Category Nigeria News

Clashes between members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram have claimed nearly 200 lives in the restive Lake Chad area, intelligence, militia, and jihadist sources told AFP Monday.

Fighting between Boko Haram and rival militants from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) group broke out in Dogon Chiku on the shores of Lake Chad on Sunday, in the latest bout of infighting for territorial control fuelled by ideological rifts.

READ ALSO: ISWAP Terrorists, Bandits Killed As NAF Raids Hideouts In Borno, Others

“From the toll we got, around 200 ISWAP terrorists were killed in the fight,” Babakura Kolo, a member of an anti-jihadist militia assisting the Nigerian military, told AFP.

A former Boko Haram jihadist, who has since renounced violence but follows jihadist activities in the region, also said “around 200 ISWAP fighters were killed in the clashes”, with several of their weapons seized.

Boko Haram lost four fighters in the battle, according to the former militant, who asked to be identified only by his first name, Saddiku.

“This could be the worst clash between the two groups since they began attacking each other,” said Saddiku, who lives in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, the epicentre of the insurgency.

Short video clips seen by AFP appear to show several dead bodies in canoes, with some of the vessels flooded with bloody water.

A Nigerian intelligence source working in the region said they were following the aftermath of the clashes, estimating that they “killed more than 150”.

“We are aware of the fighting, which is good news to us,” the intelligence source said.

Although the defence headquarters has yet to comment on the incident, the Nigerian Air Force said in a statement on Monday that several members of ISWAP were killed during intensified counterterrorism and counter-banditry operations nationwide.

But it did not disclose the number of terrorists or bandits killed in the operation.

Deadly Struggle For Control

ISWAP and Boko Haram have been locked in a deadly struggle for territorial control since their split in 2016 over ideological differences, with much of the fighting taking place around Lake Chad.

The freshwater lake, which straddles Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, and Chad, serves as a sanctuary for both Boko Haram and ISWAP, from which both launch attacks across the four countries.

2016 Splinter

ISWAP, which claims allegiance to the Islamic State group, has risen to prominence since breaking off from Boko Haram in 2016.

Both factions have fought for dominance since, leading to the death of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau during clashes in his Sambisa forest hideout in May 2021.

Some Boko Haram fighters joined ISWAP to avoid execution, others surrendered to Nigerian troops while the rest fled to islands on the Niger side of Lake Chad under the control of Shekau’s successor, Bakura Buduma.

In one of the largest flare-ups, a September 2021 raid by Boko Haram on the ISWAP-controlled Kirta-Wulgo island led to weeks of back-and-forth fighting between the two militias.

Boko Haram has since succeeded in pushing ISWAP out of most of Lake Chad, which the two groups covet as a refuge from military attacks and a huge source of revenue from fishing, farming, herding, and logging.

Nigeria’s jihadist conflict has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced around two million people in the predominantly Muslim northeast since it erupted in 2009.

The violence has spilt into neighbouring Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, prompting the creation of a regional military force to fight the jihadists.

US President Donald Trump had threatened military intervention in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, over what he calls the “killing of Christians” by radical Islamists.

The National Youth Service Corps has begun the physical verification of credentials and travel documents for foreign-trained Nigerian graduates who registered for the 2025 Batch ‘C’ Service Year.

Disclosing this in a statement via X on Sunday, NYSC said it will hold from Monday, November 10 (today) to Wednesday, November 12, 2025, across designated centres nationwide.

The scheme noted that the exercise is meant for Prospective Corps Members whose documents are yet to be physically verified after completing their online registration.

According to the statement, the verification centres included NYSC Secretariat, 2 Abakaliki Road, GRA, Enugu; Shadawanka Military Barracks, Bauchi; NYSC Orientation Camp, Kubwa, Abuja; Bukavu Military Barracks, Fagge, Airport Road, Kano; NYSC Orientation Camp, Iyana Ipaja, Lagos; NYSC Secretariat, New Ikirun Road, Osogbo; NYSC Secretariat, 40 Ikwerre Road, Port Harcourt; Eagle Officers Mess, Gingiya Military Barracks, Gusau Road, Sokoto; and NYSC Secretariat, Federal Secretariat Complex, Yola.

READ ALSO: Lawyer Threatens Legal Action Against NYSC Over Raye’s Service Extension

“As part of the measures to ensure orderliness and avoid overcrowding, Prospective Corps Members are expected to strictly report on the date, time, and venue specified on the verification slip,” the statement said.

The Corps said all participants must present the original copies of their credentials and travel documents as uploaded online during registration.

It further directed that “medical graduates should, in addition, upload Licenses, Registration Certificates and other relevant documents issued by their various bodies and also come along with the originals to the verification centres.”

NOTIFICATION OF PHYSICAL VERIFICATION OF CREDENTIALS AND TRAVEL DOCUMENTS OF FOREIGN-TRAINED GRADUATES FOR THE 2025 BATCH ‘C’ SERVICE YEAR

This is to inform all Foreign Trained Nigerian Graduates that after online registration for the 2025 Batch ‘C’ Service Year, Prospective…

The NYSC also clarified the process for those who obtained their qualifications abroad and required official recognition.

“Original copies of Evaluation letters issued by Federal Ministry of Education (where applicable) should be submitted at the NYSC Headquarters, Abuja and acknowledged copies uploaded online by the PCMs,” the management stated.

Emphasising the importance of the verification exercise, the NYSC warned that “only persons physically seen with credentials, physically verified and cleared would be deployed, exempted, or excluded from National Service.”

Operatives of the Nigerian Navy have rescued 10 crew members, including one Cameroonian, one Equatorial Guinean, and eight Nigerians, from the distressed vessel MV SEMA III, which was en route to Calabar from Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.

The Naval Director of Information, Commodore Aiwuyor Adams-Aliu, disclosed this in a statement on Monday.

Adams-Aliyu, a Commodore, said that the rescue occurred on Friday, November 7, following a distress call received at about 2000 hours.

According to him, a naval gunboat equipped with a submersible pump was immediately deployed to the scene.

READ ALSO: Police Rescue 15 Girls, Arrest Three Suspected Traffickers

“On arrival, the team discovered the vessel was taking in water and promptly evacuated all occupants—one Cameroonian, one Equatorial Guinean, and eight Nigerians, who were later received, debriefed, and catered for at FOB IBAKA until Saturday, 8 November 2025.

“The Master of MV SEMA III expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Nigerian Navy for its timely intervention and exceptional professionalism,” Adams-Aliu said.

He added that the successful operation underscored the Navy’s renewed efforts under the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas (Admiralty Medal), to enhance maritime safety, protect critical national assets, and promote lawful economic activities within Nigeria’s maritime domain.

The latest rescue comes just days after the Navy saved 11 passengers from a sinking boat along the Bonny River in Rivers State.

According to the Navy, “On Tuesday, 4 November 2025, personnel of the Nigerian Navy Forward Operating Base Bonny rescued 11 passengers from a sinking speedboat along the Bonny River.

“The boat, which departed Nembe Waterside Jetty in Port Harcourt en route Coal Beach Jetty in Bonny Island, developed engine failure midstream and began taking in water near the Federal Ocean Terminal, Onne, Rivers State.

“The swift response of the Forward Operating Base Bonny patrol team under heavy rainfall prevented a major tragedy.

“All rescued passengers, six males and five females, were safely taken to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Jetty for medical checks and subsequently handed over to the Marine Police for reunification with their families.”

Meanwhile, the Navy said it has intensified anti-crude oil theft operations across the Niger Delta, deactivating multiple illegal refining sites in four different locations.

The Federal Government of Nigeria’s Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) programme has announced plans to launch two additional funds for the technology and creative sectors in 2026, targeting investments in Nigerian start-ups across the country.

The announcement comes as the Chair of the iDICE Steering Committee, Vice President Kashim Shettima, described the formal kick-off, featuring an anchor investment in a new venture fund by Ventures Platform, a pan-African seed-stage fund, as an exciting milestone that will leverage the potential of Nigerian youth.

The new funding achieved a $64 million first-round close based on investor commitments last Thursday.

Ventures Platform was appointed as the Fund Manager for the technology component of iDICE in August 2025, following a competitive bidding process supervised by the funding partners.

With this development, iDICE joins other institutional investors, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Standard Bank of South Africa, and British International Investment (BII) in the new fund, which has achieved a $64 million first close and targets a final close of $75 million.

READ ALSO: Oil Revenue Plunges By 43% Despite Increased Production

Shettima emphasised earlier that “the commencement of investing by iDICE is an exciting milestone and a leap forward in the determined efforts of the Government of Nigeria, under the leadership of His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to deliver on our vision of unleashing the full potential of Nigeria’s young people, in line with the Renewed Hope agenda.”

Responding to the development, the MD/CEO of Bank of Industry, Dr Olasupo Olusi, said that by investing in Ventures Platform’s Fund II, authorities are deepening the Federal Government’s objective of upscaling the Nigerian technology and creative sectors by catalysing strategic investments in high-growth, technology-enabled enterprises and the innovation ecosystem.

According to him, the development will contribute meaningfully to the nation’s broader economic transformation agenda, with goals to create jobs at scale and empower high-growth entrepreneurs across the country.
Kola Aina, Founding Partner at Ventures Platform, expressed confidence in the partnership, saying: “We are delighted to have been selected as the iDICE Technology Fund Manager, partnering with the Federal Government of Nigeria and other key stakeholders to achieve our collective goal of supporting Nigeria’s young entrepreneurs and innovators to bring their innovative ideas and solutions to life—creating deep value and transforming the country’s economy.”

The iDICE programme is being implemented across three broad areas: skills and enterprise development, focused on building a community of highly skilled talent; expanding access to finance through equity, quasi-equity, debt capital funding, and capacity-building grants; and creating an enabling environment through pro-business policies and legislation.

In addition to its technology-focused investments in 2026, iDICE announced it “will launch two additional funds: a creative sector fund that will invest in creative sector start-ups and a ‘fund of funds’ that will invest in smaller funds supporting technology and creative sector startups.”

iDICE is a $617 million programme launched by the Federal Government of Nigeria to support young Nigerians aged 15-35 with skills and resources in the technology and creative economy sectors, aiming to increase employability, foster innovation, and create new entrepreneurs.

It is supported by financing from the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), and the French Development Agency (AFD), with the state-owned Bank of Industry serving as co-investor and implementing agency.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has expressed concern over the conduct of the recently concluded Anambra State governorship election, describing it as “a cash-drenched spectacle” that undermines democracy.

This was contained in a statement by the party’s spokesperson, Bolaji Abdulahi, who said what transpired during the poll was more of “a bazaar than an election.”

According to him, the poll fell short of democratic standards.

“The African Democratic Congress has observed the conduct of the just concluded Anambra gubernatorial election with a deep sense of concern for the electoral process in Nigeria,” he wrote on his X handle on Sunday, hours after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Governor Chukwuma Soludo as the winner of the exercise.

“What unfolded in Anambra was, regrettably, a cash-drenched spectacle that was more of a bazaar than an election. This undermines the very essence of democracy.”

The ADC accused the incumbent and his party of engaging in “several forms and styles of cash-for-votes”. The party alleged that bundles of naira notes exchanged hands at polling units across the state in full public view, a clear violation of the Electoral Act.

READ ALSO: [Anambra Poll] ‘Shambolic Election Confers Shambolic Mandate,’ ADC Candidate Kicks

Abdullahi also faulted security agencies and electoral officials for failing to enforce electoral integrity.

He said, “security operatives stood by as voters were harassed and compromised, while electoral officials, overwhelmed or indifferent, failed to uphold even the most basic standards.”

It warned that if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) continues in this direction, Nigerians should be concerned about the credibility of the 2027 general elections, especially as the world closely watches the country’s democratic process.

However, the ADC spokesman said that the party remains dedicated to building “a Nigeria where leadership is earned through integrity, inclusion, and service, not through the crude exchange of cash for votes.”

ADC’s candidate in the election, John Nwosu, came a distant fifth in the election with 8,208 votes.

Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has paid a visit to former President Olusegun Obasanjo at his Presidential Library residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

The visit, which took place ahead of Fayose’s 65th birthday on November 15, appears to have ended their long-standing political differences.

The meeting marks a reconciliation between the two leaders, who had been at odds for years.

A photograph from the visit, shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Fayose’s former aide, Lere Olayinka, showed Obasanjo dressed in a white native attire with a green cap, playing Ayo, a traditional Yoruba board game, while Fayose watched with admiration.

READ ALSO: Obasanjo Should Go And Clear His Name, Not Raise Alarm – Fayose

For years, the pair were known for their open disagreements. Obasanjo had once described Fayose as “unruly,” while Fayose, in turn, accused the former president of arrogance and political intolerance.

During their latest interaction, Fayose was said to have expressed respect for Obasanjo and appreciation for his leadership experience.