Boat Capsizes With 22 Passengers In Niger

A boat carrying about 22 passengers on board from Kasabu village in Agwara local government area of Niger to Yauri in Kebbi has capsized. Alhaji Salihu Garba, overseeing Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), disclosed this in Minna. He said that the agency received a report of the boat mishap that occurred on Monday between 11am and 12 pm. According to him, a survivor of the mishap said that the boat had about 22 passengers on board. He said that search and rescue operations was ongoing by the local divers and boat owners under the supervision of the agency’s desk officer in Agwara. He said no passenger has been recovered yet, adding that the mishap happened on Yauri market day. Garba added that only after the market would families be able to declare their missing relatives. He explained that it takes about 24 hours for any drowned person to surface atop water. He attributed the cause of the incident to water hyacinth coupled with strong waves. 

Tinubu Orders Security Agencies To Rescue Abducted Gusau Varsity Students

President Bola Tinubu has taken decisive action, instructing security agencies to undertake the immediate rescue operation of the abducted female students from the Federal University Gusau, who were forcibly taken by terrorists last Thursday. In a statement released by his media aide, Mr. Ajuri Ngelale, President Tinubu strongly condemned this abhorrent act of abduction. He expressed his deep concern that there could be no moral justification for such a heinous crime committed against innocent victims whose only ‘offense’ was their pursuit of a quality education. The President has reassured the families of the abducted students that no effort will be spared in ensuring their safe return. Tinubu has made a firm commitment that the Federal Government will uphold the sanctity of educational institutions, preserving them as bastions of knowledge, growth, and opportunity, and free from the menacing threats of terrorists. The horrifying incident unfolded when bandits attacked three female students’ hostels in Sabon Gida, an area where students live outside the main campus of the university, during the midnight hours last Thursday, leading to the abduction of an unknown number of students. Although many female students were kidnapped, some managed to escape.

Troops rescue kidnapped victim in Enugu

The troops of 103 Battalion (Rear) of 82 Division, Nigerian Army, presently on Operation UDOKA II had rescued Dr Maxwell Ayim from suspected kidnappers between Four Corner and Amokwe Junction in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State. This is contained in a statement issued in Enugu on Saturday by Lt.-Col. Jonah Unuakhalu, acting Deputy Director Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Nigerian Army. Unuakhalu said that Ayim was rescued unhurt on Thursday. According to him, the rescue operation was conducted when troops deployed at Udi checkpoint received a distress call from the police on the incident. Unuakhalu said that on arrival, the troops came in contact with the kidnappers, adding that due to the troops’ superior fire, members of the criminal gang fled in disarray with gunshot wounds into the nearby bushes. The army spokesman said that the gallant troops during further exploitation of the gang withdrawal route found the victim abandoned by the gang. “Troops proceeded to rescue the victim. He had since been reunited with his family after preliminary medical checks. “Joint Task Force Operation UDOKA II therefore, calls on the law abiding and good citizens of Enugu and the South-East region in general not to relent in providing timely, credible and reliable Information. “This will help in putting an end to the spiral of kidnapping activities and sundry criminality within the region. “Operation UDOKA II will continue combating crime and criminality in accordance with the extant rules and regulations guiding its operations,” he said.

NAF Special Forces rescue kidnapped victims in Kaduna

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Special Forces on night patrol on Sunday rescued seven kidnapped victims, comprising six females and one male near Birnin Gwari in Kaduna State. This is contained in a statement by the Director of Public Relations and Information, NAF, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, on Monday in Abuja. Gabkwet said the female victims on interrogation revealed that they were kidnapped from Paikoro in Niger State while the lone male victim said that he was abducted from Rijau in Niger State. He said the terrorists, on sighting the troops, abandoned their victims and fled into a nearby forest. According to him, six of victims were subsequently taken to NAF Medical facility at Birnin Gwari for review and subsequently released. Gabwet said that the last victim, the male, was still being observed at the facility. “The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar has since commended the efforts of the troops, while calling for intensified efforts toward ensuring all areas within Kaduna State and environs are free of terrorists, kidnappers and other criminal elements,” he said.