Iran's Presidential Candidates Clash Over Nuclear Approach

A former Iranian nuclear negotiator running for president used his first television appearance of the campaign to reject accusations he had been too soft in talks with world powers.

The most prominent moderate candidate in an election dominated by hardliners, cleric Hassan Rohani, nuclear negotiator from 2003 to 2005, oversaw an agreement to suspend Iran's fledgling uranium enrichment-related activities, reports Reuters.

Iran has since stepped up its nuclear program which many countries, particularly in the West, fear is aimed at acquiring a weapons capability, something Tehran strongly denies.

Hardliners see the nuclear program as a matter of national pride and any concession to outside pressure an affront to Iran's sovereign rights. The current nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, is campaigning for president on his record of giving no ground in talks.

Western powers are watching the June 14 election to see whether President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's

Justice Rhodes-Vivour's Wife, Daughter Regains Freedom

The wife and daughter of Supreme Court Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour Tuesday regained their freedom from kidnappers’ den, 17 days after their abduction.

The duo, along with their driver, was kidnapped on May 10   between Ekiadolor and Okada on the Ore-Benin Expressway while they were travelling to prepare for the daughter’s wedding

Student Bags 2yrs Inprisonment For Phone Theft

An Abeokuta Magistrates’ Court on Monday sentenced a 19-year-old student, Oluwaseyifunmi Jolaosho, to two years imprisonment for stealing a blackberry phone valued at N50,000. Jolaosho of no fixed address pleaded guilty to a one- count charge of stealing. The Prosecutor, Insp Augustine Ozimini, told the court that

UEFA CL FINALS: Nigerians Divided

As the world eagerly anticipates the much tallked about Uefa Champions League final between Borrussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, an all German encounter to be staged at the Wembley Stadium in England, Nigerians are not left out of the unending arguments of

Lampard Backs Terry To stay At Stamforde Bridge

Frank Lampard has backed John Terry to remain at Chelsea for the foreseeable future, despite the player's fitness being questioned ahead of entering the final year of his contract.

Lampard himself only recently signed a one-year contract extension to remain at Stamford Bridge, where he helped the team win a Champions League, four FA Cups and three Premier League titles.

Lampard told The Sun: "I know JT will want to stay, he's said he'd love to stay at Chelsea. He feels the same as me.

"Why play anywhere else when you love the club you're at? JT's the captain of the club and

Lewandowski: Ronaldo Can Keep His Golden Boot, I Want The Trophy

Borussia Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski has said that Cristiano Ronaldo can keep this season's Champions League golden boot as his sole focus is to get his hands on the trophy with a victory on Saturday.

The Poland international, who has been linked with a move to BVB's opponents at Wembley Bayern Munich this summer, is on 10 goals for the current campaign and a hat-trick would see him move

Troops Discover Revealing Documents On Boko Haram

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) yesterday said that troops on operations in the North-East have found revealing documents on the identities of some undisclosed persons connected with Boko Haram.

Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brigadier General Chris Olukolade, who made the disclosure while briefing journalists in Abuja, said that the documents would be

What Nigerians Don't Know About My Pardon- Alamieyeiseigha

When the Federal Government announced a state pardon for former Governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, this was greeted by wild condemnation, both within and outside the country.

However, speaking for the first time since then, Alamieyeseigha has stated that those who are criticising the action are ignorant of the internal workings of government.

Boko Haram Kills 3 In Maidugiri Fresh Attack

Three persons including a trader, his son and an attendant have been shot dead in Maiduguri by suspected members of the Boko Haram sect.

The incident occurred even as the state of emergency declared in the state and two others in the northeast entered its seventh day. Witnesses said the gunmen came to the trader’s shop

Sylva Seeks Court Leave To Accompany Wife On Medical Trip

Sylva, in his application filed on May 16, said his wife has been scheduledfor surgery in a United Kingdom hospital and requested the court to release his international passport to enable him embark on the trip. He, however, promised to return the passport to the custody of the court as well as return to the country

Jonathan'll Account For Our Women And Children Someday-NEF

Northern elders yesterday spurned the benevolence by President Goodluck Jonathan ordering the release of terror suspects from prisons across the region, saying he would at some point in time be made to account for the women and children seized by security agents based on unverified terrorism charges. The northern elders are miffed that the Federal Government under President Jonathan, allowed innocent women and children, who should be spared even in times of war, to be taken captive and incarcerated in dehumanising conditionsfor many months without trial. The elders, who spoke to Vanguard yesterday through their

Keshi- No Need To Panick Over Kenya

Coach Stephen Keshi has told Nigerians not to panic as the Super Eagles prepare for crucial 2014 World Cup qualifying games andthe FIFA Confederations Cup tournament - alltaking place in a number of weeks. A spate of injuries, first to Scotland-based midfielder Reuben Gabriel and ace forward Emmanuel Emenike, and lately to attacking midfielders Kalu Uche and Victor Moses, had caused anxiety in some quarters and is being hyper-ventilated in public spaces and a sectionof the media as 'problem in camp'. But Keshi, who steered less-endowed Togo to that country's only FIFA World

Bill Gates Takes Back Title Of World's Richest

Bill Gates is once again the world’s richest person, thanks in large part to a slide over the past few days in the price of Mexican stocks. Gates bumps Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim from his perch as world’s richest, a post Slim has held for the past four years. The swap happened at the end of the trading day on Monday, after America Movil shares dropped 0.24% from Friday’s closing price. That tiny shift–one quarter of one percent–dragged the biggest part of Slim’s fortune down by $82.7 million.

Tiwa Savage To Launch Album Listening Party

Talented vocalist and only female member of Mavin records, Tiwa Savage’s highly anticipated debut album, Once Upon A Time, will drop in June. Her exclusive album listening party will hold this Sunday May 26th at Wheat Baker in Ikoyi

Shettima hails Jonathan On Directive Setting Supected Boko Haram Members Free

Making his position known in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media, Alhaji Isa Umar Gusau, the Governor said: “I am in the picture of the very welcome development and I look forward to receiving them. It is cheering news for me and the government of Borno State because it will no doubt help in fast tracking the peaceful resolution process which like

Multiple Explosion Rock Niger Republic

Two explosions have occurred simultaneously at an Army Barracks and a company involved in uranium exploration in Agadez State of Niger Republic. The governor of Agadez state, Colonel Garba Maccido, confirmed the incident, which he described as the work of suicide bombers to the Hausa service of the BBC. Initial reports said only the suicide

Nassarawa Killings: Senior Director Arrested In Connection

Still trying to fish out the masterminds of themassacre of dozens of policemen and security agents in Alakyo in Nasarawa State about two weeks ago, security operatives have arrested a senior director working with the state government in connection with the killings. The officer was alleged to have passed strategic security tttinformation to the cultists thereby enabling them to strike with precision on the fateful day. Vanguard learnt from a reliable source that the director, whose name was given as Mohammed and works at the office of the Secretary to the State Government, was privy to most security decisions taken by the state on account of his position in the administration.

Dickson Alleges Plot To Distabilize Bayelsa

Bayelsa State governor, Mr Seriake Dickson, has raised alarm over alleged plot by some persons to destabilise the state. Already, security agencies, it was learnt, havebeen put on red alert in the coastal hinterland of the state, which are not accessible by road. Citing intelligence report at government disposal, the governor said part of the plan was to threaten the unity of Peoples Democratic Party

Erosion Destabilizes 2 Communites, Threatens Several More In Enugu

Residents of Odongbu-Amogbeke and Akponge-Amoju in Ezimo, Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State have been sacked by gully erosion, while seven other communities are being threatened by the menace. Conducting members of the Enugu State Assembly Committee on Environment round the devastation site, Deputy Chairman of thecouncil, Mr Natty Eze

Insurgents Fight With Libyan Weapons

The troops deployed to flush out Boko Haram insurgents from Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, yesterday, encountered intense resistance from sect members who werearmed with sophisticated weapons fromLibya. This came as the National Assembly, yesterday, endorsed the proclamation of a state of emergency in the three states by President Goodluck Jonathan. A senior military official told

Nigerian Senate Backs Emergency Rule

Against all expectations, the Nigerian Senate Tuesday,unanimously backed the state of emergency slammed on Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states last week, by President Goodluck Jonathan, following what was seen as ceaseless and senseless killings of people in the affected states by Boko Haram Islamist group. The upper legislative chamber had slated today, as a day for deliberation and subsequen

Balarabe Musa: Nigeria Should Revert To Regionalism

The failure of the government to fully implement the Ibrahim Dasuki report onlocal government system has made it difficultfor operators to enjoy autonomy, Alhaji Balarabe Musa has said. Musa, the National Chairman, Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), made this known on Tuesday in a telephone interview in Abuja. He said that the Dasuki report

Student Leader, School Denies Death Of Student During Protest

The Olabisi Onabanjo University in Ogun State has denied that any student was killed when armed policemen dispersed hundreds of protesting students on Monday. The students were protesting the decision of the university to prevent students who had not paid their fees from writing examinations scheduled to commence on Monday. There had been some online reports that two students were killed by

MASSOB Threatens Showdown With SSS Over Detained Leader

THE Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, has threatened a showdown with the State Security Services, SSS, if its regional leader forAwka North, Mr. Tony Nwodo, was not freed within 48 hours. As a result, the movement has given the SSS 48 hour

ERA Raises Concer Over Dumping Of Wastes In Bayelsa Waters

Environment Rights Action, ERA, has expressed concern over what it described as the indiscriminate dumpingof sewage/toxic chemicals in swamps and rivers in Opolo-Epie, Yenagoa Local Government Area, Bayelsa State. The development, ERA lamented, does not only pose grave health danger to theresidents, who rely on the rivers for drinking and other domestic uses, but also aggravate the woes of the already fragile environment. EAR Field Officer in Bayelsa State, Mr. Alagoa Morri, in a report, weekend, said: “The environment is under increasing threat from uncontrolled exploitation of our natural resources

4 dead, 10 injured As Youths Clash In Anambra

No fewer than four persons were feared dead, yesterday, while 10 others sustained various degrees of injury when two rival youth groups suspected to have come from Ogbaru Area Council of Anambra State engaged themselves in a bloody clash. The face-off, according to the source, was over the control and ownership of a motor park known as Aba Park located in the heart of Upper Iweka in the commercial city of Onitsha, along the ever-busy Onitsha-Owerri Road. Also, property worth millions of naira, including vehicles and shops,

120 Insurgents Apprehended At Boko Haram Commanders Burial

The curfew imposed on Yobe and Borno states were relaxed, yesterday, just as the military made progress in the campaign against the Boko Haram insurgency in the two states. Yesterday, the military announced the arrest of 120 militants at a funeral ceremony for one of the commanders of the Boko Haram killed during a confrontation with the military. Many other militants were reported to be fleeing towards the eastern parts of Niger and Chad

Over 2000 Nigerians Have Fled To Niger

Over 2000 Nigerians have fled the Nigerian State of Borno following the clash between Boko Haram and Nigerian troops in Abadam local government area of Borno North Senatorial District. A journalist travelling in the Nigerian-Niger Republic border confirmed to SaharaReporters that between Saturday evening and Sunday over 2000 locals from villages in and around Abadam local government area have been fled their homes and crossed over into Niger Republic. The journalist, who did not want to be identified, said that the locals, hearing the strange sounds of weapons and bombs being exchanged decided to leave

Four Church Goers Die At Church Service

Four Ghanaian churchgoers were killed in a stampede today at Pastor TB Joshua's church service in Accra, Ghana as worshippers scrambled for "Holy Water." Police sources in Accra stated that the four dead persons comprised three females and a young boy. Thirteen others were also injured. The controversial Nigeria-born priest is the founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN),

Garri Price Rises with 50 Percent

The price of gari has recorded more than 50 per cent increasein Eket area of Akwa Ibom, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports. Other items that also went up in the area, survey revealed, were the prices ofother foodstuffs, including rice and fish. The survey showed that a cup of gari, which sold at N30 between February and April, now sells at N70, while the cost of six cups of the commodity has risen from N100 to N200 at various markets in Eket and its environ. Similarly, the current price of a bag of thestaple food item is N14,000 as against N8,500 sold between February and April. At the Udua Nka Market in the Afaha Nsit area of Eket, the price of a 50 kilogram bag of rice has increased from between N8,000 and N9,000 to N13,000 and N14,000, depending on the brand. A food vendor in the community, Mrs Bassey Peter, lamented the development, saying “the way things are going now shows that hard times await ordinary citizens.” Peter said that the traffic of buyers of foodstuffs to her shop had reduced since prices of some of the items increased, adding that business was low. She said that although some people could still afford gari, very many were beginning to stay away from the consumption of rice. “It is only the rich people that eat rice now unlike before when everyone was managing to buy the commodity,” she added. The prices of fish, yam, tomatoes and palm oil had also increased. Mrs Ekama Asuquo, another dealer in food items at the Udua Nka Market, attributed the increase to the 2012 floodwhich ravaged many communities in thestate. Asuquo, who said that the high prices also affected yams, tomatoes and palm oil, added that the flood had destroyed many farmlands in the area. She said that another factor that contributed to the price hike in gari was that the alternative use of cassava for producing flour for baking. She urged the Federal Government to stop the exportation of cassava to other countries, saying it was affecting local availability of gari. A rice seller, Mr Bernard Samson, said that the high cost and scarcity of the product would persist unless the state government did something urgently to address food insecurity. (NAN)