UN accuses Iraqi authorities, others of kidnapping up to one million people

Following a series of disappearances of up to a million, the United Nations, through one of its watchdog committees, called on the government of Iraq to stop the practice of forced disappearances and abductions, which the figures showed a damning rise in the past five decades.

On Tuesday, the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances expressed “deep concerns” over the alarming increase in the rate of forced disappearances, which began in Iraq in 1968.

The committee’s assessment consisting of 10 experts was based on their visit to the country in November 2022.

“The Iraqi state has not yet criminalised enforced disappearances,” said Mohammed Ayat, committee vice-chair.

“It is therefore understandable in this context to remind Iraq of the extreme urgency to criminalise enforced disappearance in the terms of the convention. The committee recommends the eradication of the omnipresent impunity of enforced disappearance.”

Out of the 1,577 complaints received from 22 countries by the committee for urgent actions to investigate forced disappearances in the last two weeks, Iraq topped the list of countries with the most cases.

There were 578 cases sent from the country.Despite all efforts at the UN Human Rights Committee’s 2010 International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, Iraq has not criminalised the act, with several reports of forced disappearances received by the committee during their visit.

During the visit, the committee met with victims of forced disappearances, including those that happened in the heat of the U.S. military invasion, which began in 2003, and during the proclamation of an Islamic caliphate over part of the territory of Iraq by the Islamic State (ISIL).

Iraqi military and security forces were said to be complicit in the act, with documented reports saying there were new rounds of abductions and mass killings when Islamic State militants were in control of some parts of the country between 2014 to 2017.

Malaysia’s parliament ends mandatory death penalty

Malaysia’s parliament on Monday, April 3, passed a bill to remove mandatory death sentences, with rights groups welcoming the vote as an “important step” in Southeast Asia.

Convictions for several offences, including murder and drug trafficking, previously came with automatic death penalties, giving judges no leeway.The bill does not scrap death sentences, but grants judges the option to instead impose lengthy prison sentences of between 30 to 40 years under certain conditions.

Speaking before the lower house of Malaysia’s parliament, Deputy Law Minister Ramkarpal Singh said:

“We cannot arbitrarily ignore the existence of the inherent right to life of every individual.” Malaysia has had a moratorium on executions since 2018, but courts have continued to send inmates to death row. The reform will still have to clear the senate but is widely expected to pass without major opposition.

Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director Phil Robertson called Monday’s vote an “important step forward for Malaysia,” and hopes it will add pressure for other Southeast Asian nations to follow suit.

“This is an important breakthrough that will cause some serious conversations in the halls of upcoming ASEAN meetings,” he told AFP, referring to the 10-member Southeast Asian bloc.

“Malaysia should show regional leadership by encouraging other governments in ASEAN to re-think their continued use of the death penalty, starting with Singapore which has recently gone on a post-Covid execution spree.”

Last year, the prosperous city-state hung 11 people, all for drug offences.

Since its independence in 1957, Malaysia is now part of countries death penalty has been abolished.

Twitter removes New York Times verification for rejecting Blue subscription

Twitter CEO, Elon Musk, has stripped the New York Times account of its verification badge after the news platform opposed the mandatory $1,000 monthly subscription payment to keep the badge.

The New York Times, a popular newspaper based in the U.S. with correspondents across the world, had objected to paying the fee to retain the verification badge it had freely enjoyed for years.

In response to the objection, Mr Musk swiftly took down the badge but not before launching a barrage of insults at the newspaper.

“The real tragedy of @NYTimes is that their propaganda isn’t even interesting”, Mr Musk tweeted Sunday morning.

“Also, their feed is the Twitter equivalent of diarrhea. It’s unreadable.”As part of the sweeping changes Mr Musk introduced to Twitter since he purchased it last October, he has mandated organisations to henceforth pay a $1,000 monthly fee to keep their verification ticks and pay extra $50 monthly charge for affiliated staff members, a move The Times explicitly opposed.

The Times further said it would not pay or reimburse reporters who subscribe to Twitter Blue except in “rare instances where this status would be essential for reporting purposes,” according to the newspaper’s spokesperson.

The main Twitter account for The Times no longer has the blue tick, checks by Peoples Gazette showed on Sunday.

However, New York Times Opinion, New York Times Travel, offshoots of The Times, still retained their gold verification ticks.The removal of verification badges from popular organisations may make it easy for impostors to pose as the legitimate ones.

CNN, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times have also taken a similar stance on the matter, refusing to pay the fee which may soon lead to the removal of their verification badges.

Privatbank IHAG holding company executive to be sentenced over $60 million fraud

Swiss Executive Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud the IRS.

Privatbank IHAG Holding Company Executive Admitted to Facilitating the “Singapore Solution” to Hide Undeclared Bank Accounts from the IRS.

An executive of the holding company that owns Privatbank IHAG pleaded guilty today to conspiring to conceal over $60 million of undeclared assets held by wealthy American clients of the Swiss private bank.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately 2009 to 2014, Daniel Wälchli, a member of the bank holding company’s executive board, worked with others to help Privatbank IHAG conceal the accounts of American customers who did not want to disclose their Swiss bank accounts to the IRS.

The scheme involved a number of steps designed to obscure these undeclared accounts by stripping them of any indicia of U.S. ownership. Known as the “Singapore Solution,” members of the conspiracy sent over $60 million on “round trips” across the globe.

The money was sent from Privatbank IHAG accounts in Switzerland to a bank in Hong Kong before returning to Privatbank IHAG in accounts held by a Singaporean asset manager owned and controlled by the Swiss bank’s holding company.

Pursuant to the terms of his plea agreement, Wälchli will not dispute that the tax loss was $531,524, and he agrees that a sentencing enhancement for “sophisticated means” is appropriate.

Wälchli faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. He also faces a period of supervised release and monetary penalties.

A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.Senior Litigation Counsel Nanette Davis and Trial Attorney Christopher Magnani of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Olga Zverovich of the Southern District of New York are prosecuting the case.

Manchester City billionaire owner, Sheikh Mansour named Vice-President of UAE

The UAE has appointed Sheikh Mansour as their new Vice President.

In a statement carried out by the state news agency Wam, Sheikh Mohamed made the vice presidential appointment in his capacity as Head of State.

The UAE president issued a resolution, with the approval of the UAE Federal Supreme Council, to appoint Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister of the Presidential Court as UAE Vice President.

The president also named his son Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed as the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, the richest of the UAE’s seven emirates, a post that has traditionally signified the next in line to the presidency.

Sheikh Mansour has served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court, along with a number of key positions in business and with Abu Dhabi’s wealth funds.

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed was named as president last May following the death of his half-brother Sheikh Khalifa.

Nigerians obtain permission from the US government to stage a protest against Nigeria’s presidential election at Lafayette Park opposite the White House

Nigerians in the United States of America have sought the permission of the United States Department of the Interior to stage a protest at Lafayette Park, opposite the White House.

The aim of the protest is to express their displeasure with the presidential election which held in Nigeria on Feb. 25, 2023. In a memo, the Nigerians explained that INEC “did not follow their guidelines nor rule of law in accordance of democratic principles.”

They added in the memo:

“We in the diaspora are demonstrating to call the attention of the US government and Biden administration to not recognise the projected winner.”

The permission was granted to carry out a protest on April 3 on the condition that the participants must “comply with all of the conditions of this permit and with all reasonable directions of the United States Park Police.”

U.S recovers $53m fraud proceeds linked to Diezani, Aluko and Omokore

The final resolution of two civil cases seeking the forfeiture of the luxury assets that were laundered in and through the country in a case involving Diezani Alison-Madueke, former minister of petroleum resources, and her associates, has been announced by the U.S Justice Department.

The US government in 2017, filed a suit to recover $144 million in assets that were purportedly acquired with proceeds from a shady scheme in Nigeria’s oil industry.

It was alleged at the time that Kola Aluko, a Nigerian businessman, and Jide Omokore, chairman of Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Nigeria Limited paid bribes between 2011 and 2015 to Diezani in exchange for contracts.

She then allegedly used her position to secure contracts for Aluko and Omokri’s shell companies through a subsidiary of the defunct Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), now the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited.

The US department of justice in a statement released earlier this week, disclosed that the forfeited assets which are “proceeds of foreign corruption offenses” include $53.1 million in cash, plus a promissory note with a principal value of $16 million”.

The statement added;

“According to court documents, from 2011 to 2015, Nigerian businessmen Kolawole Akanni Aluko and Olajide Omokore conspired with others to pay bribes to Nigeria’s former minister for petroleum resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, who oversaw Nigeria’s state-owned oil company.

“In return, Alison-Madueke used her influence to steer lucrative oil contracts to companies owned by Aluko and Omokore. The proceeds of those illicitly awarded contracts totaling more than $100 million were then laundered in and through the United States and used to purchase various assets through shell companies, including luxury real estate in California and New York as well as the Galactica Star, a 65-meter superyacht.

“The real estate was also used as collateral for loans to Aluko and shell companies he controlled. As part of the forfeiture process, those lien holders were paid.”

Federal Government to build three resettlement camps for 20,000 Nigerian refugees

The federal government is to build three integrated villages to resettle 20,000 Nigerian refugees from neighbouring countries of Chad, Cameroon, and Niger.

Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State disclosed this while chairing a technical committee meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.

Mr Zulum, who is also the vice-chairman, Presidential Committee on Repatriation, Return and Resettlement of Refugees and Management of Repentant Boko Haram Members, said at least 20,000 persons took refuge in neighbouring countries.

He said President Muhammadu Buhari had approved the release of N15 billion to the committee, with the Borno government handling the construction of the villages.

The governor said the aim was the resettlement of the returnees from the neighboring countries.

Mr Zulum explained that the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) would provide food and non-food relief materials.

According to him, the National Refugees Commission will coordinate the repatriation process of the refugees living in Chad, Cameroon, and Niger, while the Defence Headquarters will provide adequate security for the exercise.

The governor also said the construction of the villages and the repatriation process would be conducted in phases, and only those willing to return would be considered.

The meeting was attended by the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, representatives of all the relevant agencies, security operatives, and humanitarian organisations, among others.

Six people killed in Nashville private Christian school shooting

Three children and three other persons were killed in a shooting that took place on Monday at the Covenant school, a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, according to local reports.

The shooter, described as a female who appeared to be in her teens, is also dead, said police spokesperson Don Aaron.

Local media outlets report that three of the students with gunshot wounds were pronounced dead after arrival at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the medical centre said. The shooting triggered a massive police and fire response.

All concerned parents gathered outside the school to wait for word from their loved ones. The Covenant school in Nashville, where the incident occurred, is a private Christian school for students in pre-school through the sixth grade when students are roughly 11 or 12 years old.

According to its website, the school has approximately 200 students and successfully adopted an “ active shooter “program in 2022.

Tennessee’s House Democratic caucus, in a statement, said its members are “ praying for the children and their families who were shooting victims at the Covenant School.”

The caucus chairman John Ray Clemmons said, “Our thoughts are with the families of the entire school community and surrounding neighbourhood.”

According to a CNN tally, the shooting is the 19th incident at a school or university so far this year that wounded at least one person. The Covenant school is a private Christian school founded in 2001 as a ministry of Covenant Presbyterian Church.

Nigerian woman arrested at Seychelles airport for cocaine trafficking

The Seychelles Supreme Court has remanded a Nigerian woman arrested on conspiracy to import and traffic a controlled drug, the police said in a press release on Monday, March 27, 2023.

The police said the 52-year-old woman is being detained after she was arrested at the Seychelles International Airport on Thursday after her arrival on an Ethiopian Airline flight, SeychellesNewsAgency reported.

The arrest of the Nigerian followed a search, discovery, and seizure of 250 grammes of what is suspected to be cocaine.

The arrest comes a little less than a year after another foreign female national, Elsie Esther Vambe, 45, was sentenced to five years in prison for the importation of a controlled drug and another five years for trafficking a controlled drug.

The Zimbabwean female national was sentenced to five years in prison in April 2022 for the importation and trafficking of a controlled drug after she pleaded guilty to both offences. The sentences will run concurrently, which means Vambe will be imprisoned for five years.

Last Friday, the police said a 58-year-old businessman from Nigeria, Patrick Ikechukwu Uwaoma, was sentenced to 30 years after he was found guilty of the importation of cocaine.

Uwaoma, who was residing in the United States, was intercepted by the police and customs officers at the airport on November 20 last year. He arrived in Seychelles on an Ethiopian Airlines flight.

During a search of his luggage, the officers found a little more than 4.5 kg of cocaine. The Seychelles’ archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, has a zero-tolerance policy towards the trafficking and importation of illegal drugs. There is a maximum sentence of life in prison if found guilty.

Four Nigerian siblings killed as fire razes building in Korea

Four Nigerian siblings, aged between 6 and 11, were killed in a fire that gutted a three-storey residential building in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, south of Seoul, in Korea.

According to the Gyeonggi Disaster and Safety Headquarters, the fire broke out in a multifamily residence in Danwon District, Ansan, at around 3:28 a.m. Monday, March 27, 2023.

The fire was put out in about 40 minutes at 4:16 a.m., but the family’s two-room house, about 13 pyeong (463 square feet) in area, was entirely burnt, authorities said.

Four out of five siblings from a Nigerian family were found dead in a room. The victims included two girls aged 11 and two boys aged six and seven. Only the youngest sibling made it out alive with the parents.

All seven family members were home when the fire broke out, but the parents managed to take their two-year-old daughter with them as they escaped through a window.

The father was reportedly sleeping in the living room, and the rest of the family members were in a bedroom when the fire broke out. The parents are currently being treated at a hospital.

According to police and fire authorities, the father saw the fire and notified his wife and five children sleeping in the bedroom together. He then started knocking on his neighbours’ doors barefooted and pouring water on the fire to extinguish it.

The father came to Korea in 2008 on a D-9 Technician visa and supported the family by collecting secondhand clothes and household goods to send to Nigeria. His wife came to Korea in 2012 and gave birth to all five children in Korea.

According to authorities, there were neither fire extinguishers nor fire alarms in the building.

“The building is very old, but many foreigners continue to live there because it’s cheap,” said a pastor at Ansan Multicultural Church, which helps foreigners adjust to the area.

Officials from the local government and the Embassy of Nigeria in Korea promised to support the family on Monday. Another 37 residents of the building, mostly foreigners, were evacuated.

Six people, including three Nigerians, two Uzbekistans and one Russian, sustained minor injuries, including smoke inhalation. Police and fire authorities suspect the fire started from a power outlet in the living room wall but have requested further investigation by the National Forensic Service to figure out the exact cause.

“We are investigating the case remaining open to all possible causes, and an autopsy of the dead bodies will be done as well,” said a police officer.

Nasarawa Government partners UK on 4000-bed hostel for varsity

The Nasarawa State Government has signed a partnership with the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility to build a 4000-bed hostel for students of the state university in the Keffi Local Government Area.

The partnership will also usher in funded technical assistance for the preparation of Climate Smart Infrastructure Public Private Partnerships projects in the state.

Speaking during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding in Lafia, Governor Abdullahi Sule expressed optimism that the partnership would help improve productivity, reduce poverty and boost the economy of the state.

The partnership which was facilitated by the state’s Investment and Development Agency, is also on a mutual accountability framework between the state government and UKNIAF.

He said;

“As we sign this mutual accountability framework, we wish to reaffirm our promise and commitment to do things differently. We will continue to work innovatively, leverage partnerships, and implement essential policy reforms that translate to good governance for everyone across Nasarawa State.

“I crave the continuous support of all stakeholders in ensuring that this signing today translates into tangible benefits for all, as we inch closer to the Nasarawa of our dreams.”

In his remark, the Managing Director of UKNIAF, Prof Chidiebere Onyia, said five key reforms initiated by Governor Sule’s administration were the catalyst for the public-private partnership agreement between UKNIAF and the state government.

Onyia further lauded the efforts of NASIDA in attracting investments and developments to the state, and promised to continue to partner with the government on initiatives that would boost the state’s economy.

Earlier, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nasarawa State Investment and Development Agency, Ibrahim Abdullahi, expressed gratitude to UKNIAF for the partnership, assuring that the state would continue to have deliberate policies to ensure growth and prosperity for all of its residents.

Boxer Tyson Fury announces wife is expecting their 7th child

Tyson Fury has announced his wife, Paris, is pregnant with their seventh child.The boxer, 34, took to Instagram on Thursday (March 23) to announce the happy news.

It comes shortly after his hopes of an undisputed heavyweight fight against Oleksandr Usyk were dashed after talks collapsed.

Tyson and Paris already have six children including Venezuela, 13, Prince John James, 10, Prince Tyson II, 6, Valencia, 5, and Princess Adonis Amaziah, four, and Athena, 20 months.

Now, their family is set to grow once more.

It was first reported that Paris was expecting baby number seven back in April 2022, as his friend Carl Froch seemingly let slip that they were adding to their brood.

Carl told BBC Breakfast last year: “Well, listen, he has got five or six children, I don’t want to get it wrong.“He has got a lot of kids and I think Paris, his wife, is pregnant, so why not sail off into the sunset.”Fury’s fellow boxer had clearly got ahead of himself a little, but now he has got the news the whole family had been waiting for.

Speaking to The Sun just yesterday, Tyson said: “My wife has been at home waiting for me for ten years, we have six kids and I am going to put another bun in her oven.”

“Number seven is going to pop out anytime soon,” he teased.Joking about his future, the boxer added: “I am going to be a family man and a big fat pig, fatter than I already am.”

World Athletics bans transgender women athletes from female events

World Athletics has voted to adopt a new policy that would not allow transgender women to compete with biological women in elite track and field events regardless of their testosterone level, given they had gone through male puberty.

The governing body said the decision was taken to “protect the future of the female category.”

Most sports have decided to allow trans women to compete in the biological women category since the Tokyo Olympics when New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard made history by becoming the first openly transgender athlete to compete at an Olympic Games.

But they must have lowered their testosterone to nanomoles per litre for 12 months. Meanwhile, new scientific research shows that trans women still have many advantages over biological women, even after lowering their testosterone levels.

The new development prompted the World Athletics to suggest 24-month timeline testosterone suppressing, but it received little support from member federations, citing their priority is fairness for female sport over inclusion.

Speaking after a meeting of the global track and field federation’s decision-making body, World Athletics president Seb Coe said yesterday that starting from March 31, no transgender athlete who had gone through male puberty would be allowed to compete in female world ranking competitions.

Mr Coe said the governing body consulted with stakeholders, including 40 national federations, the International Olympic Committee and trans groups before taking the decision.

“We entered into a consultation some months ago because we wanted to provoke debate,” he said.

“It was really important that we heard from all our stakeholders, including the athletes, the coaches and member federations. And my goodness, we heard from them.”

Mr Coe added;

“Decisions are always difficult when they involve conflicting needs and rights between different groups, but we continue to take the view that we must maintain fairness for female athletes above all other considerations. We believe the integrity of the female category in athletics is paramount.”

The World Athletics decision came after World Rugby, FINA, swimming’s world governing body and Rugby Football League agreed to ban transgender women from competing in the biological women categories.

Tanzania confirms outbreak of deadly Marburg virus

The World Health Organisation says Tanzania confirmed its first-ever cases of Marburg after conducting laboratory tests in the country’s northwest Kagera region.

WHO, in a statement on Wednesday, said lab tests were carried out after eight people in the region developed symptoms of the “highly virulent” disease, including fever, vomiting, bleeding and kidney failure.

Five of the eight confirmed cases have died, including a health worker, and the remaining three are being treated. The agency also identified 161 contacts of those infected, who are currently being monitored.

“The efforts by Tanzania’s health authorities to establish the cause of the disease is a clear indication of the determination to effectively respond to the outbreak.

We are working with the government to rapidly scale up control measures to halt the spread of the virus and end the outbreak as soon as possible,” said Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.

While this is the first time Tanzania has recorded a Marburg case, the country has first-hand experience responding to other crises including COVID-19, cholera and dengue within the past three years.

In September 2022, WHO conducted a strategic risk assessment that revealed the country was at high risk for infectious diseases outbreaks.

“The lessons learnt, and progress made during other recent outbreaks should stand the country in good stead as it confronts this latest challenge. We will continue to work closely with the national health authorities to save lives,” Ms Moeti said.

Marburg virus commonly causes hemorrhagic fever, with a high fatality ratio of up to 88 per cent. It is part of the same family as the virus that causes Ebola. Symptoms associated with the Marburg virus start suddenly, with high fever, severe headache and intense malaise.

The virus is commonly transmitted to humans from fruit bats and spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected people, surfaces and materials.

While there are no vaccines or antiviral treatments approved to treat the virus, supportive care, rehydration and treatment of specific symptoms increase chances of survival.

Nigerian man arrested in India for allegedly smuggling crystal meth five months after he was released on bail

The narcotics intelligence bureau of the CID has arrested a 32-year-old Nigerian man for smuggling Methamphetamine (crystal meth) in Chennai, India.

The accused, identified as Grant Victor Ikenna, was arrested for illegal trafficking under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Times of India reported on Wednesday, March 22, 2023.

A special team led by AD Sakkaravarthy , DSP, nabbed the suspect near Chennai Central Railway Station entrance on Wall Tax Road on Monday and seized 59 gm of the drug worth ₹3.25 Lakh.

Preliminary investigation revealed that he had come to India on a tourist visa in 2014 that expired in 2015. However, he continued to stay here.

He had been arrested under the Foreigners Act by Perundurai police in Erode for overstaying his visa and was released on bail in October, 2022. It was further gathered that he was arrested in 2019 in connection with smuggling of drugs to Doha, Qatar which was seized at Andheri Mumbai.

Police registered a case under Sections 8(c) r/w 22(C) of the NDPS Act, 1985. Further investigation is being conducted.

Mahesh Kumar Agarwal, ADGP, said, the general public can share information of illegal sale and trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances through helpline 10581 and on Whatsapp number 9498410581 or through e-mail ID: spnibcid@gmail.com.

U.S. court jails businessman for smuggling military-typed weapons, ammunition into Nigeria

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett today sentenced Eric Fru Nji, age 42, of Fort Washington, Maryland, to 63 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for conspiracy, for transporting firearms with obliterated serial numbers, and for smuggling firearms and ammunition from the United States to Nigeria.

Judge Bennett also ordered Nji to pay a fine of $25,000. Nji was convicted of those charges on May 6, 2022, along with co-defendants Wilson Nuyila Tita, age 47, of Owings Mills, Maryland and Wilson Che Fonguh, age 41, of Bowie, Maryland, after a two-week trial.

The sentence was announced by Erek L. Barron, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; and Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division.

According to the evidence presented at trial, from at least November 2017 through July 19, 2019, Nji and his co-defendants conspired with each other and with others to export firearms, ammunition and other military-typed items from the United States to Nigeria.

Specifically, the evidence at trial established that Nji and his co-conspirators secreted 38 firearms, 28 of which had the obliterated serial numbers in a shipping container that they sent out of the Port of Baltimore in January of 2019.

The guns included sniper rifles, SKS assault rifles (some with bayonets), other rifles and several handguns. There were 44 high-capacity magazines, two rifle scopes and over 35,000 rounds of ammunition.

As detailed in trial testimony, Nji and his co-conspirators contributed funds for the purchase of firearms, ammunition, reloading materials and other equipment for shipping overseas to separatists fighting against the Government of Cameroon.

The evidence proved that Nji and his co-conspirators concealed the firearms, ammunition, rifle scopes, and other items in duffle bags and heavily wrapped packages inside sealed compressor units, placing those items into a shipping container destined for Nigeria.

Nji and his co-conspirators communicated about their efforts and plans to ship weapons and ammunitions using an on-line encrypted messaging application and code words in order to conceal their activities.Fonguh, Tita and seven defendants charged in related cases are awaiting sentencing.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI and the ATF for their work in the investigation.

Mr. Barron recognized the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Export Enforcement; U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service; Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service; the Naval Criminal Investigative Service; and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service for their contributions to the investigation. U.S. Attorney Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen O. Gavin, who is prosecuting the case.

Finland retains 1st position as world’s happiest country while Nigeria ranked 95th

Finland has been ranked as the happiest country in the world for the sixth year in a row, with a happiness score significantly ahead of all other countries.

The enduring effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the war in Ukraine, and worldwide inflation made 2022 a year of global crises but the human resolve to be happy has been “remarkably resilient,” says the 2023 World Happiness Report, which recorded global satisfaction averages as high as those in the pre-pandemic years.

The report, which draws on global survey data from people in more than 150 countries, placed Finland in the top position for the sixth year in a row.

Other countries in the top ten include Denmark, Iceland, Israel, Netherlands. While Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Luxembourg and New Zealand make up 6,7,8,9, and 10th position.

The report utilized the World Happiness Report—an annual survey of how satisfied citizens are worldwide—to map out the world’s happiest and least happy countries.Nigeria, the largest black nation on earth, comes 95th- in the report, out of 150 countries polled in the report.

Ukraine a current war zone, is ranked even higher than Nigeria – at 92.

To create the index the map is based on, researchers simply asked people how satisfied they are with their lives. Scores were assigned using these self-reported answers from people living within various countries, as well as quality of life factors.

While there may be no perfect measure of happiness around the world, the report is a robust and transparent attempt to understand happiness at the global level.

French President, Emmanuel Macron survives no-confidence votes amid plans to raise retirement age from 62 to 64

Emmanuel Macron’s government survived two no-confidence votes brought by opposition lawmakers on Monday over hugely unpopular pension reforms.

The poll in the National Assembly on Monday was triggered by the head of state raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 without a parliamentary vote.

The no-confidence motion filed by a small group called Liot garnered support from 278 members of parliament in the National Assembly, falling short by only 9 votes, an unexpectedly close result.

A separate one filed by Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party only received 94 votes because other opposition parties remain wary of teaming up with the far-right party.

The no-confidence motions were the result of Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne triggering the 49.3 clause of the French constitution last week, passing the draft law without a parliamentary vote.

Now that the motions have failed, the pensions reform raising the retirement age by two years to 64 can be adopted and the Borne government will remain in place.

Soon after the vote, small groups of protesters gathered around parliament and clashed with police.

Sultan asks Muslims to look out for Ramadan moon on Wednesday

Muslims across the country have been directed by the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), under the leadership of its President-General and Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, to look out for the Ramadan moon after sunset on Wednesday, March 22.

Director of Administration of the council, Arc. Zubairu Haruna Usman-Ugwu, said if the crescent is sighted by Muslims on the said evening, then the Sultan shall declare Thursday, 23rd March, 2023 as the first day of Ramadan 1444 A.H.

The statement read;

“Consequent upon the advice of the National Moon-Sighting Committee (NMSC), the President-General enjoins the Nigerian Muslim Ummah to search for the crescent of Ramadan 1444 A.H. immediately after sunset on Wednesday, 29th Sha’aban, 1444 A.H. which is equivalent to 22nd March, 2022.

“If the crescent is sighted by Muslims of impeccable character on the said evening, then His Eminence shall declare Thursday, 23rd March, 2023 as the first day of Ramadan 1444 A.H.

“If, however, the crescent is not sighted that day, then, Friday, 24th March, 2023 shall automatically become the first day of Ramadan.

“Furthermore, council urges Muslim politicians to display the spirit of brotherhood and solidarity both of which represent some of the core lessons of Ramadan.

“Let those who emerged victorious in the just concluded elections remember that it is the Almighty Allah Who grants power to whom He wishes.

“Also, those who lost should accept same with faith and resist any act that may cause disaffection and disunity within the Ummah.

“Council also appeals to endowed Muslims in the country to extend their acts of charity to the less privileged within their neighbourhoods before, during and after the month of Ramadan. We also admonish traders not to hoard food products or unduly hike the prices of consumer goods during the period of fasting.”