First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on Monday set out her plans for a new referendum on Scottish independence, arguing Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic had put Scotland on a different course from the rest of the United Kingdom.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) leader blasted UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for imposing his “Brexit obsession” on the UK during the coronavirus pandemic, which is leading to food and labour shortages.
And she said the economic hit on individuals and businesses from the UK’s departure from the European Union, which most Scots opposed, had been made worse by hardline immigration policies hitting the workforce.
But she told the SNP’s annual conference that Johnson and his Conservative government in London would “use all that damage that they have inflicted to argue for yet more control”, to argue against Scotland going its own way.
Instead, she said Scots faced a choice between “a Westminster Tory government rejected by the people of Scotland and taking us in the wrong direction” and having their own government in its own right.
Sturgeon has been calling for another referendum to be held by the end of 2023 when the coronavirus pandemic is over, but the move has to be sanctioned by the UK government.
So far, Johnson has refused to do so, arguing the last vote in 2014, which saw Scots back remaining part of the UK by 55 percent to 45 percent, was a once-in-a-generation event.
Sturgeon admitted her relations with Johnson were prickly but vowed to push her case for a legally binding referendum in a spirit of “cooperation not confrontation”.
Lebanon’s new government held its first meeting Monday with a call by the president to resume talks with the International Monetary Fund to help kick-start its recovery from one of the world’s worst economic crises in more than a century.
The 24-member Cabinet’s most pressing mission over the coming weeks will be to help improve conditions in the country of 6 million, including a million Syrian refugees.
More than half the population now lives in poverty amid extended power outages and severe shortages in fuel and medicine.
President Michel Aoun told ministers during the Cabinet meeting that their government policy statement should include the resumption of talks with the IMF, which were suspended last year.
He also called for a plan to fight corruption and move forward with the investigation into last year’s massive explosion at Beirut’s port that killed at least 214 people, wounded over 6,000 others and damaged parts of the capital.
The formation of a new government Friday came after a 13-month deadlock, one of Lebanon’s longest periods without a fully functioning government at a time when the country was sliding deeper into financial chaos and poverty.
Information Minister George Kordahi told reporters after the meeting that Prime Minister Najib Mikati plans to hold intense Cabinet meetings to work on improving matters that “have direct effects on citizens.”
The country’s economic crisis, unfolding since 2019, has been described by the World Bank as one of the worst the world has witnessed since the mid-1800s. It impoverished more than half the population within months and left the national currency in a freefall, driving inflation and unemployment to unprecedented levels.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was ser to visit Egypt on Monday for talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt’s office of the presidency said.
There was no immediate confirmation of the meeting from the Israeli government.
It would be the first official visit by an Israeli premier since 2010, when then-President Hosni Mubarak hosted a summit with Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Less than a year later, Egypt was rocked by a popular uprising that toppled Mubarak.
Bennett and the Egyptian president are expected to discuss bilateral relations, efforts to revive the peace process as well as other regional and international developments, according to a statement issued by el-Sissi’s office.
Over nearly a decade, Israeli officials have held covert meetings with their Arab counterparts, some of which were only announced after the fact. Egypt in 1979 became the first Arab country to reach a peace agreement with Israel.
The meeting will be a boost for Bennett, Israel’s new prime minister who took office in June and is still trying to establish his foreign-policy credentials. His predecessor, Netanyahu, billed himself as a global statesman but never was able to hold a public meeting with the Egyptian president.
The tense situation in the Gaza Strip is likely to top the agenda of Monday’s meeting.
Israel, with Egypt’s help, has maintained a tight blockade over Gaza since the Palestinian militant group Hamas overran the territory in 2007 in an effort to prevent it from importing weapons.
Tunisian President Kais Saied has announced the appointment “as soon as possible” of a new government and mentioned a future reform of the Constitution, during a walkabout in Tunis.
On 25 July, Saied dismissed the Prime Minister, suspended the activities of parliament and also took over the judiciary, for a month renewable before extending these measures on 24 August, “until further notice.
On Saturday evening, he did not give a precise date for the formation of the government, adding we are continuing the search for personalities who will assume this responsibility.
President Saied also referred to the 2014 Constitution, saying that he “respects it but we can introduce amendments to the text”. According to him, “the Tunisian people rejected the Constitution” and “Constitutions are not eternal.
It is therefore necessary, in his eyes, “to amend while respecting the Constitution”, while keeping in mind that “sovereignty belongs to the people.
In recent days, many media outlets have speculated that a provisional government will soon be announced, followed by a revision of the Constitution, which will then be submitted to universal suffrage via a referendum, before new legislative elections.
A legal theorist and teacher, Kais Saied has presented himself since his surprise election by a large majority in late 2019 as the ultimate interpreter of the Constitution.
He relied on its Article 80, which envisages exceptional measures in case of “imminent danger” to national security, to justify the decisions taken over a month and a half ago.
A leading figure in Guinea’s opposition on Saturday urged regional bloc ECOWAS not to impose economic sanctions on Guinea’s new military regime, describing the recent coup as a “welcome development”.
According to Prime Minister Cellou Dalein Diallo The junta does not deserve to be sanctioned because it put an end to a situation of lawlessness.
Diallo, who ran unsuccessfully against the deposed leader Alpha Conde three times in successive presidential elections, told News men there were no other options left but a coup.
Guinea’s ruling military has been coming under growing diplomatic pressure after Special Forces led by Lieutenant Colonel Mamady Doumbouya seized power last Sunday and arrested Conde.
ECOWAS suspended Guinea on Wednesday, and on Friday, the African Union (AU) followed suit. ECOWAS has suspended a decision on economic sanctions until it gets a report from a fact-finding mission sent to Guinea.
But Diallo said the involvement of the army to end an illegal and illegitimate mandate was for him a welcome decision.
He maintains that Conde cheated him out of the presidency in the 2020 election.
Conde, had come under increasing fire for perceived authoritarianism, with dozens of opposition activists arrested after last year’s violently disputed election.
But the putsch in Guinea has sparked fears of democratic backsliding across West Africa — where military strongmen are an increasingly familiar sight.
It has drawn parallels with its neighbor Mali: the Sahel state has suffered two coups since August last year led by Colonel Assimi Goita, who was also a special forces commander.
Hundreds of opposition supporters have gathered in the Angolan capital Luanda to protest against changes to the electoral law that they say will undermine the transparency of next year’s general election.
President Joao Lourenço introduced a bill this week to centralise the counting of votes instead of doing it at the level of each municipality and province.
All opposition MPs abstained or voted against the reform, but they had little influence in a parliament largely dominated by the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA).
The main opposition party, Unita (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola), organised a march on Saturday, supported by other political movements and civil society groups, to demand “free and fair elections”.
Unita proposed a series of measures to prevent alleged fraud, including biometric identification of voters and the involvement of civil society in the counting of ballots.
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in the capital, waving Unita and Angolan flags while chanting “MPLA get out” in Portuguese.
They marched through the city centre holding placards that read: “Demand our rights” and “We want biometric control”. Police armed with batons surrounded the demonstration.
Meanwhile, Lourenço has also sparked controversy for wanting to change another electoral law, which he recently submitted to the National Assembly with suggested amendments.
Elected in 2017 after his predecessor, Jose Eduardo dos Santos, stepped down after a 38-year reign, Joao Lourenço is expected to seek a second term in the 2022 presidential, parliamentary and local elections.
The 75 students kidnapped from Government Day Secondary School, Kaya, in Maradun Local Government Area of Zamfara State, have regained freedom, 12 days after their abduction.
Following their release in undisclosed circumstances, the students and a teacher were received by Governor Bello Matawalle at the Government House in Gusau, Sunday evening.
The development comes amid a military operation against the bandits in the state.
The state government last week shut down telecommunication networks, suspended weekly markets and banned the sale of fuel in jerry cans, all measures in support of the operation.
Bandits had been reported to be fleeing the state to escape from the military offensive, although lack of mobile telecommunications and the closure of some roads to traffic in the state have made it difficult to verify the information.
In what appeared like a move to underscore the success of the military operation. Gov. Matawalle last week, said the state government would no longer negotiate with bandits, cancelling his policy of peaceful dialogue with the deadly criminals.
He said security forces would, instead, concentrate on flushing them out of Zamfara.
Niger Tornadoes FC of Minna emerged champions of the 2020/2021 Super 8 after defeating Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) of Ibadan 3-2 in the final match in Enugu.
At the final match played at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium in Enugu on Sunday, Niger Tornadoes opened scoring through Shamsudeen Asheun in the ninth minute.
Gafar Olafimihan leveled the game for 3SC from the penalty kick spot in the 16th minute.
Ahmed Liman and Augustine gave Niger Tornadoes a two-goal lead in the 57th and 64th minutes before Raheem Quadry reduced the scoreline to 3-2.
The postponed match between Remo Stars of Sagamu and Bendel Insurance of Benin City ended 2-2.
The match should have been played on Saturday but postponed because Bendel Insurance refused to file out for the match.
With the result, Remo Stars joined Niger Tornadoes, 3SC, and Gombe United in gaining promotion to the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).
Meanwhile, Olafimihan Gafal of 3SC won the highest goal scorer of the season award with 16 goals and the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.
The Best Goalkeeper of the season award went to Charles Tembe of 3SC, and the coach of the season was Mohammed Bala.
Giant Brilla FC of Enugu, who survived the season by the whiskers won the Best Behaved Team of the season.
Speaking after the match, 3SC’s coach Edith Agoye congratulated Niger Tornadoes for winning the Super 8 title.
Agoye noted that two good teams met in the final and that he was not disappointed with the result as
his team have already made it to the NPFL.
“We are going home to prepare for the premier league so that we will do well to justify all we have put into the club,” he said.
Niger Tornadoes captain, Sunday Akinmolade, said the match was just an exhibition game since the two teams had qualified. Josiah Oche, who spoke on behalf of his captain, said that the players would justify their achievement in the NNL by doing well in the NPFL next season
Brisk walking is a good way for people to increase their activity levels or ease themselves into a more active lifestyle. Unlike other forms of exercise, brisk walking has a lower risk of injury and is a low-cost activity.
When people take a brisk walk several times per week, they may experience health benefits, such as a drop in blood pressure and a decrease in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
This article will describe in detail what brisk walking is and also list the health benefits a person may experience when doing this form of exercise.
What is brisk walking, and how to measure it
Brisk walking is an example of a moderate intensity aerobic activity. Experts define moderate intensity aerobic activity as anything that makes a person sweat and raises their heart rate to the extent that they can talk but not sing.
As a rule of thumb, for a person to be brisk walking, they need to move at a maximum speed of 4.5 mph . A person should aim to do a brisk walk every day for at least 30 minutes.
What are the health benefits of brisk walking
A person may experience plenty of health benefits when brisk walking frequently or, generally, when increasing their activity levels.
These benefits include reducing the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancer, such as bladder, breast, and colon cancer.
A 2017 report also suggests that brisk walking can positively impact people’s health and is an accessible method for helping people increase their activity levels.
The authors of the report define brisk walking as walking at the speed of at least 3 mph. They claim that people with existing health conditions may see more health benefits when walking briskly for 10 minutes every day.
They also claim that people who undertake less than 30 minutes of physical activity per week may see this form of exercise as more accessible.
To learn what positive effects walking can have on people’s health, researchers have examined the relationship between different walking paces and health outcomes.
A 2018 study pooled survey data from more than 50,000 English and Scottish walkers and investigated the effects of walking speed on people’s health.
The researchers concluded that there may be a link between walking at a self-reported average or brisk pace and a reduced risk of death from all causes or from cardiovascular disease compared with walking at a slow pace.
Can brisk walking help with weight loss
According to a 2017 report, 10 minutes of brisk walking a day could help inactive people reach a moderate weight. The report defines “inactive” as engaging in less than 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity per week.
However, brisk walking alone will not aid weight loss. If a person aims to lose weight, they also need to consider their daily dietary choices and calorie intake.
To maintain a moderate weight, a person needs to balance the foods they eat with the amount of physical activity they undertake each day.
Good technique for brisk walking
Start slowly in order to warm up, and cool down by slowing down.
Keep the shoulders down and relaxed while maintaining a long, straight back.
Roll the foot forward from the heel.
Gradually start including hills into your walking routes.
If a person’s feet feel sore after a brisk walk, they may benefit from a foot massage or soaking their feet in warm water.
Calories burned by brisk walking and other activities
The calories burned by brisk walking will vary depending on a person’s weight and other factors.
For example, a person weighing 154 pounds will burn the following number of calories per hour for each listed activity:
Activity Calories burned per hour
Walking (3.5 mph) 280
Walking (4.5 mph) 460
Running or jogging 590
Aerobics 480
Weight lifting (light workout) 220
Cycling (more than 10 mph) 590
Swimming (slow freestyle laps) 510
How does brisk walking compare with running and jogging
Doing moderate intensity aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, for 30 minutes most days has many benefits, including reducing anxiety, decreasing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular problems, and making falling asleep easier.
Jogging does burn more calories than a brisk walk, but it may not be attainable for people with overweight right away, as they might need to build up to an exercise routine.
Brisk walking and other types of moderate aerobic exercise have many health benefits, such as reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. Brisk walking is a low-cost and easy way for people to increase their physical activity levels.
If a person wants to build up to a more vigorous aerobic activity, they can start with a brisk walk before they move on to jogging.
Jose Mourinho marked his 1,000th game as a manager with a classic Jose Mourinho celebration.
He rolled back the years, sprinting down the touchline to celebrate Stephan El Shaarawy’s injury-time winner for Roma with his players.
Those scenes were reminiscent of the iconic moment when he charged down the Old Trafford touchline as manager of Porto in 2004, after knocking Manchester United out of the Champions League.
That was the year he led the Portuguese side to win the trophy before taking over at Chelsea as the self-proclaimed Special One
“I wasn’t 58 years old, but 10 or 12 or 14, when you start dreaming about a career in football. Running like I did, I was running like a child,” said Mourinho after the 2-1 win over Sassuolo. “And I apologised to [Sassuolo coach Alessio] Dionisi for that.
The Portuguese, who joined Roma in May after being sacked by Spurs, explained the goal was so significant because he was “scared” of losing the landmark game.
“During the week I was lying to people, telling everyone this wasn’t a special game – perhaps I was trying to convince myself as well,” he added.
“But actually it was – this game had a really special meaning for me. And I am sure I will remember it for the rest of my life, because my 1000th game as a coach was this one.
“I didn’t want to lose it, and I was very scared of having that be my lasting memory of the moment. So I was lying to everyone beforehand. It was a very special feeling.
“Perhaps God decided that I didn’t deserve to have a negative memory of this particular game.”
Mourinho apologised afterwards to Sassuolo manager Alessio Dionisi for the zealous celebrations.
Mourinho has won a lot of accolades as a manager, including two Champions League trophies, three Premier League titles, three La Liga titles, and two Scudettos, but many felt after he failed at Spurs and Manchester United that his powers were waning.
However, he seems to have his mojo back in the Italian capital and he has now won his first five games as Roma manager – the first time he’s done that with a club.
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