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  The United States Government has withdrawn most of the troops it deployed to Nigeria for a recent counterterrorism mission after a joint operation with Nigerian forces targeting fighters of the Islamic State group in the North-East region. Commander of the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), General Dagvin Anderson, disclosed this during a digital press briefing on Thursday following the 2026 African Chiefs of Defence Conference held in Luanda, Angola. According to General Anderson, the operation was carried out in close partnership with the Nigerian military to jointly prosecute the number two leader within the ISIS/Daesh network, who was responsible for the group’s global operations, media, and recruitment activities. He explained that the United States contributed specialized intelligence and operational capabilities, while Nigerian forces led the effort on the ground, adding that the deployment was temporary and that most U.S. personnel involved in the mission had since left Niger...

  The Oba of Benin, Omo N’Oba N’Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II, has formally received 18 Benin artefacts returned from Switzerland after spending more than 125 years outside their homeland. He  described the cultural treasures as symbols of governance, spirituality, and the artistic heritage of the Edo people. The artefacts, which include an ancestral head of a Benin monarch, were among the objects looted during the 1897 British punitive expedition against the Benin Kingdom in present-day Edo State. Speaking while receiving a Swiss delegation led by the Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Olugbile Holloway, at his palace in Benin City on Thursday, the monarch expressed gratitude to the Government of Switzerland; President Bola Tinubu; Governor Monday Okpebholo; the NCMM; and other stakeholders whose efforts facilitated the restitution of the priceless cultural objects. Oba Ewuare II emphasized that the Benin Bronzes are far more t...

  A  Rivers State man, Gospel Kinanee, has been reunited with his family 18 years after disappearing as a teenager. According to his family, as reported by a television interview, Gospel was 14 years old when he left home one night in 2007 and never returned. They said they carried out an extensive search for him, including visits to police stations and other institutions, but were unable to locate him. His brother reportedly disclosed that the correctional facility where Gospel was eventually found had actually been visited twice during the family's earlier search efforts. Gospel was among 21 inmates released from the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre during a state jail delivery exercise led by Justice Simeon Amadi. His family says he never had a formal trial and was denied access to legal representation throughout his detention. They also discovered that while they had always known him as Gospel Kinanee, correctional centre records identified him under a different name, Bar...

Kenneth Okonkwo (left) shaking hands with Atiku Abubakar  Nollywood veteran actor-turned-politician, lawyer and  chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Kenneth Okonkwo, says the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, saw value in him. Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Okonkwo said former Anambra state governor, Peter Obi betrayed him. Kenneth Okonkwo said this barely 24 hours after Atiku appointed him as his spokesman. He  said he had publicly ended his relationship with Obi in 2024 after concluding that the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), presidential candidate lacked the decisiveness required to lead Nigeria. “As a public affairs analyst that I have been from 2009 before I ever met Peter Obi, I proceeded with my job. You were one of the earliest interviewers that interviewed me in July 2024 when I said I wasn’t speaking for him anymore because he’s not decisive. “ I’ve seen in him certain qualities that make him unfit...

  Nigeria's  President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has publicly poked a fun at his wife, the First Lady, Senator Remi Tinubu, calling her ‘Iya Akara’ in Yoruba language, meaning the Bean Cake Seller. Tinubu made the remarks while speaking at the maiden State House Media Corps Presidential Dinner at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Thursday night. To start the protocol at the function attended by top government officials and journalists covering the State House, and with emphasis, Tinubu said: “Good evening, gentlemen of the press, ladies and gentlemen. My dear wife, the First Lady, Iya Alakara,” eliciting a thunderous laughter from the audience. According to the viral video showing the playful moment, the First Lady is seen nodding her head while speaking with another woman in the room in company of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, while the president himself also laughed. Tinubu was apparently telling Nigerians that he was aware of the mo...

  The  Imo State Police Command has begun investigation into the circumstances surrounding the vehicle incident involving seven operatives that resulted in the death of two officers in the Isiala Mbano local government area of Imo State. Police spokesperson for Imo State Command, Henry Okoye made the disclosure yesterday. According to him, seven Police operatives were involved in a road accident on Monday, June 29, during which two died following the injuries sustained in the accident that occurred along the Amakalu–Umuelemma Road in the Isiala Mbano local government area of Imo State. Okoye said the State Police boss, Audu Garba Bosso had ordered an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident that resulted in the death of two operatives. He expressed the condolences of the Police boss, Bosso to the families of the deceased. However, the police spokesperson did not give the identities of the deceased personnel. Okoye said, “The Commissioner of Police, Imo Sta...