bbc africa's chris ewokor in the capital abuja. item. you spoke then about scarcity being an issue, and the money pledged by the government to tackle this crisis. what would people like to be seen to be done, in terms of tackling the price crisis head on?— price crisis head on? what many --eole price crisis head on? what many peeple are _ price crisis head on? what many people are expecting, _ price crisis head on? what many people are expecting, after - price crisis head on? what many people are expecting, after the l people are expecting, after the subsidy, the government were going to provide a means... transportation. basically what people want to see is how some of these food products could be taken from one part of the country to the other. the other thing, again, is that more people have to be encouraged to go to farm. people who are poor, about 8000... a few dollars, actually, every month. that is about 12 million nigerians. these many people are saying it is not enough to cushion the impact of poverty that a lot of familie

chris ewokor, bbc news, abuja, nigeria. wildfires have left a trail of destruction across parts risk affecting the fight againstjihadist extremism and collaboration of western allies, especially france and us, which have their bases in the country. chris ewokor, bbc news, abuja, nigeria. wildfires have left a trail of destruction across parts of southern europe — and the mediterranean region. in greece, emergency services have tried to prevent new wildfires in the central area. fires there triggered explosions at an air force ammunition depot in the town of nea akealos on thursday. authorities say the outlook is improving for firefighters on the islands of rhodes, corfu and evia. greece's climate crisis and civil protection minister told a news conference earlier there were more than 600 fires over a 10 day period. for more, foreign correspondent bethany bell sends this report from greece. temperatures have dropped somewhat and many of the fires that have been reaching over the country of the last two weeks or so have abate

chris ewokor, bbc news, abuja, nigeria.ca summit in st petersburg concluded with african leaders pressing russian president vladimir putin to end the war in ukraine and restore the grain deal that ended just over a week ago. some also called for an end to the war in ukraine. the bbc�*sjewel kiriungi has been following the summit from nairobi. russian president vladimir putin has today said that he's carefully studying a peace deal that was shared by african countries in order to end the war in ukraine. just last month, a delegation of african leaders led by president cyril ramaphosa of south africa offered to mediate in the conflict between russia and ukraine. in st petersburg today, the leaders called for a renewal of the grain deal that allows the safe passage of ukrainian grain through its ports in the black sea. now, with this deal not in place, these leaders say that prices of wheat have gone up and this is having an effect on other commodities, threatening the food security in the region. putin also today announced hi

chris ewokor on that coup in indonesia.urday in a row. it�*s part of a long running dispute about pay, jobs and working conditions. just over half of services are expected to run across the network, but some will finish earlier than usual. louisa pilbeam reports. there are some trains running, and down here at london euston station, which is one of the uk�*s busiest stations, there are quite a lot of people down here. they have pretty much overall looked up the train they want to get and have found one. most people have found they can get where they want to go. 0n the board here, there are trains to manchester, birmingham, liverpool, glasgow, but they are running less frequently than usual. so a lot of people here, you know, are not too frustrated because they planned ahead. but this is a long—running dispute. another rail strike in what�*s been a year of industrial action. for the second saturday in a row, some of the 14 affected train operators are running very limited services. these cricket fans have come all the way fr

chris ewokor, bbc news, abuja, nigeria.xtreme heat that began in the us south—west is now being felt across the central and eastern regions, putting some 200 million americans under extreme weather warnings. we're seeing record breaking temperatures in several major cities including in phoenix, arizona, which saw its 28th consecutive day with a high temperature exceeding 110 degrees fahrenheit, which is over 43 degrees celsius. the brutal heat is even harming the state's resilient saguaro cactus. experts warn the plants are losing their limbs, collapsing and entirely transforming in shape. the heat is affecting everybody. we are concerned because we have seen saguaro in particular, but this can happen to any type of cacti as well, we have seen them suffering the effects of extreme heat and drought. everyone had always thought that cacti are perfectly adapted to heat and drought. that plants can hold on during the whole dry season for the wet season to arrive. the ongoing heatwave is also threatening our allergies. the cente

chris ewokor, bbc news, abuja, nigeria.he 2024 campaign season is getting fully under way tonight as 13 republican presidential candidates are taking to the stage in the us state of iowa. here is a live look at the event where larry elder is speaking. we believe that he is speaking. the candidates are addressing a major republican dinner with donors at a critical moment for their presidential campaigns. former president donald trump is expected to speak as he faces new legal charges and a looming third indictment. it's the first time his main rival, florida governor ron desantis, is appearing on the same stage as mr trump. my colleague carl nasman spoke earlier with cbs news senior white house and political correspondent ed o'keefe for the latest on the campaigns. ed o'keefe, thank you so much forjoining us. i just want to start with these latest charges that were unveiled against former president donald trump. how has his campaign responded today? they've essentially brushed it off and said that, you know, this continues t

chris ewokor, bbc news, abuja, nigeria.red dead after an australian military helicopter crashed into the ocean off the coast of queensland. the helicopter came down in an area near to where us and australian soldiers have been taking part in military exercises. australia's defence minister, richard marles, gave more details. the helicopter was engaging in a two—helicopter mission. there were four aircrew aboard. because there was another helicopter present, a search and rescue was able to commence immediately. as we speak to you now, the four aircrew are yet to be found. the search and rescue continues. the helicopter accident comes as us secretary of state antony blinken and the defense secretary lloyd austin are meeting their australian counterparts in brisbane. live now to sydney and our correspondent phil mercer. phil, first of all, what is the latest you can tell us about the helicopter accident? well, the helicopter accident? well, the accident _ the helicopter accident? well, the accident took _ the helicopter accide

chris ewokor in nigeria is following the story for us.ot of pressure being piled on the leaders of the coup in niger. this evening we are hearing that france has also suspended financial and other aid to niger with immediate effect. this is as a result of the coup and development, political development in that country and it is also similar to the eu's position, the eu has suspended aid, both financial and military aid. the united states secretary of state, antony blinken, had earlier threatened the countries�*s risk, also having millions of dollars in aid be suspended because the coup and the strongest reaction yet we have gotten is from the african union, which had given the military in niger 15 days maximum to get back to the barracks and have called the immediate release of president bazoum who, at the moment, we know is still being held by the military. earlier, i spoke to cameron hudson, an analyst on african security with the centre for strategic and international studies. and i began by asking about the response to the coup from t

the man leading the coup is col maj amadou abdramane. 0ur reporter chris ewokor is monitoring the situationing after we've seen a situation where the country has been sharply divided as a result of the coup. well, many people say they support the coup. i mean, the coup players, but there are other people who say they support the president who has been ousted. today, we saw hundreds of people who came out to demonstrate some waving both russia and flags and the nigerian flag and declaring support for the military over the action. we have also seen, well, a situation where because of what's happening, a lot of condemnation has gone out from the international community. right now, the situation still remains uncertain because we don't know for sure who is the head of the new junta. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. some other stories making headlines in the uk. a man who shot and killed a custody sergeant while handcuffed in a police cell is beginning a whole life sentence for his murder. luis de zoysa, was convicted of murdering sergeant matt ratana in 2020, and is unlikel

earlier, chris ewokor, who is following the story from neighbouring nigeria gave me an update on whatof this meeting. well, right now in niger, things are happening quite fast. earlier today, one of the members of the military coup came out on state television to denounce ecowas meeting and alleging that the meeting was intended to take action on carrying out military intervention of that country and now they also cold on nigerians to come out to protest against that mission. currently, as we speak, hundreds of people are out on the streets protesting against ecowas and against the west, especially france, near the france embassy, and the intention possibly is to whip up enough sentiments among the people against ecowas and whatever the outcome of the meeting today would be. pork is through some of the potential ways forward on this, because we have heard from the eu, suspending financial assistance, but at the same time niger is a country where more than 40% of the population live in poverty. there are suggestions that suspending financial aid won't help. what a way that neighbours a

live now to chris ewokor in nigeria with the latest on this.r when it comes to these talks later? basically, all i saw on the leadership. it started this very hour but we are still trying to get confirmation if it is still under way. the 15 member nation ecowas leadership are expecting to make a decision on what could be the solution to the situation in niger but with mali, burkina faso and guinea and now niger out of the ground, we havejust about i! guinea and now niger out of the ground, we havejust about 11 member nations and as has been the case before now, usually the first response will be slamming sanctions against such nations that have got military intervention. we do not know if this is the first step they will take but what we understand is that there will be looking at the situation, there will also consider a lot of other factors that will come into play, or are already a play make a decisive decision on the situation. one thing, though, that ecowas leaders might be careful about is this time around, making a decision that may not

live now to chris ewokor in nigeria with the latest on this.

live now to chris ewokor in neighbouring nigeria with the latest on this. ewsjust coming out chris, news just coming out of this meeting, this equal mass meeting giving the niger whichjump to meeting, this equal mass meeting giving the niger which jump to a week to seize power. not ruling out the use of force. everyone will be wondering how solid is this attempted coup?— wondering how solid is this attempted coup? wondering how solid is this attemted cou? ~ ., attempted coup? well, calling it an attemted attempted coup? well, calling it an attempted coua. — attempted coup? well, calling it an attempted coup, first _ attempted coup? well, calling it an attempted coup, first it _ attempted coup? well, calling it an attempted coup, first it means - attempted coup? well, calling it an attempted coup, first it means thatj attempted coup, first it means that the ecowas block take very seriously the ecowas block take very seriously the action taking place in indonesia. with the other countries under military rule, it will send a clear message that there is a lot of

our correspondent chris ewokor is monitoring developments from neighbouring nigeria, and he gave us thisthe ruling party, including those in government, have been arrested by the leaders of the junta. and this could be as a result of the allegation from the junta that they are about to be attacked by france, which of course there has been no evidence. but yesterday, protesters tried to breach the security of the french embassy. some of them were burning, vandalising, and setting fire to anything in their way until they were dispersed through tear gas by security forces. what we understand is that the chadian president has visited, he said he held in—depth discussions with the coup leaders as well as meeting with the detained president and the former president. however, many people are looking at what potentially having issued the ultimatum, giving seven days to reinstate the detained president. members of the largest teaching union have accepted a 6.5% pay rise for teachers in england and voted to end strikes. the national education union had staged seven days of strikes — in state schoo

chris ewokor in nigeria has the details for us. there have been some... it's looked like a lot of pressure been piled on the coup leaders in nigeria this evening. we're hearing that france has also suspended financial and other aids to niger with immediate effect. and this is as a result of the coup and development, political development, in that country. and it's similar to the eu's position. the eu has suspended aids, both financial and military aid. the united states secretary of state, antony blinken, had earlier threatened that the country risked also having millions of dollars in aid be suspended because of the coup. and the strongest reaction yet we've gotten is from the african union, which had given the military in niger 15 days maximum to return to the barracks and restore constitutional democracy. they have also called for the immediate release of president bazoum, who at the moment we know are still being held by the military. live now to nick westcott who was the british ambassador for niger between 2008 and 2011. what's your thoughts on the

live now to our correspondent, chris ewokor in neighbouring nigeria.rnational reaction, in the last couple of miles we saw comments from the african union and european union, tell us more. african union and european union, tell us more-— tell us more. starting with the african union, _ tell us more. starting with the african union, they _ tell us more. starting with the african union, they are - tell us more. starting with the| african union, they are coming tell us more. starting with the - african union, they are coming up with the strongest reaction yet. on this political development in niger. they are demanding that mutinous soldiers return to their barracks and restore constitutional order. they gave the soldiers a maximum of 15 days to restore democracy in that country. they said they condemn the coup strongly and i do not in support of the soldiers taking over from the democratically elected president mohamed bazoum. that reaction is also similar to what we heard from the eu, they said economic and financial security support to niger until the r

live now to chris ewokor in neighbouring nigeria with the latest on this. we are seeing today. take well, today what we are hearing more than 100 and 30 members of the ruling party, officials of the ruling party including those in government have been arrested by the leaders of the... this government have been arrested by the leaders of the. . ._ leaders of the. .. this could be as a result of the _ leaders of the. .. this could be as a result of the allegation _ leaders of the. .. this could be as a result of the allegation that - leaders of the. .. this could be as a result of the allegation that they i result of the allegation that they are about to be attacked by france which of course there has been no evidence. yesterday protesters tried to breach the security of the french embassy some of them were burning, vandalising and setting fire to anything in their way until they were dispersed through tear gas by security forces. these also, the demonstrations came after members of the military called on the people to protest against what they described as a

i spoke earlier to our reporter chris ewokor, who is monitoring events from neighbouring nigeria.re have been a lot of frantic efforts and, of course, reactions across the world. in nigeria, for instance, the president, tinubu bola ahmed tinubu, who is the chairman of the heads of government, has now called an emergency meeting of the heads of state to hold this weekend. i mean, on sunday. and the focus of that meeting is to discuss the situation and developments in niger and back in niger. general abdul—rahman cheney has been in a meeting with top civil general abdul—rahman tchiani has been in a meeting with top civil servants of the various ministries. he started out meeting about two or 3 hours ago and still been in that meeting. and obviously, many think that aside from introducing himself to the civil servants, he might also be discussing with them, seeking the opinion and telling them the direction that he would want to go. 0ur reporter reporting from the neighbouring country, nigeria. back with all the latest headlines of the next few minutes. you can get hello. friday was

have provided poor economic and social governor stuff foreign authorities. 0ur correspondent, chris ewokorst from neighbouring nigeria. it is surprising to many people when general abdourahmane tchiani laid blame on the ousted president mohamed bazoum, because he was also part of the government, he was the head of the security of the president. but basically taking over the reins of leadership indonesia, he has suspended the constitution and has also dissolved some state institutions, in fact that friday evening he met with the top civil servants in the country —— in niger. trying to win their support and consolidate his grip on power. the outcome of that meeting is not yet known. however, there have been strong responses against this cool. the sub regional bloc will be meeting on sunday, hosted by nigeria president, to respond to the coup in niger. i am also aware that france president emmanuel macron is expected to chair a security meeting on the niger coup situation. now it's time for a look at today's sport. we'll start at the women's world cup — and sweden are through to the knockouts

live now to our correspondent, chris ewokor in neighbouring nigeria.nt now, what does that mean for niger? it is surprising to many people when general abdourahamane tchiani lead blames on the outage president, mohamed bazoum, because he was also part of the government, he was the head of the security cards of the president. basically, taking over the reins of leadership in niger, he has suspended the constitution and also dissolved some state institutions. in fact, also dissolved some state institutions. infact, on also dissolved some state institutions. in fact, on friday evening, he met with the top civil servants in the country, obviously trying to woo their support, and consolidate his grip on power. the outcome of that meeting is not yet known, howeverthere outcome of that meeting is not yet known, however there have been strong responses against this coup. the sub regional bloc will be meeting on sunday, hosted by the nigerian president to try to respond to the coup in niger. i am also aware that the french president, emanuel macron, is expected

chris ewokor in nigeria has the details for us.

live now to chris ewokor in nigeria with the latest on this. ust talk us through the international reaction. there has been quite a bit of condemnation today, hasn't there?— today, hasn't there? yes, it has looked like _ today, hasn't there? yes, it has looked like a _ today, hasn't there? yes, it has looked like a lot _ today, hasn't there? yes, it has looked like a lot of— today, hasn't there? yes, it has looked like a lot of pressure - today, hasn't there? yes, it has i looked like a lot of pressure being piled on the coup leaders in and i share. this evening, we are hearing that france has also suspended financial and other aid to niger. it is a result of the coop in that country. it is similar to the eu's position. the eu has suspended aid, both financial and military aid. the united states secretary of state, antony blinken, earlier threatened that the country risk also having millions of dollars in aid being suspended because of the coup. the strongest reaction yet that we have gotten is from the african union. the union had given the mil