News & Announcements

A pregnant woman named Mrs. Mary Barka was murdered by three kidnappers using native Awka-made weapons when they attacked Pelachiroma village in the Hawul Local Government Area of Borno state. The kidnappers were thought to be bandits.

In an interview with journalists on Monday, Yohanna, the vigilante/hunters’ leader, claimed that the incident had been reported a few days earlier after the suspects had raided the hamlet and made unsuccessful attempts to capture their intended victims.

He lamented that Mary Barka, a pregnant woman, had been killed by the suspects, who are now being interrogated by police.

He said in a statement ” Pelachiroma village of Hawul Local government area witnessed an attack by suspected bandits. I immediately mobilized my team to the village on that night and succeeded in arresting the four culprits who attempted to kidnap Mr Barka Paul Sawa, because, he (Sawa) has given them his cattle to rear for him.

“Unfortunately, the bandits succeeded in killing the wife of Sawa, Mrs Mary Barka Paul Sawa.

” The four of the suspects who confessed to the crime when arrested are fulanis and I have since handed them to the DPO of Hawul, Habila Lemaka.

“The culprits are expected to be taken to the Borno State Police Command for further interrogation and prosecution.” Yohanna said.” He added.

At least 27 bodies, thought to be those of Ethiopian migrants, have been discovered in an agricultural area outside of Zambia’s capital city of Lusaka.

According to VOA, the Zambian police who found and recovered the bodies on Sunday claimed they must have passed away from starvation and exhaustion.

One survivor, however, was discovered alive in the wee hours of Sunday morning and was taken to a hospital for care.

According to the police, the remains were taken to the morgue so that they could be identified and undergo autopsy to ascertain the specific cause of death.

According to the report, the victims were all guys between the ages of 20 and 38 who had been discarded along a road by unidentified individuals.

“Police and other security wings have since instituted investigations into the matter,” Danny Mwale, police spokesman, said in a statement after police were informed about the shocking scene by members of the public.

Zambia is a popular transit country for Ethiopian migrants heading to places like South Africa, albeit there aren’t often reports of deaths there.

From November 3, 2020, to November 3, 2020, Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) engaged in combat.

Olusegun Obasanjo, a former president, assisted in mediating a peace agreement between the government and the rebel organization.

Iran on Monday sanctioned the heads of the UK’s domestic spy agency and military along with British and German political figures, hitting back at Europe before it imposes new sanctions of its own.

At his weekly press conference, Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani blamed the Europeans and British for “intervening in the domestic affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran” and said the sanctions “are coming into effect today.”

Britain and Germany have been particularly vocal in their criticism of Iran’s response to almost three months of protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, 22.

The Kurdish-Iranian woman died in custody after her arrest by morality police who accused her of violating Iran’s dress code for women.

Iran imposed its sanctions on 32 individuals and entities ahead of a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels.

They were expected to impose additional sanctions of their own against Iran over its response to the demonstrations.

Iran’s sanctions list named Ken McCallum, director general of domestic spy agency MI5, and Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin.

Others sanctioned include current and former members of the British parliament and the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.

Several German political figures and companies are also listed. These include Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, former head of the Christian Democratic Union party, and Claudia Roth, Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media.

Also sanctioned is the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, and the Persian-language division of Radio Free Europe.

Those sanctioned will not be able to enter Iran, and they will be subject to asset freezes.

Britain and the EU last month expanded sanctions against Iranian officials and organisations over Iran’s protest crackdown.

On Friday Britain announced further sanctions after Iran carried out its first announced execution connected with the protests.

Iran’s judiciary said Monday that a second death sentence had been implemented.

Majidreza Rahnavard had been sentenced to death by a court in the city of Mashhad for killing two members of the security forces with a knife and wounding four other people, the judiciary’s news service said.

The first execution, on Thursday, of Mohsen Shekari, followed his conviction for wounding a member of the security forces with a machete.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters along Owerri, Port Harcourt road in Imo State came under heavy bombardment by gunmen in the early hours of Monday.

The gunmen threw grenades through the commission’s fence, destroying several offices and vehicles parked on the premises.

However, the police stationed at the INEC office engaged the gunmen in a heavy shootout, leaving three of the gunmen wearing charms and Biafra camouflages dead.

INEC public relations officer, Dr. Chinenye Chijioke-Osuji confirmed the attack.

Russia’s ex-president, Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday the country was ramping up production of new-generation weapons to protect itself from enemies in Europe, the United States, and Australia.

“We are increasing production of the most powerful means of destruction. Including those based on new principles,” Medvedev said on messaging app Telegram.

“Our enemy dug in not only in the Kyiv province of our native Malorossiya,” Medvedev said, using the term to describe territories of modern-day Ukraine that were part of the Russian Empire under the tsars.

“It is in Europe, North America, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and a whole number of other places that pledged allegiance to the Nazi.”

Medvedev, who serves as deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, did not provide details of the weapons.

President Vladimir Putin repeatedly said that Russia has been developing new types of weapons, including hypersonic ones that he boasts can circumvent all existing missile defence systems.

Since Putin sent troops to Ukraine on February 24, 57-year-old Medvedev has regularly taken to social media to write increasingly bombastic posts.

With Moscow on the back foot in its offensive in pro-Western Ukraine, the military stalemate has raised fears that Russia could resort to its nuclear arsenal to achieve a military breakthrough.

On Friday, Putin said Russia could amend its military doctrine by introducing the possibility of a preemptive strike to disarm an enemy, in an apparent reference to a nuclear attack.

The Kremlin chief claimed Russia’s cruise missiles and hypersonic systems were “more modern and even more efficient” than the United States.

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, have intercepted parcels of cocaine concealed in different parts of a travel bag brought into Nigeria by a Brazil returnee, Nwadinobi Charles Uchemadu from Sao Paulo, Brazil via Doha on a Qatar Airways flight.

Uchemadu was arrested on Monday 5th December at the Lagos airport during the inward clearance of passengers on the Qatar Airways flight following the discovery of three parcels of cocaine weighing 2.70 kilograms factory sealed in parts of his travel bag.

At the SAHCO export shed of the airport the same day, NDLEA operatives equally intercepted cans of powdered milk, baby food, and beverages used to conceal 3.4 kilograms of cannabis going to Dubai, UAE. A freight agent, Ewelike Chibuike Cyril who presented the consignment for export was subsequently arrested.

In the same vein, parcels of cannabis weighing 6.30kgs concealed in sound systems (speakers) going to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea through the SAHCO export shed of the airport were also seized on Thursday 8th December by the operatives who initially arrested a freight agent, Joseph Obiji involved and later the following day, Friday 9th Dec nabbed another agent, Mbanu Ifeanyi Andrew in a follow-up operation at ASPAMDA market, Trade Fair complex, Ojo area of Lagos.

At the Akala notorious drug hub in the Mushin area of Lagos, no fewer than 15 drug dealers including two ladies were arrested with 1,400kgs of cannabis Sativa among other illicit substances such as heroin, methamphetamine, and 320 bottles of codeine syrup recovered from them during a raid of the area on Friday 9th December.

Another raid of the popular Idumota business district of Lagos Island on Saturday 10th December led to the seizure of 35,014 pills of tramadol, diazepam, Rohypnol, and 21.2 litres of codeine syrup while a targeted notorious dealer is still on the run.

This is even as officers of the Directorate of Seaports Operations of the Agency arrested a Malian, Dembele Ousmane on Monday 5th December with 32,400 capsules of tramadol 225mg concealed in factory-packed buckets of custard while attempting to travel to Mali via boat at Ebute -Ero Jetty in Lagos.

In Ondo state, operatives on Tuesday 6th Dec. stormed a sharp corner, Ipele forest in the Owo area of the state where they arrested Rotimi Oyekan and Precious Aluju with C/S weighing 903.3kgs, while another team of NDLEA officers arrested Babatunde Oluyara at Igbotako area of the state, with 168.5kgs of the same substance; 6kgs of monkey tail and various quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin.
In Kebbi state, two suspects: Austine Julius and Sale Yakubu were arrested on Sunday 4th December along Yawuri-Kebbi road in a loaded Dyna Truck with 117 bags of Cannabis Sativa weighing 1,070 kilograms concealed under bags of oranges.

The following day, Monday 5th December, another set of two suspects: Abdullahi Bala and Ibrahim Wade were intercepted along Koko- Kebbi road in a Dyna Truck loaded with 114 bags of the same substance weighing 1,140 kilograms concealed under crates of soft drinks.

A raid operation in Abbi town, Ndokwa West LGA, Delta State led to the arrest of a pregnant 30-year-old dealer, Aniekem Evelyn, with 1,161kgs of C/S recovered from her warehouse.

While commending the officers and men of the MMIA, Seaports Operations, Ondo, Delta, and Kebbi state commands for their hard work and diligence leading to the arrests and seizures of the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) CON, OFR urged them and their compatriots across other formations to intensify their efforts.

Both sides of the war have launched attacks on southern Ukraine, with Russia firing drones at Odessa and Kiev retaliating near Melitopol.

The Ukrainian army claimed to have shot down 10 drones on Saturday, but an additional five struck electrical infrastructure, knocking out electricity for about 1.5 million people.

Later, the exiled mayor of Melitopol, a Ukrainian, claimed that a strike had been launched against the Russian-controlled city.

There is a large fire seen in images posted by a Russian-installed official.

According to Ukrainian officials, Russia used Iranian-made drones in its drone strike on the Ukrainian port city of Odesa.

The situation in the Odesa region is very difficult,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly video address.

“Unfortunately the hits were critical, so it takes more than just time to restore electricity. It doesn’t take hours, but a few days.”

Moscow has been employing heavy missile and drone assaults against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since October.

Ivan Fedorov, the exiled mayor, claimed that scores of “invaders” had been slain while pro-Moscow officials in Melitopol claimed that a missile attack had killed two persons and injured ten others.

“Air defence systems destroyed two missiles, four reached their targets,” Yevgeny Balitsky, the Moscow-appointed governor of the occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region, said on the Telegram messaging app.

He added that a “recreation centre” where people were dining had been destroyed in the Ukrainian attack with Himars missiles.

In Daddare Development Area, Obi LGA, Nigerian Police agents assigned to the Obi Division in Nasarawa State have detained a 75-year-old man named Isa Nana Okpoku for raping his 4-year-old niece.

Okpoku was reportedly detained as a result of a report made on Saturday, December 10 at around 8:00 a.m. to the Divisional Police Headquarters in Obi.

According to a statement from the police command’s public relations officer, DSP Ramham Nansel in Lafia, preliminary investigation showed that the suspect took advantage of his niece living in the same house, lured the victim into his room, and willfully engaged in illicit carnal knowledge with the child.

According to the statement, the victim was nonetheless sent to the hospital for a quick medical checkup, where the doctor confirmed the victim’s broken hymen.

The suspect will be charged to court for prosecution after a thorough inquiry into the heinous deed has been ordered by the Commissioner of Police, CP Maiyaki Mohammed Baba.

European Union (EU) countries have arrested a ring of human traffickers using the Belarusian border to smuggle migrants into Europe.

According to Euronews, about 39 migrant smugglers have been apprehended by Europol in Poland, Estonia, Germany, Lithuania and Latvia.

The report revealed that Polish police have reinforced the border with Belarus to prevent mass illegal entries.

Lieutenant Anna Michalska, a spokeswoman for the Polish Border Guard, said this is a new trend of arrests in relation to people smuggled from Belarus into Polish territory.

“The Border Guard has already detained 39 people this year. These are the organizers and people operating at various levels of the hierarchy of this criminal group. These people did not necessarily know each other, they did not know who was operating at what level.”

It was revealed that the network used Turkey as the starting point of the journey and the migrants were sent to Moscow by plane. They were, then, move from the Russian capital to Belarus.

When the migrants are smuggled to the EU border, the network used secret transports to get them to Germany, the final destination, Michalska said.

A renowned American sports journalist died while covering a tense quarterfinal game on Friday, according to his family. The writer had a run-in with Qatar’s World Cup organizers last month over a rainbow LGBTQ shirt.

Grant Wahl, 48, contributed to the growth of soccer’s appeal in the United States by providing colorful reporting for outlets including Sports Illustrated, CBS Sports, and other publications.

In the press tribune during Friday’s Argentina-Netherlands game, Wahl passed out. According to the Wall Street Journal, he may have had a heart attack.

Celine Gounder, a well-known epidemiologist and the wife of Wahl, wrote on Twitter, “I’m in total shock.”

A Qatar organising committee spokesperson said “he received immediate emergency medical treatment on site, which continued as he was transferred by ambulance to Hamad General Hospital.”

“We offer our deepest condolences to Grant’s family, friends and his many close colleagues in the media,” the statement added.