Suspected Boko Haram gunmen have reportedly kidnapped 20 women from a nomadic settlement in northeast Nigeria near the town of Chibok, where the Islamic militants abducted more than 300 schoolgirls and young women on April 15.
Alhaji Tar, a member of the vigilante groups set up to resist Boko Haram’s attacks, said the men arrived at noon Thursday in the Garkin Fulani settlement and forced the women to enter their vehicles at gunpoint. He says they drove away to an unknown location in the remote stretch of Borno state.
Tar said the group also took three young men who tried to stop the kidnapping.
“We tried to go after them when the news got to us about three hours later, but the vehicles we have could not go far, and the report came to us a little bit late,” he said.
In another incident, the Defence Headquarters said Monday that troops prevented raids by Boko Haram this weekend on villages in Borno and neighbouring Adamawa state. Soldiers killed more than 50 militants on Saturday night as they were on their way to attack communities, defence spokesman Chris Oluklade said in an e-mailed statement.
The Nigerian military has come under rising criticism from Nigerians who say they’re not protected by the security forces, left to fend off attacks by Boko Haram on their own.
Boko Haram, which wants to establish Islamic state in Nigeria, has been taking over villages in the northeast, killing and terrorizing civilians and political leaders. Thousands of people have been killed in the five-year-old insurgency, more than 2,000 people have been killed so far this year, and an estimated 750,000 Nigerians have been driven from their homes.
In recent weeks, the extremists have used a two-pronged strategy and widened their theatre of operation beyond the remote northeast of the country. The group has bombed bus stations and marketplaces in three cities, killing about 250 people, and they are staging daily attacks on northeast villages, killing 20 people one day, and 50 another.
In one incident last week, the militants reportedly killed hundreds of civilians in three villages in the Gwoza local government. Residents said they had requested the military sends troops to protect the area after hearing Boko Haram militants were about to attack, but they said help never came.
The extremists abducted more than 300 girls from the Chibok Government Girls School on April 15, according to the police. Chibok community leader Pogu Bitrus says 57 girls escaped, leaving an estimated 272 still held captive.
The Globe and Mail
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Monday, June 9, 2014
Friday, June 6, 2014
Lupita Nyong'o to star in movie adaptation of Chimamanda Adichie's best selling book Americanah
It will be made by Brad Pitt's company Plan B, producers of 12 Years a Slave - which won Nyong'o an Oscar in February.
Americanah centres on two Nigerians who fall in love, but find themselves separated by immigration issues.
In a statement, Nyong'o said it was an "honour to bring Ms Adichie's brilliant book to the screen".
Americanah, which follows lovers Ifemelu and Obinze, won the prestigious US National Book Critics Circle Award in 2013.
It was selected as one of the 10 best books of the year by the New York Times Book Review, the BBC and Newsday.
It was also on the shortlist for this week's Baileys Prize for Women's Fiction in the UK, but lost out to Eimear McBride's A Girl Is A Half-Formed Thing.
"Page after page I was struck by Ifemelu and Obinze's stories, whose experiences as African immigrants are so specific and also so imminently relatable," said Nyong'o.
"It is a thrilling challenge to tell a truly international story so full of love, humour and heart."
Adichie's award-winning novels include Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun, which was recently made into a film starring Thandie Newton and 12 Years a Slave star Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Nyong'o became an overnight star with her performance in 12 Years a Slave, winning this year's best supporting actress Academy Award.
Earlier this week, it was announced that she was to join the cast of the latest Star Wars film.
BBC
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Nigerian best selling author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wins Americia's National Critics Book prize
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Nigerian military generals court-martialed for aiding Boko Haram
The government of Nigeria has court-martialed 15 members of the Nigerian military accusing them of supplying intelligence and weaponry to Boko Haram, severely weakening Nigeria's ability to cope with the growing threat Boko Haram presents.
According to the Nigerian news organization Leadership, 10 generals and five other officers of varying rank were found guilty. Some of the guilty parties may appeal to the overall military structure in Abuja after being found guilty on a divisional level.
One source told Leadership some of the information shared with Boko Haram resulted in deadly ambushes that cost the lives of Nigerian soldiers.
The courts-martial seem to lend credence to previous claims that members of the military were aiding Boko Haram. Nigerian leadership previously mentioned such allegations, and The Associated Press reports that even President Goodluck Jonathan has made similar accusations.
News of the courts-martial comes at the same time the Nigerian government has announced that it will no longer tolerate demonstrations organized under the banner of #BringBackOurGirls, according to both the AP and Leadership.
The police commissioner in the Nigerian capital of Abuja claims the protests have gotten away from their original goals and now pose a serious security threat to the Nigerian state, according to the AP.
This is not the first time the government has tried to silence dissent associated with #BringBackOurGirls. Thugs and the police have broken up such rallies throughout the capital. Government resistance to the protests has grown so great that the First Lady of Nigeria even had one of the principal organizers of #BringBackOurGirls temporarily arrested.
The more than 200 girls at the center of all this activity have been missing for more than a month. The Nigerian military seems no closer to finding them despite military aid from the United States, China, Israel, and the United Kingdom.
Daily Zone
Related stories: Video - Is negotiating with Boko Haram an option?
Video - The state of Nigerian governance and Boko Haram
According to the Nigerian news organization Leadership, 10 generals and five other officers of varying rank were found guilty. Some of the guilty parties may appeal to the overall military structure in Abuja after being found guilty on a divisional level.
One source told Leadership some of the information shared with Boko Haram resulted in deadly ambushes that cost the lives of Nigerian soldiers.
The courts-martial seem to lend credence to previous claims that members of the military were aiding Boko Haram. Nigerian leadership previously mentioned such allegations, and The Associated Press reports that even President Goodluck Jonathan has made similar accusations.
News of the courts-martial comes at the same time the Nigerian government has announced that it will no longer tolerate demonstrations organized under the banner of #BringBackOurGirls, according to both the AP and Leadership.
The police commissioner in the Nigerian capital of Abuja claims the protests have gotten away from their original goals and now pose a serious security threat to the Nigerian state, according to the AP.
This is not the first time the government has tried to silence dissent associated with #BringBackOurGirls. Thugs and the police have broken up such rallies throughout the capital. Government resistance to the protests has grown so great that the First Lady of Nigeria even had one of the principal organizers of #BringBackOurGirls temporarily arrested.
The more than 200 girls at the center of all this activity have been missing for more than a month. The Nigerian military seems no closer to finding them despite military aid from the United States, China, Israel, and the United Kingdom.
Daily Zone
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Video - The state of Nigerian governance and Boko Haram
Boko Haram disguised as military execute christians in church
Christians shepherded into a church by armed men apparently for their safety died when those soldiers turned out to be Boko Haram fighters in disguise, who opened fire on the cowering crowd in their latest attack.
It was one of at least six different raids across northern Nigeria on Monday and Tuesday, when as many as 30 people died.
The attacks again illustrate the militants’ supremacy over Nigeria’s state security forces, who have made little progress in freeing more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped close to two months ago.
Boko Haram's latest offensive came as it was reported Nigerian army officers have been convicted by courts martial for colluding with the al-Qaeda allied group, including providing them with weapons and secret intelligence.
Ten generals and five other senior officers were found guilty in the first of what were said to be several ongoing prosecutions of corrupt soldiers, Nigerian media reported.
The country's military, whose fighters are underpaid and often outgunned, has repeatedly faced allegations that both rank-and-file soldiers and officers were working with the enemy.
Key allegations include that they provided Boko Haram with weapons, or that telephone calls were made to the Islamists allowing them to prepare ambushes as military convoys drove past.
Some reports alleged that soldiers deserted their posts to fight alongside the militants before returning to their army bases in the evening. This could not be confirmed.
Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, the defense ministry spokesman, reissued an earlier statement, saying: "once again categorically that there is no truth whatsoever in the report".
Britain is among several nations offering assistance to the Nigerian government and its military to help find the missing schoolgirls.
Privately, Western security sector sources in the country report exasperation among those coming to help over the slow pace of the Nigerians' reactions to the kidnap crisis.
The girls are understood now to have been separated into several groups, making armed rescue of all the girls at the same time far more complicated and dangerous.
Telegraph
Related story: Video - Boko Haram raid on military base leaves 24 dead
Nigeria draw 0-0 with Greece in international football friendly
Greece and Nigeria battled to a goalless draw in a pre-World Cup friendly on Tuesday night at the home of the MLS Philadelphia Union.
There were few scoring chances in one of the final tuneups for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, which begins June 12.
The best opportunity came for Greece in the 83rd minute when Giorgios Samaras had a shot blocked from 10 yards and Dimitris Salpingidis followed with a header that missed.
Nigeria countered in the 87th minute when Ogenyi Onazi fired a shot from 25 yards that was saved by goalkeeper Stefanos Kapino.
Greece midfielder Giorgos Karagounis, the 37-year-old captain, played the entire first half, much to the delight of the large contingent of Greek fans in the stadium donning his No 10 jersey.
Daily Mail
Related story: Nigeria draw with Scotland 2-2 in international football friendly
There were few scoring chances in one of the final tuneups for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, which begins June 12.
The best opportunity came for Greece in the 83rd minute when Giorgios Samaras had a shot blocked from 10 yards and Dimitris Salpingidis followed with a header that missed.
Nigeria countered in the 87th minute when Ogenyi Onazi fired a shot from 25 yards that was saved by goalkeeper Stefanos Kapino.
Greece midfielder Giorgos Karagounis, the 37-year-old captain, played the entire first half, much to the delight of the large contingent of Greek fans in the stadium donning his No 10 jersey.
Daily Mail
Related story: Nigeria draw with Scotland 2-2 in international football friendly
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