News Desk

BREAKINGBREAKING,

Truce will also include swap of 1,000 prisoners of war from each country, US president says.

⁠United States ⁠President Donald Trump ⁠says ‌there will be a three-day ceasefire in ⁠the war between ⁠Russia and ⁠Ukraine.

Posting on Truth Social on Friday, the US leader said the truce would last from ⁠Saturday to Monday.

“I am pleased to announce that there will be a THREE DAY CEASEFIRE (May 9th, 10th, and 11th) in the War between Russia and Ukraine,” Trump posted.

“The Celebration in Russia is for Victory Day but, likewise, in Ukraine, because they were also a big part and factor of World War II. This Ceasefire will include a suspension of all kinetic activity, and also a prison swap of 1,000 prisoners from each Country,” he added.

Russia had previously announced a two-day unilateral ceasefire to mark its May 9 World War II Victory Day on Saturday.

Ukraine previously stated that it too had offered a truce but that this had been ignored by Moscow.

“This request was made directly by me,” Trump said on Friday, thanking his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy for agreeing to it.

“Talks are continuing” on ending the war, Trump said, adding that “we are getting closer and closer every day”.

“Hopefully, it is the beginning of the end of a very long, deadly, and hard fought War.”

More to come…

Prosecutors charge Florida served as central hub in 2021 assassination of Moise, which sparked ongoing political crisis.

Four people have been convicted in the United States in connection with the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise.

Arcangel Pretel Ortiz, Antonio Intriago, Walter Veintemilla and James Solages were found guilty on Friday of conspiring to kill or kidnap Moise, whose assassination left a political vacuum in the Caribbean nation that has compounded overlapping security and humanitarian crises.

They were also convicted of providing material support for the plot in violation of US law. All four face possible life sentences.

US prosecutors have said that the south of Florida, the closest US state to Haiti, served as a central hub for planning and funding Moise’s assassination.

During the trial, which began nearly two months ago, the defence argued that the defendants were scapegoats.

They claimed they had instead been involved in a plan to serve Moise an arrest warrant, amid a dispute about whether the president had overstayed his term.

They further maintained that Colombian mercenaries involved in the assassination were meant to accompany Haitian police to execute the warrant, but that Moise was killed by his own security forces before they arrived.

“This is a Haitian plot, and it is ⁠a Haitian conspiracy,” defence lawyer Emmanuel Perez said, as reported by the Miami Herald.

US prosecutors, in turn, charged that the men initially sought to remove and replace Moise, but the plan eventually escalated to assassination.

A fifth defendant, Christian Emmanuel Sanon, a Haitian-born doctor who allegedly wanted to be named president after Moise was killed, was set to be tried at a later date due to health issues.

Eight other individuals accepted plea deals as part of the US investigation.

No national elections have been held in Haiti since Moise’s assassination, although a provisional council was appointed in September 2024 to organise new polls.

The council has since been replaced by US-backed Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime, who has said elections will be held by the end of the year.

The UN has said a stable government is essential to restoring order in Haiti, which has been beset by a series of natural disasters and rising violence, with criminal gangs controlling large swaths of territory.

At least 8,100 gang killings were documented in 2025, with insecurity displacing about 1.5 million people, according to the UN.

TESS Daly shared a picture with her lookalike daughter Phoebe just one day before announcing her shock split from husband Vernon Kay.

Phoebe Kay, 21, is the spit of her mother in the snaps, which show the pair posing together on a sunny bridge.

Posted the day before Tess, 57, and Vernon, 51, sensationally announced their split, the mother and daughter duo were all smiles in the photo.

The former Strictly Come Dancing presenter captioned the happy photo: “Got my Phoebe back for a few days and making the most of every moment.”

Phoebe has followed in her mother’s footsteps and moved to New York to pursue a career in modelling.

In March, the pair’s eldest daughter revealed on TikTok she had made the big move across the pond.

SHOCK SPLIT

Tess Daly and Vernon Kay sensationally SPLIT after 22 years of marriage

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In the clip, Phoebe can be seen dancing with the New York skyline and the Empire State building in the background.

The nepo baby captioned it: “NYC has my hearttt! Lucky to call it home for a while.”

Phoebe hasn’t disclosed the reason for her move to the Big Apple but it appears that it’s only a temporary stay.

Interestingly, her mum Tess also lived in New York for five years while working as a fashion model in the 90s.

The former Strictly Come Dancing host and the Radio 2 DJ visited their daughter last month as they gave a peek into their whirlwind trip.

Tess took to Instagram to share various snaps of their trip, including standing in front of the New York skyline, eating pancakes and visiting art galleries.

She captioned it: “I love NYC. Maximised every minute on a whirlwind half term trip and fell in love with this magical city all over again.”

Tess and Vernon tied the knot in 2003 and share two daughters – Phoebe and Amber, 16.

The pair met while working as up-and-coming TV presenters for rival channels in 2001, crossing paths at a BBC Christmas party.

But the pair revealed on Instagram today that they had separated after two decades of marriage.

She wrote: “After much consideration, and with a deep sense of care and respect for one another, we have made the decision to separate amicably.

“This has not been an easy choice, but it comes from a place of mutual understanding and a shared desire for what is best for both of us.

“We remain great friends and most importantly, fully committed to our roles as loving and supportive parents, which will always be our priority.
There are no other parties involved in this decision.

“We kindly ask for privacy during this time as we navigate this transition together.

“We will not be making any further public comments.”

Real do not impose sporting sanctions saying 500,000 euro fines concludes the ‘internal procedures’ against the pair.

Real Madrid have fined Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde 500,000 euros ($588,000) each after a training ground clash that left the latter needing hospital treatment.

The club did not impose any sporting sanctions on the two players, saying in a statement that the fine “thereby concludes the internal procedures” launched against them.

Valverde will miss Sunday’s Clasico against Barcelona as a result of the head injury he suffered during the altercation. The club said he would be out for up to two weeks.

Tchouameni took part in training on Friday and could feature at Camp Nou this weekend.

Madrid said on Friday that both players “expressed their complete remorse for what happened and apologised to each other” while taking part in a club investigation.

“They extended their apologies to the club, their teammates, the coaching staff, and the fans, and both have made themselves available to Real Madrid to accept whatever sanction the club deems appropriate,” read a club statement.

Uruguay international Valverde was accompanied to the hospital facility near the club’s Valdebebas training complex by Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa, according to Spanish reports, which said the player needed stitches to treat a facial wound.

Valverde sought to downplay the severity of the altercation with the France midfielder.

“The strain of the competition and frustration caused the situation to escalate,” Valverde wrote on social media, expressing regret at the media coverage of the incident.

“I accidentally hit a table during the argument, causing a small cut on my forehead that required a routine visit to the hospital,” he said.

“At no point did my teammate hit me, and I didn’t hit him either.”

According to reports, the two players quarrelled on Wednesday during training, and their argument continued on Thursday during and after the session.

Spanish media reported Valverde refused to shake Tchouameni’s hand and later fouled him in Thursday’s training session, with the pair scrapping afterwards in the dressing room when the injury occurred.

Tensions are running high at Real Madrid with the club on the verge of a second consecutive season without a major trophy.

Los Blancos trail Barca by 11 points at the top of La Liga, with Hansi Flick’s side able to clinch back-to-back league titles on Sunday if they do not lose.

It’s been four years since Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed by Israeli forces. In those years, her family has pushed the United States government for one thing: an independent investigation into her killing that leads to real accountability. The Take looks into the push for justice in the US, and why it’s been so difficult to achieve.

This is a story from the archives. This originally aired on September 5, 2022. None of the dates, titles or other references from that time have been changed.

In this episode: 

• Lina Abu Akleh (@LinaAbuAkleh), Niece of Shireen Abu Akleh
• Katherine Gallagher, Human Rights Attorney, Center for Constitutional Rights
• Said Arikat (@SMArikat), Journalist

Episode credits:

This episode was updated by Sarí el-Khalili. The original production team was Negin Owliaei, Amy Walters, Ruby Zaman, Chloe K. Li, Alexandra Locke, and our guest host, Halla Mohieddeen. 

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.

TESS Daly and Vernon Kay have split in a shock separation after ‘much consideration and a deep sense of care”.

The former strictly star posted on her Instagram this evening.

She wrote in a post: “After much consideration, and with a deep sense of care and respect for one another, we have made the decision to separate amicably.

“This has not been an easy choice, but it comes from a place of mutual understanding and a shared desire for what is best for both of us. We remain great friends and most importantly, fully committed to our roles as loving and supportive parents, which will always be our priority.
There are no other parties involved in this decision.

“We kindly ask for privacy during this time as we navigate this transition together.

“We will not be making any further public comments.”

Tess, 57, and the Radio 2 DJ, 51, tied the knot in 2003 and share two daughters Phoebe, 21, and Amber, 16.

The pair met while working as up-and-coming TV presenters for rival channels in 2001, crossing paths at a BBC Christmas party.

SANTIAGO, Chile, May 8 (UPI) — An economic reform plan Chilean President José Antonio Kast announced to revive the country’s economy is drawing criticism over its potential short- and medium-term fiscal impact, as the International Monetary Fund lowered its growth projections for Chile.

The IMF’s World Economic Outlook report had estimated in mid-April that Chile’s gross domestic product would grow 2.4% in 2026 and 2.6% in 2027. However, the organization said this week it revised those projections to 2.2% this year and 2.5% in 2027 if external conditions and the country’s fiscal situation improve.

“Economic activity, driven by investment and exports in 2025, faces a period of heightened uncertainty,” the IMF said.

The report said higher copper production and prices support growth expectations, but warned of risks that include the crisis in the Middle East, rising oil prices and loss of domestic competitiveness tied to the sharp public spending cuts promoted by Kast.

The Chilean president’s plan includes proposals to reduce corporate taxes and cut bureaucracy in an effort to stimulate private investment. Congress is discussing tha proposal.

“Amid persistently high inequality, social discontent also remains a risk,” the IMF report said.

The IMF is not the only institution warning about the risks associated with the government’s National Reconstruction Plan.

Chile’s Autonomous Fiscal Council, an independent public agency tasked with monitoring the sustainability of fiscal policy, warned about the proposal’s possible impact on the country’s fiscal balance and public debt.

“The project commits fiscal spending with a high degree of certainty in the short term and reduces permanent revenue, while the positive effects depend on more uncertain future income associated with growth, which could lead to a deterioration in the fiscal balance if growth does not materialize at the estimated magnitude and speed,” the council said.

Jaime Bastías, director of the auditing school at Finis Terrae University, told UPI the IMF’s downgrade was “absolutely” expected because Chile’s central bank had already made a similar adjustment, while debate over financing the government’s proposal continues to intensify.

“The government’s plan can be an engine that helps us face the storm we are going through, but that is heavily conditioned on the state maintaining orderly public finances. The IMF says that if the proposed tax cuts are not offset through other channels, the country’s debt will grow too much, and that will create another problem,” Bastías warned.

Carlos Smith, a researcher at the Center for Business and Society Research at Universidad del Desarrollo, told UPI the IMF report shows that both external and domestic factors are likely to weaken household income and affect consumer spending.

“Consumption is one of the main drivers of Chile’s GDP. The IMF expects it to contract and that is already beginning to show, along with a very weak labor market. Chile is in a much weaker condition,” he said.

Smith said that although the IMF lowered its growth forecasts, the organization still appears optimistic about the long-term positive impact of the government’s proposed reforms.

“The impact will materialize more slowly than the finance minister expects. Therefore, the IMF is suggesting more efficient alternatives such as lower costs or more limited subsidies to create new jobs,” Smith said.

He added that while Ciles should adjust some aspects of the reform, he believes the plan is still moving in the right direction.

“I agree with the IMF that the proposal needs refinement and should focus on removing obstacles to investment projects without lowering the standards of our legislation or environmental protections. If that is achieved, I believe there is a possibility of reaching 3% growth by the end of the decade,” he said.

Bastías agreed, saying Chile could grow at 3% by 2030 if copper prices remain high, production increases and more private investment arrives.

“It is an optimistic scenario where we need to focus on stimulating those three factors. If that favorable future does not materialize, we will all pay the costs,” he said.

Players’ union challenge French state’s failure to protect professional footballers from the health and safety risks.

Football players’ union ‌FIFPRO is hailing a “landmark” legal win after a European rights ⁠body agreed to ⁠investigate whether the French state failed to uphold labour standards for professional footballers.

The unanimous decision by the European Committee of Social Rights in March marks the first time a players’ union has successfully advanced a collective complaint under the European Social Charter. It paves the way for ⁠an investigation into whether France has failed to ensure proper working conditions for professional players, including minors.

FIFPRO described the heart of the dispute as the French state’s failure to protect professional footballers from the health and safety risks posed ‌by a congested and expanding international match calendar, which it argues is driven by FIFA’s unilateral decisions on competition formats.

The inaugural edition of a rebranded and expanded FIFA Club World Cup came in for particular criticism from across the game when it was staged last year.

The French government had sought to have the case dismissed, arguing that any alleged labour violations were the responsibility of private sports bodies, such as FIFA or the French Football Federation, rather than the state.

The Committee rejected that objection, ⁠affirming that national governments remain legally responsible for ensuring ⁠fundamental workers’ rights are upheld within their jurisdictions, regardless of whether a private entity manages the industry.

FIFPRO Europe, which is supporting the French National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) in the ⁠case, described the decision as a “signal case” for the industry.

It added that the complaint highlights how global governing ⁠bodies “frequently bypass national labour standards regarding rest periods ⁠and collective bargaining.”

FIFPRO Europe confirmed it would provide full support to the UNFP during the upcoming proceedings and called on other European states to hold football authorities accountable for “systemic failures” that ‌it said prioritise commercial interests over player safety.

“France is not alone: many other states are in a comparable situation, with minimum standards for working time, ‌rest ‌periods, occupational health and collective bargaining structurally undermined by decisions taken at global level,” its statement said.

Britain’s first gay surrogate parent, who co-owns Maldon and Tiptree football club, has “strenuously denied” grooming young men for sexual exploitation, a court heard

Britain’s first gay surrogate parent has “strenuously denied” grooming young men for sexual exploitation, a court heard. Barrie Drewitt-Barlow, 57, appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Friday alongside his 32-year-old partner, Scott Drewitt-Barlow.

The men, both of Danbury, Essex, face multiple charges including rape, sexual assault, and modern slavery trafficking for sexual exploitation. The alleged offences, which are said to have taken place in Essex and Manchester between April 2013 and January this year, relate to four different men, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

The defendants are alleged to have “recruited” young men before grooming them and subjecting them to sexual assaults including rape, the court heard.

READ MORE: Barrie Drewitt-Barlow and husband charged with human trafficking and sexual offences

Defence barrister Oliver Snodin said the allegations against Barrie and Scott Drewitt-Barlow are “strenuously denied” by them both. Flanked by custody officers, the defendants, wearing hooded sweatshirts, spoke only to confirm their personal details.

The two men were remanded into custody to appear at Chelmsford Crown Court on June 5. Prosecutor Serena Berry said: “Barrie Drewitt-Barlow is in a relationship with Scott Drewitt-Barlow… they are what could be termed to be celebrities, who live multi-million [pound] lifestyles and have featured in many documentaries and reality TV shows.

“They own the Maldon and Tiptree football club, and they have other businesses in the Essex area and also abroad in other countries.

“It is alleged they have both targeted young males, they have recruited them, they have befriended them, they have groomed them. They have invited them to their home and other premises.”

Barrie Drewitt-Barlow became Britain’s first gay surrogate parent in 1999 and made a name for himself in the media. He was due to be in ITV reality show Up The Jammers.

The charges follow co-ordinated searches at premises in Danbury, Maldon and Braintree on Wednesday, Essex Police previously said.

He is charged with three counts of sexual assault on a male, four counts of rape of a man 16 or over, and two counts of arranging or facilitating travel of another person with a view to exploitation.

Scott Drewitt-Barlow is charged with one count of sexual assault on a male, one count of rape of a man 16 or over, and two counts of arranging or facilitating travel of another person with a view to exploitation.

Essex Police are appealing for information on the case and ask witnesses to contact them using the major incident public portal (MIPP) on their website, or by calling 0800 051 4526, or 0207 126 7612 internationally.

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May 8 (UPI) — Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed Friday that he would not stand aside following a disastrous Labour performance in “mid-term” local elections in England, Wales and Scotland.

With early results from 46 of the 136 races in England showing Labour losing hundreds of seats in councils to Reform and the Greens, Starmer said while the situation was “really tough,” he had been handed a mandate to change Britain by the electorate in the general election in 2024 and that he intended to fulfil his promise.

He said he believed the message voters had sent in Thursday’s elections was about the “pace of change, how they want their lives improved.”

“Labour was elected to meet those challenges and I’m not going to walk away from those challenges and plunge the country into chaos. I led our party to that victory, that is a five-year mandate to change the country. It was a five-year term I was elected to do, I intend to see that through.”

Acknowledging his government hadn’t done enough to convince people that things could improve, their lives could be better and that there was hope, he said Labour would “in the coming days” set out steps it would take to win over the electorate.

Repeatedly pressed on whether he would lead Labour into the next election, Starmer would only say that he intended to serve the full five years of his term.

Large numbers of Labour MPs believe that the party will lose if Starmer leads it into the next election but do not want him to quit right now, favoring an orderly, consensual process of finding a successor, as opposed to an all-out leadership battle.

Sky News’ chief political correspondent said a member of Starmer’s “top team,” had messaged her saying that he was “the reason Labour risks handing the country to Reform.”

With counting still underway, or yet to begin, in the vast majority of contests for council and mayoral contests, as well parliamentary races in Scotland and Wales, the opposition Conservative Party were also close to 200 seats adrift.

The Green Party and the Liberal Democrats had each added dozens of seats.

Speaking in the London borough of Havering, which Labour lost overnight to Reform UK, leader Nigel Farage hailed what he said was a “truly historic shift in British politics.”

“The pattern that’s emerging across the country is that Labour are being wiped out by Reform in many of their most traditional areas. And what you’re going to see later on today is the Conservative Party being wiped out in their heartlands like Essex,” he said, noting that the county was the heartland of the leadership of the Conservative opposition.

“We’ve been so used to thinking about politics in terms of left and right, and yet what Reform are able to do is to win in areas that have always been Conservative. But equally, we’re proving in a big way we can win in areas that Labour have dominated, frankly, since the end of World War One.

“At the moment, we’re winning one in three of all the seats that are up. But I genuinely think the best is yet to come. I’m very excited about the north-east results, the Yorkshire results, some more to come in the West Midlands. So it’s a big day,” added Farage.

Forecasts put Reform’s eventual gains when the results are complete at as many as 1,000 seats of the 5,000 up for grabs.

In Scotland, where voters are electing all 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, the ruling Scottish National Party is hanging by a knife edge amid a 17% swing to Reform.

However, the insurgent party’s rise could inadvertently help deliver First Minister John Swinney‘s 65-seat target, thanks to Reform UK candidates taking votes away from challenger parties, particularly those that oppose Scottish independence.

Swinney has said he would treat an SNP majority as a mandate to mount a second bid to secede from the United Kingdom, following a failed independence referendum in 2014.

Swinney told an election debate between the leaders of the five Scottish political parties plus Reform UK last month that holding a second independence referendum by 2028 was “perfectly conceivable.”

In Wales, where voters are electing a Senedd legislature that has been expanded to 96 seats, the ruling Labour administration was on track to lose power for the first time since devolution in 1999 and ending more than a century of Labour dominance in the country.

Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalists, and Reform UK, who were neck and neck in the polls, were expected to be the biggest beneficiaries, projected to emerge with 38 and 35 seats, respectively.

Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies told the BBC that he didn’t think Labour would be in a position to form the next government, saying the party’s campaign had failed to “cut through” to Welsh voters.

Khadeejat Mohammed was only two years old when Mokwa’s gully erosion claimed her life in the Eti-Sheshi community of Niger State, North Central Nigeria. Bright, playful, and already piecing sentences together, she had just been registered for creche. “She was very smart,” Isa Sheshi, her grandfather, told HumAngle. “Even at two, she played around and was able to put sentences together. I loved her so much.”

On the day she passed away, Khadeejat had asked her grandfather for money to buy tofu, locally called awara. The tofu seller was just across the same bridge that the family had carved from felled trees. The erosion had long cut through their community, forcing residents to improvise crossings. 

“When the erosion began, we used wood to build a makeshift bridge,” Sheshi said. “But with time it got bigger, so we went to the bush to cut down 15 longer trees to create another bridge.” 

That makeshift bridge became Khadeejat’s final path. On her way back, holding the tofu in a transparent plastic bag with her elder brother, who was three years older, she slipped into the gully. 

“Her head went directly into a hollow hole filled with water in the gully,” Sheshi recounted, holding onto her picture. “She gulped that water before we could rush to the scene. When we brought her out and rushed her to the hospital, we were told she had a fractured skull.” 

She was rushed to the Mokwa General Hospital and later referred to the Federal Medical Centre, Bida. Unfortunately, Khadeejat died before the family could leave the motor park to travel to Bida.

“It’s been four years since the incident, but whenever I pass through that hole caused by gully erosion, my granddaughter’s thoughts always come to mind,” the man said.

Khadeejat’s death in 2022 was not just a family tragedy; it was a warning of what unchecked erosion has continued to do in Mokwa. 

Yet, years later, the gully remains, widening with each rainy season. Although figures of lives lost in these gullies are not publicly available, residents confirmed to HumAngle that a significant number of people have lost their loved ones in them, with some sustaining life-threatening injuries.

Despite the clear threats posed by the widening and deepening gullies, HumAngle’s investigation reveals that state and local authorities have failed to take effective action. The problem worsens with each rainy season, raising concerns among local communities. In 2024, the Niger State government secured World Bank ecological funds, specifically earmarked for erosion control projects. However, these resources have not translated into tangible solutions. 

The Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, led by Mohammed Idris from the Mokwa Senatorial District, announced in December 2024 that the Niger State government had secured a $10 million intervention from the World Bank. This funding is aimed at addressing gully erosion in Mokwa, an area increasingly susceptible to environmental disasters.

During his visit to the affected communities in Mokwa, Umar Bago, the state governor, confirmed that the gully erosion had posed serious threats to the communities and that “competent contractors with track records have been identified to handle the project, which will commence soon.”

The state secured World Bank funding after years of neglect to address the root causes of erosion, particularly in communities such as Eti-Sheshi, Kpege, and Anguwan Hausa.

In May 2025, just five months after receiving funding from the World Bank, Mokwa was hit by a devastating flood that resulted in the loss of hundreds of lives. This tragedy raised serious questions about why the government had not started the project, especially since they had already identified “competent contractors” for the job.

Once competent contractors have been identified, the process of publishing the contract bid is governed by law. At the state level, this is regulated by procurement laws specific to each state, which are based on the federal Public Procurement Act of 2007. Section 18 (1b and d) of the Niger State Public Procurement Law of 2020 states that, subject to exemptions allowed by this law, all public procurement shall be conducted by open competitive bidding in a manner that is transparent, timely, and equitable, to ensure accountability and conformity with the law. Based on the above, a national invitation to bid shall be advertised on “the notice board of the procuring entity, any official website of the procuring entity, at least two national newspapers, and in the procurement journal,” according to section 27(2b) of the same law. 

HumAngle did not find any instance of the state government publishing any contract bid for the $10 million World Bank ecological funds project in Mokwa regarding the gully erosion project. However, a contract bid was published in May 2025 by the state’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change under the Agro Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) project, with the contract title: Construction of Storm Water Drainage Structures for Mokwa and Babban Rami Gully Erosion sites in Niger State.

They invited bidders for two contracts: construction of water-stormwater drainage structures for both Mokwa and Babban Rami, with bid security of ₦150 million and ₦200 million, respectively, for a 28-month construction period.

Further investigations by HumAngle revealed that the ACReSAL project (Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes) is a separate initiative from the World Bank Ecological Funds, which are commonly referred to as the Ecological and Natural Disasters Management Fund in Nigeria. Although both are World Bank projects, they serve different purposes.

While ACReSAL is a targeted World Bank loan facility for northern ecological resilience, the other is a national funding mechanism aimed at addressing nationwide disasters.

HumAngle confirmed, through field visits in February, that both the World Bank and the ACReSAL projects have not been executed. The bridge and culvert along the Mokwa-Jebba axis, damaged by last year’s deadly flood, are currently undergoing reconstruction.

When HumAngle visited the Eti‑Sheshi and Anguwan Hausawa areas in February, two of the three most devastating gully-erosion sites in Mokwa had deepened and widened, some plunging about 15 feet. Houses and even a mosque sat precariously on the edge, half‑collapsed into the earth.

Abbas Idris, the president of the Risk Managers Society of Nigeria (RIMSON), revealed that communities affected by gullies face the loss of arable land, damage to infrastructure, degradation of water quality, biodiversity loss, food insecurity, and displacement. More dangerously, erosion increases the risk of flooding, threatening lives and livelihoods.

“At the end of the day, this could give rise to conflict as a result of scarcity of land and resources, as people will be fighting over the land not affected by gully erosion,” he warned.

In March, after reviewing World Bank records for details on the Mokwa project, HumAngle submitted a request through the Bank’s information platform seeking clarification on the project and its operations.  

The World Bank responded by asking us to provide “a direct link to, or full citation of, the specific document or public reporting you referenced in your request.”  We explained that the inability to locate the specific document on its website—even after conducting a Boolean search—necessitated our request. We nonetheless provided links to public reports that referenced the funding.  

On May 4, a month after its initial response, the World Bank sent what seemed to be a generic status update, stating that the request was still being processed.

“In most cases, we can respond within twenty (20) working days from receipt of a request for information. However, we may need additional time in special circumstances, for example, if the request is complex or voluminous or if it requires review…,” they wrote.

Erosion tears school walls apart

Gully erosion in Mokwa is severely impacting the community by destroying homes and livelihoods and depriving children of the opportunity to attend school. Aisha Muhammad-Kolo, the founder of Gbastif Global Academy, the only affordable private school in the area, witnessed firsthand how erosion stripped the school bare.

“There is nobody in this house, and school is closed due to the impact of the gully erosion that has been affecting our community,” she told HumAngle. Each rainy season brought chaos. When the gullies filled with water, they burst into her compound, flooding classrooms and frightening parents. 

“People were afraid that their children were at risk, so they started removing their children from the school, which affected us greatly but also deprived the students of schooling,” she said. “This is the only private school in our community, and most parents prefer to enrol their children here because it is not only affordable but we ensure quality education as compared to our government schools.”

The collapse of Gbastif Global Academy is emblematic of how erosion has altered schooling in many Mokwa communities. Teachers struggled to keep children safe during storms, sometimes moving them into private rooms until the rains subsided. 

“Whenever it rained, and we were in session, I would have to take all the children inside my room to ensure they were safe. By the time the rain receded, it had washed off a significant part of our structures,” Aisha recounted.  

Although the school was later relocated to a safer site, the arrangement is temporary, and parents are concerned about the distance. Aisha told HumAngle that the landowner could reclaim the property at any time, leaving the school stranded. 

“I believe the impact of the gully erosion is enormous, especially on education. Also, we have been robbed of our source of livelihood and have not been able to recover,” she said. 

Her fears extend beyond the school to her own family. “I also have children, and the rainy season will soon be here. You can’t be everywhere at every time to monitor your kids. They are very young and do not understand the dangers in areas affected by gully erosion. I am afraid to lose any of my children and my house because of gully erosion,” she added.

While there are no publicly available data specific to Mokwa or Niger State, a 2024 UNICEF report reveals the scale of climate‑induced disruptions to education across Nigeria. The report found that 2.2 million Nigerian students experienced interruptions to their schooling due to disasters such as flooding and erosion, underscoring how environmental crises directly undermine learning. 

These disruptions compound existing vulnerabilities, leaving communities like Mokwa even more exposed when erosion destroys classrooms and forces children out of school.  This data situates Mokwa’s erosion crisis within a broader pattern of climate‑driven educational instability, showing that the loss of Gbastif Global Academy is not an isolated tragedy but part of a systemic emergency threatening children’s futures.  

A hospital in ruin

Mokwa General Hospital, intended to serve as an important resource for the community, is collapsing due to gully erosion and inadequate maintenance. The hospital’s buildings show clear signs of decay, including peeling paint, broken windows, and walls damaged by erosion. Some parts of the structures have already collapsed, creating unsafe areas within the compound.

Drainage channels around the hospital have fallen into deep gullies and are now clogged with waste and debris. Instead of carrying water safely away, they have become dumping grounds, worsening waterlogging and exposing patients and staff to health risks.  

The erosion has transformed the hospital environment into a hazardous zone. HumAngle observed that foundations are exposed, certain sections of the compound are unsafe to cross, and the surrounding land has eroded away. What should be a place of healing now mirrors the environmental collapse outside its walls, threatening public health and undermining confidence in essential services.

The situation at Mokwa General Hospital shows how unchecked erosion and poor ecological management are crippling critical infrastructure. 

When infrastructure such as roads, schools, and hospitals is destroyed, the consequences become catastrophic, said Abbas Idris, a risk and disaster expert, who also noted that the collapse of a hospital due to erosion could leave communities without access to healthcare, leading to preventable deaths. He stressed the importance of proactive disaster management through risk assessment and hazard categorisation.

“If there are no risk assessments, the coping capacity of the community will be very low when disaster hits them,” he warned. “Without urgent intervention, the hospital risks becoming unusable, leaving thousands of residents without access to healthcare.”  

Mokwa’s deadly deluge

In May 2025, Mokwa experienced a catastrophic flood that devastated the area, displacing over 3,000 people and resulting in more than 160 fatalities. This tragic event became the deadliest flood incident in the country that year. Entire families were wiped out as homes, schools, and farmlands vanished under torrents of muddy water. Hajara Malam Abba is one of those affected by this disastrous flooding.

For Hajara’s family, the devastation was deeply personal. “The things we lost from the flood incident in 2025 can never be recovered because we lost both lives and property,” she said. 

In their family, her elder sister bore the heaviest burden, losing 17 members of her household – 16 grandchildren and her child – in a single night of flooding. Alongside the lives lost, the family’s livelihood was swept away: six refrigerators, five grinding machines, rams, clothes, and appliances all destroyed.  

The aftermath forced them into precarious living conditions. Hajara’s sister rented another place to manage, while other family members who could not afford rent built makeshift tents on the same land where their homes once stood. 

“It’s been almost a year now, but they still sleep there in vulnerable conditions, hoping that the government will eventually intervene,” Hajara said.  “We can’t sleep in peace again because of the fear of the unknown, since the rainy season is almost here again.”

Alhaji Umar Sani, one of the flood victims, vividly remembers the morning the floodwaters came. 

“It was around 6 a.m., after we had just finished praying the Subhi [dawn] prayer, then we heard people shouting,” he recounted. “My son told us he saw people drowning in the massive flood waters sweeping through homes.”

“Before we could act, the water had reached my house. My wife, my children, and I couldn’t take anything. I was only wearing a jalabiya and trousers, while my wife wore a hijab and trousers – everything else was washed away. The water covered my house. I am grateful it didn’t claim any of our lives,” he said.

In the wake of the disaster, President Bola Tinubu approved the release of ₦16.7 billion for the immediate reconstruction of the Mokwa Bridge, which was destroyed by flooding. The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated this after a meeting with the Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi. He said the project would involve constructing a bridge with 10 spans.

As families cling to faith and resilience, scepticism lingers over government efforts as the drainage system under construction is seen as inadequate. “When the floodwater came, it was enormous. How then can this drainage contain the next flood? It ought to be bigger than this,” Hajara said.

Alhaji Umar, another victim of the gully erosion, echoed the same concern, noting that the project underway is “a culvert, not a bridge” and does not match the scale of the destruction. With over 250 people killed in Mokwa alone, residents fear the rainy season could bring another catastrophe. Idris, the risk and disaster expert, criticised the government’s reconstruction of the bridge in Mokwa, which was downgraded to a box culvert without a proper scientific assessment.

“Even in the reconstruction of the said bridge, the government failed to use experts to analyse the risk factors. The facility engineers were supposed to consider the disaster and suggest a suitable bridge model that can manage the floodwater. Instead, it was just constructed haphazardly,” he lamented.

Communities under siege

Each rainy season, the community around Mokwa General Hospital experiences severe erosion, causing families to lose their homes, crops, and peace of mind. Residents report that last year’s floods were particularly destructive, as water surged into the gullies and dangerously approached their homes. Several houses have suffered partial damage due to the erosion.

“We are not happy that this gully erosion has not been fixed,” Isa complained. “When there is heavy rainfall, the water finds its way to fill up these gullies, leaving us and our homes at risk. If the rainy season comes now, we don’t even know what will happen.”  

Ruqayyah Ismail, another resident, described how the rainy season signals fear for her and other families. “When the rain falls, the front of our house turns into a river. Everywhere is filled with water as we have to stay indoors for days with our children without crossing over to the other side of our house,” she said. 

The erosion has already destroyed her gate, and each year the water pushes further inside. Recounting a near-miss ordeal, she added: “An Okada rider had once fallen into the hole. On his way home, he slipped and fell into a ditch. He almost lost his life, but his motorcycle was found at the other end of the gully.”

Muhammed Jibril, whose family moved into their new house in 2006, told HumAngle that the erosion gradually worsened as the population grew. “From about five years ago, it became massive. Last year’s rainy season was the worst of all. We lost everything due to erosion. For more than six months, our neighbours were the ones feeding us,” he said. 

Stored food supplies, including 13 bags of maize, were destroyed alongside clothing, electronic appliances, and money. 

“Till today, we have not recovered from the disaster. I had to sell my motorcycle to build a buffer zone behind my fence to minimise the destruction,” he added.  

Over the years, the persistent erosion has reshaped the community’s daily life. For most communities, the rainy season serves as a source of growth and prosperity, but for this community in Mokwa, it signals fear and disaster.

He described climbing to the overhead tank to monitor water levels, warning his family to evacuate if the flooding became too severe. The erosion even brought down his main gate, forcing him to relocate it onto a neighbour’s property. 

“Fortunately, my neighbours understand that’s why they’ve been patient with us. Until they [government] construct a proper channel for the water to pass through, we have no choice but to remain like this,” he said.  

Jibril told HumAngle that beyond psychological trauma, the financial toll has been staggering. 

“Last year alone, if I recall the losses, it could make me cry. All of my harvests were destroyed, including sesame seeds, which were expensive in the market. In total, we lost about ₦4 million. But we were lucky not to lose any lives,” Jibril noted. 

After every flood incident, residents say people who identify as World Bank officials visited the community to take measurements and collect their details, only to remain silent afterwards. “We need assistance before the rains start. They should fix it so that we can have peace of mind. That is all we ask for now,” Jibril pleaded.  

According to the disaster expert Idris, the absence of adequate land management practices and unchecked deforestation are driving the crisis.

“Addressing gully erosion requires adequate land management practices, and if you look at Mokwa, that is absent,” Idris explained. “Deforestation has been thriving in the environment due to abject poverty, as people cut down trees for charcoal. Also, there has been little to no effort from the government to educate the community on erosion control measures.”

He called for accountability and a shift in leadership priorities.

“Unless we address corruption, unless our leaders change from their personal interests to that of the people, and unless they value the lives of those communities they are governing, we are not going to get it right.”

On April 7, HumAngle submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Niger State government through the Commissioner for Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Alhaji Abubakar Musa. The request sought clarification regarding the $10 million World Bank-assisted fund earmarked for the Mokwa gully erosion control and also some ACReSAL projects in the LGA.  

The government has not responded to that request. This lack of response comes despite the stipulated timeframe (7 days, with an extension of another 7 days) for a reply, as outlined in Nigeria’s FOI Act of 2011.

AFTER quietly returning to the dating scene following his split from Chloe Madeley, James Haskell thought he was ready to move on.

But the former England rugby star says one fear involving his ex-wife can still stop him in his tracks. 

James and Chloe split in October 2023 after five years of marriage, just 14 months after welcoming daughter Bodhi, now three, despite appearing to have the perfect family life. 

But it was the thought of publicly dating another woman while still close to Chloe – daughter of daytime TV icons Richard Madeley and Judy Finnegan – that caused James to pause for thought.

Speaking exclusively to The Sun about starring in the new series of E4’s Celebs Go Dating, James says: “It sort of felt like I was cheating because it was the first time I was dating in public in front of Chloe. I got all these mixed emotions and froze.

“For me, when you’ve got a daughter and you’ve got an ex-wife, both of them I hold in the highest regard and I want to be the most respectful I can be.

“I talked to Chloe [about doing the show] because it was really important to do that. We discussed it because I was probably getting quite nervous about doing it.

“This is very much out of my comfort zone. You’ve got emotions, you’ve got other people, you’ve got romance…

“It’s a difficult thing to put in the public eye, so I spoke to her about it. She was very supportive.

“I would talk to her about how the stuff on the show went, so she was always informed.

“And if my daughter ever watched it back, I’d want her to be proud of how her dad was.”

James admits navigating romance in the public eye hasn’t been easy off-screen either. 

The former rugby star, who dated advertising executive Helen Barclay and Big Brother star Sara McLean in 2025, admits relationships come with added pressure. 

James split from Sara just days after they went public with their romance at Cheltenham.

The rugby star has also been linked to other women since his split from Chloe and previously sparked speculation after being spotted looking cosy with a mystery brunette on a night out. 

“I’m in the public eye and a lot of my life is centered around stuff on social media and DJ’ing and making music and podcasting stuff,” he explains.

“So I’m always very wary if you were to go out on a date and get photographed, that narrative can be created around that, which puts pressure on both people.

“I want to go on date people and have fun and when it’s the appropriate time, you would then discuss it with an ex partner but sometimes that’s taken away from you.

“So I’ve always been quite nervous. I have dated, I’ve been quite chilled out, but it’s always been quite respectful.

“That’s why this was such a big moment, because actually one of the first things I thought was ‘Oh my God. I’m like, now doing this in front of people’.

“There’s so much more to think about as opposed to just going for a drink with someone.”

James, 41, and Chloe, 38, split while their reality series, Chloe Madeley: A Family Affair, was still airing on TV. 

But rather than mixing things up in the future, James reveals he’s in the market for a strong, independent woman – just like his ex.

He says:  “I know what I want, I want someone that’s got intelligence, I want someone that’s got their own life, their own success.

“I’m not threatened by having a really powerful partner who could be more successful than me.

“Badass is the wrong word, but that’s the kind of thing.

“I want someone to challenge me so I can learn from them.

“I had a lot of that or had almost all of that with Chloe really, she made me a better person in lots of ways.

“When you come out of a relationship, you want to find that in someone else.

“And that’s kind of what I doubled down with really on this.”

He continues: “While looks and stuff are really important, I wouldn’t settle because all my dating technique would always be to go up to someone and speak to them, I never used apps, I would do everything in person.

“So this process was so weird because someone was telling you who you could date, which is weird.

“This was a bit like looking around in the dark and exploring.”

Fitness fanatic Chloe has spent years documenting her gruelling workouts and toned physique online – and it seems James still has a clear type.

As well as wanting a confident, driven woman, the rugby ace admits he is attracted to women who prioritise their looks, fitness and overall wellbeing. Sound familiar?

He says: “It shows a commitment, just someone who takes care of their appearance because I think it helps in other areas of your life.”

He also reveals the “real reason” he signed up to the show – and it wasn’t just for him to find his dream match.

“Being a strong man with good manners and morals and to show a vulnerable side as well as other sides is really important,” he says.

“I was nervous, but I think I managed to navigate it in the appropriate way and actually show a bit of a different side to myself than some of the bravado and the kind of stuff from being a former sportsman or DJ’ing.

“I grew a lot, I’ve obviously been separated for a little while, but I wanted to have an adventure and I’ve learnt to be vulnerable.”

And while James teases that he isn’t against tying the knot again in the future, his number one priority is crystal clear.

He says: “My priorities are very simple – my daughter, she’s nearly four. I want to be the best dad for her and provide the best kind of life for her.

“We’re obviously having her kind of 50 per cent of the time, which means that you have to prioritise different parts of your life.

“Relationships are lovely and I think if you meet the right person and obviously as we’ve gone through this process, I’ve met lots of lots of really interesting people.

“I’d say that isn’t something that is a real focus to settle down and get married.

“I think if it happens, it happens.

“But I’m quite happy in my own space, really.”

And don’t expect James to introduce Bodhi to a new partner anytime soon, as the star has one very strict rule when it comes to future girlfriends. 

“Essentially I’d have to be walking down the aisle [to introduce my next partner to my child],” he says.

“Genuinely my life is very complicated. The idea of bringing somebody into my daughter’s life and putting a sort of a tent pole on the ground and saying, listen, this is something serious.

“I’m light years away from that because it’s not something I want to mess around with.

“Chloe and I are still a family. My daughter is still a family that sits over here. My life sits over here [with them].

“And I mean when is the right moment? It will be light years away.”

And any future girlfriend won’t just need to win over Bodhi – she’ll also have to impress James’ fiercely protective mum, Susie Haskell, too. 

This week, Susie Haskell made her Celebs Go Dating debut, and didn’t hold her tongue.

Fearing what she could say, James told the camera: “Mum is an absolute loose cannon at the best of times.

“I am dreading what’s going to come out of her mouth. As long as she does not upset my ex.”

But Susie struggled to hold back as she ripped into Chloe.

Susie said: “I’m not sure where he’s gone wrong because prior to his marriage, I met lots of lovely girlfriends.

“Each of them just loved me, which is a bonus.”

She added: “I do have quite a strong opinion on why I think it went wrong.

“You can’t have two stars because you have them competing for the floor space the whole time.”

Susie continued: “In the past he’s been extremely popular. I’ve seen at rugby matches where elderly ladies have got very close to him.

“He needs someone who can see the softness of him, coupled with quite a brilliant intellect. He’s written seven books. Three of them are on The Times best-seller list.”

James previously admitted that his love of drinking contributed to the end of the relationship, describing their final year together as a “difficult period”.

May 8 (UPI) — President Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs to “much higher levels” on the European Union if it doesn’t agree to a trade deal by July 4.

“I had a great call with The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. We discussed many topics, including that we are completely united that Iran can never have a Nuclear Weapon. We agreed that a regime that kills its own people cannot control a bomb that can kill millions. I’ve been waiting patiently for the EU to fulfill their side of the Historic Trade Deal we agreed in Turnberry, Scotland, the largest Trade Deal, ever! A promise was made that the EU would deliver their side of the Deal and, as per Agreement, cut their Tariffs to ZERO! I agreed to give her until our Country’s 250th Birthday or, unfortunately, their Tariffs would immediately jump to much higher levels,” the president said Thursday afternoon on Truth Social.

The threat came after The EU has struggled to agree on the terms of the Turnberry Accord, which was for the United States to lower tariffs on EU products and for the EU to remove tariffs on U.S. industrial goods and invest billions in U.S. industries, including energy.

Von Der Leyen said on X that the bloc is still committed to the deal.

“I had a very good call with @POTUS. We discussed the situation in the Middle East and our close coordination with regional partners. We are united that Iran must never possess a nuclear weapon. Recent events have clearly shown that the risks to regional stability and global security are too great.

“We also discussed the EU-U.S. trade deal. We remain fully committed, on both sides, to its implementation. Good progress is being made towards tariff reduction by early July.”

Last week, Trump threatened to raise tariffs on European autos to 25%. It’s unclear if his renewed threat is specifically for vehicles or if it encompasses all EU exports.

Complicating matters is that Trump’s current method of levying tariffs was blocked Thursday by the U.S. Court of International Trade.

In February, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the administration’s tariffs issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977. Trump then added a 10% across-the-board tariff and then later upped it to 15%.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in an interview with Politico Thursday that the EU is moving slowly.

“With the tariffs, they’ve at least started a process. They’re working it through,” Greer said. “It’s a pain. I understand it’s slow. We’re not patient. But there are other things where they haven’t even started a process.”

“We’re 95% compliant for nine months … and they’ve been 0% compliant during that time. What am I supposed to do?” he said.

Pope Leo has called on global leaders to reduce international tensions and turn away from violence, delivering an emotional appeal during a visit to Pompei, Italy, on Friday. His remarks came just one day after he met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Vatican, where both sides discussed efforts to improve strained relations between Washington and the Holy See.

The meeting took place against a politically sensitive backdrop, with U.S. President Donald Trump having recently criticized the Pope over his comments on the Iran conflict. Pope Leo, the first U.S.-born pontiff and former Cardinal Robert Prevost, has increasingly spoken out on global conflicts in recent weeks after initially maintaining a relatively low public profile following his election in May 2025.

Speaking to worshippers in Pompei, the Pope urged prayers that world leaders would be inspired to “calm rancour and fratricidal hatreds” and to take responsibility for reducing global violence. He also warned against becoming desensitized to images of war, and criticized what he described as an international system that often prioritizes the arms trade over human life.

Why It Matters

The Pope’s intervention highlights the growing moral and diplomatic role of the Vatican at a time of heightened global instability, particularly amid ongoing tensions involving Iran, the United States, and wider geopolitical rivalries. His criticism of the global arms economy directly challenges dominant security-driven foreign policy approaches, especially in Western capitals.

As the spiritual leader of more than 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide, Pope Leo’s statements carry significant symbolic and diplomatic weight. His increasingly vocal stance on war and governance also places him in a rare position of open tension with major political actors, including the U.S. administration.

What’s Next

The Vatican is expected to continue engaging diplomatically with U.S. officials despite emerging tensions, particularly following the Rubio meeting. Pope Leo is likely to maintain his public messaging on peace, conflict prevention, and criticism of the global arms trade, reinforcing the Holy See’s traditional role as a moral voice in international affairs. At the same time, reactions from Washington and other governments may further shape the evolving tone of Vatican–state relations in the coming months.

With information from Reuters.

Once upon a time, Primm, Nev., had three bustling casino resorts, shiny gas stations, a roller coaster and Bonnie and Clyde’s “death car.”

It was a bit surreal, said former visitor John Honell of West Covina: “You had this whole complex in the middle of the desert.”

Southern Californians traveling the arid stretches of the I-15 would see Primm pop up. As he drove to Sin City for bowling tournaments, Honell would stop and “drop a few coins” into the slot machines. It was a gambling oasis — a little less flashy and a little more affordable than Vegas and 45 minutes closer.

“I guess it worked for a while,” said Honell, 85.

But it works no longer. The last of the three casino resorts will close on July 4, owner Affinity Gaming confirmed to The Times this week.

Honell, a regular in the 1970s, saw the growth of a desert gamble: the expansion of the Primm property, in the dusty town once known as State Line, from Whiskey Pete’s gas station, bar and slot machines into three busy resorts.

The Nevada gambling hub south of Las Vegas along the 15 Freeway appears finished, though. Southern Californians who appreciated that it was a shorter drive now can find gambling much closer, at tribal casinos.

Las Vegas insider publication Las Vegas Locally posted a termination letter from Affinity Gaming’s affiliate, Primadonna Co. LLC, to employees who worked at Primm Valley.

The casino is closing down July 4, with all employment ending that day too.

Affinity Gaming declined to make an official comment.

The castle-shaped Whiskey Pete’s opened in 1977, followed by Primm Valley in 1990 and Buffalo Bill’s in 1994. Whiskey Pete’s was the first casino to close, in December 2024. Buffalo Bill’s Resort ended 24-7 operations on July 6, only opening when the casino’s concert venue, the Star of the Desert Arena, hosted special events.

David G. Schwartz, a gaming historian and professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said Primm’s casinos were “built for an entirely different world.”

“Southern California is a huge market for Las Vegas and, in particular, it was once very attractive for those in the Inland Empire,” Schwartz said. “It was a way to trim 45 minutes off the drive — it was a 2-hour drive. It’s different math.”

Lights still glow on the Buffalo Bill’s Resort and Casino sign on Sunday, July 6, 2025 in Primm, NV. (Bridget Bennett / For The Times)

(Bridget Bennett/For The Times)

Primm was once one of Nevada’s more popular gambling resorts, a less expensive, slightly more kitschy alternative to Las Vegas that benefited from being closer than Sin City.

Primm Valley, Whiskey Pete’s and Buffalo Bill’s all hosted at one time the famed Bonnie and Clyde V-8 Ford riddled with more than 100 bullets in 1934.

Whiskey Pete’s offered a quick and affordable 24-hour IHOP, in comparison to Vegas’ pricier buffets, and Californians and Nevadans visited Primm Valley’s 100-store outlet mall, supported by shoppers who were brought by bus to the mall for free.

The three resorts enjoyed expansion and growth throughout the 2010s by utilizing low prices, gimmicks and attractions to lure guests.

Buffalo Bill’s was the biggest of the trio, boasting a buffalo-shaped pool and 592 rooms at its opening (the Bellagio has nearly 4,000 rooms) and eventually expanding to 1,242 rooms.

Buffalo Bill’s and its sister resorts closed in March 2020 when the pandemic hit, reopening between December 2022 and 2023. But they struggled to attract customers.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic hurt all Nevada casinos, that was only part of the reason for Primm’s decline. Schwartz said tribal casinos in Southern California saw their prospects soar as Primm’s hotels teeter-tottered.

California voters passed Proposition 1-A in 2000, which allowed tribal casinos to operate slot machines and erased limits on card games.

“Many of those people Primm was drawing from began to stay in Southern California, where the drives are just much shorter and the amenities much closer,” Schwartz said. “You see the same issue playing out at Laughlin along the Arizona border and Reno and Tahoe in Northern California.”

Shortly after Proposition 1-A’s passage, San Manuel was one of several tribal casinos in San Bernardino and Riverside counties that declared an arms race with Nevada.

Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, run by the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, opened in December 2004. The tribe was the fourth between 2002 and 2004 to open or expand its operations, including Agua Caliente in Palm Springs, Morongo in Cabazon and the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians in Temecula.

Most of these casinos have continued to build and expand their operations as revenue has continued to flow.

The Southern California tribal resorts are classified by the National Indian Gaming Commission, a gaming regulatory body, to be in the Sacramento region, which includes all resorts in California and Northern Nevada.

In 2014, the combined casinos contributed $7.9 billion in gross gaming revenue.

Ten years later, 87 tribal operations throughout two states combined for $12.1 billion, marking a modest 1.4% increase from 2023.

Yaamava’ Resort & Casino, run by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, sits in Highland, about 200 miles from Primm but less than half that distance from downtown L.A.

Yaamava’ completed a $760-million expansion in 2021, which added a 17-floor tower, three bars and about 1,700 new slots.

The 7,400 slot machines at Yaamava’ make the casino the West Coast’s largest, with 4,000 more slots than its Vegas peers. By square footage of gaming space, Yaamava is No. 4 in the nation and still the biggest on the West Coast.

“The decline has been part of a larger trend,” Schwartz said of Primm. “People are choosing options that most appeal to them.”

Southern Russia is facing one of the largest environmental disasters in its modern history. In April, repeated Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil infrastructure in Tuapse triggered massive refinery fires and oil spills along the Black Sea coast, including near Sochi. Residents described “black rain” falling from the sky as smoke and petroleum residue spread across the region. Weeks later, wildlife is still dying, beaches remain polluted and volunteers trying to respond say their efforts have often been obstructed. The authorities, meanwhile, have focused less on confronting the scale of the catastrophe than on silencing those speaking out about it. Despite the ongoing environmental damage, officials are already discussing reopening the beaches and launching the tourist season.

The catastrophe raises difficult questions about environmental destruction during wartime. Ukraine, which has experienced countless environmental catastrophes related to Russia’s all-out war, has been among the leading actors advocating for the recognition of ecocide as an international crime, even though the concept has yet to be formally codified in international law. Following the April strikes, however, some environmental activists in Russia and beyond are now also accusing Ukraine of hypocrisy and causing long-term environmental harm through strikes on oil infrastructure. There is a real debate over whether such actions can be justified, even when targeting an aggressor, if their environmental consequences may last for decades.

But focusing exclusively on Ukrainian strikes risks obscuring the deeper structural causes of the disaster. Russia’s oil infrastructure is deeply embedded in its war economy, and environmental damage of this magnitude does not occur in a vacuum. It is shaped by years of deregulation, lack of oversight and the systematic dismantling of environmental protections. These trends have only intensified during the full-scale invasion, as environmental safeguards have increasingly been cancelled in order to sustain the war economy. This includes recent legislative changes affecting the protection of Lake Baikal — a unique ecosystem that contains around 23 percent of the world’s unfrozen freshwater — raising concerns among experts about long-term environmental risks.

For years, environmental organisations in Russia have been labelled “foreign agents” or declared “undesirable”, independent environmental movements have been dismantled and activists forced into exile. The current catastrophe is unfolding in a country where ecological disasters are often silenced rather than addressed.

What is striking in the current situation is not only the scale of the damage but the response of the authorities. Rather than responding with transparency and accountability, Russian officials have largely attempted to silence discussion around the disaster. This recalls earlier patterns, including the initial response to the Chornobyl disaster, where secrecy and delayed disclosure significantly worsened the human and environmental consequences.

In this sense, responsibility does not lie only in the immediate cause of the disaster, but also in the absence of preparedness, regulation and accountability.

This disaster has also triggered an unusual wave of discussion within Russia itself, much of it unfolding online, despite increasing censorship. Volunteers on the ground have reported being obstructed and, in some cases, harassed while trying to rescue wildlife. Journalists attempting to document the situation have faced detention. Even as the catastrophe unfolds, the space to speak about it remains tightly controlled.

Yet the public reaction is telling. Much of it is happening on Instagram, which is banned in Russia, and on other social media platforms, with people still using VPNs to speak out and read real news. Rather than turning primarily into accusations against Ukraine, much of this discussion has been directed at the Russian authorities. The disaster is being used, implicitly and sometimes explicitly, to question the lack of coordination, the absence of transparency and the broader political system that allows such crises to happen.

This is significant. In a country where even calling the war a war is effectively prohibited, environmental catastrophe has become one of the few channels through which criticism can still surface.

The situation also exposes a deeper problem that goes beyond Russia. It highlights a fundamental gap in international law: the lack of effective mechanisms to address large-scale environmental destruction in the context of war.

Recent events illustrate the consequences of this gap. The destruction of the Kakhovka Dam caused massive ecological damage, yet failed to generate sustained legal or political accountability at the international level. Since then, environmental destruction has continued to accompany the war, without clear mechanisms to address it.

More broadly, the issue is being sidelined. The war in Ukraine has become so heavily politicised globally that discussions of its environmental consequences are often reduced, avoided or absorbed into larger geopolitical narratives. From the perspective of an environmental activist from Russia, this creates a deep sense of helplessness. These issues are becoming harder to raise, not because they are less important, but because they are competing with an overwhelming number of global crises.

This frustration is also visible within parts of the Russian antiwar movement, where there is a growing perception that international actors are more focused on the economic consequences of the conflict than on addressing its deeper causes and risks that go beyond military threats.

Meanwhile, environmental destruction across Russia, a country that spans one-10th of the Earth’s land surface, continues with little international attention. This includes not only wartime damage, but also longstanding patterns tied to extractivism, colonial governance in national republics, and the systematic marginalisation of Indigenous communities. These are not separate issues. They are part of the same underlying problem, one that remains largely unaddressed.

Environmental exploitation in Russia’s regions has long been tied to older imperial patterns of control and dispossession. These same southern regions are also the regions where the Russian Empire committed genocide against the Indigenous Circassian people, exterminating and expelling more than 95 percent of the local population in the late 19th century. And now, what the Russian authorities seem to care about is not the environmental devastation itself, but reopening the beaches so the region can continue generating income.

While Europe is preparing to spend hundreds of billions of euros responding to what it sees as a growing Russian military threat, far less attention is being paid to the political and economic structures sustaining environmental destruction inside Russia itself. From the perspective of an environmental activist and someone finishing a master’s degree in international affairs, there is a striking gap in how the root causes of this crisis are being addressed.

Too little attention is paid to the deeper structures that sustain it: Russia’s colonial governance and extractivist economic model in the regions of Russia. These issues remain underexplored not only in political decision-making but also in academia and media coverage. This gap is particularly visible in the missed opportunities to engage with emerging Russian decolonial movements and Indigenous activists from national republics, who have long been raising precisely these concerns. Their perspectives remain marginal, even though they are essential for understanding both environmental destruction and political instability in the region.

Many international organisations and NGOs have also scaled down or abandoned work related to Russia’s internal environmental and human rights issues, as well as broader regional dynamics in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. As a result, entire areas of expertise are disappearing at the very moment they are most needed. Voices that could contribute to a deeper understanding, and potentially to long-term solutions, are increasingly sidelined or ignored.

And when catastrophe comes, people are left asking how it became possible for oil to fall from the sky.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

It is Ramadan, and Bintu Suleiman, a 55-year-old mother and trader from Ngoshe in Borno State, North East Nigeria, is about to break her fast with her family.

Then, the gunshots begin, and within the hour, her home is on fire. As the terrorists round people up, she manages to slip away with her children and grandchildren into the bush. Later, she realises four of them did not make it with her. They are somewhere up in the mountains.

In this episode of #VOV, we see that, after the attack, Bintu, now displaced, is sheltering at a government primary school in Pulka and has no news of her children and grandchildren.

Reported by Sabiqah Bello

Voice acting by Rukayya Saeed

Multimedia editor is Anthony Asemota

Executive producer is Ahmad Salkida

INVESTIGATORS think Towie star Jake Hall died from a horror chest injury caused by broken glass.

Jake, 35, suffered head wounds after allegedly turning aggressive and trying to harm himself during a party at the £200-a-night Majorcan villa he was renting.

Sources close to the investigation said the worst injury the reality star suffered was a chest wound from a shard of glass after smashing into a door.

The insider said: “The thorax injury was the one emergency responders at the scene felt was the most traumatic one and most likely to have been fatal.”

Jake’s autopsy is expected to take place today in the Majorcan capital Palma, but the results will not be publicly released.

FIFA have come in for criticism for the inflated prices of tickets at World Cup 2026 in US, Canada and Mexico.

President Donald Trump is the latest person to ‌take a shot at the sky-high World Cup ticket prices, saying he would not pay $1,000 to watch the United States ⁠play against Paraguay on ⁠June 12 in Los Angeles.

Trump said he was unaware of the prices football fans are being asked to pay to watch a group-play match at the World Cup.

“I did not know that number,” ⁠Trump told The New York Post. “I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest with you.”

Earlier this week, FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended the cost of seats for the World Cup, saying ⁠they were in line with prices for major US sporting events.

“We have 25% of the group stage tickets which can be bought for less than $300,” Infantino said. “You cannot go to watch in the US a college game, not even speaking about a top professional game of a certain level, for less than $300. And this is the World Cup.”

The average cost of a ‌ticket for the World Cup final on July 19 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, is $13,000, according to reports. It was $1,600 for the 2022 final in Qatar.

Trump is worried the pricing will shut out working-class Americans from being able to attend a game.

“If people from Queens and Brooklyn and all of the people that love Donald Trump can’t go, I would be disappointed, but, you know, at the same time, it’s an amazing success,” he said of the World Cup that he helped land for the US during his first term as president. “I would like to be able to ⁠have the people that voted for me to be able to go.”

FIFA also released some ⁠tickets on Thursday, which gives fans a chance at first-come first-serve tickets.

According to TicketData.com, the current average price for Group Stage games is $567, down from $684 14 days ago and $720 from 30 days ago.

Field Level Media took a quick look Wednesday on the Ticketmaster website for the June 19 group-stage ⁠match between the US and Australia in Seattle, and that search did not display any bargains.

The lowest price for two tickets early Wednesday evening was a resale pair ⁠for $2,725.10, which broke down to $2,290 for the tickets and $435.10 in service fees. However, ⁠a new search 30 minutes later showed the total price climbing to $2,770.90 for seats high in the upper deck along the sideline at Lumen Field. For fans more familiar with football than futbol, they could be considered on the 25-yard line.

On Thursday afternoon, a newly listed pair of resale tickets ‌was the lowest offering – two for $2,553.10. Those tickets were in the upper deck around the football end line and NFL end zone.

On its own marketplace, FIFA takes a 15% purchase fee from the buyer of a resold ticket and a ‌15% ‌free from the seller.

TicketData.com said the cheapest available ticket has dropped in price for 87 of the 91 matches in the US and Canada over the past 14 days.

The World Cup will be played at 16 sites in the United States (11), Mexico (three) and Canada (two).

Rodney Barreto has received reassurances from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that ICE would steer clear of World Cup.

United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will ‌not be seen at World Cup matches this summer, according to the ⁠co-chair of the ⁠Miami host committee.

Rodney Barreto said on Thursday that he received reassurances from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that ICE would steer clear ⁠of the world football showcase.

“ICE is not going to be at the stadium,” Barreto told US-based website, The Athletic. “This is not going to turn into some ‘round them up’ type of ⁠thing. That’s not the purpose of this.

“It’ll be a great experience for everybody. I think that we’re lucky that we do have a president who loves sports and has given us the resources to reimburse the cities for their police protection.”

Barreto added, “I spoke to Marco ‌and, first of all, he’s going to make sure that the passports get processed and people can get here and there is an orderly process so people won’t be held up. It’s going to be a major undertaking by the federal government to do that. We feel very comfortable that we’re going to be in good hands.”

The deployment of ICE for immigration-enforcement raids has increased since Donald Trump ⁠began his second stint as president last year, igniting ⁠a significant political debate in the US.

South Florida’s role as a World Cup host market also comes against the backdrop of scenes from the 2024 Copa America championship game, when fans stormed the gates at Hard ⁠Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, causing a number of injuries and delaying the start of the Argentina-Colombia match.

“(The Miami ⁠World Cup organising committee) took the position that we ⁠didn’t want to be critical of the planners of that event,” Barreto told The Athletic. “It wasn’t our event. But now that time has passed, I would tell you that where the failure was, which was ‌that there were no perimeters.

“People without tickets should have been nowhere near the entrance ways of that stadium. It didn’t take much to overrun an entrance. But ‌listen, ‌you learn from all these events, and you learn to do it better and come up with different scenarios which mitigate this from happening in the future. So that’s where we’re at.”

The ruling Democratic Party’s (DP) push to put a constitutional change to a national vote in the upcoming local elections fell through Friday as the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) continued to boycott a parliamentary vote on the proposal.

Shortly after Friday’s plenary session opened, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik announced that he will not put the amendment bill to a vote as the PPP warned it would launch a filibuster to block the proposal.

“I convened the plenary session again today in an effort to prevent the first constitutional amendment vote in 39 years from falling through,” Woo said. “But I believe further proceedings would be meaningless, seeing the (PPP) responding with a filibuster.”

The PPP boycotted a vote on the bill Thursday, leaving the unicameral parliament short of a quorum.

Cheong Wa Dae expressed regret over the National Assembly’s failure to pass the bill due to opposition from PPP lawmakers.

“The public will find it difficult to understand why they opposed even minimal constitutional changes aimed at safeguarding national security and democracy,” presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing, noting that there had been broad public consensus on the need to “reflect the lessons” of former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3, 2024, martial law attempt in the Constitution.

“We urge the National Assembly to continue the discussions on the constitutional amendment with a greater sense of responsibility during the second half and to keep the promise it made to the people,” she added.

President Lee Jae Myung earlier highlighted the need to amend the constitution in “phases” if necessary, saying the Constitution, which has remained unchanged for nearly 40 years since 1987, may now be outdated.

The proposed bill aimed to tighten the rules for declaring martial law, requiring the president to obtain parliamentary approval without delay and stipulating that if the National Assembly rejects the declaration or fails to approve it within 48 hours, the martial law will be immediately nullified.

It also sought to include the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju and the 1979 Busan-Masan pro-democracy protests in the preamble. It currently states that the country inherits the spirit of the April 19 revolution in 1960, which overthrew South Korea’s first president, Rhee Syng-man, over election fraud.

The bill was jointly proposed by 187 lawmakers from the DP and five minor parties.

A constitutional amendment requires two thirds of votes from sitting lawmakers to be put to a national referendum for final approval by a majority of ballots cast.

South Korea is set to hold its quadrennial local elections on June 3.

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