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Nigeria’s electoral commission announces some early results

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Nigeria’s electoral commission announces some early results

Nigeria has introduced some early outcomes from nationwide elections on Sunday, although a victor within the race to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari isn’t anticipated for a number of days.

The vote in Africa’s most populous nation went forward largely peacefully, regardless of some ransacked polling stations and late begins at many others.

Practically 90 million folks had been eligible to vote on Saturday for a successor to Buhari, with many Nigerians hoping a brand new chief will do a greater job tackling insecurity, financial malaise and rising poverty.

Votes in presidential and parliamentary elections are collated in every of Nigeria’s 36 states earlier than the depend is transmitted to the electoral fee’s central tallying centre within the capital Abuja.

The primary outcomes, from Ekiki state, confirmed a majority of votes for president forged in favour of Bola Tinubu of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC).

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Tinubu pulled in additional than 200,000 votes within the state, towards lower than half that complete for Atiku Abubakar of the principle opposition Peoples Democratic Get together (PDP) and simply greater than 11,000 for Peter Obi of the Labour Get together.

The chairman of Nigeria’s electoral fee (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, adjourned the session following the primary outcomes and stated the discharge of tallies would resume at 11am native time (10:00 GMT) on Monday.

Voting needed to be prolonged into Sunday in a number of components of the nation after glitches on Saturday, however counting has been below method since polls closed, with the ultimate tally anticipated inside 5 days.

It was not but clear if all voting within the West African oil-exporting nation had been concluded.

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Earlier on Sunday, the PDP’s Abubakar had urged INEC to add the outcomes instantly after accusing some state governors of making an attempt to compromise the outcomes.

“It is going to be a disservice to Nigerians and a negation to democracy for anybody to subvert the desire of the folks as freely expressed of their votes of yesterday,” he stated in an announcement.

When he was defeated by Buhari within the 2019 election, Abubakar claimed in depth fraud. The Supreme Courtroom ultimately tossed out his problem.

Labour Get together chairman Julius Abure additionally accused election officers of failing to add outcomes from components of Lagos and southern Delta State to assist the ruling APC’s candidate.

Observers group Yiaga Africa stated it was “deeply involved with the delay” in outcomes.

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However INEC stated issues with importing outcomes on its IReV information web page had been resulting from “technical hitches” and there was no threat of tampering.

“The fee needs to guarantee Nigerians that the challenges are usually not resulting from any intrusion or sabotage of our programs,” it stated in an announcement.

“It is very important keep away from statements and actions that may warmth up the polity presently.”

Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Jamjoom, reporting from Abuja, stated that the delays in importing preliminary outcomes by the electoral fee prompted “a whole lot of consternation” amongst political events, candidates and voters.

Primarily based on their assertion, the “electoral fee is worried,” Jamjoom stated.

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“They wish to reassure residents that there isn’t any malfeasance at play right here, that that is solely a technical glitch. However I’ll let you know, the longer individuals are ready right here, the extra we’re listening to from folks in Abuja that they’re frightened about what all this implies and the way the delay may influence issues going ahead within the nation.

“Persons are tense, they wish to get these outcomes, they wish to know who the subsequent chief of this nation goes to be at such an important time.”

The fee has 14 days to formally announce outcomes, however the on-line tally needs to be made accessible within the subsequent few days.

To win the presidency, a candidate should get probably the most votes but in addition win not less than 25 % of votes forged in two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 states.

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Some states are must-wins. Lagos has probably the most registered voters at greater than 7 million, adopted by two states within the nation’s largely Muslim north, Kano and Kaduna states.

The aggressive race has some analysts forecasting an unprecedented runoff between the 2 frontrunners if no candidate meets election necessities. It must be organised inside 21 days.

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Jon Hamm’s Your Friends & Neighbors Renewed at Apple TV+ Ahead of Series Premiere — Get Release Date

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Jon Hamm’s Your Friends & Neighbors Renewed at Apple TV+ Ahead of Series Premiere — Get Release Date


Jon Hamm ‘Your Friends and Neighbors’ Apple Series Cast, Release Date



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Israel keeping its ‘eyes open’ for Iranian attacks during Trump transition period, ambassador says

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Israel keeping its ‘eyes open’ for Iranian attacks during Trump transition period, ambassador says

Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon tells Fox News Digital that his country is keeping its “eyes open” for any potential aggression from Iran during the Trump transition period, adding it would be a “mistake” for the Islamic Republic to carry out an attack. 

The comments come after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi vowed earlier this week that Iran would retaliate against Israel for the strategic airstrikes it carried out against Tehran on Oct. 26. Araghchi was quoted in Iranian media saying “we have not given up our right to react, and we will react in our time and in the way we see fit.” 

“I would advise him not to challenge us. We have already shown our capabilities. We have proved that they are vulnerable. We can actually target any location in Iran. They know that,” Danon told Fox News Digital. 

“So I would advise them not to make that mistake. If they think that now, because of the transition period, they can take advantage of it, they are wrong,” he added. “We are keeping our eyes open and we are ready for all scenarios.” 

ICC REJECTS ISRAELI APPEALS, ISSUES ARREST WARRANTS FOR BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, YOAV GALLANT 

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Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon tells Fox News Digital that his country is “ready for all scenarios” coming from Iran during the Trump transition period. (Fox News)

Danon says he believes one of the most important challenges for the incoming Trump administration will be the way the U.S. deals with Iran. 

“Regarding the new administration, I think the most important challenge will be the way you challenge Iran, the aggression, the threat of the Iranian regime. I believe that the U.S. will have to go back to a leading position on this issue,” he told Fox News Digital. 

“We are fighting the same enemies, the enemies of the United States of America. When you look at the Iranians, the Houthis, Hezbollah, Hamas, all those bad actors that are coming against Israel… that is the enemy of the United States. So I think every American should support us and understand what we are doing now,” Danon also said. 

IRAN HIDING MISSILE, DRONE PROGRAMS UNDER GUISE OF COMMERCIAL FRONT TO EVADE SANCTIONS 

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House Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Elise Stefanik

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., is acknowledged by President-elect Donald Trump alongside Speaker of the House Mike Johnson during a meeting with House Republicans at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 13, 2024. Stefanik has been chosen by President-elect Donald Trump as the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. (Allison Robbert/Pool via REUTERS)

Danon spoke as the U.S. vetoed a draft resolution against Israel at the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday. 

The resolution, which was overseen by Algeria, sought an “immediate, unconditional and permanent cease-fire” to be imposed on Israel. The resolution did not guarantee the release of the hostages still being held by Hamas within Gaza. 

Israeli military planes

Israeli Air Force planes departing for the strikes in Iran on Oct. 26. (IDF Spokesman’s Unit)

 

“It was a shameful resolution because… it didn’t have the linkage between the cease-fire and the call [for] the release of the hostages. And I want to thank the United States for taking a strong position and vetoing this resolution,” Danon said. “I think it sent a very clear message that the U.S. stands with its strongest ally with Israel. And, you know, it was shameful, too, to hear the voices of so many ambassadors speaking about a cease-fire but abandoning the 101 hostages. We will not forget them. We will never abandon them. We will continue to fight until we bring all of them back home.” 

Fox News’ Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report. 

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Fact-check: What do we know about Russia’s nuclear arsenal?

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Fact-check: What do we know about Russia’s nuclear arsenal?

Moscow has lowered the bar for using nuclear weapons and fired a missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead into Ukraine, heightening tensions with the West.

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Russia’s nuclear arsenal is under fresh scrutiny after an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of carrying an atomic warhead was fired into Ukrainian territory.

President Vladimir Putin says the unprecedented attack using the so-called “Oreshnik” missile is a direct response to Ukraine’s use of US and UK-made missiles to strike targets deep in Russian territory.

He has also warned that the military facilities of Western countries allowing Ukraine to use their weapons to strike Russia could become targets.

The escalation comes days after the Russian President approved small but significant changes to his country’s nuclear doctrine, which would allow a nuclear response to a conventional, non-nuclear attack on Russian territory.

While Western officials, including US defence secretary Lloyd Austin, have dismissed the notion that Moscow’s use of nuclear weapons is imminent, experts warn that recent developments could increase the possibility of nuclear weapons use.

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Here’s what we know about Russia’s inventory of atomic weapons.

How big is Russia’s nuclear arsenal?

Russia holds more nuclear warheads than any other nation at an estimated 5,580, which amounts to 47% of global stockpiles, according to data from the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).

But only an estimated 1,710 of those weapons are deployed, a fraction more than the 1,670 deployed by the US. 

Both nations have the necessary nuclear might to destroy each other several times over, and considerably more atomic warheads than the world’s seven other nuclear nations: China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan and the United Kingdom.

Of Moscow’s deployed weapons, an estimated 870 are on land-based ballistic missiles, 640 on submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and potentially 200 at heavy bomber bases.

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According to FAS, there are no signs Russia is significantly scaling up its nuclear arsenal, but the federation does warn of a potential surge in the future as the country replaces single-warhead missiles with those capable of carrying multiple warheads.

Russia is also steadily modernising its nuclear arsenal.

What could trigger a Russian nuclear response?

Moscow’s previous 2020 doctrine stated that its nuclear weapons could be used in response to an attack using nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction “when the very existence of the state is put under threat.”

Now, the conditions under which a nuclear response could be launched have changed in three crucial ways:

  1. Russia will consider using nuclear weapons in the case of a strike on its territory using conventional weapons, such as cruise missiles, drones and tactical aircraft.
  2. It could launch a nuclear attack in response to an aggression by a non-nuclear state acting “with the participation or support of a nuclear state”, as is the case for Ukraine.
  3. Moscow will also apply the same conditions to an attack on Belarus’ territory, in agreement with President Lukashenko.

Is there a rising nuclear threat?

The size of the world’s nuclear stockpiles has rapidly decreased amid the post-Cold War détente. The Soviet Union had some 40,000 warheads, and the US around 30,000, when stockpiles peaked during the 1960s and 70s.

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But FAS warns that while the overall number is still in decline, operational warheads are on the rise once again. More countries are also upgrading their missiles to deploy multiple warheads.

“In nearly all of the nuclear-armed states there are either plans or a significant push to increase nuclear forces,” Hans M. Kristensen, Director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS), said in June this year.

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Is the West reacting?

When Putin approved the updated nuclear protocol last week, many Western leaders dismissed it as sabre rattling.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Germany and its partners would “not be intimidated” and accused Putin of “playing with our fear.”

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But since Russia used a hypersonic ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead in an attack on Dnipro, European leaders have raised the alarm.

“The last few dozen hours have shown that the threat is serious and real when it comes to global conflict,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Friday.

According to Dutch media reports, NATO’s secretary-general Mark Rutte is in Florida to urgently meet President-elect Donald Trump, potentially to discuss the recent escalation.

NATO and Ukraine will hold an extraordinary meeting in Brussels next Tuesday to discuss the situation and the possible allied reaction, according to Euronews sources.

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