₦airaland Forum

It is not surprising. It is not a prehistoric manuscript like Hammurabi's code. The first Quaran was published in MS form some 700 years after the birth of Christianity. It is claimed that the angel Gabriel who appeared before Mary made revelations to Muhammad. How could the Christian angel Gabriel who revealed to Mary about the birth of Jesus and the consequent birth of Christianity reveal the birth of Islam contradicting the first revelation? All the patriarchs, prophets and even Jesus and Mary mentioned in the Bible were hijacked to the Koran.

Since Muhammad was illiterate, the Koran was composed by his confidante Zaid ibn Thabit. The Bible was used as a blueprint for the composition of Koran. There were also many other versions of the Qua ran. But the official version was published by caliph Othman by making many deletions and additions. Muhammad's wife Aishah was still alive when Othman published his version of Quaran.

In spite of Aishah's bitter opposition, Othman destroyed the original Quaran of Muhammad and distributed his version of the Quaran in all mosques and made it official. Probably the fragments of Qua ran found in Birmingham University are from Othman's Qua ran. But doubts exist. Carbon dating will not be correct in many cases. Like the Sumerian clay tablets in the British museum, this Quaran fragment would have been added at a later date by Birmingham University when manuscripts were available in Egypt when it was under British control.

By Bamidele Ogunwusi, Lagos

Data obtained from the website of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Wednesday, showed that the nation’s foreign reserves rose by $1.108 billion in the first 15 months of July, 2015, closing at $30.109 billion from $29.000 billion on June 30, 2015.

This is the first time in recent weeks that the reserves level touched $30 billion. Before the latest rise, it stood $29.595 billion at the end of May; $29.528 billion on April 30; and $29.789 billion at the end of previous month.

Analysts are quick to link the latest rise to the recent decision by the apex bank banning importers of 41 goods from accessing foreign exchange from official inter-bank market.

The CBN, had in a circular dated June 23, 2015, said the move to stop sale of foreign exchange to importers of rice, private jets, textiles, tomato paste and poultry products, among others, was part of efforts to beef up its fast depleting external reserves.

The circular, which was signed by the Director, Trade and Exchange, CBN, Mr. Olakanmi Gbadamosi, stated that implementation of the policy would also facilitate the resuscitation of domestic industries as well as generate employment.

In a telephone interview, Cyril Mpaka, a financial expert and former member of the budget team in Cross River State, told our correspondent that the rise in the reserves cannot be unconnected with the CBN’s forex restriction on importation of certain goods by the CBN. The move, he said, has stemmed occurrences of forex leakage that was the norm before now.

According to him, “my take on this is simple; the country is now reaping the reward of the CBN’s forex ban on importation of 41 items. I said sometimes ago that until we block loopholes in the way we handle forex in this country, the reserves will continue to deplete. “Though, there are calls by a cross section of Nigerians that the CBN should review the ban, I am of the opinion that the ban should continue,” he added.

For Rasheed Alao, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics, Adeyemi University of Education, Ondo, believes the issue of foreign reserves should be taking very seriously by the Buhari’s administration and that urgent steps should be taking by government to plug all loopholes in the economy which are affecting the foreign reserves.

Anor Anyanwu, banker and former Deputy Managing Director of Mainstreet Bank, however thinks Nigerians should not jubilate yet, because in his words, “we have seen in the past where government and the CBN made policy somersault of some good decisions in the past in the name of politics.”

Meanwhile, the decision to ban the sale of forex to imports of the listed items may be one of those to be reviewed during the two-day MPC meeting in Abuja, where other decisions would be taken as to whether to raise, hold or reduce benchmark rates such as the Monetary Policy, Cash Reserve Ratio and others.


http://dailyindependentnig.com/2015/07/foreign-reserves-rise-1-1b-15-days/

By Tom Moses

THE 20 commissioners and two special advisers recently appointed by Akwa Ibom State governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel may be currently relishing their appointments, there is an uneasy calm over the appointment of 11 of them.
Reasons for the anger are not far-fetched. Most of the commissioners had served in the administration of the immediate past governor, Godswill Akpabio. Having been in government for a large part of Akpabio’s two terms, some party faithful said it is imperative to give others the opportunity of serving the state.

This thinking led to the description of the appointments as lopsided and perhaps deliberate perpetuation of Akpabio’s men in the governance of the state. Others see the development as an attestation to allegations that the governor is a stooge of the former helmsman, who is assumed to be calling the shots. The Ibom Mega Synergy Assembly (IMSA), a socio-political group based in Uyo, is one of the groups that are not comfortable with the situation.

Dictatorial proclivity

Coordinator of IMSA, Mr. Ubong Sam in a chat with Vanguard described the re-appointment of the commissioners as obvious display of high-handedness, impunity and dictatorial proclivity.
Sam argued that while it may be necessary for Governor Emmanuel to consult his former boss on certain policy issues, he should also be independent.

Culture of recycling: “When people talk about experience, I am often surprised at their thinking. This is not an era of stereotype activities because the society itself is dynamic. We should learn to try new hands and do things to see the difference. I am opposed to the tradition of imposition and totally against the culture of recycling in a system as if others do not exist,’’ he added.
Nduese Essien kicks: Surprisingly, the political leader of Eket Local Council, Chief Nduese Essien also shares similar view. In fact, he is sad that the appointments have provoked so much rage across the state. He said: ‘’Last week, after three appointments were made, there was anger everywhere. This local government was not given any appointment. In appointing commissioners, if anybody had served for eight years, the person should give way for others to come.

“Even in the civil service, if a director serves for eight years, he cannot be allowed to continue in the same office because he will virtually not have much to offer again. Having served in a particular position for eight years, you have reached a point of declining productivity and should give way for somebody else to come in.

“So, I don’t expect any one who had served in a position either as a commissioner or director in the civil service or anywhere else to be recycled. Let me say this as an advice to those who had done eight years as commissioners, who now still want to serve in this government, that it will not be accepted. They can be given appointments elsewhere but not the same executive position.’’
Anietie Okon speaks: The political leader of Itu Local Council, Senator Anietie Okon also noted thus: ‘’ I endorse an eight-year tenure because beyond that point, what you have is diminishing returns. And it will become business as usual. So, we want to look at the possibility of engaging other talents that we have because there are talents which have not been tried and we have people who may rise up to challenge this situation.’’

Udom’s defence: However, Governor Emmanuel in his response, insisted that the former commissioners were appointed on merit. “On no account shall this administration sacrifice competence and earned gravitas on the altar of mediocrity or the narrow impulse of parochialism. We have vowed to surround this government with the best people wherever they may come from. We shall fish for the finest men even in the deepest waters.
“Today, China is on the wings of history through industrialization. The country leads the wave of emerging economies and is poised to recast the Western-dominated geographical balance and according to the Peterson Institute, China will soon displace the US as the dominant economic power in the world, wielding global influence and employing its power to shape the world according to its national interest.
“Nearly 360 million people have been lifted out of poverty in less than three decades and it took a visionary leader, Deng Xia-ping to engineer and engender this new thinking. He succeeded in doing this because he surrounded himself with Chinese both from home and in the Diaspora who believed and internalized the ethos of his vision.

“This is the vision we want to replicate in Akwa-Ibom State. China’s achievements provide an archetypal example for us. It shall be our paradigm of development that shall not only open up our land to endless possibilities but a development that is sustainable. If we seek to find and hold firmly the kingdom of industrialization, other challenges in our state shall naturally fall in place and a domino effect shall be engendered.”
The APC hypocrisy: One other reason, he retained the old commissioners and Special Advisers, the Governor explained, was to help fast-track the completion of ongoing projects without necessarily going back to the drawing board.
According to him, most of the projects initiated by the previous administration that are yet tobe completed needed to be handled by some of them.

The re-appointed Commissioner for Information, Mr. Aniekan Umanah justified Governor Emmanuel’s action describing as erroneous, the thinking that political appointments were for wealth-making. Political appointment is for you to work for the state.
“Take a look at Lagos, from 1999, there are people who served in Tinubu’s cabinet who are still in the cabinet of the Lagos State government today. Then, ironically, the All Progressives Congress, APC issued a statement blaming the Governor of Akwa-Ibom State for bringing people from the last administration whereas they are still running with people who worked with Tinubu even in the same cabinet.

Consolidating process

Some are serving as secretary to the state government, some are serving as commissioners even up till date, some have moved to become governors, some are in the National Assembly.’’
Continuing, Umanah said: ‘’It is a consolidating process that will facilitate further development of the state. Incidentally, government is very large and can accommodate so many people at different levels. I don’t think I want to see it from that point.”
The Chairman, House of Assembly Committee on Ethics, Judiciary and Public Prosecution, Mr. Onofiok Luke whose committee handled the screening of the appointees also submitted that the commissioners were found to be competent to handle their assigned duties.
He therefore dismissed claims that the governor is tied to the apron strings of Akpabio.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/07/commissionership-return-of-akpabios-men-tears-akwa-ibom-apart/

If the former CSO is diabetic has widely claimed, why is he serving in a very high pressured role as CSO to GEJ which requires 24hours on the job?

Why the sudden knee-jerk reaction from EFCC, what have the organisation be doing in the past six years - nothing.

A thorough, unbiased, non-witch-hunting probe of past administration will be highly welcomed.

The time for uselessness is over.

So sad that nothing is been done to provide a befitting legacy for this football icon in Nigeria, no wonder our sport stars will do everything to change their nationality.

Shame on the NFA and other football agencies in Nigeria.

barcanista:
It is a shame that Buhari can't maintain the trains he inherited from Jonathan. It is more shameful that Sai Buhari trolls expect Jonathan supervised and manage the trains even when he's out of power. Most shameful is that we have no transport minister to fix the damage that Buhari incompetence has caused. Let's hope it doesn't get worse.

Bros, na wa o.

If the train was a brand new one as advertised in many of the GEJ's campaign, then there is no need for the train to be in a reckety shape within 2 months. Something is definetely wrong with your comment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDyC-rnr0Ks

It's unfortunate that the letter can be posted here, maybe someone more techie can help?

http://www.lipstickalley.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=234028&d=1436977235



We came across this letter from Greater Mount Moriah Baptist Church to a member of theirs. We here at Pimppreacher are stunned at this flagrant foul. But I have a few questions:

1. What is a “Member in Good Standing”?

For years this has been floating around churches. Many churches even want you to bring a reference letter from your former church that highlights this status. A member in good standing is the status given if you have faithfully paid tithes and/or dues to the church. This usually means you can beat your wife, not support your own children, or have a criminal case pending but if you pay your tithes/dues, you are still in good standing. This is supported nowhere biblically.

2. Why have a cover charge for church membership?

This is why the whole idea of church membership is questioned in the first place. Usually a fellowship has unnecessary expectations and requirements God never expected or required of us. It’s Traditions of Men on speed. When did Jesus charge to get into His presence? To hear one of His messages? To get healed? Did John the Baptist charge for water baptism? And yet here we are today charging for everything church-related.

3. If we take away Mount Moriah Day and the Church Anniversary, will you still need these charges?

We dont need church anniversary days. We really don’t – especially if it becomes a burden to the people. The purpose of the church is not to become a golden calf but to is multi-faceted which includes the great commission, equipping the saints, fellowship and preparing for the return of Christ. We should never be in the business of lifting up our local assemblies where Jesus should be – especially as a requirement of membership.

4. We are tracking a person’s financial status as a “hardship” for not what we can do for that person but to exercise the right of collection agency to extend their payment due date.

As if the federal student loan agency we now have to document our financial status lest our loan go into default. Except one thing: This was not a loan but a church membership. The only saving grace given to a member is if the person has since left the church voluntarily. But unless you pay the past due amount, your church membership can be revoked.

Apparently this letter was signed by the Administrative Assistant “Ladreda Spencer as well as the Pastor Dr. B.R. Fulton Jr., so it’s official. I’m not even going to get into the incredulousness of charging children tithes and dues for church. That one can actually fall into a “delinquent” status because you don’t pay. The impudence shown to actually issue a letter – Shame on Pastor Fulton and the Greater Mount Moriah…. and the rest that is just too much to say in one breath. Though something tells me you are shameless, you may still want to do something about that church name. That advice is free.

And while we can point and say that this assembly has gone way too far, many of our churches today are practicing some form of this extortion with membership and “partners”. It’s easy to recognize. You can tune into a church leader’s social media page and count how many times they have a lecture about how “disobedient” you are being because you haven’t “sown” into them. You can tune in Sunday morning and listen to the sermon. No matter how noble a message begins, it usually comes back around to how much you are going to give that day that will be over and beyond what you already gave earlier. These church money games just don’t work no matter how they are spun and they are certainly not God’s design. Not only are they not His design, He is simply not pleased with these systems we have built to carry on what we have been instructed to do. If running a church takes so much that we can’t trust God to provide for its needs, then we need to begin looking at closing it and have faith that He has a plan for what’s next. But nah, we would rather oppress the people with church taxes that we came up with to compensate for our own lack of faith. Let’s just be honest.

May God Have Mercy,
Ms. Justice

Preacher Bureau of Investigation

http://pimppreacher.com/post/123955724710/an-attempt-to-collect-a-debt-when-the-church

President Muhammadu Buhari has blacklisted 113 vessels from lifting Nigerian crude oil as part of an effort to sanitize Nigeria’s oil industry plagued by corruption, crude theft and massive fraud.

A memo that originated from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) disclosed that President Muhammadu Buhari had directed the country’s oil corporation to bar 113 vessels from lifting Nigeria crude oil from 27 designated terminals.

The memo, which was signed by the NNPC’s group managing director, G.O Komolafe, directed affected terminals to prevent the vessels from lifting crude oil within Nigeria’s territorial waters until further notice.

The memo listed 27 terminals from which the vessels are prohibited to lift Nigerian crude. The terminals are Forcados, Bonny, Bonga, Sea Eagle, Qua lboe, Erha, Yoho, Usan, Bonny River Terminal, Escravos, Agbami, Pennington, Escravos LPG FSO, Escravos Gas Terminal, Antan, Okwori, Odudu, Akpo, Brass, Abo, Okono, Oyo, lma, Okoro, Ukpokiti, Tulja, and Ebok.

A source at the Presidency told SaharaReporters that the blacklisted vessels (see full list below) were implicated in a pattern of fraud that resulted in the shortchanging of Nigerians. “Many of the vessels had documents in Chinese, Russian or French names, and used these different languages to hide their illicit lifting of Nigerian crude,” said the source. He added that numerous officials of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, the NNPC as well as the Ministry of Petroleum were involved in facilitating the illegal lifting of Nigerian crude.

Mr. Komolafe’s memo also announced that the blacklisted vessels would be prohibited from operating within Nigeria’s territorial waters.

Sahara reporters learnt that the vessels were mostly linked with oil bunkering and sophisticated theft of crude from numerous NNPC loading facilities.

Last week, President Buhari sacked Patrick Ziakede Akpobolokemi, the director-general of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), for undisclosed reasons. However, an investigation by SaharaReporters revealed that Mr. Akpobolokemi was linked to billionaire Niger Delta militant, Government Ekpemupolo (aka Tompolo).

We could not establish whether the banning of the 113 vessels was connected to the firing of Mr. Akpobolokemi.

http://saharareporters.com/2015/07/19/nigeria-bars-113-vessels-lifting-its-crude-oil

why do we celebrate movies with very low input in our country.

you won't see top movie actors acting roles such as these.

More power output due to the heavy rainy season - we should check if the same volume or more are maintained during the dry season.

It is now government of the north, by the north and for the northerners.

This is sounding more like a nursery rhyme now.

Does this mean that there are no qualified candidates from other parts of the country?

Only the two knows what's going through their minds - so much straight faces.

If Barcanista had stayed with the APC, maybe, just maybe he will have gotten the position of SA New Media.

Don't worry 2019 is just around the corner, Barcanista, your time will surely come.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qk2f847foaA

There has to be some form of thorough investigations by the present government into how at this stage the country does not have huge savings from the sales of crude oil between the years 2011 - 2014 when the average price per barrel was between $72 & $79.

What happened to all the sales proceeds, payments and allocation of funds - someone has got to answer for all these.

Yet some people will come out in thanksgiving mode praising the previous government to high heavens for being the most in-effective government ever.

A panic-stricken former President Goodluck Jonathan has sent former Commonwealth Secretary General, Emeka Anyaoku, to plead with President Muhammadu Buhari not to launch an official probe of his administration.

Several sources in Abuja, including aides of President Buhari, briefed SaharaReporters exclusively about former President Jonathan’s dispatch of Mr. Anyaoku as an emissary to his successor.

One of our sources said Mr. Jonathan moved quickly to send powerful intercessors to the Presidency after the Buhari administration began to question massive last-minute withdrawals and disappearance of more than $20 billion in government funds orchestrated by former President Jonathan as well as his closest ministers and aides.

One source familiar with Mr. Anyaoku’s desperate mission to President Buhari revealed that the former Commonwealth chief executive urged the new president to remember that Mr. Jonathan voluntarily decided not to contest the results of the March 28, 2015 presidential election, won by Mr. Buhari, on the understanding that he and his administration would not be subjected to a probe.

Our sources disclosed that Mr. Anyaoku spent a little more than two hours in a close-door meeting yesterday where he sought to prevail on President Buhari to halt the ongoing probe of what happened to billions of public funds during the last few months of the Jonathan government.

Before imploring Mr. Anyaoku to plead with President Buhari, Mr. Jonathan had also asked former military head of state, Abdulsalam Abubakar, to speak to the current president and suggest a suspension of all ongoing probes. Mr. Buhari has put in place several investigative committees to probe the illicit withdrawal and disbursement of public funds by the Jonathan administration. The presidential committees are charged with advising the administration on strategies for retrieving any public assets stolen by officials and cohorts of the Jonathan Presidency.

One of the committees has already discovered that Mr. Jonathan and some members of his cabinet apparently colluded in the dying days of the previous government to loot billions of dollars. The funds were looted via the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the Ministry of Finance, the Nigerian Maritime Authority, the Federal Capital Territory, and several other departments. A source within the investigative committee revealed that Mr. Jonathan and his closest aides and political appointees made illegal withdrawals of funds to finance his failed bid for re-election.

Former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has stated that former President Jonathan asked her to withdraw more than $1.2 billion from the excess crude account. Even though Mrs. Okonji-Iweala continues to maintain publicly that she did nothing wrong during her tenure, a source told SaharaReporters that the former minister, who coordinated economic affairs during the former president’s tenure, has been quietly cooperative with the Buhari administration. According to the source, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala has offered what amounts to a dossier of corrupt deals authorized by the former president.

In an attempt to curry favor with the new government, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala recently directed officials of her polling agency, NOI Polls, to give President Buhari a 70% approval rating among Nigerians. “The polling results were simply cooked up,” a professional pollster told SaharaReporters. Prior to the 2015 general elections, the former minister’s fake polling organization kept repeating that Mr. Jonathan approval rating was up even as his political fortune plummeted.

SaharaReporters also learned that former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, is also actively cooperating with the Buhari administration. As earlier revealed by us, Mrs. Alison-Madueke had struck a deal with the new government to submit a document to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) exposing her collaborators at the NNPC. The former Petroleum minister, who was one of the closest cabinet members to Mr. Jonathan—and the mastermind of numerous money laundering deals on behalf of the former president—currently shuttles between the UK and Switzerland. A source close to Mrs. Alison-Madueke said the former minister was receiving treatment in the UK related to breast cancer.

After emerging from his marathon meeting with Mr. Buhari yesterday, Mr. Anyaoku claimed that he had visited to offer “advice” to the president regarding his forthcoming official trip to the US. Mr. Buhari is scheduled to start his US trip on Sunday.

A source at the Presidency told SaharaReporters that Mr. Anyaoku had misrepresented the purpose of his visit. “The elder statesman [Anyaoku] did not come to advise Mr. President about the trip to the US. The plans for the trip were already concluded a while ago, with all logistics and programming support,” the source added.

Former President Jonathan is currently in Abuja where he remains in constant touch with Abdulsalam Abubakar and other political players to prevail on President Buhari to halt the probe of his administration.

One source at the Presidency revealed that Mr. Buhari was not receptive to Mr. Anyaoku’s pleas. According to the source, the president told the former Commonwealth chief executive that the massive theft of funds by officials of the previous administration had robbed him of funds to start meeting his promises to the Nigerian people. “The president’s concern is for everybody who stole funds, including the former president, to disclose their willingness to return their loot to the Nigerian people,” the source added.

http://saharareporters.com/2015/07/16/former-commonwealth-secretary-anyaoku-jonathan%E2%80%99s-behest-begs-president-buhari-not-probe

Ten years later, IBB became the HoS in Nigeria, the fire was already in him.

Pope Francis chose to change clothes in a fast-food restaurant in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz before leading an open-air Mass before an audience of hundreds of thousands.

The famously unpretentious Pope used his address to encourage Bolivian Catholics to reject consumerism.

He told them the economic system excluded people and created barriers.

The Pope will now travel to Paraguay, the third and final country on his tour of South America.

On Thursday Pope Francis rode through the streets of Santa Cruz for about an hour.




The Burger King restaurant had been booked by the Pope's organisers and curtained off in advance so he could change into his religious vestments before the Mass.

It reopened later in the day for business but with the altar and throne used in the Mass still inside.

During his sermon he denounced what he said was a "mentality in which everything has a price, everything can be bought (...) making room only for a select few".

Later in a long speech to civic leaders, Pope Francis apologised for the actions of the Catholic Church against indigenous peoples during the conquest and colonisation of the Americas.

He said he humbly begged for forgiveness for the crimes that were committed.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-33472841

http://data.huffingtonpost.com/2015/07/choosing-childfree?ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000067

Far too often, women who choose to be childfree are asked to defend their “immature,” “selfish” lifestyles. They’re told that motherhood is the “most important job in the world” and face accusations of living “meaningless” lives.

The number of childfree women is at a record high: 48 percent of women between the ages of 18 and 44 don’t have kids, according to 2014 Census numbers.

The Huffington Post and YouGov asked 124 women why they choose to be childfree. Their motivations ranged from preferring their current lifestyles (64 percent) to prioritizing their careers (9 percent) — a.k.a. fairly universal things that have motivated men not to have children for centuries. To give insight into the complex, layered decisions women make, HuffPost asked childfree readers to discuss the reasons they have chosen not to have kids and gathered 270 responses here.

1. I don’t envision having time to properly care for a child while also focusing on my career. There’s always a trade-off.
2. I have too many plans that children just don’t fit into.
3. I am an avid equestrian and travel a lot for my career in this field. I have several nieces and nephews from siblings that are a decade or more older than me. I have chosen to pursue my career, travel and enjoy my nieces and nephews along the way. It’s the best of both worlds.
4. Being financially stable is important, and with the world the way it is with no sign of positive change, taking care of myself is enough of a financial struggle.
5. I plan on commissioning into the military and wouldn’t want to put children through my deployments and constantly moving.
6. I found “my calling” working in Child Protective Services. I chose to give everything in an effort to make my little corner of the world a better place. How could I give completely of myself to these families if my heart were more devoted to my own children? How could I give completely to my own children if my heart ached for the families with whom I came into contact?
7. I have been taking care of my mother since I was in my 20s. She came to live with me after she had some hard times and hasn’t left. Now she’s in her 60s, and my husband and I are in our 40s. She’s been like having a teenager the 11 years we’ve been married. And then, also, my husband and I don’t have a strong desire to procreate. We think there are enough people in the planet. I know people think it’s “selfish” not to have kids, but I think it’s just the opposite. I don’t feel a need to “live on” through my children and their children.
8. I think having a child is one of the hardest jobs a person can undertake. Additionally, I don’t think our government or society supports parents enough. I prescribe to the idea that it takes a village. I personally don’t think I need to have children to become a complete person. Finally, I have never heard a parent say, “I love my children.” I usually hear, “I love my children, but…”

The rest can be found in the link above.
Of course, these women don’t owe anyone an explanation, but perhaps allowing the public to read their unique perspectives will open people’s minds to the wide range of mature, unselfish motivations that go into deciding not to have kids.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group has threatened the Palestinian armed group Hamas, vowing to end the faction's rule in the territory.

In a 16-minute long video shared by social media accounts sympathetic to ISIL on Wednesday, fighters based in Syria's Aleppo province condemned Hamas for its crackdown on Salafist groups in the Gaza Strip, and its failure to implement a rigid enough interpretation of Islamic law.

"The point of jihad is not to liberate land ... but jihad as defined by God, is fighting for and implementing the law of God," said one masked fighter who appeared in the video, who further condemned Hamas for its dealings with Iran and Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah, as well as "nationalist", "secularist", and "communist" factions.

"They raise their children to respect this (Palestinian) flag," the fighter said, telling Palestinians that Hamas could not secure their freedom.

"The road to liberate Palestine goes through Iraq and we (ISIL) are getting closer, day by day ... while they (Hamas) are moving away from that goal."

Another fighter condemned the Palestinian faction for referring to ISIL and its supporters as "khawarij", a term used to refer to a group of Muslims in early Islamic history, meaning "those who have transgressed".

The fighter later refers to ISIL's seizure of parts of the Yarmouk refugee camp in the Syrian capital of Damascus after clashes with Palestinian groups, including a faction associated with Hamas.

"What is happening today in Syria, especially in the Yarmouk camp, we swear by God, will happen in Gaza," the fighter said.

Hamas has clamped down on alleged supporters of ISIL in recent months, in a campaign to snuff out purported attempts by the group, which controls large parts of Syria and Iraq, to establish a foothold in Gaza.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/07/isil-warns-hamas-video-message-150701042302630.html


Islamic State insurgents threatened on Tuesday to turn the Gaza Strip into another of their Middle East fiefdoms, accusing Hamas, the organisation that rules the Palestinian territory, of being insufficiently stringent about religious enforcement.

The video statement, issued from an Islamic State stronghold in Syria, was a rare public challenge to Hamas, which has been cracking down on jihadis in Gaza who oppose its truces with Israel and reconciliation with the U.S.-backed rival Palestinian faction Fatah.

"We will uproot the state of the Jews (Israel) and you and Fatah, and all of the secularists are nothing and you will be over-run by our creeping multitudes," said a masked Islamic State member in the message addressed to the "tyrants of Hamas".

"The rule of sharia (Islamic law) will be implemented in Gaza, inspite of you. We swear that what is happening in the Levant today, and in particular the Yarmouk camp, will happen in Gaza," he said, referring to Islamic State advances in Syria, including in a Damascus district founded by Palestinian refugees.

Islamic State has also taken over swathes of Iraq and has claimed attacks in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Yemen.

Hamas is an Islamist movement that shares the jihadis' hostility to Israel but not their quest for a global religious war, defining itself more within the framework of Palestinian nationalism.

Deemed a terrorist group by Israel, the United States and the European Union, and viewed by neighbouring Arab power Egypt as a regional security threat, Hamas's struggle against Islamic State-linked jihadis has not won sympathy abroad.

Israel's intelligence minister, Israel Katz, accused Hamas on Tuesday of partnering with Islamic State affiliates in the Egyptian Sinai - a charge long denied by the Palestinian group.

"There is cooperation between them in the realm of weapons smuggling and terrorist attacks. The Egyptians know this, and the Saudis," Katz told a Tel Aviv conference organised by the Israel Defense journal.

"At the same time, within Gaza, ISIS (Islamic State) has been flouting Hamas. But they have common cause against the Jews, in Israel or abroad."

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/07/01/uk-palestinians-islamicstate-hamas-idUKKCN0PA2TT20150701

Demmzy15:
Sunnis and Shias are at peace in Kuwait. Sectarianism is zero in Kuwait, but ISIS an intruder from the outside came in and bombed the mosques just the way they've being perpetrating heinous bombings in Saudi Arabia. They want to cause enmity between the two sects, but God pass them!

But similar incident happened in a Shia Mosque in Saudi Arabia few weeks ago, will you call that a coincidence or will it be another propaganda by the Western governments?


http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/05/deadly-car-explosion-shia-mosque-saudi-arabia-dammam-150529102343732.html

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/05/29/middleeast/saudi-arabia-mosque-blast/

His presidency in the last 6years has been a total failure - nothing of significance.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3140454/Tourists-run-lives-Tunisian-beach-gunman-carries-attack-outside-hotel-packed-Britons.html

One of the killers caught as shown in the above link.

So what has Governor Fayose been doing since last October when he was sworn in?

He started off with picking fights with ex-governor Fayemi about beds and interior items, then the Ekiti HoA, and lastly pick on Buhari during the just concluded elections, whilst he neglected his daily job description - which is providing quality leadership and effective governance for the Ekiti people.

Lesson learnt, if we do venture out of the shores of nigeria into another man's land - we have to obey, abide and respect their laws with all diligence. If not we are to be blamed for any consequence as a result of our neglience which can lead to death.

It's a known fact that Asia countries have draconic laws against drug traffikers - the death penalty. Even Western countries and the Amnesty International group have tried unsuccessfuly to make them change their laws to no avail.

Until such a time when their laws are changed, let us know that it is written in capital letters at their ports of entry that 'if caught with drugs, it is death penalty'.

Little wonder we are been treated like 'bad eggs' all over the world, if we can't have an effective maintenance culture.

I thought Muslims are brothers and abide by the 'religion of peace' slogan - why the fighting between the Sunnis and Shias?
Why can't they live peaceably amongst themselves?

An explosion has ripped through a Shia mosque in Kuwait City after Friday prayers, killing at least eight people and wounding several others, Al Jazeera has learned.

Video footage from the scene showed several bodies on the floor of the Imam Sadiq mosque amid debris and clouds of heavy smoke.
The exact number of casualties was expected to rise, according to local media outlets, as several casualties were in critical condition.
At least eight victims with various injuries arrived at a local hospital in the mosque's neighbourhood, medical sources said.
Emergency services were attending the scene, which was surrounded by clouds of black smoke and crowds of people milling around.
Kuwaiti Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah visited the Imam Sadiq mosque, located just a few buidling away from the country's interior ministry.

Saad al-Ajmi, Kuwait's former information minister, told Al Jazeera that the attack was a reminder that no country was "immune from terrorism".
Ajmi said Kuwait had "a good record" in its relationship between Sunni and Shia groups, and was a small country with good security.
He said there was no widespread dissent and he would not be surprised if it was caused by a "lone wolf".
However if a group was to claim responsibility "I think that those who want to tip the whole region ablaze in a sectarian war would be behind this attack because that is their agenda".


http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/06/deadly-blast-hits-kuwait-mosque-friday-prayers-150626103633735.html


http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/kuwait-city-shia-mosque-bombed-after-prayers-reportedly-killing-2-1.3128713