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A deadly fire broke out at a huge military ammunition depot in Chad’s capital N’Djamena, sending powerful explosions into the night sky and shaking buildings miles away.

The explosions from the late Tuesday blaze turned the sky red and could be heard miles away as ordnance fired off in the flames at regular intervals, according to AFP journalists and witnesses on the scene.

Government spokesman Abderaman Koulamallah said early Wednesday that the cause was not “criminal” but an investigation was under way.

He said the death toll was still being established but there were not “many” civilian victims. According to initial indications, several people died in the ammunition storeroom, he said.

“There are fewer deaths and less damage than we foresaw. We were expecting dozens and dozens of deaths. In the end, the collateral damage isn’t very big,” Koulamallah, who is also foreign minister, told AFP by telephone.

“There aren’t many civilians who lost their lives.”

The sky burst into flames above the Goudji area — where the army’s largest depot of ammunition is located — for several hours before tapering off and finally ceasing after midnight.

The explosions shook buildings as far as seven kilometres (four miles) away and the flames were visible from far off.

“The roof of our house was blown off by one of the explosions,” said resident Kadidja Dakou, who lives in the Amsinene area near Goudji.

The 36-year-old and her three children took refuge in the street alongside their neighbours, for fear their houses would collapse, she told AFP by phone.

“The soldiers had time to evacuate the vehicles, heavy weapons etc. and were able themselves to take shelter,” Koulamallah said.

Authorities are due to hold a media conference late morning.

Roof blown off

President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno previously had said people had been killed and wounded in the blaze, without giving precise figures.

“Peace to the souls of the victims, sincere condolences to the grieving families and a speedy recovery to the wounded,” Deby wrote on Facebook, promising to open an investigation into the fire.

Authorities had cordoned off the area with a heavy security presence, where thick red smoke hung in the air long after the blasts stopped.

Koulamallah had earlier said on Facebook that there were “huge explosions” at the site and urged the population to keep calm.

There are multiple homes in the neighbourhood that is the site of the depot, which sits near the international airport and a base where French troops are stationed.

The blaze “caused explosions of ammunition of all calibres”, an official with the French forces told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“For the moment, no French military personnel have been wounded”, he said.

Chad’s president officially won 61 percent of a May 6 vote that international NGOs said was neither credible nor free and which his main rival called a “masquerade”.

Deby was proclaimed transitional president in April 2021 by a junta of 15 generals after his father, president Idriss Deby Itno, was shot dead by rebels following 30 years in power.

Chad, one of the world’s poorest nations, is considered vital in the fight to stop the march of jihadists through the Sahel region.

Source: Channels

Heavy monsoon rains have triggered landslides in Bangladesh and India, killing at least 15 people, injuring several others and displacing millions, according to officials.

Eight Rohingya Muslims were among those killed by mudslides in the early hours of Wednesday, Mohammad Shamsud Douza, a senior Bangladesh government official in charge of refugees, said. The disaster is the latest in a series triggered by extreme weather in South Asia and around the globe, with heavy rains and heatwaves having killed many people and caused humanitarian crises in recent months.

The refugees died in landslides in southern Bangladesh. More than one million Rohingya live in crowded camps in the border district of Cox’s Bazar, the world’s largest refugee settlement, after fleeing a military crackdown in neighbouring Myanmar in 2017.

Amir Jafar, a police official in command of security in the refugee camps, said hundreds had been moved from areas deemed at risk.

The Rohingya refugees mostly live in shacks made of bamboo and plastic sheets, often on steep, bare hills.

The rains also unleashed chaos in northeastern Bangladesh.

“At least 700,000 people have been stranded by flash floods and heavy rains in Sylhet district, and another 500,000 people in neighbouring Sunamganj district,” Abu Ahmed Siddique, commissioner of Bangladesh’s northeastern Sylhet district, told the AFP news agency.

The Bangladesh weather office said it expected heavy rains to continue for the next few days.

The nation of about 170 million people is among the countries most vulnerable to disasters and climate change, according to the Global Climate Risk Index.

Just over the border, in neighbouring India’s state of Assam, at least six people were killed in floods and landslides on Tuesday night.

“A landslide buried a woman and her three daughters alive,” a state disaster management official, Siju Das, told Reuters.

“Their house was on a slope, and they died on the spot around midnight,” he said, adding that the bodies were retrieved after a three-hour search operation by rescuers.

More than 160,000 people were affected by the weather conditions in Assam, with waters surpassing the danger level in the Kopili, one of the largest tributaries of the Brahmaputra, which ranks among India’s biggest rivers.

More than 30 people in the state have died since the end of May in floods and landslides brought by heavy rain, officials said.

Meanwhile, to the south, the country is sweltering under a vicious heatwave.

New Delhi recorded its hottest night in six years on Tuesday, with hospitals in the city of 30 million reporting at least five deaths from heatstroke this week, the Times of India newspaper said.

Source: Aljazeera

The Benue State security operatives known as Benue State Community Volunteer Guards have arrested three suspected kidnappers in Otukpo.

According to an eyewitness, Dan Odey, the suspects were nabbed on Monday as they were about to board a vehicle from Otukpo to Makurdi.

Odey told our correspondent that a huge amount of money stocked in a bag was found on the suspects which prompted someone within the park to alert community volunteer guards.

He said the money found with the suspects might be the ransom collected from their victims, adding that a Benue Link vehicle was intercepted along Otukpo/Otukpa road last week where some passengers were abducted and the driver of the ill-fated vehicle killed.

“The suspects were carrying a bag containing huge amount of money and tried to join a vehicle from Otukpo here to Makurdi.

“Someone within the motor park promptly alerted the community volunteer guards and when they (the suspects) were confronted to explain where they got the huge amount of money, they could not give convincing answer.

“Thereafter, they were handed over to police in Otukpo”, Odey said.

When contacted, the Police  Public Relations Officer for the state command, Catherine Anene, confirmed the arrest of the suspects and said that they were linked to a kidnap incident on Benue Link that happened along the Otukpo/Otukpa road last week in which the driver was killed.

Anene said, “It’s true that three suspects were nabbed in Otukpo yesterday (Monday) and they are in police custody.

“The suspects were linked to the incident that happened along the Otukpo/Otukpa road last week.

Source: Punch

Suspected armed robbers have killed a 52-year-old Nigerien security man identified as Abu Haru, on a watermelon farm in Guri Local Government Area of Jigawa State.

A resident told DAILY POST that the suspects used a bow and arrow, shot the security man in his stomach, and carted away valuable properties.

Police spokesman DSP Lawan Shiisu Adam confirmed the incident.

According to him, “On 09/06/2024 at about 0500hrs, a distress call was received that an unknown hoodlum shot a watchman of a watermelon farm situated at Araha Forest, Guri LGA.”

He said the victim was identified as Abu Haru, 52, from Dingas, Niger Republic.

He stated that upon receipt of the report, the patrol team attached to Guri Division rushed to the scene and conveyed the victim to Guri General Hospital.

DSP Shiisu added that detectives from Guri Division, acting on credible intelligence, arrested Buba Malam Audu, 22, from Diliyari Fulani settlement, Karikasamma LGA; Usman Hardo Yale, 20, from Kadir Fulani settlement, Guri LGA; and Baba Yakuba, 25, from Diliyari Fulani settlement in connection with the case.

He said three sheep and one keypad cell phone belonging to the victim were also recovered from the suspects as evidence.

The case was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Dutse for a thorough investigation.

Source: Daily Post

A 23-year-old woman has narrated how she stole a day-old baby from a hospital bed in Adamawa State.

The woman, Maryam Sani, took the baby from a clinic in Ngurore, a community in Yola South Local Government Area.

Maryam, confessing the act to newsmen, said that after having a miscarriage three months into her pregnancy but did not tell her husband, she needed to come up with a baby when her supposed pregnancy reached full term.

She revealed that when she got to the clinic for a check-up because she was feeling unwell and found herself in a ward where there was no one around, she saw an opportunity to take a baby from a bed whose mother and other people were outside sleeping.

“I didn’t carry the newborn baby girl for any evil reason. I took her because I loved her and needed her for myself,” she said.

She added that when she took the baby home, nobody suspected her of anything since she appeared to be ‘pregnant’.

“The community believed I was pregnant and we did the naming ceremony without my husband knowing how the baby actually came about,” Maryam said.

However, the false motherhood ended for Maryam when she was arrested after her biological parents reported the matter to the police, whose investigation led to her arrest.

The Police Public Relations Officer in Adamawa State, SP Suleiman Nguroje, has vowed that the woman will face the law and answer for her crime.

“The command will never allow criminals of any type to have a field day in Adamawa State, and Maryam will be duly prosecuted,” Nguroje said.

Source: Daily Post

The Rivers State Police Command has taken over all the 23 Council Secretariats and some critical government infrastructure in the state.

Following the Local Government (LG) crisis rocking Rivers State in the oil-rich South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria, two security operatives have lost their lives in the line of duty.

Though the details are a bit unclear, it was gathered however that the sad deaths which occurred in Omuma Local Government Area on Tuesday, might not be unconnected with the invasion of the council headquarters at Eberi-Omuma.

Confirming the incident to Channels Television, the spokesperson for the Rivers State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, said two deaths were recorded.

She said a policeman and a vigilante operative lost their lives in the crisis.

When pressed for further details, she said investigations have commenced and more details would be released soon.

Iringe-Koko said, “Conventional police officers and anti-riot police officers have been deployed to these facilities.

“While urging all groups and individuals to be law-abiding, the Command also warn anyone who intends to cause mayhem as we will not hesitate to impose the full weight of the law on them.

“We also wish to ask the law-abiding residents and visitors in the state to go about their lawful businesses without fear. We are resolved to carry out our constitutional duty of protecting lives and property.”

Meanwhile, Governor Siminalayi Fubara has convened a security council meeting with heads of security agencies following recent political developments in the state.

The meeting was held behind closed doors at the Government House in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.

After the meeting, Governor Fubara told the press that discussions with the security heads centred on strategies to contain the invasion of local government secretariats.

Earlier on Tuesday, the governor directed heads of administration in the 23 local government areas to take over from the elected council chairmen whose three-year tenure elapsed on Monday.

However, 21 of the 23 outgone LG bosses have insisted that they won’t hand over, sparking some heated moments in the state.

Source: Channels

The United States announced Sunday it has requested a UN Security Council vote on its draft resolution backing a plan for an “immediate ceasefire with the release of hostages” between Israel and Hamas.

Diplomatic sources said the vote is planned for Monday, but has not yet been confirmed by South Korea, which holds the Security Council presidency for the month of June.

“Today, the United States called for the Security Council to move towards a vote… supporting the proposal on the table,” said Nate Evans, spokesman for the US delegation, without specifying a vote date.

“Council members should not let this opportunity pass by and must speak with one voice in support of this deal,” Evans said.

The United States, a staunch ally of Israel, has been widely criticized for having blocked several UN draft resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

US President Joe Biden on May 31 launched a new push for a ceasefire and hostage release deal, separate from the United Nations.

Under the proposal, Israel would withdraw from Gaza population centers and Hamas would free hostages. The ceasefire would last an initial six weeks, with it extended as negotiators seek a permanent end to hostilities.

The United States is placing primary responsibility for accepting the proposal on Hamas, specifically calling on the Palestinian militant group to accept the document in the latest version of the draft text.

That version, which was distributed to member states on Sunday and was seen by AFP, “welcomes” the new ceasefire proposal while stating, unlike in previous versions, that Israel has already accepted.

The draft resolution “calls upon Hamas to also accept it, and urges both parties to fully implement its terms without delay and without condition.”

In response to requests from several member states, the latest text clearly lays out the proposal.

This includes a first phase with an “immediate, full, and complete ceasefire,” release of hostages taken by Hamas, and “exchange of Palestinian prisoners” plus “withdrawal of Israeli forces from the populated areas in Gaza.”

This also includes the “safe and effective distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale throughout the Gaza Strip to all Palestinian civilians who need it.”

Source: Channels

At least 80 people were killed between Tuesday, May 4, and Friday, May 7, in attacks by Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels in the villages of the Baswagha-Madiwe group, Beni territory (North Kivu), in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The attacks mainly happened on Friday night in the villages of Masala, Mapasana, and Mahini and were attributed to the ADF according to Lieutenant Colonel Mak Hazukay, an army spokesman in Congo’s North Kivu province.

These rebels also killed 30 other civilians in Masau, Mununze, Kabweke, and Manlese in the past two weeks.

The assailants also stole 25 motorcycles and set fire to several houses during their incursions.

The populations of the entities attacked by these rebels fled their homes to take refuge in Kyatsaba, some neighborhoods in the western part of the city of Beni, and in Mabalako, where the General Reference Hospital is overwhelmed with patients, including the injured.

Since May 3, the civil society of Beni territory reports that 123 civilians have been killed in various attacks attributed to ADF rebels in the Bapakombe-Pendekali region, in Mangina, Mantumbi, Kudukudu, Kalmango, and Beu-Manyama.

The ADF, which is now based in eastern Congo, has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and mounts frequent attacks, further destabilizing a region where many militant groups are active.

Source: Africa News

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) says its officers under Operation Delta Safe have successfully destroyed two “illegal” refining sites (IRS) situated along the banks of the Imo River.

In a statement on Sunday, Edward Gabkwet, NAF spokesperson, said the illegal sites were located near Obiaku and close to a shared border between Abia, River, and Imo states.

He added that the operation was carried out on Saturday. The sites consist of two tanks and a reservoir in one location, and three tanks and two reservoirs in another along the Imo River bank.

“Observing that these sites were active, authorisation was sought and received for air strikes on the targets,” the statement reads.

“Subsequently, air strikes by the Air Component of Operation Delta Safe were conducted, which destroyed the two sites as well as the surface tanks and reservoirs.”

Gabkwet said the strike was conducted hours after Hasan Abubakar, chief of air staff, discussed plans to set up a NAF base in Abia with Alex Otti, the state governor.

“Building on these successes, air operations under Operation Delta Safe will be intensified, especially within the areas of interest, as part of efforts to curtail the activities of criminal elements,” the statement reads.

“The successes recorded in destroying these IRS bring to the fore the necessity of a NAF Base in Abia, which Gov. Otti and Air Marshal Abubakar both agreed was long overdue.”

In March, the NAF also destroyed several illegal oil refining sites and barges laden with stolen crude oil products across Rivers state.

Source: The Cable