Nigerian kidnappers demand $US620,000 for release of school hostages, local authorities say
Kaduna, Nigeria Reuters Gunmen who kidnapped 286 students and staff from a school in northern Nigeria last week have demanded a total of one billion naira ($US620,432) for their release, a spokesman for the families of the hostages and a local councillor told Reuters. The school children, some older students and members of the school […]
Suspected insurgents kidnap 50 people in north-east Nigeria
Maiduguri, Nigeria Reuters Suspected Islamist insurgents kidnapped 50 people, mostly women, in north-eastern Nigeria this week, local officials and a resident said on Wednesday, the latest mass abduction by fighters who have waged an insurgency for more than a decade. Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters have mainly operated in Borno […]
Dozens killed in double attack on Mali army camp and village
Bamako, MaliReuters Around two dozen soldiers and at least five civilians were killed when militants attacked a military camp and a village in central Mali on Tuesday, a local official said. The attack took place in a rural commune of Mali’s south-central Segou Region on Tuesday afternoon. Armed assailants stormed the village of Farabougou and […]
Militants kill at least 40 in north Burkina Faso attack on Sunday – UN
Dakar, SenegalReuters Islamist jihadist militants killed at least 40 civilians during an attack in northern Burkina Faso over the weekend, the United Nations’ Human Rights Office said. The latest reported assault in an area rife with jihadist activity took place on Sunday in the town of Djibo, where many displaced people have sought refuge. Fighters […]
Unable to go to church: Burkina Faso’s Christians living under threat of attacks
TONNY ONYULO reports on attacks from Islamist extremist groups have left thousands of Christians living in fear and skipping church services for fear of being murdered or kidnapped…
Gunmen kill 14, kidnap 60 in attacks in northern Nigeria
Maiduguri, Nigeria Reuters Gunmen in Nigeria killed eight people on Sunday and abducted at least 60 others in two communities of north-west Zamfara state, residents and a local traditional leader said, two days after armed men kidnapped dozens from a university in the state. Elsewhere, in the north-east of the country suspected Islamist insurgents ambushed […]
Islamist militants behead at least 10 farmers in Nigeria’s Borno state – residents
Maiduguri, Nigeria Reuters Islamist militants have beheaded at least 10 farmers in Nigeria’s northern state of Borno after attacking their farms, residents said on Monday. Last week, militants killed at least 25 people and wounded others in attacks on two villages in Borno state, a hotbed for insurgency and the center of a more than […]
Pakistan army concerned over Afghan militant “safe havens”, threatens response
Islamabad, PakistanReuters Pakistan’s army said on Friday it was seriously concerned that militants had found safe havens in neighbouring Afghanistan and threatened to take an “effective response” two days after 12 of its soldiers died in two attacks. Nine soldiers died after Islamist fighters stormed an army base in Pakistan’s southern Balochistan province, which borders […]
Residents and survivors say 136 killed in Burkina Faso massacre, blaming army
Ouagadougou Reuters Residents and survivors of a massacre in a Burkina Faso village said on Saturday 136 people including women and infants were killed, blaming the country’s security forces for the 20th April attack. A prosecutor last week launched a probe into the massacre which took place in the northern village of Karma and surrounding […]
Gunmen kidnap 80, including children, in north-west Nigeria
Bauchi, Nigeria Reuters Gunmen abducted at least 80 people, mostly women and children, in Nigeria’s Zamfara state, a hotspot for kidnappings for ransom by armed gangs targeting remote villages, residents said on Saturday. Gangs of armed men have attacked hundreds of local communities across north-western Nigeria in recent years, while Islamist militants continue to stage […]