International

President injured in knife attack

Published

2 years ago

September 14, 2024

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Comoros President Azali Assoumani was slightly wounded in a knife attack Friday, the presidency said, adding that the attacker had been arrested.

“The President of the Republic Azali Assoumani was slightly wounded by a knife while attending the funeral” of a well-known religious leader, it said in a statement.

“His injuries are not serious, and he has returned home. The attacker is in the hands of the security services,” it added.

Government spokeswoman Fatima Ahamadael told AFP that the attack happened in Salimani-Itsandra, an area on the outskirts of the capital Moroni.

“Thank God, his life is not in danger,” she said, declining to give further details.

Witnesses told AFP that the attacker was a 22-year-old with no criminal history, who had joined the army in 2022. He was dressed in a boubou, and was in the room with the religious leader’s body, as mourners were paying respects, they said.

The knife injured the president’s hand, but the attacker was stopped by another mourner, the witnesses said.

A source close to the presidency, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “The president has received appropriate care. He is out of danger.”

A second source, also speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that the attacker was a young “active-duty gendarme”.

No other details were immediately available.

After the attack, the neighbourhood remained tense, with gendarmes on the scene. Residents hurried home, sometimes pausing to whisper in small groups on the streets.

Azali, 65, a former military ruler who came to power in a coup in 1999, was re-elected president in January after a disputed vote was followed by two days of deadly protests.

He has been accused of growing authoritarianism.

In August, he granted new powers to his son, in a move that critics said was a step towards consolidating the family’s rule over the small African island nation.

Nour El Fath Azali, who is Azali’s eldest son, was appointed secretary general of Comoros in July.

With his new powers, he must approve all decrees issued by ministers and governors.

Critics said that elevates his role to that of de facto prime minister.

In January, President Azali won a vote which his opponents said was marred by fraud. Court challenges to the election were dismissed.

One person was killed and several others injured in the violence that erupted in the aftermath of the election in the country of some 870,000 people.

His arch-rival, former president Ahmed Abdallah Sambi, is serving a life sentence for high treason for allegedly selling passports. (AFP)

International

Security Alert: CCTV Footage of White House shooting suspect released By Trump goes viral

Published

3 weeks ago

April 26, 2026

Advocate News Nigeria

The suspect

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The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has released CCTV footage and images of a suspect linked to a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington.

The released video, shared shortly before the President spoke to the press, reportedly shows the suspect entering the ballroom of the Washington Hilton and bypassing a security metal detector before armed security personnel moved in to intercept him.

Trump described the individual as a “would-be assassin,” alleging that he was heavily armed and managed to breach a key security checkpoint.

According to BBC reporting, the President said the suspect forced his way past screening procedures while carrying multiple weapons.

Photographs also released by the President show a shirtless man lying face down in a lobby area with his hands restrained behind his back, believed to be the suspect involved.

Authorities confirmed that the suspect is now in custody. Trump also stated that a law enforcement officer was shot during the incident but survived due to wearing a bulletproof vest.

The shooting occurred on Saturday night during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, an annual event attended by journalists, government officials, and other dignitaries.

The incident caused panic at the venue, leading to the evacuation of guests and officials.

Investigations are ongoing to determine the motive behind the attack and how the security breach occurred.

International

U.S., Iran agree two-week ceasefire as Iran reopens Strait of Hormuz

Published

1 month ago

April 8, 2026

Advocate News Nigeria

Strait of Hormuz

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Iran has confirmed a two-week ceasefire announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, the Tasnim news agency, which is close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported early on Wednesday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz would be possible for two weeks in coordination with Iran’s armed forces “and with due consideration of technical limitations.”

Trump had made reopening the waterway a condition for the ceasefire and had threatened to target Iran’s energy sector and infrastructure, including bridges, if Tehran failed to comply, setting a deadline of 0000 GMT.

The Strait of Hormuz, crucial to global oil and gas trade, has been largely closed since the United States and Israel launched large-scale attacks on Iran on Feb. 28.

According to a senior U.S. official, Israel will also adhere to what Trump described as a “double sided CEASEFIRE.”

Pakistan, which has mediated between Tehran and Washington, said that an immediate ceasefire between Iran and the US had taken effect.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on X that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the U.S., along with their allies, had agreed to an “immediate ceasefire everywhere,” including in Lebanon.

“I warmly welcome the sagacious gesture and extend deepest gratitude to the leadership of both the countries and invite their delegations to Islamabad on Friday … to further negotiate for a conclusive agreement to settle all disputes,” Sharif said.

Trump earlier said Sharif had asked him to refrain from carrying out the threatened attacks.

The U.S. has received a 10-point proposal from Iran and believed it offered a “workable basis” for negotiations, Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.

According to The New York Times, the plan calls for lifting all sanctions imposed on Iran. (dpa/NAN)

International

Earthquake kills 8 members of same family in Afghanistan

Published

1 month ago

April 4, 2026

Advocate News Nigeria

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An earthquake that struck Afghanistan overnight killed eight members of the same family in Kabul province, the health ministry said on Saturday.

The 5.8-magnitude quake struck at 8.42 pm (1612 GMT) on Friday at a depth of 186 kilometres (115 miles) at the epicentre in northeastern Badakhshan province, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Shaking was felt in multiple parts of the country, including the capital Kabul, according to AFP journalists.

“In the Gosfand Dara area of Kabul Province, eight members of a family died as a result of the earthquake,” Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said in a message to media.

He added that a child aged around two years old was the only survivor from the household and the country’s disaster management agency said the boy had been injured in the tremor.

Afghanistan is frequently jolted by earthquakes, particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range near where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.

In August, a shallow magnitude 6 earthquake wiped out mountainside villages and killed more than 2,200 people in eastern Afghanistan, making it the deadliest tremor in the country’s recent history.

AFP