Widows of four of nine men executed by Nigeria's military regime in 1995 have filed a civil lawsuit seeking compensation and an apology from Royal Dutch Shell for alleged complicity in a military crackdown, according to a writ filed in a court in The Hague. The Nigerian military cracked down heavily on local opposition to oil production by a Shell joint venture in the Niger Delta in the early 1990s. The four widows allege that Shell provided support to the military in the crackdown that ultimately led to the executions of the men, known as the Ogoni 9. Shell, the…

Homeland Security Department is demanding that airlines around the world step up security measures for international flights bound for the United States or face the possibility of a total electronics ban for planes. Compliance with the new rules could lead to the lifting of a ban on laptops and other large electronics already in place for airlines flying to the United States from 10 airports in the Middle East and Africa. It could also stave off a much-discussed expansion of the ban to flights from Europe. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly announced the rollout of the new rules Wednesday. The…

Funmi Olaitan, Ibadan Oyo State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Adeniyi Olowofela, has appealed to striking food vendors engaged in the Federal Government primary school feeding programme in the state to resume work with assurance that government will clear all the outstanding arrears this week. It would be recalled that food vendors, numbering over 1,000 across the state's primary schools have since withdrawn their services as Federal Government failed to pay over three weeks arrears owed them. Olowofela while speaking with journalists on Wednesday, assured the food vendors of government commitment to the programme, and blamed the non-payment of the arrears…

Funmi Olaitan, Ibadan Teachers in their thousands in Oyo State under the aegis of Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), on Wednesday, stormed major streets in Ibadan, the state capital, to protest the proposed local government autonomy. They however insisted that if local government autonomy is imperative, payment of primary school teachers as well as the funding and management of primary schools should be taken away as a responsibility of the local government. The protest rally which took off at the Agodi State Secretariat of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), was led by the state Chairman, Comrade Niyi Akano in company…