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By Sabiu Abdullahi

The Nigerian Army has recorded another operational success after troops rescued eleven kidnapped persons during a late-night operation carried out on January 26, 2026, along the Kaduna–Abuja Expressway.

The rescue followed the detection of armed terrorists who attempted to relocate their captives through the Gidan Duna–Amale bush path under the cover of darkness. Troops from the Forward Operating Base, Doka, spotted the movement through high-definition long-range CCTV surveillance and quickly moved to intercept the suspects.

Security sources said the soldiers launched a coordinated pursuit with tactical vehicles and motorcycles. The swift response put pressure on the criminals and forced them to abandon the victims before fleeing into nearby bushes, which stopped their attempt to escape deeper into the hinterland.

Those rescued included five adult men, three adult women, and three children. The victims were abducted from the Gada Mallam Maman Community on October 26, 2025, and had remained in captivity for 92 days.

Military authorities said the operation demonstrated the Army’s ability to combine modern surveillance equipment with effective ground action. They added that the force remains committed to protecting lives, securing major routes, and denying criminal groups any freedom of movement at all times.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

President Donald Trump held a lengthy Oval Office meeting on Monday evening with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem amid rising criticism of his administration’s handling of the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis resident by federal agents.

According to two people briefed on the discussion, the president met with Noem and her top aide, Corey Lewandowski, for nearly two hours. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting was private. The session followed a request from Noem to see the president, the sources said.

According to New York Times, during the meeting, Trump did not indicate that the jobs of Noem or Lewandowski were in danger. Still, the talks highlighted growing concern within the White House over bipartisan criticism linked to the killing of Alex Pretti. Pretti was shot roughly 10 times by immigration agents on Saturday after he was reportedly filming them with his phone.

Noem has been the public face of the administration’s immigration crackdown. She has also drawn controversy for making false accusations about Pretti, including describing him as a “domestic terrorist.”

Several senior White House officials also attended the meeting. They included Susie Wiles, the chief of staff; Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary; and Steven Cheung, the communications director. Stephen Miller, a senior aide who oversees immigration strategy, was not present.

The meeting took place on the same day Trump announced that Tom Homan, his border czar, would be sent to oversee operations in Minneapolis. The decision was widely viewed as an effort to rely on an official associated with Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s traditional focus on targeted arrests, rather than broad raids that have taken place in cities across the country.

At the same time, the administration was preparing to move Gregory Bovino, a Border Patrol official whose aggressive tactics have attracted sharp criticism, out of Minneapolis. Two officials familiar with the matter confirmed the plan, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The developments reflect a shift in approach as the administration faces mounting scrutiny over the use of force by federal immigration agents and its broader enforcement strategy.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

United States President Donald Trump has said Washington has deployed what he described as “a big armada next to Iran” amid rising tensions, while insisting that Tehran’s leadership is still interested in reaching an agreement with the US.

Trump made the remarks during an interview with Axios late on Monday, shortly after the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln entered the US Central Command’s area of responsibility in the Middle East. The move marked a major escalation in the US military posture close to Iran.

Speaking on the deployment, Trump said: “We have a big armada next to Iran. Bigger than Venezuela.”
He also emphasised that diplomacy remained possible. “They want to make a deal. I know so. They called on numerous occasions. They want to talk.”

According to White House officials quoted by Axios, a military strike against Iran remains an option, although Trump has not taken a final decision. The officials added that the president is expected to hold further consultations this week and assess additional military choices.

Iranian authorities, on their part, have continued to warn of serious consequences if the US launches any attack. The warnings come amid ongoing arrests linked to deadly nationwide protests and a prolonged internet blackout across parts of the country, Aaljazeera reports.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has also issued strong signals. In a report carried by Press TV, an unnamed IRGC official said the force is “closely monitoring” US and Israeli actions in the region. The official added that any belief that a strike on Iran would be quick and clean is based on an “incomplete understanding” of Iran’s capabilities. Last week, IRGC commander General Mohammad Pakpour said his forces were “more ready than ever, finger on the trigger,” and urged the US and Israel to “avoid any miscalculation.”

Meanwhile, Lebanon’s Hezbollah has declared it would not remain neutral if Iran is attacked. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem made the position clear during a televised address delivered via video link at a solidarity event.

Qassem said Hezbollah fully supports Iran and its leadership. He added that any threat against Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would be treated as a threat against Hezbollah itself, according to Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV. Qassem also accused Washington of long-standing hostility towards Iran, saying the US had plotted against the country since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and later pursued conflict through Iraq in the 1980s.

Regional reactions have also emerged. The United Arab Emirates announced that it would not allow its land, airspace or territorial waters to be used for any military operation against Iran. In a statement, the UAE Foreign Ministry said it would also refuse to provide logistical support for such an attack. The Gulf state maintains strong trade ties with Iran, despite regional rivalries and its 2020 normalisation agreement with Israel, which was brokered by the US.

In Tehran, tensions have spilled into public symbolism. Authorities unveiled a massive mural in Enghelab Square that shows a damaged US aircraft carrier with destroyed fighter jets and streams of blood. The caption on the artwork, written in both Farsi and English, reads: “If you sow the wind, you will reap the whirlwind.” Enghelab Square often hosts state-organised gatherings, and officials regularly change its murals to reflect national events.

The developments underline the growing strain between Washington and Tehran, as diplomatic signals continue alongside military deployments and stark warnings from Iran and its allies.

By Professor Abdussamad Umar Jibia

The year 2023 was a remarkable year in Nigeria’s history. Just like the year 1993, an election was held that generated a win for a Muslim candidate with another Muslim as his running mate.

In both 1993 and 2023, the presidential candidates were warned against choosing a Northern Christian as a running mate. Christians constitute not just a tiny minority in the North, but many of them have also proven to be very bad neighbours in their relations with their Muslim compatriots.

Wherever Christians constitute the majority, they display an unforgivable hate and marginalisation against their Muslim neighbours. A handy example is Plateau state, the home state of the current APC Chairman. The way Muslims are sidelined in Plateau state is enough to show what we should expect if Christians were the majority in Nigeria.

His Excellency Peter Obi was misled into believing that a combination of Igbo and Northern Christians could make him the President, and he moved from one church to another to campaign, only to end up in third place. 

The 2023 election was thus a religious census in disguise that showed the numerical superiority of Muslims over Christians in Nigeria. 

But no sooner had Bola Ahmed Tinubu won the 2023 presidential election than he began to sideline Muslims, the very group that brought him to power, in his appointments. Last year, we saw him personally going to the Vatican with what the state house described as a “bragging right of 62% Christian appointees”. 

We watched as he appointed a Northern Christian as the SGF. Of course, President Muhammadu Buhari did the same. President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua appointed a Northern Christian to lead the National Assembly. They did not deserve any of these, given their small number. However, Muslims gave them out of magnanimity. Or is it foolishness? They would never do the same if they were in our position. 

Many of us became disappointed when we saw a Northern Christian being chosen to lead the ruling party. This means two of the most important positions at the federal level have been given to Christians from the North Central, a geopolitical zone that is overwhelmingly Muslim. Worse still, our politicians in and outside the ruling party, our emirs and Islamic scholars are silent. When have we become animals who only care about eating food and sleeping with women?

As if that is not enough, speculation is that the President wants to drop his VP and choose a Northern Christian as his running mate in next year’s election. I commend the Honourable Minister of Culture, Hajiya Hannatu Musawa, for publicly telling the truth to Mr President. But it shouldn’t have reached this level. The decision of the President to appoint Northern Christians as SGF, Party Chairman and INEC Chair should have been opposed in the first place.

We are still expecting Mr President to correct the imbalance that favours the very tiny Northern Christians. North Central is predominantly Muslim. The only Christian majority states, where, of course, Muslims have been marginalised, are Plateau and Benue. Niger, Nasarawa, Kogi and Kwara are Muslim states. That Muslims in those states have been left out by Mr President in the above-mentioned strategic appointments is unfortunate.

Professor Abdussamad Umar Jibia wrote from the Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Bayero University Kano, via aujibia@gmail.com.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

Laken Hope Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student whose life was cut short during a morning jog at the University of Georgia, continues to be remembered across the United States for the profound impact her death had on her community and the national conversation on public safety and immigration.

Riley was attacked and murdered on February 22, 2024, while running near Oconee Forest Park on the University of Georgia campus in Athens, Georgia. Her body was later discovered near Lake Herrick. Medical findings confirmed that she died from blunt force trauma and asphyxiation after suffering multiple severe injuries.

On the morning of the incident, Riley sent her mother a text message at 8:55 a.m., writing: “Good morning, about to go for a run if you’re free to talk”. She placed a call to her mother minutes later. Security footage later showed Riley jogging with her phone at 9:05 a.m., before she turned toward the wooded park area at 9:06 a.m. That was the last time she was seen alive.

Investigators established that Riley’s phone placed an emergency call to 911 at 9:11 a.m. Her watch later indicated that her heart stopped at 9:28 a.m. Police believe the attack occurred between 9:06 a.m. and 9:32 a.m.

University police discovered Riley’s body at 12:38 p.m. after her roommate reported her missing earlier that day. Sergeant Kenneth Maxwell, one of the first officers on the scene, said Riley had visible injuries and no detectable pulse. Efforts to revive her were unsuccessful.

An autopsy conducted by Dr. Michelle DiMarco revealed that Riley suffered eight cuts to the left side of her head, a complex skull fracture, hemorrhaging, and multiple injuries to her ear, neck, torso, abdomen, hand, and leg. Petechiae were also found in her eyes and gums. Authorities described the killing as a “crime of opportunity”, noting that the attacker acted alone. It was the first murder recorded on the university campus since 1983.

Riley was born on January 10, 2002, in Marietta, Georgia, to Jason Riley and Allyson Phillips. She grew up with three siblings and graduated from River Ridge High School in 2020, where she ran on the cross-country team. Her former coach, Keith Hooper, remembered her as “a beautiful person, passionate about her health care studies and an unselfish teammate”.

At the time of her death, Riley was studying nursing at Augusta University in Athens and had previously attended the University of Georgia as an undergraduate. She was also an active member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority.

Police later identified the suspect as José Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan national who had entered the United States illegally in September 2022. He was arrested after investigators linked him to the crime through surveillance footage, forensic evidence, and witness accounts. Riley’s hair was found on a jacket recovered from a dumpster near Ibarra’s residence, and police observed scratches on his arms and redness on his knuckles during questioning.

Ibarra faced ten criminal charges, including felony murder, malice murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault with intent to rape, false imprisonment, and concealing the death of another. He pleaded not guilty. After a bench trial that began in November 2024, Judge H. Patrick Haggard found him guilty on all counts on November 20, 2024, and sentenced him to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Riley’s death drew international attention and sparked renewed debate over illegal immigration policies in the United States. Lawmakers cited her case during deliberations on the Laken Riley Act, legislation that mandates federal detention of illegal immigrants arrested for burglary or theft. The bill was signed into law on January 29, 2025, becoming the first legislation approved during President Donald Trump’s second term.

Her funeral took place on March 1, 2024, at Woodstock City Church, followed by her burial at Enon Cemetery in Woodstock, Georgia. A memorial now stands near Lake Herrick in her honor. Her family later announced plans to establish the Laken Hope Riley Foundation.

Speaking on behalf of the family, Riley’s stepfather said: “She will be missed every day, but we promise to honor her life moving forward in a very big way”.

One year on, Laken Riley is remembered not only as a promising nursing student and devoted daughter, but also as a symbol of a life lost too soon and a tragedy that continues to resonate far beyond the University of Georgia campus.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

Troops of Sector 2 of the Joint Task Force, Operation WHIRL STROKE (OPWS), have uncovered an illegal arms manufacturing site in Nasarawa State, leading to the arrest of a suspect and the recovery of weapons and cash.

This is contained in a statement signed by AHMAD ZUBAIRU ZUBAIRU, Lieutenant, Acting Media Information Officer, Headquarters JTF Operation WHIRL STROKE, on 26 January 2026.

The operation took place in Agwatashi, Doma Local Government Area, where troops deployed at the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Idadu carried out a fighting and confidence-building patrol. The patrol formed part of ongoing efforts to restrict the activities of criminal elements in the area.

During the operation, the soldiers discovered a hidden location believed to be used for the production of locally made firearms. Several suspects reportedly fled when they sighted the patrol. One of them, identified as Baba Ogar, a 26-year-old male from Arusu village in Kokona Local Government Area, was arrested while attempting to escape by hiding on top of a tree.

Items recovered from the site included six locally fabricated pistols, various tools suspected to be used for weapon production, the sum of ₦40,500, and a mobile phone found with the suspect.

Initial findings suggest that the site functioned as an illegal arms factory that supplied firearms to criminal groups within and outside the area. The suspect remains in custody, while security forces have stepped up efforts to locate and arrest other suspects who escaped.

The Force Commander of the Joint Task Force, Operation WHIRL STROKE, Major General Moses Gara, praised the troops for their alertness, discipline, and sustained pressure, which led to the discovery of the illegal facility. He urged them to sustain the operational drive and rely on intelligence-based actions to dismantle criminal networks across the Joint Operations Area.

Major General Gara also highlighted the importance of public support, calling on residents to continue providing timely and credible information. He noted that useful intelligence remains key to lasting security and economic development.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

Former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Umar Abdullahi Ganduje, has announced that Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf will enjoy full backing of the party ahead of the 2027 governorship election in Kano State.

Ganduje made the declaration while formally receiving Yusuf back into the APC. He stated that all other aspirants interested in the governorship seat had agreed to step aside in favour of the governor.

According to him, “I can categorically tell you that you are going to wins 2027 with a landslide because all those contesting for the same seat have agreed to allow you alone go for it.”

He described Yusuf’s return as a historic moment for the party. “To us, leaders of the APC, this is a memorable occasion we are all waiting for. I strongly welcomed Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf back to his home,” Ganduje said.

The former party chairman recalled the governor’s earlier exit from the APC and expressed appreciation over his return. He said, “We were in APC together with you, it was formed with you, but later on because of some political differences, political redirection, you left the party to NNPP. But now we are thankful that you are back to our party and your home.”

Ganduje also praised Yusuf’s leadership style and governance approach. “You as our brother, the Governor of Kano State, you are a progressive politician from your utterances, your policies and the implementation of those policies,” he added.

He stressed that within the APC structure, Governor Yusuf now occupies the position of party leader in Kano State. Ganduje noted that the declaration was meant to end speculation and internal disagreements over the party’s leadership in the state.

He further spoke on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, describing him as a leader who does not discriminate. Ganduje said the president treats Nigerians equally, without regard to religion or ethnicity, and expressed confidence that Yusuf would secure victory in the 2027 election.

In his remarks, the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin, praised Governor Yusuf for his decision to return to the APC. He maintained that the move was firm and irreversible.

The development has continued to draw attention within political circles as preparations gradually begin ahead of the 2027 polls.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

The Governor of Kano State, Abba Kabir Yusuf, has officially joined the All Progressives Congress (APC), ending weeks of political speculation over his party affiliation.

Yusuf completed his defection on Monday during a formal ceremony held at the Coronation Hall of the Kano State Government House. Senior figures of the APC received him at the event.

Among those present were former APC National Chairman and former Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje; the Deputy President of the Senate and Senator representing Kano South, Barau Jibrin; and the Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development, Yusuf Abdullahi Ata. Other top party leaders and officials also attended the ceremony.

Addressing the gathering, the governor explained that his return to the APC followed his desire to work more closely with the Federal Government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, with the aim of speeding up development in Kano State.

Yusuf won the 2023 governorship election on the platform of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP). He later resigned from the party alongside several members of the Kano State House of Assembly and the House of Representatives, a move that cleared the path for his re-entry into the APC.

More details are expected to emerge as reactions continue to trail the development.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

Sevilla legend Sergio Ramos has reached a preliminary agreement with a reference shareholder group to acquire Sevilla Fútbol Club, marking a major step toward a potential takeover of the Spanish side.

Ramos, who first joined Sevilla in 1996 before returning to the club in 2023, has now entered an exclusivity and due diligence phase with the investment group. This stage will allow both parties to examine the club’s financial position and governance structure ahead of any final decision.

According to a report by Carrusel, Ramos and his partners have a three-month window to assess Sevilla’s finances and overall situation before completing the transaction. Sevilla currently occupy 11th position on the La Liga table.

The development has fueled widespread excitement among supporters, as the former captain’s deep ties to the club strengthen hopes of a successful transition in ownership. With negotiations now progressing into a critical phase, the prospect of Ramos returning to Sevilla in a leadership role appears increasingly realistic.

By Anwar Usman

The Defence headquarters revealed on Monday that the Investigative Panel established to investigate 16 officers of the armed forces, alleged to have been indicted for acts of indiscipline, acts contrary to service regulations, and other breaches, has concluded its investigations, adding that the officers will face a military Court Martial.

Director of Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba, made this known  in a statement in Abuja.

Recall that the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) had, in October 2025, announced the arrest and detaintion of the officers, saying that the investigations had now been completed in line with established military procedures and extant regulations.

Major Gen Uba said the investigation examined all circumstances surrounding the conduct of the affected personnel and identified a number of officers with cases to answer, including allegations bordering on plotting to overthrow the government.

He said such actions were inconsistent with the ethics, values and professional standards expected of members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria.

He reiterated that the measures being taken were “purely disciplinary and part of internal institutional mechanisms to preserve discipline, cohesion and operational effectiveness within the ranks”.

Uba further noted that, “the commitment of the Armed Forces to professionalism, loyalty and respect for constitutional authority, assuring the public that due process and fairness would be strictly observed throughout the proceedings”.

Reports revealed that the detained officers included a Brigadier-General, a Colonel, four Lieutenant Colonels, five Majors, two Captains, a Lieutenant, a Lieutenant Commander from the Nigerian Navy and a Squadron Leader from the Nigerian Air Force.

Sources familiar with the development said most of the officers belong to the Infantry Corps, Signals Corps, and Ordnance Corps.