Simo Häyhä, The Deadliest Sniper in History
By Carl Seaver

The Winter War, also dubbed the Russo-Finnish War of 1939, was between the Soviet Union and Finland at the beginning of World War II.

Finland believed the Soviet Union wanted to expand into its territory. But on the other hand, the Soviet Union feared that Finland would allow itself to be used as a base for enemies to attack.

The Soviet Union demanded that Finland cede substantial border territories in exchange for land in another territory. When Finland refused, the Soviet Union invaded with 21 divisions totaling 450,000 men.

However, the Finnish Army had scouted the area and made fire plans, seeking help from Sweden and the Western Allies in anticipation of the invasion.

The war was a test of the resolve of the Finnish Army, and although small and under-resourced, the army took on the strength of the Soviet Union’s Red Army.

The Red Army, ill-led, could not handle the Finnish terrain and winter weather. Despite the military strength and ammunition of the Red Army, they were greatly defeated and suffered an immense loss.

Unfortunately, Finland resisted for only three months as the Red army came back stronger with modern equipment.

Finally, exhausted from the constant war, Finland succumbed and was forced to sign the Peace Treaty of Moscow in 1940, ceding 11% of its border areas to the Soviet Union. One of the brave Finnish Army soldiers to grace the battlefield was Simo Häyhä.


Simo Häyhä Early Life and Military Years
Simo Häyhä, AKA “Simuna,” “The White Death,” and “The Magic Shooter” (1905-2002), was a Finnish military sniper in during the 1939-1940 Winter War against the Soviet Union and World War II.

He was born on December 17, 1905, to Juho and Kathriina Häyhä in the Kiiskineh hamlet of the Rautjarvi municipality in the Viipuri Province of Southern Finland near the borders with Russia.

Before joining the military service, he was a farmer, hunter, and skier. His hunting experience taught him how to exploit the battlefield terrain.

At 17, he joined the Finnish voluntary Civil Guard. Successful in various local shooting competitions, he was awarded for his skilled marksmanship. In 1925 at 19, he started his 15 months of military service in the Bicycle Battalion 2 in Raivola.

However, Simo did not receive formal sniper training until 1937 at a training center in Utti. He served as a military sniper in the Finnish Army during the Winter War under Lieutenant Aarne Juutilainen in the 6th company of Infantry Regiment 64.

He ranked as an Alikersanti (Corporal). When the Soviet Union launched an attack on Finland, Simo leaped to defend his country.

He was among the few soldiers tasked with defeating the overwhelming military strength of the Red Army. Camouflaged in complete white, Simo, alongside other snipers, stationed themselves in the snowpits in cold weather temperatures between 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

Simo dealt with the extreme cold by dressing in multiple layers of clothing. He also kept sugar and bread in his pocket to keep his body warm. In addition, he developed clever tactics to keep him invisible from enemies in the cold for hours.

One was that he kept the snow in his mouth while sniping to prevent his breath in the cold air from revealing his position.

He is reported to have killed 25 Red Army men in one day. He was a master at using smoke, sounds, and artillery fire to cover his tracks when changing positions. Without relying on maps, Simo depended on his memory to find the best hiding spots.

In his private war memoir titled Sotamuistoja, which was discovered in 2017, Simo estimated he killed over 500 enemy soldiers during the war.

Incredibly, Simo achieved this feat in less than 100 days. With a Finnish-produced M28/30 (a Civil Guard variant of the Moshin-Nagant Rifle) and a Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun, Simo never missed a target.

As a result, he was named the deadliest sniper in history, and his record of sniper kills still stands today. In addition, Simo became the leading theme of Finnish propaganda, featuring in several newspapers as a hero.

Simo was awarded the First and Second Class Medals of Liberty and the Third and Forth Class of Cross Liberty. He was promoted to Second Lieutenant in 1940. Also, he was nominated as a Knight of the Mannerheim Cross, the most distinguished Finnish military honor.

Additionally, he donated his famous rifle to the Karelia Jaeger Battalion’s Heritage Room, where it was transferred to the Finnish Military Museum’s collection.

Simo Häyhä’s Near-Death Experience
Simo was a nightmare for the Soviet Union’s troops until he was severely wounded on the battlefield on the 6th of March 1940. He was injured by the explosive bullet of a Red Army soldier, which struck his lower left jaw.

Appearing dead, he was placed on the pile of dead bodies. Rumors of his death had spread in Finland and the Soviet Union. This was until he was found alive, though unconscious, by a fellow soldier.

Sadly, the bullet had ripped apart his face, removing his upper jaw, most of his lower jaw, and left cheek. He regained consciousness after a week when the peace treaty was already signed.

Simo suffered lasting facial scarring after undergoing 26 surgeries and spending 14 months in recovery. Unfortunately, his speech was never fully restored.

Simo lived to the age of 96, passing away in 2001.

Tension In Zamfara Over Killing Of Islamic Scholar Arrested By State Guards

There is tension in Zamfara State after suspected members of the state’s Community Protection Group (CPG) killed a religious scholar, Abubakar Hassan, in Mada, a town in Gusau Local Government Area, on Tuesday.

Mr Hassan, a respected Islamic teacher, was picked up by the guards in the evening “for questioning” but was allegedly killed.

A source in the community told BBC Hausa, as monitored by PREMIUM TIMES, that Mr Hassan was arrested by five members of the group a few minutes after 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

“Yesterday in the evening some of them came on motorcycles. We were told they were members of the group from Tsafe (another local government area). They teamed up with some of their colleagues here in Mada and asked Malam to follow them for investigation.

“We didn’t suspect anything because they were in a friendly mood and made everyone believe that it was just a normal investigation. But when they went out of the community, they stopped, slaughtered him like a ram and left his dead body there,” the BBC Hausa source, who was anonymous, said.

Terrorists have been active in Zamfara and other North-west Nigerian states for over a decade that had led to the death or displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.

The terrorists, who mostly live in the forests, procure information from residents about the movements of security agents and rich people in the community to attack.

Suspected informants have been arrested by both conventional and unconventional security agents but several innocent people have also been wrongly tagged as informants.

This is the second time the guards have killed an influential person in the state over allegations of supporting terrorists.

PREMIUM TIMES reported last month how a traditional title holder in Yandoto, Magaji Lawali, was also picked up and later killed by the guards.

Planned murder
Sources in Mada, who asked not to be named for security reasons, told PREMIUM TIMES that the deceased had a long-running battle with a member of the CPG in the community.

“The Malam (Mr Hassan) was not arrested with any exhibit, he was never associated with the terrorists. His only offence was when Malam intervened when some innocent youths who were arrested by Yan Sakai were about to be killed.

“Malam and some elders in the community, including the district head, stood for the two boys and they were released. The boys were arrested by the vigilante members (before the formation of CPG) while they were returning from the South-west where they went to do some menial jobs to get money,” he said.

The source, who said, the situation has thrown the community into confusion, insisted some of the CPG members who were part of the vigilante group, were unhappy with Mr Hassan.

We are investigating

Commenting on BBC Hausa on the development, the commander of the CPG in the state, Rabiu Yandoto, said the state government and the group would take action against those who killed Mr Hassan.

“We have ordered that all the CPG members around Mada should be brought forward so that we can make a comprehensive investigation into the killing.

“We have not given order to any of our members to arrest any person and kill. We are not made to kill people because we are not supposed to take laws into our hands,” he said.

Three sailors have died and others have been injured after a Houthi missile attack on a ship in the Gulf of Aden, US officials have said – the first fatalities of crew of commercial shipping since the Houthis began launching strikes at ships in waters off Yemen last year.

The officials told US news agencies that the crew of the MV True Confidence had abandoned ship after the attack, which was claimed by the Houthis.

The British embassy in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, posted on X: “At least two innocent sailors have died. This was the sad but inevitable consequence of the Houthis recklessly firing missiles at international shipping. They must stop.”


Later US Central Command increased the toll to three.

The bulk carrier was drifting with a fire on board after being hit at about 9.30am GMT on Wednesday 50 nautical miles south-west of Aden, the vessel’s owner and operator said.

“The vessel is drifting,” the Liberia-registered owner True Confidence Shipping and Greece-based operator Third January Maritime Ltd said in a joint statement, adding that there was no current connection with any US entity.

The marine security firm Ambrey said the ship had been struck and had sustained damage, adding that a rescue operation was “under way with parts of the crew already in lifeboats”.

Houthi militants in Yemen have repeatedly launched drones and missiles against international commercial shipping since mid-November, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians to oppose Israel’s military actions in Gaza.


A number of ships have been damaged in such strikes, but Wednesday’s deaths are the first among merchant sailors. Two US Navy Seals drowned in January in waters off Somalia as they tried to board an unflagged vessel carrying Iranian weapons bound for the Houthis.

The Yemen Data project estimates there have been 11 civilian casualties recorded in three separate US-led strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen in February.

The US and the UK launched Operation Poseidon Archer on 12 January. The project estimates that the number of Houthi attacks on shipping doubled in February compared with the previous month – at least 79 strikes from a minimum of 33 in January.

Wednesday’s incident came as the British embassy in Yemen warned of dire environmental consequences from the Houthi sinking of a Belize-flagged and Lebanon-owned carrier, Rubymar. The ship sank at the weekend after drifting for nearly a fortnight. Lloyd’s List said out-of-date records may have led the Houthis and the British government to view the ship as British-owned.

The intensifying disruption has led several shipping firms and oil companies to suspend or redirect voyages from the key Yemen-adjacent route, which accounts for about 12% of global seaborne transit.


Earlier this week, four out of 15 critical submarine cables in the Red Sea were cut, with HGC Communications assessing that this affected 25% of traffic.

London and Washington acknowledge they need better intelligence about the Houthis’ military assets, and are drawing up plans to help train local naval forces to assist in controlling Yemen’s territorial waters.

The Aden government is convinced that the Houthis will not end the attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab strait even if the Israeli war on Gaza ceases.

While the militia has said it would attack vessels with links to the UK, the US and Israel, shipping industry sources say all ships could be at risk.

*Benue: Bloody rival militia gang war claims 45 lives in Ukum LG


…crisis broke after kidnap, murder of deadly militia leader by rival gang


No fewer than 45 persons including a family of seven were feared dead following the invasion of Gbagir community in Ukum Local Government Area, LGA, of Benue State, by suspected armed Fulani militia supported by local Tiv bandits in a fight to oust another Tiv militia gang in the area.

It was gathered that most of the dead were members of the rival militia gangs while about 12 innocent farmers were caught in the cross fire which also left over 30 persons injured and many others declared missing.

A traditional ruler in the area who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the bloody fight which started Tuesday morning after a Tiv militia leader in Ukum LGA, kidnapped another Fulani militia leader, one Alhaji Gana and his family members, who were known for banditry and kidnappings, from neighbouring Chinkai community in Wukari LGA of Taraba State.

He said, “after kidnapping them, he asked for N100million ransom but he was given N5million. After collecting the money he killed the hostages.

“The murder of the hostages sparked outrage among his gang members in Taraba State. This happened over the weekend.

“What followed was that another militia gang leader in Ukum now went and join forces with the Fulani militia gang in Taraba to help them eliminate the rival gang in Ukum that killed their leader, Alhaji Gana.

“The essence was to enable him be the head of militia in Ukum. The combined forces of Fulani and Tiv militia gangs started moving into the bushes of Gbagir in their hundreds from Sunday to sack the gang that killed Alhaji Gana. And on Tueday morning the bloody fight ensued.

“From what we gathered over 45 persons who were mainly bandits have been killed, though we have record of over 12 farmers who were caught in the cross fire. Over 30 others were injured while some are also missing. We learnt that the gangs are also evacuating some of their dead members.

“Sadly caught in the cross fire was a family of seven in Tse Adzandeh Mbasaa, Mbajiga, Ityuluv, Torov. They were all members of the Adzandeh family.

“The armed men have also spread to the bushes of Gbeji, Chito and Afia in their numbers but cannot move into the residential area because of the timely intervention of troops of Operation Whirl Stroke, OPWS.

“In fact when people noticed the movement of the armed Fulani militia into Benue communities, the Chiefs informed the political leaders who immediately briefed Governor Hyacinth Alia who equally alerted the military for swift action.

“It was this timely response of the Governor to the intel and the intervention of the OPWS that saved the people of Ukum LGA because we gathered that they planned to kill hundreds of people in Ukum as revenge for the murdered Fulani militia leader but it is their gang war and innocent residents have nothing to do with that.

“Over 1,000 of them have laid siege on Ukum LGA as we speak that is why we are appealling to the military to save us before they wipe out our innocent families.

“We need more security posts in and around the area and we also appeal to the Governors of Benue and Taraba States to team up and put an end to the activities of these cross border criminals. They should support the military with logistics also.”

“As we speak these people are still in the bushes in Ukum, they have not moved back to Taraba. The Fulani militia are being supported by a Tiv militia group to eliminate another Tiv militia gang and as they fight the innocent locals will be killed.

“There is urgent need to protect the other three villages because we are hearing that the first phase of the attack is in Gbagir while Chito, Gbeji and Afia might be next.”

“We are also appealing for fortified military presence in all the Benue and Taraba border communities.”

Confirming the development, the lawmaker representing Ukum state constituency, Ezra Nyiyongo said 20 corpses had been recovered.

Effort to reach the Force Commander of OPWS, Major General Sunday Igbinomwanhia was unsuccessful but a military source confirmed the development.

According to him, “these are militia men killing each other. Yes, we acknowledge that some people may have been caught in the cross fire, but the majority of the people that were killed were members of the militia gangs in the area.

“But be that as it may, our troops are in Ukum, to ensure that the attack does not affect innocent people.”

Contacted, the Benue State Police Commissioner, Mr. Emmanuel Adesina who confirmed the development said more officers were deployed to the area adding that five corpses had also been recovered from the scene.

THE YOKE IS BROKEN!!!!
I COULD PERCEIVE THE DECAY OF MY SYSTEM WHEN I TALK.
16 YRS OF ADDICTED SMOKING AND DRINKING SHATTERED BY THE GOD OF CHOSEN

Bro Ebuka came to Magnify and appreciate the GOD of CHOSEN for the great Deliverance he did in his life.

According to our brother he was a Chronic addict. He was addicted to drinking, smoking, womanizing and all sorts. He smoked cigarettes like someone who wants to run away. He smoked marijuana and all sorts. It got to a time his system began to decay. He He was perceiving the odour coming out from inside his body. When he talks or cough, it will be like you are perceiving a rat that has been dead in a room for 5days.
It got to time when he could not move his body to the left or right. It was like his body was hooked.
At a time nobody wanted to associate with him.

Sometime last year, someone invited him to the LORD'S CHOSEN. The GOD of CHOSEN worked on him SPIRTUALLY, PHYSICALLY and SUPERNATURALLY.

He decided to go for a full body test including chest scan, xray, etc .
To his shock and amazement , all the tests came out negative. His ruptured lungs , attries and failing heart all became brand new. Everything was on normal limit. No trace of Narcotic was found in his body.
The GOD of CHOSEN gave him a total brand new body.

He is now totally super Healthy. TO GOD BE THE GLORY.
ONLY GOD CAN DO THIS AND WE RETURN ALL THE GLORY.

No matter the Sickness or addiction that has rendered Helpless and Hopeless! There is Great Hope for you. THE GOD OF CHOSEN IS THE HOPE OF THE Hopeless.
RUN TO THE GOD OF CHOSEN! YOU ARE GUARANTEED AN ENCOUNTER THAT WILL MAKE YOU SMILE AGAIN.



Services at the International Headquaters in Lagos are as Follows:

Sunday service 8AM
Tuesday Revival 8AM and 5PM
Thursday Counselling and Deliverance 8AM

Tommorrow THURSDAY 7th March 2024 is a great opportunity to Encounter the GOD of CHOSEN
It is a day program titled: GOD'S INTERVENTION IN TIMES AS THESE.

VENUE: REVIVAL GROUND
CHOSEN Estate, OSHODI-APAPA EXPRESSWAY BY IJESHA BUS STOP.

TIME IS 8AM.
MINISTERING : GOD'S SERVANT Pst Lazarus Muoka.

THE GOD OF CHOSEN ANSWERS PRAYER

Ogun State Government has warned residents of the state to stop dumping corpses of babies and faeces in public waste bins placed along major roads.

The Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya gave the warning in an interview with New Telegraph on Sunday.

Oresanya lamented that residents of Abeokuta, the state capital had been abusing public waste bins placed along major roads and markets by dumping dead babies and faeces in them.

The commissioner who was reacting to the indiscriminate dumping of refuse and open defecation on the multimillion naira Panseke pedestrian bridge in Abeokuta, said the government is making plans to secure the bridge from beggars, robbers and the destitute who have taken over the bridge.

Findings by New Telegraph revealed that the bridge, tagged the longest pedestrian bridge in West Africa, constructed by the administration of Senator Ibikunle Amosun had been taken over by robbers, beggars and the destitute.

“We put out a giant waste bin along the road going towards the market (Panseke market), we put another smaller one around the place where okada riders are staying so that they can be putting their waste inside it, but every time we go there to clear the wastes, we found out that the bins contain faeces and dead babies.

“When their children die, they don’t bury them, they will just dump them in the bins. There is a major social problem in that area that needs special attention and we are looking at it holistically”, Oresanya said.

Speaking on the deteriorating condition of the pedestrian bridge, Oresanya said, “The bridge was constructed so that the pedestrians can use it to cross the road, but on that same bridge, you will find out that only a few pedestrians can use it, people on a wheelchair, physically challenge will not be able to cross that bridge is their any alternative organized for them? No, but we are working on that.

“So that bridge in itself has that kind of effect maybe the construction because I don’t see areas there where physically challenged people can climb that bridge. We need to redefine and probably put a zebra crossing around that area where motorists will have a place to wait for pedestrians and for the physically challenged to cross safely on pedestrian walkways in the area.

“We have to put gates there to stop the destitute from sleeping on the bridge in the night and defecating on it because what we heard is that in the night people can’t use that bridge at night and the destitute that stay there, they rob people, sleep and defecate there.

“We cannot put policemen there to stay on the bridge to work who will sleep there overnight, so they have to be locking that bridge around 6 pm to stop destitute in the night.”

The Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, Paul Omotoso, is dead.

It was gathered from family members that the Imesi-Ekiti born politician and lawyer died in the early hours of Wednesday after a brief illness.

Omotosho, who was said to be active and participated in series of political meetings early in the week, was said to have complained about his health on Tuesday which made him to be rushed to a government hospital in the state capital where he later died.

It will be recalled that the late APC chairman was kidnapped in July 2023 by gunmen and was released after five days in the den of the gunmen.

Omotoso’s death followed the passing of the Chairman of the Ondo State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Fatai Adams, who passed on mid-February.

A Yet-To-Be-Identified Person has died in a road accident that occurred along the Owerri-Ihiala Expressway by the Ihiala Local Government Area secretariat on Tuesday.

It Was gathered that the accident occurred at about noon and it involved two vehicles belonging to God is Good Logistics and a driver of a Nissan Caravan commercial bus.

According to eyewitness accounts, the driver of the Ford vehicle was at speed while one of its front tyres pulled off and he lost control and finally crashed into the back of the Nissan that was in its front.

The source said 11 people comprising seven male adults and four female adults were involved in the crash, while one male adult was killed, four male adults and four female adults were injured and two people were rescued unhurt.

The Acting Sector Public Education Officer of the state Federal Road Safety Corps, Margaret Onabe, while confirming the accident, said the probable cause of the fatal crash was speed and loss of control.

Onabe said, “A commercial driver identified as Francis Basil with a black Ford E-250 bus with registration number No: JJJ842YG belonging to God is Good Logistics, and a driver of a custom Nissan Caravan commercial bus identified as Orjiwuru Augustine with registration number: TTK518XA was involved in a fatal road traffic crash two poles before Ihiala LGA Secretariat by Owerri-Ihiala Expressway today March 5, 2024, at about 12:00hrs.

“According to eyewitnesses, the driver of the Ford vehicle was at speed, one of his front tyres pulled off, he lost control and finally crashed into the back of the Nissan that was in front.

“11 people comprising seven male adults and four female adults were involved in the crash. One male adult was killed, while four male adults and four female adults were injured and two people were rescued unhurt.

“The FRSC rescue team from RS5.34 Ihiala Unit Command Anambra State rushed the victims to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Ihiala where one male adult was confirmed dead and his corpse deposited at the same hospital mortuary.

“The team in conjunction with policemen from Ihiala Divisional Police Station towed the crashed vehicles to the police station. Obstruction cleared and normalcy in human and vehicular movement restored.”

She added that the Sector Commander Anambra State, Corps Commander Adeoye Irelewuyi, sympathised with the family of the dead victim and wished the injured victims quick recovery.

“He seriously warned motorists to desist from disobeying traffic rules and regulations emphasising that traffic rules made was to advert this kind of crash that occurred. Drive to Save your Life and the lives of others on the road,” she added.