LAGOS: Gunmen ambushed a vehicle in central Nigeria with people travelling for a Muslim religious event and kidnapped 28 people, including women and children, a security report showed Monday. &quot;On the evening of 21 December, gunmen abducted 28 people, including women and children, while they were travelling to a Maulud gathering,&quot; near Zak village in Bashar district in Plateau state, according to a security report prepared for the United Nations and seen by AFP. It is the latest in a string of mass kidnappings in recent weeks, which has put an uncomfortable international spotlight on Nigeria&#39;s grim security situation. Some 130 Nigerian Catholic school pupils were handed over to state authorities on December 22, 2025, a day after the government said it had secured their release, a month after one of the country&#39;s worst mass abductions. Kidnappings for ransom are a common way for armed groups to make quick cash in the conflict-hit west African nation of some 230 million.

Africa

Gunmen ambush a vehicle in central Nigeria with people travelling for a religious event and kidnapped 28 people, including women and children; it is the latest in a string of mass kidnappings in recent weeks, which has put an uncomfortable international spotlight on Nigeria's grim security situation.


Gunmen kidnap 28 people on a Muslim religious trip in Nigeria: security report

PALM BEACH: US President Donald Trump said on Monday that people who &quot;innocently met&quot; Jeffrey Epstein in the past risked having their reputations ruined by the release of the investigative files on the convicted sex offender. Trump, in his first comments since the Justice Department began releasing the files on Friday, also dismissed the furor over Epstein as a distraction from his party&#39;s achievements. &quot;This whole thing with Epstein is a way of trying to deflect from the tremendous success that the Republican Party has,&quot; he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago home. Former president Bill Clinton featured prominently in the first batch of photos from the Epstein files released by the Justice Department, and Trump was asked for his reaction. &quot;I like Bill Clinton. I&#39;ve always gotten along with Bill Clinton. I hate to see photos come out of him,&quot; he said. &quot;There&#39;s photos of me, too,&quot; Trump noted. &quot;Everybody was friendly with this guy (Epstein).&quot; Trump said he did not like the release of pictures of Clinton and others, calling it a &quot;terrible thing.&quot; &quot;Bill Clinton&rsquo;s a big boy; he can handle it,&quot; he said. &quot;But you probably have pictures being exposed of other people that innocently met Jeffrey Epstein years ago, many years ago, and they&rsquo;re highly respected bankers and lawyers and others.&quot; The Republican president said a &quot;lot of people are very angry that pictures are being released of other people that really had nothing to do with Epstein. &quot;But they&#39;re in a picture with him because he was at a party, and you ruin a reputation of somebody,&quot; he said. Epstein, a wealthy and well-connected financier, died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges in what was ruled a suicide.

Americas

Says the whole thing with "Epstein is a way of trying to deflect from the tremendous success that the Republican Party has"; adds he did not like the release of pictures of Clinton and others, calling it a "terrible thing."

Release of Epstein files risks ruining reputations: Trump

PALM BEACH: US President Donald Trump on Monday announced a new class of heavily armed warships that will be named after himself &mdash; an honor usually reserved for leaders who have left office. Two of the Trump-class ships will be built initially, but that number could grow substantially, according to the president, who said they will be &quot;some of the most lethal surface warfare ships&quot; and &quot;the largest battleship in the history of our country.&quot; Trump made the announcement at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida alongside Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Navy Secretary John Phelan, with images of the planned high-tech vessels on stands nearby. Asked if the planned warships are a counter to Washington&#39;s rival Beijing, Trump declined to specify, instead saying: &quot;It&#39;s a counter to everybody, it&#39;s not China. We get along great with China.&quot; He said the ships will weigh between 30,000 and 40,000 tons and will be armed with missiles and guns as well as weaponry still in development, such as lasers and hypersonic missiles. They will also be capable of carrying atomic weapons in the form of the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, Trump said. The Trump-class ships will be substantially larger than existing US destroyers and cruisers, but the projected displacement cited by the president is somewhat smaller than the last American battleships &mdash; from the Iowa class &mdash; which were retired in the 1990s. &#39;Most powerful fleet anywhere&#39; Trump &mdash; who has complained in the past about the appearance of US ships &mdash; said he would be involved in the design along with the Navy &quot;because I&#39;m a very aesthetic person.&quot; Trump&#39;s announcement came just days after the Navy publicized plans for another new class of ships &mdash; frigates dubbed the FF(X) that it said will &quot;complement the fleet&#39;s larger, multi-mission warships.&quot; Phelan has said the FF(X) will be based on an existing design from shipbuilder HII that is already in use by the United States Coast Guard, and that the aim is for the first of the new frigates to be in the water by 2028. The new frigate plans were announced after Phelan said in late November that four of six planned ships from the Constellation class of frigates would be canceled, while two that are already under construction are &quot;under review.&quot; Washington has fallen significantly behind Beijing when it comes to the number of ships in its Navy, and a report to Congress earlier this year noted that US military officials and other observers are concerned by the pace of China&#39;s shipbuilding efforts. &quot;We&#39;re going to restore America as a major shipbuilding power,&quot; Trump said on Monday, adding: &quot;We&#39;re going to ensure the USA has the most powerful fleet anywhere in the world, and long into the future, with battleships helping lead the way.&quot;

Asked if planned warships are a counter to Washington's rival Beijing, Trump says: "It's a counter to everybody, it's not China. We get along great with China."

Trump announces new US warship class named after himself

LOS ANGELES:&nbsp;Vince Zampella, the acclaimed co-creator of the video gaming juggernaut &quot;Call of Duty,&quot; has died in a car crash, US media reported on Monday. According to local broadcaster NBC4, the developer and executive died on Sunday while driving his Ferrari on a scenic road north of Los Angeles. His studios created some of the world&#39;s best-selling video games. Zampella was best known for co-creating the &quot;Call of Duty&quot; franchise and founding Respawn Entertainment, the studio behind &quot;Titanfall,&quot; &quot;Apex Legends,&quot; and the &quot;Star Wars Jedi&quot; games. After starting out in the 1990s as a designer on shooter games, he co-founded Infinity Ward in 2002 and helped launch &quot;Call of Duty&quot; in 2003. Activision later acquired his studio. He left Activision under contentious circumstances and established Respawn in 2010, which Electronic Arts acquired in 2017. At EA, he eventually took charge of revitalizing the &quot;Battlefield&quot; franchise, cementing his reputation as one of the most influential figures in modern first-person shooter games.

Video Game

Vince Zampella died Sunday in a Ferrari crash on a scenic road north of Los Angeles, media reported Monday.

‘Call of Duty’ co-creator Vince Zampella killed in car crash: US media

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan&rsquo;s Under-19 cricket team were rewarded at the highest level after their emphatic Asia Cup triumph, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announcing a Rs10 million cash reward for the players following their title-winning campaign.&nbsp;&ldquo;We just met the prime minister, who appreciated the team and management and announced a one-crore reward for the players,&rdquo; mentor Sarfaraz Ahmed said at the post-final press conference in Islamabad. &ldquo;These children worked very hard, and the coaching staff did an outstanding job.&rdquo;&nbsp;The reward came after Pakistan delivered a dominant 191-run victory over India in the ACC Men&rsquo;s Under-19 Asia Cup final last week at the ICC Academy Ground in Dubai, successfully defending 347 for 8 and bowling India out for 156 in 26.2 overs.&nbsp;Batting first on a true surface, Pakistan posted a formidable 347-8 in 50 overs, laying the foundation for a one-sided final. The total proved far beyond India&rsquo;s reach as Pakistan&rsquo;s pace-heavy attack dismantled the chase with relentless accuracy and discipline.&nbsp;The win ended a 13-year wait for a major U19 title, underlining the strength of Pakistan&rsquo;s youth system. Since 1989, Pakistan had not won an outright U19 Asia Cup, sharing the title with India in 2012. Their previous global successes came at the ICC U19 World Cups in 2004 and 2006.&nbsp;Reflecting on the team&rsquo;s mindset, head coach Shahid Anwar said the group followed a clear philosophy from the outset.&nbsp;&ldquo;Our motto was to play fearless but not careless cricket and to remain unified through faith and discipline,&rdquo; Anwar said. &ldquo;I had stated on record before leaving for Dubai that we would not only win hearts but also the trophy, and by the grace of Allah, the result is before you.&rdquo;&nbsp;Ahmed rejected suggestions that the final revolved around one individual performance.&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe it was a one-man show,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Usman Khan and Ahmed Hussain played crucial innings and formed important partnerships. Even the lower order contributed to reaching 347 runs. It was a collective team performance.&rdquo;&nbsp;Pakistan&rsquo;s bowlers made full use of grass and carry in the surface.&nbsp;Ali Raza finished with figures of 6-0-38-3, while Abdul Subhan delivered a standout spell of 2-13 from eight overs, including a maiden. Mohammad Sayyam and spinner Huzaifa Ahsan took two wickets apiece.&nbsp;Explaining his approach, Abdul Subhan said discipline was key.&nbsp;&ldquo;My strategy was to bowl dot balls,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;At the U19 level, when you bowl dot balls, the batsmen eventually make mistakes trying to score, and that is how I got my wickets.&rdquo;&nbsp;Captain Farhan admitted his own batting returns were modest but emphasized collective responsibility.&nbsp;&ldquo;Our plan was always to play as a team,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I feel I did not perform as well as I should have individually, but I tried to chip in for the team. The management is backing us, and I will look to correct these mistakes in the upcoming World Cup and Tri-Series.&rdquo;&nbsp;Farhan also revealed there was no panic after losing the toss.&nbsp;&ldquo;We actually wanted to bat first because it was a used, true pitch,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When the Indian captain won the toss and chose to bowl, my morale actually went up because it aligned with our plan.&rdquo;Anwar detailed the long preparation behind the title.&nbsp;&ldquo;We began a unique process on June 17, 2025,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We initially called 70 boys for trials, sent them to regional tournaments, and then held a 30-player camp for five months.&rdquo;&nbsp;Addressing questions about Pakistan&rsquo;s U19 success compared to senior-level struggles, Anwar pointed to fundamentals.&nbsp;&ldquo;At this age, we focus 99% on basics and mentality,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The transition to senior cricket involves changes in lifestyle and environment. While some players filter out, around 80 percent of our stars have come through this same U19 system.&rdquo;&nbsp;Sarfaraz Ahmed also addressed a viral clip in which he urged players to maintain discipline against India.&nbsp;&ldquo;I told my boys that we must celebrate with sportsman spirit and dignity,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We wanted to win the game the right way and back our own team rather than responding to their actions.&rdquo;&nbsp;Pakistan&rsquo;s commanding performance, built on preparation, fearless intent, and disciplined execution, not only secured a major youth title but reinforced confidence in the country&rsquo;s cricketing pipeline, capped fittingly by national recognition from the prime minister.

Culture

Pakistan dominated the Under-19 Asia Cup, combining fearless batting and disciplined bowling to crush India in the final and end a 13-year wait for a major youth title.

PM reward caps historic U19 Asia Cup triumph over India

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration is removing dozens of ambassadors appointed under the Biden administration as part of a broad reshuffle to align the diplomatic corps with its foreign policy priorities.&nbsp;The heads of mission, mostly career diplomats, have been notified they must leave their posts by mid-January, according to the American Foreign Service Association, which represents State Department employees.&nbsp;Press reports said ambassadors from 30 countries will be affected, particularly in Africa.&nbsp;The recalls were first reported by Politico.&nbsp;While it is customary for an administration to reshuffle ambassadors appointed to strategic posts or capitals and to appoint donors or supporters, such a sweeping change targeting career diplomats is unusual before their term ends or their successor is appointed.&nbsp;The American Foreign Service Association said it had received &quot;credible reports from our members in diplomatic posts around the world that multiple career ambassadors, appointed during the Biden administration, have been directed by phone call to vacate their posts by January 15 or 16.&quot;&nbsp;&quot;No explanation was given for these recalls,&quot; the association added in its post on Facebook.&nbsp;&quot;Removing senior diplomats without cause undermines US credibility abroad and sends a chilling signal to the professional Foreign Service: experience and an oath to the Constitution take a backseat to political loyalty,&quot; it said.&nbsp;A senior State Department official said Monday that changing ambassadors was &quot;a standard process in any administration.&quot;&nbsp;&quot;An ambassador is a personal representative of the President, and it is the President&#39;s right to ensure that he has individuals in these countries who advance the America First agenda,&quot; the official said on condition of anonymity.&nbsp;The official did not confirm the details of the dismissals, or which countries were affected.&nbsp;In his second term, President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State Marco Rubio have overhauled American diplomacy to focus priorities such as combating illegal immigration, cutting foreign aid and diversity policies.&nbsp;Rubio has overseen the dismissal of hundreds of personnel within the State Department, and Trump has placed loyalists as key ambassadors.

The Trump administration is removing many Biden-appointed ambassadors by mid-January to align diplomacy with its priorities, mostly affecting career diplomats, raising concerns that political loyalty is being valued over experience and harming US credibility abroad.

Trump removes dozens of career ambassadors appointed under Biden

STOCKHOLM: Music streaming service Spotify said Monday it had disabled accounts from a piracy activist hacker group that claimed to have &quot;backed up&quot; millions of Spotify&#39;s music files and metadata.&nbsp;The group Anna&#39;s Archives said in a blog post it had backed up 86 million Spotify tracks and the metadata for 256 million tracks -- a process known as &quot;scraping&quot; -- in order to start an open &quot;preservation archive&quot; for music.&nbsp;Anna&#39;s Archives said the 86 million music files represented more than 99.6 percent of Spotify &quot;listens&quot;, while the metadata copies represented 99.9 percent of all tracks on Spotify.&nbsp;The breach, which has no impact on Spotify users, means that in theory anyone could use the information to build their own free music archive, though in practice they would be swiftly pursued by rights holders.&nbsp;&quot;Spotify has identified and disabled the nefarious user accounts that engaged in unlawful scraping,&quot; the company said in a statement sent to AFP.&nbsp;&quot;We&#39;ve implemented new safeguards for these types of anti-copyright attacks and are actively monitoring for suspicious behaviour,&quot; it said.&nbsp;&quot;Since day one, we have stood with the artist community against piracy, and we are actively working with our industry partners to protect creators and defend their rights.&quot;

Artificial Intelligence

Spotify disabled accounts linked to hacker group Anna’s Archives, which claimed to have scraped 86 million tracks and metadata. The breach had no user impact, and Spotify strengthened safeguards to protect music creators’ rights.

Spotify says piracy activists hacked its music catalogue

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan&rsquo;s Ambassador to China Khalil Hashmi on Monday held meetings with Pakistan&rsquo;s Honorary Investment Counsellors (HICs) in China to review their performance, strengthen coordination and set priorities for the coming year.&nbsp;According to a press release by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ambassador Hashmi lauded the HICs&rsquo; efforts across key regions, including the Hong Kong-Macao-Greater Bay Area, Xinjiang, Shandong, and Henan, highlighting their role in promoting trade, investment, and people-to-people contacts, and urged them to align their work with Pakistan&rsquo;s national development priorities.&nbsp;&ldquo;He encouraged them to synergize their efforts with Pakistan&rsquo;s national development priorities and mobilize Chinese investments in export-oriented sectors of Pakistan,&ldquo; the statement added.&nbsp;The ambassador shared progress made over the last year, noting that two B2B investment conferences in Shenzhen and Beijing, along with six sectoral roadshows, have resulted in more than 300 Memoranda of Understanding and 25 joint ventures worth $11 billion.&nbsp;&nbsp;The ambassador ensured a high-level follow-up mechanism is in place in Pakistan to facilitate implementation of the agreements.&nbsp;Hashmi briefed the HICs on preparations made for the first China-focused Agriculture Investment Conference, scheduled to be held in Islamabad on January 19, 2026.&nbsp;The HICs welcomed the initiative for regular reviews and expressed commitment to supporting Pakistan&rsquo;s economic diplomacy, boosting Chinese investment, increasing Pakistani exports to China, and strengthening bilateral cooperation.

Foreign Affairs

Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, Khalil Hashmi, met investment counsellors to review their work, discuss over 300 MoUs and 25 joint ventures worth $11 billion, and plan the January 2026 Agriculture Conference, which aims to boost China-Pakistan economic cooperation.

Pakistan envoy in China reviews investment cooperation, sets 2026 priorities

TEHRAN: Iran insisted on Monday that its missile program was defensive in nature and designed to dissuade attack, while adding that the existence of its arsenal was not up for debate.&nbsp;Israel had presented Iran&#39;s ballistic missiles, along with its nuclear program, as the two main threats it sought to neutralize during the 12-day war the foes fought in June.&nbsp;&quot;Iran&#39;s missile program was developed to defend Iran&#39;s territory, not for negotiation,&quot; foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said at a weekly press conference.&nbsp;&quot;Therefore, Iran&#39;s defense capabilities, designed to deter aggressors from any thought of attacking Iran, are not a matter that could be talked about.&quot;&nbsp;Iran&#39;s ballistic capabilities put Israel within striking distance. After Israel&#39;s unprecedented attacks that sparked the war in June, Tehran responded with waves of missiles and drones launched at Israeli cities.&nbsp;According to US broadcaster NBC, Israel is growing increasingly concerned that Iran is seeking to rebuild and expand its missile production following the war. It may seek to attack it again to curtail those efforts.&nbsp;Over the course of the recent war, Israel struck military sites, nuclear facilities, and residential areas, killing more than 1,000 people.&nbsp;Israel reported more than 50 Iranian missile strikes inside its territory that killed 28 people.&nbsp;The US briefly joined its ally in striking Iran&#39;s nuclear facilities before declaring a ceasefire.&nbsp;Iran once procured much of its weaponry from the United States, but following the break in diplomatic relations after its 1979 Islamic revolution, it had to develop its own domestic arms industry.

Asia

Iran says its missile program is defensive and not open to talks. It rejected Israeli claims after June’s war, which saw missile exchanges, heavy casualties, and brief US strikes before a ceasefire.

Iran says missile program defensive, non-negotiable

BEIJING: Brussels hit back Monday at China slapping duties of up to 42.7% on some dairy products from the European Union, calling the move &quot;unjustified.&quot;&nbsp;China&#39;s salvo on Monday is the latest in a trade spat with the EU that spans from food to electric vehicles.&nbsp;The &quot;duty deposits&quot;, which range from 21.9% to 42.7%, come into effect on Tuesday.&nbsp;They hit a range of items, including fresh and processed cheese, curd, blue cheese, and some milk and cream, the commerce ministry in Beijing said in a statement.&nbsp;Officials launched an anti-subsidy probe in August 2024 at the request of the Dairy Association of China. The probe will conclude in February.&nbsp;China&#39;s commerce ministry said Monday that preliminary findings showed a link between EU subsidies and &quot;substantial damage&quot; to its domestic dairy industry.&nbsp;European officials contested such conclusions.&nbsp;&quot;Our assessment is that the investigation is based on questionable allegations and insufficient evidence, and that the measures are therefore unjustified and unwarranted,&quot; a European Commission trade spokesman said.&nbsp;&quot;Right now, the Commission is examining the preliminary determination and will provide comments to the Chinese authorities,&quot; he added.&nbsp;The fees on EU dairy come a week after Beijing said it would impose anti-dumping levies on EU pork imports for five years.&nbsp;Those duties kicked in on Dec. 17 and range from 4.9% to 19.8%, down from temporary levies of 15.6% to 62.4% that had been in place since September.&nbsp;The two economic powerhouses have been locked in a trade spat fuelled by what many European countries view as an unbalanced economic relationship with China. Escalating spatThe current trade spat erupted in 2024 when the EU began moving towards imposing hefty tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, arguing that Beijing&#39;s subsidies were unfairly undercutting European competitors.&nbsp;Beijing denied that claim and announced what were widely seen as retaliatory probes into imported European pork, brandy, and dairy products.&nbsp;After the EU imposed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, Beijing forced EU brandy manufacturers to raise prices or face anti-dumping taxes of up to 34.9%.&nbsp;The EU ran a trade deficit of more than $350 billion with China in 2024.&nbsp;French President Emmanuel Macron said this month that Europe would consider adopting strong measures against China, including tariffs, if the trade imbalance was not addressed.&nbsp;Alongside trade frictions, China and the EU are at odds on issues such as Russia&#39;s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.&nbsp;The EU has urged China to exert pressure on Moscow to end the war, but Beijing has shown no sign of acceding.

Europe

China

China imposes 22–43% duties on EU dairy amid trade dispute. EU calls it unfair. Tensions rise over pork, brandy, electric vehicles, and differences on Russia, worsening China-EU economic and political relations. 

Gunmen kidnap 28 people on a Muslim religious trip in Nigeria: security report

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Latest News

Release of Epstein files risks ruining reputations: Trump

Trump announces new US warship class named after himself

Gunmen kidnap 28 people on a Muslim religious trip in Nigeria: security report

‘Call of Duty’ co-creator Vince Zampella killed in car crash: US media

PM reward caps historic U19 Asia Cup triumph over India