Collins Injera Announces Retirement From Rugby

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January 24, 2023

Kenya’s rugby star Collins Injera has announced his retirement from international assignments after 17 years of stellar performance.

“Everything must come to an end, sometime. I have always said that I will know it’s time because my body will tell me,” he said.

“And for the past few months, it has really ‘spoken’ to me so, finally, I have decided to listen to it. I hope I made you all proud.”

He is bowing out as the world’s second-top try scorer in 7s with 279.

Injera said that as hard as this is for him, after 17 years of literal blood, sweat and tears he has to retire.

“It’s time to sleep away from this great game that has given me so much more than I could ever ask for,” he said.

“Thank you, Lord, for giving me the strength, opportunities and protection to be able to play the game I love for this long.”

He expressed gratitude to his wife and children for their love and understanding since he began playing.

“Thank you very much for all the love and support and understanding. Those days, weeks and sometimes months that you endured without my presence as I was busy chasing my dream across the globe are finally over,” he said.

“It’s now time to spend quality time with you.”

Injera also promised to continue with his humanitarian work.

Everything must come to an end, sometime. I have always said that I will know it’s time, because my body will tell me. And for the past few months it has really ‘spoken’ to me so, finally, I have decided to listen to it. I hope I made you all proud.#279Out #C11 pic.twitter.com/MrOhdxswMy
— Collins Injera, OGW, OLY (@cinjera) January 24, 2023

Climate Change Increases Human Trafficking Risks, Says UN

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

Evidence is emerging that climate-related disasters are becoming a cause of human trafficking as criminal gangs exploit a growing number of uprooted people, the UN said Tuesday.

The continuing war in Ukraine is also another risk factor for increased human trafficking, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a report.

“Climate change is increasing vulnerability to trafficking,” the UNODC report said.

“While a systematic global analysis of the impact of climate change in trafficking in persons is missing, community level studies in different parts of the world point at weather-induced disasters as root causes for trafficking in persons,” it said.

The report is based on data from 141 countries collected from 2017 to 2020, and the analysis of 800 court cases.

The impact of climate change “disproportionally” affected poor farming, fishing and other communities mainly relying on the extraction of natural resources for their livelihoods, the report said.

Once “deprived of their means of subsistence and forced to flee their community,” people were becoming easy prey for traffickers, Fabrizio Sarrica, the report’s main author told a press briefing.

In 2021 alone, climate-related disasters internally displaced more than 23.7 million people, while many others fled their countries altogether.

As entire regions of the world are at risk of becoming “increasingly uninhabitable,” millions will face “high risk of exploitation along migration routes,” the UN report said.

The UN drugs agency noted that an increase in cases of human trafficking had been observed in Bangladesh and the Philippines after devastating cyclones and typhoons displaced millions.

Droughts and floods in Ghana, and the Caribbean region — subject to hurricanes and rising sea levels — were also forcing many to migrate.

– Fewer victims detected –

While most of the victims of trafficking resulting from conflicts originated from Africa and the Middle East, a potentially “dangerous” situation is simultaneously building up in Ukraine as millions flee the war-torn country.

“The challenge is how to deal with human trafficking arising from war and instability,” Ilias Chatzis, the head of the human trafficking and migrant smuggling section at UNODC, told AFP.

With regard to Ukraine, helping neighbouring countries and increasing support to the Ukrainian authorities is equally important, Chatzis added.

The Covid-19 pandemic limited the ability to detect cases, especially in low-income countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa, the report added.

Faced with the closure of public venues such as bars and clubs due to health restrictions, certain forms of trafficking, in particular sexual exploitation, have been pushed into “less visible and less safe locations”.

For the first time since data collection began in 2003, the number of victims detected worldwide fell in 2020, dropping by eleven percent compared to 2019, the Vienna-based UNODC said.

Musk Tells Jury Buying Tesla At $420 A Share Was No Joke

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

Elon Musk on Monday told jurors that his 2018 tweet about taking Tesla private at $420 a share was no joke and that Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund was serious about helping him do it.

The Tesla chief returned to the witness stand to answer questions from lawyers for angry investors who accuse him of costing them millions of dollars with a pair of allegedly false tweets about having the funding secured to buy them out.

A lawyer for the plaintiffs focused on Musk’s buyout figure of 420, a number that is also a popular rallying code for marijuana, which Musk uses.

“420 was not chosen because of a joke; it was chosen because there was a 20 percent premium over the stock price,” Musk said when asked if he was having a laugh when he made the tweet.

Musk added, however, that there was “some karma around 420”, though “I should question whether that is good or bad karma at this point.”

The case revolves around a pair of tweets in which Musk said “funding secured” for a project to buy out the publicly-traded electric automaker, then in a second tweet added that “investor support is confirmed.”

The tweets sent the Tesla share price on a rollercoaster ride and Musk was sued by shareholders who say the tycoon acted recklessly in an effort to squeeze investors who had bet, or “gone short,” against the company.

Musk referred to short sellers as “evil” at the trial.

“It’s difficult to appreciate just now just how much attack Tesla was under by short sellers who wanted Tesla to die,” Musk told jurors.

‘Done deal’

But Musk said he fired off the tweets at issue after learning of a Financial Times story about a Saudi Arabian investment fund wanting to acquire a stake in Tesla.

“My concern was that if they knew all of this information, then they could also potentially know about the take-private,” Musk said of the news report.

Musk testified that Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund was “unequivocally, without question” supportive of his project, adding that the head of the fund told him that the crown prince of Saudi Arabia was also on board.

“So essentially I took that to mean it was a done deal,” Musk said.

When confronted with exchanges with the Saudi fund that showed they wanted more details before committing to his buyout plan, Musk said the fund was “backpedalling”.

Musk testified that he understood the fund would do whatever it took to take Tesla private and had plenty of money to do it.

The billionaire added that even without the Saudi fund, he had the personal wealth to take Tesla private at the time, including by using his shares in SpaceX, the company he also runs.

Musk said he had shared some details of his plan with tech billionaire and Tesla investor Larry Ellison, who is among witnesses slated to testify at the fraud trial.

During testimony last week, a Harvard professor called as a witness by the plaintiffs said that Musk’s plans were “illusory” and deviated wildly from the way such mega-deals usually take place.

In his own opening remarks, Musk attorney Alex Spiro said that even though the tweets may have been a “reckless choice of words”, they were “not fraud, not even close.

“I’m being accused of fraud; it’s outrageous,” Musk said as his lawyer took over the questioning on Monday.

The tycoon’s testimony is set to conclude on Tuesday.

Six Dead In Siege At Mayor’s Office In Somali

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

At least six people were killed on Sunday in an attack by Al-Shabaab militants at the mayor’s office in central Mogadishu, police said.

A suicide bomber set off a huge blast that tore through building near the office complex with gunfire erupting afterwards, Somali police spokesman Sadik Dudishe said at the end of the four-hour siege.

“All the six attackers died. Five of them during the fire exchange with the security forces and one of them detonated himself,” Dudishe told reporters.

“Six civilians also died during the attack and the situation is back to normal.”

All the staffers at the mayor’s office were rescued, the police added.

Al-Shabaab, a militant group allied with Al-Qaeda claimed, responsibility for the attack via its communication channels, saying its fighters “made their way inside the targeted building after killing the security guards.”

Witnesses said the initial explosion damaged nearby buildings and gunfire could be heard in the vicinity of the mayor’s office.

The area was quickly cordoned off by security officers, a witness who runs a business near the offices said.

Another witness, Omar Nur, said he was inside a nearby mall when the explosion went off and “was lucky to have escaped safely.”

The Al-Shabaab militants have been waging a bloody insurgency against the frail internationally backed central government for 15 years, carrying out attacks both in Somalia and neighbouring countries.

– Major offensive –

The latest attack comes days after seven soldiers were killed on Friday at a military camp in Galcad, a town in central Somalia about 375 kilometres (230 miles) north of the capital Mogadishu.

The US military said on Saturday the attack — in the Somali town retaken by the army this week — involved more than 100 Al-Shabaab jihadists.

“The combined actions by partner forces on the ground and the collective self-defence strike is estimated to have resulted in three destroyed vehicles and approximately thirty al-Shabaab terrorists killed” the US military command for Africa (AFRICOM) said in a statement.

In recent months, the Somali army and local clan militias have mounted a major offensive against the jihadist group, retaking swathes of territory in the centre of the country in an operation backed by US air strikes and an African Union force.

But despite the gains by the pro-government forces, the offensive has drawn retribution and the militants have continued to demonstrate the ability to strike back with lethal force against civilian and military targets.

On Tuesday, Al-Shabaab launched a deadly attack on a military base in another part of central Somalia, just a day after the government claimed a “historic victory” over the jihadists.

Last week, eight people were killed in a roadside bombing claimed by Al-Shabaab in central Somalia, police said. Earlier this month, 19 people were killed in twin car bombings in Mahas, a town in Hiran district in Hirshabelle.

Although forced out of Mogadishu and other main urban centres more than a decade ago, Al-Shabaab remains entrenched in parts of rural central and southern Somalia.

In the deadliest Al-Shabaab attack since the offensive was launched last year, 121 people were killed in two car bomb explosions at the education ministry in Mogadishu in October.

The group has also been active recently across the border in eastern Kenya, which is a contributor to the African Union force in Somalia, carrying out several deadly small-scale attacks.

Mbappe Scores Five In Cup Rout Of Amateur Minnows

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

Kylian Mbappe became the first Paris Saint-Germain player to score five times in one match as the Ligue 1 giants crushed sixth-tier amateur minnows Pays de Cassel 7-0 in the French Cup on Monday.

Mbappe, who scored a hat-trick in France’s defeat by Argentina in the World Cup final just over a month ago, netted a hat-trick in the first half here as PSG led 4-0 at the break against their regional league opponents.

He struck twice more after the restart, with Neymar and Carlos Soler scoring PSG’s other goals in the last-32 tie.

The Qatar-owned club, who have won the French Cup 14 times, more than any other team, will now play away to bitter rivals Marseille in the last 16 early next month.

That match is scheduled for the week beginning February 6, just a week before PSG host Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

“Once we scored the first goal it became harder for our opponents,” PSG boss Christophe Galtier told reporters.

“The opponents we’ll face over the next weeks are of a different quality,” he added.

Mbappe was given the captain’s armband while Neymar also started, but Lionel Messi was rested, allowed to sit out this tie played before a full house at the 38 000-seat Stade Bollaert-Delelis in Lens.

Pays de Cassel are a tiny club representing a handful of villages inland from the port town of Dunkirk in France’s far north, but their remarkable run to this stage of the tournament stoked the interest of the whole region.

They performed admirably in the early stages against the Ligue 1 leaders, but their resistance was broken just before the half-hour mark when Mbappe turned in a Nuno Mendes cutback, the ball taking a crucial deflection on its way in.

Mbappe then set up Neymar for the Brazilian to score his first goal since the World Cup, before the France star lobbed in his team’s third and then completed a 12-minute hat-trick from a Vitinha pass.

Mbappe’s fourth, and PSG’s fifth, followed a goalkeeping mistake in the 56th minute.

Neymar set up Soler to backheel in for 6-0 before Mbappe completed the rout, his fifth of the game allowing him to equal the all-time record for most French Cup goals.

He has now scored 29 times in the competition, as many as former Marseille great Jean-Pierre Papin.

Ruthless Rybakina Rolls Into Australian Open Semi-Finals

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina became the first player into the Australian Open semi-finals after outmuscling Jelena Ostapenko 6-2 6-4 in a one-sided contest on Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday.

The Russian-born Kazakh looked sharp from the start and only a 25-minute delay to close the stadium roof against a passing shower prevented her from wrapping up the opening set within a half-an-hour of arriving on court.

Former French Open champion Ostapenko looked unable to cope with Rybakina’s pace and power in the opening stanza but ramped up her own fierce groundstrokes to break for a 2-0 lead at the start of the second.

Rybakina, who ousted top seed Iga Swiatek in the fourth round, broke straight back, however, and saved four break points with some brilliant tennis in the next game to consolidate.

The 23-year-old rode the momentum to break her Latvian opponent again for a 3-2 lead and then it was only a matter of looking after her impressive serve.

There were some jitters as Rybakina served for a place in her second Grand Slam semi-final but she sealed the deal on her third match point with her 11th ace of the contest.

“I’m super happy to be in the semi-finals for the first time,” said Rybakina. “Of course, I was nervous, particularly in the last game, but I’m happy I managed my emotions. I played really well today.”

Ostapenko was clearly second best but took solace in her best Grand Slam showing since she reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2018, a year after she won the Roland Garros title.

“I can take only positive things out of here,” said the 25-year-old.

“I feel my game was really good in all the matches except maybe today it was not really there, and she had a good day. Yeah, just move forward and work, and I think I will play better if I do the right things.”

Rybakina, seeded 22nd only because ranking points were not awarded at last year’s Wimbledon, will next play the winner of Tuesday evening’s quarter-final between third seed Jessica Pegula and twice Melbourne Park champion Victoria Azarenka.

“Tough opponents, but like always, I will try to prepare,” she said.

“I will try to watch the matches, analyse, think about this, and for sure I’m going to give my best on the court.”

Korda Retires To Send Khachanov Into Semis, Rybakina Through

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

Karen Khachanov reached the Australian Open semi-finals for the first time on Tuesday after Sebastian Korda retired injured while trailing 7-6(5) 6-3 3-0, dashing the American’s hopes of emulating his father Petr’s 1998 Melbourne Park triumph.

Korda, the 29th seed, struggled with a right wrist issue that needed treatment twice during the match on Rod Laver Arena before throwing in the towel in the third set.

Khachanov had also reached the last four of the 2022 U.S. Open and said it felt great to be back in a Grand Slam semi-final.

“Obviously not the way you want to finish a match,” said the 18th seed, who will meet either third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas or unheralded Czech Jiri Lehecka for a place in the final.

“I think until a certain point, it was very competitive, very good battle.

“Sebastian beat one of my friends Daniil Medvedev in three sets and in Hubert Hurkacz in five sets I guess, he was playing great tennis.

“I’m feeling really good, to be honest, really happy with my level and how I compete and I’m looking forward to the semi-finals here in Australia the first time.”

Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina also booked her place in the Melbourne Park semi-finals for the first time, the Kazakh 22nd seed beating Jelena Ostapenko 6-2 6-4 in a match that was played under the roof after a rain shower halted play.

“I’m super happy to be in the semi-finals for the first time,” said Rybakina. “Of course, I was nervous, particularly in the last game, but I’m happy I managed my emotions. I played really well today.”

Having begun her campaign on one of the outer courts at this year’s championship, Rybakina was every bit the star on the main showcourt with a dominant display in which she sent down 11 aces to quell 2017 Roland Garros champion Ostapenko.

Rybakina will take on third seed Jessica Pegula or twice Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka next.

“For sure, I’m going to watch it,” Rybakina said of that quarter-final. “But at the same time, I need to forget about tennis for a few hours, to rest the mind, then prepare for another tough match.”

The Biggest Plane In The World Has Wings Longer Than A Football Field. See Its Latest Flight

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

The world’s biggest airplane designed to carry air-launch-to-orbit rockets and hypersonic vehicles just completed its longest test flight to date.

The Stratolaunch Roc, developed by Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen and manufactured by U.S. aerospace company Stratolaunch Systems, on January 13 completed its ninth test flight.

All of the flights have been in the Mojave Desert, the first in 2019, but this was the first time for the airplane flying outside of the Mojave range, the company said.

The plane is the biggest all-composite plane ever constructed – made out of carbon fiber from two deconstructed Boeing 747-400 jumbo jets that were once flown by United Airlines.

It’s designed to take off and land using an airport runway, unlike other hypersonic planes, and has room to carry up to three rockets.

Measuring around 239 feet in length and 50 feet in height – the plane can carry a total payload of 500,000 pounds and requires a runway that’s at least 12,000 feet long.

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The aircraft departed from the Mojave Air and Space Port and flew approximately six hours across southeastern California, reaching a maximum altitude of 22,500 feet.

The company said it plans to have its first hypersonic flight and a separation test of the Talon-A vehicle in the first half of 2023.

The company’s CEO, Zachary Krevor, said in the release that the plane is “closer than ever” to its first hypersonic flight test.

Stratolaunch Roc in flight, with the hypersonic Talon-A separation test vehicle on board.

Manchester City Sign Argentine Midfielder Perrone

By

John Mutiso

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January 24, 2023

Manchester City have signed Argentine midfielder Maximo Perrone from Velez Sarsfield on a contract until 2028, the Premier League club said on Monday.

The 20-year-old scored three times and provided two assists after making his debut with the Buenos Aires-based team in March.

Perrone is currently playing in the Under-20 South American championship and at City will join compatriot and World Cup winner Julian Alvarez, who arrived in Manchester last year.

City are second in the Premier League, five points behind Arsenal, having played a game more than the London side, who they play in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday.

Greaves Record: What Lies Ahead For Harry Kane

By

Dan Ojumah

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January 24, 2023

Harry Kane became Tottenham’s all-time joint leading scorer in first-half stoppage time of Monday night’s Premier League encounter at Fulham.

The Spurs forward received a feed from Son Heung-min, twisted away from Tim Ream, and curled into the bottom corner.

It was Kane’s 266th goal for Tottenham, tying him with Jimmy Greaves, who had the record since 1970.

The England captain had had a disappointing first half, with only four touches of the ball at the half-hour mark at Craven Cottage.

Soon after, a 30-yard effort over the crossbar signaled his intentions, and he joined Greaves on 266 in the first minute of stoppage time.

The away crowd mocked him with chants of ‘one-season wonder’ after he equaled the record.

Spurs fans continue to scream the song in response to opposing fans following his breakout season at Spurs.

That label has been a driving force for Kane throughout his career, even as records have fallen at his feet.

“It’s always on my mind,” he acknowledged back in 2017. “I’ve always said that I want to prove people wrong when they doubt me. I’ll keep striving to improve and become better. It’s a wonderful song for our fans to sing, and I’ll keep singing it for the next nine or ten seasons to see where it takes me.”

Speaking on Kane’s strike on Sky Sports, Gary Neville declared: “For me this is one of the most predictable Harry Kane goals that you will see, as once he comes onto that right foot you know exactly what is going to happen.

“It happened so quickly coming out of a corner that Ream will look back on it and think why have I shown him onto his right foot? But he is absolutely clinical, Harry Kane, he’s a brilliant goalscorer and we all know that.”

Jamie Carragher added: “We can point fingers at defenders and wonder if they can get a little bit tighter but this for me is all about Harry Kane.

“Just spot where he is, I know there’s a lot going on with the ball but it’s the head movement that I love. He’s actually seeing who’s marking him – he looks once and moves in between the defenders, and as this ball comes across to Hojbjerg, as it comes into Son he’s checking where Ream is, he has another look again. He’s looked three times at Ream, seeing where his position is, he’s found himself in between two centre backs before the control and hit.