Dozens of pro-Biafran protesters were arrested in Nigeria’s southeastern region during fresh protests which resulted in the death of a policeman, severe injuries to two others
Dozens of pro-Biafran protesters were arrested in Nigeria’s southeastern region during fresh protests which resulted in the death of a policeman, severe injuries to two others, a police spokesman said on Saturday.
In a statement, Mohammed Haruna said that hundreds of members of the secessionist Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) converged in Nnewi town Friday evening chanting anti-government slogans and threatening to bar next year's election in the region.
Haruna said riot police units were immediately deployed to the area to ward off attack on citizens as the secessionists were armed.
A fresh batch of 174 Nigerians, believed to be stranded in Libya, returned home on Friday, according a national relief agency official.The refugees' repatriation came as part of Nigeria’s evacuation of thousands of its nationals from Libya, especially after footage emerged of Africans being held as slaves in the strife-torn north African country early this year, triggering an international outcry.Segun Afolayan, the southeast region coordinator of the Nigeria National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), said the returnees arrived in the early hours of Friday, in a joint operation with the International Migration Organization (IOM) and the European Union.Nearly 450 Nigerians returned voluntarily in the last three weeks, and among today's returnees were 61 women and 22 children, he added.He said the IOM will provide rehabilitation and vocational training for the returnees.They returned to Nigeria under the Assisted Voluntary Return Program, according to Afolayan.Some 7,000 Nigerian refugees returned home voluntarily over the last year, according to the Nigerian agency.Nigeria is Africa's most populous country, with some 192 million people, and has faced such problems as economic crises, security threats, and the herder-farmer conflict.Attacks from the militant group Boko Haram in the country's northeast forced millions of Nigerians to flee their homes.Some who try to cross the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean through Libya fall into the hands of human traffickers. Some die in the desert or the sea.
Over 170 ‘stranded’ Nigerians repatriated from Libya
“As soon as police arrived the scene, the rampaging IPOB members descended on the police, set ablaze one patrol vehicle and attacked them with machetes and stones.
The protesters also marched, shouting "no election referendum", according to the police spokesman.
Haruna said the attack left one police officer dead while injured two others who "were rushed to the hospital for medical attention".
He said the violence also resulted in heavy security reinforcements and arrest of 34 IPOB members who have since been detained for questioning.
Nigeria has grappled with a fresh wave of Igbo secessionist bid since 2015.
Led by IPOB chief Nnamdi Kanu who is now standing treason trial in absentia, the secessionist bod mirrors the botched attempt by ethnic Igbo to break away from Nigeria in 1967, culminating in a 30-month civil war that claimed nearly 2 million people, mostly Igbo civilians.
Daesh claimed responsibility for five attacks in an area it calls the "State of West Africa" that it said resulted in 118 casualties in the past week, according to a video posted on its account on the messaging website Telegram late on Thursday.The militant group, which typically uses the "State of West Africa" to refer to Nigeria, made the claim in a video presentation of attacks it says it carried out between Nov. 16 and 22. It did not specify the number of people killed in the attacks, referring only to 118 casualties.Five security sources told Reuters more than 100 soldiers had been killed in attacks in Nigeria in recent days, one of the highest death tolls since President Muhammadu Buhari came to power in 2015. It could raise pressure on him ahead of an election in February since he has claimed victory over the nine-year insurgency.Eight killed in attack on Foraco well site in NigerThe sources said the insurgents attacked a military base in the village of Metele in northeastern Borno state, the epicentre of a revolt by Boko Haram and splinter group Daesh in West Africa.Daesh, in a statement released on Monday, said it attacked an army base on Sunday in Metele and killed at least 40 Nigerian soldiers. The group said it burned down the base after the attack finished.A Nigerian presidency spokesman on Thursday said the military would issue a statement and military spokesmen did not respond to requests for comment. The government and military often decline to acknowledge the scale of losses in the northeast. Nigerian opposition candidate Atiku Abubakar seeks to boost oil investments
Daesh claims attacks in West Africa caused 118 casualties
Armed men killed eight people on Thursday in a late night attack on French drilling company Foraco's water well site in southeastern Niger, Foraco said."Last night at 2 a.m. local time, a group of terrorists attacked the small building where a Foraco team was sleeping and killed seven of them, plus one civil servant," the company said in a statement.Five other employees were wounded, with two in serious condition, it said. The workers were drilling two deep water wells for the water ministry in southeastern Niger's Diffa region.A security source told Reuters that the assailants were believed to belong to Nigerian jihadist group Boko Haram, which is active near the border with Nigeria.Boko Haram has been trying since 2009 to establish an Islamic state in northeast Nigeria and has launched repeated attacks into neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon. Thousands of civilians have died in the violence.Marseille-based Foraco is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and says it is the third largest global mineral driller with mining and water projects across 22 countries.
Eight killed in attack on Foraco well site in Niger