Unto every generation, and fraction thereof, a sitcom is born, in which the young people of the moment state their case, self-mockingly. FX recently gave us a State of New York Youth in “Adults,” and here we are now, closer to home with “I Love L.A.,” premiering Sunday on HBO, the network of “Girls” (your guide to the 20-teens), still the most prestigious slot on linear television.
As a native of this fair city, who will never call downtown “DTLA” — let alone #DTLA — I miss the days when the rest of the country wanted nothing to do with us. (Real conversation from my life: Person: “Where are you from?” Me: “Los Angeles.” Person: “I’m sorry”). I can get a little cranky when it comes to the gentrihipsterfication of the city by succeeding hordes of newly minted Angelenos. (The place-name dropping in “I Love L.A.” includes Canyon Coffee, Courage Bagels, Jumbo’s Clown Room, Crossroads School and Erewhon.) I’m just putting my cards on the table here, as I approach characters whose generational concerns are distinct from mine, even as they belong to a venerable screen tradition, that of Making It in Hollywood, which runs back to the silent era. (The heroine of those pictures, stardom escaping her, would invariably return to the small-town boy who loved her. No more!)
Created by and starring Rachel Sennott (“Bottoms”), “I Love L.A.” takes its title from a Randy Newman song written well before Sennott or any of her co-stars were born. (To tell us where we are, as regards both HBO and the location, the series opens with a sex scene in an earthquake.) As in many such shows, there is a coterie of easily distinguishable friends at its center. Sennott plays Maia, turning 27 and in town for two years, working as an assistant to talent/brand manager Alyssa (the wonderful Leighton Meester, from “Gossip Girl,” that 2007 chronicle of youth manners) and hungry for promotion. Back into her life comes Tallulah (Odessa A’zion, the daughter of Pamela Adlon, whose throatiness she has inherited), a New York City It Girl — does any other city have It Girls in 2025? — whose It-ness has lately gone bust, as has Tallulah herself, now broke and rootless. She is one of those exhausting whirlwind personalities one might take to be on drugs, except that there are people who really do run at that speed, without speed — Holly Go-Heavily.
Also starring in the series are Jordan Firstman, left, True Whitaker and Odessa A’zion.
(Kenny Laubbacher / HBO)
Charlie (Jordan Firstman) is a stylist whose career depends on flattery and performative flamboyance. (“What’s the point of being nice,” he wonders, “if no one that can help me sees it?”) Alani (True Whitaker) is the daughter of a successful film director who has presumably paid for her very nice house, with its view of the Silver Lake Reservoir, and whatever she needs. (She has a title at his company even she admits is fake.) Since she wants for nothing, she’s the least stressful presence here, invested in spiritual folderol in a way that isn’t annoying. Attached to the quartet, but not really of it, is Maia’s supportive boyfriend, Dylan (Josh Hutcherson), a grade-school teacher and the only character I came close to identifying with. Do the kids still call them “normies”? Or did they ever, really?
That I find some of these people more trying than charming doesn’t prevent “I Love L.A.” from being a show I actually quite like. (The ratio of charm to annoyance may be flipped for some viewers, of course; different strokes, as we used to say back in the 1900s.) If anything, it’s a testament to Sennott and company having done their jobs well; the production is tight, the dialogue crisp, the photography rich — nothing here seems the least bit accidental. The cast is on point playing people who in real life they may not resemble at all. (My own, surely naive, much contradicted assumption is that all actors are nice.)
Desperation, in comedy, is pathetic but not tragic; indeed, it’s a pillar of the form. Maia, Tallulah and Charlie are to various degrees ruled by a need to be accepted by the successful and famous in the hope of becoming famous and successful themselves. (Alani is already set, and Dylan is almost a hippie, philosophically.) At the same time, the successful and famous come in for the harshest lampooning, including Elijah Wood, in an against-type scene reminiscent of Ricky Gervais’ “Extras.” On the other hand, Charlie’s unexpected friendship with a Christian singer he mistakes for gay is quite sweet; comedy being what it is, one half-expects the character to be taken down. Miraculously, it never happens. You can take that as a recommendation.
Charlie Cosser heartbroken dad makes a solemn promise to his tragic son Charlie, while sister Eloise reveals the devastating moment she heard her brother’s heart stop
Charlie Cosser was stabbed three times(Image: ITV)
After his 17-year-old son Charlie was fatally stabbed, dad Martin Cosser made a solemn double promise – he would get justice and he would dedicate the rest of his life to preventing knife crime.
Charlie was murdered by 16-year-old Yura Varybus at an end-of-term party on 23rd June 2023 in a farmhouse in West Sussex. Medics worked tirelessly to try to save his life but tragically, Charlie died two-and-a-half days later in hospital.
His father Martin broadcast his grief on TikTok, and now the story of how the murder case went viral is being told in the second series of ITV1’s TikTok: Murder Gone Viral.
In heartbreaking scenes viewers will see Charlie’s younger sister Eloise recall how police came to the family home in the night. She recalled: “I woke up to the sound of the door being banged on really hard. The police officer tells us she’ll be driving us to the hospital where they’ve taken Charlie. I didn’t have time to put my shoes on. I just ran out in the darkness into the police car.”
One of the three stab wounds had damaged Charlie’s aorta and he had a cardiac arrest in the ambulance. However, medics operated in the ambulance then managed to stabilise him before his family gathered at his bedside. Tragically, Charlie died when his heart broken family agreed to turn off his life support on the advice of doctors, whose tests showed Charlie had suffered irreversible brain damage.
Eloise revealed how she watched the life drain out of her beloved big brother, who was nicknamed Cheeks, as his heart stopped beating. She said: “I can’t even describe how it feels like to watch your brother die. I put my head on his chest and I was listening to his heart beat for the last time. I looked at his face and I could see the colour draining from his face and he became even more pale than he was before. I was told I needed to step back because I was in such a state but I’m refusing because I don’t want to leave his side in his last moments and that’s when I put my head back on his chest and realised his heart was no longer beating.”
Losing his son galvanised dad Martin to do everything he could to stop knife crime. “I just held Charlie’s hand and I made him a promise. I promised him justice but the main promise was that I would spend the rest of my life educating people about the dangers and immeasurable impacts of knife crime. I felt so isolated and alone in the immediate aftermath and I just recorded into the phone.”
Martin posts under his son’s name @CharlieCosser17. His most watched video sees Martin reacting tearfully to Varybus’ conviction and has been viewed 4.7 million times.
ITV reporter James Dunham, who covered the case, revealed how the posts made the murder go viral. He said: “Once Martin started posting his videos on Tiktok he soon gained a lot of attention but because police had arrested their prime suspect quite quickly, there wasn’t the usual Tiktok speculation about who the killer might be or where they might be hiding. Instead we got raw, unfolding agony.”
The documentary reveals how the violence unfolded. Charlie was stabbed three times after an altercation at the party. When he was arrested he initially pleaded guilty, but was later given permission to change his guilty plea to not guilty, forcing the family through a lengthy murder trial.
“An application had gone in for him to vacate his guilty plea,” Martin tells the documentary. “As far as we were concerned he’d already been found guilty, he was guilty. That was torture, absolute torture.”
However, the evidence against Varybrus was overwhelming. While the murder weapon was never recovered, there were eye witness accounts that reported Varybus being “drenched in blood”, and one witness said they heard him say “I’ve stabbed someone”. He later burned the clothes he was wearing and was also seen changing the settings on his mobile phone which detectives believe was intended to tamper with the evidence of his location. Varybrus was convicted of murder and possession of a bladed article and sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of sixteen years. Because Varybrus was under eighteen at the time of the killing, reporting restrictions initially protected his identity, but the judge lifted these after conviction, allowing the press to publish his name.
On the show Charlie’s dad Martin holds up the grey t-shirt Charlie was wearing on the night he was murdered. “You can see three stab wounds clearly on there,” says Martin. “Actually they are really small knife wounds and yet they caused catastrophic damage.”
Martin’s campaigning helped make the story a national talking point and start his work to educate people about the horrendous ramifications of knife crime. Now Martin and his wife Tara have set up a charity called Charlie’s Promise which raises awareness of the dangers of carrying and using a knife.
Martin said: “I set about putting the wheels in motion and setting up a charity called Charlie’s Promise and the talks I go out and give are to prevent and make a difference to knife crime in this country. And while there is air in my lungs I will continue to tell the story of my little boy and how incredible he was and make a difference in this country to prevent other families like ours going through this misery.”
A LOVE Island star has told of the moment she made a desperate 999 call to “catch a paedophile”.
Series ten star Mal Nicol, who entered as a bombshell in 2023, has claimed she got a predatory male arrested – after spotting him lurking by a children’s park.
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Mal Nicol has told fans about her efforts to catch a ‘paedophile’
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Mal was on series ten of Love IslandCredit: ITV
She told fans on TikTok: “We got a paedophile arrested. I literally cannot believe what we witnessed. It was honestly like a movie or something.”
Mal, who was with a friend at the time, was approached by a group of young boys close to a London park who complained about a “creepy man”.
Concerned for their welfare, Mal walked towards the park area in Little Venice, London, to see what was going on for herself.
“Moments later we clearly see that this guy is not okay,” she continued.
“He’s standing by the park swaying, like putting his hand into the park over the fence and trying to high five this little boy who’s about five years old.
“We kind of wanted to distract him and see what he was doing or saying.
“We then saw a mum with her daughter, like a little 3, 4 year old girl who is on a scooter. This guy tries to grab her from behind and the dad jumps in between them both.
“He then goes into the park where there’s a lot of young mums with their like 3 year old girls who are obviously feeling vulnerable and scared.
“So I call 999 and I’m literally so impressed with the police and how fast they came.
“When the officers arrives I was running up to them shouting ‘he’s going to get away, he’s going to get away’.
Maya Jama confirms her future on Love Island amid rumours she is set to quit the villa
“I felt like I was in a movie. I’m like running.”
“The police arrested the suspect and Mal was interviewed alongside other witnesses.
“This is happening in London and I just think you have to do something. You can’t just watch. It was crazy.
“He better be put in for time. Like this is not okay.”
Proud Mal added: “Sorry for the long video, but we put a paedophile in jail.”
There’s desperate, and there’s desperate to where you’re looking for Roki Sasaki to be the answer to your team’s late-inning problems.
The same Roki Sasaki who hasn’t pitched in a major league game in more than four months because of shoulder problems.
The same Roki Sasaki who posted a 4.72 earned-run average in eight starts.
The same Roki Sasaki who last week in the minors pitched as a reliever for the first time.
The Dodgers’ exploration of Sasaki as a late-inning option is a reflection of the 23-year-old rookie’s upside, but this isn’t a commentary of Sasaki as much as it is of the roster.
The team’s bullpen problems have persisted into the final week of the regular season, and the potential solutions sound like miracles, starting with Sasaki’s audition for a postseason role as a reliever.
Sasaki pitched twice in relief for triple-A Oklahoma City, touching 100 mph in a scoreless inning on Thursday and retiring the side on Sunday.
Manager Dave Roberts said Sasaki would rejoin the Dodgers for their upcoming road series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The earliest Sasaki would be available to pitch would be on Wednesday.
With only six games remaining in the regular season, Sasaki figures to pitch no more than twice for the Dodgers before the playoffs. That being the case, do the Dodgers plan to use him in high-leverage situations to learn how he performs in late-inning situations?
“We’re still trying to win games, and this would be his third outing in the ‘pen, first in the big leagues, so not sure,” Roberts said.
Then again, what’s the alternative? Continue to run out Blake Treinen?
The most dependable reliever on the Dodgers’ World Series run last season, the 37-year-old Treinen was re-signed to a two-year, $22-million contract over the winter. He missed more than three months of this season with a forearm strain and hasn’t rediscovered the form that made him a postseason hero. Treinen is 1-7 with a 5.55 earned-run average for the season and has taken a loss in five of his last seven games.
Treinen cost the Dodgers another game on Sunday when he inherited a 1-0 lead, only to give up three runs in the eighth inning of an eventual 3-1 defeat.
Roberts was booed when he emerged from the dugout to remove Treinen, but whom did the fans want the manager to call on to pitch that inning instead?
Tanner Scott?
Kirby Yates?
Alex Vesia is the most trustworthy bullpen arm, but if he pitched the eighth inning, who would have pitched the ninth?
Dodgers pitcher Blake Treinen, right, reacts after giving up a bases-loaded walk in a 3-1 loss to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Roberts acknowledged he was basically reduced to holding out hope that when the postseason starts Treinen would magically revert to being the pitcher he was last year.
Wouldn’t it be unsettling to have to count on Treinen without seeing him pitch better in the regular season?
“Certainly, I’d like to see some more consistent performance,” Roberts said. “But at the end of the day, there’s going to be certain guys that I feel that we’re going to go to in leverage [situations] and certain guys we’re not going to.”
Evidently, Treinen is still viewed as a leverage-situation pitcher.
Roberts said: “My trust in him is unwavering.”
There aren’t many other choices.
Maybe Will Klein, who was called up from the minors for the third time last week. Klein struck out the side on Saturday and gave up a leadoff double in a scoreless inning on Sunday.
Maybe Brock Stewart, who has been sidelined with shoulder problems for the majority of the time since he was acquired at the trade deadline. Stewart will rejoin the Dodgers in Arizona.
The playoff picture is unlikely to change for the Dodgers between now and the end of the regular season, as they are four games behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the No. 2 seed in the National League and three games ahead of the second-place San Diego Padres in the NL West. Nonetheless, Roberts said he was unsure of how high-leverage innings over the next week would be allocated, which spoke to the degree of uncertainty about the bullpen. Should these innings be used to straighten out previously-successful relievers such as Treinen and Scott? Or to experiment with unknown commodities such as Sasaki and Klein?
Just a couple of weeks ago, the door for Sasaki pitching in the playoffs was locked and bolted. The Dodgers have been rocked by the dreadful performance of their bullpen, so much so that a door that was once slammed shut is now wide open.
PRINCE Harry is desperate and needing stardust from King Charles in order to stay relevant, even if it means sacrificing his privacy, a royal expert has claimed.
Prince William is desperate to hold onto King Charles’ stardust, a royal expert has claimedCredit: Getty
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Harry met the King last week – their first face-to-face meeting in more than a year and a halfCredit: AP
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Harry’s relationship with the royal family has left many of the Firm ‘very angry’ with him, the expert addedCredit: Splash
Their meeting, lasting just under an hour, was followed up by an interview where Harry said his priority this year was to “focus on my dad”.
However, Royal Expert and Biographer Ingrid Seward has said that Harry’s move was just a “PR stunt” as he “needs the King’s stardust” in order to stay relevant.
“Harry needs the stardust of his father. He needs people to see him as the son of a king.
Read More on Prince Harry
“His earning power is related to who he is. Without being the royal he is, Harry would not be interested to anyone in California.
“But because he is the son of a king, and the brother of an heir to the throne, he is of great interest and he needs that connection.”
Ingrid explained that since Harry “makes his money in America”, through his Netflix deals and other ventures, he would need to keep his image strong there.
She said the view of a “split” family did not sit well with audiences in the US, and so this decision would help mend that image and keep him relevant.
Ingrid continued: “This is a big, big PR push, and Harry was finally all smiles and charm, reminiscent of himself of old.”
Turning to Harry’s statement that his “conscience was clear”, in regards to the publication of his controversial memoir Spare, Ingrid said: “I’m not sure that Harry knows what a clear conscience is.
Prince Harry’s rift with royals is FAR from over – William will hate that he met the King
“Whether what he was saying was true or not, you just don’t do that.”
Ingrid added: “And it has far-reaching consequences, as it has had with Harry.
“But Harry obviously wants to wipe the slate clean, but people’s memories are a little bit longer than that, and I think a lot of the royal family are still very angry, and I suspect that Charles isn’t particularly happy with his son.
“But to him, it’s more important to welcome Harry, if not back into the family, at least back into his own, you know, personal fold, because at least Charles can then keep an eye on what he’s doing as well.”
HARRY’S BRIEF MEETING WITH CHARLES
This comes after Harry spoke out after briefly meeting King Charles during his visit.
The meeting, a “private tea” between the two, lasted 55 minutes – almost double the time Harry got last year.
And when quizzed on the possibility of further meetings with the King, Harry said: “The focus really has to be on my dad”.
He also leapt to the defence of his controversial memoir, Spare, claiming his “conscience is clear”.
Speaking to The Guardian, the Duke said: “I know that (speaking out) annoys some people and it goes against the narrative.
“It was a series of corrections to stories already out there. One point of view had been put out and it needed to be corrected.
“It was a difficult message, but I did it in the best way possible. My conscience is clear. It is not about revenge, it is about accountability.”
After his four-day trip, a spokesperson for Harry told how he “loved catching up with old friends” and colleagues.
Harry also admitted he wants to spend more time in the country.
When asked if he would bring his children, Archie, six, and Lilibet, four, he responded: “This week has definitely brought that closer.”
“She went into labour and gave birth on the side of the road while trying to find help.”
UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram explains the desperate conditions families find themselves in while being forcibly displaced from Gaza City by Israeli evacuation orders.
The hum of a generator was the sound of success for Uzor Igwe. In his small but bustling workshop in Lilu town, Anambra State, southeastern Nigeria, the 38-year-old master technician could detect a faulty coil or a clogged carburettor just by listening. His grease-stained hands were tools of precision, restoring electricity to homes and businesses. For years, he was a pillar of his community, a man who fixed things.
Today, the only thing Uzor is trying to fix is his life. He now lives in Asaba, in the country’s South South, where the sound of generators is a painful reminder of all he has lost.
Uzor’s story is the human cost of the violence that has transformed his hometown of Lilu into a part of a larger place locals fearfully call “another Sambisa,” alluding to the famous Sambisa forest in faraway northeastern Nigeria, where Boko Haram combatants have taken shelter. His thriving generator repair business, built over 15 years, was ultimately another casualty of gunmen who held his community hostage.
“I had two apprentices, three benches full of tools I collected over a lifetime, and customers from three local governments,” Uzor recalls. “On a good week, I could fix ten, fifteen generators. I was training others; I was providing. I was happy.”
The winds of fear now sweep through the forests and farmlands of southeastern Nigeria. Once-vibrant towns have withered into haunted shells of their former selves, as armed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) fighters and their affiliates loom over daily life.
Police officers often wear muftis to avoid being targeted. “Everyone is afraid to speak,” said a senior police officer who served in Imo for “two dreaded years” before he begged his superiors to transfer him to Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital. The climate of fear over the daily loss of lives, rape of women, and trade across the region is palpable.
At the core of this situation is a complex combination of separatist unrest, violent crimes like murders committed against civilians and state actors, and arson on official facilities and assets that is comparable to terrorism, as well as a lack of effective official security.
Fleeing home with nothing
The descent began around 2021. IPOB, a separatist group long declared a terror group by the Nigerian government, were violent in their efforts to establish an independent country of Biafra in the country’s South East and some parts of the South-South.
They enforced an illegal sit-at-home order on Mondays and Thursdays, which crippled businesses like Uzor’s, brutalised citizens, and spread propaganda online. The order was a protest to the government to release the group’s leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who had been in detention for years.
Since then, over 700 people have been killed by the group, and economic losses are estimated at ₦7.6 trillion, according to SBM Intelligence.
In Lilu, the sounds of power bikes and sporadic gunfire began to compete with the hum of Uzor’s generators. Customers became too afraid to venture out. His apprentices, fearing being conscripted or caught in the crossfire, stopped coming.
HumAngle had previously collected open-source data from over 100 locations in the South East to track the effect of the sit-at-home order on businesses like Uzor’s and public spaces. We found that Anambra, where he was located, experienced 11 reported cases of violence from the group in efforts to ensure compliance with the order last year. The threat of violence has resulted in significantly lower activity in the region than in other parts of the country on those days.
“The final straw was not even for me, but for my family,” Uzor says, his gaze dropping. His father, a retired teacher, passed away from illness in early 2024. Instead of a time for mourning and tradition, the family was plunged into a grotesque negotiation.
“We were told we had to pay a levy to bury our own father,” Uzor explains, the absurdity of the statement still raw. “₦200,000 for permission to lay a good man to rest. The same boys who might have been responsible for killing our neighbours were now taxing our grief. We paid. What choice did we have? But paying for my father’s burial with that money… it killed something in me.”
He knew then that Lilu could no longer be his home. The risk of being killed for refusing to comply, or for simply being in the wrong place, was too high. With his business already dead, he feared his life would be next.
With only what they could carry, Uzor, his wife, and their two young children fled under the cover of night, becoming displaced people in their country. They left behind his workshop, his tools, his client ledger—the entire architecture of his livelihood.
Picking the pieces
Now in Asaba, he is starting from zero. The small room he rents doubles as a home and a struggling new workshop. His tools are a cheap, basic set. He has no network, no reputation, and is just one of many technicians in a crowded city.
“Here, I am nobody. I have to beg for jobs that pay little. I compete with boys half my age,” he says, wiping his hands on a rag that sees less grease these days. “Sometimes a whole week will pass, and this toolbox will not even open.”
The struggle is both financial and psychological; the confidence of a master craftsman has been replaced by the anxiety of a newcomer.
“In Lilu, I was Uzor, the man who could fix anything,” he adds. “Here, I am just a man from the troubled East, trying to survive. I lost my community, my identity, and my father’s grave is in a land I am now afraid to visit.”
He prays for peace, not just for the safety of those left behind, but for the chance to one day reclaim the fragments of the life he was forced to abandon.
The 36-year-old regularly visits a quarry, police have said
She is known to regularly visit The Quarry in the area, with police urging members of the public to “call 999” if they see her, Oxford Mail reports.
In a fresh appeal to find her, mum Trixie Sophie said: “Ami please come home your family miss you your children.
“Miss you. You don’t need to tell anybody where you are. Just phone your mum.
“Wherever she is I will come and get her. She can come home to me.
“I won’t tell anybody, we just want you home safe my darling with your family.”
Amy has been described by police as a white woman, around 5ft 5ins tall, of a slim build and was last known to have blonde hare – though she frequently dyes it.
She also has three stars tattooed behind her left dear, a black out stop watch and a love heart tattoo on her wrist and fortune cookie tattoo on her ankle.
A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: “Have you seen Amy? She is 36-years-old and missing from Aylesbury.
“Amy was last seen at around 1pm on Saturday near Quarry View Garden Care in Chinnor.
“She is a white woman, around 5ft 5ins tall, of slim build and was last known to have blonde hair, though she frequently dyes it.
“Amy has three stars tattooed behind her left ear, a blacked out stop-watch and love heart tattoo on her wrist and a fortune cookie tattoo on her ankle.
“She is known to frequent The Quarry, Chinnor.
“If you see her, please call 999. If you have information on her whereabouts, please call 101 or make an online report, quoting 43250444275.”
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Amy, 36, has been missing since Saturday
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Police have urged members of the public to call 999 as they continue to search
A BODY has been found in the search for a missing County Durham man.
Police were searching for 35-year-old Dean from Chester-le-Street when they recovered the body Wednesday afternoon.
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Police believe they have recovered the body of missing Chester-le-Street man, DeanCredit: Facebook
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He was last seen on Monday, with his mum posting an appeal on FacebookCredit: Durham Constabulary
While formal identification is yet to take place, the body is believed to be Dean.
Durham Constabulary issued an appeal to help find the missing man early on Wednesday.
His mum also posted an appeal on Facebook, writing: “Has anyone seen my son Dean he left home yesterday at 11am to go to the gym at Chester le Street and he hasn’t come home.”
She posted another photo of Dean this evening without a caption.
He had last been seen crossing the road to the cycle path near the Pelton Buffs Social Club just before 11am on Monday.
A spokesperson for Durham Constabulary told ChronicleLive: “We’re very sorry to report that a body has been found in the search for Dean. Sadly, the body of a man was recovered from the Pelton area this afternoon.
“Formal identification has yet to take place, but we believe it to be that of the 35-year-old, from Chester-le-Street. Dean’s family have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers.
“We’re very sorry to report that a body has been found in the search for Dean. Sadly, the body of a man was recovered from the Pelton area this afternoon (August 20).
“Formal identification has yet to take place, but we believe it to be that of the 35-year-old, from Chester-le-Street. Dean’s family have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers.”
His family have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers.
Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi’s decision to appoint an “emergency police commissioner” in Washington is just the latest attempt to change an increasingly uncomfortable subject for the White House. Last month President Trump told the American people he was never briefed on the files regarding Jeffrey Epstein, who in 2019 was charged with sex trafficking minors. We now know that Bondi told the president in May that his name appeared multiple times in those files, which traced Epstein’s operation back to the mid-1990s.
So — either you believe a city experiencing a 30-year low in crime is suddenly in need of an emergency police commissioner or you agree with Joe Rogan’s assessment: This administration is gaslighting the public regarding those files.
Now there will be pundits who will try to say Republicans are too focused on kitchen table issues to care about the Epstein controversy.
If only that were true.
According to the Consumer Price Index, goods cost more today than they did a month ago. And prices are higher than they were a year ago. It would be wonderful if Congress were in session to address kitchen table issues like grocery prices. However, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) ended the House session early to avoid a vote on the release of the Epstein files — a vote that could have displeased Trump. Those are the lengths some in the MAGA movement are willing to go to prevent the public from knowing the truth about Epstein’s clients. That is the backdrop for what is currently happening in the streets of Washington. It’s not inspired by a rise in crime, but by a fear of transparency.
It’s important to look at Bondi’s “emergency police commissioner” decision with clear, discerning eyes because the administration is purposefully conflating the issues of crime and homelessness in order to win back support from Trump’s base. While it is true that the district has made huge progress against crime, and the number of unhoused residents is far lower than a decade ago even though homeless populations nationwide have soared, the rise of conspicuous encampments around Washington is one of the reasons Virginia was almost able to lure away the city’s NBA and NHL teams. However, the nation’s capital was able to keep those sports franchises because of the leadership of Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Instead of taking over the city’s police force, perhaps Bondi should ask Bowser for some advice that could be replicated in other cities nationwide. Ask the mayor’s office what resources it might need to continue its progress on homelessness and crime. But again, this really isn’t about what benefits the people, is it? It’s really about what’s in the best interest of one person.
Now there will be pundits who will try to tell you Republicans are too focused on making this country “great” to worry about who is in the Epstein files. I ask you, when has trampling over democracy ever made us great? In Iran, we contributed to the overthrowing of Mohammad Mosaddegh in the 1950s, and we continue to be at odds with the nation. In Chile in the early 1970s, we moved against Salvador Allende, and it took 20 years to normalize our relationship again.
Here at home, in 2010, the state of Michigan took over the predominantly Black city of Benton Harbor under the guise of a financial emergency. The City Council was prevented from governing as state officials tried to save the city from a crippling pension deficit and other financial shortages. There was temporary reprieve, but Benton Harbor is still on economic life support. That’s because the issue wasn’t the policies of the local government. It was the lasting effects of losing so much tax revenue to a neighboring suburb due to white flight. The explanation for Benton Harbor’s woes lies in the past, not the present.
The same is true in Washington. The relatively young suburbs of McLean and Great Falls, Va., are two of the richest in the country. When you have the same financial obligations of yesteryear but less tax revenue to operate with, there will be shortfalls. And those gaps manifest themselves in many ways — rundown homes, empty storefronts, a lack of school resources.
Those are legitimate plagues affecting every major city. What Bondi is doing in Washington isn’t a cure for what ails it. And when you consider why she’s doing what she’s doing, you are reminded why people are so sick of politics.
The following AI-generated content is powered by Perplexity. The Los Angeles Times editorial staff does not create or edit the content.
Ideas expressed in the piece
The author argues that Attorney General Pam Bondi’s appointment of an “emergency police commissioner” in Washington D.C. serves as a deliberate distraction from the Jeffrey Epstein files controversy, rather than addressing any legitimate public safety emergency.
The author contends that President Trump misled the American public by claiming he was never briefed on the Epstein files, when Bondi actually informed him in May that his name appeared multiple times in documents tracing Epstein’s operation back to the mid-1990s.
The author emphasizes that Washington D.C. is currently experiencing a 30-year low in crime rates, making the justification for an “emergency police commissioner” appear fabricated and politically motivated rather than based on actual public safety needs.
The author criticizes House Speaker Mike Johnson for ending the legislative session early specifically to avoid a vote on releasing the Epstein files, suggesting this demonstrates how far the MAGA movement will go to protect Trump from transparency.
The author argues that the administration is purposefully conflating crime and homelessness issues to win back support from Trump’s base, while ignoring the actual progress Washington D.C. has made under Mayor Muriel Bowser’s leadership in reducing both crime and homelessness.
The author draws historical parallels to failed U.S. interventions in Iran and Chile, as well as Michigan’s takeover of Benton Harbor, arguing that federal takeovers of local governance consistently fail and represent an assault on democratic principles rather than effective problem-solving.
Different views on the topic
Trump administration officials justify the federal intervention as part of a broader crime-reduction initiative, with National Guard forces working alongside law enforcement teams to carry out the president’s plan to reduce violent crime in the city[1].
The administration cited legal authority under Section 740 of the Home Rule Act, which grants the president the power to place the Metropolitan Police Department under federal control during a declared emergency, marking the first time a president has invoked this unprecedented authority[2].
Federal officials defended the directive as necessary for enforcing immigration laws, with the revised order specifically directing D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to provide assistance with “locating, apprehending, and detaining aliens unlawfully present in the United States” regardless of local D.C. law and police policies[1].
The administration’s approach focused on nullifying the city’s sanctuary city policies and ensuring that all Metropolitan Police Department leadership obtain federal approval for policy decisions moving forward, framing this as essential for effective federal law enforcement[2].
Following legal challenges, the Justice Department demonstrated flexibility by scaling back the original directive after meeting with D.C. officials, ultimately leaving the local police chief in charge while maintaining federal oversight for immigration-related matters[1].
As Celebs Go Dating returns for a new series, Kerry Katona is desperate for love, while Christine McGuinness is looking to date a woman and S Club pop star Jon Lee tackles his ‘car crash’ love life…
06:00, 11 Aug 2025Updated 06:21, 11 Aug 2025
Kerry Katona admits she is known as ‘a car crash’ on Celebs Go Dating
With plenty of cheek, Celebs Go Dating is back tonight on E4 at 9pm, as more famous people volunteer to be filmed as they look for love. Guided by expert agents Paul C Brunson, Anna Williamson and Dr Tara Suwinyattichaiporn, there is plenty of drama and lust as the celebs go dating.
This season kicks off with a mixer in London, hosted by Tom Read Wilson.
On the hunt for love in this latest series are Atomic Kitten blonde bombshell Kerry Katona (not her first time on the show), S Club pop star Jon Lee, Too Hot to Handle lothario Louis Russell, TV personality Christine McGuinness and Love Island sensation Olivia Hawkins.
Kerry says: “I’m best known for being a singer, a mother, a reality star and a car crash. People think I’m this crazy, partying wild person, when in fact I’m a bit of a loner. In fact, I’m just really boring.”
She adds: “The whole dating thing is just not something I do.”
Kerry explains: “I just meet somebody and get married. I was very young when I met my first husband, I was 18. We got divorced when I was 25. I got married straight away after that, got divorced, then got married again.
“Then I met my last fiance, but I never actually got up the aisle that time.”
Kerry Katona opens up about her love life on Celebs Go Dating
Kerry sighs: “I keep getting rejected, that’s what it is, I’m never good enough. They always want something else. I just want to be loved. I’m so desperate to be loved.”
She doesn’t fare too well though, with Anna Williamson noting that Kerry comes across as “insincere” when she’s talking to potential dates.
Meanwhile model, author and mum-of-three Christine says: “I’ve been separated from my ex husband for around three years. I met Paddy McGuinness when I was 19.
“I describe my sexuality as being a free spirit. When I was a teenager I dated men and women before I was married and now I’m really, really just enjoying spending time with women.”
Three years after breaking up with husband Paddy, Christine McGuinness is looking for love
While Jon reveals: “My dating has been a complete car crash, I’ve been single and celibate for six years. I want a man who’s rough around the edges.” Getting their flirt on and testing their dating skills, the celebs work the room and try to look for instant chemistry and sparks.
As the agents watch on, they find out just how hard they’re going to have to work to get their famous clients on the path to romance. Paul Brunson says: “We can see how they operate and gather information.”
Then a secret is revealed – the celebs must choose someone for a first date and it will be in Ibiza. “How can I go abroad with someone I don’t know? This is not normal,” says Christine, finally realising that she is on a reality show. A flash forward shows people swinging their tops around their heads, jumping on lilos, clinking glasses… It’s going to be messy.
*Celebs Go Dating airs tonight (Aug 11) on E4 at 9pm
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe – When Lloyd Muzamba was critically injured in a car accident on the Harare–Bulawayo highway in 2023, he needed an urgent blood transfusion to save his life. Despite being admitted at Mpilo Central Hospital, the biggest public health facility in Zimbabwe’s Matabeleland region, a shortage of supplies meant the doctors didn’t have enough for him.
In desperation, Muzamba’s family turned to their only other option – a nearby private hospital that sold them the three pints of blood. But at a cost of $250 per pint, Muzamba – who earned a $270 monthly salary and had no savings – could not afford it.
With time running out, the family had to make a plan. Eventually, Muzamba’s uncle sold a cow for $300 and asked other relatives to contribute the balance.
Two years on, the now recovered Muzamba says the incident has left him psychologically wounded, as he worries about other emergencies when people may need lifesaving blood.
“Three pints can be a small number; others might need more than that. But due to the costs involved, it becomes life-threatening,” said the 35-year-old, who works in a hardware store in Bulawayo.
“I could not get the blood without paying or making a payment plan. It was a painful experience for an ordinary Zimbabwean like me.”
Muzamba’s is not an isolated case.
With ongoing currency woes, rising costs of living and high levels of poverty, desperate Zimbabweans in need of care face life-threatening delays due to financial barriers. This includes blood shortages – despite supplies being free in public health facilities.
Tanaka Moyo, a mother of two in the capital Harare, also experienced the stress of needing to pay for emergency blood supplies during the delivery of her second child.
After excessive postpartum haemorrhaging, the 38-year-old street vendor needed four pints of blood.
Together with her husband, a security guard, she had struggled to raise money for the birth of their child. The sudden need for a blood transfusion was a shocking unplanned cost.
“My husband ran around and borrowed money from a microfinance institution. The interests are steep and conditions stringent, but he had to act quickly,” said Moyo.
“At the hospital, they insisted the blood was free – but it was not available.”
Plaxedes Charuma, a gynaecologist in Bulawayo, says “postpartum haemorrhage is the leading cause of maternal mortality”. The prevalence of the condition means that hospitals should always have supplies on hand to deal with maternal blood loss emergencies that arise, health experts say.
A maternity ward at a hospital in Harare, Zimbabwe [Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters]
According to the Community Working Group on Health (CWGH), a network of civic health organisations in Zimbabwe, the country faces a high demand for blood transfusions, and those most affected are pregnant women.
“About half a million pregnancies are expected in Zimbabwe, and in some of these, there is excessive blood loss, requiring transfusion of at least three pints of blood,” said Itai Rusike, CWGH’s executive director.
“Maternal mortality in Zimbabwe remains unacceptably high,” Rusike told Al Jazeera. “Timely blood transfusion prevents maternal deaths, which in Zimbabwe stands at 212 women dying per every 100,000 live births.”
‘Free blood for all’
Generally, there are two major types of blood transfusions: allogeneic and autologous. Autologous transfusion refers to self-same blood donation by an individual for their own use later. Allogeneic transfusion, which is the most common in Zimbabwe, involves administering blood donated by one person to another who matches their blood type.
The National Blood Service Zimbabwe (NBSZ) is the body that oversees blood donation and distribution in the country. It operates as an independent not-for-profit entity, but it is mandated by law to collect, process and distribute blood throughout Zimbabwe.
While the Ministry of Health and Child Care is permanently represented on its board of directors, NBSZ functions independently of hospitals and government health institutions. It is not present in every facility, but maintains decentralised distribution from five regional centres: Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Masvingo and Mutare.
Historically, patients in Zimbabwe paid for blood, but over the years the government worked on lowering costs – from $150 a pint in 2016 and prior to $50 by 2018.
The government then went a step further in July that year, deciding that blood would be made free at all public health institutions.
“The free blood for all move is going ahead as planned and mechanisms have already been put in place to finance the move, and come July 1 [2018], blood will be available for free,” said then-Minister of Health and Child Care Dr David Parirenyatwa during the June 2018 World Blood Donor Day celebrations.
However, despite the policy, hospitals continue to face shortages.
This May, there was a critical lack of blood in public hospitals, a situation that threatened the lives of thousands of people, the Ministry of Health and Child Care said in a statement. Al Jazeera contacted ministry spokesperson Donald Mujiri to ask about the shortage and the implementation of the free blood policy, but he did not respond to our requests for comment.
NBSZ, meanwhile, said that May’s shortage was due to operational and systemic challenges that disrupted its ability to carry out routine blood collection activities.
“Without timely financial support, we faced constraints in mobilising outreach teams, securing fuel, and procuring essential supplies,” Vickie Maponga, NBSZ communications officer, told Al Jazeera.
“Additionally, the crisis was exacerbated by a seasonal dip in donations, particularly from youth, who make up over 70 percent of our donor base.”
These shortages regularly result in patients on the front line needing to buy blood at private clinics. In most cases, the patient is physically transferred to the private facility for the transfusion, where they pay the costs. In some cases, the patient pays and the private hospital sends the blood to them in the public hospital.
A World Blood Donor Day awareness street march in Zimbabwe [Courtesy of NBSZ]
Crucial blood donations
The World Health Organization (WHO) aims to ensure that all countries practicing blood transfusions obtain their blood supplies from voluntary blood donors.
The NBSZ told Al Jazeera that a sustainable blood supply in Zimbabwe depends on cultivating a culture of regular, voluntary donations, particularly among the youth and underserved communities.
The service has a mobile outreach model, through which it brings blood donation drives directly to schools and communities. To further engage the youth, Maponga said they also started a club that “encourages young people to commit to donating blood at least 25 times in their lifetime”.
“We also integrate blood donation awareness into school programmes and partner with tertiary institutions to maintain continuity post-high school,” she said.
Ivy Khumalo, 32, is one of those who has been donating blood since she was in high school. But she says the lack of blood donation centres around her now limits her ability to give as an adult.
“As a school child, it was [first started] as a result of peer pressure, but I found it fascinating,” Khumalo said. “It was only when I was an adult that I made a personal decision to continue donating out of love to save life and help those in need.”
But since moving from Bulawayo to Hwange, she said, donating blood has become expensive as the nearest centre is in Victoria Falls, over 100km (62 miles) away.
NBSZ says it routinely deploys mobile blood drives around the country. It also says it offers donors incentives.
“Regular donors who meet specific criteria such as having made at least 10 donations, with the most recent within the past 12 months, qualify for free blood and blood products for themselves and their immediate family members … in times of medical need,” explained Maponga.
However, for keen donors like Khumalo, the effort to reach a far-off donation site is a barrier to entry.
“In such circumstances, it is no longer a free donation as I spent money going there. In the end, most of us decide to stay home despite the passion for blood donation,” she said.
CWGH’s Rusike says the NBSZ and Ministry of Health and Child Care must urgently devise innovative and sustainable ways to increase the number of eligible blood donors.
“The government should utilise the Health Levy Fund of 5 percent tax on airtime and mobile data as it was set up to specifically subsidise the cost of blood and assist public health institutions to replace obsolete equipment and address the perennial drug shortages in our public health institutions,” he said. “That money should be ring-fenced and used for its intended purpose in a more accountable and transparent manner.”
A woman works at a National Blood Service Zimbabwe (NBSZ) lab [Courtesy of NBSZ]
Promises and shortages
Authorities say that as of mid-2025, Zimbabwe’s national blood supply is showing good progress, and NBSZ has already collected over 73 percent of its half-year target (the 2025 annual target is 97,500 units).
The blood service also says the Ministry of Health and Child Care plays a central role in both subsidising and overseeing the cost of blood within the public health sector.
“Since 2018, this [free blood policy] is made possible through a government-funded coupon system, which absorbs the full cost of $250 per unit, resulting in zero cost to the recipient [in public hospitals],” said Maponga.
The NBSZ maintains that it operates on a cost recovery basis. It says the entire chain of collecting, processing and distributing a pint of blood costs $245. The agency charges $250, making a $5 profit per pint.
However, prices at some private facilities can reach as much as $500 per pint, Zimbabweans say. This has sparked heated debate on social media, as the high cost remains far out of reach for many people.
“NBSZ does not have regulatory authority over how those institutions price their services to patients,” said Maponga, explaining that while blood itself is donated freely, the journey from “vein to vein” involves a complex and resource-intensive process.
Observers, however, say more can be done to lower the costs of blood transfusions.
“At closer look, the whole chain of blood transfusion can cost less than $150 by strategically deploying available resources, use of financial donor stakeholders like corporates, and also holding the government accountable to fund the whole process,” said Carlton Ntini, a socioeconomic justice activist in Bulawayo.
The issue of free blood in the public hospitals is noble, Ntini said, but without full implementation, it remains a false hope and only benefits the “lucky” few, as shortages are the order of the day.
“In reality, any amount above $50 per pint of blood will still be high to Zimbabweans, and it’s a death sentence,” he said.
Meanwhile, for patients, the cost of essentials only adds to an already stressful situation.
Muzamba was fortunate in that his family did not claim back the money they gave him for his blood transfusion. But Moyo and her husband struggled to settle their $1,000 loan debt, which escalated to $1,400 after interest.
“It psychologically drained me more than the physical pain as I wondered, ‘Where would I get such money in this economy?’” said Moyo. “The government must own up to its promises – it’s not only about being free, but must be accessible.”
After Zahra Usman* quit a job she described as toxic in a law firm that overworked and underpaid her, affecting her mental health, she found herself searching for a job for over a year. She applied for every opportunity she was qualified for, and that was how she came across one that promised a role at the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in the United Nations in 2024.
“My friend sent the flyer to me. It looked like a legit job application. The job had different roles, including legal assistants, and that was the role I applied for,” she says, recalling having no doubts at first, as she submitted her cover letter and curriculum vitae (CV) to the provided email address.
She did not receive an acknowledgement email and eventually forgot about it, as it was common not to hear back after applying for a job. However, in April 2024, they sent an email claiming they were recruiting again. Since she had already applied for the other role, they said they reached out because she met the requirements for the current position.
“They asked me to confirm my interest, reply to the email before the deadline, and send in an updated CV,” she recalled. They even offered an estimated salary of $2,ooo and links to calculate the tax requirements. They also said that due to the high level of applications, they couldn’t reply to individual queries.
After sending the CV, she didn’t hear back from them until May, when they informed her that she had gotten the job. They asked her to return the signed appointment letter, do a BSAFE assessment (a mandatory online security awareness training for all UN personnel), and submit the certificate. It took her almost the whole day to process the certificate, which required taking short courses and tests for each segment. The final test required answering 80 per cent of the questions correctly. Even though the process was stressful, Zahra still ensured she did it on time.
They also requested a Quantifiable Emotional Intelligence, Racial and National Diversity, Inclusion, and Validation Certificate (QREDIV). Still, when she followed the link, she discovered a payment of $99, which was about ₦160,000 at the time. At first, she wanted to borrow the money from a friend, but she became suspicious.
Employment scams were ranked as the second most serious type globally in 2023. Scammers exploit the economic crisis and high unemployment rates by promising lucrative opportunities with reputable companies. This includes fake job postings, phishing emails, and fraudulent job advertisements, many of which go unreported in the country. There is a lack of proper structures in place to trace and address these cases, and feelings of shame often prevent victims from speaking out. Additionally, some of these scams involve fake interviews designed to lure victims into situations where they could be kidnapped for ransom demands from their families.
“I entered the third-party website, and the whole thing made me suspicious. That was why I started to conduct proper research, to be sure, as it felt weird that the UN was expecting me to pay for any course. I searched for James Hall, who signed off all the emails on LinkedIn, but I couldn’t find him, and that was when I started to get more suspicious,” Zahra said.
The 29-year-old trusted her gut and decided to dig even deeper. She searched on Google to find out if the UN requires payment for courses, which led her to the Naija forum, an online platform where Nigerians shared their experiences. The search also led her to a disclaimer by the UN that they don’t charge a fee at any stage of the application process.
“Everything seemed so genuine. I even tried to run the links on ChatGPT, which confirmed they were legitimate. If people feel stupid for falling for this, they should know that it is not their fault; everything initially seemed legit. I later discovered that the first test I did was a requirement for UN workers,” Zahra added. She is currently job-searching while working at a friend’s law firm. Her near-scam experience has made her more vigilant; she now double-checks every opportunity before applying.
A successful extortion
In 2024, Fadila Mahmoud*’s cousin called to tell her about a job opportunity at Mentor Mothers, an initiative working towards preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission, and she was ecstatic to apply.
The initiative was under the Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN), which has an office at the Kaduna Ministry of Health in the country’s northwestern region. The only catch was that the job ‘required’ a payment before processing. She and her sister didn’t hesitate to raise the money.
“I called the man supposed to be in charge, and he assured me of a job opportunity. All I had to do was pay ₦150,000 in instalments, and the job was mine,” she recounted. However, the requirements didn’t end there; a percentage of their salary was expected every month.
Before starting the job, she and her sister paid an initial fee of ₦75,000. They were then expected to pay the balance within the first three months. A monthly deduction of ₦15,000 from their salary was also required. This included ₦5,000 labelled as ‘miscellaneous’ fees, which was deposited into the team leader’s account, and ₦10,000 that went to a coworker’s account, allegedly the sister of the person who referred them for the job. This arrangement made it difficult to identify the actual beneficiaries of these payments.
HumAngle examined the bank statements and confirmed records of the transfers that were made within those months.
Nigeria, which is said to have one of the highest misery indices globally, has seen an unemployment and inflation rate from 30.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2023 to 36.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2024. This situation is a serious concern, especially considering that the World Bank estimated in 2023 that 87 million Nigerians lived below the poverty line. Additionally, the removal of the fuel subsidy and the resultant cost of living crisis have further exacerbated this crisis.
“Since we needed the job, we agreed to the terms and got the job after a month of payment,” the 23-year-old explained. They signed a contract for the job, but it said nothing about the payment arrangements.
Her responsibility was to orient HIV-positive pregnant women and guide them to the hospital to obtain their medication during community outreach programmes. Each team is assigned to a specific hospital. “We attend antenatal days, sometimes twice a week,” she told HumAngle.
Things changed, however, when the company announced a salary increase from ₦75,000 to ₦120,000. The man who offered them the job demanded that they increase the monthly payment to ₦20,000, making a total of ₦25,000 monthly. HumAngle saw a record of the text that communicated this to her.
“The work was supposed to be contract-based; they assured us that we would be retained for two and a half years and our contract would be renewed for another two and a half years.”
Seven months later, however, Fadila said the head of the Kaduna Mentor Mothers branch called five of them to his office and explained that he had been contacted by the Abuja headquarters that the project they were hired for had been ‘put on hold’ for now. His explanation did not convince them. He also didn’t reference the monetary arrangement, suggesting he knew nothing about the unofficial contract.
“We thought that what they said was not true, and they had other reasons for doing so. At first, we suspected they might want to sell the job slots to others,” she said. Fadila also claimed three of the five people whose contracts were ‘terminated’ had purchased their job slots.
However, HumAngle found that the reason was unlikely. Mentor Mothers had to downsize as a result of funding cuts, according to a senior employee, who asked to be anonymous. HumAngle contacted the NEPWHAN Coordinator in Kaduna State, Bala Sama’ila, for his response to the allegations. We followed up for over three weeks but received no tangible response from him. When we reached out to inform him that we would go ahead with the story, he threatened a lawsuit, distancing himself from the allegations, without offering any explanation as promised.
He also asked HumAngle to share the identities of our sources with him, a request that goes against journalistic ethics and the principle of source confidentiality. “As far as I am concerned, I want to distance myself from all the allegations. Finally, I am not aware of the allegations,” he said in a snappy message sent to HumAngle.
The system is complex
A conversation with a colleague also made Fadila realise that there could be more at play, as she learned that the job slots were ideally intended for HIV patients rather than healthy workers.
Mentor Mothers was initially designed as an empowerment programme for women living with HIV to provide them with the knowledge and skills necessary to educate and emotionally support other mothers living with the virus.
HIV patients experience economic hardships due to medical expenses, loss of income, and an inability to work. A study conducted in Oyo State, South West Nigeria, reveals that female HIV patients are more likely to lose employment opportunities, with a ratio of 24.3 per cent of women affected compared to 9.5 per cent of men. Assigning jobs intended for HIV patients to healthy individuals further exacerbates this disparity.
“Normally, they would tell you not to speak about the monetary arrangement to others to keep it ‘under wraps’ and one of the coworkers even claimed to my sister that the money she was paying them was higher than what we were paying,” Fadila explained.
She felt betrayed and deceived over her job loss. However, she is not the only one being scammed by a seemingly legitimate job.
Habiba Shehu* also faced a similar experience with Mentor Mothers. She paid for a slot, but it did not lead to a job offer. It took several months before she received her money back. At 28 years old, she was waiting for her National Youth Service posting in 2024 when she received a job offer.
“My cousin called me about a job opportunity that her in-laws had sent her. However, they mentioned that I needed to pay ₦75,000 for it. I borrowed the money from others and managed to gather it on time,” Habiba told HumAngle.
The man assured her about the job, providing the requirements he had previously given to Fadila and her sister. They sent her an appointment letter shortly afterwards, with the man claiming that Habiba had taken someone else’s slot because of the high demand. However, after three months, he called her to say that while others had gotten the job, she was unfortunately no longer on the list.
“I asked for a refund of my money. He asked for a one-week extension and then two more weeks. But when he did send in the money, he sent only half of it and asked for more time,” she said.
After he began to evade them, they resorted to calling and threatening him. He became scared when they threatened to take him to court and refunded the full amount. Currently, Habiba is completing her NYSC, and she hopes the labour market will be much kinder by the time she finishes.
File: A National Youth Service Corps at the orientation camp in Kubwa, Abuja, on March 18, 2020. Photo: Kola Sulaimon/AFP.
Eunice Thompson, a corporate lawyer and expert in HR and compliance, sheds light on the legal implications of these schemes.
“The Advanced Fee Fraud Act states that everyone who collects money for something they can’t deliver can be jailed for up to seven years,” Eunice noted that people can sue the individuals and organisations responsible for this scam. The ICPC Act for public service jobs also counts asking someone to pay for a job slot as an act of corruption, which can lead to prosecution. But this also means that the people paying for the jobs are also taking part in the illegal system.”
The lawyer adds that people who have been scammed can get justice by gathering evidence and acting swiftly. She encourages people to collect documentation of every conversation they have with the person, including screenshots and other forms of documenting interactions.
“There are Ministries of Labour and employment offices in many states where these issues can be reported. If money has been collected, it becomes a criminal case, which can involve the police and the EFCC. In case you need legal aid in terms of resources, the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria or National Human Rights Commission or other nonprofit organisations can help,” she explained.
Hope beyond the shores
Haruna Shuaibu*, who has done jobs throughout his adult life, is another victim of the exploitative system.
After graduating from secondary school in Zamfara, things stagnated for him. He didn’t have the means to continue his education and was desperate for better opportunities. His desperation made him move to Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, hoping to get a better chance at life. However, things didn’t go as planned, and he had to work other menial jobs to survive.
His first business in this new city was borehole repair, and he also sold carrots on the side. Eventually, these jobs were not sustainable enough to keep him in town, so he relocated to Kaduna State in 2012. With little to sustain himself, he started to hawk sugarcane in a wheelbarrow, but soon after, his brother-in-law employed him to work as a tiler under his business, where they got contracts to fix tiles in people’s homes.
“I worked with him for three years, but realised in 2015 that I could enter the tricycle business (locally known as Keke Napep). This has been the job that has sustained me for many years, during which I was able to start my own family,” Haruna said.
File: Tricycles at Gate junction, Ibadan, South West Nigeria. Photo: Adebayo Abdul Rahman/HumAngle
For the past few years, Haruna has used 23 tricycles, most of which he rented from others. He pays the owner ₦3,000 from his daily proceeds in his current arrangement. He also manages the tricycle’s daily maintenance while the owner handles significant repairs.
This job does come with its challenges. The tricycle is constantly at risk of being stolen, as it has happened to him before. However, this business has also introduced Haruna to what he believes could be a pathway to a better life.
A kind encounter with a passenger led to his employment as a driver for a family. This connection is what introduced him to the possibility of leaving the country.
“I worked with them for a few years. Before I learned that her husband helps process job opportunities for people abroad, I had received another job offer,” he recalls. Haruna had never considered leaving for greener pastures. Still, after an incident rendered his tricycle unusable, preventing him from working for almost four months in 2023, he had to explore other possibilities.
“My friend encouraged me to consider leaving with him as he tried to get opportunities out of the country. Someone connected us with a woman who was said to have connections. We were made to process our international passports and undergo a health screening,” he recounts.
However, the plan fell through due to financial constraints; the agents expected them to pay almost a million naira. They tried negotiating the terms, hoping to pay when they reached there, but they disagreed.
The opportunity was said to be in Baghdad. The woman collected their passports for a while, claiming she would help them process the jobs to the best of her abilities. “When we discovered that it wasn’t going to work out because the woman herself was leaving the country, we simply collected our passports back, ” he says.
Along the way, Haruna received other opportunities to work in Libya but refused after hearing the horror stories about such trips. Human traffickers have been operating in Libya since 2014, facilitating the smuggling of undocumented migrants across the Mediterranean Sea and causing many to lose their lives. This situation frightened Haruna, making him wary of such opportunities. Shortly after, the woman he worked for learned about his attempts to travel. She then informed him that her husband had connections with individuals who handled these opportunities.
“They said that the problem was that you have to pay first, due to previous bad experiences, where people switched jobs and secretly left the company they were assigned to, without paying their debts to the people who processed the opportunities. This had forced them to start a strict payment before service policy,” he tells HumAngle.
The husband in question later contacted him in 2024 and said they had an opening for a bike delivery man in a factory in Qatar. They thought he would be a perfect match for the job since it was similar to the one he was already doing. But he still wasn’t financially able to pay for it.
Haruna has been saving up for the next opportunity. He recently started the procedure for a potential job in Saudi Arabia, but he is invited to an interview in Lagos State before everything is set. This opportunity required a ₦500,000 processing fee, which he managed to save up.
The term “Japa,” which comes from the Yoruba language and means “to flee,” is commonly used to describe the mass outmigration of Nigerians seeking better opportunities abroad. Research indicates that various socio-cultural, political, and religious factors, such as high unemployment rates, insecurity, and poverty, fuel the Japa phenomenon. This trend has resulted in a significant loss of talented individuals. For example, Nigeria’s medical system has experienced a substantial drain of doctors, leading to a troubling doctor-to-patient ratio of approximately one doctor for every 30,000 patients in certain regions.
Illustration: Akila Jibrin/HumAngle
“I am not sure which kind of job it is, but I know it involves working in a factory,” Haruna says. There weren’t a lot of details given to him about the job in question; the agents claimed that he would get more information when he went for the interview and medical screening in Lagos. The person he is communicating with informs him in Hausa that his potential job is at a ‘waya’ factory, which could translate to either a phone factory or a factory dealing with cables and wires, leaving him unsure of what the job description entails.
The job opportunity is said to last two years. “In those two years, you are expected to pay the company a certain agreed-upon amount from your salary. When the time expires, you can choose whether you want to leave or stay,” he explains. The details of the payment plan have not yet been communicated to him.
The company informed them that their potential monthly salary may be up to ₦800,000. There are many risks to irregular migration such as kidnaping and theft, exploitation and abuse, physical abuse, rape, torture, deportation from the countries, and enslavement.
HumAngle found that most of the supposed opportunities are for drivers or delivery men, who usually go to men, with occasional opportunities more suitable for women. The agents, who mostly work as middlemen, require a down payment before travelling, with a few exceptions.
Bashir Abba*, an agent between job seekers and companies, claimed, “There are many challenges. Sometimes, we get opportunities for people who refuse to pay back after getting the job. Other times, people ask for favours, and when we get them opportunities, they disappear and leave us to bear the cost.” This, among other reasons, is why he is reconsidering leaving that career path.
For Haruna, the reasons for leaving are massive. “I have many reasons for wanting to leave. I wouldn’t even go anywhere if I got tangible start-up money for my business. I would rather stay here and start a business instead. I am pretty sure there would be something I can do.”
Haruna expects to travel before the year ends, hoping to make enough money there. However, he is still sceptical, mainly due to the unclear details. He hopes that if he does travel, he will get a chance to change his financial status in Nigeria when he returns.
A BBC documentary released in April highlighted how scammers steal thousands from unsuspecting people under the guise of job opportunities and fail to deliver on those opportunities. Kelvin Alaneme, a popular Nigerian medical practitioner, who claimed to have helped 5,000 migrants relocate to the UK, was at the centre of this scheme. One of his victims claimed to have paid him £14,000 (₦29 million), after which the job didn’t materialise.
Payment made, refund denied
The extortionate job slot system thrives because many young Nigerians are desperate, as in the case of Ahmad Hassan*, who expected to get a job immediately after graduating from Ahmadu Bello University in 2015, especially with his skill set. However, 10 years later, like many other young Nigerians, he struggles to find footing.
Ahmad found himself constantly filling out job applications and delivering his CV to many who promised to help, but his hopes were crushed continuously as none of these opportunities materialised. “I had to find other ways to survive, so I ventured into selling clothing and jewellery. But that business soon went under as people always took things on credit,” he laments. The situation made it difficult for the 34-year-old architect to sustain his business. With few other opportunities in the saturated architectural field, Ahmad believed that buying a job slot or opportunity was his best alternative.
In 2022, his friend connected him to someone who was said to have a connection to the government and was offering a Central Bank job. Before that, Ahmad had tried to buy a Prisons Service job slot for ₦200,000 in 2021. He didn’t get the job, nor did he get his money back. He said the CBN opportunity came from a more ‘trustworthy’ source, and the total amount to be paid was ₦3.5 million with an initial deposit of ₦1.5 million, after which a balance of ₦2 million would be paid upon documentation.
“I did my due diligence by making inquiries about the process, people involved, duration of time it takes for the appointment to be ready and any other thing I was aware of. After I was satisfied with my inquiry and the assurance I got from those involved in finding a government civil service job, I made the payment.”
The initial contract also specified that payments would be refunded three months after they were made if the job did not succeed. However, Ahmad’s hopes were once again dashed when the opportunity he struggled to get money for didn’t manifest. He was left to keep asking for his money back, but the people kept requesting time extensions to source the funds.
Recruitment fraud in Nigeria has evolved into a multi-million naira industry with thousands falling victim to the schemes, leading to financial losses and mental distress. Earlier this year, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested a scammer who posed as a staff member at a house and defrauded job seekers of an estimated ₦22 million. Besides fake job advertisements, these scammers request an upfront payment or pose as agents from reputable organisations.
Eunice, the lawyer, explained that selling jobs is illegal especially government jobs which violates the Civil Service Rules, ICPC Act, as well as the Nigerian Constitution, and people who are caught can either be jailed, released from service or forced to pay money back- and as for private sectors, this also violates the Labor Act, the Advance Fee Fraud Act, and the Anti-money Laundering Act. She believes that the lack of access to information on the dangers of buying jobs, as well as the desperation that pushes many job seekers to make that decision, further perpetuates the circle.
Illustration: Akila Jibrin/HumAngle
“I got ₦700,000 back in 2023, and only got the rest back last year in two instalments, ₦500,000 and then later on ₦300,000 was returned to me. I was even among the lucky ones to get their money back, as some people got nothing in return,” Ahmad said.
Ahmad felt he had few options despite the challenges and risks, as other businesses he ventured into eventually failed for one reason or another. Sometimes, he gets the occasional architectural gigs that bring in some cash. Then, a friend informed him that there was an opening for a job with the National Drug Law Enforcement (NDLEA), with an initial deposit of ₦100,000 required. However, even paying the money on time did not guarantee getting the job; he still struggles to get his money back.
“They only refunded me ₦50,000 in 2023, and I still haven’t gotten the rest back. When you don’t have options, you have to crawl your way up, and I know people who got jobs in the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) through this process,” he added.
Another challenge he encounters is age limitations, which are a barrier to opportunities for which he is qualified. In 2023, Nigerian senator Patrick Abba Moro called for the dismissal of age limits, which serve as a discriminatory factor in the employment system. This limit has led to desperate Nigerians falsifying birth dates to meet this criterion. Chapter 4, Section 4 (2) of the Nigerian Constitution states that all citizens have the right to be free from Discrimination.
Ahmad has not given up on finding new business ventures or applying for job opportunities. He is not unwilling to try finding a job through this process, especially since he has seen it materialise for others, and other alternatives don’t seem to be working.
Like Ahmad, who almost tore his pocket to pay for non-existent job slots, Linda Joseph can never forget the man who taught her mother for a few years in secondary school. Now, his identity has become the man who defrauded her family with a fake job offer at the Ikeja Airport, Lagos State, southwestern Nigeria. His history with her mother was likely why her parents trusted him and didn’t scrutinise his offer deeply.
Illustration: Akila Jibrin/HumAngle
Lagos is known as Nigeria’s commercial capital. Illustration: Akila Jibrin/HumAngle
“He told my mum he worked at the Ikeja Airport and had an open position, but his boss requested a ₦100,000 fee. My mum paid in two tranches, and the last we heard from him was after the second payment landed in his account,” she says, noting that from 2019 till date, the man was nowhere to be found and no job materialised.
When this happened, Linda worked in a privately owned organisation in Lagos. Although she loved her job, she was usually up working in the middle of the night, which affected her sleep schedule.
“I won’t say I was searching for other opportunities heavily at that time, but the lack of sleep bothered me and my parents,” she explains.
After graduating from the university in 2014, Linda endured the treacherous job market. The 30-year-old has worked in the private sector and now works at a nonprofit, where her passion lies. Over the years, she has volunteered, interned, worked as a consultant, learned baking, and worked as a writer for a short while.
“In retrospect, I do not think he worked in any airport. My mum has since ‘left it to God’ in her usual manner, but I? He better hope I don’t see him anywhere on the streets because he will vomit my 100k.”
In the meantime, she is learning a skill pertinent to her career and hopes it will open up room for bigger opportunities.
Eunice pointed out that the problem with Nigerian laws is in implementation. Sections 23 to 24 of the Labour Act particularly seem good on paper. “There is a law that every recruitment organisation must first be licensed by the Ministry of Labour, but a lot of them operate illegally without registration. A lot of our processes and systems also use paper trails, making it difficult to trace,” she noted. “If enforcement is tightened, the bodies responsible can identify the people running these scams. For instance, in Ghana, the board department publishes a list of licensed employment private agencies online.”
The lawyer believes this would help curb some of the employment scams many desperate job seekers fall victim to. She also thinks in the adoption of a National Job Portal for public service jobs, which is currently being done in other countries like Kenya, as well as public awareness, with national orientation to educate people on these scams, especially using already existing schemes such as NYSC, can help put an end to these issues.
Coronation Street will air a devastating series of events next week on the ITV soap, as three characters’ decision to take LSD leads to huge scenes and danger for some
Coronation Street will air a devastating series of events next week on the ITV soap(Image: ITV)
A huge and devastating storyline begins on Coronation Street next week, as the ITV soap tackles drug use and LSD.
It’s been teased there are huge repercussions for all those involved and the wider community. With one character set to be in a bad way after seemingly accidentally taking the drugs in a drink, two others are left facing turmoil as the effects of the LSD take hold.
So much about the episodes is being kept under wraps, but fans can expect danger, twists and turmoil ahead. New details about the plot and the episodes have been revealed in a preview clip.
In a clip that follows on from Summer Spellman and Nina Lucas drinking the LSD, Aadi Alahan wonders where his cup has gone. The girls panic as they realise they took their eyes off it, and now a room full of people are partying while holding similar or the same cups.
As the trio try to figure out who has taken and possibly drunk from the cup with the drugs in, Aadi panics when he learns his twin sister Asha has left the house for work just after drinking lemonade. Aadi tells the girls it was a cup of lemonade that the LSD was in, and he frantically calls his sister – but is paramedic Asha in danger?
A huge and devastating storyline begins on Coronation Street next week(Image: ITV)
In the preview, Nina and Summer are starting to feel the effects of the LSD ahead of what turns out to be a dramatic night for the duo. As Aadi asks where the cup is, they all head to the kitchen searching high and low for it.
As they scan the room and watch every party goer, Summer says: “Everyone seems normal.” It’s then that they all fear Asha has drunk the LSD before heading to work.
The clip ends as Aadi calls his sibling with it not shown if she answers and whether she is the mystery person who has taken the drink. With spoilers confirming that someone has accidentally taken it and drunk from the cup, we know that there could be a tragic victim caught up in the drugs plot.
Aadi panics when he learns his twin sister Asha has left the house for work just after drinking lemonade(Image: ITV)
Cryptic spoilers for the end of the week confirm that the person in question ends up taking a bad turn, as their condition deteriorates. It’s not revealed what specifically happens and who it is, and what their fate will be.
So will poor Asha pay the price for her brother’s decision to take drugs? Viewers will have to tune in next week to find out who it is and what happens next, but it promises to be an unmissable week of the show.
Spoilers confirmed that Aadi faces questions over rumours of drugs when the police come knocking, while Nina and Summer end up witnessing something.
As they try to retrace their steps to uncover what really happened the night before, what will they find out?
WOLVES face a potential fight to keep hold of boss Vitor Pereira – with Portuguese giants Benfica eyeing a move for the Molineux boss to replace one of his predecessors.
Benfica are currently in the USA for the Club World Cup, amid rumours over the long-term future of manager Bruno Lage.
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Vitor Pereira has impressed with the dogmatic work he has done at Wolves in the Premier League
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Pereira managed one of Benfica’s biggest rivals in Porto from the youth teams to the senior set-up in the early 2010s
And if the Lisbon Eagles flop in the States, club President – and former Portugal midfielder – Rui Costa is ready to test Wolves’ resolve to keep Pereira after his impressive first six months at the club.
Pereira has seen the club sell both full-back Rayan Ait-Nouri and playmaker Matheus Cunha this summer, with the two Manchester Clubs paying £94.7m between them for the duo.
That came after he had stabilised the club following his arrival in place of Gary O’Neil in December.
Beer-loving Pereira, 59, steered Wolves away from the drop zone to win 10 of his 22 games in charge including a seven-match winning run in March and April that secured their Premier League status.
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But the prospect of a return to his homeland – with Benfica facing two Champions League qualifying rounds in August – could tempt the former Porto and Olympiacos chief.
Pereira has not coached in Portugal since quitting Porto for Saudi side Al Ahli after leading them to the title in 2013.
His stock is high with claims that Rui Costa is not happy with Lage – despite official insistence that the coach will start next season at the Stadium of Light irrespective of what happens at the Club World Cup.
Benfica face Argentines Boca Juniors, Kiwi minnows Auckland City and Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich in the group stage, with Lage under scrutiny.
Lage, 49, and now in his second spell at Benfica, spent 15 months at the Molineux helm after replacing Nuno Espirito Santos in June 2021.
While they finished 10th in his first season – having been in the top six after 13 games – Wolves scored just 38 goals in the Prem campaign, with just two points from their final seven matches.
He was sacked in October 2022 after picking up a solitary win from the club’s first nine games before landing a job at Brazilian side Botofogo the following summer.
Lage then became embroiled in a legal spat with Botofogo owner John Textor, whose stake in Crystal Palace has threatened their chances of taking up their place in the Europa League.
Earlier this year, Lage – who returned to Benfica in September – launched a £6m suit claiming he had been promised in a “gentleman’s agreement” that he would be offered the Palace job that was given to Oliver Glasner.
Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip – Jehad Al-Assar left his tent in central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah early in the morning on a new and exhausting journey to get food for his family.
His destination on Wednesday: an aid distribution point in Rafah, in the far south of Gaza, run by the United States-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Jehad walked a “gruelling” 10km (6.2 miles) to reach the site, driven along primarily by the weight of responsibility for his pregnant wife and two hungry daughters.
With starvation spreading throughout Gaza, a direct result of Israel’s months-long blockade on the territory, the GHF site was Jehad’s only hope.
This is despite the controversy surrounding the organisation, whose own head resigned on Sunday, saying that the GHF could not adhere “to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence”.
The GHF’s lack of experience in dealing with aid distribution was highlighted on Tuesday, when at least three Palestinians were killed in the chaos that surrounded the relief effort.
But in Gaza, people are hungry and desperate. Jehad is among them.
After walking for 90 minutes, the 31-year-old reached the iron gates of the distribution centre, alongside thousands of others, before they suddenly opened.
“Crowds surged in – thousands of people. There was no order at all,” Jehad told Al Jazeera. “People rushed towards the yard where aid boxes were stacked and moved into the inner hall, where there were more supplies.”
“It was chaos – a real struggle. Men, women, children, all crammed together, pushing to grab whatever they could. No queues, no system – just hunger and disorder,” Jehad added.
Inside the hall, people snatched whatever they could carry. “Anyone who could lift two boxes took them. Sugar and cooking oil were the priorities. They grabbed what they wanted and rushed out.”
“There was no trace of humanity in what happened,” he said. “I was nearly crushed by the crowd.”
Just a short distance away, armed foreign forces stood watching without intervening. Jehad said he approached one of them and confronted him.
“I told them, ‘You’re not helping – you’re overseeing a famine. You should leave. You’re not needed here.’”
Jehad managed to retrieve only a few items: cans of tuna, a small bag of sugar, some pasta and a packet of biscuits scattered on the ground. He carried them in a plastic bag slung over his shoulder and made the long journey back home.
“I only got a little. I was afraid to stay longer and get trampled in the stampede – but I had to bring back something. My girls need to eat. I have no choice,” he said.
When he returned to the tent, his daughters greeted him joyfully – even for the little he had brought.
“My wife and I divide the food we bring home so the kids can eat over several days. We often skip meals. The children can’t endure this… and I bear the full responsibility for feeding them,” he said.
Apocalyptic
Awad Abu Khalil was also among the desperate crowds on Wednesday. The 23-year-old described the crowds rushing to get to the food as “apocalyptic”.
“Everyone was running. It was chaos. The aid was piled up and everyone just attacked it, grabbing what they could.”
Awad said he heard gunfire in the distance, likely targeting young men trying to bypass the designated routes.
He expressed deep frustration with the staff. “I expected the American staff to distribute aid at tables, handing each person their share – not this madness.”
The images that emerged on Tuesday and Wednesday have added fuel to international criticism of the GHF, with representatives from several countries denouncing Israel’s decision to prevent the United Nations and international humanitarian organisations from bringing aid into Gaza.
Israel stopped the entry of aid into Gaza in early March, while a ceasefire was still ongoing. It has since unilaterally broken the ceasefire, and doubled down in its war on Gaza, with the official death toll now more than 54,000 Palestinians.
“We used to receive aid from international agencies and the UN,” said Jehad. “It was delivered by name, in an organised way – no chaos, no humiliation.”
By the end of Wednesday, Gaza’s Government Media Office reported that at least 10 Palestinians desperately seeking aid had been killed by Israeli forces in the previous 48 hours.
Humiliation
Awad and Jehad were both able to return home with some food.
Jehad said that his wife and mother made bread from the pasta, soaking it and then kneading it into dough. His wife used the sugar to make a simple pudding for the children. He will return on Thursday, he said.
Even that is better than it is for most people in Gaza.
Walaa Abu Sa’da has three children. Her youngest is only 10 months old.
The 35-year-old could not bear watching people return to the displacement camp in al-Mawasi in Khan Younis carrying food while her children starved, so she decided to go to Rafah by herself.
“I fought with my husband who refused to go out of fear of the [Israeli] army. I swore I would go myself,” Walaa told Al Jazeera.
Entrusting her children to her sister, she joined the crowd heading towards the distribution site.
“My children were on the verge of starving. No milk, no food, not even baby formula. They cried day and night, and I had to beg neighbours for scraps,” she said. “So I went, regardless of what my husband thought.”
But by the time Walaa made it to Rafah, it was too late.
“People were fighting over what little remained. Some were carrying torn parcels,” she said.
Walaa left the distribution site empty-handed. On the way back, she saw a man drop a bag of flour from his torn parcel.
“I picked it up and asked if I could have it,” she said. “He shouted, ‘I came all the way from Beit Lahiya in the far north [of Gaza] to get this. I have nine children who are all starving. I’m sorry, sister, I can’t give it away,’ and he walked off.
“I understood, but his words broke me. I wept for what we’ve become.”
Walaa described the experience as deeply humiliating. She was filled with shame and inferiority.
“I covered my face with my scarf the whole time. I didn’t want anyone to recognise me going to get a food parcel,” Walaa, who is a teacher with a bachelor’s degree in geography, said.
Despite her sorrow, Walaa says she will do it again if needed.
“There’s no dignity left when your children are crying from hunger. We won’t forgive those who allowed us to reach this point.”
At least 10 Palestinians desperately seeking aid from a contentious and heavily criticised United States-backed organisation have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza over the last 48 hours, according to the besieged enclave’s Government Media Office.
The updated toll on Wednesday comes a day after a harrowing video showed thousands of starving Palestinians rushing to get aid, with many of them herded into cage-like lines, from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution point in Rafah in southern Gaza.
In a statement, the Government Media Office said Israeli forces “opened direct fire on hungry Palestinian civilians who had gathered to receive aid” at the distribution site, wounding at least 62 people.
It was not immediately clear exactly how many incidents of gunfire occurred or on which days the 10 Palestinians were fatally shot, but there were deaths on both days.
“These locations were transformed into death traps under the occupation’s gunfire,” the media office said, decrying the killings as a “heinous crime”.
For its part, the GHF said it had opened a second of a planned four aid distribution sites in Gaza on Wednesday.
The centres are part of an aid delivery scheme that has been roundly condemned by United Nations officials and the humanitarian community, who have repeatedly said that life-saving aid could be adequately and safely scaled up in Gaza if Israel would allow access to aid and let those organisations that have decades of experience handle the flow.
Speaking earlier in the day, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, decried the US-backed delivery model as a “distraction from atrocities” and called on Israel to allow the UN-backed humanitarian system to “do its life-saving work now”.
The message was echoed by several members of the UN Security Council during a meeting in New York discussing the conflict, with Algeria, France and the United Kingdom among those appealing for Israel to allow unfettered aid deliveries.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the UN, said Israel was using “aid as a weapon of war”.
Reporting from UN headquarters, Al Jazeera’s Kristen Saloomey said that Sigrid Kaag, the UN’s special coordinator for Middle East peace, and Feroze Sidhwa, a surgeon who recently went on a humanitarian mission to Gaza, were among those who addressed the council.
“The message from both of these experts was again calling for a ceasefire and the full resumption of aid into the Gaza Strip,” she said.
Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, criticised the UN for what he said were “attempts to block access to aid” and demanded a retraction from Tom Fletcher, the UN’s humanitarian chief, for accusing Israel of committing genocide.
Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara said the attacks levied by Danon should come as no surprise.
“They are on the defensive, knowing all too well that they lost their public relations campaign and that their reputation around the world is in the mud,” he said, referring to Israel’s near-daily bombardment and siege of Gaza.
The alternate US representative at the UN, John Kelley, said that the UN should “work with the GHF and Israel to reach an agreement on how to operationalise this system in a way that works for all”.
He maintained that the GHF was “independent” and developed to “provide a secure mechanism for the delivery of aid to those in need”.
Relentless Israeli attacks
As the debate over aid access raged, Israel’s punishing attacks continued across Gaza, with rights observers warning of an even worsening humanitarian situation.
At least 63 people were killed in Israeli attacks since the early hours of Wednesday, according to medical sources speaking to Al Jazeera Arabic, bringing the death toll since October 7, 2023, to at least 54,084 Palestinians, with more than 123,308 wounded.
The ministry added that only 17 hospitals in Gaza remained partially functioning, with critical shortages of essential medicines and oxygen supplies.
Separately, the Red Cross reported that its field hospital in southern Gaza’s al-Mawasi area came under Israeli fire early on Wednesday, causing panic and injuries among patients there.
In an open letter, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), Oxfam and other nonprofit groups called for “full, independent and international investigations into the attacks on healthcare in Gaza as violations of international humanitarian law”.
The UN’s World Food Programme, meanwhile, reported that its warehouse in central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah had been broken into by hungry people “in search of food supplies”. Preliminary reports indicate that at least four people were killed amid the stampede and gunfire, though the cause of the latter was not immediately clear.
The agency said that increasing aid was “the only way to reassure people that they will not starve”.
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reported from Gaza City that the search for food has proven deadly, even away from crowded distribution areas.
“For example, in the past couple of hours, two people were reported killed in the Shujayea neighbourhood [of Gaza City]. They were killed trying to get to their homes,” he said.
“They were forced to evacuate in the past few weeks. They left everything behind. All of their belongings, all of their food supplies that they managed to get … [were] inside the house.”
Ceasefire remains elusive
As the attacks have continued, a breakthrough for a more lasting agreement to end the fighting has remained elusive.
Still, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, on Wednesday said he had “very good feelings” about soon reaching a long-term solution.
That came shortly after Hamas said it had reached an agreement with Witkoff on a general framework for a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the unhindered entry of humanitarian aid.
The framework appears at odds with the position of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has said the Israeli military would remain in Gaza indefinitely, continuing to control aid access and pursuing the complete defeat of Hamas.
Speaking to Israel’s parliament on Wednesday, Netanyahu listed top Hamas officials killed throughout the war. The list included Mohammed Sinwar, the brother and successor of killed Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar.
Hamas has not yet confirmed Mohammed Sinwar’s death.
A BRITISH backpacker has gone missing after spending a month living on the streets of Peru following a violent robbery.
Hannah Almond, 32, travelled to Cusco in March for a yoga retreat to “find herself” – but was left stranded, penniless and traumatised after being assaulted and robbed of her passport.
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Hannah Almond has gone missing in PeruCredit: Instagram
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The Brit, 32, was living on the streets after being robbed of all her money and passportCredit: GoFundme
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Video appeared to show her belongings being burned on the street
With no way to get home, the fashion graduate was sleeping rough under the Belén Bridge, where her remaining belongings were torched by local thugs.
Footage from local media appeared to show her clothes and personal items in a flaming pile on the street.
Hannah was last seen three days ago after befriending an elderly homeless man at a makeshift camp, and has not been heard from since.
A desperate search is now underway to locate the missing Brit from Grimsby.
A family friend told the Daily Mail on Monday: “She is one of the most pure loving souls ever — she is very generous and always wants to help people.
“But she does not trust anyone after getting robbed and assaulted.
“Some locals burned all her belongings from under the bridge.”
They added: “She was contacting her mum every now and then through other people’s phones.
“Police went to check on her two days ago and she has not been seen since. Cusco is a trafficking hotspot, so it’s very worrying.”
The British Consulate in Peru has confirmed that Hannah’s tourist visa has expired and her immigration status is now in limbo.
“She is in an illegal situation. Her tourist visa has already expired,” British Consul Mark Atkinson told local media.
Brit woman, 21, rotting in Dubai hellhole jail without a shower for a month after being arrested on drugs charges
“Sometimes we’ve paid for hotel stays, given her money for food, that sort of thing. But she always ends up coming back here,” he explained, referring to the bridge camp.
As of Tuesday, it already pulled in £7,930 from 306 donations — just shy of its £9,000 goal.
The funds raised will be used to cover urgent travel and support costs, including a flight and accommodation for a close family member or friend to fly to Peru and gently persuade Hannah to come home.
Her loved ones hope that a familiar face on the ground will help break through the fear and confusion that has kept her from accepting official help.
The money will also go towards providing Hannah with safe accommodation, food, and access to emergency medical or psychological care — which may be vital before she is well enough to travel.
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Hannah was last seen three days ago after coming to Peru in MarchCredit: Instagram
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She had travelled to the South American country for a yoga retreatCredit: Instagram
Additional funds will cover logistical costs needed to get her home, such as securing a replacement passport, renewing her visa, and arranging her journey back to the UK.
A message on the fundraiser reads: “Hannah travelled to Peru in March hoping for an adventure, but instead, she has found herself in a terrifying and heartbreaking situation.
“She was robbed and assaulted, losing her passport, phone, and all of her money.
“Since then, Hannah’s mental health has severely declined.”
“Despite attempts to help her through official channels, Hannah is deeply fearful and unable to accept support from the embassy or local authorities.
“She is extremely vulnerable, isolated, and not safe living on the streets of Peru.
“Hannah is a deeply kind and gentle soul, and we are desperate to get her the care and safety she deserves. We need to bring her home.”
More than 100,000 Brits travel to Peru every year, with Cusco – the gateway to Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail – one of the most popular spots.
FCDO travel advice warns tourists to remain alert, saying: “Personal attacks, including sexual assaults, are infrequent but do happen, mostly in the Cusco and Arequipa areas.”
FCDO travel advice to Peru
THE UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) advises against all but essential travel to certain parts of Peru due to ongoing safety and security concerns.
Affected areas:
Within 20km south of the Peru-Colombia border (Loreto region), excluding the Amazon River and triple border area near Santa Rosa de Yavari.
Valley of the Apurímac, Ene, and Mantaro Rivers (VRAEM) — a known hotspot for criminal activity.
State of emergency:
A State of Emergency is in place until June 17 across the Lima and Callao regions, including key districts such as San Juan de Lurigancho, Villa El Salvador, and Comas.
This allows joint police-army operations and the suspension of certain constitutional rights – including detention without a judicial order.
Travel insurance warning:
Travelling against FCDO advice may invalidate your travel insurance.
Make sure your policy covers your entire itinerary, including adventure activities or volunteering.
Stay informed and read the full FCDO travel guidance before travelling.
