International
Trump to sack 15,000 transgender officers from U.S. military: Report
Trump to sack 15,000 transgender officers from U.S. military: Report
There are indications U.S. President-elect Donald Trump plans to sack 15,000 transgender officers from the military.
Mr Trump would use an executive order to remove all the transgender, according to The Times’ military sources.
The source revealed that the order could come on his first day back in the White House on January 20, 2025.
The transgender would be medically discharged, which would determine that they were not fit, The Times quoted the source.
Mr Trump, 78, has railed against ‘woke’ practices in the military, saying that some high-ranking officers are often more interested in diversity, equity, and inclusion than planning to fight.
The bank is expected to be wider ranging than a similar order made during his first term in office, when Mr Trump prevented transgender people from joining the armed forces
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Although he allowed those already serving to keep their jobs.
Outgoing President Joe Biden rescinded the order, but this time, even those with decades of service will be removed from their posts, according to sources.
Rachel Branaman, the executive director of the Modern Military Association of America, said that if a trans ban were implemented from day one of Mr Trump’s administration, it would undermine the military’s readiness.
Ms Branaman, whose organisation campaigns on behalf of LGBTQ+ military personnel and veterans, also noted that it would create an even greater recruitment and retention crisis, not to mention signalling vulnerability to America’s adversaries.
“Abruptly discharging 15,000-plus service members, especially given that the military’s recruiting targets fell short by 41,000 recruits last year, adds administrative burdens to warfighting units, harms unit cohesion, and aggravates critical skill gaps.
“There would be a significant financial cost, as well as a loss of experience and leadership that will take possibly 20 years and billions of dollars to replace,” she added.
Trump to sack 15,000 transgender officers from U.S. military: Report
International
UK Court Hands Life Sentence to Nigerian Teen for Knife Attack Killing
UK Court Hands Life Sentence to Nigerian Teen for Knife Attack Killing
A Nigerian teenager residing in the UK, Jackson Uwagboe, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of 21-year-old Robert Robinson, following a brutal knife attack in Lewisham, London. The sentencing was delivered at the Old Bailey on Wednesday.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that 19-year-old Uwagboe of Hamilton Street, Lewisham, was found guilty of murder on Tuesday, 10 February 2026, in a case stemming from a dispute over a stolen bicycle. The court ruled that Uwagboe must serve a minimum of 21 years before he can be considered for parole.
Uwagboe’s co-defendant, Eromosele Omoluogbe, 24, was earlier convicted of perverting the course of justice after assisting Uwagboe in attempting to flee to Nigeria via Heathrow Airport.
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Prior to this sentencing, two other men, Ryan Wedderburn, 18, and Kirk Harris, had already been convicted and handed life sentences in May 2025 for their roles in the same murder.
Detective Inspector Neil Tovey, who led the investigation, described the incident as a “brutal and sustained attack”. He said, “Robert was subjected to a brutal and sustained attack by a group of men armed with knives. He was unarmed, already wounded, and on the ground when Uwagboe attacked him. Today’s verdict brings justice for Robert Robinson and his family.”
The case has drawn attention to youth violence, knife crime, and gang-related activity in London, as well as the challenges faced by law enforcement in preventing violent disputes over seemingly minor disputes such as bicycle theft.
The sentencing underscores the UK judicial system’s approach to serious violent crimes, ensuring that perpetrators face long-term incarceration while providing a clear minimum term before parole consideration.
UK Court Hands Life Sentence to Nigerian Teen for Knife Attack Killing
International
UK-Based Nigerian Gets 13-Year Jail Term for Forcing Girlfriend to Abort Pregnancy
UK-Based Nigerian Gets 13-Year Jail Term for Forcing Girlfriend to Abort Pregnancy
A UK-based Nigerian man, Adeleke Adelani, has been sentenced to more than 13 years’ imprisonment for unlawfully aborting the pregnancy of his former partner after coercing her to take abortion medication on Valentine’s Day.
The offence occurred in 2020 when Adelani, then 28 years old, deceptively invited the woman — whose identity is legally protected — to his residence in Letterkenny under the guise of discussing the future of her pregnancy. Evidence before the court showed that the victim was nine weeks pregnant at the time of the incident.
Prosecutors told the court that upon her arrival, Adelani threatened the woman with violence and forced her to ingest five tablets of misoprostol, a drug used for medical abortions, thereby causing the unlawful termination of the pregnancy. The court heard that the defendant had researched the medication in advance and acted deliberately. The victim later contacted authorities, leading to Adelani’s arrest by Irish police.
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At the time of the sentencing, Adelani was already serving a separate seven-year prison sentence for an unrelated offence. He had initially been due to stand trial last year but pleaded guilty before jury selection began, accepting responsibility for the charges brought against him.
During the sentencing hearing at the Letterkenny Circuit Court, the victim delivered a powerful impact statement, explaining that although she had chosen to forgive Adelani, the consequences of his actions would remain with her for life.
“I have forgiven the defendant,” she told the court. “That forgiveness does not mean what he did was acceptable. It means I refuse to let what he did continue to control my heart and my life. When he wrongfully imprisoned me and caused the termination of my nine-week pregnancy, he took far more than my freedom. He took my child. He took my sense of safety. He took a future that I had already begun to plan and love.”
In a letter read aloud in court, Adelani apologised to the victim, accepted full responsibility for his actions, and expressed remorse for the pain and trauma he caused.
Delivering judgment, John Aylmer described the crime as deliberate, premeditated, and deeply traumatic, stressing that it involved coercion, abuse, and a serious violation of trust. The judge sentenced Adelani to 11 years in prison, with the final two years suspended, for causing the unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and an additional five years, with the last 12 months suspended, for assault causing harm.
The sentences are to run concurrently, adding to Adelani’s existing term and resulting in an overall prison sentence exceeding 13 years. The case has reignited debate in Ireland and internationally about reproductive coercion, domestic abuse, and violence against women, with legal observers describing it as one of the most serious cases of its kind in recent years.
UK-Based Nigerian Gets 13-Year Jail Term for Forcing Girlfriend to Abort Pregnancy
International
Epstein, Ex-Israeli PM Named in Alleged Profiteering From Boko Haram Crisis
Epstein, Ex-Israeli PM Named in Alleged Profiteering From Boko Haram Crisis
A new investigative report by Drop Site News has alleged that the late American financier Jeffrey Epstein and former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak leveraged Nigeria’s long-running Boko Haram insurgency to pursue commercial, security, and strategic interests in the country.
According to the investigation, emails released by the United States Department of Justice in 2018 show Epstein acting as a behind-the-scenes facilitator in discussions involving Jide Zeitlin, then chairman of Nigeria’s Sovereign Investment Authority, and Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, former chairman of DP World. The exchanges allegedly focused on attempts to secure control of key shipping terminals in Lagos and Badagry, following unsuccessful negotiations with successive Nigerian administrations dating back to 2005.
The report claims DP World was unwilling to invest in a proposed industrial zone in Nigeria without full or majority control of the adjoining port infrastructure, a demand that reportedly stalled the deal for years. Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial, is alleged to have helped revive talks by brokering introductions and strategic conversations.
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Drop Site News further reported that bin Sulayem resigned on February 13 after renewed scrutiny of his past links to Epstein resurfaced publicly, intensifying attention on the historical port negotiations and the role of foreign intermediaries in Nigeria’s maritime sector.
Beyond logistics and port infrastructure, investigators highlighted what they described as near-daily correspondence between Epstein and Barak after the former Israeli leader left public office. Barak, who served as Israel’s defence minister until 2013, allegedly sought to deepen Israeli-Nigerian security cooperation, using Nigeria’s counter-insurgency battle as an entry point for Israeli-linked security, energy, and technology investments.
The report said Barak later relied on security networks in Nigeria to promote Israeli defence and surveillance firms. In 2015, Barak and a partner invested $15 million in FST Biometrics, founded by former Israeli intelligence chief Aharon Ze’evi Farkash. The firm’s Basel biometric system, originally deployed at Israel-Gaza crossings, was subsequently marketed in Nigeria as a counter-terrorism solution.
According to the investigation, the biometric technology was introduced at Babcock University as protection against Boko Haram threats, while also being pitched to African governments for broader identity management and population-control applications.
The report further cited a 2020 World Bank-supported initiative involving Israel’s National Cyber Directorate and Toka Group, a cyber-intelligence company co-founded by Barak. The partnership was presented as contributing to Nigeria’s national cybersecurity framework, but Drop Site News argued it also deepened Israeli corporate access to sensitive security architecture.
In its conclusion, the investigation alleged that a network of security interventions, port negotiations, and technology investments enabled Epstein and Barak to profit from instability associated with the Boko Haram conflict, while simultaneously advancing Israeli commercial and strategic interests in Nigeria. The outlet stressed that these claims are based on document reviews and correspondence, framing them as allegations rather than established legal findings.
Epstein, Ex-Israeli PM Named in Alleged Profiteering From Boko Haram Crisis
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