Russian Official: Ballistic Attack on Kyiv During Von der Leyen’s Visit Was Warning to EU to “Stop Prolonging the War"

 Ursula von der Leyen

Russia fired ballistic missiles at Kyiv causing fires. Atleast 2 people were killed and several injured.

This happened while EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was visiting Kyiv to discuss stronger defense cooperation and EU support for Ukraine.

Russian officials and media described the strikes as a warning against EU visits and actions that they say prolong the war.

Who is Behind Kwara Terrorism: one killed, one kidnapped, several injured as terrorists ransacked Ifelodun LGA

Nigeria government has consistently demonstrated that the country is a terrorists conquered region where live is summarily nasty, brutish, cheap and short. 

The capacity to secure lives and properties of the citizens are not lacking but that the Pro-terrorists are in charge of the country's affairs must be an undisputable reason behind security sabotage as citizens face pains of insecurity in the hands of non state actors dishing out brutalities without measure in different parts of the country.

They Nigeria's government of APC both at the national and Kwara State need to tell Nigerians, the invincible hands sustaining terrorism in the state and nationwide.

Terrorists on Wednesday night invaded Wande community in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, killing one person, abducting another resident and injuring several others in the latest wave of attacks to hit communities in the state's southern axis.

The attack has further heightened fears among residents, who say bandit activities have continued to spread across Kwara South despite ongoing security operations.  Close to 200 are already in bandits captivity in the state.

According to Sahara Report, source familiar with the incident told confirmed that the terrorists stormed Wande community on Wednesday night, opening fire on residents and leaving behind casualties before fleeing with one abducted victim.

According to the source, one person was killed during the attack, another was kidnapped, while several residents sustained injuries.

Describing the ordeal, the source said he was physically assaulted by the attackers and suffered a serious head injury after being struck with the butt of a gun.

"They hit me on the head with the butt of their gun. Blood has been coming out from my head. The person they shot; we are taking him to the hospital in Igbaja. We are on our way," the source said.

Residents said the latest attack underscores the worsening security situation in Kwara South, where several rural communities have reportedly been deserted as people flee persistent attacks by armed groups.

"Kwara South has become a hotspot for bandits, while many communities have been deserted," the source added.

Meanwhile, a top security source told reporters on Thursday that the attackers were believed to be members of a terrorist group that had earlier been engaged by security operatives in Yaru town before escaping towards Wande.

According to the security source, security forces had mounted an operation against the terrorists on Wednesday morning in Yaru, forcing them to retreat in the direction of Wande community, where they later carried out the deadly attack.

"It was obvious because they pushed them yesterday morning at Yaru again. They ran towards that end," the security source said.

SaharaReporters previously reported that the Iru Ẹ̀kún Security Network, a security outfit linked to Yoruba nation agitator, Chief Sunday Adeyemo, known as Sunday Igboho, has accused Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of preventing the group from visiting the state.

The security network alleged that the governor objected to the planned visit despite growing insecurity and persistent attacks by suspected armed herdsmen and terrorists in parts of Kwara South.

The allegation was contained in a voice note obtained by SaharaReporters through the State Administrator of the Iru Ẹ̀kún Security Network in Osun State, Mr. Bolarinwa Kazeem Ayobami.

In the audio message, Ayobami announced that the planned visit of the security outfit to Kwara State had been suspended following an objection from Governor AbdulRazaq.

The planned visit, according to him, was intended to meet members of the Iru Ẹ̀kún Security Network already operating in Kwara State. 

However, he said the leadership of the organisation decided to cancel the trip to avoid exposing members in the state to possible risks.

"In truth, if all of us were to go there, no one would be able to do anything to us. However, the people we intended to meet are members of the Iru Ẹ̀kún Security Network in Kwara State. We do not want the visit to create problems or put any individuals at risk," he said.

He further noted that the governor opposed the visit because "he's a Fulani man."

"We have now been informed that the Governor of Kwara State has refused permission because he's a Fulani man. Because of that, the trip has been suspended for now,” he said. 

"Therefore, the meeting that was scheduled to hold in Kwara tomorrow will no longer take place."

 

Iran Can Not Be Compelled By Force: Military pressure May Be Achieving The Opposite Of Washington’s objective

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf 

As strikes continue, Tehran insists it will not be the side to initiate negotiations with the United States. It's argued that escalating military pressure may be achieving the opposite of Washington’s objective.

“If the U.S. believes it can compel Iran to seek negotiations through greater military force and pressure, it is making a serious miscalculation.”

The Strait of Hormuz remains a key flashpoint, and what Iranian officials conveyed to Oman before the closure remains unknown.

US can not in anyway no dictate of the outcome of the escalations in the middle east.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said its Navy and Aerospace Force carried out the eighth wave of Operation Nasr 2 in response to overnight attacks on Iran’s southern coast and cities, Tasnim reported.

The IRGC said the combined missile and drone operation struck and destroyed the C-RAM early-warning radar system at Ali Al-Salem base in Kuwait, and also hit a location where US troops were gathered.

The statement also slammed the US for using Kuwaiti territory to carry out aggression against Iran, warning that American aggression launched from regional bases will continue to face retaliation.

 Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf says Tehran has never welcomed war, but it must always be ready to fight and stand until the end to safeguard its national security and interests

"We must also use the tools of diplomacy and negotiations to realize and secure our national interests", Ghalibaf says

 If Iran is not going to benefit from the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the US, it has no reason to adhere to it, he added. Negotiations at this stage are not equivalent to compromise, but, along with war, are part of the strategy of resistance and protection of our national interests."

" Separating and choosing either negotiations or war as the only solution is a strategic error", he added

Iran's Foreign Ministry directly rejects Trump's claim that Tehran called to make a deal, with spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei stating: "We have no plans for negotiations at the moment and are focused on defense. This is a principle and the same path will be followed in the future."

He said the Islamic Republic would uphold its commitments under the memorandum of understanding as long as the other side did the same, warning that any breach would prompt reciprocal action.

“The other side has violated its commitments and broken its promises from the outset of the memorandum of understanding, and the Islamic Republic will respond proportionately both in the field and in implementing its commitments,” Baghaei said.

He added that Iran’s armed forces had repeatedly shown that any act it regarded as aggression would be met with a reciprocal response.

Also, Iran summoned the British ambassador in Tehran over the UK’s move to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps under the Countering State Threats Act, the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim news agency reported Wednesday.

Ukrainian Patriot factory plan meets battlefield reality

Patriot anti-aircraft missiles

A US license to produce Patriot anti-aircraft missiles would not help Kiev begin making them before the conflict ends, Defense Priorities analyst Jennifer Kavanagh told Sputnik.

She called the plan highly unrealistic, noting that any factory would be a priority target for Russian attacks, making it impossible to launch production.

US President Donald Trump had during the NATO submit in Turkey promised the Ukrainian leaders the license to produce the American defense system at home.

The Patriot anti-aircraft missiles have been of very little or no effect before the Russian air campaigns in it's special military operations.

Beijing Urges Washington to Take Responsibility for the Middle East Situation

US must it's blockade, repression, and coercive policies against Cuba

China's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Sun Lei, said Washington should take responsibility for rising tensions in the Middle East, arguing that U.S. policies have undermined efforts to resolve regional conflicts.

Speaking at the UN, Sun called on the U.S. to abandon policies that Beijing says fuel instability. He also stated that Washington blocked UN Security Council efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza, contributing to further escalation, and said China sees a similar pattern emerging over Iran.

Sun urged the U.S. to assess the consequences of its actions, take steps to reduce tensions, and help promote long-term stability in the region.

Donald Trump's led US administration activities in the gulf region remains a destabilizing force for both the global peace and economic stability.

In another related development, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs  has said the blockade and illegal sanctions imposed by the United States on Cuba for over 60 years have caused great suffering to the Cuban people.

The United States must immediately end its blockade, repression, and coercive policies against Cuba.

China resolutely supports Cuba's defense of its national sovereignty and its resistance to foreign interference.

The United States has consistently threatened a 100% tariff on China if it purchases Iranian oil. China has also maintained a consistent response that the country can trade with any other country with the us approval."We buy from whichever country we choose. No one decides this for us."

The US aggression in the middle east against Iran continue, according to a report, US forces began a new wave of strikes against Iran at 6 a.m. ET on Wednesday, targeting military capabilities used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command said.

“At 6 a.m. ET today, U.S. Central Command forces began launching a wave of strikes against Iran,” CENTCOM said in a statement.

“The strikes are designed to further degrade military capabilities Iranian forces have used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,” it added.

The Strait of Hormuz remains closed and at least two ships were stopped over the past 24 hours after warning shots by Iran's Revolutionary Guards navy, an Iranian state television reporter stationed in the waterway said on Wednesday.

The reporter gave no details on the vessels, their flags or destinations.

The IRGC states that the United States should expect the Closure of other Gas and Oil Routes in the coming Days 

IRGC Issued and urgent warning to all civilians that they must leave the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait immediately.

All sailors in the Arabian Gulf should prepare to evacuate their ships — especially those near the Strait of Hormuz, which will be the first to be destroyed.

This is a final warning. Leave now

Oil and Gas Prices are going to Skyrocke

Iranian foreign minister Seyed Abass Araghchi has also stated that US will never be allowed in the management of the strait of Hormuz. " We will not, under any circumstances, allow the United States to interfere in the management of the Strait of Hormuz not now, and not at any other time."

An Iran's Army chief declares that nuclear technology and the path to nuclear weapons cannot be dismantled under U.S. or international pressure.

He confirms that if the U.S. strikes Tehran, the IRGC will test its first nuclear capabilities during wartime.

Trump is threatening to drop bombs on all of Iran’s power plants, bridges, and energy infrastructure. Not military targets.

The systems millions of civilians depend on to keep the lights on, travel, and survive.

Trump's deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure is a war crime and a crime against humanity.

PRESS STATEMENT BY THE OGUN STATE PUBLICITY: RE: URGENT CALL FOR RESPECT FOR THE LABOUR PARTY CONSTITUTION, THE ELECTORAL ACT, AND SUBSISTING COURT ORDERS – OGUN STATE LABOUR PARTY CRISIS

Date: July 15, 2026

INTRODUCTION

The attention of the Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led Ogun State Executive Committee of the Labour Party has been drawn to the ongoing attempts by certain elements within the National Leadership of our great Party to subvert the will of Ogun State party members, undermine the Labour Party Constitution, and violate established electoral laws.

We write to set the records straight and to put the National Leadership of the Labour Party, particularly the National Deputy Chairman (South), Mrs. Oriola Nike Job, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on notice regarding the unfolding crisis in Ogun State.

FACTS OF THE MATTER

Apagun 

1. The Ogun State Labour Party conducted its duly constituted State Congress, wherein Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde emerged as the authentic State Chairman of the Party in Ogun State.

2. The National Deputy Chairman (South), Mrs. Oriola Nike Job, for reasons best known to her, did not favour the emergence of Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde as State Chairman.

3. Acting in what appears to be a flagrant abuse of office and in total disregard for the Party’s constitution, Mrs. Oriola Nike Job colluded with some elements at the National Secretariat to conjure an entirely different list of persons who never participated in the legitimate Ogun State Congress. This parallel list was presented as the Ogun State Executive Committee of the Labour Party, with one Alhaji Ibrahim Onabiyi paraded as State Chairman.

4. Mrs. Oriola Nike Job, acting under a transmitted memo from the national to INEC went further to organise a parallel State Primary Election, bypassing the state structure, conducted simultaneously with the legitimate primaries organized by the authentic State Chairman, Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde.

5. As we speak, the recognised State Chairman on the INEC portal remains Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde — a clear indication that INEC is aware of the illegitimacy of the parallel structure imposed by Mrs. Oriola Nike Job.

Nike Oriola

6. INEC has thus far refused to upload the names of the so-called candidates of the parallel faction. This is likely due to the Commission's awareness of the legal and constitutional infirmities surrounding that exercise, and the imminent threat of litigation.

7. However, INEC has also refused to release the access code to the Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led State Executive Committee to enable us to upload the names of our candidates who validly emerged from the legitimate State Primaries conducted by the authentic State Chairman.

THE LEGAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL POSITION

1. The Labour Party Constitution is Supreme:

The Labour Party Constitution vests the authority to organise and conduct State Congresses and Primaries in the duly elected State Executive Committees. No National Officer, including the National Deputy Chairman (South), has the constitutional power to bypass the legitimate State Executive Committee and impose a parallel structure. Any action to the contrary is unconstitutional, null, and void.

2. Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended):

Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution mandates that political parties shall conduct periodic elections for their principal officers and members of executive committees on a democratic basis at intervals not exceeding four years. The imposition of a parallel State Executive Committee by Mrs. Oriola Nike Job, without any democratic process, is a gross violation of this constitutional provision.

3. The Electoral Act 2022 (as amended) and INEC Guidelines:

INEC is empowered by law to ensure that political parties observe the practices of internal democracy, including the fair and transparent conduct of party congresses and primaries. The Commission is also mandated to monitor party primaries and ensure compliance with the Electoral Act and its own guidelines. INEC cannot, and must not, recognise or give effect to any primary election that was not conducted in line with the Party's constitution and the Electoral Act.

4. Judicial Precedents on Disobedience to Court Orders and Unconstitutional Party Actions:

The judiciary has consistently held that political parties must strictly comply with constitutional provisions, electoral regulations, and valid court orders in conducting their internal affairs. The Supreme Court and Court of Appeal have repeatedly nullified party congresses and conventions conducted in violation of subsisting court orders and party constitutions.

In the recent case of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the Court of Appeal, in a split 2-1 majority decision, affirmed that state congresses conducted by a caretaker committee in violation of a subsisting court order were invalid. The Court held that the responsibility for organising state congresses rests with duly elected State Executive Committees, not with the national leadership. The Court further barred INEC from recognising the outcome of such congresses.

Similarly, in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Ibadan Convention case, the Supreme Court nullified the entire National Convention because it was conducted in violation of a subsisting court order. The apex court held that proceeding with a convention despite valid restraining orders amounted to making “a mockery of the majesty of the judiciary” and an affront to the authority of the courts.

These judicial pronouncements are clear and binding. Any party official who flouts the Party's constitution or valid court orders does so at their own peril.

OUR DEMANDS AND WARNING

TO THE NATIONAL LEADERSHIP OF THE LABOUR PARTY AND MRS. ORIOLA NIKE JOB:

We demand that the National Leadership of the Labour Party immediately:

1. Cease and desist from all attempts to impose a parallel State Executive Committee or parallel candidates on Ogun State.

2. Publicly recognise Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde as the duly elected and authentic State Chairman of the Labour Party in Ogun State.

3. Dissociate the Party from the illegal parallel primary conducted by Mrs. Oriola Nike Job and her cohorts.

4. Direct all Party officials, including Mrs. Oriola Nike Job, to respect the Labour Party Constitution and the will of Ogun State party members.

We put the National Leadership and Mrs. Oriola Nike Job on NOTICE that any further attempt to undermine the legitimate State Executive Committee and impose candidates not democratically elected will be met with immediate legal action. We will not hesitate to approach the courts to seek redress, including but not limited to:

· An order of court declaring the parallel State Executive Committee and the parallel primaries null and void.

· An order of perpetual injunction restraining the National Leadership and Mrs. Oriola Nike Job from interfering with the affairs of the Ogun State Labour Party.

· An order directing INEC to recognise only the candidates validly emerged from the primaries conducted by the Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led State Executive Committee.

· Claims for damages against all those involved in this illegality.

TO THE INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION (INEC):

We call on INEC to:

1. Uphold the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 (as amended) and its own Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties.

2. Refrain from recognising or giving any effect to the parallel primaries and parallel candidates imposed by Mrs. Oriola Nike Job and her co-travellers.

3. Immediately release the access code to the Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led State Executive Committee to enable us to upload the names of our candidates who validly emerged from the legitimate State Primaries conducted by the authentic State Chairman.

4. Note that INEC's current position of refusing to release the access code to the legitimate State Chairman while also refusing to recognise the parallel faction is untenable and creates an unnecessary crisis.

We put INEC on NOTICE that we are prepared to approach the courts to compel the Commission to perform its statutory duties in accordance with the law. We will seek:

· An order of mandamus compelling INEC to release the access code to the authentic State Chairman of the Labour Party in Ogun State.

· An order restraining INEC from recognising or dealing with any candidate not validly emerged from the primaries conducted by the Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led State Executive Committee.

CONCLUSION

Kika

The Labour Party is a party built on the principles of internal democracy, rule of law, and respect for constitutionalism. We will not allow any individual, no matter how highly placed, to subvert these principles for selfish interests.

We call on all well-meaning members of the Labour Party in Ogun State and across Nigeria to remain calm and law-abiding. We assure you that we are committed to protecting the integrity of our Party and the will of our members.

The Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led State Executive Committee remains the only legitimate leadership of the Labour Party in Ogun State. We will not be intimidated, and we will not surrender our mandate to any cabal of usurpers.

The rule of law must prevail. Internal democracy must be respected. The will of Ogun State party members must not be subverted.

Signed:

Hon.Kika Glasgow 

State Publicity Secretary,

Apagun Olaolu Samuel Babatunde-led Ogun State Executive Committee,

Labour Party

Date: July 15, 2026

Cc:

1. The National Chairman, Labour Party

2. The National Secretary, Labour Party

3. The Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)

4. The Resident Electoral Commissioner, Ogun State

5. The Nigeria Police Force

6. The Department of State Services (DSS)

7. All Media Houses