Headlines
Angry Shi’ites Invade NASS, Shoot Policemen, Force Adjournment
Members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, popularly known as Shi’ites, on Tuesday invaded the National Assembly and shot two policemen.
The sect members, who were protesting the continued incarceration of their leader, Ibrahim Zakzaky, that had been in detention since December, 2015, also attacked six other policemen at the National Assembly with stones and clubs.
One of our correspondents learnt that the Shiite members overpowered the policemen at the gate of the National Assembly, collected one of their guns and shot the two security operatives.
They entered the main entrance popularly known as MOPOL gate and vandalised the gate house. They also burnt three vehicles and destroyed many others.
The sect unleashed terror on security operatives when tear-gas canisters were thrown to disperse them. There were fears among the National Assembly staff on Tuesday that one of the policemen, who were shot, had died.
But when contacted, the Federal Capital Territory Police spokesman, Anjuguri Manzah, said no policeman died during the clash with the IMN members, He said, “We don’t have any casualty, no policeman died. Why would we hide such a thing? There was no casualty.”
He also denied that the IMN members seized a gun from a policeman. He said, “No police gun is missing, we have no record that the Shiite members snatched guns from our men.”
During the protest by the Shiites, there was pandemonium at the National Assembly as its gates were closed. Staff and visitors ran for dear lives during the clash between the sect and the police.
Visitors to the federal parliament were barred from entering the premises as of the time of filing this report.
Once the information filtered into the House of Representatives, which was still in plenary as of the time of the attack, the Speaker, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, called for adjournment of the session.
He said, “We have to adjourn now for security and legislative reasons. Leader…” The Majority Leader, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa, moved a motion for adjournment, while the Minority Leader, Mr Ndudi Elumelu, seconded the motion.
The Speaker, other leaders and members of the House, after the plenary, visited the victims at the clinic.
While the National Assembly Clinic confirmed that seven persons were injured, most of whom were security men, a security source disclosed that the Divisional Police Officer, National Assembly Division, Mr Umar Sambo, had gunshot, knife cut and stone injuries.
Speaking with journalists, the Director of Medical Services, National Assembly, Dr Bashir Hamza, said seven victims were taken to the clinic, most of whom he said were policemen.
He said, “They were brought here as an emergency. As usual, when patients come like that we don’t have to confirm whether it is a staff member or a visitor; we just first of all rush to save the life.
“That was what had exactly done. As soon as they were brought in, we had doctors on the ground who quickly received them. They were other medical personnel also on the ground who attended to them.
“One of the patients had a cut which looked like knife cut on the head and was bleeding profusely. That was immediately attended to, to stop the bleeding. There was another one with gunshot wound on the left shoulder. It was quickly attended to too.
“In all the cases that we have seen – I think we have seen seven persons with various degrees of injury, we made sure that they were stabilised, with the exception of the first one that I mentioned who has been losing a lot of blood and has started becoming restless.
“In our medical knowledge, we know that people (patients) who start to become restless are getting out of control, probably the bleeding is much higher than we anticipated or there is internal bleeding in the head, because it is appearing (to be) swollen.
The Punch
The first hostages freed from Gaza under a long-awaited ceasefire agreement are back in Israel. The news sparked jubilant scenes in Tel Aviv where large crowds gathered ahead of their release.
The three freed Israeli hostages – the first of 33 to be released over the next six weeks – are Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari. They are said to be in good health and are receiving treatment at a medical center in Tel Aviv.
In exchange, 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees are set to be released by Israel from Ofer Prison in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military withdrew from several locations in southern and northern Gaza after the truce began earlier on Sunday, an Israeli military official told CNN.
Displaced Gazans have started returning to their homes, while the aid trucks laden with much-needed supplies have crossed into Gaza. Here’s what we know about how the ceasefire deal will work.
Hamas, despite suffering devastating losses, is framing the Gaza ceasefire agreement as a victory for itself, and a failure for Israel.
One of Hamas’ main goals for taking some 250 people during its brazen October 7, 2023, attack on Israel was to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. As Israel pounded Gaza in response, Hamas vowed not to return the hostages until Israel withdrew its forces from the enclave, permanently ended the war, and allowed for rebuilding.
Source: CNN
The leader of UK’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has said she doesn’t want Britain to be like Nigeria that is plagued by “terrible governments.”
Speaking on Thursday at an event organised by Onward, a British think tank producing research on economic and social issues, Badenoch expressed fears that Britain may become like Nigeria if the system is not reformed.
“And why does this matter so much to me? It’s because I know what it is like to have something and then to lose it,” Badenoch told the audience.
“I don’t want Britain to lose what it has.
“I grew up in a poor country and watched my relatively wealthy family become poorer and poorer, despite working harder and harder as their money disappeared with inflation.
“I came back to the UK aged 16 with my father’s last £100 in the hope of a better life.
“So I have lived with the consequences of terrible governments that destroy lives, and I never, ever want it to happen here.”
Badenoch has been in the news of late after she dissociated herself from Nigeria, saying she has nothing to do with the Islamic northern region.
She also accused the Nigeria Police of robbing citizens instead of protecting them.
She said: “My experience with the Nigeria Police was very negative. Coming to the UK, my experience with the British Police was very positive.
“The police in Nigeria will rob us (laughter). When people say I have this bad experience with the police because I’m black, I say well…I remember the police stole my brother’s shoe and his watch.”
