Following the emergency security meeting convened by Governor Abdullahi Sule on Monday, the Nasarawa State government has proscribed all ethnic vigilante groups operating in the state. A statement obtained by our correspondent on Tuesday, said the state government has equally directed ethnic vigilante groups affected by the order, to hand over their uniforms and weapons to the state commissioner of police within two weeks. Citing the powers vested in him via Section 97A of the Penal Code, as well as other relevant laws, Governor Sule, said he acted on the advice of the state security council, and has banned the Fulani ethnic vigilante group known as the Kungiyar Zaman Lafiya, Bassa vigilante group, as well as the Eggon vigilante group. Through Executive Order No. 1 of 2024, signed by the governor and issued, other associations, movements, organisations or societies affiliated with the group operating under the guise of ethnic vigilante, have also been proscribed. The statement read, “Similar Organisations includes any association, movement or group of persons or society in whatever name called or form, with the aim and objectives of providing security amongst particular ethnic groups within Nasarawa State through the use of force or arms etc,” part of the Executive Order No. 1 of 2024 reads. “Accordingly, the Kungiyar Zaman Lafiya nomad vigilante, Bassa vigilante, Eggon vigilante and other similar organisations are henceforth proscribed, and declared unlawful societies that are inimical to good governance in the state”. The State Government then directed, that members of the Kungiwar Zaman Lafiya nomad Vigilante, Bassa Vigilante, Eggon Vigilante and other similar organisations, hand over all weapons or arms in their possession, along with uniforms to the commissioner of police Nasarawa State, within two weeks from the date of issuance of the order.

  Tuesday 16 April 2024 Vandalism worsens grid collapse as gas shortage slashes power supply Naira nears 1,000/$ at parallel market Dangote, modular refineries to pay naira for crude Yoruba Nation: Lecturer defends participation as police parade 21 Over 1,000 kidnapped victims so far rescued without ransom — FG 50,901 drug offenders arrested, 9,034 convicted in three years — NDLEA Oyo invasion: Yoruba Nation sponsors promised to end my hunger —Female suspect FG still subsidising petrol in trillions of naira — el-Rufai Umahi clarifies issues around Lagos-Calabar coastal highway Illegal traffic enforcement: Miscreants take-over Lagos roads US-based Nigerian man, Chidozie shot by wife, dies after 18-day coma ‘I’m coming for you,’ Keyamo tells unlicensed private jet operators Okuama: Army lacks powers to deny Oborevwori, journalists access — Delta stakeholders, Falana Sylvester Oromoni: Coroner Says Death Was Natural But Avoidable APC Officials Denounce Ganduje’s Purported Suspension Trump’s Landmark Criminal Trial Begins In New York National Grid Fully Restored, Says TCN Nigeria Grows Oil Reserves To 37.50 Billion Barrels Tinubu Declares April 7 National Police Day Israeli Army Vows Response To Iran Strikes As World Urges Caution El-Rufai to Tinubu: Sack non-performing appointees, review your policies El-Rufai: FG paying more money on petrol subsidy than before S/West Govs Move Against Yoruba Nation Agitators 4 Ex-Govs, 21 Other Senators Sponsor No Bill In 10 Months Zamfara Varsity Students’ Parents: We’re Excited To See Our Daughters Again Army Kicks As Plateau Community Accuses Troops Of Killing Civilians Crude oil reserves hit37.50 billion barrels 30 arrested for illegal mining in Niger Kidnapping: Wike donates motorcycles to DSS, police, others How we got man behind claim that Fashola wrote PEPC judgments, by police Alleged $6b fraud: Court dismisses Agunloye’s application on ‘amicus curiae’ Nigeria’ll lead Africa in developing, regulating AI globally –FG Mattawalle taunts NEF ex-spokesman Visit a newspaper stand this morning, buy and read a copy for yourself…

  The Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has issued new rules requiring oil producers to sell crude to domestic refineries before attending to foreign demands. The commission, on March 27, had given its enforcement committee 48 hours to produce a template for the implementation of domestic crude oil supply obligation (DCSO) in Nigeria. According to Bloomberg, under the regulations, all oil firms in the country will be obliged to supply crude to domestic refiners that can not independently source supplies locally. As per the NUPRC measures, producers are only entitled to export crude after meeting their domestic supply obligations. The NUPRC will function as an intermediary between local refiners and producers in cases where a deal can not be reached on crude supply, facilitating a purchase agreement on a willing buyer, willing seller model. According to the regulations, payments for crude to domestic refiners can be made in dollars, naira or both. The regulator said it plans to implement the domestic crude oil supply obligation measure in the second half of the year. The volume that each refinery will need to take has not been determined yet, according to the publication. “Local refiners in Africa’s largest crude producer have complained of being starved of feedstock by oil firms, which prefer exports to earn dollars and avoid the risk of holding a weakening local currency,” the publication said. “In addition to the 650,000-barrels-a-day Dangote Refinery, there are at least five operational modular refineries in Nigeria producing diesel and kerosene as well as the state-owned Port Harcourt refinery that is also expected to come on stream this year.” On January 30, it was reported that the Dangote refinery would import US crude, after receiving from the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and Shell International Trading and Shipping Company Limited (STASCO). The publication also reported Dangote refinery bought one supertanker of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Midland from PetroChina for May 1-10 arrival.

  Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna state, says the federal government is spending more on petrol subsidy than before. President Bola Tinubu, in his inauguration speech on May 29, 2023, said the subsidy on petrol “is gone”. However, speaking with journalists after delivering the lead paper at a capacity-building workshop, in Maiduguri on Monday, el-Rufai said the government has started paying petrol subsidy. “The federal government is now subsidizing fuel; many people don’t know this,” el-Rufai said. “It is a right policy. I have always supported the withdrawal of oil subsidy; but in the course of implementing the policy, the government realised that subsidy has to be back; right now, government is spending a lot of money for subsidy, even more than before. “You start implementing a policy because you are absolutely sure it is the right policy, but in the course of implementation, you come across bottlenecks, and you modify. “The keyword in leadership, in my view, is pragmatism. You should be pragmatic. So when you make a policy, you start implementing it, and it doesn’t seem to work well. You should have the humility to stand back and say this is not working, and you modify it.” On August 15, 2023, TheCable reported that President Bola Tinubu is considering a “temporary subsidy” on petrol. Sources in the presidency told TheCable that there is no final decision yet but the proposal is firmly on the table.

  Israel’s army chief on Monday vowed a response to Iran’s unprecedented attack against the country which has prompted appeals for de-escalation by world leaders fearing wider conflict. Six months of war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza have triggered violence across the region involving Iranian proxies and allies who say they act in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. But tensions have surged even higher with Tehran’s first direct assault on Israel, in retaliation for a deadly April 1 strike on Iran’s consulate in Damascus. “This launch of so many (Iranian) missiles, cruise missiles, and UAVs into the territory of the State of Israel will be met with a response,” Israeli army chief General Herzi Halevi said, addressing troops at the Nevatim military base hit in Iran’s Saturday barrage. But the military also said it would not be distracted from its war against Hamas in Gaza. The United Nations on Monday cited reports of “air strikes, shelling and heavy fighting” for the past five days around Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah. Engaged in terrorism’ Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel late Saturday, according to Israel’s military which said nearly all were intercepted. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with his war cabinet late Monday to discuss possible reactions, local media said, as Israel issued its first official comment on the deadly Syria strike. “These were people who engaged in terrorism against the State of Israel,” military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said. “There was not a single diplomat there as far as I know.” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps named two generals as among seven of its members killed in the consular attack. Tehran says its missile and drone barrage against Israel was the first act of a tough new strategy. The Iranian president’s political deputy, Mohammad Jamshidi, wrote on X that the “era of strategic patience is over” and further targeting Iranian personnel and assets “will be met with a direct and punishing response.” Tehran said it considered the matter “concluded” unless Israel chose to commit “another mistake”. Israel’s top military supplier the United States played a key role — with other allies — in shooting down the Iranian drones. US officials, increasingly critical of the civilian death toll in Gaza, have urged caution on Israel after Iran’s attack. “We don’t seek escalation, but we’ll continue to support the defence of Israel and to protect our personnel in the region,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken. US President Joe Biden has told Netanyahu that Washington would not offer military support for any retaliation against Iran, according to a senior US official. Netanyahu has been less vocal than usual since Iran’s attack, but late Monday he said on X that the international community “must continue to stand united in resisting this Iranian aggression, which threatens world peace.” At the White House Biden, meeting Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani, said: “We’re committed to a ceasefire that will bring the hostages home and prevent the conflict spreading beyond what it already has.” Israel estimates that 129 hostages, including 34 presumed dead, remain in the hands of Palestinian militants in Gaza since their October 7 attack triggered the war with Israel. Bridge blocked Reflecting both the domestic pressure Biden is under, and global calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge on Monday. The UN cited reports of clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups in eastern Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city which Israel has for two months threatened to invade in pursuit of Hamas. Hamas’s October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,797 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. The toll rose by at least 68 deaths over 24 hours. Israel released around 150 detainees on Monday who had been rounded up in Gaza, the territory’s crossings authority told AFP. The agency alleged “mistreatment” of the detainees, which Israel’s military denied. Further emphasising the regional dimensions of the war, Israel’s army said four of its troops were wounded inside Lebanese territory after Hezbollah said it had targeted a group of Israeli soldiers with “explosive devices” when they crossed the border. Catastrophic hunger’ Following the Iranian attack, the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting Sunday, where Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the region was “on the brink” of war and called for a defusing of tensions. On Monday Britain, Germany, Italy and France were among those also calling for de-escalation. A United States official said the hope was that “in the light of day” Israel would see it had won a “spectacular success” against Iran’s attack, which resulted in no reported deaths. However, Middle East analyst James Ryan said “Netanyahu has already shown a willingness to test any kind of limit Biden wishes to impose”. Netanyahu, who leads a coalition including religious and ultra-nationalist parties, has faced regular protests by anti-government demonstrators as well as supporters of the Gaza hostages demanding the government get them home. Experts, and the protesters, have said they expect Netanyahu to continue the Gaza war as a tactic to remain in power. British airline EasyJet on Monday said it was pausing flights to and from Tel Aviv until April 21, “due to the evolving security situation,” but on global markets world oil prices sank as traders bet on a de-escalation of tensions. The UN said it delivered on Sunday a four-day supply of fuel to enable a Gaza City bakery to resume operations in northern Gaza, which “has largely been cut off from aid and has recorded the highest levels of catastrophic hunger in the world.” AFP

  The security situation in Plateau State, particularly in Mangu and Bokkos local government areas, has sparked a disagreement between Operation Safe Haven (OPHS), a security task force, and the Coalition of Bokkos Ethnic Nationalities. This dispute stems from allegations by the coalition that soldiers shot civilians in Kopnanle and Mandang Mushu, Mangu and Bokkos LGAs respectively, leading to fatalities and injuries during a recent attack by gunmen in the area.   The Coalition of Bokkos Ethnic Nationalities called for the removal of the sector commander in the area, accusing the OPHS personnel of failing to protect lives and property. It claimed that the soldiers’ actions resulted in civilian casualties during the attack. In response, Major Samson Zhakom, the OPHS’s media officer, refuted these allegations, stating that the forces swiftly responded to the attacks, quelling them and minimising casualties. He clarified that while one person was killed and two others injured in Kopnanle, three individuals were injured in Mandang Mushu, two of whom later succumbed to their injuries.   Major Zhakom dismissed the call for the removal of Colonel C. Y. Ofurumazi, the commander of the Step-Up Headquarters in Bokkos, describing it as malicious. He emphasised that the allegations of the vigilante’s killing were an attempt to deflect responsibility and portray the deceased vigilante in a more favourable light. “The use of sophisticated weapons by the acclaimed vigilante was further buttressed by the discovery of eleven (11) rounds of 7.62 mm (Special) ammunition in the possession of the dead militia contrary to claims that he was a vigilante who was using a Dane gun to protect his community. Moreover, the acclaimed vigilante was already dead before the troops arrived at the area,” the spokesperson added