Madrid, Spain | AFP | Lionel Messi was away attending the birth of his son but Barcelona still had more than enough to beat 10-man Malaga 2-0 on Saturday and move 11 points clear at the top of La Liga. Messi was watching the game on a television in hospital …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Arsenal star Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ mother claims she is homeless and sleeps in a 10 foot metal storage crate while he lives in a £700,000 apartment. Jule Niles, 38, said the £30,000-a-week footballer refused to be a guarantor so she could rent a flat. While …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A 30-year-old woman in Egypt recently filed for divorce from her 32-year old husband after only 40 days of marriage on grounds that he is so stingy that he refused to buy her a shawarma sandwich (sort of `rolex’) on their first and only …

Paris, France | AFP | Paris Saint-Germain brushed aside bottom club Metz 5-0 in Ligue 1 on Saturday to ease some of the pain of their Champions League exit at the hands of Real Madrid in midweek. Twenty-year-old Christopher Nkunku scored twice for PSG at the Parc des Princes, with …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to meet with Israel’s ruling coalition heads, his office said Saturday, to discuss a political crisis that could force early elections. A meeting with leaders of two ultra-Orthodox parties was to be held later Saturday, to be followed the next …

Libreville, Gabon | AFP | Gabon is to withdraw its forces from the UN peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic, a force known by its initials of MINUSCA. The cabinet on Thursday endorsed a request by the defence ministry to pull out the country’s troops in MINUSCA, “given the …

Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA | AFP | Democratic Republic of Congo opposition groups rallied behind exiled figure Moise Katumbi at talks in South Africa on Saturday aimed at forging a united front to fight elections due by the end of the year. Exiled Katumbi led dozens of opposition leaders at the …

THIS WEEK: Tumukunde praises Besigye in Rukungiri Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Former Security Minister, Henry Tumukunde used the funeral platform of former minister Matthew Rukikaire’s son in Rukungiri on Mar. 02 to praise his bush war comrade Dr.  KizzaBesigye. He said; “Besigye is out of government but he …

THIS WEEK: CSO calls for rejection of supplementary budget Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | In a statement released on Mar. 02, a Civil Society Organization – CSBAG (Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group) asked parliament to reject unnecessary supplementary budget requests by the government. The organization calls for the Public …

THIS WEEK: UCC asked to investigate unregistered SIM cards Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) has been directed to investigate the existence of active SIM cards that are not properly registered. This follows the kidnap and murder of Susan Magara granddaughter to former First Deputy …