Renowned Comedian Alibaba’s Spouse Shares Enchanting Snap of Their Trio of Bundles of Joy to Commemorate Their First Year of Life

What a momentous occasion for Alibaba and his loved ones! The commemoration of their triplets’ inaugural birthday is genuinely unforgettable.

The comedian’s better half, Mary’s sentimental post, replete with captivating images and a heartfelt message of appreciation and devotion, undoubtedly elicited immense delight from their admirers and dear ones. The names Aaron, Alexander, and Andrew also exude a beautiful symmetry.

Photo source: Instagram

Ending Russia’s all-out war in Ukraine this year is possible, according to former NATO Secretary-General Jen Stoltenberg. However, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andrii Yermak, cautioned that this would only happen on terms acceptable to the Ukrainian people.

The pair spoke during the World Economic Forum in Davos for a special edition of Euronews’ Europe Conversation.

With Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine almost entering its fourth year, attention is turning to the possibility that the war could come to an end in 2025.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented Kyiv’s victory plan last year as the key framework for achieving a just and lasting peace.

Andrii Yermak, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, told Euronews in Davos that partners and allies must “make the position of Ukraine strong for any potential future negotiations.”

‘Russia is paying a very high price’

“Wars are by nature unpredictable. So I’m very careful to predict exactly what will happen in 2025,” Stoltenberg told Euronews.

“Having said that, it’s absolutely within reach to end this war this year, not least because Russia is paying a very high price,” he added.

While Russian President Vladimir Putin thought he could take Kiyv within days, Ukraine has pushed back. Meanwhile, casualties are staggering, inflation is now officially around 10% in Russia, the national bank’s interest rate is 21%, and there is an urgent lack of workforce, according to Stoltenberg, putting Putin under pressure.

US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House might lead to an American isolationist retreat, forcing Europeans to step up their support for Kyiv.

Meanwhile, Yermak called for “close cooperation and close unity” between Europe and the US and hoped a meeting between Zelenskyy and Trump would take place “as soon as possible”.

“The challenge is that the quickest way of ending a war is to lose the war. But that will not bring peace. That will bring occupation of Ukraine. So the challenge is to end the war in the way that Ukraine prevails as a sovereign, independent nation in Europe,” Stoltenberg added.

Zelenskyy would never compromise “the independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine”, Yermak said.

One way to achieve a lasting peace in Ukraine is to give solid security guarantees, the strongest of all being Article 5, meaning NATO membership, in Stoltenberg’s views. The second best option would be “to arm Ukrainians to the teeth”.

A Lagos State High Court in Ikeja on Thursday adjourned the N1bn defamation suit filed by human rights lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) and his son Folarin, popularly known as Falz, against Martins Otse alias VeryDarkBlackMan, to February 19, 2025.

The court fixed the date to hear a preliminary objection filed by VeryDarkBlackMan, through his lawyer, Marvin Omorogbe, challenging the suit’s competence and the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.

The Falanas had dragged VeryDarkBlackMan before the court and demanded N500m each as damages over a video he posted on his social media platforms alleging that they collected N10m from Idris Okuneye, a.k.a Bobrisky, to pervert the cause of justice.

The judge had, on the last adjourned date, October 14, 2024, ordered the social media influencer to bring down the defamatory video and comments he allegedly made against the senior lawyer and his son.

Justice Matthias Dawodu had also restrained the self-acclaimed social media police from further releasing, publishing, or circulating any defamatory videos and comments against the senior lawyer and his son on all his online social media handles and pages pending the hearing of a suit filed by the duo.

The judge also ordered that all the processes in the matter be served on VeryDarkBlackMan through his lawyer, Deji Adeyanju.

At the resumed hearing of the matter on Thursday, the defence counsel, Marvin Omorogbe, informed the court that he was served with a copy of the counter-affidavit filed by the plaintiffs against his preliminary objection on Wednesday, and he needed time to respond to it.

The plaintiffs’ lawyer,  Omotade Omotunbosun, did not object to the application for adjournment.

Following the development, Justice Dawodu adjourned the matter to February 19, 2025, for a hearing.

In the application, VeryDarkBlackMan argued through his lawyer that by the provisions of Order 4 Rule 1(4) of the High Court of Lagos State (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2019, the court does not have the territorial jurisdiction to entertain this suit.

Omorogbe also argued that the defendant is domiciled and carries on business in Abuja, outside the jurisdiction of the court and that the alleged defamatory publication was made in Abuja.

He also claimed that the claimants deliberately filed the suit before the court as a way of forum shopping in the hope that they would get a favourable judgment.

In their suits, the father and son averred that the defendant knew all his comments were inaccurate and not verified, yet proceeded to publish the same to injure their reputation recklessly.

They also stated that the alleged defamatory publication was still trending in the defendant’s online handles and pages, adding that the injury to their reputation continues as long as the publication remains online.

The applicant alleged that in the unverified audio recording of a one-sided narrative by the alleged Bobrisky, the said Bobrisky never said that the claimant/applicant herein collected N10m from him, yet the defendant recklessly stated that Femi Falana collected N10m from Bobrisky.

The Falanas are seeking the following reliefs: “a declaration that the publication of the defendant made on September 24, 2024, on his Instagram handle, @verydarkblackman, wherein he specifically targeted the Claimant, is libellous, slanderous, derogatory, scandalous and defamatory.

“The sum of N500,000,000.00 (Five Hundred Million Naira Only) for defamation of character contained in the defendant’s video publication of September 24, 2024, on his Instagram handle @verydarkblackman.

“An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendant, his agents or servants or otherwise from further publishing or causing to be published the said or similar words of defamatory to the claimant.

“An order directing the defendant to publish an apology to the claimant on all his social media handles/pages for the defamatory words contained in the video complained of and in one National Daily Newspaper.”