50 killed and many displaced in northern Nigeria flooding

At least 50 people have died and "many" displaced after recent torrential rains caused flooding in northern Nigeria, Sani Yusuf, executive secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) for Jigawa State said.

"When you go around [Jigawa State], we lost about 50 people to the flood," Yusuf told reporters on camera Sunday from the city of Dutse, which was broadcast by local media

Yusuf said at least 237 homes had been damaged in the area of Balangu alone, forcing people into temporary camps. Eleven temporary camps have been set up for those displaced, he said.
Nigeria's Federal Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Sadiya Farouq also visited Jigawa State recently to distribute relief materials, the federal ministry tweeted.

"This incident is particularly sad because it has become perennial. This is causing serious damage to schools, houses, and the livelihood of the people," Farouq told reporters on camera.

Farouq said Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management to activate National Emergency Management Agency to provide the necessary support to those affected by the floods.

The floods come after days of severe thunderstorms which have prompted flash flooding warnings from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency.

Many parts of Jigawa are vulnerable to flooding after rainstorms. Earlier in August, around seven people died and dozens of buildings were destroyed following flooding from heavy rains in seven districts in the northeastern Nigerian state.

Last year, more than 120 families were displaced in the state's Guri district when their homes were submerged by floods after a heavy downpour.

'No quick solution'

Water resources minister, Suleiman Adamu, who is also from Jigawa told local media two years ago there were no quick solutions to the state's flooding problem, and not even funding could curb it.

"Desilting a river is not a solution to flooding, it's a temporary solution, it takes a lot of money. If all the budgets of the federal government and Jigawa State are combined to desilt River Hadejia, we cannot achieve it," Adamu said, adding that: "There are no short-term measures to stop flooding but we can mitigate and do early warning." 

CNN

Nigerian Authorities Say Airstrikes Kill 55 Members of Kidnapping Gangs

Nigeria's air force said airstrikes this week killed 55 members of criminal gangs who were involved in abduction-for-ransom operations. An air force spokesman said after the airstrikes, the militants released people they were holding hostage.

Nigeria's government has come under heavy criticism for failing to stop mass abductions and Islamist militant attacks.

The Nigerian Air Force said airstrikes in north central Kaduna state on Tuesday killed 28 members of a kidnapping-for-ransom gang, including a gang leader. It said many others were injured.

Air Force Public Relations Director Gabriel Gabkwet told reporters that authorities had received intelligence that the bandits were gathering in the area. He said the success of the raid led to the release of captives they held.

Gabkwet said other airstrikes in northwestern Katsina state this week killed 27 bandits.

He did not take calls from VOA for further comment.

The airstrikes come a week after Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari presided over a national security meeting and said he had given security forces the full freedom to deal with terrorists.

Darlington Abdullahi, president of the alumni association of Nigeria’s National Defense College, said Buhari's words were a morale booster for troops.

"This kind of thing should not come as a surprise, all you need is political will to guide the action of the forces,” Abdullahi said. “I think they're getting probably that support that is required to deal with the situation from the utterances of Mr. President."

But Gabkwet said the military has also been conducting air operations targeting insurgents in northeastern Borno state. He said that included an August 6 raid in the village of Gazuwa that followed intelligence that terrorists from Boko Haram and splinter group Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) were fighting each other.

Nigeria has been fighting an Islamist insurgency in the northeast for more than 12 years.

Authorities have been heavily criticized for failing to address general insecurity that stems from the insurgency and rampant kidnapping.

Abduallahi said the military must stay on the offensive.

"As long as this continues, I think the military still has the upper hand to take on them before they organize themselves properly,” he said. “I think the security agencies really have to continue with the efforts to deal with the situation decisively."

Earlier this week, police said they had arrested four suspects connected to a church attack in the southwest state of Ondo that killed 40 worshippers.

But security analyst Senator Iroegbu said authorities have shown a lack of political will to address the problem.

"The challenge we're having is that the political will is not there, especially from the presidency,” Iroegbu said. “There's no clear-cut directive on what to do. Any time you hear ... he's sounding frustrated. They keep on pushing the blame to others not taking responsibility."

In July, Islamic State West Africa Province claimed responsibility for a jailbreak in Buja that freed over 400 inmates, including high-profile terrorism detainees. Only a few of the prisoners have since been recaptured.

By Timothy Obiezu

VOA

Seven more Nigeria train attack passengers released on Wednesday

Seven more passengers kidnapped during a March 28 train attack in Kaduna, Nigeria, have been freed after 135 days in captivity, local media outlets report.

The latest release comes a week after five others were freed from custody, and with no communication from, their captors explaining the move.

The newly released people were part of an unknown number of passengers aboard an Abuja-Kaduna train that came under fire on March 28 as it approached the capital of Kaduna State.

With the latest releases over the last week, the number of the original captives freed has now hit 49.

Some two weeks ago, an unverifiable video emerged online reportedly showing bandits beating up some of the passengers to push the Nigerian government to act on their demands.

Passengers often opt to use the Abuja-Kaduna railway line as the highway linking the two states is considered to be one of the deadliest in the West African country.

By Jerry Omondi

CGTN 

Related stories: Gunmen free 11 passengers from Nigerian train attack

Video - Rail staff killed in ‘unprecedented’ attack on train in Nigeria

 

 

 

 

Nigeria resettles some 12,000 displaced people in instable northwest

Children happy to be home again. Nigeria has brought back around 12,000 of its citizens who fled raids by criminal gangs in the northwest of the country earlier this year.

The authorities in Shimfida village located in Katsina state near the Nigerien border said improved security prompted the voluntary returns since Sunday.

Returnees like Audu Musa, pray for safety: "We are praying to God that all our predicaments come to an end and may we see an end to such predicaments and may God shield us with all his shields of protection."


Outside a makeshift camp at a public school in the Nigerian town of Jibia, thousands boarded buses to go home on Monday. Jibia's political administrator said he expected many more to arrive.

"There are those who are taking refuge in Jibia and those who are in Niger Republic, Bashir Sabi'u starts. Approximately 6,000 refuges are estimated to be in the Niger republic, in Jibia maybe even more, from about 6000 and those people in Niger Republic are on their way back, we are expecting their arrival to send them onto Shimfida."

Despite military operations, reports that criminal gangs known locally as bandits are still active in the wider region of northern Nigeria continue to emerge.

Insecurity has disrupted agriculture and food supplies in Katsina state and around, deepening malnutrition. Rural northwest Nigeria has been ravaged by gangs of bandit militias who raid villages, loot cattle and kidnap people.

Over the past two years, violence has displaced almost one million people in northwest and central Nigeria, while an additional 80,000 have fled across the border to Niger.

Africa News

The Most Curious Nation About Crypto Is Nigeria, Study Shows

 Africa’s most-populous nation showed more interest in cryptocurrencies than any other country since the digital assets began to decline in April, according to a study by price tracker CoinGecko.

Nigeria scored 371 in the study that looked at Google Trends data for six searches such as “buy crypto” or “invest in crypto” that were then combined to give each English-speaking nation a total search ranking. The West African country was followed by the United Arab Emirates and Singapore.

“This study provides interesting insight into which countries remain most interested in cryptocurrency in spite of market pullbacks,” CoinGecko’s co-founder Bobby Ong said in an emailed statement. “The countries at the top of this list appear to be keenest to buy the dip, and highlight their long-term outlook for cryptocurrencies.”

The Nigerian stock exchange said in June it planned to start a blockchain-enabled platform next year to deepen trade and lure young investors to the market. That came after its central bank in early 2021 ordered commercial lenders to stop transactions or operations in cryptocurrencies, citing a threat to the financial system.

Singapore had the most searches on Ethereum, while Georgia sought information on Solana, according to CoinGecko. 

By Helen Nyambura

Bloomberg

Related stories: Nigerian Youth Propels the Country to the Top of Google Bitcoin Search Rankings

Jack Dorsey Tweets Support For Nigerian Bitcoin Adoption

Video - Nigerian returns bitcoins worth $80,000