Obama Denies Illegal Aunt.. plus more

Etisalat Begins Operations...
Following the roll-out of full commercial services as announced by Etisalat Nigeria , the fastest growing telecommunications outfit in the world, in Lagos last Thursday, eager subscribers have continued to throng the company’s designated centers to redeem their reserved numbers and take advantage of its unique service offerings. Redemption centers, which include Etisalat shops around Nigeria and selected branches of Oceanic Bank, Sweet Sensation and Big Treat Supermarket, have since witnessed a large turn out of subscribers in a bid to redeem their Easy Starter prepaid packs. The Easy Starter package is the innovative prepaid product of Etisalat Nigeria designed to give subscribers the power to enhance as well as maximize both air and talk time. The innovative package comes with unique features that easily distinguish it as the brand of choice; they are the homezone tariff plan, Receiver Pays (or Call Collect) and Recharge Others. It is important to note that subscribers can enjoy all these services by default as they are automatically activated as soon as the subscriber joins the network.”

Obama Denies Illegal Aunt
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has said he was not aware that he had a Kenyan aunt living illegally in the United States. The Associated Press news agency says Zeituni Onyango lost a bid for asylum four years ago. The Obama campaign issued a statement: "Senator Obama has no knowledge of her status but obviously believes that any and all appropriate laws be followed." According to AP, Ms Onyango is the half-sister of Mr Obama's late father. She has been living in public housing in Boston, it adds. AP says its information about Ms Onyango, 56, is based on two separate sources, one of them a federal law enforcement official. Ms Onyango, referred to as "Auntie Zeituni" in Mr Obama's memoir, was instructed to leave America by a US immigration judge who had denied her asylum request, a "person familiar with the matter" told AP late on Friday. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because "no-one was authorised to discuss Onyango's case". According to reports, Ms Onyango has not been mentioned in the presidential candidate's speeches and "is not someone who has been part of the public discussion about his personal life".

Gaddafi Meets With Putin
Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has arrived in Russia for three days of talks expected to concentrate on boosting energy ties and arms trade. It is Col Gaddafi's first visit since Soviet times, and follows Vladimir Putin's trip to Libya in April. The two countries signed several big contracts at the time. A Russian newspaper quoted a source saying Col Gaddafi would offer Russia a naval base in Libya, though neither country has confirmed the report. "During these talks the colonel intends to raise the issue of opening a base for Russia's navy in the Libyan port of Benghazi," wrote the business daily Kommersant, quoting a source involved in preparing the visit. Russia has only one naval base operating in a foreign country - in Sevastopol in Ukraine. But Ukraine's president has made clear he would like that closed when Russia's lease is up in 2017. Russia has increasingly been looking for military partners abroad. Russian warships docked in Libya this month before taking part in joint naval exercises with the Venezuelan navy.