Storytimes Newspapers

  The dramatic events unfolding in the Middle East have escalated sharply, with Iran launching missile and drone strikes on February 28, 2026, targeting the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet headquarters in Manama, Bahrain, among other sites. This appears to be a direct retaliatory response to prior U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iranian targets, which reportedly included the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and strikes on Revolutionary Guard facilities. Bahrain's government confirmed that a missile attack struck the Fifth Fleet's service center, describing it as a violation of national sovereignty. Emergency response teams were deployed, and air defense systems intercepted many incoming projectiles—Bahrain's Defence Force reported successfully downing 45 missiles and 9 drones, including Shahed-136 types. Videos circulating online show explosions, thick black smoke rising near the base, and impacts in the vicinity, including near residential areas and possibly off-ba...

  The sail-shaped Burj Al Arab, one of the world's most recognizable luxury hotels, experienced a minor fire on its outer facade early Sunday following Iranian retaliatory attacks across the Gulf region. Authorities confirmed the fire resulted from debris of an intercepted drone, not a direct "suicide drone" strike as some initial viral claims suggested. According to the Dubai Media Office, air defense systems successfully intercepted the incoming drone, but falling debris ignited a small blaze on the building's exterior. Civil Defense teams responded swiftly, extinguishing the fire with no injuries reported at the landmark property. "Authorities confirm that a drone was intercepted, and debris caused a minor fire on the Burj Al Arab's outer facade," the office stated on X (formerly Twitter). "Civil Defense teams responded immediately and brought the incident under control." The incident occurred amid a broader wave of Iranian missile and drone...

 In a dramatic escalation of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, Iranian state media has officially confirmed the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Islamic Republic's paramount leader since 1989. The 86-year-old cleric was killed in a targeted airstrike on his compound in Tehran during a major joint military operation carried out by the United States and Israel on Saturday, February 28, 2026. The confirmation came early Sunday morning local time via outlets including IRNA, Tasnim News, and Fars News Agency, which described Khamenei as having been "martyred" in the "criminal joint attack by the United States and the Zionist regime." Iranian state television broadcast emotional announcements, declaring a 40-day period of national mourning and seven public holidays. Reports indicate the strike hit Khamenei's office or residential complex in central Tehran as part of a broader campaign dubbed "Operation Epic Fury," aimed at degra...

  Iranian missile and drone attacks in retaliation for prior US-Israeli strikes have targeted key sites across the United Arab Emirates, causing casualties and widespread disruption to aviation and landmarks. In Abu Dhabi, authorities confirmed an "incident" at Zayed International Airport resulting from intercepted Iranian projectiles. Falling debris led to one fatality — an Asian national — and seven injuries, according to Abu Dhabi Airports' statement on X. The UAE Ministry of Defence reported intercepting 137 ballistic missiles and 209 drones nationwide, preventing larger-scale damage. At Dubai International Airport (DXB), the world's busiest for international passengers, a concourse sustained minor damage in what Dubai's media office described as a quickly contained incident. Four staff members were injured, with emergency teams responding immediately. Aviation sources indicated terminal damage from overnight attacks, prompting the indefinite suspension of all...

  The Oyo empire was a large West African empire founded in approximately the 1300CE. Oyo Alaafin descended from the historical figure, Oduduwa or Olofin. Thus, an integral portion of the Yoruba nation. The ‘Yoruba’ were said to have migrated from Ile-Ife as their principal centre of civilisation with Oranyan, the grandson of Oduduwa as the first Alaafin of Oyo. It should be noted that the descendants of Oduduwa instituted various kingdoms, Oyo, Ijesha, Ijebu, Ondo, Owo, Osun, Ketu, Ekiti etc. Also, oral history has a particular strong effect on Oyo history much more than other contemporary West African empires as Yoruba cosmology focuses on an earlier kingdom , Ife, which provide the foundation for the Oyo Empires. Early in the 16th century, Oyo was a minor state which was led by the founder, king-Alaafin of Oyo Oranmiyan whose position on earth was comparable to that of the supreme Being in heaven probably because of his strong reputation as a military leader. The Alaafin ruled w...