MARINE LE PEN ATTACKS FIVE-YEAR BAN We've just had it confirmed that Marine Le Pen has been banned from running for office for five years. This means she will not be able to contest the French presidential election in 2027. Earlier today, Marine Le Pen was found guilty of embezzling European funds to finance her French far-right National Rally (RN) party. In a television interview this evening, she said she would appeal against the move, describing it as "political", and arguing that she was "innocent". Le Pen also accused the court of attempting to block her from running for president in the 2027 election and said she would not let herself be "eliminated" like this. Le Pen was given a five-year ban on running for office with immediate effect, meaning she's barred from running in the next presidential race, unless her appeal is successful before then. MORE: Le Pen attacks ban from running for public office as 'political decision' She was also handed a €100,000 (£82,635) fine and a four-year prison sentence - two years of which will be spent with an electronic tag rather than in custody, while the other two are suspended. Members of RN have pushed back against the verdict, with some describing it as "against all principles of law" and "an infringement on democracy". And party president Jordan Bardella called for a "popular, peaceful mobilisation" in support of Le Pen. Following these reactions, France's High Council of the Judiciary - a constitutional body formed to ensure judicial independence - called for calm in response to today's ruling and moderation in the comments made about the proceedings. 1st April,2025

FOUR KILLED IN ISRAELI STRIKE An Israeli air strike on Beirut's southern suburbs has killed four people, Lebanon's health ministry says, putting further pressure on a fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. The strike also injured seven people, the health ministry said. The attack was the second on the Dahieh area, where Hezbollah has a strong presence, in recent days, despite the truce that came into force in November. The Israeli military said it had targeted a Hezbollah operative who had helped Hamas plan an attack against Israeli civilians. There has been no reaction from Hezbollah. Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun condemned the strike, calling it a dangerous warning. The Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said it was a "flagrant violation" of the ceasefire. The strike happened in the middle of the night, without a warning, and images from the scene show the top three floors of an apartment building had been damaged. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and Israel Security Agency (ISA) said in a statement that the military conducted a strike in the Dahieh. The Israeli military said it had struck and killed Hezbollah operative Hassan Ali Mahmoud Bdeir who had "recently directed Hamas operatives and assisted them in planning a significant and imminent terror attack against Israeli civilians". "Due to the immediate threat" posed, the military said it "acted to eliminate him and removed the threat", indicating that it would continue to carry out attacks in Lebanon. Lebanon's health ministry said four people were killed in the strike, including one woman. Last Friday, Israel carried out its first attack on Beirut since the ceasefire came into force, putting an end to more than 13 months of conflict with Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia and political movement. The Israeli military said it had hit a drone storage unit used by Hezbollah after two rockets were fired from southern Lebanon towards northern Israel. Hezbollah said it had no involvement in the rocket attack and remained committed to the ceasefire, and no other armed group claimed responsibility. Despite the deal, Israel has carried out near daily air strikes on people and targets it says are linked to Hezbollah, saying it is acting to stop Hezbollah from rearming. Lebanon's government says those attacks, and the permanence of Israeli soldiers in five locations in southern Lebanon, constitute violations of the truce. Hezbollah launched its campaign the day after the Hamas attacks on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, saying it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The longstanding conflict escalated and led to an intense Israeli air campaign across Lebanon, and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon. The offensive killed about 4,000 people in Lebanon - including many civilians - and led to the displacement of more than 1.2 million residents. Israel's stated goal in its war against Hezbollah was to allow the return of about 60,000 residents who had been displaced from communities in the country's north because of the group's attacks, and to remove it from areas along the border 1st April,2025

IRELAND EXPECTED TO BE AMONG HARDEST HIT Ireland is expected to be one of the most affected countries when President Trump announces a new round of tariffs later this week. EU goods are expected to face a tariff of about 20% when entering the United States. Among EU countries, Ireland is the most reliant on the US as an export market. In 2024, Irish goods exports to the US were worth €73bn (£61bn), almost a third of the country's total exports. Tariffs are effectively taxes applied to goods imported from other countries. Governments impose tariffs in the hope of protecting local manufacturers from international competition. The Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Micheál Martin said on Monday that increased US tariffs were "a very grave and serious threat". Analysis co-authored by Ireland's Department of Finance and the ESRI think tank suggested the tariffs could cost Ireland more than €18bn (£15bn) in lost trade. It also warned that a prolonged trade war between the EU and US would pose a risk to Ireland's public finances. Business impact of US tariffs The level of concern in Ireland as the tariff's announcement draws closer can be gauged by the level of public interest in the issue. Many Irish towns and cities have enjoyed the benefits of a US business presence for decades, while the workers who are employed in these big businesses travel to the plants from all over Ireland, meaning that the impact of any tariffs could reach into countless communities all over the country. Martin is standing in a room above a warehouse, he's wearing a white shirt and dark suit jacket with a combilift pin on his lapel. The pin is gold with combilift printed in green. He has short light/grey hair and is wearing thin black rimmed glasses. He is smiling at the camera. Martin McVicar, of Combilift, visited Chicago in March to brief his US customers Monaghan-based manufacturer Combilift makes about a quarter of its sales in the US market where it also employs 50 people. The company's co-founder and managing director Martin McVicar visited Chicago in March to brief his US customers. He told them he will freeze the dollar price of all Combilift products this year to give them some certainty about import costs. "We've given our customers certainty on what their costs will be in US dollars for products delivered to the port in the US. "At least they can try to plan their business around that at this stage." A forklift sits in a lane of a warehouse, with wood and other objects on shelves. The forklift is black and yellow, being operated by a man in hi-vis. Combilift's forklifts can operate in tight spaces, small enough to help companies store more in warehouses Mr McVicar remains bullish about the US market as he sees their products as helping customers run their businesses more efficiently. Combilift makes forklifts which can operate in very tight spaces which allow companies to store more in their warehouses. "We're enabling customers to expand without having to relocate and we're adamant that should outweigh the impact of a tariff," he said. 1st April,2025

ICELAND VOLCANO ERUPTS A volcano has erupted on the Reykjanes Peninsula in south-west Iceland after a nearby town and the Blue Lagoon spa, a popular tourist destination, were evacuated. Iceland's Meteorological Office said the eruption started around 09.45 local time (10:45 BST) just north of the small town of Grindavík. Less than an hour later, the crack that had opened in the ground was 700m (2296ft) wide and continuing to grow. The eruption occurred after earthquakes had hit the area known as the Sundhnúk crater range around 06:30 local time. Grindavík and the Blue Lagoon had already been ordered to evacuate ahead of the eruption. Roads in and out of the town remain closed, but flights are currently not affected. The Blue Lagoon would be closed through Tuesday, the spa said on its website. As of 11:20 local time, Iceland's Meteorological Office (IMO) said the original fissure had extended southward and a new crack had opened. Officials urged any people remaining in Grindavík to leave. Earlier on Tuesday, several individuals had refused to follow the evacuation order, Icelandic media reported. The region's police chief, Úlfar Lúðvíksson, told local media that only around 40 houses had been occupied by residents, following previous volcanic activity. Most of the 4,000 residents of Grindavík were permanently evacuated in November 2023, prior to eruptions in December 2023 and January, February and March 2024. The length of the magma that formed on Tuesday under the crater series is about 11 km (6.8 miles) - the longest that has been measured since 11 November 2023, the IMO said. Based on current wind direction, gas pollution from the eruption will travel northeast towards the capital area, the IMO added. Reuters Image shows a sign of the village of Grindavik, Iceland which has been evacuated due to volcanic activityReuters Grindavik has been previously evacuated for volcanic activity, including when this photo was taken in November 2023 Multiple eruptions have occurred on the Reykjanes Peninsula since 2021. The last time the peninsula had a period of volcanic activity was 800 years ago - and the eruptions continued for decades. Iceland has 33 active volcano systems and sits over what is known as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the boundary between two of the largest tectonic plates on the planet. 1st April,2025

KEN ATTAFUAH AND NIA MANAGEMENT VINDICATED The National Labour Commission (NLC) has ruled in favour of former Executive Secretary of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Professor Ken Attafuah, affirming that his dismissal of Martin Akowuah in 2023 was justified. Mr Akowuah was sacked for unlawfully and unilaterally altering working hours at the NIA’s Madina district office. Following his dismissal, Mr Akowuah complained to the NLC, seeking redress. However, after a thorough investigation, the Commission concluded on 14 March that Professor Attafuah had acted within the legal framework governing public service employment. “It is the decision of the Commission that the decision of the Respondent to dismiss the Complainant was in line with the Human Resource Management Policy Framework and Manual for the Ghana Public Service and NIA's SOP on registration, for the unlawful, unilateral and irregular alteration of the working hours of NIA without the due authorization and approval of NIA,” the ruling stated. In response to the NLC’s verdict, Professor Attafuah maintained that he had always treated employees fairly. “Mr. Martin Akowuah's allegations that I treated him unfairly run contrary to my nature, to everything I stand for, and to everything I have done as a human rights advocate here and abroad. I believe I’m fair to a fault, using my training as a lawyer to serve humanity with integrity and to advance good governance in good conscience,” he said in a media interview. He further lamented the challenges of institutional leadership in Ghana, citing excessive politicisation and misinformation. “Unfortunately, providing effective institutional leadership is a particularly difficult and challenging enterprise in our part of the world where excessive politicization and personalization of issues, unbridled propaganda and misuse of social and mainstream media often blur clarity, confound the public, suppress the truth, and destroy decent champions of discipline and sound public ethics. Thankfully, as in this case, truth stands, eventually!” he added. 1st April,2025

PARLIAMENT APPROVES GHC250K FOR EACH MP Parliament has approved an amount of GHC250,000 each for Members of Parliament through the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) distribution formula. This allocation is intended to fund education-related projects in the constituencies of MPs. An additional GHC150,000 has been allocated to each Member of Parliament to monitor these projects. The Minority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, reacting to the report on the floor of Parliament on Saturday, March 29, said, “At the deliberations, we also suggested to the minister [finance] that there should be some re-alignment. “And following the pressures that MPs often come under, educational needs across the country, there should be some upward adjustments, relative project fund for MPs. And the administrator [GEFTund] and the finance minister complied and acceded to our requests.” 1st April,2025

SAMMY GYAMFI SHOOTS DOWN MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT GOLDBOD The Acting Managing Director of the Precious Minerals Marketing Corporation (PMMC), Sammy Gyamfi, has recently addressed and clarified misconceptions surrounding the Goldbod Bill, which was recently passed by Parliament and is awaiting the President's assent. In a statement issued, he strongly rejected claims that the Goldbod operates as both a regulator and a commercial entity, suggesting a potential conflict of interest. He stated that the Goldbod is not a dual entity as suggested by critics but rather a monopoly in the trading and export of gold. The regulatory role of the Goldbod pertains only to its licensed agents, ensuring compliance with its Act and regulations, not to competitors in the market. He emphasized that the Goldbod does not regulate its competitors, eliminating the concerns of a conflict of interest. Addressing another critical issue, the Acting PMMC MD also debunked the allegation that the Goldbod Bill would criminalize the possession of gold, even for individuals such as chiefs or regular citizens. He clarified that the Bill does not criminalize the mere act of holding or storing gold. The only offense under the Bill is the "hoarding" of gold, which is defined as the accumulation of gold beyond reasonable business needs, with the intention to manipulate market conditions or create artificial scarcity. He pointed out that Clause 68(2) of the Bill explicitly states that the hoarding provision does not apply to those in possession of gold for personal or value storage purposes. Sammy Gyamfi explained that the primary goal of this provision is to prevent licensed Goldbod agents from hoarding gold to manipulate prices, create scarcity, or engage in unfair competition. He reiterated that the Goldbod Bill does not criminalize the possession of gold for traditional, ancestral, or personal reasons. "What constitutes a crime under the Goldbod Bill (Clause 68 (1)) is the HOARDING of gold. It is worthy of note, that hoarding is not the same as keeping or being in possession of Gold. Clause 68(1) of the Goldbod bill provides: “A person shall not, without lawful authority, HOARD gold without a license or authorization issued by the Gold Board”. Hoard is defined under Clause 74 of the Goldbod Bill as “the accumulation or storage of a gold mining product beyond reasonable business needs, with the purpose of manipulating market conditions or creating artificial scarcity”. More importantly, Clause 68(2) provides that: Subsection (1)- which is the offense creation section on hoarding, “DOES NOT APPLY TO A PERSON IN POSSESSION OF GOLD FOR PERSONAL OR VALUE STORAGE PURPOSES”. The purpose of Clause 68(1) of the Goldbod Bill is to prevent situations where licensed agents of the Goldbod, given funds by the Goldbod to buy gold for the Goldbod, will hoard gold for the purpose of causing scarcity or create unfair competition or manipulate prices, among others". "It is therefore false that the Goldbod Bill criminalizes the possession of gold by a person or Chief. On the contrary, one of the functions of the Goldbod is to promote value addition, particularly, local gold fabrication into coins, tablets, bars and other castings and mints for Ghanaians. One of the reasons for this function is to promote gold as a better store of value than the U.S. dollar with the aim of reducing pressure on the Ghana cedi. Thus, the Goldbod will consciously campaign for Ghanaians to buy gold products such as coins, tablets, tokens etc. for purposes of value storage. The claim that possessing gold for ancestral, traditional or personal reasons constitutes a crime under the GoldBod Bill is totally false," he added. Further, Sammy Gyamfi highlighted that the Goldbod's mission is to promote local gold fabrication, including producing gold coins, bars, and other valuable products for Ghanaians, encouraging the use of gold as a store of value, especially in a bid to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar and support the Ghanaian cedi. 1st April,2025

GOVERNMENT CANCELS 2 DEALS The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has announced that his ministry, with the full support of President John Dramani Mahama, has canceled two transactions initiated by the previous Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government to sell Ghanaian diplomatic properties in Nigeria and Zambia. In a post on his X account on Saturday, March 29, Mr. Ablakwa revealed that efforts are underway to recover an illegal partial payment made in one of the transactions. He also stated that the individuals behind these deals, who are currently evading authorities, will be tracked down and held accountable. "Yesterday I informed Parliament that with the full backing of President Mahama, we have cancelled two transactions initiated by the previous Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government to sell Ghanaian diplomatic properties in Nigeria and Zambia," he said. "Determined efforts are underway to retrieve an illegal part payment in one of the transactions. The masterminds, who are currently on the run will surely be found and sanctioned. We mean it when we say no diplomatic property belonging to the people of Ghana would be sold under our watch," he stressed. Mr Ablakwa further warned that none of Ghana’s diplomatic properties, whether in the country or in any of its 71 diplomatic missions abroad, are for sale, urging any interested parties to desist from pursuing such transactions. "Notice is hereby served that none of our diplomatic properties either in Ghana or any of our 71 diplomatic missions abroad are available for sale — hands off!" "The principles of ORAL, strict abhorrence for State Capture and the national interest shall continue to guide our decisions. For God and Country," he added. The Republic of Ghana operates several diplomatic missions with properties dotted globally. As a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, Ghanaian diplomatic missions in the capitals of other Commonwealth countries are referred to as High Commissions. 1st April,2025