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FGM has been illegal in Burkina Faso since 1996, and carries a jail term of up to three years. (PHOTO/ AFP)

 

The fight against female genital mutilation (FGM) is being undermined by families taking girls to other countries to put them through the procedure, the United Nations warned Friday.

It called for concerted global action to tackle cross-border and transnational FGM, including so-called “vacation cutting” by families in the West.

 

 

Although many countries have stepped up efforts to eradicate FGM, the practice continues across the world, in part due to the “clandestine” practice of taking girls abroad, a report from the UN human rights office said.

 

 

Families, particularly in Europe and North America, take their daughters to their countries and communities of origin to undergo FGM during school holidays, the office said.

 

 

Though most countries in Africa have criminalised the practice, the report said some countries were serving as “transnational FGM hubs”, while in some cases, the cutters move across borders to carry out the procedure.

“Female genital mutilation is part of a continuum of gender-based violence and has no place in a human rights-respecting universe,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.

 

 

 

“It must be eliminated in all its forms, and the gender stereotypes and patriarchal norms that anchor and perpetuate it uprooted.”

 

 

The UN children’s agency UNICEF defines FGM as “the partial or total removal of the female external genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons”.

 

 

It can lead to serious health problems, including infections, bleeding, infertility and complications in childbirth, and impairs sexual pleasure.

Turk called for countries to addresses the root causes and the consequences of FGM, by harmonising legal and policy frameworks and enforcing them.

 

 

 

According to the UNFPA — the UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency — more than 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone FGM.

 

 

“If the practice continues at the current pace, an estimated 68 million girls will undergo FGM between 2015 and 2030,” the report said.

 

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Transfer: Real Madrid , Cucurella Reach Verbal Agreement 

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Chelsea reliable defender, Marc Cucurella may join Spanish giant, Real Madrid before the end of the current transfer window.if information from transfer journalist, Fabrizio Romano are anything to go by.

 

Romano In a latest transfer update, said Real Madrid has reached verbal agreement to sign Marc Cucurella from Chelsea.

“Verbal agreement in place between all parties, player too — he’s the left back wanted by Mourinho” the update read.

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Hakimi, Vinicius Barred From Speaking Spanish At World Cup

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FIFA has come under scrutiny after several high-profile players, including Achraf Hakimi and Vinicius Junior, were discouraged from speaking Spanish during media engagements at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States.

 

The issue first surfaced ahead of Morocco’s Group C clash with Brazil when a Spanish-speaking journalist attempted to question Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi in Spanish.

Despite Hakimi, who grew up in Madrid and speaks the language fluently, indicating he was comfortable answering in Spanish, event officials reportedly insisted that questions be asked in English.

Hakimi attempted to reassure organizers that language would not be a barrier, but officials maintained that no Spanish translator was available for the session. A compromise was eventually reached, with the reporter asking the question in Spanish while Hakimi responded in English.

The controversy intensified during Brazil’s media session when Vinicius Junior was also interrupted while responding to a question in Spanish.

The Real Madrid forward, who is more comfortable speaking Portuguese or Spanish than English, was reportedly asked by organizers to switch languages.

Rather than continue in Spanish, Vinicius opted to answer in Portuguese before turning his attention back to Brazil’s World Cup preparations.

The incidents sparked widespread debate among journalists and fans, many of whom questioned why Spanish—a language spoken by millions across North America—was effectively restricted at a tournament being hosted largely in the United States.

According to Spanish media outlet El País, FIFA only provides Spanish-language translation services at World Cup press conferences involving Spanish-speaking nations such as Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Ecuador, and Paraguay.

For all other teams, questions and answers are expected to be conducted either in English or the official language of the participating country.

The policy has generated criticism online, with many supporters arguing that multilingual communication should be encouraged at a global event like the World Cup.

The backlash was particularly strong in Vinicius’ case, as the Brazilian forward appeared visibly uncomfortable being asked to communicate in English.

The controversy overshadowed what was otherwise a highly anticipated encounter between Brazil and Morocco, which ended in a 1-1 draw.

With the issue now drawing international attention, FIFA may face increasing calls to review its media language guidelines as the tournament progresses.

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It’s Illegal’…Falana’s Bombshell Indicts Govs, FG.

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Human rights advocate, Femi Falana, has warned federal and state governments against negotiating with and rewarding terrorists.

 

According to Falana, the practice is illegal.

He stated this while delivering the keynote address at the Amnesty International Second Annual General Meeting in Abuja on June 13, 2026.

Falana claimed it is public knowledge officials of the Federal Government and some State Governments have been holding meetings and negotiating with terrorists and bandits, which has led to thousands of ‘repentant’ criminals being forgiven and given cash gifts of undisclosed sums of money.

Asserting that the “satanic Boko Haram sect and similar bodies have been proscribed” under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, Falana insisted that “their members and allies shall be prosecuted and not pampered and forgiven by the Nigerian State.”

Highlighting the legal consequences, he quoted Section 22 of the Act, stating: “A person who knowingly—(a) arranges, manages, assists in arranging or managing, participates in a meeting or an activity, which in his knowledge is concerned or connected with an act of terrorism or terrorist group, (b) collects, or provides logistics, equipment, information, articles or facilities for a meeting or an activity, which in his knowledge is concerned or connected with an act of terrorism or terrorist group, or (c) attends a meeting, which in his knowledge is to support a proscribed entity or to further the objectives of a proscribed entity, commits an offence, and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of at least 20 years.”

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