Author: KahawaTungu Reporter

TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance has signed binding agreements with US and global investors to sell the majority of its business in America, TikTok’s boss told employees on Thursday. Half of the joint venture will be owned by a group of investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake and the Emirati investment firm MGX, according to a memo sent by chief executive Shou Zi Chew. The deal, which is set to close on 22 January, would end years of efforts by Washington to force ByteDance to sell its US operations over national security concerns. The deal is line with one unveiled in September,…

Violence erupted in Bangladesh following the death of a prominent leader of the youth movement that ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Sharif Osman Hadi was shot by masked attackers while leaving a mosque in Dhaka last week and died of his injuries on Thursday while being treated in Singapore. The shooting came a day after Bangladeshi authorities announced a date for the first elections since the uprising in 2024, which Hadi had been planning to contest as an independent candidate. As news of his death emerged on Thursday, hundreds of his supporters gathered in a square in the capital…

A former NASCAR driver and his family were among the seven people killed in a plane crash at a regional airport in North Carolina, the car-racing organization has said. A highway patrol spokesman said people on the ground confirmed that Greg Biffle was among those who boarded the plane. The Cessna C550 crashed while landing at Statesville Regional Airport around 10:20 local time (15:20GMT), officials investigating the incident told reporters. “Greg was more than a champion driver, he was a beloved member of the NASCAR community, a fierce competitor, and a friend to so many,” Nascar said in a statement…

A Romanian court has sentenced Wiz Khalifa to nine months in prison for smoking cannabis on stage. The American rapper, real name Thomaz Cameron Jibril, admitted to smoking a joint during his performance at the Beach, Please! festival last year in Costinesti. A Romanian appeals court overturned an earlier fine of 3,600 Romanian lei (£619; $829) for drug possession and ruled the rapper must serve the sentence in custody. However he was sentenced in absentia, and it is unclear if Jibril is even in Romania – he was last seen on Tuesday, performing with Gunna in California. The BBC has…

Pope Leo named Bishop Aldon Ronald Hicks who, like the pope, is from the Chicago area and served in Latin America, as the next archbishop of New York. Bishop Hicks, 58, will lead one of the Roman Catholic Church’s most populous and important postings in the US. He replaces retiring Cardinal Timothy Dolan, 75, who was seen as a conservative with close ties to President Donald Trump. Hicks said he accepted his appointment, which was announced on Thursday, with “an open heart” and Dolan called it “an early Christmas gift” for New Yorkers. Last month, Hicks joined other bishops to…

There was a double tragedy when a 21-year-old diver died while trying to retrieve the body of another man who had drowned in a pool of water in Thegu area, Chaka, Nyeri County. Police said the incident occurred on the evening of December 17, at an abandoned quarry. According to the police, 65-year-old Samuel Kabiru was found drowned in the water at the quarry. The circumstances of the drowning of Kabiru are under probe, police said. When police were informed of the incident, they visited the scene and started to locate and retrieve the body. It was then that two…

David Munyua created history by becoming the first Kenyan to win at the Paddy Power World Darts Championship on Thursday, stunning Mike De Decker in his 3-2 comeback victory. Munyua had already created darting history by becoming the first representative from Kenya at Alexandra Palace, but went a step further with a momentous triumph against former World Grand Prix champion De Decker. The 30-year-old had trailed 2-0, but survived three match darts from the Belgian number one in the fourth set before holding his nerve to level the game at 2-2. Munyua, who qualified through the African Darts Group Qualifier,…

A jinxed man hacked his separated wife to death in an incident in Kabati, Muranga County. Pauline Warugu, 35, succumbed to her injuries in hospital after the attack on December 16 in Riandegwa area, police said. The deceased was with her mother, and they were headed to till in their local piece of land when the said assailant, who had trailed Warugu to the area, struck. He hit her in the head before escaping. She was rushed to Kenol hospital, where she was treated and later referred to Murang’a General Hospital where she was undergoing treatment before she succumbed to…

Police have mapped out notorious routes where they will deploy mobile courts to address cases where motorists flout traffic rules. Motorists flouting traffic rules during this festive season were told Thursday to expect to face instant justice with the deployment of mobile courts. Deputy Inspector General of Kenya Police Eliud Lagat revealed the police had mapped out hot spots where most motorists are likely to flout traffic rules. He said they have mobilised more personnel to be deployed to the places together with those from the judiciary. “We have mapped out the hot spots and we want to make sure…

A four-year-old girl died after she was crushed by a perimeter wall in Shianda, Mumias, Kakamega County. Police said the incident happened at the Queens Guest House on Thursday morning. The girl was in the company of her elder sister and was crossing the perimeter wall into the guest house compound when it tumbled on them. Police said the elder sister was helping the deceased young girl to cross when a section of the wall collapsed on her. She was rushed to a local private hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival, police said. Police said they are investigating…

As 2025 draws to a close, Safaricom has reflected on a milestone year for its flagship mobile money platform, M-PESA, marked by major anniversaries, expanded financial services and strong industry recognition. The year was significant on two fronts: Safaricom marked its 25th anniversary, while M-PESA celebrated 18 years since launch, a moment executives described as a transition from rapid growth to maturity, resilience and long-term sustainability. According to Safaricom Chief Financial Services Officer Esther Masese Waititu, 2025 saw accelerated investments under its “Fintech 2.0” strategy, focused on modernising M-PESA’s core infrastructure to enhance security, scalability and reliability. The platform now…

The House on Wednesday voted to pass a bill that could imprison health care providers for providing gender-affirming care for minors. The bill — titled the “Protect Children’s Innocence Act” and sponsored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia — would make it a class C felony to treat minors with gender-affirming care like surgeries and puberty blockers. If enacted, the bill could imprison doctors who provide such care for up to ten years. It’s unclear whether the GOP-led Senate will take up the measure, though it is unlikely it would get enough Democratic support to pass out of that…

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he would be issuing checks to members of the United States military for $1,776 – in honor of the country’s founding – calling the payment the “Warrior Dividend.” “1,450,000 military service members will receive a special, we call, warrior dividend before Christmas. A warrior dividend. In honor of our nation’s founding in 1776, we are sending every soldier $1,776,” Trump said during his televised address to the nation. “And the checks are already on the way.” Trump credited tariffs for bringing in money, though he didn’t say directly how the initiative would be funded.…

The Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) directed the commencement of investigations into the death of singer Betty Bayo, real name Beatrice Wairimu Mbugua. In a letter to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, the DPP asked for investigations into Bayo’s death and findings forwarded to the prosecutors within seven days. This is after the singer’s mother Joyce Wairimu, on December 9, 2025 wrote a letter to the DPP asking for an inquest into the death of her daughter. The gospel artist died on November 10, 2025, at the Kenyatta National Hospital, where the family said…

A girl aged eight was found murdered in a house in Tokomta village, Mulot, Narok County. She had her throat slit when the body was discovered on Wednesday, December 17 evening, police said. The motive of the murder was not immediately known. The mother of the girl said she sent her to a neighbor’s house for salt, but she did not return as anticipated. This prompted the family to start looking for her hours later when they stumbled on the body lying on the floor in the house and in a pool of blood. Her neck had been slit by…