meeting.

Meanwhile, arrangements are being made to repatriate Mr. Bashiru Isak’s body to Ghana for burial.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs extended its condolences to the bereaved family and advised Ghanaians residing in South Africa who did not participate in the government’s repatriation exercise to remain vigilant, avoid high-risk areas and contact the Ghana High Commission in Pretoria through its emergency lines whenever they are in danger.

It reaffirmed Ghana’s commitment to pursuing all diplomatic, consular and multilateral avenues to protect the lives and welfare of its citizens abroad and to prevent similar attacks in the future.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa told the BBC that the issue would be discussed between the two governments “at the highest levels”.

Acting High Commissioner to South Africa Alexander Ajayi said on local television on Tuesday that the government had begun documenting businesses and properties left behind by Nigerians.

One Nigerian trader waiting to be repatriated told the BBC he had lived in South Africa for nearly a decade and had abandoned his business and home because he feared for his safety.

Oghodero Erejor Wilson, 32, said he was losing “everything because of fear”.

“I left everything in my house including clothes.”

He is among hundreds of Nigerians still waiting to be evacuated from South Africa. More than 600 Nigerians have already been repatriated in recent weeks.

The South African authorities say those who have been flown home were in the country illegally – though this is disputed by Nigeria.

About 25,000 nationals of other African countries have left South Africa following a wave of protests in recent weeks by groups demanding that the government does more to curb illegal migration.

Some anti-migrant groups had given undocumented foreigners a deadline of 30 June to leave the country and organised marches attended by thousands of people on Tuesday. These were largely peaceful but there were isolated incidents of violence against foreigners.

The South African police say that about 900 people were arrested, mostly for immigration-related offences and looting.

The BBC has asked South Africa’s government for comment on Nigeria’s compensation demand.

Nigeria’s acting high commissioner said he had asked all of those who had left South Africa “to document very accurately those things they were leaving behind in terms of businesses, in terms of even cars, movable and immovable properties”.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Ebienfa told the BBC that all claims would be verified before any formal request was made.

“We have not severed ties with South Africa, we are still engaging them at the highest level, we will sort those details using our usual diplomatic channels,” he said.

Wilson, the trader, said he had run a clothing business in the South African city of Centurion in Gauteng province for several years.

But he said he had now closed his shop and fled to stay near the Nigeria High Commission in South Africa’s capital, Pretoria.

Scheduled to leave on the next repatriation flight to Nigeria on Friday, he estimates the goods left in his shop are worth more than 16,000 rand ($975; £735).

Wilson said his residency documents had expired in 2021 and he had been unable to renew them.

He said he was not very hopeful about the prospect of getting compensation.

“If South Africa government can compensate it, it will be nice, but I know they won’t,” he said.

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The victim, who is said to have lived and worked in South Africa for about 20 years, was reportedly inside his shop when he was shot on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, as demonstrations linked to a nationwide anti-immigration campaign turned violent in parts of the country.

He is survived by three children, with the eldest reportedly 10 years old.

The Ghana High Commission says arrangements are currently underway to repatriate the body to Ghana to enable burial and other necessary family rites.

The incident forms part of a wider wave of unrest tied to growing anti-immigration sentiments and protests in South Africa, which have in some instances escalated into violence against foreign nationals and their businesses.

Authorities in South Africa have not yet released full details on the circumstances surrounding the shooting or confirmed any arrests in connection with the incident.

The Ghanaian mission has assured that it is engaging relevant authorities to ensure full investigations into the killing and to support the bereaved family during the repatriation process.

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The child, named as Klieber Morán, was pulled from wreckage in La Guaira state, interim President Delcy Rodríguez said. Rodríguez described the child’s rescue as a “source of hope for our people”.

It comes as UN warned that tens of thousands of people were urgently in need of food and shelter.

The death toll from last week’s quakes – with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 – has risen to 1,943 with more than 10,000 people injured and tens of thousands more unaccounted for.

The massive tremors probably damaged or destroyed 58,870 buildings, according to an initial assessment of satellite data from Nasa.

The Jordanian civil defence said Klieber had been given first aid treatment, taken to a hospital and his vital signs were good. He was being treated in the capital Caracas, Venezuelan Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez said.

The rescue comes well after the initial three-day period immediately after the quake during which experts say people trapped under debris have the best chance of being found alive.

La Guaira is one of the hardest hit areas, with many local people trying to carry out rescue efforts themselves.

The UN’s refugee agency said on Tuesday that food shortages were widespread, basic services had broken down and communications had been largely severed in La Guaira.

“Community tensions are rising as access to assistance remains constrained,” the UNHCR said in a statement on its website.

Daniela Armas, an 18-year-old vendor in La Guaira who was injured falling from a motorbike when the quakes struck, told AFP that some supplies were being distributed “but sometimes people nearly kill each other for food… it’s like a cockfight.”

The UNHCR said that it needed an initial $15m to “scale up protection, core relief items, and temporary shelter support for 30,000 earthquake-affected people over six months”.

Meanwhile the World Health Organization (WHO) said health services were under “extreme pressure.”

“There’s an increased risk now of outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases” such as measles and diphtheria due to low vaccination coverage, WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said.

Jorge Rodríguez said Klieber’s rescue showed there was still hope of continuing to find people alive and that domestic and international teams were still searching through rubble. Shelters were already open in La Guaira and other states, he added.

International rescue teams from the US, Mexico and dozens of other countries searched for survivors with trained dogs and heavy equipment.

Some international aid is arriving in the country. A UN spokesperson said a 47-tonne shipment of humanitarian supplies arrived on Tuesday including emergency health kits for urgent medical care, supplies for safe births, newborn care and disease prevention.

Meanwhile Venezuelans have begun burying the dead who have been found so far. Many more are waiting for the remains of loved ones who are presumed dead.

At the makeshift morgue at La Guaira’s port, Wilker Molalla told AFP he was waiting to identify the remains of his sister, her children and the children of his brother.

“There were 11 people in my household,” he said. “Only two of us survived because we were at work.”

Joseph Kwadwo Badu Boateng, who also goes by the name “Dada Joe Remix,” pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud last week, according to a statement issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona on Tuesday, June 30, 2026.

Boateng was arrested in Ghana on an extradition warrant on May 27, 2025, and extradited to the United States the following month. He has remained in custody since his arrest.

According to his plea agreement, Boateng and his co-conspirators ran the fraud scheme from 2013 through March 2023, targeting elderly victims in Arizona and other parts of the United States.

Prosecutors say the co-conspirators posed as romantic partners with victims through online dating platforms, text messages and other electronic communications.

They also falsely claimed to have received an “inheritance” of gold and jewels, telling victims that taxes and other fees needed to be paid before the items could be released to them.

Boateng’s sentencing has been scheduled for September 8, 2026, before United States District Judge Angela M. Martinez.

The case involved cooperation between American and Ghanaian authorities. The U.S. Attorney’s Office credited the FBI Legal Attaché in Accra, Ghana’s Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Justice, the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), and the Ghana Police Service’s INTERPOL unit for their support in securing the extradition, alongside the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.

The FBI’s Phoenix Division, through its Sierra Vista office, investigated the case, while the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona in Tucson is prosecuting it.

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Elegbeje Ado, who is also a pastor, died on Monday, June 29, 2026, after a brief illness.

He was 66.

The founder of Best of Nollywood Awards, Seun Oloketuyi, confirmed his passing in an Instagram post on Tuesday.

Oloketuyi wrote, “It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Pastor Taiwo Adeshina, a beloved Nollywood legend.

“Your remarkable contributions to the Yoruba movie industry and the lives you touched will never be forgotten. May God grant you eternal rest and comfort your family, friends, and fans. Rest in peace, legend.”

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Thousands of African foreign nationals had already fled South Africa ahead of Tuesday’s “deadline”, and shops closed while foreign workers stayed home in anticipation of further trouble after months of unrest that had brought international condemnation.

At least four people have been killed, and thousands of foreigners have been driven from their homes and seen their businesses and property vandalised.

The leader of the anti-migrant movement said they would hold weekly marches until their objectives are met.

“For ​the next six months, we are asking for our national resources to be used to take the illegal immigrants out of this country. From building to building — they ​must go,” Jacinta Ngobese, leader of the March and March group, said in the port city of Durban.

Among those chanting anti-migrant slogans at ⁠a demonstration in the city was Silindile Xaba, 31.

“People are not working, the jobs are being taken by illegal foreigners. It’s not fair,” she said.

Politicians have been accused of joining ​in the xenophobia to win votes at local elections due by November.

VIOLENCE AGAINST MIGRANTS

Migrants have interpreted the deadline as a physical threat, and there were scattered signs of violence, although many marches ​were peaceful. Police said they had arrested some looters, giving no further details.

In Thembisa, a northern suburb of the main commercial hub of Johannesburg, rioters threw stones at police and suspected migrants, while sporadic gunfire could be heard near the central business district.

National paper the Daily Maverick reported police deploying tactical vehicles and firing shots in Benoni, eastern Johannesburg, after being threatened by 500 protesters.

A police spokesperson did not immediately respond ​to a request for comment. In the township of Soweto, protesters looted shacks of foreign nationals, national broadcaster SABC reported, adding that police had fired rubber bullets to disperse marches in ​Pietermaritzburg, near Durban.

In anti-migrant attacks, which have recurred sporadically in South Africa since 2008, little distinction is made between those who entered legally and those who did not.

March and March says it cannot be ‌held responsible ⁠for spontaneous acts of anger by South Africans.

“Unfortunately, we can’t be in every single community telling them … how to behave,” Ngobese told Reuters in an interview two weeks ago.

Landlords in Durban and Johannesburg had been illegally evicting foreign tenants ahead of the march for fear of their buildings being vandalised, witnesses said, and about 100 Congolese were sleeping on Durban’s streets, according to a Reuters reporter, and their leader said they had been chased out.

The marches drew many thousands of mostly poor or unemployed South Africans who blame foreign nationals for their hardships.

Thousands of police were deployed, and ​the military was on standby, a military spokesperson ​said.

The wave of anti-immigrant sentiment, and what ⁠critics say is a failure by police to protect victims, have tarnished South Africa’s post-Nelson Mandela reputation as a defender of human rights and strained ties with other African nations.

Immigrants are blamed for taking jobs, driving crime and putting pressure on public services — claims that social ​scientists say lack evidence.

Three decades since apartheid ended, South Africa remains unequal and a third of people are out of work. Despite ​this, it remains Africa’s largest ⁠economy and continues to draw migrants.

The immigrant population stands at about 3 million or about 4% of the total, according to StatsSA — a relatively low share by global standards.

VIGILANTES ARRESTED, POLITICAL RHETORIC HARDENS

Deputy National Commissioner for Policing Tebello Mosikili said 103 criminal cases had been opened against anti-foreigner vigilantes since March.

Some politicians have echoed protesters’ concerns even as they condemn the violence.

“South Africans’ … deep concerns about illegal ⁠immigration … are real ​, and they deserve to be heard,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement on Monday.

“But the right to ​protest … does not allow people to threaten or intimidate others, or to engage in acts of vandalism or violence.”

South African officials note that Western countries face similar tensions over immigration, often fuelled by divisive politics and misinformation.

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The outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is no tested ​vaccine or treatment, has infected 1,307 people and ​killed 377 in the Democratic Republic of Congo ⁠since being declared on May 15, the government says.

A ​much smaller number of cases have been reported in ​Uganda, and experts warn of the possibility of it spreading to other neighbours, such as South Sudan.

“If we have the resources ​and we step up, we can contain this outbreak ​and prevent further losses,” said Damien Mama, United Nations Development Programme resident representative ‌in Congo.

“If we do not, this health emergency risks becoming a much deeper and prolonged development crisis across the region and potentially the continent.”

The UNDP outlined three ​scenarios for the ​outbreak. In the best-case scenario, where the epidemic remains contained in the two countries, the cost to Congo’s GDP is $ 1 billion, the report said.

In ⁠the worst-case scenario, the disease spreads to countries including Rwanda and Angola and coincides with higher fuel costs linked ⁠to ​the Iran crisis, cutting continental GDP ​by $3.6 billion and resulting in 328,000 job losses, the report said.

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In a 927-page disclosure, he reported $635m in royalties from a Trump meme coin that has since plunged in value, having launched it days before taking office.

He also reported over $500m in income from World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency firm founded by his own sons and the children of his special envoy, Steve Witkoff.

He earned millions more from real estate and Trump-themed items. But the White House denied he was profiting from the presidency.

The earnings from his latest financial disclosure far outpace those from his previous 2024 disclosure, when Trump reported over $600m in income.

But the White House, which has repeatedly emphasised that Trump has placed his businesses in a trust managed by his sons, again denied any conflict of interest.

White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said the president had proudly made the US “the crypto capital of the world”.

“Neither the President nor his family has ever engaged – or will ever engage – in conflicts of interest,” she said in a statement.

She added: “All actions by President Trump and his administration are taken in the best interest of the American people – and any so-called ‘reporters’ pushing otherwise are recycling the same, tired, false narrative that Democrats and the legacy media have been pushing for a decade.”

The president himself has also noted that he is not subject to federal conflict-of-interest laws.

Trump once criticised cryptocurrency, famously calling Bitcoin a “scam” and a “disaster waiting to happen”.

But Tuesday’s disclosure shows his crypto earnings far overshadow income from his real estate business, which first catapulted him to fame.

He earned around $77m from his Mar-a-Lago club and $122m from his golf club in Doral, Florida.

He also earned more than $30m each from golf clubs in Bedminster, New Jersey; Jupiter, Florida; and Turnberry, Scotland.

Trump also earned millions from other business ventures, according to the financial disclosure.

These included $4.7m in royalties from Trump-branded watches, as well as Trump-branded Bibles, trainers, fragrances, and guitars.

First Lady Melania Trump also listed her 2025 income in the disclosure. She made $10.7m from a “license agreement” related to the documentary about her that was released last year.

Another $6m in income is listed for her from the sale of NFTs, which are digital images sold online.

The president listed some $86.5m in income from settlements in various legal actions.

These included $16m from a lawsuit against ABC, $16m from CBS Broadcasting and CBS Interactive, $24.5m from Meta, $22m from YouTube and $8m from X.

But the White House has said most of that money went toward Trump’s future presidential library or a nonprofit dedicated to the upkeep of park sites in the Washington, DC, area.

According to Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s richest people, Trump has an estimated fortune of $6bn – up from $2.3bn in 2024. Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index puts the president’s net worth at $7.6bn.

After his return to the White House, Trump adopted a friendly approach to the crypto industry, even as companies linked to his family issued digital tokens.

The Trump-appointed head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the financial regulator, is also seen as an ally of the crypto industry.

Since taking office in April 2025, Paul Atkins has shifted the agency away from the strict, regulation-by-enforcement approach of his predecessor.

Last July, the president signed the GENIUS Act into law to make America the undisputed leader in digital assets.

At more than 900 pages, Trump’s annual filing dwarfs those of his predecessors. For example, Joe Biden’s financial report for his last full year in office was 11 pages long.

Speaking on Citi FM, Mr. Quashie said the Ghana High Commission had been monitoring the situation since the early hours of the day and worked with South African authorities to secure the release of all Ghanaians who were temporarily detained.

“We’ve been monitoring the situation since 6 a.m. this morning. A couple of Ghanaians were arrested and all of them, I can confidently tell you, have been released through the intervention of our consular officers,” he said.

According to the High Commissioner, some Ghanaians were stopped during routine immigration checks and asked to produce identification documents. Once they identified themselves as Ghanaian nationals, South African authorities contacted the High Commission to verify their nationality before releasing them.

Mr. Quashie explained that the mission has an existing arrangement with South African law enforcement agencies requiring officials to consult the High Commission whenever a Ghanaian national is detained.

“The agreement is that if any Ghanaian is arrested, the authorities should first confirm with us. We verify whether the individual is indeed Ghanaian and advise accordingly,” he stated.

His comments come amid anti-immigration demonstrations in several South African cities, including Pretoria, where protesters marched through the city demanding stricter enforcement of immigration laws.

The protests have heightened anxiety among migrant communities, with many foreign nationals opting to remain indoors or temporarily relocate over fears for their safety.

Despite the tensions, Mr. Quashie said the High Commission has not received reports of widespread attacks targeting Ghanaians.

He disclosed that only one Ghanaian was involved in an incident after disregarding the mission’s advice to remain indoors during the demonstrations.

“The only case we recorded involved a Ghanaian who admitted that he left his accommodation to visit his shop despite our advice. Unfortunately, protesters confronted him,” he said.

Apart from that isolated incident, the High Commissioner said no Ghanaian had been injured and no Ghanaian-owned property had been destroyed during the protests.

He urged Ghanaians living in South Africa to remain vigilant, avoid unnecessary movement and adhere to safety directives issued by the High Commission and local authorities while the security situation continues to be monitored.

Mr. Quashie also revealed that the High Commission is preparing to undertake another voluntary repatriation exercise next week for Ghanaians who wish to return home in light of the growing anti-immigration tensions.

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Military Response and Rescue Operations

Security forces mobilised rapidly following the initial assault. Troops from Operation HADIN KAI engaged the attackers in a firefight near the DAGGU area. Military officials confirmed that ten victims, including students and teachers, were successfully rescued and remain unharmed. During the intense exchange, one soldier and a member of a local paramilitary support force were killed. Military spokesperson Captain Mohammed Goni stated that troops successfully outmaneuvered the fleeing terrorists, inflicting casualties and capturing seven motorcycles used by the assailants. Ongoing efforts are underway to locate any remaining missing individuals and bring the perpetrators to justice.

Challenges in Assessing Casualties

The exact number of students abducted remains uncertain as officials continue their efforts to account for all those present during the attack. Borno police spokesperson Nahum Kenneth Daso indicated that the situation remains fluid. “For now, we don’t have the number of how many students were abducted. We have about 10 victims who have been rescued,” Daso said. While the military reported the successful recovery of ten individuals, Amnesty International Nigeria provided a different account, claiming that two teachers and one student were killed during the raid. Security agencies are currently scouring nearby forests to track the attackers and ensure the safety of any remaining victims.

Persistent Insurgency in Northeast Nigeria

This incident highlights the ongoing security volatility within northeast Nigeria, a region that has served as the epicenter of a militant insurgency for over 15 years. Major groups, including Boko Haram and its splinter faction, the Islamic State West Africa Province, frequently operate in this territory. The United Nations reports that the broader regional conflict has resulted in thousands of deaths and the displacement of millions. Recent military activity has been intense, including a successful operation earlier this month that rescued 300 people from the town of Ngoshe. Additionally, joint operations with international partners recently led to the reported deaths of 175 ISWAP fighters in May.

Calls for Educational Security

The attack has drawn sharp condemnation from human rights organizations regarding the safety of academic environments. Amnesty International Nigeria issued a formal statement following the event, emphasizing the vulnerability of the region’s youth. “Schools should be places of safety, and no child should have to choose between their education and their life,” the group stated. They further urged the Nigerian government to prioritize the safety of the educational sector. “The protection of children’s lives is paramount, and the Nigerian government has a duty to ensure that the country’s educational sector is not further threatened by armed groups on rampage across northern Nigeria.” Security measures have since been reinforced across the Lassa area to prevent further incursions as officials work to stabilize the community.

The Wider Context of Security Threats

The recurring nature of these abductions underscores the severe security challenges facing Nigeria’s northern regions. Beyond the immediate impact on the victims and their families, these attacks disrupt the fundamental right to education and instill widespread fear in vulnerable communities. As federal and state authorities continue to coordinate responses, the persistent threat posed by militant factions serves as a stark reminder of the complexities involved in restoring long-term stability and ensuring that classrooms remain sanctuaries for learning rather than targets for conflict.

Regional Implications for West Africa

The crisis in Borno is part of a broader trend affecting West and Central Africa, where thousands of schools have closed due to violence. Beyond Nigeria, countries like Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger face similar threats that dismantle local educational infrastructure and endanger millions of students. Regional bodies, including the Lake Chad Basin Commission and the Multinational Joint Task Force, are increasingly emphasizing that military solutions alone are insufficient. There is a growing consensus among regional policymakers that sustainable peace requires integrated strategies combining security operations with community-led development and psychosocial support for displaced children. This holistic approach remains critical to preventing a lost generation across the Sahelian belt.

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U.S. Embassy in Ghana announces online auction of vehicles, government property

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In a post on its official X (formerly Twitter) account, the Embassy said bidding will open at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, July 6, and close at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, July 8.

According to the Embassy, all bids must be submitted through the official U.S. Department of State online auction platform, where prospective bidders can also access bidding instructions and view the list of available items.

Ahead of the auction, the Embassy will organise a physical inspection of the vehicles on July 1 and July 2, 2026, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

The viewing will take place at the Embassy entrance near the W. E. B. Du Bois Center in Accra, allowing interested buyers to inspect the vehicles before placing their bids.

The Embassy encouraged prospective bidders to review all auction guidelines and available lots on the official auction website before participating in the online sale.

The auction forms part of the Embassy’s disposal of excess U.S. government property in Ghana.

The U.S. Embassy will conduct an online auction of excess U.S. government property and vehicles. Bidding will open at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, July 6, and will close at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, July 8, 2026. All bids must be submitted through the official auction website at… pic.twitter.com/dfAsr4KWjg

— U.S. Embassy Accra (@USEmbassyGhana) June 30, 2026

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Supreme Court rejects Trump’s attempt to limit U.S. birthright citizenship

The court, divided 6-3, ruled that the executive order Trump issued Jan. 20, 2025, the first day of his second term, was unlawful. Five justices said the order fell foul of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which has long been interpreted to bestow birthright citizenship on almost anyone born in the United States.

One justice, conservative Brett Kavanaugh, said the order violated federal law but not the Constitution.

It is the third significant Supreme Court loss for Trump in recent months, following the February ruling that invalidated his sweeping tariffs and Monday’s decision that barred him from immediately firing Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve. The court has a 6-3 conservative majority, including three justices Trump himself appointed, and has ruled in the president’s favor in other important cases.

Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote there was “scant evidence” in favor of the Trump administration’s radical reimagining of the way the law has been understood for decades.

“Citizenship then and now, was the right to have rights — to freely participate in our political community,” he wrote.

The 14th Amendment was enacted after the Civil War to ensure that everyone, including former slaves, would have those rights, he added. “We keep that promise today,” Roberts said.

Three conservatives would have ruled in Trump’s favor, saying that the 14th Amendment would allow his executive order: Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch.

The 14th Amendment states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.”

Under Trump’s proposal, birthright citizenship would have been limited to those with at least one parent who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. Babies born to temporary visitors or people who entered the country illegally would not be citizens at birth.

In dissent, Thomas wrote that the 14th Amendment was primarily aimed at formerly enslaved Black people.

“Blacks were entitled to citizenship because they were Americans. They had no other homeland, owed no allegiance to any foreign power, and were subject to no other authority,” he wrote. “The same could not be said for the children of foreign temporary visitors.”

In a separate dissent, Alito said the ruling “preserves a powerful incentive to enter or remain in this country illegally,” adding that it saddles the United States with a “medieval rule” defining citizenship that even the United Kingdom, from whence it emerged, has since abandoned.

The executive order has never been in effect; it was quickly blocked by lower courts after Trump signed it.

“The court’s decision reaffirms a fundamental American promise — if you are born here, you are a citizen. A president cannot change the Constitution by executive fiat,” Cecillia Wang, National Legal Director at the American Civil Liberties Union, who represents plaintiffs who challenged the executive order, said in a statement.

For more than a century, the 14th Amendment has been assumed to apply to everyone born in the U.S. with a few specific exceptions, such as the children of diplomats.

A federal immigration law enacted decades later uses similar language, including “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”

The Supreme Court, in an 1898 ruling called United States v. Wong Kim Ark, ruled then that a man born in San Francisco to parents who were both from China was a U.S. citizen.

In Tuesday’s ruling, Roberts said the arguments embraced by Trump and the dissenting justices echo those made by the losing side more than a century ago.

“But this view commanded only a dissent in 1898, and neither time nor circumstance has changed the fact it is not the law,” he wrote.

Trump’s executive order was challenged in multiple courts by liberal states and civil rights groups representing individuals who would be affected by it. Every court to address the issue ruled against the Trump administration.

In December, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case arising from New Hampshire in which the ACLU represented individual plaintiffs, including babies who would have been subjected to the executive order.

READ ALSO:

US Supreme Court upholds bans on transgender women in female school and college sports

Thousands of anti-migrant protesters march in South Africa amid heavy police presence

The complaint, filed Monday at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice in Abuja, was brought on behalf of 27 of at least 60 deportees sent to Ghana since September under Washington’s “third-country” removal policy, which targets people US judges have ruled cannot be sent directly to their home countries.

The complaint said the deportees told authorities ‌they had been granted protections in the US, but most of them were removed within hours or days of their arrival in Ghana to the countries they had escaped. Some were stranded in third countries with no means to continue their journeys.

In cases where Washington is barred from sending people to their home countries – after US judges found they would likely face torture or persecution, for example – it has sent deportees to “third countries”.

“No person should be returned to a place where they face persecution, torture or serious threats to their dignity and safety,” said Oliver Barker-Vormawor, senior partner at Ghanaian law firm Merton & Everett LLP.

The firm filed the lawsuit alongside Cornell Law School’s Transnational Disputes Clinic and the Global Strategic Litigation Council, a coalition of NGOs.

The court is the top judicial body for ECOWAS, a regional bloc of 12 countries.

Deportees ‘hiding in their home countries’ or in ‘limbo’

The complaint alleges Ghana is violating domestic and regional law by “facilitating removals to unsafe countries”, a statement from the advocacy groups said.

Beyond confirming that the agreement with the US relates to West Africans, Ghana has not shared details of the terms.

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Shortly after the agreement took effect, the US reversed visa curbs it had imposed on Ghana.

The advocacy groups said the lawsuit aimed ‌to ‌force Ghana to disclose the terms of the deal with the Trump administration and block Ghana from accepting any future deportees under the arrangement.

A similar lawsuit was filed earlier in June at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to halt US deportations to Equatorial Guinea, which has also served as a way station for African deportees.

That lawsuit was brought on behalf of 14 deportees. They included several still being held in Equatorial Guinea under conditions “amounting to arbitrary and indefinite detention”, according to the indictment.

In the complaint against Ghana, none of the 27 deportees remained in Ghana, the advocacy groups said.

“Many now remain in hiding in their home countries or have fled to third countries where they wait in limbo.”

Beatrice Njeri, a litigator ⁠for the Global Strategic Litigation Council representing the deportees, told the ⁠Reuters news agency they aimed to discourage other ECOWAS members from entering into similar deals with the Trump administration.

Njeri said the group was also seeking at least $100,000 in compensation for each deportee from Ghana, along ⁠with other reparations.

The court considered cases from students in two different states who had challenged bans on participation. The two states, Idaho and West Virginia, enacted laws that required public school and college sports teams to compete in accordance with their sex recorded at birth.

One of the two challenges says the ban violates equal rights protections in the US Constitution. The other says it contradicts civil rights laws.

More than two dozen states have enacted bans since Idaho did so in 2020.

Under those bans, a transgender woman – a biological male who identifies as a woman – is not permitted to compete in female sports at schools and colleges.

Lindsay Hecox, a long-distance runner, lodged a legal challenge against the Idaho law shortly after it was enacted. She was later granted an injunction by both a district court and an appeals court.

State lawmaker Barbara Ehardt, who introduced the law, said at the time of its passing that it would ensure “boys and men will not be able to take the place of girls and women in sports because it’s not fair”.

But in the appeals ruling, a panel of three judges found that the Idaho law violated constitutional rights. They said the state had failed to provide evidence that its ban protects “sex equality and opportunity for women athletes”.

President Donald Trump made the issue of transgender athletes in women’s sports a regular focus of his 2024 election campaign. Last year, he signed an executive order that aimed to ban transgender women from competing on female sports teams.

Following that decision, the NCAA, the governing body for US college sports, banned transgender women from competing in women’s sports.

Police officers – backed by private security guards – have been deployed because of fears that protests could turn violent. Anti-migrant groups had set Tuesday as the deadline for undocumented migrants to leave.

Many foreigners have already fled to escape violence and intimidation. South African police say 25,000 have been repatriated so far. Most are from other African countries.

One undocumented Malawian told the BBC he was “happy to be going back” but “heartbroken” to be leaving behind four young children.

The Ministry of Police said the protests were largely peaceful across the country, with isolated incidents of looting and attempted looting.

Johannesburg, where one of the protests is taking place, is unusually quiet. Shops in the city centre are closed, while police visibility is high on major streets.

Some protesters threw bricks, breaking the windows of some homes in Yeoville, a suburb in Johannesburg where many African migrants live.

Police said they had arrested five people for the alleged looting of a foreign-owned shop in Johannesburg’s biggest township, Soweto.

About 10 people were also arrested for looting in KwaZulu-Natal province, while a woman was arrested for assaulting a police officer and a man for “intimidation” following reports of a foreign national being beaten up, police said.

Many businesses in central Durban, the main city in the province, are also shut. A police helicopter has been circling the city.

President Cyril Ramaphosa met some of the protest leaders on the eve of the marches in a bid to defuse tensions.

He has repeatedly warned demonstrators to act peacefully, while also accepting the need for immigration reforms.

‘They came with machetes’ – deadline looms for migrants to leave South Africa

“Some foreign nationals who live in South Africa are here lawfully,” he reminded citizens in his weekly newsletter.

“They work, study, raise families, invest in our economy and contribute positively to our society. They too are entitled to the protection of our laws and our Constitution.

“The right to protest and freedom of expression does not allow people to threaten or intimidate others, or to engage in acts of vandalism or violence,” he wrote.

There are more than three million documented foreign nationals in South Africa, according to official figures.

The statistics do not record the many more migrants believed to be in the country without papers – a bone of contention for the protesters.

Police said that about 50,000 migrants had been arrested since January for being in the country illegally.

A Soweto resident told the BBC that protesters merely wanted foreigners “to comply” with the laws of South Africa.

She said that with the heavy police presence, she did not believe the march in Johannesburg would turn violent.

Another protester, who is part of anti-migrant group Operation Dudula, said they would “push the police to do their” job if undocumented migrants did not leave South Africa.

Many African migrants moved to South Africa around the time white-minority rule ended in 1994, hoping for a better life.

But with South Africa facing an unemployment rate of more than 30%, anti-migrant sentiments have risen.

Nigeria flew out 269 of its citizens on the eve of the protests, bringing to around 600 the number evacuated so far to the West African nation. More evacuations are expected to take place in the coming days.

Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe have also been repatriating their citizens by plane or bus.

Ahead of the deadline, thousands of migrants have been awaiting processing in temporary camps for several weeks out of fear for their safety.

In Durban, which has seen some of the biggest protests, white tents housing mostly Malawians are being dismantled as authorities race to clear the transit camp.

About 7,000 Malawians have already been repatriated, Malawian media report.

Women in colourful sarongs sat on top of their belongings, waiting in line to board a bus home to Malawi.

One man, Nelson Mbewe, said he had gone to South Africa in search of employment to support his family in Malawi.

“But we’ve faced challenges – they’re saying we should go back home because we do not have the right documents,” he told the BBC.

“They say we are ‘makwerekwere'” – a xenophobic slur used to refer to African migrants from other countries – Mbewe said.

“It’s their country, so what can we do? That’s why we have accepted that we just have to [unwillingly] go back home.”

Hassan Phiri, a Malawian who is still waiting to be processed, had a message for the protesters: “All I want to say to South Africans is that we are all one. No matter what is happening, no matter what will happen, Africa must remain Africa.

“Africa can’t be Africa without South Africa… without Malawi, without anywhere,” he told the BBC, adding: “So whatever will happen, we must love each other and stick together as Africa.”

Anti-migrant marches have been authorised in Durban, Johannesburg and other cities.

The authorities have warned organisers to ensure there is no violence but say they are prepared for any potential disruption.

Police say traditional weapons are not allowed. This could lead to tension between protesters and the police because many of the protesters are ethnic Zulus, and take their shields, whips and sticks when they go on marches.

However, police have so far allowed them to carry the weapons, seizing only a machete at a march in Durban.

Xenophobia has long been an issue in South Africa, and has sometimes led to violence.

According to the African Centre for Migration and Society’s (ACMS) xenophobic violence tracker Xenowatch, two people have been killed this year.

In 2008, more than 60 people died during a wave of rioting against non-South Africans.

A further 49 were injured and women and children were among the victims, according to Unama.

Afghanistan’s Taliban government said civilian homes were hit and described the attack as a “cowardly act” and an “atrocity”.

Pakistan said it had carried out a ground operation along the border and air strikes targeting militant hideouts in Afghanistan’s Paktia, Paktika and Kunar provinces. The two countries agreed to a ceasefire last October following weeks of deadly clashes – an agreement that has since fallen apart.

Casualties were concentrated in Mandokhail, a village in the Paktia province, according to Taliban officials.

Adam Khan, 63, told AFP news agency he “cannot put into words the condition of the children I saw at the hospital, or the screams of their parents and siblings”.

Those killed in one of the strikes included “children, elderly people and women” sleeping in a house, he said.

Afghanistan’s Taliban government put the civilian death toll at 36 and said more than 160 had been injured.

Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar said 29 militants had been killed in an operation responding to “recent terrorist attacks against innocent people”.

The BBC has not independently confirmed figures from either side.

The attacks come a day after three members of the Sindh Rangers, a Pakistani paramilitary force, were killed at their headquarters in Karachi, according to Pakistan’s military. Three militants also died in the suicide attack, and Pakistani officials said they had arrested a fourth, who was an Afghan.

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter faction of the TTP, claimed responsibility for Saturday’s attack.

Both the TTP, also known as the Pakistan Taliban, and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar are banned in Pakistan, and by the UN, because of their involvement in past attacks.

Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan of harbouring terror groups that carry out cross-border attacks, a claim the Taliban government rejects.

Kabul, in turn, has accused Islamabad of carrying out unprovoked attacks which kill civilians. Pakistan says it only targets militants.

Intermittent border clashes and air strikes in the border area have killed dozens of people in recent months, according to officials in both countries.

In February, clashes between the two countries left dozens of people dead. In March, a Pakistani strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul killed hundreds.

Earlier in June, Pakistan launched deadly air strikes that killed 26 militants. Afghanistan’s Taliban government said 13 people, mostly children, were also killed in the strikes.

The planned protests mark an unofficial deadline set by campaigners for all undocumented foreigners to leave the country.

Many have already fled to escape violence and intimidation. South African police say 25,000 have been repatriated so far. Most are from other African countries.

One undocumented Malawian told the BBC he was “happy to be going back” but “heartbroken” to be leaving behind four young children.

Johannesburg, where one of the protests is planned, is unusually quiet.

All the shops in the vicinity of where marchers are due to gather are closed, while police visibility is high on the city’s major streets.

Police said that five people were arrested in Johannesburg’s biggest township, Soweto, for allegedly looting a foreign-owned shop.

Five people were also arrested for allegedly breaking into a tuck shop in Hammarsdale in KwaZulu-Natal province.

Many businesses in central Durban, the main city in the province, are shut.

Ramaphosa has repeatedly warned demonstrators to act peacefully and responsibly, while also accepting the need for immigration reforms.

“Some foreign nationals who live in South Africa are here lawfully,” he reminded citizens in his weekly newsletter.

“They work, study, raise families, invest in our economy and contribute positively to our society. They too are entitled to the protection of our laws and our Constitution.

“The right to protest and freedom of expression does not allow people to threaten or intimidate others, or to engage in acts of vandalism or violence,” he wrote.

There are more than three million documented foreign nationals in South Africa, according to official figures.

The statistics do not record the many more migrants believed to be in the country without papers – a bone of contention for the protesters.

A Soweto resident told the BBC that protesters merely wanted foreigners “to comply” with the laws of South Africa.

She said she had no fears of the march in Johannesburg turning violent because the heavy police presence.

Another protester, who is part of anti-migrant group Operation Dudula, said they would “push the police to do their” job if undocumented migrants did not leave South Africa.

Ahead of the deadline, thousands of migrants have been awaiting processing in temporary camps for several weeks out of fear for their safety.

In Durban, which has seen some of the biggest protests, white tents housing mostly Malawians are being dismantled as authorities race to clear the transit camp.

Women in colourful sarongs sat on top of their belongings, waiting in line to board a bus home to Malawi.

One man, Nelson Mbewe, said he had gone to South Africa in search of employment to support his family in Malawi.

“But we’ve faced challenges – they’re saying we should go back home because we do not have the right documents,” he told the BBC.

“They say we are Makwerekwere” – a xenophobic slur used to refer to African migrants from other countries – Mbewe said.

“It’s their country, so what can we do? That’s why we have accepted that we just have to [unwillingly] go back home.”

Hassan Phiri, a Malawian who is still waiting to be processed, had a message for the protesters.

“All I want to say to South Africans is that we are all one. No matter what is happening, no matter what will happen, Africa must remain Africa.

“Africa can’t be Africa without South Africa… without Malawi, without anywhere,” he told the BBC, adding: “So whatever will happen, we must love each other and stick together as Africa.”

Anti-migrant marches have been authorised for Tuesday in Durban, Johannesburg and other cities.

The authorities have warned organisers to ensure there is no violence but say they are prepared for any potential disruption.

The police say traditional weapons are not allowed. This could lead to tension between protesters and the police because many of the protesters are ethnic Zulus, and take their shields, whips and sticks when they go on marches.

According to the government, more than 12,000 immigrants have been deported or repatriated since a wave of protests began earlier this year.

Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria and Zimbabwe have been organising repatriations by air or bus over the last few weeks – with about 3,500 foreigners volunteering to leave.

South African authorities claim more than 500 Nigerians repatriated did not have correct papers, which Nigeria has disputed.

Xenophobia has long been an issue in South Africa, and has sometimes lead to violence.

According to the African Centre for Migration and Society’s (ACMS) xenophobic violence tracker Xenowatch, two people have been killed this year.

In 2008, more than 60 people died during a wave of rioting against non-South Africans.

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In a public advisory issued through a video message, Ghana’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Benjamin Quashie, assured Ghanaians that the Mission, working together with the Government of Ghana, has put in place measures to safeguard their safety.

He said the High Commission continues to monitor developments closely while coordinating efforts to protect Ghanaian citizens during this period of heightened tension.

Mr Quashie urged Ghanaians who have been accommodated in churches, hotels, and other designated shelters by the High Commission to remain at those locations until further notice.

He disclosed that the South African Police Service has been engaged to provide security at the various safe havens while arrangements are being finalised for another evacuation exercise.

“June 30 is the day of the said demonstration. We urge you all to stay indoors. Don’t open your shops and businesses. Those we have secured accommodation for in churches and hotels should remain there and not come out. The police will be there to protect you. We are set to undertake another repatriation,” he said.

The High Commissioner assured affected nationals that the government remains committed to assisting Ghanaians who wish to return home and called on them to remain calm and comply with the directives issued by the Mission.

“We will keep you posted on the dates and arrangements. I can assure you that this challenge will pass and we will overcome it as a people. Let us be law-abiding,” he added.

The advisory comes as June 30 marks the unofficial deadline reportedly set by some South African groups for undocumented foreign nationals to leave the country amid renewed xenophobic tensions and anti-immigrant protests.

The situation has heightened anxiety among migrant communities, leading thousands of foreign nationals to leave South Africa in recent weeks over fears of possible attacks.

The Government of Ghana has already repatriated hundreds of Ghanaians and has announced plans to undertake another evacuation exercise in the coming days for citizens who have registered to return home.

The military said troops rescued 10 students and ​teachers after tracking the attackers and engaging in a ​firefight, in which one soldier and one member ⁠of a paramilitary support force were killed.

Other students were still ​unaccounted for, and officials were trying to work out how ​many were missing, Borno police spokesperson Nahum Kenneth Daso said.

The attackers had fired sporadically as they charged into Government Day Secondary School in the ​town of Lassa in the morning, where students were taking national ​examinations usually sat by 16- and 17-year-olds, Daso said.

The military, police and ‌other security ⁠agencies were searching nearby forests to try to rescue the students, Daso said.

The 10 who were rescued were unharmed and receiving care, while efforts to find others still missing were ongoing, ​military spokesperson Captain ​Mohammed Goni ⁠said.

Nigeria is grappling with overlapping security crises that stretch far beyond the jihadist insurgency in the ​northeast, where Boko Haram and Islamic State ​West Africa ⁠Province (ISWAP) have waged a conflict for more than 15 years.

Borno is the epicentre of the Islamist insurgency, while other parts of ⁠Nigeria ​face mass kidnappings for ransom by ​armed gangs and recurring sectarian violence.

Several thousand citizens of other African countries have already left the country in recent weeks fearing violence.

One undocumented Malawian told the BBC he was “happy to be going back” but “heartbroken” to be leaving behind four young children.

As protests have ramped up in recent months, Ramaphosa has repeatedly warned demonstrators to act peacefully and responsibly, while also accepting the need for immigration reforms.

“Some foreign nationals who live in South Africa are here lawfully,” he reminded citizens in his weekly newsletter.

“They work, study, raise families, invest in our economy and contribute positively to our society. They too, are entitled to the protection of our laws and our Constitution.

“The right to protest and freedom of expression does not allow people to threaten or intimidate others, or to engage in acts of vandalism or violence,” he wrote.

There are more than three million documented foreign nationals in South Africa, according to official figures.

Ahead of the deadline, thousands of migrants have been awaiting processing in temporary camps for several weeks out of fear for their safety.

In Durban, which seen some of the biggest protests, white tents housing mostly Malawians are being dismantled as authorities race to clear the transit camp.

Women in colourful sarongs sat on top of their belongings, waiting in line to board a bus home to Malawi.

One man, Nelson Mbewe, said he had gone to South Africa in search of employment to support his family in Malawi.

“But we’ve faced challenges – they’re saying we should go back home because we do not have the right documents,” he told the BBC.

“They say we are Makwerekwere” – a xenophobic slur used to refer to African migrants from other countries, Mbewe said.

“It’s their country, so what can we do? That’s why we have accepted that we just have to [unwillingly] go back home.”

Hassan Phiri, a Malawian who is still waiting to be processed, had a message for the protesters.

“All I want to say to South Africans is that we are all one. No matter what is happening, no matter what will happen, Africa must remain Africa.

“Africa can’t be Africa without South Africa… without Malawi, without anywhere,” he told the BBC, adding: “So whatever will happen, we must love each other and stick together as Africa.”

Anti-migrant marches have been authorised for Tuesday in Durban, Johannesburg and other cities.

The authorities have warned organisers to ensure there is no violence but say they are prepared for any potential disruption.

The police say traditional weapons are not allowed. This could lead to tension between protesters and the police because many of the protesters are ethnic Zulus, who always take their shields, whips and sticks when they go on marches.

According to the government, more than 12,000 immigrants have been deported or repatriated since a wave of protests began earlier this year.

Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria and Zimbabwe have been organising repatriations by air or bus over the last few weeks, with about 3,500 foreigners volunteering to leave.

South African authorities claim more than 500 Nigerians repatriated did not have the correct papers, which Nigeria has disputed.

Xenophobia has long been an issue in South Africa and has sometimes led to violence.

According to the African Centre for Migration and Society’s (ACMS) xenophobic violence tracker Xenowatch, two people have been killed this year.

In 2008, more than 60 people died during a wave of rioting against non-South Africans.

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• Gov’t prepares to evacuate about 900 Ghanaians from South Africa

• Thousands seek way out as South Africa braces for anti-immigrant protests

Adults with sufficient funds will be asked to pay off the sum over time under new rules in the upcoming Immigration and Asylum Bill, which will be put before Parliament on Tuesday.

It will apply to asylum seekers who have the right to work in the UK, and must be paid off before they can become eligible to settle here permanently.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the changes would demonstrate “asylum support is a right, but it is also a responsibility”.

She added: “Once people can contribute and repay the generosity of the British people, we expect them to do so.”

The plans will mean that migrants who work and earn a specific amount will be required to pay back a flat-rate sum, expected to be set at £10,000.

The Home Office has not determined how much they would need to earn before making monthly instalments.

The Home Secretary would have the power to adjust the charge and the repayment thresholds in the future to ensure “they are both fair to the taxpayer and will not force any migrant into destitution”.

Those whose claims have been rejected will also have to repay the costs if their income exceeds the government threshold.

Around £4bn of taxpayers’ money was spent on supporting asylum seekers last year, according to the Home Office.

The average cost of housing an asylum seeker for one night in publicly-owned accommodation is £23.25, and £144 in a hotel – while subsistence payments range from £9.95 to £49.18 for each person per week.

The Refugee Council said the “unfair, impractical” plans amounted to an “extra tax on refugees”, and would make it “harder for families to rebuild their lives and stand on their own feet”.

Its director of external affairs Imran Hussain said: “The reason why many need asylum support is because the Home Office itself bans asylum seekers from working while their claims are being assessed.

“Asylum support is only given to people who are at risk of being destitute, so this new financial burden would only harm those who arrive on our shores with nothing.”

The University of Oxford’s Migration Observatory questioned how much money the government would actually be able to recoup through the system, pointing to the low rates of employment and earning among refugees.

Dr Madeleine Sumption said: “In 2023, for example, an estimated 13% of people granted refugee status five years earlier were earning at least £20,000, with the rest either not working or on lower earnings.

“The data suggests that unless thresholds were significantly below the minimum wage, a relatively small share of people granted asylum would earn enough to make contributions to the scheme.”

According to the Home Office, a quarter of 16 to 64-year-olds granted asylum between 2015 and 2023 were in employment within the same calendar.

That number rose to 50% two years after refugee status was granted.

Of those who were in employment eight years after receiving refugee status, 37% had been in full-time work with median earnings of £23,000, with just 40% earning more than the minimum wage.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said Labour had “adopted yet another” Conservative policy, adding: “This precise scheme was proposed by us in an amendment to the Immigration Bill last year, which Labour blocked.”

Ministers hope the Immigration and Asylum Bill will bring into force proposals that will create a firm but fair asylum system, and which will reduce the pull factors driving illegal migration.

However, parts of the bill are expected to draw opposition from some Labour MPs opposed to some of the strictest measures it will contain.

Last week, the Home Office revealed it was planning to use more former military barracks to house thousands of asylum seekers after closing 20 more hotels in England.

It also said the new the immigration law would include plans for new “capped safe and legal” routes to the UK for refugees, which would involve organisations like universities, community groups and businesses sponsoring a person to reduce costs for the taxpayer.

It comes after several attacks in and around the Strait of Hormuz, culminating in both nations accusing each other of violating the ceasefire.

The official confirmed to the BBC’s US partner CBS News that vessels will now be able to move through the waterway “freely”, and added that renewed talks aimed at ending the war will continue.

Iran has not commented on the reports that it has agreed to halt strikes in the strait.

On 17 June, the US and Iran signed a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which included an “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts”.

As part of the MoU, Iran had agreed to use its “best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels with no charge for 60 days”.

But the ceasefire agreed less than two weeks ago has been under threat in recent days because of renewed attacks by both sides.

Strikes kicked off once more on Thursday after an Iranian projectile hit a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz.

Over the weekend, the US retaliated with a series of strikes on Iran, hitting multiple targets in what US Central Command (Centcom) called a direct response to the “continued aggression” against commercial shipping.

On Saturday, Iran responded with strikes on US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain. The US has said none of these attacks reached their targets, and there were no casualties or damage.

The Strait of Hormuz is a key waterway for oil and gas shipments, and was effectively closed by Tehran after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran at the end of February.

On Friday, the US also mediated the signing of a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon aimed at paving the way to a lasting peace.

Due to ongoing fighting between Israeli forces and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, that ceasefire also looked shaky.

The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group has rejected the agreement and accused the Beirut government of undermining Lebanon’s sovereignty.

On Sunday, two days after the agreement was signed, the Israeli army said it had struck a 200-metre-long tunnel used by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, which it said contained hundreds of weapons.

The US was informed ahead of the attack, according to a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz.

Tehran says hostilities in Lebanon must stop for a wider ceasefire deal to stick.

She stated this while discussing privacy and boundaries in marriage on the ‘Thanks For Coming’ podcast.

Emphasising how she values privacy and boundaries, the actress noted that her earnings are off-limits in her relationships, and she does not expect him to discuss his either.

While insisting that she sees no reason for financial disclosures between couples, she revealed that, unlike other young ladies, she has never daydreamed about getting married.

“Tell a man how much I earn, for what? I can never. And I don’t want him to discuss his earnings with me either. I don’t want to know how much he is earning. I’ve no problem with him going through my phone, but for what?

“I would never ask to check his phone. You know, when young girls sit down and daydream about getting married, I have never done that. All I daydream about is working, making money and being independent,” she said.

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Ambassador Benjamin Quashie disclosed that the evacuation is being coordinated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Office of the President to ensure the safe return of citizens who have voluntarily asked to come home.

Speaking on Accra-based Citi FM, Ambassador Quashie explained that the move is aimed at protecting Ghanaians amid rising xenophobic tensions in South Africa.

“We’re looking at very close to 900 people who have written their names and want to return. We’ve already repatriated 938 people, and adding another 900 will bring the exercise to a finality for those who have voluntarily requested to return home,” he said.

He added that some of those waiting to be evacuated have already been housed in secure locations, with the South African police informed for their protection.

“We’ve housed some of them and officially informed the police of their whereabouts, requesting protection for those locations despite the heightened tensions in the country,” Ambassador Quashie said.

The Ambassador expressed confidence that the evacuation would be completed safely with support from both South African security agencies and Ghanaian authorities.

The development comes as fears grow over the planned anti-immigration protests, prompting the Ghanaian government to take proactive steps to safeguard its nationals.

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• MTN Chairman blames state failure for rising anti-foreigner sentiment in South Africa

• Gov’t working to evacuate more Ghanaians from South Africa before June 30 – High…

Zafar Mawani and Guillermo Ortiz disappeared on May 20, after leaving their home in Mexico City to buy a chairlift for Mawani’s ailing mother, NBC Chicago, ABC7 Chicago and Mexican news outlet Infobae reported. The couple moved to Mexico City in October. 

The sellers allegedly asked Mawani and Ortiz, both 56, to come to Mawani’s mother’s home, where they were installing the chairlift, to complete the purchase. The couple sent their real-time location to a friend before losing contact, according to the outlets. 

Mawani and Ortiz disappeared south of Mexico City, about 31 miles east of the mountains of La Marquesa National Park, per NBC Chicago, citing authorities’ missing persons flyers.

On June 17, the authorities located the bodies of Mawani and Ortiz in a mass grave of four people in a wooded area at a property in La Marquesa, in Ocoyoacac, on the outskirts of Mexico City, per Infobae. A human limb was reportedly also found nearby. 

Mawani’s family identified the couple as two of the victims on Wednesday, June 24, the Associated Press and ABC7 Chicago reported. A family friend also confirmed the couple’s death on GoFundMe.

“We are aware of reports circulating regarding Zafar and Guillermo,” a spokesperson for the family said in a statement to ABC7. “We are in direct contact with authorities to confirm accurate information. We ask for patience and privacy for the family during this time.”

The other victims are believed to be a married couple, aged 56 and 38, per Infobae. They have not been publicly identified at this time. 

Five people were arrested in connection with the four bodies found, including former police officer, Yesenia V., the alleged leader of a kidnapping and robbery gang. The four other suspects were allegedly found carrying ammunition, narcotics and a black suitcase, per Infobae.

Gabriel M. and Roberick, both of Venezuelan origin, were also reportedly arrested in connection with the couple’s disappearance and murder.

DNA tests are being conducted to identify all four bodies, Infobae reported, citing the city’s Attorney General’s Office. Authorities have not publicly confirmed any of the victims’ identities at this time. 

The Attorney General’s Office of Mexico City, Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Missing Persons, the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection and the State of Mexico Attorney General’s Office assisted in the search, per Infobae. 

PEOPLE has reached out to Mexico City’s Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City for comment.

Residents and volunteers in La Guaira, a popular destination for beachgoers where at least 100 ‌buildings, many residential high-rises, were destroyed or damaged, have for days decried shortages of heavy equipment and a limited official presence.

Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez said in an overnight address on state television that 10 more countries were still to join rescue efforts and 14,000 military and police members were in La Guaira to patrol and take sanitary measures.

“In recent hours, Venezuela ​has received 17 flights carrying more than 1,600 members of rescue teams, and over the next 24 hours, the arrival of 25 additional flights ​is expected,” said foreign ministry official Oliver Blanco.

“We thank the international community for its support and solidarity during these moments ⁠of uncertainty for Venezuelans,” Blanco added on X in the early hours of Saturday.

Rescuers have been making their way to sites around La Guaira state and Venezuela’s ​capital Caracas, although on Friday some areas were still largely without an official presence as families and neighbours struggled to find missing loved ones in the rubble, sometimes ​digging with their hands.

Officials closed the road between La Guaira and nearby Caracas on Friday evening, saying heavy traffic was preventing quick passage of emergency vehicles and official rescuers.

Civilians who are not part of official rescue teams will need a credential to pass the roadblock and Reuters witnesses were prevented from using the main road on Saturday morning by police, while an ​older secondary road was choked with traffic.

The government had previously thanked civilians who brought aid, often by motorcycle, to desperate residents. Venezuelan state television showed images ​of thousands of pairs of shoes, clothing and other aid being collected by the government.

While the power remained out near the quakes’ epicenter in Moron on Friday, as well as ‌fully down ⁠in La Guaira, it was being restored in other places, with Rodriguez saying that 60% of electricity had now been restored.

Venezuela’s power grid, crippled by years of underinvestment and economic sanctions, regularly experiences problems, leading to daily, hours-long blackouts in some regions.

54,000 MISSING

Although the government has said hundreds are missing or trapped, more than 54,000 people are listed as unaccounted for on a website promoted by the country’s opposition.

The U.S. Geological Survey estimated more than 10,000 deaths were possible from the magnitude 7.2 and ​7.5 quakes, which would place them among

Nearly ⁠7 million people could be affected, the U.N. said, estimating direct damage at about $6.7 billion.

The disaster could have for Rodriguez, who has tried to portray herself as an agent of change even though she served as vice president to Nicolas ​Maduro, who was ousted and arrested by the U.S. in January.

Rodriguez spoke by phone with President Donald Trump and ​Secretary of State Marco ⁠Rubio on Friday after meeting with the U.S. military’s Northern Command and disaster experts.

The U.S. said it was mobilizing $150 million in aid and easing sanctions, while its military dispatched two ships and said helicopters and aircraft would support rescue efforts.

Among the rescue teams working in La Guaira are a team from El Salvador, whose President Nayib Bukele ⁠has hailed ​multiple rescues on his X account, including of a 15-year-old girl.

Looting has taken place at several ​sites in La Guaira, Reuters witnesses said.

Venezuela’s oil production was not affected by the quakes, Oil Minister Paula Henao said on Friday, adding that fuel distribution would be guaranteed.

Oil executives and workers said ​the sector had .

Speaking during the funeral service of Zimbabwean-born activist and public servant Thokozani Damasane, Jonas said foreign nationals had become convenient scapegoats for problems rooted in state failure, warning that such narratives threaten South Africa’s future and its relationship with the rest of the African continent.

Okay News reports that the speech has attracted widespread attention across South African civil society, with many describing it as one of the clearest interventions by a leading business executive on recurring xenophobic tensions that have periodically strained diplomatic and commercial ties across Africa.

Reflecting on Damasane’s life, Jonas challenged the notion that national identity should define belonging.

“I was thinking, what is home to Damasane?” he told mourners.

“Because I understand, and I understood very early in life, that home is where humanity is. Home is about humanness. It is about the good of humanity and striving for the good of humanity.”

Damasane, who was born and educated in Zimbabwe before relocating to South Africa after apartheid, dedicated much of his career to public service and civic engagement in his adopted country.

Jonas praised his commitment to South Africa despite arriving as an outsider.

“He immersed himself deeply into the struggles, into the pains of South Africans, and he became one of us,” Jonas said.

“In Damasane’s strength, our strength as South Africa and South Africans is reflected. And in his weaknesses, our own weaknesses are reflected.”

Turning to the country’s worsening anti-immigrant rhetoric, Jonas rejected claims that expelling foreign nationals would resolve South Africa’s socioeconomic problems.

“Foreigners can leave tomorrow, inequality will be with us,” he said.

“Foreigners will leave tomorrow, unemployment will be with us. Foreigners will leave tomorrow, our police will remain corrupt. Foreigners will leave tomorrow, our politicians will still be concerned with one thing: being elected and re-elected.”

According to Jonas, the real crisis lies in weak institutions rather than migration.

“The problem is the failure of the state. The state doesn’t manage immigration. It doesn’t manage its borders. It doesn’t enforce law enforcement. It doesn’t manage education. What are you expecting?”

He warned that these governance failures create opportunities for politicians to exploit public frustration.

“When people feel the burn, they become vulnerable to politicians whose sole purpose is to be elected and re-elected. Some of them have no credibility whatsoever. But they lead marches and tell our people that the problem is not us, it is foreigners.”

Jonas also challenged ethnic nationalism, describing tribal divisions as a colonial construct that continues to influence politics across Africa.

“The tribe is a product of colonial powers,” he said.

“You would notice that it is so dominant in areas where the English conquered, because they used something called the principle of indirect rule.”

He argued that the same mindset now fuels discrimination and violence.

“You would see in the streets, it’s no longer about whether you are from South Africa or not from South Africa. It’s about the tribe, it’s about who you are, you are not like us, and you are different, and therefore, we have to persecute you. Something fundamental has been lost in our country. Something fundamental has been lost in our nation.”

The MTN chairman further criticised liberation movements for sustaining ethnic divisions for political advantage.

“Liberation movements still sustain this thing of tribes, Zulu and Xhosa, and we sustain this thing as if it is real,” he said.

“It is in our heads. We’re creating it because it makes us feel big. Identity politics, we must banish them in our country. Ethno-nationalism is something that in this country we must banish.”

Jonas recounted a conversation Damasane once had with a young South African who questioned the presence of foreign nationals in the country.

“Damasane said to this guy: Just wait fifteen or twenty years. You will also want to leave your country.”

Jonas said those words have become increasingly relevant as many South Africans grapple with unemployment, corruption and inequality.

“As I stand up today, I look at South Africa. The level of oppression and inequality, the level of exclusion of our people, the level of corruption, the betrayal of the dream of liberation, those words of Damasane ring very loud in my ears.”

In his closing remarks, Jonas called for renewed African solidarity, saying South Africa’s prosperity is inseparable from that of the continent.

“We are a nation embedded in Africa. And without Africa, our growth as a country, economically, our fortune is intertwined with the growth of Africa. South Africa is nothing without Africa. And Africa is nothing without South Africa.”

He also urged Africans to reject prejudice based on nationality or ethnicity.

“We cannot judge people by their origin,” he said.

“We cannot determine the legal status of people by their origin.”

Jonas concluded by invoking anti-colonial thinker Frantz Fanon, comparing Damasane’s commitment to South Africa with Fanon’s dedication to Algeria despite being born elsewhere.

Quoting Fanon, he said: “Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it, or betray it.”

“Damasane understood the mission. And he did not betray it.”

In a statement, DR Congo said Rwanda had dispatched forces and backed armed groups to carry out unlawful military operations on its territory following the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

On Friday, Congolese Justice Minister Guillaume Andali said his country is seeking accountability for alleged breaches of conventions covering genocide prevention, racial discrimination, women’s rights and torture.

Rwanda has not yet responded to DR Congo’s filing, but it has long-dismissed evidence that it backs rebel groups in the country.

UN experts and Western governments are among various parties who say Rwanda is supporting the M23, a major armed group in DR Congo’s east.

The country’s application asks the ICJ, based in the Netherlands, to order Rwanda to cease its alleged crimes and award reparations to the Congolese authorities and its victims.

The ICJ will now examine the claims.

This is not the first time DR Congo has filed a case against Rwanda at the ICJ.

An initial case was dropped by the Congolese authorities in 2001. In 2006 the ICJ dismissed a second case, saying it could not proceed because Rwanda had not recognised its jurisdiction.

The decades-long conflict in DR Congo is rooted in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

About 800,000 people – mostly from the Tutsi community – were slaughtered by ethnic Hutu extremists.

Fearing reprisals, an estimated one million Hutus then fled across the border to what is now DR Congo. This stoked ethnic tensions as a marginalised Tutsi group in the east – the Banyamulenge – felt increasingly under threat.

Rwanda’s army twice invaded DR Congo, saying it was going after some of those responsible for the genocide, and worked with members of the Banyamulenge and other armed groups.

One of the Hutu groups, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which includes some of those responsible for the Rwandan genocide, is still active in eastern DR Congo.

Rwanda describes the FDLR as a “genocidal militia” and says its continued existence in eastern DR Congo threatens its own territory.

Rwanda accuses the Congolese authorities of working with the FDLR – DR Congo denies this.

The conflict flared last January, when the M23 captured large parts of the mineral-rich east, including the regional capital Goma.

The fighting has continued despite Rwanda and DR Congo signing a peace deal, spearheaded by the US, in December.

The palace, which has served as the official London residence of the UK sovereign since 1837, will continue to be the administrative headquarters of the monarchy, but the King has decided that nearby Clarence House will remain his official home.

The decision has been taken to allow greater public access to the landmark, officials said.

A 10-year refurbishment of Buckingham Palace – funded through a temporary increase in the Sovereign Grant, which pays for the official duties of the royals – is due to be completed in March.

Ageing cables, lead pipes, wiring and boilers are set to be replaced in the renovation – many for the first time in 60 years – following concerns about potential fire and water damage.

The King and Queen have lived together in Clarence House, which stands beside St James’s Palace and was once the Queen Mother’s home, since their marriage in 2005.

Now both in their late 70s, it is understood that neither wanted the upheaval of moving themselves and their staff across to Buckingham Palace.

There are also security concerns that were the King in residence at Buckingham Palace, this would limit the number of visitors as well as the areas they could view.

The landmark may now also be able to open for a longer period, generating more income. It currently opens its State Rooms to visitors each summer and on selected dates throughout the rest of the year, the proceeds of which go to the Royal Collection Trust, a charity responsible for the care and conservation of royal art.

The King will continue to host a range of events at the palace, from state banquets and garden parties to receptions and audiences with the prime minister and new ambassadors.

“His Majesty retains huge affection for Buckingham Palace and a deep respect for its role in royal and public life,” said a palace spokesperson. “It will be a buzzing hive of royal activity in every other way.”

Norman Baker, former Lib Dem Home Office minister and a critic of royal funding, told the BBC that Buckingham Palace visitor ticket sales should instead go to the Treasury.

“They bring in millions every year, so what should happen is if they’re not living in Buckingham Palace, [they] should open it to the public and all the money from visitors 12 months of the year should go to the Treasury to help pay for refurbishment,” he said.

When the King is in London his Royal Standard flies from both Buckingham Palace and Clarence House.

James Chalmers, keeper of the Privy Purse, said under the plans, the King and Queen would “have access to private rooms within the palace where they can retire during the course of a working day, and which could be utilised as potential residential accommodation in times ahead”.

He added: “This is both a change from the past and a recognition of the future. Let me be clear, however, that in all other ways Buckingham Palace will continue to be both the ceremonial and operational centre of royal life.”

The announcement is contained in accounts that show the King has become the first monarch to release their tax payments. They show he was among the UK’s top 100 taxpayers in 2024-25, paying £12.9m for the period as well as £11.7m in 2023-24.

The accounts also show a boost in the Sovereign Grant, which provides state funding for the monarchy. A temporary uplift to the core amount of the Sovereign Grant was put in place from 2017 to pay for the overhaul of Buckingham Palace.

As the refurbishments come to an end, the overall level of the grant will fall from £137.9m to £99.9m in 2027-28. But the new figure will be almost double the core grant of £51.8m in 2024-25, and above the core grant of £72.1m in 2025-26.

The uplift will help pay for a backlog in maintenance at occupied royal palaces, strengthen cyber security at royal residences and for the installation of energy-efficient heating systems

Some £11m has also been set aside to replace boilers nearing the end of their life at Windsor Castle.

Not since the reign of Queen Victoria has a monarch chosen to live away from Buckingham Palace.

She was the first monarch to use Buckingham Palace as the official seat of court, and after marrying Prince Albert, she transformed the 775-room building to accommodate their family, entertain guests and conduct official business.

Following her husband’s death, though, Queen Victoria was absent from Buckingham Palace for long periods of time.

The palace was also closely associated with Queen Elizabeth II, who gave birth to then-Prince Charles and Prince Andrew there and had an apartment in the residence.

US Central Command said it had struck missile and drone storage facilities and coastal radar positions on Friday, in response to a drone attack on a cargo ship on Thursday which halted a planned evacuation of sailors stuck in the region.

Tehran said the cargo ship was attacked because it was using an unauthorised route to transit through the Gulf waterway.

After the US strikes, Iran in turn accused the US of violating their interim deal and said it had struck targets linked to American forces.

US Central Command – or Centcom – described the American strikes as “a powerful response” to the drone attack a day earlier.

“The unwarranted aggression against commercial shipping by Iranian forces clearly violated the ceasefire,” it said in a statement.

“Furthermore, Iran’s dangerous behaviour undermined freedom of navigation as commerce increasingly flows through the vital international trade corridor.”

Centcom said the US military would “continue to provide safe passage coordination and support to commercial vessels transiting the strait”.

Iran’s foreign ministry released a statement on Saturday morning, saying the country had carried out strikes against targets linked to American forces in response, and blamed the “treaty-breaking US regime” for the situation.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its navy had struck US military positions in the region, without providing further details. The BBC contacted the Pentagon for comment.

“If the aggression is repeated our response will be more extensive than this,” the IRGC added.

Tehran effectively closed the strait after US and Israeli attacks against Iran began at the end of February.

The shutdown of the critical waterway for oil and gas shipments caused a spike in global oil prices and choked off shipments of other crucial commodities such as fertiliser.

The US and Iran agreed on 17 June to end hostilities under a 14-point memorandum of understanding, which had also called for Iran to use its “best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels with no charge for 60 days”.

In a post on X following the US retaliatory strikes, Vice-President JD Vance said that if Iran “has disagreements about how the MOU is being applied, they can pick up the phone”.

“But violence will be met with violence,” he added.

Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security commission, though, said on social media that the US had “attacked Iran in the middle of negotiations once again”.

He continued in his social media post: “This reckless violation of the ceasefire will, as always, lead to retreat and regret on their part. The blame game does not work anymore.”

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday afternoon, Trump refused to be drawn into questions on how the US might respond to the drone attack, or whether he viewed the ceasefire as still intact.

“You’ll find out,” he said. “I don’t like the fact that they took a shot yesterday. They shouldn’t be doing that.”

Asked why he believed Iran would conduct such an operation, Trump said only that “they’re a little bit different”.

In recent days, Trump and other US officials insisted negotiations with Iran were progressing well, saying Iran had given up any suggestion of tolling vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump said Iran had informed the US that there would be “no tolls, no insurance costs and no other charges of any kind being sought or received”.

“If this is false information, negotiations would end, immediately,” he added.

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The US has condemned reports that Iran is charging fees to tankers going through the strait, and many see any tolling system as breaking with international maritime law.

On Tuesday, Iranian and Omani officials held talks in Oman’s capital of Muscat to discuss “the future management of navigation”, although Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al-Busaidi said both countries were committed to “toll-free safe passage”.

However, Iran’s chief negotiator, Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, told state-affiliated news outlets that “everyone should know that the administration of the Strait of Hormuz will never go back to the way it was before the war.”

The cargo ship hit by a projectile on Thursday was the Ever Lovely, a Singapore-flagged vessel.

According to British maritime security agency UKMTO, the ship was struck 7.5 nautical miles south-east of Oman’s port of Dahit.

The Ever Lovely had been following the UKMTO’s recommended route through the strait when it was struck, the ship’s owner, Evergreen, said.

“All crew members remain safe as does the vessel itself and all cargo,” it added.

In response, the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) paused its planned evacuation of more than 11,000 sailors who have been stranded in the key shipping lane since the war erupted.

All had the same goal: to ‌leave South Africa before nationwide anti-immigrant protests on Tuesday, which many fear will descend into violence.

“We are scared because you never know what people are planning to do to you. It’s not right to wait and see what will happen,” Ebrahim Moosa, 37, said.

He was with his wife in a snaking line of people, some with babies on their ​backs, hoping to catch a bus to Malawi from Durban.

South Africa has been gripped by a wave of xenophobic protests and sometimes deadly ​attacks in recent weeks, forcing many foreigners to flee or be chased from their homes.

Anti-immigrant groups have set June ⁠30 as a deadline for all undocumented migrants to leave. Several cities are bracing for unrest, even as the government has pleaded with citizens ​not to take immigration enforcement into their own hands.

“We are appealing to all those who will be marching to respect the police,” said Phumelele Makoba, acting ​police commissioner for KwaZulu-Natal province, which is expected to be one of the hotspots.

Police have promised a massive deployment to ensure stability. President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday: “Our security forces are ready.”

March and March, the main organisation behind the protests, has said that it is not calling for violence. But it has added it will not take ​responsibility for anything bad that happens on June 30.

COUNTRIES STRUGGLE TO BUS EVERYONE HOME

Xenophobic violence is a recurring issue in South Africa, where some blame ​immigrants — mostly from other African countries — for everything from crime and unemployment to crowded public health facilities.

Ramaphosa has warned citizens not to make foreigners scapegoats for these problems, which ‌he attributed ⁠mainly to the legacy of apartheid.

South Africa remains deeply unequal, and economic growth has been sluggish for years. But it still has the largest economy in Africa and draws job seekers from neighbouring countries.

Mozambican Antonio Njive, who had done odd jobs in South Africa since 2019, left on June 1 after his house was burned down in a spate of violence that killed five of his compatriots.

“I left home without clothes. Everything was burned,” he said by ​phone from Chibuto, Mozambique.

Njive, his wife ​and 6-year-old daughter were among hundreds ⁠of citizens whom Mozambique repatriated by bus. Malawi and Zimbabwe are doing the same, but have struggled to keep up with demand.

“We are sleeping outside waiting for buses. Everyone just wants to go home,” Amina Chiwoko, 30, said ​outside the Zimbabwean consulate in Cape Town.

ASYLUM SEEKERS HAVE NOWHERE TO GO

Many foreigners have nowhere safe to go.

Leanne ​Sefu, 25, is ⁠an asylum seeker from Democratic Republic of Congo who came to South Africa at the age of three.

“The entire world knows that there’s a war in Congo, so me going back, it feels like going back to death,” she said.

After being attacked at the nail salon where she worked in Durban and chased ⁠from her ​home, she is now camping outside the Home Affairs office.

“What I’m hoping is that maybe ​the government can help us find a shelter. From yesterday we’ve been hearing people are being attacked and they’re coming here,” she said, sitting on a mattress on the pavement with ​dozens of people.

“There’s no safety here.”

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TikTok, developed by Chinese technology company ​ByteDance, has deactivated 4.1 million accounts, while Alphabet’s Google’s ​video platform YouTube has deactivated 600,000 accounts, Communications and ⁠Digital Minister Meutya Hafid said late on Thursday, adding that ​the ministry wanted others to follow.

Neither company responded immediately ​to a request for comment.

In March, Indonesia issued a regulation which requires social media companies with platforms it deems high risk to ​deactivate accounts belonging to children under 16, which have ​so far included X, Meta’s Instagram and videogame platform Roblox.

“We’re not just ‌delaying ⁠a child’s access, but we want behaviours from platforms to change, too,” Meutya said on Thursday, adding that the ministry is currently checking self-assessment reports by the companies.

Indonesia’s ​curbs, which the ​government says ⁠are intended to reduce the risk of cyberbullying and addiction, follow a ban in ​Australia last year over concerns about the ​potential harm social ⁠media poses to the mental health of young people.

Australia’s groundbreaking experiment is being closely watched, with countries around the world seeking to ⁠emulate ​it amid concerns about the mental ​and physical health of minors.
Britain announced this month that it planned wider restrictions that include gaming ​and live-streaming platforms.

The palace, which has served as the official London residence of the UK sovereign since 1837, will continue to be the administrative headquarters of the monarchy, but the King has decided that nearby Clarence House will remain his official home.

The decision has been taken to allow greater public access to the landmark, officials said.

A 10-year refurbishment of Buckingham Palace – funded through a temporary increase in the Sovereign Grant which pays for the official duties of the royals – is due to be completed in March.

Ageing cables, lead pipes, wiring and boilers are set to be replaced in the renovation, many for the first time in 60 years, after concerns about potential fire and water damage.

The King and Queen have lived together in Clarence House, which stands beside St James’s Palace and was once the Queen Mother’s home, since their marriage in 2005.

Now both in their late 70s, it is understood that neither wanted the upheaval of moving themselves and their staff across to Buckingham Palace.

There are also security concerns that if the King were in residence at Buckingham Palace, it would limit the number of visitors and the areas people could view.

The landmark may now also be able to open for longer, generating more income. It currently opens its State Rooms to visitors each summer and on selected dates throughout the rest of the year.

The King will continue to host a range of events at the palace, from state banquets and garden parties to receptions and audiences with the prime minister and new ambassadors.

“His Majesty retains huge affection for Buckingham Palace and a deep respect for its role in royal and public life,” said the palace spokesperson. “It will be a buzzing hive of royal activity in every other way”.

When the King is in London, his Royal Standard flies from both Buckingham Palace and Clarence House.

James Chalmers, keeper of the Privy Purse, said under the plans, the King and Queen would “have access to private rooms within the palace where they can retire during the course of a working day, and which could be utilised as potential residential accommodation in times ahead”.

He added: “This is both a change from the past and a recognition of the future. Let me be clear, however, that in all other ways Buckingham Palace will continue to be both the ceremonial and operational centre of royal life.”

The announcement is contained in accounts which show the King has become the first monarch to release their tax payments. They show he was among the UK’s top 100 taxpayers in 2024-25, paying £12.9m for the period as well as £11.7m in 2023-24.

The accounts also show a boost in the Sovereign Grant, which provides state funding for the monarchy. A temporary uplift to the core amount of the Sovereign Grant was put in place from 2017 to pay for the overhaul of Buckingham Palace.

As the refurbishments come to an end, the overall level of the grant will fall from £137.9m to £99.9m in 2027-28. But the new figure will be almost double the core grant of £51.8m in 2024-25, and above the core grant of £72.1m in 2025-26.

The uplift will help pay for a backlog in maintenance at occupied royal palaces, strengthen cyber security at royal residences, and for the installation of energy efficient heating systems

Some £11m has also been set aside to replace boilers nearing the end of their life at Windsor Castle.

Not since the reign of Queen Victoria has a monarch chosen to live away from Buckingham Palace.

Shewas the first monarch to use Buckingham Palace as the official seat of court, and after marrying Prince Albert transformed the 775-room building to accommodate their family, entertain guests and conduct official business.

Although following her husband’s death, Queen Victoria was absent from Buckingham Palace for long periods of time.

The palace was also closely associated with Queen Elizabeth II, who gave birth to then-Prince Charles and Prince Andrew at the palace, had an apartment in the residence.

The bulk of the funding – $67bn – is for the US Department of Defence, the White House said.

But the proposal faces an uphill battle in Congress. The Iran conflict is unpopular with voters ahead of the US midterm elections in November, though a ceasefire is currently in effect.

US President Donald Trump has also found himself at odds with some members of his Republican Party over the issue of Iran, and is alleged to have ended up in an angry exchange with one senator on Wednesday.

That senator, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, was one of a handful of Republicans who defied the president on Tuesday by voting to pass a measure demanding that he halt the war or seek congressional approval before continuing military action.

Cassidy fell back in line after his alleged sparring with the president, and after receiving assurances from members of Trump’s administration. He and others went on to vote down another similar measure in the Senate late on Wednesday.

The White House Office of Management and Budget sent the formal request for the funds on Wednesday in a letter to House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson.

“Most of this request will address urgent needs related to Operation Epic Fury (OEF),” says the letter, referring to the Iran war.

The request includes $21bn for munitions, $17.3bn for operational costs and $12.1bn for classified programmes. It also asks for about $300m to bolster security at US embassies and diplomatic outposts in the Middle East and South Asia after some of them came under attack earlier in the war.

The other requested money would be for unrelated measures, including $11bn for US farmers and $1.4bn to tackle the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa.

Washington and Tehran are currently observing a ceasefire in the war, but the White House budget office letter notes that the Pentagon needs to “rebuild stocks” after its military strikes.

A peace plan was last week agreed between Trump and Iran, but dissident voices within the Republican Party have voiced scepticism about it.

The meeting between the president and senators on Wednesday was said to have been tense after Trump abruptly called off a signing ceremony for a housing bill that had bipartisan support.

At the lunch on Capitol Hill, Trump went on to complain about the measure that was passed the previous evening, when the Republican-controlled Senate narrowly voted to call for a restriction on his war powers.

Despite being largely symbolic, the measure was the first resolution of its kind to clear Congress that demanded a president to end a military action.

Early on Wednesday, Trump described it as “poorly timed and meaningless”. On social media, he branded the four Republican senators who sided with opposition Democrats as “losers”. And in a meeting with Nato chief Mark Rutte, Trump said the group “want to lose the war because they’re stupid.”

Later, after the closed-door lunch, Cassidy gave journalists an account of what he alleged had been a shouting match with the president: “I stood and said, ‘You have not told the American people what’s going on.'”

Cassidy went on to say: “This was supposed to last four weeks, it’s lasted four months. Our original objectives have not been achieved.”

For his part, Trump told reporters: “I think we had a really great meeting.”

But by the end of Wednesday, Cassidy’s concerns appeared to have been assuaged, writing on X that he had received a “thorough briefing” from Vice-President JD Vance and Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy.

Later that day, the senator changed his vote to help defeat another war powers resolution in the Senate – a move that was welcomed by Trump.

Last month, the Pentagon’s chief financial officer Jules Hurst told a congressional panel the war had cost about $29bn so far.

But defence analysts and lawmakers say this estimate does not reflect the full scale of the conflict’s financial damage.

Global benchmark Brent crude briefly fell below $72.48 (£55) a barrel, the price it was at the day before the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on 28 February, before edging up to $73.23.

Energy prices have been on a wild ride since Iran responded to the strikes by effectively closing the strait, a critical waterway for oil and gas shipments.

The cost of crude has been moving sharply lower since the US and Iran signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 17 June, which set out a 60-day period for negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear programme and other measures to end the war.

However, Pratibha Thaker, regional director for the Middle East and Africa at the Economist Intelligence Unit, said that although oil prices have fallen back to pre-conflict levels, risks remain.

“Markets are still watching the region closely, and any renewed tensions could quickly send oil higher again,” she said.

More ships crossing the Strait

Representatives from the two sides met in Switzerland last weekend for talks to end the war, which resulted in the US partially lifting sanctions on Iranian oil exports.

The number of vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz has risen significantly since the MOU was signed, according to maritime intelligence firm Kpler.

Its latest data suggests 284 vessels have made the transit from 18 June, the day after the deal was signed, although that is is still well below the pre-conflict average of some 138 crossings each day.

The ships passing through the waterway in recent days include those carrying crude oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG), fertiliser and other goods, Kpler told the BBC.

The US and Iran had also formed a “communication line” to prevent misunderstandings “with the aim of safe passage for commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz”, mediators Qatar and Pakistan said in a joint statement on Monday.

There has been a “tremendous shift” with far more ships using the strait in recent days, said Dimitris Maniatis, the chief executive of Marisks, a maritime risk advisory firm working with ships stuck in the region.

A limited number of ships can cross a northern passageway with the permission of Iranian authorities, he said.

The US Navy has also provided guidance for vessels to travel through a southern route that is safe from mines and other obstacles that have been laid out since the war, Maniatis said.

But the number of ships crossing the strait is still below the levels seen before the war, when more than 100 ships a day used it.

Hundreds of ships still appear to be waiting in the Gulf.

Fuel prices at the pump rose sharply when the Iran war began, and now the focus is on how quickly they will fall.

“On the back of the lowest oil price since before the Iran war started, drivers should see the average price of petrol fall below 150p [a litre] in the next week or so,” said Simon Williams, head of policy at UK motoring group the RAC. He added the price of diesel “ought to go back under 160p.

Petrol peaked at 159.53p a litre on 28 May, according to the RAC, while diesel has fallen from a high of 191.54p on 15 April.

The average price of regular gasoline in the US has dropped to around $3.93 a gallon after reaching $4 a gallon in April, its highest since 2022, but is still well above pre-war levels.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered an investigation into major energy companies, accusing Shell, ExxonMobil and other firms of “gouging” drivers by not reducing fuel prices even as oil costs fell.

“Oil prices have come down so much and we are not seeing anything at the pump by comparison the way they should be,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents the oil and gas industry in the US, said fuel prices “don’t move in lockstep with crude oil”.

British energy firms have faced similar accusations of unfairly hiking petrol prices since the Iran war.

The UK competition watchdog said last month that there was no widespread evidence of this, adding that average profit margins were “broadly unchanged” between February and March.