And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own ~ Luke 16:12?

Introduction:

Everyone loves to associate and have dealings with faithful people. Sadly, this attribute is fast becoming old-fashioned and neglected everywhere in many quarters of the world today. Thus, David both exclaimed and lamented that godly men are disappearing and the faithful failing among the children of men (Psalm 12:1-2).

Faithfulness means staying with or supporting a particular person, organization, belief or cause. It necessitates having staying powers, the ability to keep at a task, and doing what you are required to do with or without supervision, especially without supervision. It’s not usually easy to find faithful people.

Faithful people don’t renege on their promises, even when it hurts so bad (Psalm 15:4). They go the whole hog; their word is their bond. When you commit something into their hands, you can go to sleep, for they will not stop until they see it to a desirable conclusion.

Anyone can start a process, but finishing it is a different kettle of fish. The finisher's abilityseparates the men from the boys, especiallyin God’s kingdom matters.

Dr. Luke tells us that anyone who is faithful in little could be trusted to be faithful in much(Luke 16:10). If you cannot demonstrate your commitment of love to God by giving for His work when you are earning a small amount of money, chances are you won't be able to give even if you earn a fat one! If you can’t obey God when you’re relatively unknown, chances are that you will not when your fame arrives.

God is able to bless us, but He requires that we be faithful. If you cannot be faithful in another man's business, who will give you your own? If you are not faithful in your services in the Church of Jesus Christ, who will commit to your hands weightier mysteries of God’s kingdom?

A person who is unfaithful is not likely to go beyond the stage of being an employee, and even at that he won’t give his best. Hence, an unfaithful person cannot become an asset where he works. If he volunteers to resign, his employer will heave a sigh of reliefbecause he must have been looking for a way to sack him!

Meanwhile, the way of the faithful is not so. lf for any reason he or she indicates interest in disengaging from service for any reason, the employer will rather look for means to make him stay by tantalizing him with gracious offers. By all means, friends, be faithful to the Lord where you are.

The Bible says "Whatsoever thine hand findeth to do, do it with thy might..."(Ecclesiastes 9:10). Child of God, work diligently wherever you find yourself with a due sense of faithfulness and decency. Carve a niche for yourself! Begin to do it now: start to become what you want to become, time is running out!

Now, it takes God's faithfulness for us to sleep each and every night while it is dark, and wake up to a bright morning. No wonder, people use the parlance "as sure as the dawn".

Be like God! Be faithful!! Every child carries the father's DNA. If as children of God, we are not faithful nor dependable, have no staying powers, and cannot see a task through to a meaningful conclusion just likefair-weather people do, then I wonder whose DNA we carry!

As children of God, we are stewards of His mysteries — the secrets He cannot entrust to just anyone. As such it behoves us to be faithful (1Corinthians 4:1-2).

In the days that I got born again, the most faithful, loyal and upright persons were to be found amongst Christians. Employers sought them out to engage. Even unbelievers would want to marry Christian ladies then, because they knew their hearts could safely trust in them.

Sadly, this scenario has changed. As a matter of fact, nowadays, when some people say they are Christians, you need to watch your back in your dealings with them. This is a dismal situation! No wonder that Jesus said: "Nevertheless when the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth (Luke 18:8)?

It behoves us to choose to be different. You and I can be the change we want to see in the world. Let's arise and be doing. Let’s be true and faithful.

Nonetheless, being faithful doesn't come cheap! lt has to be worked at, diligently. There are a lot of things that can militate against you in your quest to be faithful: the systems of this world, peer pressure, unfaithful men and women all around us, the allure of riches, some personal idiosyncrasies, etcetera.

We must never allow ourselves to be drowned in the vortex of the ungodliness that's making the rounds in our world today. We must stand out to be counted for the Lord, just like Daniel and his three friends, Shedrach, Meshach and Abednego in the land of Babylon.

ln the book of Ecclesiastes 11:6, the Bible admonishes us to be consistent in whatever task that is assigned to us. We must continue, faithfully discharging whatever assignment we are given, whether in our workplaces or in the house of God. We must take cognizance of the fact that we are ministers in the marketplaces, we're God's ambassadors.

Heaven forbid that we drag the Lord’s name into the mud by offering wishy-washy services! Never postpone the time of your relevance, keep on giving your best to God and to your employer, knowing that, in the end, God is your employer, not that boss that you see.

In Revelation 1:5, the Bible refers to Jesus Christ as the faithful witness. If our Saviour is faithful, how ought we to live our lives? If He were to witness concerning you today, what would He say? No doubt, it is dangerous if,through our actions and/or inactions, we are nailing Jesus to the Cross a second time.

God is always able to bestow blessings on us that will make us  wonders unto our contemporaries, yes, even now. God knows where the green pastures are, and He can take us there, but our ticket is being faithful to the point that we gain heaven's trust! We cannot continue in sin and expect God's grace to abound (Roman 6:1-2).

Heaven is not an all-comer affair! God is holy and He expects His children to be like Him. Yes, even in this untoward generation, we are to shine as lights (Matthew 5:14-16).

Friends and brethren, it's high time you became faithful, if you hope to hear Jesus say to you; "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord"(Matthew 25:21). May you never miss this, in Jesus. Amen. Happy Sunday!

____________________

Bishop Taiwo Akinola,

Rhema Christian Church,

Otta, Ogun State, Nigeria.

Connect with Bishop Akinola via these channels:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bishopakinola

SMS/WhatsApp: +234 802 318 4987

When I met the Lord, I became suddenly open to the spirit world. Jesus said to me: “Femi, blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear.” (Matthew 13:16).

However, this was double-edged. I could see and hear both the positive and the negative spiritual. After a few months, the pastor in my church came to see me. He had a dream in which the devil was laughing at me, boasting that he would drive me mad.

The Lord asked me to wait on Him for three days because He had something to reveal to me.

Divine revelation 

On the third day of my fast, I was sitting in my study all by myself, when something mind-blowing happened. The power of God suddenly overshadowed the room, and the Lord started to talk to me. What was so dramatic about this, and it has never happened to me like that since then, is that the voice came from “heaven.” It did not come from within me. It came from somewhere in the ceiling.

The Lord told me to take a pen and write down what he wanted to tell me. Then He said: “Femi, there are two kingdoms, the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness. Everybody you are ever going to meet will come from one of these two kingdoms. It is your responsibility to determine which kingdom the people you meet are from.” 

“If the person is from the kingdom of your Father, you must determine why I want you to meet him. Every person you meet, you will meet for a reason, and you will meet by appointment. Nothing that will ever happen to you will be coincidental. Nothing will ever happen to you by happenstance. Everything that will happen in your life will happen for a reason. It is your responsibility to determine precisely what the reason is.”

As I was writing this down, I was covered with tears. I wept uncontrollably. I could not believe the Almighty God was giving nonentity me such privileged information. What did I do to deserve this Almighty visitation? What did I do to deserve God’s private tutorial on life? I was overwhelmed.

Kingdom dynamics

This revelation goes to the heart of God’s providence. It means that everything about a man’s life works according to God’s script. As David observes to God:

“You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was recorded in your book!”(Psalm 139:16).

It means that if you stand on the street and a car passes by, it did not just happen. It was “programmed” to happen. Everything is by divine contrivance. God leaves nothing to chance: “We may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.” (Proverbs 16:33). 

“All things are of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:18). “For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever.” (Romans 11:36).

God weaves the lives of everyone together as a weaver does the threads of a cloth. Combined, they are all designed to form a particular pattern and design. To those who find this difficult to believe, Jesus says: “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29).

Just think; there are over eight billion people alive today. In your lifetime, you are unlikely to meet even 10,000 of them. There is a reason why you meet the few that you meet.

Look again at this episode in the Bible:

“As (Jesus) was walking along, He saw a man blind from birth. ‘Master,’ His disciples asked Him, ‘why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?’ ‘Neither,’ Jesus answered. ‘But to demonstrate the power of God. All of us must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent me, for there is little time left before the night falls and all work comes to an end.’” (John 9:1-4).

According to Jesus, everything happens for a divine reason. God’s purposes were served even by this man’s blindness. He was blind in order that he might be healed, and that God would thereby be glorified.

No coincidences

This means nothing about a man’s life is haphazard. Since Jesus died for everybody, we are too important to God for Him to just leave us at the whims and caprices of the devil. Neither are we under situations and circumstances. On the contrary, we have dominion over them. 

Jesus reaffirmed this, quoting the psalmist: “You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High.” (Psalm 82:6. John 10:34). Therefore, take nothing for granted. Gather up even the fragments of your life so that nothing is lost. (John 6:12). 

Everything that will happen to you is going to be from God. If someone takes you out to eat, it is God. If someone gives you money, it is God. If someone abuses you, it is God who is behind it. “Lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge (God), and He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes.” (Proverbs 3:5-7).

If you give something to someone, thank God for giving it to him. God did it. It is God: “who performs all things for (us).” (Psalm 57:2).

If you give something to someone, thank God for giving it to him. God did it. It is God: “who performs all things for (us).” (Psalm 57:2).

Jigsaw puzzle 

The life of a man is a jigsaw puzzle that God assembles. That jigsaw includes every word you speak on earth: “The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.” (Proverbs 16:1). It includes everything you do: “The way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.” (Jeremiah 10:23).

That is why you could not have been born in another century. You could not have been anywhere else except where you are right now. You could not have been doing anything else right now, except reading this article. 

Without interfering with your free will, God puts you in a particular space where your dispositions are precisely suited to his will. It is like acting in a play. The Director told you that you could say whatever you liked and do whatever you wanted in every scene. 

But He foreknew you. He knew your character and your inclinations. He knew if you saw certain things, you would not stand idly by. He knew those situations where you would be inclined to react in a particular way. 

So, He told you: “Be yourself.” But by being yourself, you acted exactly according to His script, because He is the Uncaused cause of everything: “(He) works all things according to the counsel of His will.” (Ephesians 1:11).

There is no situation that God does not control. There is no heart that is immune to His power. Therefore: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7).

“In everything give thanks.” (2 Thessalonians 5:18).

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If you’ve ever tried to fall asleep with a car alarm screaming outside your window or with the stress of work deadlines ricocheting through your head, you may have wondered just how people in really, truly stressful situations can ever get their much-needed shut-eye.

Well, a viral trend, called the Military Sleep Method, claims to have the answer. Thousands of TikToks and dozens of YouTube videos — some with more than a million views — say that this five-step method is guaranteed to lull you into Lalaland within two minutes. That is a pretty sweet promise, but is it plausible or a pipe dream? We asked experts to look beyond the hype.

What is the Military Sleep Method?

First, let’s dig back a few decades to see where this “method” comes from. While there are no published studies available to give definitive proof of its origin, all roads seem to lead back to a book published in 1981 called Relax & Win: Championship Performance in Whatever You Do, by Lloyd “Bud” Winter, a renowned college track coach who, according to the back cover of the book, developed this sleep method when training combat pilots in World War II, hence the "military" name. Winter then went on to use the method to help his athletes — including several Olympic sprinters — optimize their sleep so they could wake up refreshed and ready to go break some records. And though Coach Winter died in 1985, he still has an active website, which in March 2020 reposted a video from Bright Sidepromoting the method.

Here's the five-step process that proponents of this sleep hack say will help you conk out in any stressful situation in just 120 seconds:

• Step 1: Lie on your back with eyes closed and relax all the muscles in your face, including your tongue, jaw, and eye sockets, and focus on keeping your forehead smooth.
• Step 2: Drop your shoulders as low as possible to release tension in your neck. Then relax all the muscles in one arm, from shoulders to fingers, and then the other. If needed, tense up muscles first before relaxing them.
• Step 3: Breathe out and relax your chest
• Step 4: Relax the muscles in your legs from the thigh down through the calves, then ankles, feet and toes.
• Step 5: Clear your mind by using images to sweep away intruding thoughts, such as picturing yourself on a canoe in a calm, blue lake, or wrapped in a black velvet hammock in a dark room. Any time a new thought comes into your head, say to yourself “Stop thinking, stop thinking!”

And … off you go to sleep.

Does the Military Sleep Method work?

Videos touting this method claim that 96% of people who practice this for six weeks are successful at falling asleep in two minutes, but there do not seem to be any actual studies to confirm this, and to be honest, a number that high immediately sets off fact-checking alarm bells, so we’re guessing it’s just a very enthusiastic guess. But what we do know is that the elements of the Military Sleep Methodare a version of progressive relaxation, a well-studied and tested method that has been used by sleep coaches and therapists for decades, says Ellen Wermter, a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner and behavioral sleep medicine specialist with the Better Sleep Council.

This type of head-to-toe relaxation is also known as a body scan, and it’s a well-known method of achieving a relaxed state, adds Greg Hammer, MD, a professor at Stanford University School of Medicine and author of Gain Without Pain: The Happiness Handbook for Healthcare Professionals. “There are many articles promoting this method of inducing relaxation and sleep, and I am a believer that both breath-workand body scan techniques promote health, including sleep,” he says.

One large review published in 2023 in The International Journal of Health Sciencefound that progressive muscle relaxation significantly decreases the prevalence of insomnia in the elderly. And while there may not be any easily accessed studies about this method as used in the military, there is some recent research about progressive relaxation in people with insomnia because of another stressful situation: patients who were in isolation in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. A 2020 study at Fujian Medical University Union Hospital in China found that “progressive muscle relaxation training can significantly reduce anxiety and depression and improve sleep quality in COVID-19 patients during isolation treatment.”

The all-around data is strong enough that a task force commissioned by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) in 2023 to look at different methods for treating people with insomnia, and reported that while there wasn’t extremely strong evidence that relaxation works for those with chronic insomnia, “the modest benefits of relaxation likely outweigh the minimal potential harms and burdens.” They added that because it has minimal costs involved, and most therapists are capable of guiding their patients in the method, it was worth a try.

Wermter says that any sleep method that helps you distract your brain and wind down can be helpful. “These progressive relaxation methods give your brain a job to do that is focusing on your muscles and not overthinking things that happened during the day or stressing about things that might happen tomorrow,” she says. “You’re also helping your muscles do what they already would be doing during stage one sleep, which is releasing tension, slowing down movement, and resting.”

Dr. Hammer also notes that the visualization aspect of the method is also helpful for promoting sleep, pointing out that a 2020 study in the Journal of Medical Psychology supports this.

Pros

As stated above, it is harmless, low-risk and costs nothing. It can put your body in a state of relaxation and bring a sense of calm, if not necessarily instant sleep, in two minutes. It is also a method that can be done anywhere you need some extra mojo to fall asleep, such as on an airplane or in a lumpy guest-room bed.

Cons

There’s nothing inherently bad about it, but Wermter is not a fan of one particular step: While she thinks imagining yourself floating on a lake is a lovely, “I never find telling myself, ‘stop thinking,’ to be helpful,” she says. A better option is to picture yourself doing a task that you enjoy and know really well, she says. “An athlete might imagine themselves making a free throw, feeling themselves gripping of the ball,” she explains. “I like to imagine myself making cookies, getting the flour out and the crinkle of the bag and the little puff of flour as I open it and measure it out. As you're thinking about each step, your brain has something to chew on, so it's not thinking about the other things that keep you up.”

Can you really fall asleep in two minutes?

We all know that are some people (cough cough, my husband) who can fall asleep as soon as their head hits the pillow, and then there are those of us who take a half hour or more as our brain eventually winds down from all the stress of the day (ahem, any woman with small children, big children, cats, dogs, a stressful job, no job or perimenopausal symptoms). But Wermter has an interesting take on this: “In sleep medicine, there's really no formula that says that if you fall asleep in X number of minutes, then you're winning at sleep,” she says. In fact, a much better measure of how good a sleeper you are is how rested you feel the next day, she says. She adds that falling into instant sleep isn’t even realistic for most people. “We all need a winding-down period. It’s like when you put on the brakes when you’re driving — the car has to slowly come to a stop.”

Dr. Hammer is also a skeptic: “I have significant concerns about the expectation that the method will result in onset of sleep within two minutes,” he says. “It is well known that looking at a clock during a difficult night of insomnia is a bad idea!” He points out that focusing on a race against time is probably counterproductive for most people who are trying to fall asleep.

Bottom line

The Military Sleep Method is simply a new way of marketing certain well-documented relaxation methods, and it may very well work, though the promise of two minutes is not particularly realistic. It’s certainly worth trying — though don’t forget the importance of good sleep hygiene, which includes keeping your bedroom dark, quiet, and cool, and avoiding caffeine, alcohol, and screens before bed.

Good Housekeeping

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved $100 million for the establishment of the Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank in Nigeria.

Akinwunmi Adesina, AfDB president, spoke on Friday in Abuja while delivering a keynote address at the 90th birthday lecture of former head of state Yakubu Gowon.

“I am delighted to announce here today that just three days ago, the African Development Bank’s board of directors approved $100m for the establishment of the Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank for Nigeria,” he said.

Adesina said the initiative highlights AfDB’s commitment to supporting youths who he believes are critical to the development of the country.

The AfDB boss said the new bank will support the youths’ businesses in Nigeria using technical assistance, business incubation, quasi-equity, and debt.

Additionally, the bank will deploy guarantee instruments to de-risk the lending to the businesses by financial institutions in Nigeria.

“It will be a new day and a new dawn for Nigeria,” he added.

On June 25, 2023, Adesina said his institution was ready to establish an entrepreneurship investment bank in Nigeria.

The Cable

The Naira yesterday depreciated to N1,725 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,710 per dollar on Thursday.

However, the Naira appreciated to N1,600.78 per dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM.

Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N1,600.78 per dollar from N1,660.49 per dollar on Thursday, indicating N59.71 appreciation for the naira.

The volume of dollars traded (turnover) in the official market grew by 6.2 per cent to $350.72 million from $330.18 million traded on Thursday.

Vanguard

How Israel killed Hamas leader Sinwar in a chance encounter

Israeli troops had for more than a year hunted the leader of Hamas, who disappeared in Gaza soon after masterminding the 7 October attacks.

Yahya Sinwar, 61, was said to have spent much of his time hiding in the tunnels under the Strip, along with a cadre of bodyguards and a "human shield" of hostages seized from Israel.

But ultimately, it appears he met his end in a chance encounter with an Israeli patrol in southern Gaza. His guard detail was small. No hostages were found.

Details are still emerging, but here's what we know so far about Sinwar's killing.

Routine patrol

The Israel Defense Forces says a unit from its 828th Bislamach Brigade was patrolling Tal al-Sultan, an area of Rafah, on Wednesday.

Three fighters were identified and engaged by the Israeli troops - and all were eliminated.

At that stage nothing seemed particularly remarkable about the firefight and the soldiers did not return to the scene until Thursday morning.

It was then, as the dead were inspected, that one of the bodies was found to bear a striking resemblance to the leader of Hamas.

The corpse however remained at the site due to suspected booby traps and instead, part of a finger was removed and sent to Israel for testing.

His body was finally extracted and brought to Israel later that day as the area was made safe.

Daniel Hagari, the IDF's spokesman, said his forces "didn't know he was there but we continued to operate".

He said his troops had identified the three men running from house to house, and engaged them before they split up.

The man since identified as Sinwar "ran alone into one of the buildings". After being located by a drone, he was killed when a tank launched a shell at the building.

Sinwar's body was found with a flak jacket, a gun and 40,000 shekels (£8,240).

None of the hostages Sinwar was believed to be using as a human shield were present and his small retinue suggests either he was trying to move unnoticed, or had lost many of those protecting him.

Hagari also said the IDF had gained an indication of Sinwar's previous movements when they found his DNA in a tunnel close to where the bodies of six hostages were recovered around six weeks ago.

Israel is now searching for Sinwar's brother, Muhammad Sinwar, and all Hamas military commanders, Hagari said.

Yoav Gallant, Israel's defence minister, said: "Sinwar died while beaten, persecuted and on the run – he didn't die as a commander, but as someone who only cared for himself. This is a clear message to all of our enemies."

Drone footage released by the Israeli military late on Thursday was said to show Sinwar's final moments before he was killed.

The video appears to be shot from a drone flying through the open window of a mostly destroyed building.

It approaches a man, with his head covered, sitting in an armchair on the first floor of a house that is littered with debris.

The man, who seems to be injured, then throws what appears to be a stick at the drone and the video ends.

Sinwar 'eliminated'

Israel first announced it was "investigating the possibility" that Sinwar had been killed in Gaza on Thursday afternoon local time.

Within minutes of the announcement, pictures posted to social media showed the body of a man with very similar features to the Hamas leader, who had suffered catastrophic head wounds. The images are too graphic to republish.

However, officials warned "at this stage" the identity of any of the three men killed could not be confirmed.

Not long after that, Israeli sources told the BBC leaders were "increasingly confident" they had killed him. However, they said all necessary tests must be carried out before the death could be confirmed.

Those tests did not take long. By Thursday evening, Israel had announced they had been completed and that Sinwar was confirmed "eliminated".

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said "evil" had been "dealt a blow", but warned the Israeli war in Gaza had not been completed.

A tightening noose

While Sinwar was not killed during a targeted operation, the IDF said that it had for weeks been operating in areas where intelligence indicated his presence.

In short, Israeli forces had narrowed Sinwar's rough location to the southern city of Rafah, and were slowly moving in to get him.

Sinwar had been on the run for more than a year. He had undoubtedly felt the Israeli pressure growing as other Hamas leaders, such as Mohammad Dief and Ismail Haniyeh, were killed, and as Israel destroyed the infrastructure he had used to prosecute the atrocities of 7 October.

In a statement, the IDF said its operations in recent weeks in the south had "restricted Yahya Sinwar's operational movement as he was pursued by the forces and led to his elimination".

Major goal, but not the end

Killing Sinwar was a major goal for Israel, which marked him for death soon after the 7 October attacks. But his end does not end the war in Gaza.

On Friday, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, Basem Naim, said in a statement that it seems “Israel believes that killing our leaders means the end of our movement and the struggle of the Palestinian people”, but said Hamas as a movement could not be eliminated.

Naim did not directly name Sinwar or confirm his death, but said “it is very painful and distressing to lose beloved people”.

While Netanyahu said he had "settled the score", he insisted the war would continue - not least to save the 101 hostages still held by Hamas.

"To the dear hostage families, I say: this is an important moment in the war. We will continue full force until all your loved ones, our loved ones, are home."

In Israel, families of hostages said they hoped a ceasefire could now be reached that would bring home the captives.

BBC

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Putin warns Ukraine about nuclear weapons

Moscow will never allow Kiev to acquire nuclear weapons and any attempt to do this would be met with an appropriate reaction, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has claimed that Kiev would need either atomic weapons or NATO membership to ensure its security. He rejected media reports that Kiev stood ready to produce an atomic bomb on short notice, saying that the nuclear talk was only meant to implythere was no alternative to the US-led military bloc.

“This is another provocation,” Putin said on Friday at a press conference for media from BRICS countries in Moscow. “This is a dangerous provocation because, obviously, any step in this direction will be met with an appropriate reaction.”

Ukraine’s political leadership has repeatedly expressed a desire for nuclear weapons, “even before the crisis turned hot,” the Russian president noted.

I can say this: Russia will not allow such a thing under any circumstances.

Making nuclear weapons in this day and age is “not that difficult,” Putin argued. He added, however, that he does not “know if Ukraine is capable of achieving this,” and that acquiring a nuclear arsenal “would not be that simple for Ukraine in its current state.”

Asked whether another country, such as the UK, could secretly provide Ukraine with atomic weapons, Putin said that it would be “impossible to hide,” and that Moscow is “capable of tracking down any movement in this direction.”

Last month, Putin announced a series of changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, expanding the criteria for the use of the strategic deterrent. The move came as Kiev was requesting that NATO countries lift the restrictions on the use of foreign-supplied longer-range weapons for strikes deep inside Russia. The amended doctrine also extended Russia’s nuclear umbrella to Belarus.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Residents flee Ukraine's Kupiansk as Russia presses down on northeast hub

Yuliia Baibak could not bear another Russian air strike on her neighbourhood before complying with the order to evacuate her parents from the besieged Ukrainian city of Kupiansk.

A plea for mass evacuation was also issued on Friday for the city of Pokrovsk further south, a key target of Russian forces advancing westward through the Donetsk region.

Baibak, who was with her parents, was among the thousands slated for evacuation from Kupiansk and several surrounding settlements as Russian troops bore down on the strategic hub in Kharkiv region.

"I came (to my parents) all white, crying and scared, and said, 'Either we leave or they'll kill us all here,'" she said on Thursday while helping her wheelchair-bound mother to a car.

Kyiv's troops reclaimed Kupiansk six months after its capture by Russia in its February 2022 invasion, but it has come under increasing attack as Moscow steps up an offensive along the sprawling eastern front.

In the Donetsk region further south, Kremlin troops are advancing village-by-village to threaten other key transit hubs that supply much of Ukraine's eastern forces.

The head of Pokrovsk's military administration, Serhiy Dobrak, urged residents to evacuate as there was no way to provide essential services, the RBK Ukraine media outlet reported.

"It is already clear that there will be no heating in the city," Dobrak was quoted as saying. "I appeal to city residents -- if you see dragon's teeth (anti-tank traps) being installed nearby, do not delay, pack up and leave. It will be dangerous."

In Kupiansk, residents interviewed by Reuters reported sleepless nights under regular Russian fire across the area, some 100 kilometres (62 miles) east of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city.

In some parts, Moscow's troops are as close as 4 kilometres from the city limits, regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Ukrainian television this week.

He said he ordered the evacuation because constant Russian shelling had rendered repairs to local electricity, heat and water too difficult.

Speaking to reporters in Kharkiv on Thursday, Syniehubov said the priority was to evacuate the entire civilian population from the left bank of the Oskil River, or around 4,000 people.

The Defence Ministry's GUR Intelligence directorate issued a statement on Friday saying Ukrainian forces had cleared Russian troops from a village south of Kupiansk in a week-long operation. It said the village of Kruhlyakivka, was essential to the city's defence.

RT/Reuters

Life is way too short for a bad meal (at least, that's what I say). So when choosing where to dine out, you want to choose wisely. Luckily, a few red flags might help you decipher a mediocre restaurant from a great one. So, redditor u/ArtsyAksel asked, "What are red flags at a restaurant?" Here's what people (along with some members of the BuzzFeed Community) said.

1. "If they serve cold butter with the bread. Don't give me cold butter! If you can’t be bothered to give me butter that I can actually spread, I can’t be bothered with you."

—jmacxjr

2. "Dirty bathrooms. In the words of Anthony Bourdain in Kitchen Confidential : They let you see the bathroom! If it's dirty, imagine what the parts they don't let you see look like. "

—u/CoreyTrevor1

3. "Too many items on the menu. It's a sign that a restaurant probably uses all frozen food. Nothing against frozen food. It's ideal for some things. Some things, not all things."

—u/CTnaturist

4. "The kiss of death for me is if I see only one demographic eating at a restaurant. You ideally want to see a good mix of people. If I see blue- and white-collar types in the same place, I know it is probably pretty good quality."

—u/Misterstaberinde

5. "When you go in and see most of the guests have dirty plates on their tables and are looking around for a server. Add empty tables still piled with plates, and you know the place is incredibly short-staffed. Time to bail out."

—u/Caspers_Shadow

6. "Plastic menus that have residue of food splatter on them and smell. Yuck."

—u/Cool_Owl2609

7. "As a non-American myself, it's cultural restaurants that have zero people of that culture eating there. It's a huge green flag to me when I go to an Indian, Chinese, or Middle Eastern restaurant, for example, and the clientele is all of that particular region."

—u/ironsheik84

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8. "If you're looking at the menu outside, and an employee/manager comes out to usher you into the restaurant, walk away. I've only had this happen to me once, but it was clear quickly why they were so desperate for my business."

—u/Abloy702

9. "As someone who used to be a waiter, I can't stand seeing waiting staff grab clean glasses at the top when handling them."

—u/arseniy1234555

10. "An incoherent menu or a menu that offers various cuisines that don't share common ingredients. This means some ingredients may sit longer than others."

—u/Freshlyhonkedgoose

11. "Ask where your oysters come from. If the server doesn't know, you don’t want them. This tactic works for most seafood."

—u/MaterialImportance

12. "When the menu is really long, and yet the food comes out of the kitchen really fast."

—u/LittleIrishGuy80

13. "When a menu has blurry, poorly taken photos of the dishes, it's either a really bad restaurant or you're about to have the best meal of your life. There is no in-between."

—u/Electronic-Pool-7458

14. "Does a restaurant sound like it could be two or more restaurants? For example, if they're serving sushi and pizza at the same place, they can't do either well."

—u/rukasu83

15. "If all anyone can talk about is the view, then you might as well go to a diner because the food will be bad (awful for what you'll pay). I've never worked nor eaten anywhere with a 'stunning view' that didn't serve lukewarm garbage at a highway robbery price."

—u/ClintDisaster

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16. "I'm an ex-restaurant manager, and I always look at how happy the staff looks. Do they seem like they like their jobs? You won't get quality food or service if the staff are miserable. It's worth seeking out restaurants that treat their staff well. If they're treated well, they'll treat you well."

—u/ohno

17. "At Mexican restaurants, I always automatically assume if the chips and salsa aren’t good, the food won’t be either. Can you tell if the chips are fresh and made in-house versus out of a bag? Does the salsa have good flavor and depth, or is it similar to jarred or store-bought?"

—JAlli

18. "If you ask about your food allergy and the waitstaff can't answer because they don't know what's in the food."

—u/friendly-sam
19. "Food that focuses on presentation. For example, those extreme Bloody Mary's with an entire burger stuck to the glass are designed for people to post on Instagram. The quality will never be good, and it probably means the restaurant relies on people coming for the spectacle rather than the taste of the food."

—u/stumptruck
20. "If a place changes its name or cuisine frequently, they're cycling owners, which means there are better options in the area, or there's something toxic in the chain."

—kathryna456a720b8

21. "When the chef will not remove an ingredient, especially if it’s not essential to cooking. If I ask for a burger or sandwich without one topping or ingredient and they can’t do it, it gives off the impression that they are just mindlessly slapping together sandwiches."

—TRUdiva

Buzzfeed

The Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) has distributed N1.298 trillion to the federal government, states, and local government councils (LGCs) for September, 2024. This was disclosed in a communiqué issued after the FAAC’s October meeting, held in Abuja.

Bawa Mokwa, the Director of Press and Public Relations at the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation (OAGF), shared the details with journalists. According to the communiqué, the total distributable revenue of N1.298 trillion included N124.716 billion from statutory revenue and N543.518 billion from Value Added Tax (VAT).

Additional sources of the distributable revenue were N18.445 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), N462.191 billion from exchange differences, and an augmentation of N150 billion. The total available revenue for September was reported as N2.258 trillion.

Out of this, N80.993 billion was deducted for collection costs, while N878.946 billion was allocated to transfers, interventions, and refunds. The gross statutory revenue for September amounted to N1.043 trillion, which was a decrease of N177.426 billion from the N1.221 trillion collected in August.

VAT collections for September totaled N583.675 billion, an increase of N10.334 billion compared to the N573.341 billion collected in August.

From the total distributable revenue of N1.298 trillion, the federal government received N424.867 billion, while state governments got N453.724 billion. Local governments were allocated N329.864 billion, with an additional N90.415 billion (13% of mineral revenue) going to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.

Regarding statutory revenue, the federal government received N43.037 billion, state governments N21.829 billion, and local governments N16.829 billion. A further N43.021 billion in mineral revenue was allocated to the oil-producing states.

From the N543.518 billion in VAT revenue, the federal government received N81.528 billion, state governments N271.759 billion, and local governments N190.231 billion.

The communiqué noted that Oil and Gas Royalty, Excise Duty, EMTL, and CET Levies showed substantial increases, while VAT and Import Duty recorded marginal growth. However, Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) and Companies Income Tax (CIT) saw significant declines.

The National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has said that a sizable number of illicit arms being used to commit crimes in the country originally belonged to the government.

Ribadu said this on Thursday during the Arms Destruction Exercise organised by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms And Light Weapons (NCCSALW), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), at Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment Giri, Abuja.

He explained that the weapons ended up in the hands of non-state actors due to corrupt elements within the security agencies.

The NSA condemned and rained curses on the security personnel who facilitate the movement of weapons to terrorists, bandits and other non-state actors.

He assured that the government would do everything possible to ensure the country’s safety, security, and protection.

“We have to find a way of putting a stop to this. We must if we want to recover our country and live in peace and stability.

“The worst human being is a policeman or a soldier who will take arms from his own formations and sell it or hire it out for the bad people to come and kill his own colleagues.

“We must fight these people but also there are merchants of death and evil from outside the world.

“The proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons remains a major threat to our national security, exacerbating issues such as insurgency, banditry and other violent crimes,” he said.

Ribadu said the arms destruction exercise was one of several conducted by the centre in the past, and it was a major focus and a decisive step in the concerted effort to address the challenge of arms proliferation in Nigeria.

The NSA said the federal government had remained committed to providing the necessary support to the centre towards ensuring the safety of every Nigerian.

According to him, by destroying unserviceable, obsolete and recovered arms, we are demonstrating our commitment to a secure future for all Nigerians.

“All illicit arms, not only unserviceable, all illicit. Any weapon that is taken is out there that is through an illegal process.

“We have laws that govern ownership of small arms. If you do not follow it, it is an illegal arm and it is supposed to be destroyed completely,” he added.

The Director-General of NCCSALW, Johnson Kokumo, said the arms destruction exercise was the third in a series since the centre was established and the first since his assumption of command.

Kokumo, a retired deputy inspector general of police, said the challenge posed by the proliferation of SALW was one of the major threats to peace and security in Nigeria and the West African sub-region.

He said the exercise would witness the destruction of over 2,400 illicit weapons, comprising a mix of unserviceable, decommissioned and recovered arms.

“These weapons have been mopped up by the military, police and other security agencies across the country.

“By permanently removing these arms from circulation, we reduce the risk they pose to our communities and send a clear message that Nigeria will not tolerate the illegal trafficking and possession of small arms and light weapons.

“It is also important to state that the National Centre has in its custody some recovered/captured illicit SALW still undergoing tracing as well as investigations and legal processes.

“These include the illicit weapons handed over to the centre by the Nigeria Customs Service.

“These categories of weapons would be destroyed on completion of the proceedings during subsequent routine destruction exercises,” he said.

Kokumo said the destruction had successfully removed thousands of illegal dangerous weapons from circulation with serious security implications for the country.

According to him, this exercise is in line with the provisions of Article 17 of the ECOWAS Convention on small arms and light weapons as well as the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in SALW.

He thanked the NSA and the military for supporting the Centre in meeting its constitutional mandate.

The event was attended by the Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa, representatives of the services chiefs and heads of other security agencies.

NAN