₦airaland Forum

Somalia is back in the news today. In what seem to be the worst day of killings since late last year, there are reports from the Somali capital that at least 19 people have been killed in fresh attacks and suicide bombings by the al Qaeda-allied militant group al Shabaab, underscoring the fact that the weakened militants are not yet defeated.

The first bomb exploded by the Mogadishu courthouse. Gunmen camouflaged in Somali Army uniforms then stormed the building and opened fire.

A second bomb detonated while the state security forces were fighting to contain the insurgents. Several court officers, lawyers and bystanders died in the fight. A third bomb exploded near the airport in less than two hours after the court attack.

"We carried out a superb intense mission in Mogadishu today," Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage, an al Shabaab spokesman, said. "We assigned five special mujahideen for the court. Four of them entered and killed the people inside. The other mujahid with his car bomb exploded government soldiers gathered at the gate."

Until today, there's been a significant security improvement in Mogadishu since an African Union and Somali government offensive in August 2011.

So many militants related attacks in Africa lately...

http://www.infonubia.com/

At least seven people were killed and about 25 wounded after Friday prayers in front of a Sunni Muslim mosque in Iraq.

There's been a never ending confrontation going on between the Sunni Islamist and the Shi'ite Muslims (I'm not sure what the differences are between the two) in the country.

Reuters reports that the bomb went off near the gate of the mosque, targeting worshipers and enveloping the mosque in white smoke.

The violence between the two groups have escalated in recent months with the Sunni Islamist insurgents carrying out series of suicide bombing attaches on the Shi'ites and security forces.

What is the world coming to? Bomb blasts everywhere!

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/kapooya-kapooya-bomb-explodes-in-iraq.html

I bet he hasn't driven some of those cars in months.

JeSoul: Suicidal NK knows they can't do diddly squad. It's just to rant and rant all day long. The only ally they have is China and even then the Chinese ain't dumb. Push comes to shove NK will be standing by herself. Who will hitch their wagon to a sinking ship?

It seem like they are going at it alone on this one...Power does intoxicate indeed!

A farmer in Cangnan county, Zhejiang Province, Ye Gaoli, found out she was pregnant. Ye and her husband desperately wanted a boy. However, it is illegal to identify the gender of a fetus on the Chinese mainland. But Ye wanted to know the gender of her baby to decide if she wanted to keep it or not. She contacted a private clinic, paid 3,800 yuan ($611), took an ultrasound and decided to abort once she knew it was a girl.


This is not strange. Due to the family planning policy and Chinese traditional preferences for male children, a large number of pregnant women visit private clinics or even individuals, mostly without medical certificates, to discover the sex of their unborn child and have abortions. The fetuses are usually 3 to 4 months old or even months older.

One of the fertile industries was headed by Liu Ciwang and his wife Huang Xiaomiao, who did not have medical licenses. They used portable ultrasound machines and two vehicles – a total cost of 60,000 yuan.

Liu attracted pregnant women by handing out business cards, picked them up, and took their money. Huang, the wife, operated the ultrasound machine and induced the abortions while Li Bingfeng and Guo Ling were employed as drivers.

They operated from February 2010 to May 2012 and were jailed in early March 2013. They carried out 736 illegal ultrasounds and 15 gender-selective abortions in Zhejiang. Global Times reported.

"Illegal ultrasounds are running wild across China, in both economically developed areas and rural areas. Rich people want to have a male heir to inherit the family fortune while people in rural areas want strong manpower and farmers think boys can do more to help the family," Zhang Zhongtang, an expert on family planning from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences stated.

Quite sad....

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/desperate-measures-to-get-male-heirs-in.html

The wonders of Science!

A South African fossils found in 2008 has been reconstructed to the image shown above to show its intriguing characteristics.


This extinct species have an unusual mix of human and apelike traits. The upper portion mirrored an ape’s trunk while the lower part of its body resembled human’s lower part. The teeth and leg bones were a mixture of primitive and humans.

It had ape-like heels that prevented it from walking upright like humans. We usually strike the ground with our heels first when we walk. However, this creature, also known as A.sediba (Australopithecus sediba) struck the ground with the outside of its foot first.

According to the scientist, it would have been extremely painful and disastrous for A.sediba to walk like humans though it had other human-like features such as knees, pelvis, and hips.

This creature is dated to 2 million years ago, climbing tree and walking upright like humans.

Could humans really have stemmed from the ape family? Do you believe the theory of evolution?

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/new-evolutionary-discovery-bones-of-ape.html

In its latest rant, North Korea has warned Japan not to get involved in any conflict that breaks out on the Korean peninsula or risk nuclear retaliation.

This is coming on the heels of Japan's statement that it might intercept an expected missile launch by North Korea. The Korean Central News Agency said intervention by Tokyo could see it "consumed in nuclear flames."

Meanwhile, the US secretary of state John Kerry, who is currently in Seoul, denounced North Korea's rhetoric as "unacceptable" and said it would never be accepted as a nuclear state.

The United States is holding out the possibility of dialogue. Let's hope it works.

What's your take on the situation? How is this going to end?

I'd like to read and respond to your comments.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/situation-north-korea-up-next-japan.html

This is when I call my doctor friends and start asking questions. Just when you think you've heard it all, some rare medical condition just pops up from no where.

So, here's the story: Boy meets girl, they fall in love and begin planning their lives together. They both have great careers and everything thing seem perfect until they get married and have sex for the first time.

"I had a burning and swelling and redness, which was very unusual. I thought I had contacted STD" said the bride. Wearing a condom didn't help and the redness and skin irritation lasts for about 24 hours.

After consulting with the gynecologist, it was discovered that the new bride had an incredibly rare condition called seminal plasma hypersensitivity. In other words, the bride was allergic to the protein carried in her husband's sperm.

Thankfully, the doctor was able to treat the bride with immunotheraphy. Things are gradually getting back to normal for the couple who couldn't have intercourse for months. They are happy to be back on track.

Ever heard about this condition? Share your thoughts.

visit www.infonubia.com to read more...

The leader of Nigeria's Boko Haram, a radical Islamist group that has carried out a campaign of violence across the northern and parts of central Nigeria killing at least 2000 people, has rejected the idea of a potential amnesty deal with the presidency.

The announcement was made in the Hausa language via an audio recording believed to be from the group's leader Abubakar Shekau. The group claims the government should rather seek Boko Haram's amnesty for the "atrocities" committed against Muslims.

Last week President Goodluck Jonathan had set up a committee to look into the possibility of granting militants a pardon, similar to what the previous president Musa Yar-Adua did with militants in the oil-rich Niger Delta in the south.

The government doesn't seem to understand that Boko Haram is anatomically different from the Niger-Delta or other militant groups. Putting these groups under one umbrella and using the same strategy to address their issues wouldn't suffice.

There seem to be no end to the atrocities carried out by this group until the government labels them for who they are and strategize accordingly.

How do you think the government can best deal with the current situation?

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/nigerias-islamist-group-rejects-amnesty.html

I came across this article in Reuters and I'd like to share with readers. It is quite long but here are the main points of the article:

The Nigerian population is growing at 11,000 a day. Current population is 170 million and according to the global Population Reference Bureau (PRB), by 2050, it will be the world's fourth most populous country, with 400 million people. Such growth could either spur economic prosperity of create a crisis of poverty and unrest.

While business leaders (especially retailers of fast-moving consumer goods) are excited about the potentially huge market, it is not clear whether Nigeria can turn a growing population into a richer society with higher living standards.

Despite these potentials, demographers fear a crisis of poverty and social upheaval could offset any gains from the birth of new consumers. With population rising at 2.4 percent per year, skeptics fear increasing number of jobless and uneducated youths threatens the stability of a country already plagued with Islamist uprising in the north and oil theft, piracy, and kidnapping by criminal gangs in the south.

Few investment funds like Renaissance Capital believe African demographics will spur an economic transformation or the sort seen in Asia. The population growth will provide opportunities for retailers and the auto industry, for which demographic data suggests Africa will be overtaking China within two generations.

The government has for decades tried to curb population growth through family planning, but the message isn't resonating with the poorly educated population, many living in remote areas, that value having many children, officials say.

Room for optimism? Those who take a bullish view of Nigeria's economic future argue that its growth can still eventually lift the society out of poverty. Charles Robertson at the Renaissance Capital says over a third of children go to secondary school, compared with just 7 percent in 1975. He also thinks that as Nigeria and Africa become more prosperous, population growth will naturally slow.

For skeptics and some demographers, a change in reproductive behavior and attitude is needed to slow the population growth.

Visit www.infonubia.com for more on this article and let us know what you think about the population growth.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/will-nigerian-baby-boom-feed-prosperity.html

According to the French defense ministry, France has begun to withdraw troops from Mali.

About 100 of the 4,000 troops sent to the West African nation in January to battle Islamist militants have been withdrawn to Cyprus.

France hopes to reduce its troop presence by half when nationwide elections are due in July and have only 1000 soldiers left by the end of the year, handing over duties to the African force which currently numbers around 6,300 soldiers.

Do you think the French intervention has been successful in Mali?

Share your thoughts...

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/the-situation-in-mali-french-troop.html

In another twist to the already fragile situation, North Korea issued a warning to foreigners in South Korea to take evacuation measures in case of war.

Pyongyang has been making combative threats against South Korea, Japan, and the US bases in the Korean peninsula.

On it's part, Japan is taking measures to protect its citizens. "The government is making utmost efforts to protect out people's lives and ensure their safety." Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said.

With Pyongyang showing no sign of preparing its 1.2 million-strong army for war, do you think the threat is aimed at bolstering the 30 year old North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un? Should North Korea be taken seriously?

Let us know what you think...

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/north-korea-warns-foreigners-to.html

Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Kenya's founding president Zomo Kenyatta, was sworn in today as Kenya's new president following his victory against Raila Odinga in the March elections.

The inauguration, which took place at a stadium in the capital, Nairobi, was attended by several dignitaries across Africa. It was witnessed by tens of thousands of people.

Kenyatta's inauguration signals both a new beginning and, in some way, a continuation of the past. He is the first president to be elected under the new Kenyan constitution. The new constitution was drafted in hopes that it will put an end to the fierce tribalism that has plagued Kenyan politics.

Among the African leaders present for the inauguration were South Africa's Jacob Zuma, Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan and Uganda's Yoweri Museveni.

The 51-year old is the youngest Kenyan president.

Congratulations to the people of Kenya for a peaceful election and inauguration.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/follwoing-in-his-fathers-footstep-uhuru.html

On Sunday, anti-Israeli hackers crashed several Israeli government websites.

A group called Anonymous Arab released a YouTube video detailing a three-phase cyberattack plan.

Israeli hackers however claimed some victory as they hacked the website that promoted the "OpIsrael" cyberattack. Instead of anti-Israel message, it was playing the Israeli national anthem (yikes!).

Yitzhak Ben Yisrael, the head of the Israel's National Cyber Directorate, downplayed the effects of the cyberattacks claiming that "as was expected, up until now there has been no real damage, and the hackers don't have the tools to cause damage to the vital infrastructures."

http://www.infonubia.com

The sectarian violence in Egypt escalated on Sunday as one person was killed and 80 people wounded in fresh clashes at the Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in central Cairo, Egypt.

The clash began after a funeral service for the four Christian Egyptians killed late Friday in a Christian-Muslim confrontation. Mourners chanted "With our blood and soul we will sacrifice ourselves for the cross." Some others chanted slogans calling for the departure of the President Mohammed Mursi and his Muslim brotherhood movement.

The Muslims in the area claimed they felt offended by some of the chants, which led to the confrontation. The police were not spared in the violence as some of the protesters hurled stones at them.

Reports from Reuters indicates that the man killed in the latest round of violence is a Christian.

The Mursi government has condemned the act of violence. The president said an attack on the cathedral "is like an attack on me personally."

The religious confrontation has increased lately in Egypt since the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/fresh-clashes-in-cairos-cathedral.html

Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) fired its former manager Dario Bonetti in October 2011 two days after the team qualified for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). He was replaced with Herve Renard, who led the Zambia team to victory as the 2012 AFCON champions. The Italian leader demanded $1.6 million from his former employer. However, FIFA ordered FAZ to pay Bonetti $400,000 for breach of contract. Bonetti responded to Fifa’s judgment as "true justice."

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/fifa-ordered-football-association-of.html

The clash began on Friday when the residents of El Khusus saw a group of Christian children drawing on a wall of a Muslim religious institute. The Muslim residents were offended because the picture looked like a cross. One of the Muslim residents saw the children and started beating them. The scene drew a large crowd. It escalated when someone drew a gun and fired it in the air, killing one boy with a stray bullet.

Reuters reporter noted that an angry crowd smashed shops belonging to Christians. A Coptic day care center was burnt and several shops belonging to Christian traders were damaged. An apartment inhabited by Muslims was also burned.

Four Christian Copts and one Muslim were killed when members of both communities started fighting and shooting at each other in El Khusus north of the Egyptian capital, Cairo. MENA, the State news agency recorded a death toll of four. The president's office expressed condolences to the victims and vowed to fight any sectarian violence.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/christian-muslim-clash-in-egypt-takes.html

A South African military spokesman said on Sunday that the goal of the deployment is to neutralize armed groups in the conflict-torn east of the country. South Africa is coming to grips with its worst military setback since the end of apartheid in 1994. Thirteen of its troops were killed last month in a shootout with rebels in the neighboring Central African Republic (CAR). However, Brigadier General Xolani Mabanga stated the deployment has nothing to do with the CAR.


The terms set by the United Nations will determine the size and timing of the deployment. The Security Council unanimously adopted in late March a resolution called MONUSCO. The interceding unit is a part of the well-established 20,000 U.N. force in Congo. It is the first time the United Nations has created a brigade within a traditional peacekeeping force.

Why Congo, you may ask? Well, Congo's army is fighting M23 rebels in a conflict that has displaced more than half a million people. M23 is a by-product of peace treaty signed by the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP) with the DRC government on March 23, 2009. The movement is also known as the Congolese Revolutionary Army.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/south-african-troops-will-join-un.html

confusion247: North Korea will be destroyed.

Spot on! I agree, NK is threading the path of destruction. I think Kim Jong-un is being ill-advised. He seem desperate to show that He's not a weakling.

r they ready to launch an attack. huh
.this boy need to b careful

Not too sure what's going through the boy's mind. Now, China is gradually alienating themselves from the whole situation.

The North Korean government tells Britain to consider evacuating it's embassy in Pyongyang as a second missile is reportedly moved to its east coast.

"We can confirm that the British Embassy in Pyongyang received a communication from the North Korean government this morning," said a spokesman for the Foreign Office.

"It said that the North Korean government would be unable to guarantee the safety of embassies and international organizations in the country in the event of conflict from April 10," he added. The British are carefully considering the next line of action following the notice.

Russia also received a similar notice. The Russian government has indicated that their priority is to ensure the security of the Russian citizens.

In related news, there are signs that China, North Korea's biggest ally and trading partner, may be getting uneasy with it's neighbor's pugnacious bait with the US.

How do you think this will end for North Korea?

http://www.infonubia.com

Dog wan fight Lion

Dog wey fight Lion go get tribal mark if im make out alive...

The Red Cross describes the humanitarian situation in Syria as rapidly deteriorating with some areas a landscape of "devastation and destruction." This is after the bloodiest month in the two-year long conflict.

Residents in rebel-held areas targeted by airstrikes and ballistic missiles have been mostly deprived of water, electricity and life-saving medical supplies. Due to the Syrian government's restrictions on aid convoys, most supplies are distributed in government-held areas.

Reuters reported that convoys and volunteers for the Syrian Arab Crescent - the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) partner in Syria - have been targeted during the conflict, leaving several volunteers jailed or killed.

What actions can the UN take to curb this conflict?

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/humanitarian-crisis-deteriorating-in.html

[quote author=Commander .O.]They never see any thing yet.[/quote]lol...Interesting times, I tell you!

In its latest round of exploits, the "hacktivist" group, Anonymous hacked North Korea's official Twitter and Flickr accounts yesterday.

North Korea's Tweeter feed currently displays a series of tweets with links that poke fun at the country's leader Kim Jong-un. One linked image portrays Kim Jong-un in a less than flattering light and criticizes him for "threatening world peace with ICBMs and nuclear weapons" and "wasting money while his people starve."
Anonymous also has repeatedly hacked North Korean news and information website www.uriminzokkiri.com. The site is currently unavailable, which could be due to distributed denial of service attacks from Anonymous.

North Korea has raised international tensions since declaring a "state of war" against South Korea and threatening to attack the United States.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/north-koreas-twitter-and-flickr.html

An April Fool's prank in Wagoner county, Oklahoma, landed a teenage girl in jail and her boyfriend was treated in a hospital.

On Monday, Tori Wheeler, 18, jokingly told her boyfriend, Derek Bauer that she was pregnant and he reacted angrily to the news. As part of the prank, Tori pulled out a knife and threatened Derek (wrong move!).

But when Derek continued to grow angry and said he would call the police, Tori allegedly lost her temper, cut Derek across the throat and bit him twice.

Derek was taken to the hospital by an ambulance. He needed seven stitches for the cuts to his neck. Luckily, his injuries weren't considered to be life threatening and he has since been released.

Tori was was taken to the county jail where she faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon.

So much for April Fool...

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/april-fools-prank-gone-wrong-boy-lands.html

It is no longer news that Samsung is in the smartphone market to stay. South Korea's Samsung Electronics, whose array of fast-selling smartphones, from inexpensive low-end models popular in the developing world to its showcase Galaxy devices, have propelled it to the global leader, with a 29 percent share of the worldwide smartphone market in the fourth quarter of 2012 - up from 8 percent in 2010. Apple trails in second place with 21.8 percent.

Samsung's gain in the mobile space, attributed to its aggressive marketing strategy aimed at young people, is Apple's biggest nightmare. Now Samsung is daring to try what many companies have failed to do: match the innovative magic of Apple.


The question is "how long will this surge last?" We don't know what the company that has repeatedly upended the industry with disruptive devices, from the iPod to iPad mini, has up its sleeve. With a nearly saturated high-end smartphone market, the battle between the two tech giants is likely to grow even fiercer because new growth for companies will come from stealing customers away from one another.

One thing is for sure: these companies have our heart and wallet!

Do you think there is an opportunity for Blackberry to reclaim its market share in all of this? How about Microsoft? They have been aggressively pushing the Microsoft Surface tablet.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/03/apple-vs-samsung-battle-for-your-heart.html

In wake of recent events in the Korean Peninsula, the pentagon said today that it would deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to Guam in the coming weeks as a precaution.

Following the UN sanctions on North Korea and joint military drills by the U.S. and South, Pyongyang has threatened to target South Korea and the US. This rhetoric seem to be escalating the situation. The U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said that "some of the actions they've taken over the last few weeks, present a real and clear danger."

As reported by Reuters, Hagel said those actions by North Korea had threatened the interests of South Korea and Japan. He also cited their direct threats against Guam, Hawaii, and West Coast of the United States.

Is this the beginning of another Korean war? Only time will tell.

http://www.infonubia.com/2013/04/us-to-deploy-missile-defenses-to-guam.html