Israel overnight on Friday launched strikes targeting the heart of Iran’s nuclear programme.

The attacks, according to various media reports, claimed the life of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Chief, Hossein Salami. A number of civilians, including children are reported to have been killed in the attack.

The United States of America, in a statement from its Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, after the attack distanced itself from the strikes.

“We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region,” it said.

Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu said “Operation Rising Lion” struck Iran’s main enrichment facility in Natanz, nuclear scientists, and what he called “the heart of Iran’s ballistic missiles programme.”

Six nuclear scientists were killed, Iranian state-affiliated Tasnim news agency reported.

Prior to the attacks, the Israeli Ambassador to Ghana, Roey Gilad, interacted with journalists at his residence in Accra last Thursday, where he suggested to the government to rethink and re-evaluate its traditional foreign policy of non-alliance, which has been in existence since 1957.

He said that while Ghana’s foreign policy required it not to be aligned with any state to serve its national interest, rethinking such a policy could be healthy for its bilateral relations with other nations.

“Obviously, Ghana’s non-alliance policy needs to serve its interest, but I believe that maybe the policy of non-alliance should be re-think and should be re-evaluated,” he said. 

Reaction

Mr Gilad said, “we do it in Israel day in and day out, we check ourselves, check our foreign policy and every state should check its policy too.

“Again, I humbly say with full respect to the sovereign decision-making process in the foreign affairs of the Foreign Minister here, but I personally think that rethinking or re-evaluating non-alliance policy is something which is healthy for the state and for the bilateral relations,” he said. 

IAE resolution

The ambassador’s call followed Ghana’s decision to abstain from a vote on a resolution adopted during the 1769th Session of the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors on Iran’s non-compliance with its safeguards obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The vote, which took place in Vienna, saw an overwhelming international support of 19 countries voting in favour and three against, with 11 states, including Ghana, abstaining.

Those that voted in favour included the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Germany, France, Korea, Japan, Argentina, Australia, Luxembourg, Belgium, Canada, Ecuador, Spain, the Netherlands, Morocco, Ukraine, Italy and Colombia.

Those who voted against the resolution were Russia, China and Burkina Faso, with Ghana, Thailand, Brazil, South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Armenia abstaining.

Reacting to Ghana’s posture, the Israeli Ambassador said Israel was deeply disappointed at Ghana’s decision not to support the international resolution.

“We express publicly, openly and candidly our disappointment,” he said.

He, however, expressed happiness that Israel and Ghana had a healthy ongoing dialogue and “we have political consultations now and then”.

“The consultations this year are going to take place in Jerusalem towards the end of the year.

“This is not going to cast a heavy shadow on the relations, but we cannot ignore it,” he said.

Mr Gilad added that, “I think mature relations such as the relationship between Israel and Ghana can be addressed and iron out any disagreement and this is what we do with Ghana”.

The ambassadors said, “As grown up people, we can address it with the government”.

“We did it in the past and we will keep on doing it in the future,” he said.

Gaza conflict

Describing the conflict situation in Gaza as complicated, he said he would not deny that there was a huge tragedy that impacted both the people in Gaza and Israel.

He recalled that the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, led to the “murder and butchery of 1,200 of our brothers and sisters and others hijacked as hostages”.

Acknowledging that Israel made a major mistake in assuming propping up Hamas, Mr Gilad said, “We appeased Hamas by paying the money and let the leadership of Hamas flourish and their bank accounts get bigger and bigger”.

“But the lesson we learned on October 7, 2023, is that you cannot go to sleep next to a poisonous black mamba and think that the snake’s stomach is full and, therefore, it is not going to attack you.

“This was our major mistake and we are not going to repeat this mistake,” he said.

The ambassador said Israel was committed to exerting pressure on Hamas to release Israeli hostages and, at the same time, put an end to Hamas’s control of Gaza.

In his view, if Israel did not put an end to Hamas, “we will see those attacks against us day in and day out.”

Assuring that Israel cared for the well-being of the innocent people in Gaza, Mr Gilad said the peaceful solution to the conflict in the Middle East lay with Hamas, which needed to release the 56 Israeli hostages, lay down their arms and Gaza disarmed.

“The Hamas leadership needs to leave Gaza just as the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, led by Yasser Arafat, left Beirut in 1982,” he said.

 Accusing Hamas of using the two million civilians in Gaza as human shields, he said fighting Hamas was nearly impossible without causing some collateral damage.

“Criticisms against Israel are unfair and such criticism should be directed at Hamas, which manipulates the world public opinion by inflating casualty numbers in Gaza.

He added that since the beginning of the Israeli military campaign against Hamas, Israel had opened access to humanitarian campaigns to bring food into Gaza.

By Daniel Adu Darko  

Accra, June 14, GNA — The SOL Matured Minds Charity Organization, also known as Spices of Love (SOL), has donated essential supplies to the Asokwa Children’s Hospital in Kumasi, bringing smiles to patients and staff while reinforcing its commitment to supporting vulnerable groups in Ghana.  

The donation forms part of the organisation’s broader mission to restore hope and improve the lives of children, single mothers, widows, persons living with disabilities, and the underprivileged affected by poverty, illness, violence, and natural disasters.  

Items presented included bottled water, liquid soap, diapers and wipes, beverages, biscuits, toiletries, and detergents, among others.  

Mr Stephen Tetteh, Secretary of the organization, said the decision to support the Asokwa Children’s Hospital aligned with the objective of reaching out to children and expanding charitable work beyond the Greater Accra Region.  

“We chose Asokwa Children’s Hospital because one of our objectives is to provide support to children, and we also want to extend our charity to other regions of the country,” he noted.  

The hospital’s administrator, Dr. Osman Yakubu, received the donation on behalf of the facility, expressing heartfelt gratitude for the thoughtful gesture.  

“We are deeply grateful to SOL for choosing our hospital. These items will go a long way in supporting the children and easing the burden on families,” he said.  

President of SOL, Madam Vida Gyawu Dawuda, also used the occasion to thank the hospital for warmly welcoming the team and encouraging individuals and corporate bodies to join in supporting charity causes.  

“Let us all find ways to help those in need. As an organization, we remain committed to continuing our efforts to support the vulnerable across the country,” she assured.  

The donation reflects the values enshrined in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in promoting well-being for all and fostering inclusive support for disadvantaged communities.  

GNA  

Edited by Christian Akorlie   

The United States is considering restricting entry to citizens of an additional 36 countries in what would be a significant expansion of the travel ban announced by the Trump administration early this month, according to a State Department memo reviewed by The Washington Post.

Among the new list of countries that could face visa bans or other restrictions are 25 African nations, including significant U.S. partners such as Egypt and Djibouti, plus countries in the Caribbean, Central Asia and several Pacific Island nations.

A State Department spokesperson said the agency would not comment on internal deliberations or communications. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Such a move would mark another escalation in the Trump administration’s aggressive crackdown on immigration.

The memo, which was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and sent Saturday to U.S. diplomats who work with the countries, said the governments of listed nations were being given 60 days to meet new benchmarks and requirements established by the State Department. It set a deadline of 8 a.m. Wednesday for them to provide an initial action plan for meeting the requirements.

The memo identified varied benchmarks that, in the administration’s estimation, these countries were failing to meet. Some countries had “no competent or cooperative central government authority to produce reliable identity documents or other civil documents,” or they suffered from “widespread government fraud.” Others had large numbers of citizens who overstayed their visas in the United States, the memo said.

Other reasons included the availability of citizenship by monetary investment without a requirement of residency and claims of “antisemitic and anti-American activity in the United States” by people from those countries. The memo also stated that if a country was willing to accept third-country nationals who were removed from the United States or enter a “safe third country” agreement, it could mitigate other concerns.

It was not immediately clear when the proposed travel restrictions would be enforced if the demands were not met.

The countries facing scrutiny in the memo: Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Benin; Bhutan; Burkina Faso; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Democratic Republic of Congo; Djibouti; Dominica; Ethiopia; Egypt; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Ivory Coast; Kyrgyzstan; Liberia; Malawi; Mauritania; Niger; Nigeria; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Sao Tome and Principe; Senegal; South Sudan; Syria; Tanzania; Tonga; Tuvalu; Uganda; Vanuatu; Zambia; and Zimbabwe.

The list represents a significant expansion of a presidential proclamation issued June 4, when the United States fully restricted the entry of individuals from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The United States also had partially restricted the entry of travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela under that order.

SOURCE: THE WASHINGTON POST

Black Stars midfielder Thomas Partey has come to the defense of international teammate Mohammed Kudus following what many have called an underwhelming season at West Ham United.

Kudus, who made 35 appearances last season, managed just five goals—well below the 14 he netted during his impressive debut campaign. However, Partey believes the numbers don’t tell the whole story.

“People are quick to judge based on goals alone,” Partey said. “Yes, the goals may have dropped off, but if you’re talking about quality, Kudus hasn’t had a bad year at all.”

“He remains one of the most talented players we have in Ghana. He’s our star boy, and we all know what he’s capable of.”

Kudus has been attracting interest from some to clubs, with Chelsea and Manchester United said to be in the hunt for the Ghanaian’s services.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

The Saturday, June 14, 2025, edition of UTV’s United Showbiz programme is live with Empress Gifty discharging her duties as sit-in host.

This edition of the entertainment show is live with panellists discussing the major entertainment issues of the week.

MC Yaa Yeboah, Ziga, Amanda Jessih and Ola Michael are billed as pundits for the show.

Ama K Abebrese and Bullgod are also on the bill to bring some nuance to the conversations about the respective issues.

Watch the show below:

The government has indefinitely suspended the implementation of the GH₵1 levy on every litre of petrol and diesel, originally scheduled to take effect on Monday, June 16, 2025.

Spokesperson and Head of Communications for the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition, Richmond Rockson, Esq., announced the decision in a post on Saturday, June 14.

“The implementation date for the Energy Sector Levies (Amendment) Act, 2025 (Act 1141), which would have taken effect from Monday, 16th of June 2025, has been postponed after consultations with stakeholders. A new effective date will be communicated in due course,” Mr Rockson wrote.

This announcement comes after the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) also issued a directive postponing the operationalisation of the levy.

The GRA, in a public notice on June 13, noted that a new implementation date will be announced later, citing the need for further technical and operational readiness.

The Energy Sector Recovery Levy, introduced through recent amendments to the Energy Sector Levies Act, was expected to generate GH₵5.7 billion annually to help reduce Ghana’s over $3 billion energy sector debt and ensure fuel supply for power generation.

However, it had drawn criticism from various groups, including transport unions and civil society organisations, over its potential impact on consumers already grappling with rising living costs.

Stakeholders now await further direction from the Ministry of Finance and Energy on when the levy will officially take effect.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

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