2025 LSFA President Federation Cup: Ikorodu City set for battle against Inter Lagos in final

 The stage is now set for the grand finale of the 2025 Lagos President Federation Cup.  

Defending champions Ikorodu City FC and Inter Lagos FC will set the prestigious Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, ablaze on Sunday when they clash in the final match of the Lagos 2025 President Federation Cup.  

To qualify for the final, Inter Lagos defeated First Bank 1-0 in the first semi-final game played earlier on Friday at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena.  

Meanwhile, high-flying NPFL side Ikorodu City overcame a resilient Sporting Lagos 2-1 in the second game of the day to book a spot in the final and, of course, secure a place in the national championship.  

The final match between both sides is expected to be fiercely contested, as Ikorodu City aims to claim a third consecutive title, while Inter Lagos will make a bold attempt to rewrite history with a victory.  

Earlier on Friday at the Legacy Pitch of the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, perennial winners of the women's category, Robo Queens, were prevented from securing a record-extending 15th title by Unification Queens, who won a tense semi-final clash 4-3 on penalties. They will now face the formidable Dannaz Ladies, who thrashed Unizee Shella FC 6-0, in the final.  

Justin Bieber, Snoop Dogg Among Celebs Participating in Benefit Hockey Game for L.A. Wildfire Relief

 Justin Bieber reacts during the 2017 NHL All-Star Celebrity Shootout as part of the 2017 NHL All-Star Weekend at STAPLES Center on Jan. 28, 2017 in Los Angeles.

Leon Bennett/Getty Images

Justin Bieber is among the stars set to participate in a benefit hockey game aimed at raising funds for those impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires.

Actor Steve Carell and musician Ross Lynch will join the Canadian superstar as they lace up for “Skate For LA Strong: A Celebration to Support the Fire Recovery Efforts in Los Angeles,” scheduled for Sunday (Feb. 23) at Crypto.com Arena in L.A.

The Chairman, Osun State Independent Electoral Commission, OSIEC, Chairman, Hashim Abioye who announced the results in a video on the social media, declared the 30 Chairmanship candidates of the PDP elected and the 332 councillors elected in their respective local government and wards.

 The result announcement, which had selected media outfits present, was allegedly done at the Government House in Osogbo as the police had sealed off the commission’s office in the state capital.

His words as recorded in the video, “The Local Government election has been successfully concluded. It was conducted in compliance with constitutional provisions, extant laws, regulations and guidelines.

Six isreal hostage

 Six Israeli hostages, including four kidnapped during the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, were released on Saturday.

Tal Shoham, Omer Shem Tov, Eliya Cohen and Omer Wenkert were taken captive during the Nova musical festival.

The two other released hostages, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, were held in Gaza for years - Mr Mengistu since 2014 and Mr al-Sayed since 2015.

Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were due to be freed later on Saturday in an exchange for the six hostages, but the release was delayed by some hours. It is unclear why, and a decision on when - or if - they will be released is expected after a meeting of Israel's security cabinet.

The six Israeli hostages released on Saturday are the final living hostages to be returned as part of the first phase of a ceasefire deal which is set to end next Saturday. Israel and Hamas have yet to agree the terms of a second phase.

The BBC understands 50 of the 602 Palestinian prisoners due to be released are serving life sentences, according to a Palestinian prisoners' media office statement.

The bodies of four more hostages are expected to be transferred to Israel next week in what is supposed to be the final step in the first phase of the ceasefire.

There are 62 hostages taken on 7 October 2023 who are still being held by Hamas, around half of whom are believed to be alive. More are set to be freed in the next phase of the three-stage ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which is scheduled to start on 1 March.

Hamas began releasing hostages, facilitated by the Red Cross, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in January.

Initial chaotic scenes become more choreographed, with hostages flanked by fighters on stages before the handovers.

Mr Shoham, 40, and Mr Mengistu, 39, were passed to the Red Cross in Rafah, south Gaza before being transferred to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Mr Shoham was visiting family at Kibbutz Be'eri in October 2023 when he and others, including his wife and two children, were kidnapped by Hamas. His captured family members were released after 50 days.

In a statement, his family said: "This is an unforgettable moment, where all emotions are rapidly mixing togetherSix Israeli hostages, including four kidnapped during the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, were released on Saturday.

Tal Shoham, Omer Shem Tov, Eliya Cohen and Omer Wenkert were taken captive during the Nova musical festival.

The two other released hostages, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, were held in Gaza for years - Mr Mengistu since 2014 and Mr al-Sayed since 2015.

Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were due to be freed later on Saturday in an exchange for the six hostages, but the release was delayed by some hours. It is unclear why, and a decision on when - or if - they will be released is expected after a meeting of Israel's security cabinet.

The six Israeli hostages released on Saturday are the final living hostages to be returned as part of the first phase of a ceasefire deal which is set to end next Saturday. Israel and Hamas have yet to agree the terms of a second phase.

The BBC understands 50 of the 602 Palestinian prisoners due to be released are serving life sentences, according to a Palestinian prisoners' media office statement.

The bodies of four more hostages are expected to be transferred to Israel next week in what is supposed to be the final step in the first phase of the ceasefire.

There are 62 hostages taken on 7 October 2023 who are still being held by Hamas, around half of whom are believed to be alive. More are set to be freed in the next phase of the three-stage ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which is scheduled to start on 1 March.

Hamas began releasing hostages, facilitated by the Red Cross, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in January.

Initial chaotic scenes become more choreographed, with hostages flanked by fighters on stages before the handovers.

Mr Shoham, 40, and Mr Mengistu, 39, were passed to the Red Cross in Rafah, south Gaza before being transferred to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Mr Shoham was visiting family at Kibbutz Be'eri in October 2023 when he and others, including his wife and two children, were kidnapped by Hamas. His captured family members were released after 50 days.

In a statement, his family said: "This is an unforgettable moment, where all emotions are rapidly mixing together. Our Tal is with us."

. Our Tal is with us."

Heaith news

 internal organs. This advancement has potential utility from medical prognosis to cancer therapy and has been proven useful from both theoretical and practical perspectives.

Revolutionary New Imaging Technique Introduced

By making surrounding tissues almost invisible to the eye, scientists have come up with a novel method of viewing organs in the body.

A materially self-explanatory mechanism – a swab application of edible pigment – proved reversible when tested with a living subject model and could find applications in diagnostics encompassing finding trauma such as concussive forces to the serosa and interactions within the gut to even malignant contagions.

Stanford University researchers published the research ″Achieving optical transparency in live animals with absorbing molecules″ in the September 6, 2024 issue of Science.

″Geographically, further usage of this technology may improve the visibility of the veins enabling the extraction of blood, simplify the process of laser-assisted tattoo clearance, and/or improve the early treatment of cancers″, Stanford University, Guosong Hong, Assistant Professor at Materials Science and Engineering Division, NSF CAREER awardee who co-led this work. Lets consider these possibilities: cancer and pre-cancerous cells are eliminated through a laser. Actually, the laser can only be used very close to the surface of the skin. This is a situation where this technique may be able to enhance

Afternoon news

 Millions of residents in northern Nigeria have been placed under 24-hour curfews amid nationwide protests against the high cost of living.

Governments in the states of Kano, Jigawa, Yobe and Katsina have ordered locals not to leave their homes - and therefore not attend protests - on Friday.

The authorities say the curfew is necessary because "hoodlums" have hijacked the protests in order to loot and vandalise properties.

There is a heavy security presence around the country with nine more "days of rage" scheduled by the movement's organisers.

Did you know phone

 This Galaxy Z Flip 6 rival may have everything it needs to challenge Samsung in the US

Android Authority / Ryan McNeal / 14 hours ago

Credit: Hadlee Simons / Android Authority

• It was discovered that the Xiaomi Mix Flip supports all 5G bands used by US carriers.
• It’s unknown if Xiaomi plans to offer the clamshell foldable in the US, but this would open up the possibility.
• It was confirmed earlier that the Mix Flip will ship outside of China.

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Introduced earlier this month, the Mix Flip is Xiaomi’s first foray into the clamshell foldable space. If you were hoping this could be a worthy alternative to the Galaxy Z Flip 6, you’ll be disappointed to learn that it is not sold in the US. However, there is evidence to suggest that Xiaomi may be thinking about changing that.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), frequent tipster chunvn8888 claims that his friend has confirmed that the Mix Flip fully supports all US 5G bands. It appears support was added for these bands after a recent update.

Our own Mishaal Rahman responded to the post, adding that he hasn’t heard of any plans to offer the Mix Flip in the US. However, if this is true, the phone should work just fine in the US. Rahman also warns that if you do decide to import a Mix Flip, you should make sure to import a global model as certain features like Quick Share and Android Auto won’t work on the Chinese ROM.

It’s also important to note that the European version isn’t technically the global version either. The European model has a ROM that’s optimized for European standards.

When Xiaomi launched the Mix Flip, it was unknown if the device would be sold outside of China. But it was recently confirmed that the company plans on going international, with a release expected in at least five European countries. With Xiaomi adding support for all 5G bands used by US carriers, there’s a possibility the firm is at least considering a launch in the US.