The West African nation has for years relied on imports to get over 90 percent of its wheat supply, however, the conflict in Ukraine has caused disruptions, leading to a price surge as it affected the wheat supply chain negatively.
Wednesday, May 17, 2023
Video - Nigeria to boost wheat production to 6 million tonnes by 2032
29 villagers killed by gunmen in Nigeria
Gunmen attacked villages in troubled north-central Nigeria, killing 29 people and razing houses, survivors and authorities said Tuesday.
Many villagers remained unaccounted for Tuesday evening after the attack in Plateau state, residents said. It was the latest incident in a spiral of violence mainly targeting remote communities in the West African nation.
The gunmen targeted three villages in Plateau state’s Mangu local government area late Monday night and killed several people either with gunfire or after setting their houses ablaze, resident Philip Pamshak said.
“As I am talking to you, they are still attacking people. The tension is still high and there are places the bandits still control, so people are not able to go and check if there are others killed,” Pamshak said.
Plateau Gov. Simon Lalong said he was disturbed by the attack and directed security forces to search for the suspects and prosecute them, according to a statement issued by his spokesman.
“He (the governor) describes this as yet another attempt by crises merchants and criminals to return the state to the dark days of pain and agony,” said Makut Macham, Lalong's spokesman.
Such attacks have become rampant in many parts of Nigeria’s northern region, where several armed groups target villages with inadequate security, either killing or abducting residents and travelers for ransom.
Arrests are rare in such attacks, for which no group typically takes responsibility. However, authorities have in the past identified many of the attackers as former pastoralists who took up arms after decades of conflict with farmers over limited access to land and water.
The security crisis has led to thousands of deaths and defied several government and security measures in the last year.
After the latest killings in Plateau, Lalong directed the emergency response agency to visit the affected communities “to bring succor” to victims and their families, many of whom have either fled the area or have lost their homes, adding to Nigeria’s worsening humanitarian crisis.
By Chinedu Asadu, AP
Tuesday, May 16, 2023
Video - Aid groups warn of children in danger of malnutrition in Nigeria
Attacks by armed groups, high food prices and natural disasters are pushing Nigeria's most vulnerable to the brink of starvation. The World Food Programme says cases of severe acute malnutrition in children have quadrupled in less than a year. Al Jazeera's Ahmed Idris reports from Maiduguri in northeastern Nigeria.
Two soldiers from Nigeria killed by Islamist insurgents
Three soldiers from Nigeria and Niger were killed and at least 12 others were injured on Sunday after attacks by Islamist fighters in northeastern Nigeria, two military sources said on Monday.
The troops were part of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) made up of forces from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria that are seeking to end an Islamist insurgency that has killed thousands and displaced millions more.
A Nigerian military source said that two Nigerian soldiers of the MNJTF were killed when their vehicle set off an improvised explosive device while they were pursuing insurgents in the Arege area in northeastern Borno state, the heartland of the insurgency.
Ten troops, including the commanding officer, were injured and another two civilians working with the troops were also wounded, the source added.
A Nigerien soldier was killed when the vehicle he was travelling in detonated another explosive device in a separate part of Arege, while the number of wounded was not immediately known, a source with the Nigerien army said.
An MNJTF situation report seen by Reuters confirmed the attacks.
MNJTF spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kamarudeen Adegoke was not reachable for comment.
By MacDonald Dzirutwe, Reuters
Afrobeats star Seun Kuti Arrested in Nigeria Over Alleged Police Assault
Nigerian Afrobeats star Seun Kuti was arrested Monday (May 15) after being accused of assaulting a police officer in the commercial hub of Lagos.
Kuti was detained at the Lagos State police headquarters after turning himself in, according to police spokesperson Benjamin Hundeyin, who tweeted photos of the celebrity in handcuffs.
The son of Nigerian musical icon and political agitator Fela Kuti, who himself was serially detained by Nigerian military regimes, Seun Kuti was “captured on video assaulting a police officer in uniform,” the police said.
Videos posted online appeared to show an agitated Kuti pushing a police officer as the officer stood beside a police vehicle along a major road in Lagos on Saturday.
It was unclear what led to the confrontation, though Kuti tweeted that the officer in question “tried to kill me and my family.” He suggested the officer tried to ram their car.
Inspector General of Police Usman Alkali Baba ordered an investigation into the incident. The inspector general “assures Nigerians that acts of contempt/disdain for symbols of authority will not be tolerated while offenders of such hideous crimes will be surely brought to book,” the police said.
“I welcome the investigation and will give my full cooperation!” Kuti responded on Twitter.
Related story: 'The system is rigged': Seun Kuti on reviving Fela's political party
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