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BREAKING: TikTok officially banned in US

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• App goes offline hours before ban comes into effect

TikTok’s app was removed from prominent app stores on Saturday just before a federal law that would have banned the popular social media platform was scheduled to go into effect.

By 10:50pm Eastern Standard Time, the app was not found on Apple and Google’s app stores, which are prohibited from offering the platform under a law that required TikTok’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, to sell the platform or face a U.S. ban.

When users opened the TikTok app on Saturday evening, they encountered a pop-up message from the company that prevented them from scrolling on videos.

“A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S.,” the message said. “Unfortunately that means you can’t use TikTok for now.”

“We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office,” the message said. “Please stay tuned!”

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Before that announcement went out, the company had said in another message to users that its service would be “temporarily unavailable” and told them its working to restore its U.S. service “as soon as possible.”

The federal law, that was signed by President Joe Biden last year, required ByteDance to divest its stake in the TikTok’s U.S. platform or face a ban. ByteDance had nine months to sell the U.S. operation to an approved buyer. The company, and TikTok, chose to take legal action against the law and ultimately lost their fight at the Supreme Court on Friday.

Under the statute, mobile app stores are barred from offering TikTok and internet hosting services are prohibited from delivering the service to American users.

Both White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco had said that the Biden administration would leave the law’s implementation to President-elect Donald Trump given that his inauguration falls the day after the ban takes effect.

But TikTok said after the court ruling on Friday that it “will be forced to go dark” if the administration didn’t provide a “definitive statement” to the companies that deliver its service in the U.S.

However, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called TikTok’s demand a “stunt” and said there was no reason for TikTok or other companies “to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office.”

In an interview with NBC News on Saturday, President-elect Donald Trump said he was thinking about giving TikTok a 90-day extension that would allow them to continue operating.

The federal law allows the sitting president to extend the deadline by 90 days if a sale is in progress. But no clear buyers have emerged, and ByteDance has previously said it won’t sell TikTok.

If such an extension happens, Trump said it would “probably” be announced on Monday.

On Saturday, artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI submitted a proposal to ByteDance to create a new entity that merges Perplexity with TikTok U.S. business, according to a person familiar with the matter. If successful, the new structure would also include other investors and allow ByteDance’s existing shareholders to retain their stake in the company, the person said.

Perplexity is not asking to purchase the ByteDance algorithm that feeds TikTok user’s videos based on their interests and has made the platform such a phenomenon.

Other investors have also been eyeing TikTok. “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary recently said a consortium of investors that he and billionaire Frank McCourt put together offered ByteDance $20 billion in cash. Trump’s Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also said last year that he was putting together an investor group to buy TikTok. AP

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Enugu ADC chairman allegedly murdered in his village

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Tension and grief have enveloped the political community in Enugu State following the suspected murder of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Chairman in Udenu Local Government Area, Chisimdiri Emmanuel Ngwu.

Ngwu, said to be one of the longest-serving members of the ADC in the state, was reportedly found dead in the early hours of Wednesday, August 19, 2026, in circumstances suspected to be suspicious.

A family source, who spoke to our correspondent, said Ngwu left the house shortly after waking up on Wednesday morning but never returned alive.

“He woke up early in the morning on Wednesday and walked out and that was the last we heard of him,” the source said.

According to the source, the family became worried after discovering that Ngwu was missing, before his lifeless body was later found outside the compound.

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“When we woke up, we didn’t see him only to discover his lifeless body in front of our compound. We saw scratches on his neck which was twisted backwards,” the source added.

The circumstances surrounding his death have continued to generate concern among family members, friends and political associates.

Meanwhile, two persons have reportedly been arrested in connection with the incident.

However, their identities and the circumstances surrounding their arrest were not immediately disclosed as of press time.

The development has reportedly sent shock waves through the ADC in Udenu and the wider political community in the state, with calls for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Ngwu’s death.

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2027: Tinubu’ll relocate Nigeria’s capital to Lagos if he wins – Primate Ayodele

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Primate Elijah Ayodele
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Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele has claimed that President Bola Tinubu will relocate the capital of Nigeria to Lagos if he is declared the winner of the 2027 general elections.

Primate Ayodele made this statement in a video posted on X.

President Tinubu is seeking re-election under the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

Speaking about Tinubu’s re-election, the cleric said, “Lagos architecture will change. You may not see this one very seriously, but if Tinubu wins the second time, the capital of Nigeria will be relocated to Lagos.

“When this happens, the capital can be in Epe or Lekki or anywhere at all in Lagos.”

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Police arrest four over alleged murder of 56-year-old man in Anambra

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Chinese businessmen, Nigerian partners disappear between Onitsha and Aba
Anambra Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga
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The Anambra State Police Command has uncovered the circumstances surrounding the alleged murder of a 56-year-old man, Mr Kelechi Madu, in Awkuzu, Oyi Local Government Area, two days after he was reported missing.

The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday, August 21, 2026, by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, who said the breakthrough followed a coordinated search and investigation by police operatives, local vigilantes and members of the deceased’s family.

Madu was reported missing by his wife on August 18, after he reportedly left home on the evening of August 17 and failed to return.

According to the Command, the search for the missing man took a grim turn later that day when his wife returned to the police station to report that he had been found dead in a nearby bush at Umuobi, Awkuzu.

Police operatives immediately mobilised to the scene, where they found Madu’s lifeless body with a deep axe wound to his head. His remains were subsequently evacuated and deposited at a hospital mortuary for preservation.

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Following the discovery, detectives intensified their investigation and arrested the deceased’s 32-year-old friend, Mr Ifeanyi Nwankwo, who allegedly confessed to being involved in the planning of the killing.

Preliminary findings by the Command indicated that Nwankwo allegedly obtained money from Madu through fraudulent means, claiming he would assist him in acquiring a piece of land.

Police alleged that the suspect subsequently engaged two other persons to eliminate Madu in an attempt to conceal the alleged fraudulent transaction and prevent the victim from recovering the money.

The Command said two other suspects linked to the alleged plot were also arrested, bringing the number of persons apprehended in connection with the case to four.

The Commissioner of Police, Anambra State Command, CP Nnanna Oji Ama, psc, mnips, has directed investigators to intensify the probe and identify every person involved in the alleged conspiracy and murder.

The CP vowed that all persons found culpable would be brought to justice.

The Command, through Ikenga, assured residents that it would continue to strengthen intelligence-led policing and community partnerships to prevent violent crimes, uncover criminal networks and ensure that perpetrators face the full weight of the law.

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