Foreign / History / News

Germany to return 1,130 looted Benin Bronzes to Nigeria – Lai Mohammed

Nigeria’s Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed says Nigeria has signed an agreement with Germany for the repatriation of over 1,130 looted Benin Bronze artifacts back to the country.

The Minister disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Washington DC, United States on Tuesday.

This was after three museums in the US repatriated 31 Benin Bronze artefacts to Nigeria.

He commended the German Government for that effort, adding that Nigeria is also getting positive response from France and Mexico to return some of its stolen artefacts.

In 1897 during a British raid on Benin, the royal palace was torched and looted, and the oba (ruler) was exiled.

The British confiscated all royal treasures, giving some to individual officers and taking most to auction in London.

The estimated 3,000 objects eventually made their way into museums and private collections around the world.

The Minister said the world had seen that it was an ethical and moral issue to return the artefacts to their owners, noting that it is not a matter of law as claimed by the British Government.

Mohammed said: ““This is important for the British Museum to understand and for the British Government to know, because I was also in the British Museum to ask them to return thousands of the artefacts in its custody.

“The standard response is that until the British Parliament changes the status, they are not in position to so do.

“The US and Germany are now seeing that this matter is not of law, but of morality.

“It is about doing the right thing.

“I hope that the British Government will also learn from the two countries and do same.”

According to Mohammed, Nigeria is planning to sign an agreement with the British Government on November 28 to return about 86 other artefacts from various museums in UK.

The Minister told NAN that the campaign of the current administration for the return of and restitution of Nigeria’s looted/smuggled artefacts from around the world, which was launched in November 2019, …

Football / Sports

Harry Kane late penalty rescues England draw at Germany in Nations League clash

Harry Kane scored a late penalty to help England secure a vital 1-1 draw at Germany in the UEFA Nations League on Tuesday.

Jonas Hofmann put the Germans ahead after 50 minutes but the visitors were awarded a penalty in the final five minutes.

After a long VAR check, Nico Schlotterbeck was adjudged to have brought down Kane in the area and Kane equalized from the spot to claim his 50th international goal.

The result means that England came away with one point from their opening two Nations League games after defeat to Hungary on the weekend.

After suffering a first defeat by Hungary for 60 years on Saturday in their opening League A, Group Three fixture, England fielded an experienced lineup in a noisy Allianz Arena but were second best for much of the clash.

Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Hofmann had the ball in the England net early on as Germany dominated but an offside flag cut short his celebrations.

He was not to be denied though and he beat Jordan Pickford with a powerful, slightly-deflected shot from the edge of the penalty area five minutes after the interval.

Despite a rather labored performance, England had their chances with Bukayo Saka inches away in first-half stoppage time and Mason Mount and Kane both denied by Germany keeper Manuel Neuer as England sought a leveler.

“It is really important to show the mentality, 1-0 behind we showed good character to get back into the game and get a result,” Kane, who is now three goals behind England’s all-time top scorer Wayne Rooney, said.

“We were playing against a very good Germany side. We kept going and played our best football in the last half an hour.”

It was a frustrating end to the game for Germany who have drawn both their opening matches in the group. England, who face group leaders Italy at the weekend, are bottom.

Germany were far sharper for most of the evening and thought they had gone ahead midway through the first half when Hofmann galloped clear …

Football / Foreign / Sports

Germany’s Olympic football team leaves pitch after alleged racist abuse towards Torunarigha during Honduras clash

The Germany Olympics team’s friendly match against Honduras came to an abrupt end on Saturday when the players walked off the field because of alleged racist abuse directed at Jordan Torunarigha.

Stefan Kuntz’s side faced the Central American nation in preparation for the 2020 Olympics, which begin next week.

The teams were tied at 1-1, with Germany equalizer thanks to a goal from Felix Uduokhai, before the alleged incident took place.

What has happened?

The players walked off the field with five minutes left to play.

The Germany Olympics football team’s Twitter account claimed that the players decided to leave because defender Torunarigha had been racially insulted.

“The game had to be stopped five minutes before the end when the score was 1-1. After our player Jordan Torunarigha was racially insulted, the German team left the field together,” the short update read.

The DFB has confirmed to that the alleged insult was made by one of the Honduras players.

There were no spectators at the match, which was a behind-closed-doors game played in Wakayama, Japan.

What’s been said?

Speaking after the match, Kuntz commented: “In terms of the game, it was very high level. In the third period I was wondering what was going on with Jordan. Five minutes before the end of the game there was a scuffle.

“I ran to Jordan because I saw his gestures. He was getting terribly upset. He said that he had been racially insulted for the second time. We decided to leave the pitch because it was against our values.

“The whole Honduras squad came over to the bench and apologized. That ended the issue for us and Jordan.”

“His (Torunarigha’s) team-mates picked him up straight away, gave him a hug for the first few minutes. He was very upset. But you could tell that he was happy to be with us. At the end, we even joked a bit again. “The team is doing a great job. Of course, it helps when you see your colleagues supporting you. It’s also a strong …

Football / Sports

England beat Germany as Sterling and Kane send them to Euro 2020 last eight

For England, it was always going to be about finding the moment, the one to blow apart a tight game, to cut through so much negative tournament history – particularly at the hands of Germany. And for long spells, as the tension rose to near unbearable levels at a raucous and emotional Wembley, the home crowd wondered whether it would come.

Gareth Southgate had reverted to a 3-4-3, ignoring the clamor for greater fantasy and more creative players. It was the England manager sticking bravely to his principles, seeking security, the platform for the moment, and a part of the equation was patience, which was not in abundant supply inside the stadium.

Germany had shown their quality in the first half, particularly early on, yet England came to match them physically and tactically. The longer the second half wore on, the greater the assurance of those in white shirts. Could they find the incision, the note of clarity?

Southgate had called for a hero, somebody to score a goal that will live for ever, and with 15 minutes to go he found one. Yet again, it was Raheem Sterling. After his match-winners in the group stage against Croatia and the Czech Republic, Sterling bristled with confidence and hard running. The qualities were stamped all over the goal that ignited English dreams.

Southgate had introduced Jack Grealish from the bench and the midfielder was involved in the move, taking a pass from Harry Kane and ushering in the overlapping Luke Shaw on the left. But it was Sterling who started the move and it was he who finished it, driving into the box to guide home Shaw’s low delivery. Sterling has scored 15 times in his past 20 England appearances.

The abiding image of the occasion from a German point of view would come shortly after. It was of Thomas Müller, his face contorted in despair. It was always going to be about moments and Germany’s came on 81 minutes when the veteran was sent clean through by Kai Havertz.

A …

Football / Sports

Pitch invader with rainbow flag protest ahead of Germany vs Hungary

A pitch invader carrying a rainbow flag was tackled as they protested during the pre-match anthems ahead of Germany’s Euro 2020 clash against Hungary on Wednesday.

The supporter entered the pitch wearing a Germany shirt and brandished the flag during the Hungarian national anthem.

They attempted to run towards the Hungary players before stewards rushed towards them and tackled them.

The protest came after UEFA turned down a request from the mayor of Munich for the city’s stadium to be lit up in rainbow colors for the Euro 2020 Group F match between Germany and Hungary.

Dieter Reiter said he wanted to light up the stadium in the colors in protest against a new law in Hungary that bans the dissemination of content in schools deemed to promote homosexuality and gender change.

On that basis, UEFA said it could not grant the request and proposed alternative dates for the stadium to be lit up in rainbow colors.

The controversy follows UEFA’s decision to drop an investigation into Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer’s wearing of a rainbow-colored armband in Germany’s Euro 2020 matches against France and Portugal.

The Bayern ‘keeper had been wearing the armband, which is a symbol of solidarity with the LGBT+ community, during Pride Month in June.…

Football / Sports

UEFA sending ‘wrong signal’ with rainbow stadium refusal: Germany

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Wednesday criticized UEFA’s decision to block plans to light Munich’s Allianz Arena stadium in rainbow colors for Germany’s Euro 2020 match against Hungary.

“It’s true, the football pitch is not about politics,” Maas wrote on Twitter after the European football body blamed the “political context” for its decision.

“It’s about people, about fairness, about tolerance. That’s why @UEFA is sending the wrong signal,” he said.

City authorities had wanted the Allianz Arena — owned by Bayern Munich, but rented to UEFA for Euro 2020 — in rainbow colors for the crucial Group F match to “send a visible sign of solidarity” with Hungary’s LGBT community.

But UEFA refused the request, insisting it must remain a “politically and religiously neutral organization”.

Hungary’s right-wing government last week passed a law banning the “promotion” of homosexuality to minors, outlawing any educational programs or material in which homosexuality is mentioned.

UEFA’s move drew condemnation from football personalities across Europe, as well as from Germany’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender community.

After UEFA’s refusal, Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter announced plans to decorate other city landmarks in rainbow colors.

Munich will put up rainbow-colored flags at its town hall and illuminate a huge wind turbine close to the stadium, as well as the city’s 291-metre (955-foot) Olympic Tower.

Other stadiums across Germany are also planning rainbow light displays, including Berlin’s iconic Olympic Stadium, as well as Bundesliga stadiums in Cologne, Frankfurt and Wolfsburg.…