Headline

Troops Recover Arms, Arrest Foreign Terrorist Informant

Published

3 years ago

June 2, 2022

The Defence Headquarters has said troops of Operation Hadin Kai in Borno State have recovered different arms and ammunition and arrested a foreigner who is a terrorist informant in Sokoto.

The DHQ stated that the troops also rescued no fewer than 100 family members of terrorists in the last three weeks.

It added that 33 of the rescued family members were women, noting that 14 terrorists were killed, while 15 were arrested during one of its operations in Borno between May 19 and June 2, 2022.

Speaking during a press briefing on the activities of troops on Thursday, the Director, Defence Media Operations, Major General Benard Onyeuko, troops also recovered several arms and ammunition from the terrorists.

He said, “On May 31, 2022, troops repelled an attack by terrorists at Firm Base Arege in Abadam Local Government Area of Borno State. During the attack, troops responded with superior firepower and inflicted heavy casualties on the terrorists while others fled in disarray.

“Cumulatively, troops recovered 10 AK47 rifles, five AK56 rifles, two FN rifles, 227 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, seven AK47 magazines, one PKM gun, one AA gun, 164 rounds of AA ammunition, 111 Shilka ammunition, one gun truck, one shilka barrel, two dane guns, two Improvised Explosive Device, one car engine, four trollies and one water pump machine.

“Troops also rescued 100 terrorists’ family members which included 33 women. Troops also neutralised 14 terrorists and arrested 15. Accordingly, all arrested, rescued terrorist families and recovered items have been handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action.”

Onyeuko also said within the weeks under review troops recovered nine AK47 rifles, 100 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, 458 rustled cattle, 20 motorcycles, and rescued 152 civilians.

He noted that a foreigner identified as Jabe Buba who is a terrorist informant at Garuwa village in Tambuwa Local Government Area of Sokoto State was arrested following an intelligence report.

“Pictures and video of him posting rifles in the forest were found in his phone and cash of N130,000.00 was recovered from him.

“Also, troops neutralised 18 bandits and apprehended 25 bandits. Accordingly, all arrested, rescued civilians and recovered items have been handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action.”

He said cumulatively, in the last three weeks, troops discovered and destroyed 40 illegal refineries, 165 metal storage tanks, 72 ovens, 23 dug out pits, and five wooden boats.

“Also, recovered are 107,400 litres of crude oil, 456,450 litres of AGO, 6,250 litres of PMS, six trucks, three outbound engines, and one AK 47 rifle. Troops also apprehended 21 criminal elements. All recovered items and apprehended criminals were handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action,” he added.

PUNCH.

Headline

Serbia Indicts Ex-minister, 12 Others Over Train Station Tragedy

Published

19 hours ago

September 16, 2025

Editor

Serbian prosecutors filed an updated indictment on Tuesday against 13 people, including a former minister, over a fatal railway station roof collapse that has triggered a wave of anti-government protests.

The prosecution said all those indicted, among them former construction minister Goran Vesic, face charges of “serious crimes against public safety” over the tragedy that killed 16 people last November.

“The indictment proposes that the Higher Court in Novi Sad order custody for all the defendants,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.

The roof collapse at the newly renovated station in Serbia’s second-largest city, Novi Sad, became a symbol of entrenched corruption and sparked almost daily protests.

Protesters first demanded a transparent investigation, but their calls soon escalated into demands for early elections.

The Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Novi Sad initially filed an indictment at the end of December, but judges returned it in April, requesting more information.

The accused were released or placed under house arrest following the decision.

The prosecutor’s office said it had complied with the judge’s request and had now completed the supplementary investigation.

The prosecutor specialising in organised crime and corruption in Belgrade is leading a separate, independent investigation into the tragedy.

That investigation is focused on 13 people, including Vesic and another former minister, Tomislav Momirovic, who headed the Construction Ministry before him.

In March, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) launched a third, separate investigation into the possible misuse of EU funds for the station’s reconstruction.

AFP

Headline

Kazakhstan Bans Forced Marriage, Bride Kidnapping

Published

19 hours ago

September 16, 2025

Editor

Kazakhstan has banned forced marriages and bride kidnappings through a law that came into effect Tuesday in the Central Asian country, where the practice persists despite new attention being paid to women’s rights.

Forcing someone to marry is now punishable by up to 10 years in prison, Kazakh police said in a statement.

“These changes are aimed at preventing forced marriages and protecting vulnerable categories of citizens, especially women and adolescents,” it added.

Bride kidnappings have also been outlawed.

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“Previously, a person who voluntarily released a kidnapped person could expect to be released from criminal liability. Now this possibility has been eliminated,” the police said.

There are no reliable statistics of forced marriage cases across the country, with no separate article in the criminal code prohibiting it until now.

A Kazakh lawmaker said earlier this year that the police had received 214 such complaints over the past three years.

The custom is also present in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan, where it mostly goes unpunished due to indifferent law enforcement and stigma surrounding whistleblowers.

The issue of women’s rights in Kazakhstan gained media attention in 2023 following the murder of a woman by her husband, a former minister, a case that shocked Kazakh society and prompted President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to react.

“Some people hide behind so-called traditions and try to impose the practice of wife stealing. This blatant obscurantism cannot be justified,” Tokayev said last year.

AFP

Headline

Russia Arrests Woman For Detonating Bomb On Railway

Published

19 hours ago

September 16, 2025

Editor

Russia’s FSB security service said on Tuesday it had arrested a woman in her fifties accused of detonating explosives in a bid to sabotage the Trans-Siberian Railway.

The suspect was allegedly working on behalf of Ukrainian intelligence, the FSB said, in the latest incident of alleged covert activity during the countries’ conflict.

“In August 2025, following the instructions provided by the adversary, the suspect manufactured a homemade explosive device from publicly available components, placed it on the railway tracks and triggered it,” the Russian agency said.

“She recorded the moment of the explosion on her mobile phone camera and sent the footage as a report to the handler to receive a reward.”

The statement did not name the suspect but said she was born in 1974 and carried out the alleged attack in eastern Siberia’s Zabaikalsky region.

The FSB warned Russians that it was monitoring social networks and online messenger services such as Telegram and WhatsApp for evidence of Ukrainian services recruiting Russians to carry out sabotage.

Separately, the agency told state news agency TASS that a man had been sentenced to 18 years and six months for transporting explosives on behalf of a “pro-Ukrainian” group.

A resident of the Bryansk region, which borders Ukraine, had, the FSB said, established contact through the Telegram app with a banned “terrorist organisation”.

He allegedly retrieved explosives from a cache on the orders of this group before waiting for “further instructions”, according to the same source cited by TASS.

He was jailed by a military tribunal.

AFP