ALERTS DATE
The following section illustrates the date alerts were reported on Wednesday, 18th January, 2023.
COUNTER TERRORISM ACTION
- On Monday, military fighter jets killed bandits in Rarah village, Rabah LGA, Sokoto State. According to the member of the Sokoto State House of Assembly representing the area, the military bombardment occurred in three different locations, killing many of the bandits. He claimed that the bandits were on their way back from their illegal operations when they were neutralized. He claimed that they attacked 17 villages, killed three people, and rustled several animals. He described the military operation as the most successful in recent times.
- During fighting patrols along the Kaboresha-Rijana Forest-Kuzo-Kujeni-Gwanto-Kachia axis, Operation Forest Sanity troops killed two bandits and cleared several hideouts in Kaduna State’s Chikun Local Government Area. On Tuesday, the Kaduna State Commissioner for the Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs issued a statement. The troops neutralized two bandits and recovered three motorcycles. According to him, the troops also raided bandit camps in the Kutura-Rijana area. The bandits fled into the forest when they saw the troops, who destroyed the camps and recovered three motorcycles, military uniforms, and bandoliers, according to the State Commissioner.
KIDNAPPING
- Kidnappers kidnapped three members of the Iwo Baptist Church who were sent to deliver ransom for the release of two members of the church who were also kidnapped. The two members were allegedly kidnapped five days ago while returning from their farms in Osun State’s Ile Ogbo area. The kidnappers contacted the family members a few hours after their kidnapping and demanded a N10 million ransom for their release. According to a church source, the victims’ families negotiated the ransom down to N6 million. The source said the ransom was to be delivered at a location in Kogi State. The three people sent to deliver the money, however, were abducted at the location. The incident was confirmed by the police spokesperson in Osun State.
- Katsina State Governor has directed security agencies in the state to rescue worshippers who were abducted by terrorists last Sunday in Kankara Local Government Area of the state. When meeting with heads of security agencies at Government House, the Governor issued the directive and urged them to do everything humanly possible to ensure that the victims were rescued and reunited with their families. According to reports, a group of terrorists stormed the New Life for All Church in Kankara’s Mai-Tsauni community and abducted 25 worshippers, leaving the pastor with varying degrees of injuries during service.
- The House of Representatives has strongly condemned the kidnapping and disappearance of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Treasurer in Akwa Ibom State, and other cases of kidnapping across the country, leaving citizens at the mercy of the kidnappers. The lawmakers, while directing the Inspector General of Police and other security agencies to step up efforts to secure his and many others’ release from the clutches of kidnappers, urged the federal government to put a stop to the country’s rampant kidnappings.
KIDNAPPING RESCUE
- A naval officer who was abducted over the weekend in Onitsha, Anambra State, has been freed. According to a source from the state Naval Outpost who confirmed the incident, the officer, a Lieutenant, was rescued by the military without any ransom. The victim, who is currently serving aboard the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Ologbo, was reportedly kidnapped on Sunday around 6:30 p.m. in the city’s Upper Iweka area, along with an unspecified number of civilians. When the incident occurred, the Lieutenant was on his way from Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State, to attend his long course program.
- The Catholic Priest who was kidnapped by unidentified gunmen on Saturday has been released. His captors released the Catholic Priest late Tuesday evening. The Parish Priest of St George Catholic Church, Omu Ekiti, in Ekiti State’s Oye Local Government Area, was abducted while returning to his base in Omu Ekiti after a pastoral assignment in the state capital, Ado Ekiti on Saturday.
SHOOTING (GUNMEN)
- On Tuesday, a police inspector was shot dead in Aba, Abia State, South-east Nigeria, by gunmen suspected of belonging to the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). According to reports, two of the gunmen were killed during a shootout with the police. The police spokesperson in Abia State who confirmed the killing said the incident occurred around 12:30 p.m
INSECURITY
- To end Nigeria’s insecurity, the Federal Government has signed an agreement with the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) and the West African Police Information Programme (WAPIS). On Tuesday, the Minister of Police Affairs addressed the global security organization. The Executive Director of Police Services of INTERPOL paid a visit to the Ministry Headquarters in Abuja. WAPIS and INTERPOL are willing to assist Nigeria in making the country safe, according to the Minister of Police Affairs.
- The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Murtala Muhammed Area Command (MMAC) has intercepted military and police equipment at the cargo section of the domestic wing of Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos. Hard drugs, including 162 cartons of Tramadol hydrochloride 225 and 250mg, were also seized. The items were intercepted at the Skyway Aviation Handling Company, according to the MMAC’s Customs Area Controller (SAHCO).
- President Muhammadu Buhari said on Tuesday that those funding the Boko Haram insurgency intended to split Nigeria. The President questioned why the terrorist group and the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) were bent on destabilizing the country, reiterating his conviction that those behind such projects never meant well. He stated that Boko Haram is false. You say western education is ungodly. It’s fraudulent. Whoever is financing them just wants to split the country. All the grounds they seized before we came have been recovered, and the rebuilding process is going on well.
- The Katsina State government is collaborating with security operatives in the state to strengthen security strategies to ensure the safety of all worship centers. This was revealed on Tuesday by the Governor’s special adviser on security matters, who stated that the decision was made due to renewed attacks carried out by a group of terrorists armed with sophisticated guns on motorcycles who abducted worshippers on Sunday. The state government is emphasizing the deployment of an additional 1,900 fully trained vigilante corps in high-risk areas.
ARMED ROBBERY
- The Delta State Police Command has killed a 26-year-old man who was wanted by the police for his involvement in a foiled robbery operation in Orogun community, Ughelli North Council of the state. The deceased was seen with other members of his gang, who gathered within the Unukpo – Orogun palm tree plantation, according to a police spokesperson who confirmed the incident in Asaba on Tuesday. According to him, the DPO of Orogun division mobilized and led police operatives to the area in an effort to prevent another attack in response to a tip. He explained that as they approached the scene, the hoodlums opened fire on the police, and the police responded equally, resulting in the death of the wanted suspect, while other hoodlums fled due to the superior police fire power during the ensuing gun duel.
CIVIL DISORDER
- One person was shot and killed on Tuesday during an alleged altercation with a mob in the state, according to the police in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria. According to the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, the incident occurred when police officers from Okokomaiko Division went to Alaba Rago Market in the state to arrest a suspect. According to the police spokesperson, while attempting to arrest the suspect, the officers were attacked by a large number of traders in the market, and in order to flee the angry mob, one of the officers shot and killed one person.
- In response to the gruesome murder of a Catholic Priest of St. Peters and Paul Catholic Church by armed bandits along Daza road in the area, enraged youths in Kaffin-Koro, Paikoro local government area, allegedly burned down the police station. The police’s slow response to the people’s cries for help reportedly enraged the youths when gunmen attacked the late priest residence on Sunday morning around 3 a.m. During the protest, cars and houses, including a police outpost, were set on fire, and some people were injured to varying degrees.
