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Bandits abduct 46 In Katsina village attacks, shot Imam leading the prayer

Published

2 years ago

December 5, 2022

Police spokesman in Kastina, SP Gambo Isah

At least 46 people were reportedly abducted by gunmen in attacks on two separate communities in Batsari and Funtua local governments of Katsina State, at the weekend.

Daily Trust gathered that one person was killed as some 28 people were abducted in Karare village of Batsari Local Government Area on Friday.

The terrorists, numbering about 40 riding on motorcycles, invaded the village in the morning hours and herded off the victims, including women and children.

Daily Trust gathered that some of the abductees were students from Kokiya village heading to Government Day Secondary School, Karare.

A resident who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the attackers came from the southern part of the village and started shooting sporadically, leading to the death of one person.

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“They abducted 28 people, including students, but later released four of them. Those released include one Malam Ladan and three children. They sent them a message that they would not accept old naira notes for ransom.

“Later, one other person escaped. So as we speak, there are 23 people currently with the bandits, but they did not make any ransom demand,” he said.

Another resident who shared his ordeal said he went into a healthcare centre from where he jumped over a fence to escape abduction, adding that one person was confirmed dead.

In a related development, gunmen suspected to be bandits attacked a mosque in Maigamji village along Funtua – Dandume Road and opened fire on worshippers during evening (isha’i) prayer.

Residents of the village said the attack took place around 7:15pm on Saturday.

A former councillor of Maigamji ward, Alhaji Lawal Maigamji said when the bandits came they opened fire and shot two people in the mosque, including the Imam leading the prayers, Malam Yusha’u and one other, Hussaini Jamo who are receiving treatment at General Hospital Funtua.

“They surrounded the mosque when Isha’i congregational prayer was being conducted. After shooting Imam Yusha’u on the hand and Hussaini Jamo, they abducted 18 people and made away with them into the bush,” Lawal Maigamji disclosed.

He added that later at night, four of the abducted victims managed to escape from their captives while in transit.

When contacted, the police spokesman in Kastina, SP Gambo Isah, said the command was yet to ascertain the number of persons abducted in the Kakare incident, saying investigation was ongoing to ascertain the number.

“We received reports with conflicting figures. Some say up to 30 people were abducted and others say less than that. We are still investigating the matter as the rescue operation is ongoing.

“With regards to Yargamji, 13 were missing, two sustained gunshot injuries including the Imam leading the prayer, while four were rescued.

“Our men in collaboration with the local vigilante are working together to rescue those abducted,” he said.

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Notorious cultist, Pelele, gunned down in Rivers

Published

37 mins ago

November 17, 2024

Trends Admin

Notorious cultist, Pelele, gunned down in Rivers

Operatives of the Rivers State Police Command have successfully neutralized a suspected cultist and kidnapper, Gbarani Bume, popularly known as Pelele, in Luawii Community, Khana Local Government Area.

Bume, a reportedly known member of the Iceland cult group, had allegedly been terrorizing the Beree/Tabaa area of Khana LGA alongside his gang.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed the incident in a statement released in Port Harcourt on Sunday.

According to Iringe-Koko, the police acted on intelligence that Pelele and his gang were attempting to abduct a site engineer in Luawii. Upon arrival, the operatives were met with gunfire from the suspects. In the ensuing shootout, Pelele sustained fatal injuries and later died, while his accomplices fled with gunshot wounds.

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The statement reads: “The Rivers State Police Command has made a significant breakthrough in its efforts to combat crime, neutralising a notorious cultist and kidnapper, Gbarani Bume, a.k.a. Pelele, a native of Bere Community in Khana LGA.

“He was a member of the Iceland Cult Group, which has been terrorising the Beree/Tabaa axis of Khana LGA.

“On the 15th of November 2024, operatives from the Bori Division, acting on a tip-off, were mobilised to Luawii Community where Pelele and his gang were attempting to kidnap a site engineer.

“Upon sighting the operatives, the hoodlums opened fire, resulting in a fierce crossfire, during which Pelele was fatally wounded. His accomplices escaped with various degrees of bullet wounds.

“Items recovered from the suspect include one AK-47 rifle, two magazines, and 10 rounds of live ammunition.”

She further stated that investigations are ongoing to track down the fleeing gang members, emphasizing the Command’s commitment to tackling crime and enhancing public safety in the state.

Notorious cultist, Pelele, gunned down in Rivers

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Court stops police from arresting 68 Obaseki’s allies

Published

43 mins ago

November 17, 2024

Trends Admin

Former Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki

Court stops police from arresting 68 Obaseki’s allies

A High Court in Edo State has issued an order restraining the Nigeria Police from arresting 68 associates of former Governor Godwin Obaseki.

The ruling follows a petition submitted by the acting chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state last July.

The affected individuals include political appointees, local government chairmen, and aides, among others.

The case, referenced as B/266M/2024, lists the Inspector General of Police, the state Commissioner of Police, the Deputy Inspector General of Police (Force CID Abuja), and the Police Service Commission (PSC) as respondents. Representing the applicants, senior counsel Olayiwola Afolabi (SAN) sought an interim injunction to prevent the police from arresting his clients.

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Granting the injunction, Justice AT Momodu ruled:
“An order of interim injunction is hereby made restraining the respondents either by themselves, police officers in their department and/or any police officer acting under their instruction from inviting, arresting and detaining the applicants in any of respondents’ office, in respect of the petition written by the chairman of All Progressives Congress (Edo State) dated 18/07/2024 to the 1st respondent pending the hearing and determination of the originating motion filed by the applicants in the enforcement of their fundamental human right.

“It is further ordered that the enrolled order of the order be served along with the originating motion on the respondents.”

The interim order remains in effect until the substantive suit is determined.

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26 dead, 59 missing as Israel hits Gaza, Lebanon in deadly strikes

Published

1 hour ago

November 17, 2024

Trends Admin

26 dead, 59 missing as Israel hits Gaza, Lebanon in deadly strikes

Strikes by the Israel military killed dozens in Gaza on Sunday, the civil defence said, while also hitting a Hezbollah stronghold near Beirut’s international airport.

Israel has been fighting on two fronts since September, intensifying attacks on Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah after nearly a year of cross-border clashes alongside its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

A year after the Gaza war was triggered by Hamas’s October 7 attacks on its south, Israel vowed to stop the Islamist militants from regrouping in the north of the Palestinian territory, launching a major assault there.

In the latest violence in the besieged Palestinian territory, the civil defence agency said Israeli air raids killed at least 46 people.

The deadliest strike, in the middle of the night in Beit Lahia in the north, killed 26 people, including women and children, and left at least 59 others buried under the rubble, said civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal.

Another strike killed 10 people in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, where a separate strike on a house claimed the life of a woman, he said.

An Israeli drone strike killed five people in the southern city of Rafah, Bassal said, adding another strike killed three women and a child in the Nuseirat camp.

Hamas-run Gaza’s health ministry on Sunday said the overall death toll in more than 13 months of war had reached 43,846.

The majority of the dead are civilians, according to ministry figures, which the United Nations considers reliable.

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Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

– Lebanon rescuers mourned –

On Israel’s second front in the north, AFPTV footage showed several strikes hit Hezbollah’s south Beirut stronghold, shortly after the Israeli military warned people to evacuate.

Columns of smoke were seen rising over the capital’s southern suburbs, where Lebanon’s only international airport is located.

Further south, overnight Israeli air strikes and shelling hit the flashpoint town of Khiam, the Lebanese state-run National News Agency reported.

Following the bombardment, the Israeli army said about 20 projectiles were seen crossing from Lebanon into Israel, and that some of them were intercepted. Emergency services did not immediately report any casualties.

Israel has escalated its bombing of Lebanon since September 23 and has since sent in ground troops, following almost a year of limited, cross-border exchanges of fire begun by Hezbollah militants in support of Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza.

Its military on Saturday said Hezbollah had already “paid a big price”, but vowed to keep fighting until tens of thousands of Israelis displaced from the north can return home.

Israeli forces also shelled the southern area of Lebanon along the Litani River, the NNA said on Sunday.

The news agency had earlier reported strikes on the southern city of Tyre, including in a neighbourhood near UNESCO-listed ancient ruins. Israel’s military said late Saturday it had hit Hezbollah sites in the area.

In Lebanon’s east, the health ministry said an Israeli strike in the Bekaa Valley killed six people including three children.

Hezbollah said it fired a guided missile that set an Israeli tank ablaze in the southwestern Lebanese village of Chamaa.

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In eastern Lebanon, funerals were held for 14 civil defence staff killed in an Israeli strike on Thursday.

“They weren’t involved with any (armed) party… they were just waiting to answer calls for help,” said Ali al-Zein, a relative of one of the dead.

– Gaza famine alert –

Lebanese authorities say more than 3,452 people have been killed since October last year, with most casualties recorded since September.

Israel announced the death of a soldier in southern Lebanon, bringing to 48 the number killed fighting Hezbollah.

A UN-backed assessment on November 9 warned famine was imminent in northern Gaza, amid the increased hostilities and a near-halt in food aid.

Israel has pushed back against a Human Rights Watch report this week alleging that its mass displacement of Gazans amounts to a “crime against humanity”, as well as findings from a UN Special Committee pointing to warfare practices “consistent with the characteristics of genocide”.

A foreign ministry spokesman dismissed the HRW report as “completely false”, while the United States — Israel’s main military supplier — said accusations of genocide “are certainly unfounded”.

In Israel, police said they arrested three suspects after flares shot near the home of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the central city of Caesarea, south of Haifa, while he was away.

Demonstrators in Tel Aviv on Saturday reiterated demands that the government reach a deal to free dozens of hostages still held in Gaza.

The protest came a week after mediator Qatar suspended its role until Hamas and Israel show “seriousness” in truce and hostage-release talks.