Syria hanged 13,000 in Saydnaya prison: Amnesty

As many as 13,000 people were hanged in five years at a notorious Syrian prison near Damascus, Amnesty International has said, accusing the government of a "policy of extermination".

Titled "Human Slaughterhouse: Mass hanging and extermination at Saydnaya prison," Amnesty's damning report, released on Tuesday, is based on interviews with 84 witnesses, including guards, detainees, and judges.

It found that at least once a week between 2011 and 2015, groups of up to 50 people were taken out of their prison cells for arbitrary trials, beaten, then hanged "in the middle of the night and in total secrecy.

"Throughout this process, they remain blindfolded. They do not know when or how they will die until the noose was placed around their necks," the report said.

Most of the victims were civilians believed to be opposed to the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

Manchester United hold memorial service at Old Trafford 59 years on from Munich air disaster

Manchester United held a special service outside Old Trafford on Monday to remember the victims of the 1958 Munich Air Disaster.

Fifty-nine years ago, on February 6, eight Manchester United players were among 23 people who died when a plane carrying the squad crashed on an icy runway when attempting to take off.In tribute to those who were lost, the club hosted a gathering of fans from 2:45pm on Monday, where several poems were recited.

A minute's silence was held at 3:04pm, the time when the crash took place on the third attempt of a British European Airways flight to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Reim Airport.

Kingtblakhoc Nigeria's first porn star Revealed

The name Tobiloba Isaac Jolaoso might mean nothing to you but his moniker Kingtblakhoc is popular on social media.

I stumbled on Kingtblakhoc in 2015. A babe shared his risqué photos on her timeline on Twitter. I didn't believe what I saw and went to check out his Instagram account. Kingtblakhoc is the real deal- Nigeria's first open pornstar.

Most of the porn that's sold and consumed in Nigeria are mostly foreign. The small percentage of Naija porn clips online are leaked amateur sex clips that found its way into the wrong hands.

Nigerian porn on a commercial level barely exists, although small and underground porn companies have started springing up. Even with this development, it is the standard practice for porn actors to mask their faces.

Leaked emails tarnish Beckham’s golden boy image

The former England football captain is said to have sworn in emails to his PR team after being told he would not be made “Sir David” by Queen Elizabeth II because of concerns about his tax affairs.

David Beckham’s squeaky-clean image as a British cultural icon has taken a battering following the leaking of expletive-strewn emails in which he apparently raged about not receiving a knighthood.

The former England football captain is said to have sworn in emails to his PR team after being told he would not be made “Sir David” by Queen Elizabeth II because of concerns about his tax affairs.

A spokesman for the 41-year-old said the emails, released by the Football Leaks website, were “hacked and doctored” to give a “deliberately inaccurate picture”.

But there has been a backlash against Beckham from sections of Britain’s tabloid media.

Monday’s Daily Mail spoke of the “Shame of Saint Becks”, with a columnist pronouncing him “a foul-mouthed, determined egotist” who had used charity work as part of an “increasingly desperate” bid for a knighthood.

Reports which emerged on Friday said the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star refused to put his own money into his humanitarian 7 Fund and tried to obtain reimbursement from the UN children’s agency UNICEF for expenses met by his sponsors.

See inside the swanky party where Trump watched the Super Bowl

President Donald Trump watched Super Bowl 51 at a swanky party at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

His wife, Melania, and his chief of staff, Reince Priebus, were both by his side.

See how Trump spent America's biggest sporting event, with some key details from pool reporters at the party:

After a day full of criticizing a federal judge on Twitter for blocking his temporary immigration ban of seven majority-Muslim countries, Trump arrived at his golf club.

Beautiful birthday photos posted by Veronica Otogo the day she was kidnapped along with friend in Abuja

 

Veronica Otogo and her friend Bisola Mohammed were allegedly kidnapped by yet to be identified men in Abuja, on January 27. Veronica, who turned 24 same day had gone to Cold Stone with Mohammed in a Highlander to buy a cake. That was the last time they were seen.  On the morning of her birthday, Veronica posted these beautiful photos and spoke positive words over her life. Read below:

Turkey 'detains hundreds' in major anti-ISIL operation

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Turkish police have detained hundreds of suspected ISIL members in nationwide raids, according to state media, in the largest operations in the country to target the armed group.

Around 460 suspects, most of them foreign nationals, were arrested in at least 18 provinces, state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Sunday.

At least 60 people were held in the capital, Ankara, while 150 were arrested in Sanliurfa in the southeast and a further 47 in the nearby city of Gaziantep close to the Syrian border. 

Drake And Burna Boy Link Up In London

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“Pree Me” crooner Burna Boy and American rapper Drake meet up in London.

Burna Boy is having an ongoing UK club tour and Drake is also having his UK tour simultaneously. Both artistes had an opportunity to meet up with each other. It’s evident Drake must be a Burna boy fan after he once updated his Instagram page with Burna boy’s hit single “Pree Me”.

Hunters gun down Hippopotamus terrorizing residents of Kwali Area Council, FCT

 

Local hunters last Friday killed a hippopotamus that has been terrorizing residents of the riverine communities of Abaji and Kwali area council.

The animal was gunned down at the River Gurara forest, in Ashara village of Kwali area council. Some residents gathered together and butchered the hippopotamus for meat. More photos after the cut.

PATRIOTS WIN THE SUPER BOWL! Here are the big plays and moments everybody will be talking about

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

The New England Patriots are Super Bowl champions, beating the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime and giving the combination of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady their fifth championship.

Scroll down for all the images and big plays from the big game.

After a scoreless first quarter, the Falcons forced a fumble and later scored on a Devonta Freeman run to take a 7-0 lead. Matt Ryan would later hit Austin Hooper for a 19-yard touchdown pass in the back of the end zone to make it 14-0 mid-way through the second quarter.

Things did not go well for the Patriots early on. Their first four drives included three punts, two Tom Brady sacks, and one fumble. Then, late in the second quarter, with the Patriots driving, Tom Brady threw an interception that was returned 82 yards for a touchdown and an enormous 21-0 lead.

The Patriots finally got a field goal on the final play of the first half and the score was 21-3 heading to halftime.

Is Russia testing Donald Trump in eastern Ukraine?

In the past week, eastern Ukraine has suffered some of the heaviest fighting seen for a long time.

Heavy artillery fire, a car bomb explosion and other ceasefire violations coincided with a phone call between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, his Russian counterpart.

The two leaders discussed how to mend relations between the US and Russia.

US senators and analysts are wondering whether the surge in fighting is the Kremlin testing the water with the new US president.

Ukrainian government leaders and pro-Russia separatist rebels are blaming each other for the ceasefire violations.

Trump phoned Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and promised to restore peace.

But between commitments to support the Ukrainian leadership in Kiev and improving relations with Putin, it remains to be seen what Trump will do.

So, will he be able to restore calm in Ukraine?

Kenyan gospel singer divorces husband hours after wedding

A KENYAN GOSPEL ARTISTE, EUNICE NJERI, DROPPED A BOMBSHELL ON HER FANS YESTERDAY WHEN SHE ANNOUNCED HER MARRIAGE TO HUSBAND, RAPPER ISAAC BUKASA, ENDED HOURS AFTER THE WEDDING. Ms Njeri and rapper Isaac Bukasa aka Izzo got married on the 27th of November, 2016 in the United States and photos of the ceremony were shared online by their family and friends. The couple dated for two years before walking down the aisle and announced their engagement on September 19 via Instagram.

Tokyo 2020 Olympic medals will be made from recycled mobile phones

Olympic and Paralympic Games have traditionally always been about gold, silver and bronze, but organizers of Tokyo 2020 want their Games to be remembered for being green. The Japanese public have been asked to donate unwanted mobile phones and other electronic items to help make 5,000 medals.
Organizers hope to get eight tonnes of metal from collection boxes which will be placed in local offices and telecoms stores around the country from April.

"There's a limit on the resources of our earth, so recycling these things will make us think about the environment," said Tokyo 2020 sports director Koji Murofushi.

Recycled materials have been used in previous Games to make Olympic medals, with 30% of the silver and bronze medals at last summer's Olympics in Rio made from recycled materials.

Source CNN

Mariah Carey burns the $250,000 wedding dress she planned to wear on her wedding day

Singer Mariah Carey decided to ‘hurt’ her former fiancé , James Packer by burning the $250,000 wedding dress she was going to wear on her wedding day to him. James Packer who dumped Mariah Carey after he found out that she was cheating on him with her dancer, bought the dress for her after he got engaged to her with a $10m ring

Defiant Iran holds military drills after US sanctions

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It is not the first time Iran has test-fired ballistic missiles as part of its missile programme [File: Reuters]

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps launched military drills on Saturday, in defiance of newly imposed sanctions put forward by the United States.

In a statement posted on its official website, the elite military body said the manoeuvres in the northeastern province of Semnan were aimed at demonstrating Iran's "complete preparedness to deal with the threats" and "humiliating sanctions" from the White House.

"We are working day and night to protect Iran’s security," head of Revolutionary Guards' aerospace unit, Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, said to a local news agency, as reported by Reuters news agency.

"If we see smallest misstep from the enemies, our roaring missiles will fall on their heads.On Friday, US President Donald Trump's administration imposed sanctions on Iran after the Islamic Republic confirmed that it had test-fired medium range-missiles last Sunday.

The White House said the move violated a Security Council resolution proscribing missiles that could carry a nuclear device.