News Highlights for March

ICON publishes this weekly news bulletin to share brief updates and links on the conflict and increasing violence in Nigeria

This is our monthly news summary that ICON distributes weekly via our email list.

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03.28.22
 

ICON is Dedicated to Bring News from Nigeria
 

ICON is dedicated to making Nigerian news serve people easier and better because an informed society needs up-to-date news. ICON provides current headlines from credible and relevant news sources.

Thanks for reading our weekly news update, “Nigeria: News You Can Use”, as we report the conflict and increasing violence, but also raise the voice of the vulnerable and persecuted in Nigeria. 

Please read and share … and don’t forget to check out our videos on our YouTube channel – ICON-PSJ Media.
 
Nigeria: Fulani Kidnap 46 Christians In Ambush Attack Days After Killing 32 Civilians
Suspected Fulani herdsmen ambushed and kidnapped 46 Christians and an unknown number of their children three days after killing 32 civilians in predominantly Christian areas in northern Nigeria’s Kaduna state, according to reports. On March 17, heavily armed terrorists, suspected to be radical jihadist Fulani herdsmen, attacked Agunu Dutse village in Kachia County shortly after midnight, abducting at least 46 Christians along with their children. In a separate attack two days later, more than 100 herdsmen and Islamist terrorists killed 32 civilians in Kagoro town in Kaura County, Morning Star News reported. Among those abducted in Agunu Dutse village, 16 are men and 30 women. ……………… READ MORE

While Ukrainian Violence Dominates The News, The Silent Slaughter Of Nigerian Christians Continues
For weeks, a shocked world has been transfixed by Russia’s murderous invasion of Ukraine. The killing and maiming of innocents by the thousands — unarmed women, children, and the elderly — has been stunning. Resourceful Ukrainian soldiers have demonstrated enormous courage. And nation after nation has responded with rage, reprimands, armament, financial sanctions, and threats of further recourse. Few members of the international community have remained unmoved. Yet, at the same time in another part of the world, brutal violence against similar innocents has not only continued for years but has dramatically increased in the past few months. Most recently, on March 20, Morning Star News reported from Nigeria, “Suspected Fulani herdsmen on Thursday (March 17) kidnapped 46 Christians and a number of their children in an attack in Kaduna state.”…………..… READ MORE 

Nigerian Citizens Worried After Armed Men Attacked Airport, Killed One Official In Kaduna
ABUJA — Many Nigerian citizens and security experts are raising concerns that the country may be overturned by terrorists after some 200 gunmen Saturday invaded an airport in Kaduna State and killed an official. The attack followed days of violent raids in the state with dozens of people killed. Saturday’s attack was the latest in a spate of violence that has hit the northwestern Nigerian state for days. Federal airport authorities said the armed terrorists invaded ‘runway five’ of the airport from a nearby forest and opened fire, killing one official and causing flight delays. Kaduna State Commissioner of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, said the military deployed to the airport immediately to repel the attack before it escalated………..…READ MORE

US Sanctions Six Nigerians For Aiding Boko Haram
The United States has imposed new sanctions on individuals connected with Nigeria’s armed group Boko Haram, the Treasury Department announced. Six Nigerian nationals who were found guilty of setting up a Boko Haram cell in the United Arab Emirates to raise funds for fighters in Nigeria have been placed on the sanctions list. “With this action, the United States joins the UAE in targeting terrorist financing networks of mutual concern,” Under-Secretary of the Treasury Brian Nelson said on Friday. “Treasury continues to target financial facilitators of terrorist activity worldwide. We welcome multilateral action on this Boko Haram network to ensure that it is not able to move any further funds through the international financial system,” he added The men, identified as Abdurrahman Ado Musa, Salihu Yusuf Adamu, Bashir Ali Yusuf, Muhammed Ibrahim Isa, Ibrahim Ali Alhassan and Surajo Abubakar Muhammad, were convicted in the UAE of attempting to send $782,000 from Dubai to Nigeria…………… READ MORE
 
The Will to See by Bernard-Henri Levy – NIGERIA 1 of 3
Nigerian Christians are being massacred with impunity, Bernard-Henri Lévy turns a spotlight on locations the world cannot afford to keep ignoring. Lévy is highly critical of Nigeria’s failure to protect innocent civilians and believes the Nigerian government has failed to stop the killing of innocent Christians.

ICON does have Hope for Nigeria – that will hold the Nigerian government accountable to protect each individual and provide opportunities to unite citizens in the pursuit of their dreams and aspirations.

Join ICONhelp.org to help raise awareness and stop these killings in Nigeria.
03.21.22
 

ICON is Dedicated to Bring News from Nigeria
 

ICON is dedicated to making Nigerian news serve people easier and better because an informed society needs up-to-date news. ICON provides current headlines from credible and relevant news sources.

Thanks for reading our weekly news update, “Nigeria: News You Can Use”, as we report the conflict and increasing violence, but also raise the voice of the vulnerable and persecuted in Nigeria. 

Please read and share … and don’t forget to check out our videos on our YouTube channel – ICON-PSJ Media.
 
Defend yourselves, CAN advises residents as bandits attack Southern Kaduna again
Part of the statement read, “The Christian Association of Nigeria Kaduna State Chapter is sad and grieving following the continued killings, kidnappings, banditry, and the unimaginable evil going on in our state unabated without any substantial action by the Government and security forces. “One only needs to see how human beings are killed and roasted by bandits who attacked Kagoro to conclude that this is one loss too many. “How long will this evil continue and when will our leaders act dutifully? Kaduna State citizens are tired of Government’s rhetorical responses without concrete action taken to protect lives and property. ……………… READ MORE

Suspected Herdsmen Kidnap 46 Christians in Kaduna State, Nigeria
ABUJA, Nigeria, March 20, 2022 (Morning Star News) – Suspected Fulani herdsmen on Thursday (March 17) kidnapped 46 Christians and a number of their children in an attack in Kaduna state, Nigeria, sources said. The heavily armed terrorists attacked predominantly Christian Agunu Dutse village, Kachia County, in southern Kaduna state, shortly after midnight. “The herdsmen terrorists invaded our village, Agunu Dutse, while the Christian villagers were sleeping,” area resident Rahila John Nuhu told Morning Star News in a text message. “Please be in prayer for these Christians being held captive in an unknown location at the moment.”…………..… READ MORE 

Buhari has constitutional duty to stop Kaduna killings –HURIWA
Civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, on Monday, said the unending bloodbath and chaos in Kaduna State, North-West Nigeria, were obvious signs of descent into anarchy. HURIWA, in a statement by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, said security agents as well as the Federal Government led by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and the Kaduna State Government under Governor Nasir el-Rufai, must rise up quickly and stop the unending carnage in Kaduna. The group’s warning came amid a fresh raid by gunmen suspected to be Fulani militia at Agban Kagoro, Kaura Local Government Area of the state on Sunday which claimed no fewer than 15 lives while scores were injured……….…READ MORE

Top ISWAP Leader, Sani Shuwaram Killed
A top leader of the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP), Sani Shuwaram has been killed. Naija News understands the notorious leader of the dreaded group was killed alongside other terrorists in an  airstrikes by Nigerian troops in the Marte axis of Borno State. Troops of the Nigerian Air Force recorded the latest victory after using Super Tucano jets and other aircraft to launch multiple strikes in the axis where Shuwaram’s camps were located. Naija News understands that Shuwaram in particular, was killed by gunshots when military fighter jets raided ISWAP camp at the Sabon Tumbuns general area of Lake Chad……….… READ MORE
 
The Story Mrs. Rahilla Godwin, Victim of Fulani Militant attack
At 6.00 a.m on Monday, March 11, 2019, Mrs. Rahila Godwin was at home with her children and grandmother. Suddenly, she heard the community members shouting and alerting everyone to get out of their homes because the Fulani militants had entered their village. 

Terrified, she struggled to get herself and her family out alive … she was heavily pregnant. 

Watch the video to hear the horrifying details as she relives the tragedy.

Then, join ICONhelp.org to help raise awareness and stop these killings in Nigeria.
03.14.22
 

ICON is Dedicated to Bring News from Nigeria
 

ICON is dedicated to making Nigerian news serve people easier and better because an informed society needs up-to-date news. ICON provides current headlines from credible and relevant news sources.

Thanks for reading our weekly news update, “Nigeria: News You Can Use”, as we report the conflict and increasing violence, but also raise the voice of the vulnerable and persecuted in Nigeria. 

Please read and share … and don’t forget to check out our videos on our YouTube channel – ICON-PSJ Media.
 
PANDEMIC PUTIN’S POWER PLAY: How It Affects Nigeria
“Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like the evil spirits at the dawn of day.” US  President Thomas Jefferson, 743-1826.  Seldom does one article expected to be one-off grow into a series like this one on Putin’s war in Ukraine and on the rest of the world. Make no mistake about it; everybody on this planet will feel the adverse repercussions of this war before it is over. The Russians will become the people we love to hate in this century; just as Germans were the enemies of the world after Second World War, WWII … It is not only decisions made today but decisions we fail to make, in response to Putin’s war, which will affect Nigeria for a generation or longer ……………… READ MORE

How War In Europe Is Redefining Nigeria’s National Security
From the growing possibility of running an unprecedented budget deficit in 2022 caused by rising oil prices and the accompanying receipts for fuel subsidies, to dangers posed by shortage of wheat used to make bread, spaghetti and noodles, the war between Russia and Ukraine is taking a toll on Nigeria, its national security and that of other African countries. The African Union, led by its chairman Macky Sall, the president of Senegal, on Friday condemned Russia’s attack on Ukraine and called for an “immediate ceasefire”, saying the situation risked escalating into “a planetary conflict”. Sall and chair of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, in a joint statement expressed “extreme concern” by the invasion, urging Russia to “respect international law, the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of Ukraine”…………..… READ MORE 

Kidnap Of Catholic Priests In Kaduna State, One Case Too Many
When will the kidnappings and killings of Catholic priests in Kaduna State end? Can Kaduna residents sleep with their two eyes closed? What is behind the rise in kidnappings in Nigeria? Answers to these questions have remained elusive. It is no longer news that kidnapping and, in some cases killing of Catholic Priests in Kaduna State and other innocent citizens have become a recurring situation, which stressed the need for security agencies to step up their games to stem the tide. On Sunday 6th of February, 2022 Rev. Fr. Joseph Danjuma Shekari at about 11:30 pm was abducted from his residence at St. Monica’s Catholic Church, Ikulu Pari, in Kauru Local Government Area of Kaduna State. Although he regained his freedom barely 24 hours after his abduction according to the chancellor, Catholic diocese of Kafanchan, Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Uchechukwu Okolo it was not without a ransom, as gathered…………READ MORE

The Nigerian Schoolgirls 8 Years Later
In his letter to the church at Philippi, St. Paul exhorted believers there to live lives “worthy of the Gospel of Christ.” How Paul goes on to describe that kind of life lived is a bit unnerving, especially in a letter supposedly about finding a life of joy.  Such a life wrote Paul, involves, “striving side by side for the faith of the Gospel, not frightened in anything by your opponents…For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in Him but also suffer for His sake.” Most of us cannot imagine living out those words, but the Nigerian schoolgirls, kidnapped almost eight years ago by Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram, can … In the case of the Chibok girls, 163 either escaped or were eventually released. At least 13 died in captivity. Nearly 100 girls remain unaccounted for ………… READ MORE
 
The Will to See by Bernard-Henri Levy – NIGERIA 1 of 3
WATCH: Nigerian Christians are being massacred with impunity, BHL turns a spotlight on locations the world cannot afford to keep ignoring. 
FOLLOW: Keep informed of BHL’s latest news, articles and events.
 

ALSO: ICON’s media team, Ocreative, won the Davey Gold Award for our 2020 Annual Report

MARCH 7, 2022
 
Please read and share … and don’t forget to check out our videos on our YouTube channel – ICON-PSJ Media.
 
Boko Haram and ISWAP are kidnapping children to train as soldiers and merciless killers
On February 19, 2018, a beautiful fourteen-year-old Nigerian girl named Leah Sharibu was among more At the age of 14, Halima Audu, was held captive at a Boko Haram camp where she witnessed several girls being sent to detonate explosives in crowded places such as markets. She said even a nine-year-old girl was sent on a suicide mission. “They put explosives on her and she went with it. On the day of this particular mission, there were three of them – all of them were young girls,” she said. Scheduled to strap on a suicide vest herself as bride #3, Audu managed to escape. Exploiting children as child soldiers and training them to become ruthless killers remains part of the modus operandi of northeast Nigeria’s two main jihadist groups, Boko Haram and the ISIS-linked Islamic State’s West Africa Province, ISWAP…………..…READ MORE

Nigeria sixth position in global terrorism index
Nigeria is now in the sixth position in the current Global Terrorism Index. This is as a result of successes recorded in the fight against Boko Haram insurgents in the country. The report stated that Nigeria dropped two places from fourth, a position it occupied since 2017. The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) published by the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP), established by an independent and non-profit think tank, showed that Nigeria, Syria, and Somalia are the only nations, among the 10 countries most affected by terrorism, to get an improved score from 2020 to 2021. There was a decline in the number of terrorism-related deaths in Nigeria, according to the report…………..… READ MORE 

Impunity fuels illicit financial flows, terrorism, UNODC tells Nigerian govt
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) says the lack of punishment for corruption, terrorism, and other forms of crime undermines public trust. Oliver Stolpe, UNODC Country Representative in Nigeria, spoke on Friday at the launch of the UN agency’s ‘Strategic Vision for Nigeria 2030’ in Abuja. In his remarks, Mr. Stolpe said, “corruption and illicit financial flows enable crime and terrorism,” adding that “impunity perpetuates these challenges and undermines public trust.” The UNODC said it will support Nigeria in implementing its laws on drug control, transnational organized crime, corruption, and terrorism. Referencing the agency’s launch of the ‘Strategic Vision for Africa 2030’, last year, Mr. Stolpe said the project is aimed placing Africans and their needs at the heart of UNODC’s responses to drugs and crime on the continent. He lamented that “drug use prevalence in Nigeria stands at almost 15 percent – almost three times higher than global average.”……..…READ MORE

THE MENACE OF CHILD SOLDIERS
While marking the International Day Against the Use of Child Soldiers recently, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) disclosed that over 8,000 Nigerian boys and girls have been recruited as child soldiers since 2009 by various armed groups. Since we agree with the UN agency that this situation is “unacceptable and unconscionable”, authorities in Nigeria must prioritize child protection and welfare policies through incentivized and compulsory basic education. As a matter of urgency, children must be removed from conflict zones while there should be sustained campaigns to sensitize the public on this growing malaise.   …………READ MORE
 
ICON is asking for everyone to sign our PETITION for NIGERIA, which will be submitted to the USA AMBASSADOR MARY BETH LEONARD and UK HIGH COMMISSIONER CATRIONA LAING. Showing that Nigerians are concerned about the ongoing violations occurring in the country, notably: RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, HUMAN RIGHTS, and FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION. WE REQUEST A TOWN HALL WITH THEM AND THE CONCERNED SIGNATORIES.

ICON wants to share this Hope for Nigeria with our friends and supporters. Hope for Nigeria will hold the Nigerian government accountable to protect each individual and provide opportunities to unite citizens in the pursuit of their dreams and aspirations.
 
 
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