Omoawoke: Your drug pusher brothers are in Malaysian prisons waiting to be beheaded.
More of your brothers are being nabbed daily both home and abroad. Funny thing is the couple that was caught last week were among those calling Tinubu a drug lord on social media, now they have been nabbed for tracking cocaine. Your own too will soon come, all of you will be disgraced and we will read your story on nairaland
7:31am: Italy calls on ECOWAS to extend Niger ultimatum ECOWAS should prolong its deadline for the reinstatement of Niger's ousted president, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in an interview published on Monday.
"The only way is the diplomatic one. I hope that the ultimatum of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which expired last night at midnight, will be extended today," Tajani told La Stampa newspaper
12:57pm: Germany urges diplomatic solution in Niger
Germany's foreign ministry called for a diplomatic solution to the junta takeover in Niger after the ECOWAS deadline for restoring the elected government to power expired on Sunday.
"We support ECOWAS in its mediation efforts, which are still ongoing," a ministry spokesman told a press briefing on Monday.
The expiry of the bloc's deadline did not mean there would automatically be military action, he added.
"We hope that these (mediation) efforts will ultimately lead to success and that constitutional order will be restored in Niger."
Niger’s armed forces have been bringing in reinforcements to the capital to prepare for a potential invasion, a military source told CNN, just hours after the military junta running the country refused to abide by an influential regional bloc’s deadline to cede power.
A convoy of about 40 pick-up trucks arrived at nightfall on Sunday evening, bringing troops from other parts of the country to both reassure a nervous public and prepare for potential battle.
Niger has been thrown in to political chaos since late last month, when President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted in a coup d’etat by the presidential guard. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) responded days later by enacting sanctions and issuing an ultimatum to the ruling military junta: stand down within a week or face a potential military intervention.
That deadline came and went Sunday without any change in the political situation. Bazoum remains deposed and his whereabouts are still unknown to the public. The National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland, the junta’s formal name, is still effectively in charge of Niger. A junta leader said Sunday that Niger’s armed forces would be closing the country’s airspace due to the threat of military intervention.
What comes next is unclear. ECOWAS leaders say their preference is find a diplomatic solution to the crisis but have maintained they willing to resort to the use of force as a last resort to return Niger’s democratically elected government to power.
The uncertainty has rattled residents in Niamey, the capital. Some people flocked to supermarkets purchase staples like rice and cooking oil in bulk, while others attempted to flee. Employees of local bus companies said most lines out of the capital were fully booked.
Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe James Stavridis warned on Sunday that the conflict in Niger amid a looming deadline for coup leaders to cede power could potentially lead to a "full-blown war in Africa."
The Sunday deadline established by a coalition of West African nations for Niger to return to democratic rule is set to expire. The demand has been shunned by fellow military-led countries Burkina Faso and Mali, who have jointly warned that any intervention would amount to a declaration of war.
While conflict is far from guaranteed, the conditions for a major escalation are quickly brewing on a continent that has played host to some of the deadliest wars of the past century. Some believe that such a confrontation would have vast ramifications, not only for the people of the Sahel region, but far beyond, with the potential to draw in the likes of the United States, France and Russia among other invested powers.
While speaking on X, formally known as Twitter, Stavridis asked on Sunday, "Will this lead to a full-blown war in Africa? It certainly has the potential to do so, and would be a significant and devastating event."
On Friday, defense chiefs from the West African nations finalized an intervention plan and urged militaries to ready resources after negotiations with Niger's military junta stalled, the Associated Press reported.
"All the elements that would go into any eventual intervention have been brought out here and been refined, including the timing, the resources needed and the how and where and when we are going to deploy such a force," said Abdel-Fatau Musah, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, after a meeting between defense chiefs from ECOWAS countries excluding Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Guinea and Niger.
However, Musah did not say whether ECOWAS would deploy force at the end of the deadline given to the junta. Newsweek has reached out to multiple military experts for comment via email.
While speaking to The New York Times on Saturday via phone, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, the Nigerian chief of defense staff, told the newspaper, "Democracy must be restored, through diplomacy or force."
While speaking to The New York Times on Saturday via phone, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, the Nigerian chief of defense staff, told the newspaper, "Democracy must be restored, through diplomacy or force."
The umbrella body of Northern Nigeria, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), has warned President Bola Tinubu and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) against military intervention in the Niger Republic.
SaharaReporters reported on Sunday that ECOWAS directed the closure of Land and air borders between member states against the Niger Republic over a military coup d'etat that removed democratically elected president, Mohamed Bazoum from office.
The Authority of Heads of State and Governments of ECOWAS, which Nigeria chairs also issued a seven-day ultimatum to the military in Niger Republic to restore the ousted President.
According to ECOWAS, if the demand is not met within one week, all measures necessary to restore constitutional order in the Republic of Niger, including the use of force, will be taken.
The West African regional body also ordered the freezing of all Niger State and the state enterprises and parastatals funds in commercial banks in all ECOWAS member states.
Nigeria Defence Headquarters, the high military command in Nigeria, on Thursday, said that military action is the last option to be taken to reverse the situation and return the government of the Republic of Niger to constitutional order, adding that it had not yet received such orders.
In a release obtained by SaharaReporters, Nigeria's high military command explained that the military chiefs in the West African sub-region had met and submitted their plans to the committee of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS for consideration.
But reacting to the unfolding events following the coup in Niger, ACF warned that military intervention in the West African country would have consequences for Nigeria.
The organisation, which gave the warning in a statement issued on Friday through its General Secretary, Murtala Aliyu, called for dialogue to resolve the issue.
According to ACF, the use of military might in the Niger Republic will not guarantee peace and stability in the ECOWAS sub-region.
The statement partly read: “ACF, however, views with concern the unfolding events in Nigeria’s immediate neighbour, the Republic of Niger, and the potential impact on the region.
“The measures being contemplated should have taken into consideration the historical antecedents and mutual interests of the two countries and weighed the consequences of the use of military force.
“While the ACF recognises the ECOWAS position to bring pressure to bear on the perpetrators, nevertheless the military option shouldn’t be a prerequisite for Nigeria’s and the Community’s continuing efforts to enthrone democracy in the region in the 21st century."
ACF noted that though military intervention might yield a temporary solution, the result will come with repercussions for Nigeria as a leader and the regional body.
“To this end, ACF notes that while it supports the position to restore democratic rule in Niger, it calls on the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government under the able Chairmanship of President Bola Tinubu, that it should toe the path of dialogue and diplomacy and certainly not force, in resolving the current impasse in Niger in the interest of peaceful coexistence with our brotherly neighbour and stability of the ECOWAS region,” it added.
The U.S. is deciding what to do with its 1,000 troops in Niger amid a report that the head of Russia's Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has offered his fighters' services to forces that staged a military takeover in the former French colony.
A U.S. military official said that American troops had been restricted to their base in the city of Agadez, NBC News reported on Monday, after President Mohamed Bazoum was seized by members of the presidential guard.
Rebel leaders have declared General Abdourahamane Tiani as the new head of state in the seventh military takeover in West and Central Africa in less than three years. The U.S. has had troops in Niger for around a decade, mostly advising and training its forces on counterterrorism.
But Russia's footprint in the region has been growing thanks to the Wagner Group, which has contracts in countries such as the Central African Republic and Mali.
A voice message on Telegram, believed to be Prigozhin speaking, described how what had happened was "the struggle of the people of Niger with their colonisers," Reuters reported.
"If Wagner were to enter Niger, it could pose a threat to U.S. operations in much the same way that Wagner has previously undermined French, European, and UN presence in other African countries, such as Mali," said Catrina Doxsee, associate director of the Transnational Threats Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
However the U.S., unlike France and several other European powers, is not overshadowed by a colonial history, and so "U.S. assistance may remain appealing. "
"U.S. policymakers would be wise to prioritize the U.S.-Nigerien relationship in their response, rather than forcing an ultimatum between the United States and Russia as partners," she told Newsweek.
Prigozhin's apparent offer of help fits in with his pattern of opportunism in seeking weak or transitioning governments needing security assistance. Wagner also provides a key link for the Kremlin to the continent's lucrative natural resources.
"I would expect Wagner to accept an offer from the Nigerien junta if one comes," Doxsee told Newsweek. "However, any agreement may be difficult to execute fully, given both the heavy uncertainty surrounding Wagner's future and strains on personnel across their current deployments."
Prigozhin was heard in a video last month telling his men in Belarus that they should gather their strength for a "new journey to Africa." Two images purportedly of the Wagner leader appeared on Telegram showing him meeting attendees at last week's Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg.
GOTVee: Even though I'm a born again Christian, i would like to appeal to Mr Peter Obi and Atiku to call their supporters to order. I condemn Violence and incitement in any form. We have no other country but Nigeria. Let's not burn down our country because of Elections that will still re-occur in 4yrs time. It's shameful that most religious leaders especially the Christian ones who are supposed to douse the tension in the land are all Partisan. The Muslim leaders led by the sultan appealed for calm and urged everyone to accept the result as the will of God while Pastors are inciting the masses. If we are not careful, this Obidient movement will soon metamorphose into a wild terrorist group
Born again Christian my FOOT. No justice = No Peace.
Draslo: Thank you jare. They'd have wanted nothing better than a puppet they can use. I cannot just wrap my head around how a monumental failure at state level can be trusted with handling federal affairs if not some scheme by the west using social media to brainwash the many halfwits that can never identify as true patriots.
If someone cannot judge two or three presidential candidates by track record, then the person should probably donate his/her brain to medical school for intending brain surgeons
Nigeria’s presidential and national assembly elections, held on 25 February in the midst of a widespread crisis, have highlighted wider issues and divisions. And the aftermath could see more strikes and other mass revolts in a country of around 220 million people.
In the month before the voting, protests on the streets and in bank halls included people stripping naked. They were angry at not being able to change their old currency notes for new ones before a deadline of 10 February.
Official election results show that Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), was elected as president with 8.8 million votes. He is a former governor of the state of Lagos, which is the fifth largest economy in Africa, with over 25 million inhabitants.
The candidates of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP) and New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP) secured 6.9 million, 6.1 million and 1.4 million votes respectively. All three say the elections were flawed and they have been robbed of victory. They are seeking to overturn the outcome in court. Obi said, “I will challenge this rascality for the future of the country.”
The elections revealed sharp divisions in the two dominant parties, starting from party primaries. Tinubu defeated vice president Yemi Osinbajo in the APC primaries in June, but eventually ran his campaign almost as an opposition party.
He sharply attacked president Muhammadu Buhari, whom he had been pivotal to bringing to power in 2015. Buhari had claimed the currency swap would stop vote-buying. But it was the poor masses who bore the “no cash” brunt. Tinubu argued that a crisis situation was contrived to make his presidential run unpopular.
The PDP main opposition party, is used to office. It held the reins of power for 16 years after military rule. It won every presidential election between 1999 and 2011 and was, until the 2015 elections, the governing party. But it is very divided.
Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president who has run for the presidency thrice before now, won the primaries. But five PDP governors banded together in protest of what they described as a slight on politicians from the south, whose “turn” it should have been to run.
The “G5” as they were called were themselves not united on whom to support. But their leader, Governor Nyseom Wike of the oil-rich Rivers state eventually threw his weight behind Tinubu.
One of the most significant developments in these elections is the rise of the “Obidients.” This is the middle-class youth-driven movement behind the LP candidacy of Peter Obi. He is a billionaire businessman and former governor of the south eastern Anambra state, who was endorsed by The Economist magazine. Obi was the most prominent Nigerian listed on the corruption-revealing Pandora Papers.
In 2019, he was running mate on Atiku’s PDP ticket and left for the LP only in May 2022 when it became clear that he would not secure the PDP nomination.
As LP candidate, he has broken the APC/PDP two-horse race mould. He came a close third and also registered some shocking victories, such as defeating APC in Lagos state and PDP in the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja.
The elections do not reflect the people’s will, as the Socialist Workers & Youth League (SWL) points out. All four major parties rigged results as best as they could in their different areas of strength.
But more importantly, they all stand for taking even further the neoliberal policies of privatisation, liberalisation and cuts in public funding of social services that earlier governments. As a result, despite how keen the electoral contest was, voter turnout declined from 35 percent in 2019 to 27 percent. There has been a steady decline of voter turnout since 2003.
The simmering anger of working people and youth will definitely go beyond not voting in Nigeria’s elections in the coming period. A general crisis of physical insecurity, rising inflation, and high youth unemployment is driving disillusionment in the system and the ruling class.
This is what inspired the rise of the “Obidients” which included the moderate wing of the 2020 EndSARS movement against police brutality. But Obi showed the folly in reformist hopes placed on him, saying there was no difference between his programme and that of PDP’s Atiku. The trade union bureaucracy’s new-found support for the LP, did not inspire rank-and-file workers.
The most likely spark for a nationwide fightback by working people is a sharp increase in fuel pump prices. Tinubu, just like Atiku and Obi committed to this anti-poor people policy during his campaign. And he added that no amount of protests will deter him.
The only party with a revolutionary alternative that will be at the fore with the masses in the struggle that will unfold is the AAC. It has argued, like the SWL, that working class people cannot win their emancipation at the ballots.
Fanning the embers of resistance into fires of revolution is the way forward in the coming period.
It is perhaps unsurprising that many Nigerians are dissatisfied with the outcome of the presidential election. The winner, Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), ran on the slogan “It’s my turn”. It seemed to epitomise the uninspiring campaign of an immensely wealthy veteran powerbroker trailed by corruption claims, which he denies. The main opposition Peoples Democratic party (PDP) candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and the outsider challenger, Peter Obi of the tiny Labour party, want the results scrapped, citing problems with both voting and counting. On any account, Mr Tinubu hardly gained a ringing endorsement, with just 37% of the vote (and less than 10% of those registered to cast a ballot), while the PDP took 29% and Mr Obi 25%.
Under the APC’s Muhammadu Buhari, Africa’s most populous country and largest economy, with dynamic arts and culture, and a thriving tech sector, has endured two recessions, high inflation and low growth. A botched attempt to replace banknotes worsened matters. In a global index of the commitment to reducing inequality, Nigeria ranks 159th of 161 countries. Multiple security crises include jihadist insurgencies in the north-east, deadly clashes between farmers and herders, and kidnappings by armed gangs. The state has proved both ineffective and brutal, as its bloody suppression of the mass #EndSars protests against police abuses showed. Many Nigerians are voting with their feet.
The hope of a fresh start produced a surprise surge for Mr Obi, who won not only the capital, Abuja, but also Lagos, the country’s economic hub and Mr Tinubu’s former fiefdom. If not exactly an outsider – the 62-year-old businessman is a former state governor and previously ran as the PDP’s vice-presidential candidate – his energy, frugality and commitment to reform and bridging ethnic and religious divides stood in sharp contrast to his rivals. But despite inspiring grassroots fervour, especially among the young, he faced an uphill struggle without major resources or a serious party machine behind him.
The turnout was strikingly low even by Nigeria’s usual standards – down from 35% of those registered to vote in 2019 to just 29%. Though the polls themselves were mostly peaceful, turnout was affected by fuel and currency shortages and insecurity, and there was evidence of voter suppression in places. Many electors missed their chance because voting sites opened hours late. Yiaga Africa, a leading civil society organisation, and EU observers both expressed concerns about the process. The election commission had raised expectations by promising the most technologically advanced contest yet, with a new electronic voting system delivering results within hours. Its failure meant days of collating results by hand, which only fuelled opposition suspicions.
This was the country’s seventh election since the end of military rule in 1999, and its most competitive. It offered welcome hope that the rotation of power between the two main parties might end. Mr Obi is now better positioned for the next contest. He has also demonstrated voters’ hunger for something better; some hope that might prod the main parties to shape up. Others suggest that Mr Tinubu could outperform low expectations, suggesting that Lagos’s development when he was governor shows that he at least knows how to get things done within a deeply flawed political system. But whatever result this election returned, it needed to deliver it as cleanly and efficiently as officials had boasted it would. The government can hardly complain if voters feel short-changed by the process and its result.
In Washington, or at least some corners of it, knives are being sharpened for Saudi Arabia. It’s been almost two weeks since Riyadh and its counterparts in the OPEC Plus cartel moved to raise global oil prices by announcing its largest supply cut in years, no matter the desperate entreaties of the Biden administration. The resulting fallout still smolders in Washington, where many interpreted the decision as a calculated act to humiliate President Biden and undermine his party’s prospects ahead of the upcoming midterm elections — on top of boosting the fossil fuel-subsidized war machine of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In recent days, Democratic lawmakers have touted a series of punitive measures against the kingdom. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) announced legislation last week that would immediately halt all arms sales to Saudi Arabia for one year.
“There must be consequences for fleecing the American people in order to support Putin’s unconscionable war,” Khanna said in a statement.
In the summer, Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.), a former U.S. diplomat, backed Biden’s controversial July trip to Saudi Arabia as a bid to “ensure our client states that depend on our security are on our side.” But earlier this month, he and two other Democrats in the House introduced a bill to mandate the removal of U.S. troops and missile systems deployed in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which was also party to the cartel’s production cut.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, last week urged that U.S. missile systems and batteries committed to help defend the oil infrastructure of the Gulf kingdoms be transferred instead to protect Ukraine from Russian attacks.
“Policy decisions have consequences, and these steps would right-size the relationship with Saudi Arabia and help Ukraine,” Murphy said in an emailed statement.
A NATO nuclear exercise with warplanes that can drop atomic bombs will take place from next week over the United Kingdom, the North Sea and Belgium, the alliance has said.
The annual training - called Steadfast Noon - is going ahead despite escalating tensions with Russia over fears President Vladimir Putin might consider a real nuclear strike in Ukraine.
Unusually, NATO chose to highlight well in advance the fact the exercise was coming up.
This appears to have been in a bid to ensure transparency and reduce the risk of any misunderstanding about the top secret and highly sensitive exercise.
Even the name, Steadfast Noon, was only formally declassified three or four years ago.
Air forces from some 14 countries are set to take part, with up to 60 aircraft operating over northwestern Europe, the alliance said on Friday.
They will include fighter jets from allied nations, such as Belgium and Germany, that can carry B61 bombs provided by the United States as well as US B52 bombers.
No live weapons will be used.
The jets will be escorted by other warplanes along with refuelling aircraft and spy planes.
The aim is to test the ability of allies to conduct nuclear strikes - the bedrock of NATO deterrence policy.
"Training flights will take place over Belgium… as well as over the North Sea and the United Kingdom," NATO said in a statement.
Training helps ensure nuclear deterrent is 'safe, secure and effective'
The B-52 long-range bombers will fly from Minot Air Base in North Dakota.
Hosted this year by Belgium, the training will run from Monday until 30 October.
Oana Lungescu, the alliance spokesperson, said: "This exercise helps ensure that the alliance's nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective."
A different NATO country hosts the exercise each year. Last year it was Italy's turn.
Everything related to the alliance's nuclear policy, posture and activity is normally top secret.
Allies try to be incredibly careful about any comments on nuclear weapons because even that could be seen as escalatory.
Similarly, NATO does not spell out when it might use nuclear weapons, other than to say such circumstances would be "extremely remote".
Drawing red lines could undermine the alliance's ability to deter threats so it prefers to be deliberately ambiguous.
But France's president appeared to break with this convention on Wednesday.
In a television interview, Emmanuel Macron said his country would not retaliate with a nuclear strike should Russia's Vladimir Putin launch a nuclear weapon in Ukraine or in the region.
Axing training event would have sent 'very wrong signal'
Russia has used the threat of a nuclear strike in Ukraine as part of its efforts to deter the West from supporting the Ukrainian military.
The Ukraine crisis appears to have prompted the alliance to be increasingly public about its annual nuclear exercise.
Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General, said earlier in the week it would send a "very wrong signal" to cancel the long-planned event.
Ben Wallace, the British defence secretary, echoed this view and noted that Russia's nuclear forces are due to conduct their annual training exercise at around the same time.
"I think that is the key. What we don't want is to do things out of routine," he said on Thursday, speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels.
Only three of NATO's 30 allies have nuclear weapons - the US, the UK and France.
But France plays no direct role in NATO's nuclear deterrence and is not part of the alliance's nuclear planning group, which oversees all allied nuclear matters.
NATO is set to hold its regular annual nuclear deterrence exercises next week amid Russian President Vladimir Putin’s repeated threats to use nuclear weapons.
“This is routine training which happens every year to keep our deterrence safe, secure and effective,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters on Tuesday (11 October).
“President Putin’s veiled nuclear threats are dangerous and irresponsible,” he said, adding that “Russia knows that a nuclear war can never be won and can never be fought.”
The annual exercise, dubbed ‘Steadfast Noon’, will involve 14 NATO members, and nuclear-capable aircraft, but does not involve any live bombs. Conventional jets, and surveillance and refuelling aircraft also routinely take part.
Its declared aim is to ensure that relevant alliance personnel and equipment are prepared for a worst-case scenario and in the current context, to provide a ‘sense of security’ to alliance members, NATO diplomats say.
“We are closely monitoring Russia’s nuclear forces,” Stoltenberg added. “We have not seen any changes in Russian nuclear posture, but we remain vigilant.”
The exercises, however, coincide with Putin’s recent escalation of threats to use nuclear weapons, warned the West he was not bluffing, despite warnings from Western countries that such a step would be met with “firm consequences”.
Russia’s nuclear doctrine allows for a nuclear strike after “aggression against the Russian Federation with conventional weapons when the very existence of the state is threatened”.
Russia is the world’s biggest nuclear power based on the number of nuclear warheads: it has 5,977 warheads while the United States has 5,428, according to the Federation of American Scientists.
Asked whether it was the wrong time to proceed with such an exercise, Stoltenberg said “it would send a very wrong signal now if we suddenly cancelled a routine, long-time planned exercise because of the war in Ukraine.”
“NATO is prepared for any threat, any attack (…) also a nuclear threat – this was important before the invasion of Ukraine and has become more important after,” Stoltenberg said.
“By ensuring that we have credible deterrence and defence, we are helping to reduce the risk of escalation,” he added.
NATO as an organization itself does not possess any nuclear weapons, they remain under the control of three nuclear member states, the US, the UK and France.
A leaked report in 2019 revealed the locations of US and NATO nuclear weapons bases in Kleine Brogel in Belgium, Büchel in Germany, Aviano and Ghedi-Torre in Italy, Volkel in The Netherlands, and Incirlik in Turkey.
The presence of the weapons stems from a Cold War-era agreement in the 1960s aimed to deter the Soviet Union.
An obese Russian retired general has been sent to fight on the frontlines in Eastern Ukraine because Vladimir Putin is running out of senior officers.
The 20 stone general, 67, is now said to be in charge of Russian special forces operating in the region after the unit’s former commander was seriously injured in an artillery strike.
The veteran of Russia ’s disastrous war in Afghanistan is known as General Pavel.
A senior intelligence source last night told the Daily Star Sunday: “Putin is now scraping the barrel.
“Most of his best and battle-hardened senior commanders have been killed or injured fighting in Ukraine so he is resorting to sending second rate officers to the front who don’t last very long.
“He is now dragging generals out of retirement and one of those is General Pavel.
“Putin is like a mafia boss who no one can refuse to obey. If a retired general gets a message from Putin saying mother Russia needs you to fight in Ukraine there is not much you can do. There is now escape from Russia thanks to the sanctions.”
Pavel was a soldier for more than 40 years and became a commander of Russia’s special forces but that was 25-years ago when he was younger and fitter..
He is understood to have served in Syria just before retiring from active service five years ago.
Up until recently he was living in a Moscow suburb but is understood to have been ordered to return to active service last month.
The officer is so fat that he has to have his uniform specially made and wears two sets of body armour to cover his substantial girth.
He is understood to require five meals a day washed down with at least a litre of vodka.
Russia is believed to up to 10 generals in the war in Ukraine and as many as 30 senior officers.
Latest estimates also suggest that as many as 30,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in action and up to 100,000 have been injured.
Russia has reportedly lost over 4,000 tanks and armoured vehicles, 216 combat aircraft, 183 attack helicopters and 620 drones.
Just as there is no debating that the Hutus of Rwanda carried out a deadly onslaught against the Tutsis, so also in Nigeria there is no debating that the Fulani are carrying out an ethnic cleansing-genocide against indigenous people so as to grab their rich lands, and permanently change the demographics, culture, and name of the country known as Nigeria. Survivors of armed Fulani attacks have told us so. So too have armed terrorists revealed that their reward for killing is to be given land, and for Nigeria to become the “Islamic State of West Africa” (viz the fallout from the recent Abuja-Kaduna train attack).
The motives of the Fulani are understandable. They are non-indigenous immigrant settlers and Nigeria is a land filled with natural resources which they covet. Moreover, their Ahmadu Bello in 1960, declared to them that their mission should be to “ruthlessly” make Nigeria their “estate”. This Fulani Caliphate Agenda would be impossible to get off the ground though, if not for the key ingredient: INDIGENOUS POLITICIANS. So, why are indigenous politicians helping armed Fulani to overrun Nigeria?
THE BIG ISSUE – is that indigenous politicians from the NINAS Alliance Territory are playing the role of Judas Goat. This is the animal that leads sheep or goats to the abattoir and is rewarded by its master with much food, and with its life spared. If not for indigenous politicians upholding a document they know is a Forgery called 1999 Constitution, the Fulani would have no access to the ancestral lands of the indigenous Ethnic Nations of the South and Middle Belt (NINAS Territory). That illegitimate 1999 Constitution is the illegitimate “Entry Visa” of the Fulani. All political parties subscribe to that Forgery. Then, the declared winner of elections swears an Oath Of Office to uphold, defend, and govern by that Forgery. In so doing, indigenous politicians give life to, and empower what is actually a Forgery, opening the door for Fulani to enter the ancestral lands of indigenous peoples, saying that they are entitled through the provisions of the 1999 Constitution.
To stop these Fulani, some State Governors had passed anti-open grazing laws, but which cannot be enforced. For, while the Fulani invaders come armed with AK47s and AK49s, under the 1999 Constitution, Governors cannot arm their people for self-defence.
THE REASON – that indigenous politicians uphold the illegitimate 1999 Constitution, the Entry Visa for Fulani, is because they do not care about their people. They have no vision for their people’s welfare. They want money and the power of impunity, so as Judas Goats for the Fulani they get to live, and to live lavishly.
Therefore Elections 2023 are of utmost importance for the task assigned to indigenous politicians. It is the means of renewing the life of the 1999 Constitution when the Oath of Office is taken by the declared winner of elections. That gives the Fulani Caliphate and armed Fulani more time to make Nigeria their “estate”. For playing such a crucial helping role, indigenous politicians are rewarded with more years to acquire money and riches from the public purse.
THE SOLUTION – has been placed on the Table by the non-violent NINAS Movement since 16 December 2020 when a Constitutional Force Majeure was Declared to Terminate the operation of the illegitimate 1999 Constitution in the NINAS Territory. Indigenous politicians in defiance of the will of their people who have Repudiated the sham, genocide-enabling 1999 Constitution, but with the false confidence that comes from having access to public money, and being protected by troop-loads of armed police and soldiers, have been wasting time (even though their defenceless and unprotected are people being slaughtered by armed Fulani, and farms destroyed), aiming to run down the time clock, then claim that there is no time left to do anything before Elections 2023.
There IS time left before those elections to do the right thing, and to do the right thing the right way. The PRIORITY now is to protect indigenous communities. Relying on Buhari has proven to be futile, and no wonder, he has been judged by local as well as foreign observers as being complicit in the deadly onslaught against indigenous peoples by his Fulani compatriots. Politicians from the NINAS Territory should therefore know that any decision by them or their political parties to go for Elections 2023 will be interpreted as a clear-minded choice to help the enemy preserve the 1999 Constitution and this will mean sabotaging their own people, and being directly responsible for bringing armed Fulani upon them. Instead, serving officials should even at this stage have some sense to retreat from the treasonous path that will bring calamity upon them, for they would certainly face the fury of their people for upholding the Fulani invader-enabling sham 1999 Constitution.
Transitional Government is needed right now! The matter is too plain for any kind of confusion: the 1999 Constitution creating the (false) Union as well as creating all tiers of government, is a Forgery. It is a Fraud. It is a Deception. It is a Scam. It is Make-believe. It has therefore been REPUDIATED, viz the Solemn Assemblies of the Lower Niger, the Yoruba, and the Middle Belt Blocs; plus other joint assemblies, and the Constitutional Force Majeure (CFM). With their inalienable right of Self-Determination made possible by the CFM, indigenous Ethnic Nations of the NINAS Territory should be taking fuller charge of their various spaces. It is impossible to expect indigenous peoples to sit still while armed Fulani destroy their farms, violate their daughters, and then slaughter everybody. More and more individuals and groups across the NINAS Territory are stepping forward to embrace the DIAGNOSIS, PRESCRIPTION and TREATMENT Proposition of the non-violent NINAS Movement. The main task of NINAS is to lead the dismantling of the fraudulent 1999 Constitution to end the degenerate Unitary Union it creates, and to champion the processes of Self-Determination by which Sovereignty is restored to the constituent Blocs of the NINAS Territory. The Union Dispute that the Fulani Caliphate has been imperiously avoiding since 1966, would get resolved. Indigenous Ethnic Nations in formations of their choice (Blocs), will decide whether or not to re-federate as a Union of Nigeria. That is their inalienable decision.
Ndidi Uwechue is a British citizen with Igbo heritage from the Lower Niger Bloc. She is a retired Metropolitan (London) Police Officer, she is a signatory to the Constitutional Force Majeure, and she writes from Abuja.
One hot night in the deep forests of Sambisa, in northeastern Nigeria, shortly after a military airstrike targeted the Boko Haram settlement where they lived, Amina Mohammed and her husband — alongside many members of the terror group who had fled the location during the bombing — are hurdled up in hiding.
They are under small, inconspicuous tarpaulin tents. It is very uncomfortable because they are trying not to attract attention to themselves, as an aircraft can still be heard hovering above their heads. This means staying still is the surest means of surviving. Still, in the middle of the palpable tension and ensuing danger, she sees her husband approaching her corner of the tent with a familiar expression. She knows what is to come and braces herself for it.
There is no talk; he simply comes to her. The sex is aggressive. So aggressive that it numbs out her inner thighs, and she feels as though there is an organ from deep inside her that may spill out of her vagina. It is not an irrational fear or concern.
She has a friend who experienced a curious incident she believes was prompted by her husband’s use of excessive and prolonged force during sex, which she says was so aggressive that her uterus fell out of her vagina. This friend was married to a Boko Haram member as well.
When Amina’s husband first enters her tent as she sits on a tarpaulin, she notices that he smells of drugs and so knows this is one of those nights he can go several rounds without tiring. The first round lasts two hours, then he rests and goes another round.
He is her third Boko Haram husband, the other two having died — the first, by execution, and the second at the war front. So, by now, she knows the drill. It does not make it any less bearable.
“They make love like horses,” she says, referring to their energy.
“They only care about their satisfaction […] Even when you complain of tiredness, they won’t let you be, as long as you are not on your period, they don’t care. They have sex anywhere, even when we are under attack. Sometimes, even under the tree.”
Even now that she has returned to town, she hears comments about her marriageability.
“People see me and whisper among each other that no man can sexually please any woman who has been married to a Boko Haram member before.”
Uterine prolapse Uterine prolapse is a condition in which the uterus in a woman’s body falls out of place and protrudes out of her vagina. It usually needs to be pushed back into place. The prolapse occurs when the ligaments and muscles supporting the uterus get weakened and can no longer support it in place.
According to Dr Ishaku Musa, a chief consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the Gwarinpa General Hospital in Abuja, “forceful intercourse can damage the support structures of the womb. This now leads to uterine descent, also called uterine prolapse.”
This was what happened to Amina’s friend.
Uterine prolapse is widespread among the women captives, especially due to limited access to medical supplies. Often, it happens during childbirth. Many of the women are girls who were abducted seven to 10 years ago and who have had to grow among the terror group and be married off to its members. Some of them are now radicals as well.
Stephen Yusuf, a doctor at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), explains that the uterus is kept in position by various ligaments. “Repeated pregnancy and delivery weakens these ligaments,” he says. “Or if there is a very large baby. And some other conditions that weigh down on the uterus from above.”
Amina says there wasn’t enough support for child birthing in the terrorist camps. Even though there were sometimes medical personnel, usually those abducted in Maiduguri and Adamawa, they were not enough for all the people needing help.
“All the children I gave birth to there, I did it alone. No doctor, no help […] A lot of women die when giving birth. There is no proper care. When I had my last child, it was my friend that served as a midwife. We used a stick to cut the umbilical cord after the baby was born.”
Drug use among the terrorists
On the day Amina asked her husband for ₦500 to buy tomatoes for food, he not only denied having the amount, he nearly became violent towards her. It would not have been the first time.
But later that same day, he pulled a wad of naira notes from his pockets and gave them to her. It totalled ₦30,000 when she counted it. She became terrified.
“How can someone that refused me ₦500 give me ₦30,000?” she remembers thinking. “I became scared.”
Still, she took it. After handing her the money, he hung his rifle around his neck, then walked out without first wearing his shoes.
When he returned later at night, still barefoot, he informed her his money was missing. ₦30,000 to be exact. She reminded him that he had given her the money. He labelled her a liar and accused her of stealing it from his pockets.
Amina admits that before he gave her the money, she had seen him injecting himself with drugs, as he occasionally did. He was more of the pills-popping type, but sometimes he injected himself too. The effect usually lasted hours.
“I told him he was not in his right senses; that I saw him take the injection, and what was it meant for?”
He told her to keep quiet, asking if she was looking to get him killed. The punishment for drug use amongst Boko Haram members is death. It did not stop the terrorists, including Amina’s husband, from using it in hiding.
Usually, after he had injected himself, he would give her the bottles to bury in the ground, she says. But after she confronted him that day about his drug use, he became suspicious and scared that she might one day out him. So he ordered her to dig up all the bottles from wherever she had buried them, and then give them to him to dispose of himself.
I went and dug everything out with my bare hands and gave them to him, and he threw them away,” she recalls.
The pills were easier to take for him because then he could just claim they were pain killers. Once, she asked to take the pills to numb the pain she was feeling, and he warned her not to, saying that she would run mad if she did.
“They always say they are pain killers. One time I attempted to take the drug — it is red in colour — and my husband said I will run mad if I take it. How will I run mad when he has not? And they usually take it when they are about to go to the battlefield. They go out of their senses after taking these drugs.”
She did not know it then and would not until she left Sambisa forest but the pills her husband took were mostly tramadol, and the injections, pentazocine.
But Boko Haram members do not use drugs only before going to the battlefields. They also used them in preparation for sex. It made them so energetic and powered up that they could spend an entire night on rounds and rounds of sex tirelessly, Amina says. It was also often aggressive. Another woman, Maijiddah, tells HumAngle that barely three months into her marriage with one of the men in Sambisa, she sought to end the marriage for this reason.
But she could not ask for divorce explicitly. She, therefore, threatened to report his drug use to the terror group’s leadership because it was what powered his violent sexual activities.
Before this, she had first tried to run away from the group. She was caught and locked up in prison for some time.
“He was so into drugs that without it, he would be useless. He was also a dealer. He could spend an entire night on top of me. Sometimes he would sleep off on top of me, and if I tried to roll him off, he would immediately get violent.”
Like Amina’s husband, he also partook in the use of tramadol and pentazocine. When she threatened to report him, he opted to divorce her instead. “He said since I wanted to destroy his life, he would rather divorce me, and he did. That was how I escaped that life.”
After the divorce, she was transferred to a building known as Gidan Zaurawa, she says. A Hausa term that translates to mean ‘House of the single-women.’ It was where women among the terror group who were either divorced or widowed were kept for three to four months before being remarried.
How does Pentazocine work? Pentazocine is an opioid in the same class as tramadol. According to Dr Yusuf, there are other opioids that can be injected for the purpose of ‘getting high’, like morphine and fentanyl but they are very expensive. Their effect is also short-lived. Pentazocine, known among drug users as ‘Penta’ for short, is cheaper than the rest, in addition to having a more lasting effect.
“It’s usually to numb pain but it also causes euphoria and makes them happy. That’s the major feeling. The feeling of euphoria,” Dr Yusuf says.
“That euphoric feeling might be the reason he took that amount of money and gave it to his wife even though he would not have given it to her normally if he wasn’t under drug influence.”
Any religious justification? Drugs — intoxicants, generally — are prohibited in Islam. And, since the terror group insists it is Muslim, the use of drugs is generally prohibited among Boko Haram members.
However, the group has seen different stages of evolution and acceptance towards the vice. According to sources familiar with its operations, at some point it started to unofficially overlook the use of hard drugs, especially tramadol, on the basis of it being helpful to them on the war front and therefore necessary for their work. When certain members were questioned about its use, they argued that it usually helped them with strength on the battlefield.
While the use of tramadol, therefore, has always been rampant among the group, it is usually mostly hidden. It is ferried through to the militants from Damboa, according to Maijiddah, usually the same way that bullets are sent down to them through canoes. She also explained that individuals partner with allies who are domiciled inside the towns.
A report published in 2018 described the pill as “the drug of choice for Boko Haram.”
Certain hard drugs have been used, too, by the group to aid amputation due to their limited access to medical supplies. Later, as the group evolved, they began to use the drugs for sex too.
According to women who had been wives of eminent members of the insurgent group, hardcore members of the group are not punished for the use of hard drugs. Sometimes, even high-ranking members were punished, as long as they were identifiable as people with milder or less radical ideologies.
“It’s usually the members that are not hardcore radicals that are punished for it,” one of the women says. “The ones that don’t know what they’re doing, that are only there to fight aimlessly.”
Nato forces are “100 per cent ready” to defend Europe should Russian President Vladimir Putin decide to invade, a British military commander has said.
Lt Col Ru Streatfeild, who is leading the organisation’s battle group in Estonia, said British troops were “buzzing” and immensely proud” to be helping to reinforce the country’s eastern border with Russia.
Troops led by the UK’s 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh, which he commands and have recently been stationed in the Baltic State, took part in a large-scale exercise at Tapa military base, about 112 kilometres (70 miles) from the Russian border, on Thursday.
Exercise Bold Dragon involved about 2,300 soldiers from the UK, French, Danish and Estonian ranks using tanks, including the British Challenger 2 tanks, armoured infantry, engineers, artillery and logistics.
The allied forces went head-to-head against the Estonians in the mud, snow and boggy conditions to further hone Nato’s war capabilities and tactics, and ensure the smooth running of working together.
Speaking during the exercise, Lt Col Streatfeild said the war in Ukraine had given his soldiers “a razor-like focus”.
“We are literally under Nato command right now. There are Nato plans in place, and whatever orders we are given under a Nato structure, we will execute them,” he said.
Asked if Nato forces were prepared in the event of a Russian invasion, he said: “100 per cent. There is swagger. They are on their game and they are ready.
“It is not that people revel in this. But soldiers want to do a job. They want to put their tradecraft into practice. This is what they join the army to do.
“Our soldiers are immensely proud to be here. It is an immense privilege. But it is also an immense responsibility,” he said.
He said Nato forces were not only in place to protect the security of the eastern flank but also the “freedoms we often take for granted”.
“It’s those western liberal values; it’s free speech, it’s the ability to be able to buy your own house or car, all those western norms, they are underpinned by security and that is what Nato is here for.”
The battle group commander said he “absolutely” knows how he would counter a Russian attack.
“We are getting to know this terrain really well. And for the Estonians, this is their terrain. They have defended it before and they will defend it again,” he said.
There are currently about 2,000 Nato troops in Estonia, including the Royal Danish Army Viking Company and the French 7th Alpine Hunter Battalion.
On Wednesday, Estonian officials called for Nato member states to double the number of soldiers in the country in order to deter Russia from advancing further into Europe.
Gunner Joe Watson, 19, from Wakefield said he is not concerned about the prospect of war.
“It doesn’t really concern me. We did join the army for a reason. You have always got to be prepared for it,” he said.
“And as a gunner, you don’t really think about it. You just do your job and try to do it well.
“Everyone understands that if we do go, it will be big. But we are focusing on defending Estonia. That is exactly what this is.
“I am proud to be here. I think a lot of the Estonians are very grateful that lots of the British Army are here, especially the armoured units. And this makes you quite proud to be in this job.
“I have got quite a small family, they are dealing with it quite well. My dad is obviously proud. They are all quite proud to be fair.”
Lance Cpl Rhydian Stephens, from Ammanford in Carmarthenshire, who is attached to the Royal Welsh as a B-company medic said: “We heard the news about the war when we were out doing training exercises in Germany and obviously people got excited. It is what we joined the army to do.
“We joined the army to help. But, for now, we are just watching what is happening at the moment on the news and doing what we need to do here in Estonia first.”
I am certain that all the equipment had been delivered covertly before this announcement was made.
All in all, these lethal weapons will cause some small concern for Russia.
An additional $800 million drawdown package of security assistance is on its way to Ukraine. Efforts to get the newly authorized equipment and supplies to the Ukrainian military will begin immediately, said Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby.
"As you've seen [it] go in the past, from the time the president authorizes drawdown until the first shipments actually start landing in the region can be as little as four to five days and then another couple of days once they're there to get processed and actually in the hands of Ukrainian frontline forces," Kirby said.
The Defense Department is still delivering equipment from the last $800 million package for Ukraine, and Kirby said that'll likely be complete by the middle of this month. But the shipment of new equipment will begin immediately, he said.
"We're not going to wait," he said. "We're going to start getting these articles on the way, as well. So, we will literally start right away."
This most recent authorization is the seventh drawdown of equipment from DOD inventories for Ukraine since August 2021, Kirby said. About $2.6 billion in security assistance has been provided to Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion on Feb. 24.
According to Kirby, the array of equipment that will be sent to Ukraine as part of the new drawdown package is broad. It includes 18 155 mm Howitzers, along with 40,000 artillery rounds. Also included are the AN/TPQ-36 counterartillery and AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel air surveillance radar systems.
To move Ukrainian troops around the battlefield, the package includes 100 armored Humvee vehicles, 200 M113 Armored Personnel Carriers, and 11 Mi-17 helicopters. The helicopters will augment the five Mi-17 helicopters sent to Ukraine earlier this year.
Additional Switchblade drones, Javelin missiles, medical equipment, body armor and helmets, optics and laser rangefinders, and M18A1 Claymore mines are also included in the package.
"Some of [these capabilities] are reinforcing capabilities that we have already been providing Ukraine and some of them are new capabilities that we have not provided to Ukraine," Kirby said. "All of them are designed to help Ukraine ... in the fight that they are in right now.
In addition to gear, the Department expects that there will need to be training provided as well. So far, much of what has been transferred to the Ukrainians have been systems they are already familiar with. An exception to that has been the Switchblade Tactical Unmanned Aerial System. For those, the Department trained Ukrainian servicemembers who were already in the U.S. for other kinds of training, allowing them to train others upon their return home.
This latest round of security assistance includes new kinds of capabilities the Department believes the Ukrainians may need training on before putting it to use. That includes the Howitzer system, the two radar systems, and possible the optics and laser rangefinders as well as the Claymore mines. There may also be additional training for the Switchblade system.
Because the Ukrainians are in an ongoing fight, any training will likely follow a "train-the-trainer" approach, to ensure the least impact, Kirby said.
"We're still working our way through what that's going to look like, where, when, how many," he said. "It's more likely than not that what we would do, because they are in an active fight, is a 'train-the-trainer's' program. So, pull a small number of Ukrainian forces out so that they can get trained on these systems and then send them back in."
It's also expected that specific types of troops will be trained on specific types of systems.
It's also expected that specific types of troops will be trained on specific types of systems.
"It'll likely be tailored," he said. "We'll pull troops out that, for instance, are artillerymen, to learn the Howitzer and then go back in and train their colleagues, rather than take an artilleryman and make them responsible for ... training everybody on all these systems."
Right now, it's unclear where such training might occur, Kirby told reporters, though he said it might happen in "multiple locations." Additionally, training on these systems by U.S. forces would likely happen with forces already in the region.
Belarus' border guard has accused Polish forces of attacking them using a slingshot and "metal balls".
Polish border authorities allegedly committed "illegal actions" at a checkpoint near the city of Brest, the authority said.
"On the night of April 10-11, Polish soldiers fired on the Belarusian road checkpoint Peschatka," a statement read.
The security also forces tried to blind the Belarusian border guards with strobe lights."
A video shared by Belarus' State Border Committee showed an armed individual flashing a light toward the camera. Another individual then appears to fire a slingshot across the border.
During the inspection of the territory, the Belarusian border detachment found damage to the walls of the border, as well as metal balls," Minsk said.
"The Polish side was informed about the border incident" the authority added.
The alleged incident is reminiscent of another reported "border violation" in January when holes were discovered near an emblem of the Belarusian State Border Committee.
The incident comes amid heightened tensions between Poland and Belarus' ally Russia following the invasion of Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials have repeatedly accused Minsk of preparing to send its own troops into the war, which Belarus denies.
Meanwhile, relations between Poland and Belarus have deteriorated following the disputed re-election of President Alexander Lukashenko in 2020.
Warsaw has started building a €350 million fence along its Belarusian border to block the entry of illegal migrants.
On Sunday, the Polish Border Guard accused Belarusian officials of "throwing stones" and using "lasers" against Polish patrols as a group of migrants tried to enter the country.
"We do not comment on the materials published by the Belarusian side," a Border Guard spokesperson told Euronews.
"There were many indications that in recent months some of the information published by the Belarusian services was manipulated."
"The Border Guard officers did not fire any shots either last night or recently, nor did they use any slingshot-type tools - we do not have such in our equipment."
Prime Minister Eduard Heger says Slovakia has given its S-300 air defence system to Ukraine to help it defend against Russian attacks.
In a post on Facebook on Friday, Heger said the donation of the Soviet-made anti-aircraft batteries did not mean that the European Union and NATO member had joined the conflict with Russia, which invaded neighbouring Ukraine on February 24.
“I can confirm that the Slovak Republic has donated the S-300 air defence system to Ukraine, following Ukraine’s request for assistance,” Heger wrote.
“The donation of the system does not mean that the Slovak Republic has become a part of the armed conflict in Ukraine,” he added.
Ukraine has appealed to Western nations for military assistance, including air defence equipment, to help repel a Russian military onslaught.
On Friday, the United States said it would send new weapon systems to Ukraine after NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels agreed to accelerate arms deliveries in response to Russia’s invasion.
Urged by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to end bureaucracy-driven delays, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US and 30 other countries were sending weapons to Ukraine and that that process would intensify.
Blinken added the US had already agreed to send Kyiv anti-aircraft systems, shoulder-held anti-tank weapons and armoured vehicles.
Last week, Pentagon officials said not all the weaponry President Joe Biden had promised to Ukraine in mid-March, including the S-300, had been delivered yet.
Celeste Wallander, assistant secretary of defence for international security affairs, told a congressional hearing: “We have focused on getting countries that hold Soviet legacy systems including S-300 systems, that have spare parts, missiles, different parts of that S-300 system, who are willing to send that to Ukraine.”
On Friday, Biden said his administration had agreed to “reposition a US Patriot missile system to Slovakia” to enable the Slovakian government’s transfer of the S-300 to Ukraine.
“To enable this transfer and ensure the continued security of Slovakia, the United States will reposition a US Patriot missile system to Slovakia,” Biden said in a statement.
“As the Russian military repositions for the next phase of this war, I have directed my Administration to continue to spare no effort to identify and provide to the Ukrainian military the advanced weapons capabilities it needs to defend its country.”
In March, Slovakia said it would provide the defence system to Ukraine only on the condition that it receive a substitute to avoid a NATO security gap.
Heger said Slovakia was giving the S-300s “to Ukraine and its innocent citizens, believing that this system will help save the lives of as many innocent Ukrainians as possible.”
Foreign Affairs › Re: Niger’s Armed Forces Bring In Hundreds Of Troops To Protect Capital by GodHatesBigots(op): 3:59pm On Aug 08, 2023
Even though I'm a born again Christian, i would like to appeal to Mr Peter Obi and Atiku to call their supporters to order. I condemn Violence and incitement in any form. We have no other country but Nigeria. Let's not burn down our country because of Elections that will still re-occur in 4yrs time. It's shameful that most religious leaders especially the Christian ones who are supposed to douse the tension in the land are all Partisan. The Muslim leaders led by the sultan appealed for calm and urged everyone to accept the result as the will of God while Pastors are inciting the masses. If we are not careful, this Obidient movement will soon metamorphose into a wild terrorist group 
