ISIS 'Exports' Jihadi Terrorists To Nigeria From Syria

Islamic State, ISIS leaders are sneaking battle-hardened jihadis from Syria into Nigeria to train terrorists for possible attacks in Britain.

United States To Designate Nigeria ‘Country of Particular Concern’ Over Incessant Killings

Against the backdrop of incessant killings in Nigeria, particularly the predominantly Muslim herdsmen slaying Christian farmers, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recommended to the US government that Nigeria should be designated as a “Country of Particular Concern”, CPC.

International Studies Prove Nigeria Is a Fragile State

It is a long march from poverty to prosperity, but according to Olu Fasan’s assessment, Nigeria has not quite made the transition yet.

Nigerian Air force Jets Bomb Benue Communities

Nigerian Air Force fighter jets conducted air strikes on at least three Benue State communities on Saturday, in an operation which lasted several hours.

Breaking: Multiple Suicide Blasts Kill 31 In Borno, NE Nigeria

Suspected Boko Haram jihadists killed at least 31 people in a twin suicide bomb attack on a town in northeast Nigeria, a local official and militia leader told AFP on Sunday. 

Nigerian Army Bemoans Rising Cases of IEDs Use in Southeast Nigeria

The Nigerian Army has expressed alarm over what it described as emerging but dangerous trend of the use of Improvised Explosive Devices, IEDs, as weapon in the South Eastern part of the country.

Timeline: Benue Bloodletting Unrelenting Despite Launch of Latest Military Operation

These are obviously not the best of times for Benue state and her citizens considering the series of killings taking place in the state in the last five months.

35 Primary Schools Shut in Nasarawa, North-Central Nigeria Over Herdsmen Attacks

No fewer than 35 primary schools have been shutdown in Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa State due to attacks on Tiv communities in the Southern Senatorial District of the state, resulting in the destruction of the schools.

Boko Haram: US. Announces Fresh $102m Assistance To Nigeria

The U.S. government has announced a fresh $102 million in humanitarian assistance to Nigeria. The U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Stuart Symington, announced the new aide at ongoing National Conversation on the Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus, on Thursday.

UN Security Council Seat: South Africa Seeks Nigeria’s Support

South Africa has appealed to Nigeria and other countries within and outside Africa to support its bid for the non-permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council for the term 2019-2020. 

Global Peace Index Ranks Nigeria The 16th Least Peaceful Country In The World

Nigeria has been ranked the 16th least peaceful country in the world, according to the 2018 edition of Global Peace Index, GPI.

Jail Break in Minna, Niger State: 200 Prisoners Escape

The Police in Niger State, North-Central Nigeria, said on Monday it had taken measures to ensure the arrest of the 200 prisoners that escaped from Minna Medium Security Prison on Sunday. 

Maritime Security: Piracy Sustains High Shipping Costs on Nigerian Waters

Incessant pirate attacks and kidnappings are taking an alarming toll on shipping in Nigeria’s territorial waters and the Gulf of Guinea.This year alone, freight costs have reportedly risen six times, amid fears insurance could also be hit.Statistics from the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) show: “In the first four months of 2018, the number of incidents significantly increased in the region, with 36 reported, against 17 the same period in 2017.”

Report: Kidnappers, Cattle Rustlers Spread Fear in Nigeria

A spate of kidnappings for ransom in the Birnin Gwari district of northern Nigeria’s Kaduna state has left residents afraid to even leave their homes. Relatives cry as they mourn during a funeral service for 17 worshippers and two priests, who were allegedly killed by Fulani herdsmen, at Ayati-Ikpayongo in Gwer East district of Benue State, north-central Nigeria on May 22, 2018. 

Two Nigerian priests and 17 worshippers have been buried, nearly a month after an attack on their church, as Catholics took to the streets calling for an end to a spiral of violence. White coffins containing the bodies of the clergymen and the members of their congregation were laid to rest in central Benue state, which has been hit by a wave of deadly unrest.

“When a person travels, his family, friends and neighbours gather to pray for his safety because of the kidnappers,” said local resident Kabiru Mohammed. “It’s celebrations once he returns because kidnapping on the highway has become the norm. It’s a nightmare that should only exist in fairytales,” he told AFP by telephone. Mohammed and his neighbours have good reason to be anxious. Kidnappings have reached unprecedented levels in the last two months. 

In early May, about 100 people were abducted in just two days on a road near the border with Zamfara state. Haruna Musa, who also lives in Birnin Gwari, said the situation has forced people in at least six villages in the area to abandon their homes. 

Last week, an armed gang raided the village of Maganda and kidnapped three wives of a businessman. Many locals now don’t sleep at night. Instead, they patrol their communities. “I also join in the night patrols to encourage others,” said Mustapha Idris, the chief imam of Maganda. But the creation of civilian militia has itself had deadly consequences. 

On May 6, at least 71 people were killed in Gwaska village during clashes with armed bandits. – Grisly warnings – Birnin Gwari is not alone in being affected. 

In Zamfara, there have been similar problems from kidnapping and cattle rustling gangs. “The mere sound of a motorcycle engine outside your house at night robs you of sleep because it could be a sign that the dreaded bandits have come,” said Nuhu Dansadau. Dansadau said his village, also called Dansadau, and others nearby have been repeatedly raided. 

Aliyu Kawaye, who lives in the town of Anka, said the abductors seize cash and force families to sell their farm produce to raise the ransom payment. According to the state government, more than 10,000 cattle have been stolen in the last seven years. “What is more worrisome is the deliberate attack on farmers who dare to go to their farms,” said Dansadau. “The bandits amputate their hands from the wrists, put the severed palms in the farmers’ pockets and send them back to the village as a warning to others.” 

– Lucrative venture – 

The kidnapping gangs and cattle thieves, who roam on motorcycles on the hunt for victims, are known to operate in northern Kaduna and Zamfara. 

Both regions have been largely spared by the Boko Haram insurgency, another of Nigeria’s pressing security problems along with a land conflict between nomads and farmers. 

The kidnappers’ heavily guarded camps dot the Rugu forest, which straddles Kaduna, Zamfara and the northern states of Kano, Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger. 

Abductees whose families don’t pay ransoms are killed and their bodies dumped, according to security sources. Kidnapping for ransom used to be a phenomenon isolated to oil-rich southern Nigeria. But it has spread further north and become lucrative because of economic hardship. 

It has also attracted young ethnic Fulani herders who have lost their herds in unrest with farmers over grazing and watering rights. Young Fulani herders now make up most of the marauding gangs in northern Nigeria and other West African countries, said Saleh Bayeri, of the Gan Allah Fulani Development Association.

 – Inadequate security – 

The Kaduna state government formed a joint military and police taskforce to combat kidnapping and cattle rustling in Birnin Gwari but has had little success. In March, bandits likely armed with illegal weapons smuggled in from Mali and Libya, killed 11 troops at a camp in the area, prompting the military to withdraw. 

In April, the Nigerian Air Force deployed special forces to Zamfara to fight the gangs but locals said more were needed. “The bandits by far outnumber the troops and are better armed,” said Kawaye. 

Zamfara governor Abdulaziz Yari has said he does not have adequate resources to police a state which at 40,000 square kilometres (15,400 square miles) is about the same size as Switzerland. 

There are only 2,000 regular police officers, 400 riot police, 315 soldiers and fewer than 100 air force personnel for a population of more than four million, he said in February. In response to the killings, he has ordered troops to shoot on sight anyone seen with a gun in affected areas. But that and a number of amnesty offers have had little effect. 

“The best way to end this menace is for the government to send in more troops and weapons to fight these criminals as well as intensify security along our borders,” said Dansadau.

Culled from: Vanguard Newspaper

Herdmen, Cultists Kill 13 People in Benue State, North-Central Nigeria

Herdsmen, in the early hours of yesterday, invaded Tseadough village in Mbachom, Yaav Ward of Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State, killing seven persons including women and children, while a pregnant woman was taken hostage.