Regional News
Military Bombardments Kill ‘Ruthless’ Boko Haram Commander, Abou Hurairah, Colleagues in Marte – PRNigeria News Source- PRNigeria.
Military Bombardments Kill ‘Ruthless’ Boko Haram Commander, Abou Hurairah, Colleagues in Marte
After evading several onslaughts of the Nigerian military, a notorious Boko Haram warlord, Abou Hurairah, has met his waterloo.
PRNigeria gathered that Abou Hurairah was eliminated alongside some other Boko Haram Commanders.
It was during an aggressive bombardment operation by the Air Task Force, ATF, of Operation Hadin Kai, using two alpha jets of the Nigerian Air Force, NAF.
Abou Hurairah, and the other eliminated Boko Haram kingpins, were behind the series of attacks in Monguno Axis of Borno State, recently.
Mali: Al-Qaeda claims responsibility for two deadly attacks near Bamako on Monday | Africanews
Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for two attacks that killed at least two firefighters and three civilians Monday near Bamako, in a statement authenticated by the U.S. NGO SITE, which specializes in tracking radical groups, accessed Wednesday by AFP.
The jihadists of the al-Qaeda affiliated Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM, JNIM in Arabic) “claimed responsibility for two simultaneous attacks against a fire station and an environmental and forest protection unit located near the Malian capital Bamako,” the statement said
Car bomb hits convoy in Nigeria’s southeast; 4 killed | Africanews
Four security officials were killed in a car bomb targeting a former government official in southeast Nigeria, authorities said Tuesday.
Three police officers and a paramilitary official were killed in the attack in Imo State on a convoy carrying the former governor Ikedi Ohakim, Police Commissioner Mohammed Barde said.
“The man (Ohakim) was ambushed and he was able to manoeuvre and escape,” said Barde. The four security personnel were killed in a different car, he said. The attack was an unfortunate setback to government efforts to restore peace in some of Nigeria’s conflict-ridden southeastern states, said Barde.
Southeast Nigeria has experienced a rise in violent attacks in recent years, often blamed on separatists trying to break away from the West African nation to form an independent country.
ISWAP Claims Deadly Car Bomb Attack In Nigeria’s Kogi State – HumAngle Media
ISWAP has claimed responsibility for a car bomb explosion that killed at least three people on Dec. 29 outside a monarch’s Palace in Okene, Nigeria’s Northcentral state of Kogi.
The claim by the Islamic State affiliate on Monday comes days after the explosion at the palace of the traditional leader of the Ebira tribe, Ohinoyi of Ebiraland.
The blast occurred shortly before Nigeria’s president Muhammadu Buhari arrived in the state to commission some projects.
Kogi has suffered previous ISWAP attacks involving the use of armed cells and improvised explosive devices.
One dead as Fulani, Hausa communities clash in Ondo (premiumtimesng.com)
At least one person has been reported killed in a bloody clash between Hausa and Fulani settler communities in Ogbese, Ondo State.
The clash began on Tuesday evening and continued until Wednesday morning when security operatives arrived to intervene.
Sources said many on both of the warring sides sustained varying degrees of injuries in the clash.
The two communities are largely made up of traders dealing in grains, fish, onions, tomatoes and other products usually brought from the northern part of the country to the popular Ogbese Market.
Members of the communities largely live in makeshift structures around and within the market.
10 dead in Nigerian shipwreck | Africanews
Ten bodies were fished out of the Niger River in Nigeria’s northern Kebbi state on Wednesday after an overloaded boat with about 100 passengers broke in two, a local official said.
The dilapidated vessel was crossing the river and broke in two as it approached the village of Samanaji in Koko-Besse district.
It had taken on passengers “way beyond its capacity,” said Yahaya Bello Koko, a district official.
“We found 10 passengers with the help of local divers, and we are still looking for 10 more,” he said.
They “are presumed drowned, considering the number of hours they spent in the river,” Koko said.
28 bodies found in Burkina Faso’s Northwest on New Year’s Eve – Gov’t | Africanews
Twenty-eight bodies were found in Nouna in northwest Burkina Faso over the weekend, the government said, noting an investigation was underway as speculation grew over who may be responsible.
“The government has been informed of a tragedy that occurred in Nouna, capital of the province of Kossi, during the night of December 30 to 31,” said a statement by government spokesman Jean Emmanuel Ouédraogo. Initial reports “put the death toll at 28 people.
The Collective Against Impunity and Stigmatization of Communities (CISC) has denounced “abuses” committed by Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP, army auxiliaries).
15 houses, shops razed in Adamawa communal clash – Daily Trust
Several houses, shops, and property worth millions of naira were razed down in a renewed communal clash between Waja and Lunguda communities in the Lafiya-Lamurde Local Government Area of Adamawa State.
Reports made available to Daily Trust revealed that the fresh clash erupted on Monday between 6 and 7pm.
However, no life was lost in the crisis but four houses and 11 shops were burnt during the clash.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in Adamawa, SP Suleiman Yahaya Nguroje, who confirmed the attack, said 11 shops and four houses were affected.
Buhari Pledges Support for Burundi on Fuel Shortages in Nigeria. Source- Dailytrust. Buhari pledges support for Burundi on fuel shortage amid scarcity in Nigeria – Daily Trust
President Muhammadu Buhari has assured that Nigeria will support Republic of Burundi in diverse ways as necessary in the spirit of African solidarity and brotherliness.
The President gave the assurance Tuesday at State House, Abuja, while receiving the Special Envoy of President Evariste Ndayishimiye, who came with a message.
On request for assistance in the area of energy provision, particularly fuel, by the Burundi leader, President Buhari said he knows what it feels like for a country to suffer from energy shortage, and promised that he would get the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to look into the request.
Burundi’s request is coming at a period Nigeria is battling fuel scarcity which started in December 2022. While the situation is gradually improving, many filling stations are selling above the pump price.
At least 20 Killed in Attacks in Nigeria’s Bauchi State. Source- Humangle. At least 20 Killed In Attacks In Nigeria’s Bauchi State – HumAngle Media
At least 20 people were killed in recent raids in Alkaleri Local Government Area of Bauchi state in Northeast Nigeria. Alkaleri is the same area where Nigeria’s President not long ago kicked off oil exploitation.
The district head of Yelwan Duguri, Adamu Mohammed Duguri, disclosed the incident and the attacks on communities during a condolence visit on Thursday by the Governor of the state, Bala Mohammed.
According to the traditional leader, the casualties were recorded in the Rimi community, where the worst attack occurred. While an attempt by the attackers in Kafin Duguri failed due to resistance from the villagers.
Mali court sentences 46 Ivorian soldiers to 20 years in prison | Africanews Source- Africanews.
A court in Mali has sentenced 46 Ivorian troops whose detention in Mali sparked a diplomatic row between the two countries to 20 years in prison, the public prosecutor said Friday.
Three women soldiers among the original group detained in July, and who were freed in early September, were sentenced to death in absentia.
The trial of the 46 Ivorian troops had wrapped up earlier on Friday after opening in the capital Bamako on Thursday.
The court proceedings came in the run-up to a January 1 deadline set by West African leaders for Mali to release the soldiers or face sanctions.
The Ivorians were found guilty of an “attack and conspiracy against the government” and seeking to undermine state security, public prosecutor Ladji Sara said in a statement.
Gunmen burn Imo police station – Daily Trust Source- Humangle.
Gunmen on Tuesday went on the rampage, burning the Afor Atta divisional police headquarters in the Njaba Local Government Area of the state.
The attack came less than 24 hours after the convoy of a former governor of Imo State, Ikedi Ohakim, was bombed and four police orderlies killed.
Our correspondent gathered that the attackers threw explosives at the police station. However, no policeman was said to be on duty during the attack.
The incident was said to have caused apprehension in the community as residents remained indoors throughout the day.
Conflicts, coups and droughts dominate Africa in 2022 (trtworld.com). Source- TRTWorld.
Conflicts and military coups continued to haunt the African continent in 2022.
But there were some accomplishments by several countries aimed at bringing stability and resolving the many crises faced by the continent.
On January 24, military leaders in Burkina Faso ousted President Roch Marc Christian Kabore and replaced him with Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.
The 41-year-old soldier dissolved the government and suspended the constitution. Damiba promised disgruntled citizens he would pursue the militants who have been destabilising the country.
Peace and Security
Burkina Faso’s military regime expels French ambassador | AfricanewsSource- Africanews.
Burkina Faso’s military junta has expelled France’s ambassador, authorities said Monday, amid a surge in anti-French sentiment as the West African country moves to develop closer ties with Russia.
Government spokesman Jean-Emmanuel Ouedraogo confirmed to the Associated Press that Ambassador Luc Hallade was asked to leave, but provided no further details. The French embassy refused to comment.
Hallade’s expulsion comes less than two weeks after the United Nations´ resident and humanitarian coordinator in Burkina Faso, Barbara Manzi, was also declared persona non grata.
Burkina Faso has been wracked by violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group that has killed thousands and displaced nearly 2 million people.
ECOWAS won’t sanction Mali over detained Ivorian soldiers | Africanews Source- Africanews.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had given Mali until January 1st to release 46 Ivorian soldiers it claims are mercenaries.
However, the date has now passed and the 46 soldiers, who were sentenced to 20 years in prison, have not been released.
It appears ECOWAS, the main regional body for West Africa, does not intend to punish Mali, not yet anyway.
On 22 December, a visit to Bamako by an official Ivorian delegation ended with the signing of a memorandum, with the Ivorian Minister of Defence, Téné Birahima Ouattara, brother of the Head of State, stressing that the matter was “on the way to resolution.”
It appears that, as relations between Mali and Côte d’Ivoire have improved significantly with the memorandum recently signed by the two governments, ECOWAS considers it is not the time to create new tensions.
NSCIA asks security agencies to protect Muslims (premiumtimesng.com) Source- Premiumtimes.
The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has called on security agencies in the country to protect the lives and properties of Muslims.
The council made the call via a communique signed by its Secretary General and Director of Administration, Ishaq Oloyede and Zubairu Haruna respectively.
The communique was released after the council’s extraordinary Expanded General Purpose Committee meeting held in Abuja in December. The meeting was presided over by NSCIA’s President-General and Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar III.
The meeting was attended by Muslim leaders across the country.
The communique noted that Muslims are being persecuted in the country’s South-east region by non-Muslims.
Ivorian President Vows Soldiers Held in Mali Will ‘Return Soon’. Source- Africanews. Ivorian President vows soldiers held in Mali will ‘return soon’ | Africanews
The 46 Ivorian soldiers detained in Mali for nearly six months and who have just been sentenced to 20 years in prison in Bamako, “will soon return to Ivorian soil,” Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara assured on Saturday.
“My thoughts are particularly with our soldiers detained in Mali since 10 July,” Ouattara said in his end-of-year speech broadcast on national television RTI.
“Thanks to diplomatic actions undertaken with the support of leaders of several friendly countries, including the president of the Togolese Republic Faure Gnassingbé, “three female soldiers were released last September,” he recalled, adding: “The 46 other soldiers will soon return to Ivorian soil.
The 46, who were suspected of being mercenaries, have been held in Mali since July. They were sentenced on Friday to 20 years in prison, before the expiry of the ultimatum set by West African heads of state to the Malian junta to release them.
Humanitarian
Durumi IDPs seek UNHCR, FG’s help on shelter (dailytrust.com)Source- Dailytrust.
The internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Durumi camp, Abuja, have urged the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the federal government to come to their aid amid the recent demolition of the camp.
The chairman, Durumi Camp, Malam Ibrahim Ahmadu, made the call on Monday in Abuja, during the presentation of livelihood items and cash to 70 households among the worst hit by the Action Aid Nigeria (AAN).
The FCTA on December 21 demolished the Durumi IDPs camp over alleged insecurity scare and infiltration by suspected insurgents.
Over 300 households with 65 per cent being women and children were affected by the demolition.
Mothers Of Malnourished Children Not To Blame For Resale Of Therapeutic Foods, Say MSF – HumAngle Media Source- Humangle.
The illegal sale of Ready To Use Therapeutic Foods (RUTFs) should not be put on indigent mothers of malnourished children, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), a leading international medical organisation has said.
HumAngle had previously published a report where it highlighted the illegal trade of RUTFs in the Northeast state of Borno as well as the role of some mothers of malnourished children in diverting the important food (aid) items.
But the MSF in a report written by its Head Of Emergencies, Michel O. Lacharite, emphatically states that mothers of malnourished children are hardly the culprits of the crime and are being misrepresented by medical workers and the media to be so.
Terrorists Kidnap Imam For Preaching Against Terrorism In Zamfara – HumAngle Media Source- Humangle.
A terror group has kidnapped the chief Imam of Masama-Mudi village in Zamfara, Northwest Nigeria, known for preaching against the activities of terrorists in the area. The incident occurred on Dec. 29, HumAngle can report.
Mustapha Mohammed, a relative of the imam, said: “The chief Imam is a 75-year-old man married to three wives and a breadwinner to 23 children with many dependants.
He further explained that the man had been a target for terror group since September this year, as a result of his constant sermons against terrorism in the area. There are times when he has had to flee his home for safety, he said.
Police Superintendent ‘Harasses’ Abuja Publisher Haruspice for Investigating Human Rights Abuse – PRNigeria News Source- PRNigeria.
Police Superintendent ‘Harasses’ Abuja Publisher Haruspice for Investigating Human Rights Abuse
A Superintendent of Police, Muhammed Abubakar, has threatened to deal with Mr. Abdullahi Haruna Haruspice, the publisher of an Abuja-based magazine, World Entourage Magazine.
The lawyer to the journalist, one Anayo Okelue Esq, revealed this in a petition against SP Abubakar, which he wrote to the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Compliant Response Unit, at the Force Headquarters.
In the petition obtained by PRNigeria, Okelue, said their petition was necessitated by the threat of SP Abubakar to unlawfully detain their client.
Gunmen storm Abuja community, abduct 4 returning from crossover night – Daily Trust Source- Dailytrust.
Gunmen, in the early hours of Sunday, stormed Paze, a community around the Byazhin area on the outskirts of Kubwa town in the FCT, and abducted four people.
City & Crime reports that four heads of families were separately abducted from their homes, but their wives and other members were spared.
Our reporter, who visited the community yesterday, saw people discussing the incident in groups.
A housewife, Juliet Olarenwaju, whose husband was among those abducted, said she was on her way back home from church with her husband after attending the New Year’s crossover night, some minutes after 1am, when the incident happened.
Nigerian girls abducted by Boko Haram honored in exhibition | AfricanewsSource- Africanews.
The faces of the 108 Chibok girls who are still missing eight years after their abduction by Islamist insurgents have been sculpted in clay in a collaboration between french artist Prune Nourry, university students, professional potters and the families of the victims.
The 108 still missing Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram in Nigeria in 2014 are remembered in a new exhibition of sculptures in Lagos.
Inspired by ancient Nigerian Ife terracotta heads and titled “Statues Also Breathe,” the sculptures recreate faces, facial expressions and hair patterns of the victims.
The mass abduction initially prompted worldwide outrage, with the slogan #BringBackOurGirls trending on social media as prominent figures including former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama pressing for their return.
Since then, about 160 of the girls have been released, some after years of captivity, but the story has long faded from the headlines.
an arrMested for aborting girlfriend’s pregnancy to avoid marriage – Daily TrustSource- Dailytrust.
The police in Zuba, Abuja, have launched an investigation against three persons over a 17-year- old girl’s pregnancy, and subsequently conducted illegal abortion on her.
The vigilantes’ commander in the area, Musa Alhassan, while speaking with City & Crime at the weekend, said the matter was initially reported to their office last week by the girl’s parents, who said their daughter was abducted.
Stabilization and economic development
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the $21.83 trillion 2023 budget. | AfricanewsSource- Africanews
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the $21.83 trillion 2023 budget.
The head of state on Tuesday in Abuja, the capital, signed off on the eighth and final annual budget of his administration, saying it was an increase of $1.32 trillion over the original executive proposal.
These provisions were made for the 2023 general elections and the transition programme.
An imminent transition process explains why the head of state decided to sign the 2023 appropriation bill as passed by the National Assembly. This rapid signature will therefore allow its implementation to begin without delay.
The 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Bill was also signed. President Buhari thanked the National Assembly for approving his request for an extension of its validity date to 31 March 2023.
CBN loans to FG fueling inflation, interest payment to gulp 62% revenue by 2027 – World Bank (premiumtimesng.com) Source- Premiumtimes
The World Bank has said that interest payments on the Nigerian government’s borrowing from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will gulp over 62 per cent of revenue by 2027.
The international financial organisation made this known in the latest edition of its Nigeria development update (NDU) titled, ‘Nigeria’s choice’.
The Nigerian government has been borrowing from the CBN through ways and means advances, a loan facility through which the CBN finances the government’s budget deficits.
A PREMIUM TIMES’ analysis found that Nigeria’s advances to the federal government in the last seven years rose to N23.8 trillion, an unprecedented rise that violated the law, stoked inflation and worsened the country’s debt burden.
One-third of global economy may slip into recession in 2023 – IMF (premiumtimesng.com)Source- Premiumtimes.
The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, has said that at least one-third of the global economy may slip into recession in 2023.
She made this known on the CBS Sunday morning news programme, Face the Nation, on Sunday.
“We expect one-third of the world economy to be in recession. Even countries that are not in recession, it would feel like recession for hundreds of millions of people,” she said.
The IMF boss argued that for the first time in 40 years, China’s growth in 2022 is likely to be at or below global growth.
“For the next couple of months, it would be tough for China, and the impact on Chinese growth would be negative, the impact on the region will be negative, the impact on global growth will be negative,” she said.
The new year is going to be “tougher than the year we leave behind,” as the major economies of the world – the US, Europe and China – experience weakening activity, she said.
US drops Burkina Faso from Africa duty-free trade programme | Military News | Al Jazeera Source- Al Jazeera.
The United States has dropped Burkina Faso from its trade preference programme citing deep concerns over “unconstitutional change” in government in the West African country, the US Trade Representative’s (USTR) office said on Sunday.
Frustrations over the government’s inability to curb activity by armed groups spurred two military coups in Burkina Faso in 2022. The previous and current military governments have made efforts to beef up security, but the attacks have continued.
Nigeria to pay extra $4bn if loan-bond swap is denied: Buhari | Business and Economy News | Al Jazeera Source- Al Jazeera
Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari says Africa’s largest economy will have to pay 1.8 trillion naira ($4bn) extra interest this year if parliament rejects a loan-to-bond swap request on the central bank’s overdrafts to the government.
Buhari made the comments in his budget speech to parliament after signing the 2023 budget into law on Tuesday.
