The Pentagon says it scrapped a massive $10 billion cloud computing contract, sidestepping a bitter dispute between Amazon and Microsoft over allegations of political bias that swayed the bidding.
A Defense Department statement says the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure contract was cancelled because it no longer meets current needs and that it would start a process for a new multi-cloud computing contract.
Officials say that instead of going forward with the deal in the face of litigation, the government would start over with the aim of getting the most up-to-date technology.
Defense Department spokesman John Sherman, says JEDI, conceived with noble intent, was developed at a time when the department’s needs were different.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressed the need for a negotiated ceasefire in Tigray in a call with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
The US official called for the full withdrawal of Eritrean and regional Amhara forces from Tigray and for the authorities to ensure unhindered and safe humanitarian access to the people in need.
Mr Blinken also emphasised the urgency of holding an inclusive political dialogue to resolve the ethnic and political divisions in the country.
The conflict has pushed Tigray into a deep humanitarian crisis, with hundreds of thousands of people living in famine-like conditions.

Zimbabwe will from Wednesday circulate new 50-dollar currency notes, the highest ever denomination to be printed. The new note is only worth 60 US cents.
The new notes were launched on Tuesday and the central bank said it would circulate 360m dollars through banks.
This is the sixth denomination to be circulated in the country but the lower-value notes have not been in high circulation because of inflation.
People had to carry many notes for transactions hence the need for a higher denomination.
The new note's design features an image of anti-colonialist heroine Mbuya Nehanda.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo assured Nigerians that President Muhammadu Buhari will not waste time before signing the Petroleum Industry Bill which has just been passed by the National Assembly.
Osinbajo described the passage of the legislation as a feat noting that he was not unmindful of the challenges faced by operators in the oil and gas sector.
Osinbajo says the global lockdown triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic had pushed the industry into a state of major economic crisis and further amplified the global clamour for cleaner and more sustainable renewable energy.
Osinbajo stated that the future survival and the success of many players in the industry will not only depend on their achieving greater focus on cleaner energy sources but also upon their ability to deliver low-cost solutions to their stakeholders.

The Taraba State Governor, Darius Dickson Ishaku, has called on the Federal Government to speed up oil exploration in the northeast region of the country in order to help enhance and diversify the country’s economy.
He urged the federal government to expand and expedite exploration in the Chad basin, as well as the Benue trough, which, according to geological reports, is rich in oil and gas.
He says they anticipate that early exploitation of petroleum resources in the North-East region will increase our revenue profile.
Governor Ishaku also recommended that the Forum push for the removal of the exploration and exploitation of mineral resources from the exclusive list to the concurrent list.

The Senate has condemned the unlawful encroachment and arrest of Nigerians by the authorities of the Republic of Benin.
This stance by the upper chamber followed a motion by Senator Tolu Odebiyi during the plenary on Tuesday.
The lawmaker drew the attention of lawmakers to reports of encroachments into Nigeria’s territory by authorities of the Republic of Benin.
Odebiyi noted that the arrest of these Nigerians is based on the allegation that they are resisting encroachment into Nigerian land through Igbokofi village in Yewa North LGA of Ogun State.

The Governor of the Central bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele, has asked managers of higher institutions of learning in the country to draw knowledge from curricula that cater to the modern realities of the country.
The CBN boss emphasised the need for an enhanced learning experience for students as well as fostered innovation amongst faculty and staff in schools across the country.
Mr Emefiele says enhanced collaboration between universities and players in key sectors of the economy such as agriculture, manufacturing and ICT is necessary to enable the implementation of sound ideas generated from our universities.
Emefiele advocated collaboration between institutions of higher learning and industry key players in key sectors of the economy.

President Muhammadu Buhari commended the nation’s security and intelligence agencies for their work in arresting secessionist Nnamdi Kanu and raiding the home of ‘Yoruba Nation’ activist Sunday Igboho.
The President in a statement says the security agencies demonstrated significant deftness, guile and secrecy in carrying out these missions.
He says the level of professionalism must be sustained and brought to bear as they focus on extracting from the society those who have found a new trade-in targeting students, rural dwellers and our citizens in the North-West.

Carrie Lam, the chief executive of Hong Kong, has brushed off a warning by major tech companies including Google, Facebook and Twitter that they may quit the Chinese-controlled city if authorities go ahead with plans to change privacy laws.
Lam told reporters on Tuesday that the proposed changes would only target illegal sharing of people’s private details online without their consent.
The practise came under scrutiny in Hong Kong during the anti-government protests of 2019, when police officers were targeted after their details were released online.
The Hong Kong government is now proposing changes to the city’s privacy laws, including imposing a one-year jail term and a maximum fine of one million Hong Kong dollars for offenders who disclose personal data without consent.

Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich says they expect the Covid-19 pandemic to cost them 150 million euros ($178 million) in lost match-day revenue.
Bayern president Herbert Hainer confirmed the forecasted loss after so many games behind closed doors but insisted their ambitions have not diminished.
Bayern hopes health regulations in Bavaria will allow a limited number of fans to watch their first home game against Cologne on August 21 at the 75,000-capacity stadium.
The club’s new chairman and CEO Oliver Kahn says they want fans back in the stadium as soon as possible but safety remains the priority.
Kahn also stated next season’s target is to win a tenth straight Bundesliga title.
Kahn also revealed the club is in contract-extension talks with midfielders Leon Goretzka and Kingsley Coman.