Soldiers kill 11 insurgents, apprehend others attempting to escape to Cameroon

Abuja—The military said yesterday that 11 terrorists were killed when the troops engaged the terrorists in a gun duel while some of them were apprehended as they attempted to escape to Cameroon through Taraba and Adamawa borders. The Director, Defence Information and Coordinator of Joint Information Centre, Counter terrorism Campaign Maj.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, who disclosed this in a statement yesterday said the insurgents were attacked by troops on patrol of the areas in the ongoing counter-terrorism campaign. Suspected terrorists arrested while attempting to escape into Cameroon through Taraba and Gumti, Adamawa State. Suspected terrorists arrested while attempting to escape into Cameroon through Taraba and Gumti, Adamawa State. According to him, “the terrorists were trapped following the ongoing offensive launched by troops along the borders. Some of them could no longer bear the hunger in their make-shift camps at the forest. Those apprehended led the troops to some hideouts where fierce fighting ensued and seven terrorists died, while Improvised Explosive Devices, IEDs, rifles and 70 motorcycles were recovered.” The director said “a similar encounter in Gumbi also led to the death of four other terrorists.” He added that sustained patrols and searches by the Joint Task Force had led to the arrest of more insurgents, including a heavily armed suspect, who claimed dual nationalities of Chad and Burkina-Faso. Olukolade said the suspect was arrested with different calibre of arms along the Chad border. The defence spokesman said members of the task force were patrolling areas around the Lake Chad, including Kwatan, Kanwa, Kwatan Yobe and other areas to apprehend more of the insurgents. In a related development, fear has gripped Yola, the Adamawa State Capital following the discovery of 102 live ammunitions and two guns tucked in the perimeter fence of Damare Secondary School in Damere Ward of Yola, South Local Government Adamawa State. The development has created anxiety among residents who said they sleep with their two eyes open following the intensification of armed robbery in Yola and environs in recent times despite the state of emergency and curfew imposed in the town. The weapons were discovered by children who were playing around the area according to eyewitnesses. “Some children who were playing around the area spotted the ammunitions tucked deeply inside the block holes and quickly raised alarm”, a resident stated. According to him, “When residents observed that they were live ammunitions, they called the police who came and demolished the fence leading to the discovery of large number of live ammunitions and guns,” the source said.

Cast-wife-Saudi-king-begs-Obama-help-free-four-starving-daughters-whove-locked-away-palace-13-years

A cast-off wife of Saudi Arabia's billionaire king has appealed to Barack Obama for help freeing the four adult daughters she says have been held in a Saudi royal palace against their will for over a decade. Alanoud AlFayez, 57, made her public plea to the president on Thursday, just a day before he's scheduled to visit King Abdullah for just the second time. 'Mr Obama should take this opportunity to address these grave violations committed against my daughters,' said AlFayez. AlFayez, who's lived in London since Abdullah divorced her in 2003, said her ex-husband's treatment of their daughters has worsened lately after 13 years in confinement. She told AFP that their already rare trips outside to buy food and medicine for themselves and their pets have now stopped. 'Since 13 years, my daughters Sahar, Maha, Hala and Jawaher are being held captive,' AlFayez said. 'They need to be saved and released immediately.' AlFayez has written to the UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to say that her daughters are 'imprisoned, held against their will, cut off from the world', according to a report in The Sunday Times. Sahar and Jawaher told the newspaper in an email that they are kept alone in a house most of which they have closed off as they have been left to fend for themselves with nobody to help them with the housework. They've not revealed how they've gotten access to internet. 'We have no passports or ID, we are under house arrest, with little food left for ourselves and pets,' Sahar, 42, wrote to AFP. 'On their orders, they have been literally starving us since last Wednesday. We are now living on one meal a day, leaving the little remaining meat for our pets and sipping little water in this heat, to save up. Our energy is quite low and we are trying our best to survive.' she wrote. Abdullah became king of Saudi Arabia in 2005. The oil-rich state is a key ally of the U.S. in the Middle East and its extensive royal family enjoy massive wealth, with the king one of the world's richest men. Ms Alfayez was only 15 years old when she married King Abdullah, who was then in his 40s, but he divorced her just over a decade later. The king, who has 38 children by a number of wives, has placed his four daughters with Alfayez under the control of three of their half-brothers, according to Sahar. Under Saudi law, girls and women are forbidden from travelling, conducting official business, or undergoing certain medical procedures without the express permission of their male guardians. Sahar said that the sisters had enjoyed a pampered adolescence but that animosity towards her and her sisters had grown after they began to complain to their father about the poverty endured by most of the Saudi people.

Prince Muqrin appointed Second Crown Prince

Saudi Arabia's Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, a former intelligence chief, has been appointed Second Crown Prince, state television reported yesterday. The appointment makes Prince Muqrin, the youngest son of the kingdom's founder King Abdulaziz Al Saud, second in line to the throne after Crown Prince, Deputy Premier and Defence Minister Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. "Prince Muqrin is granted allegiance as Second Crown Prince, a crown prince if the position becomes vacant and to be given allegiance as king of the country if both the positions of Crown Prince and King become vacant at the same time," the official Saudi Press Agency said, quoting a statement from the royal court. Prince Muqrin, who was born in 1943, is a graduate of the British Royal Air Force Academy and a former military pilot. He is currently Second Deputy Premier and Saudi King Abdullah's adviser and special envoy. He has also been governor of Hail and Medina provinces. Crown Prince Salman and the Allegiance Council have accepted Prince Muqrin as the Second Crown Prince, SPA reported.

Shell declares 'force majeure' on crude exports

Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell said Wednesday it had declared a "force majeure" on crude oil exports from Nigeria as it struggles to repair a sabotaged pipeline. Shell's subsidiary in Nigeria said the force majeure was effective from Tuesday "due to ongoing repairs on the 48-inch crude export line at Forcados Terminal in the Western Niger Delta". "Force majeure" is a legal term releasing a company from contractual obligations when faced with circumstances beyond its control. Shell said the subsea pipeline was shut when a leak was discovered on March 4, leading to suspension of crude oil exports through the terminal, which can produce up to 400,000 barrels of crude per day. Shell has blamed repeated oil thefts and sabotage of key pipelines as the major cause of spills and pollution in the oil-producing region. Crude oil theft or "bunkering" is a major problem in Nigeria, with estimates that the country loses some $6 billion in revenue every year because of the practice. Nigeria is Africa's largest oil producer, accounting for more than two million barrels per day.

Brazil 2014: NFF and Keshi at loggerheads

The Super Eagles Coach, Stephen Keshi, and his employers, the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, are again at loggerheads with the latter querying the coach. The NFF is questioning Keshi’s alleged acts of insubordination. The seemingly frosty relationship between Keshi and the NFF turned worse on Tuesday when supposedly the former snubbed a meeting with the technical arm of the federation to attend a media parley in Lagos. He reportedly did not receive permission to do so. A query, signed by the Director Technical NFF, Emmanuel Ikpeme, was subsequently issued to Keshi on Wednesday. He was asked to respond before the close of work on Thursday. Excerpts from the query letter, which surprisingly is trending on social media, read: “It is important we draw your attention to previous actions whereby you travel out of Nigeria without NFF’s express permission. Specifically, you travelled out before February 13, 2014 the day President Jonathan received the CHAN team, causing us huge embarrassment. Your request for leave approved by the NFF was from Feb 15-March 10, 2014 but you left before Feb 13 and returned March 26.” Before the latest public show of disaffection, the NFF and Keshi had a running battle on why the Eagles Coach went to the press to declare he had a backlog of unpaid salaries. The arrears have since been cleared. The Eagles boss had threatened to resign after the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa. At the media parley in Lagos, he stated that he would only stay on after the World Cup in Brazil if the conditions were right. Already, he is reported to be on the wish list of some countries, chief of which is South Africa. It is yet to be seen how the latest impasse will pan out, particularly as it affects the World Cup preparations of the Super Eagles for the Mundial in Brazil.

Stoke striker Odemwingie open to Nigeria recall

According to tribalfootball.com, Stoke City striker Peter Odemwingie admits he's eyeing a late run for Nigeria's World Cup squad. Odemwingie admits certain issues would need to be ironed out before he returns to the Nigeria fold, but he would jump at the chance to grace a Brazilian showpiece if given the opportunity. He told The Sentinel: "I had a stressful 2013. Now I just take it week to week. I have a son who will be born in the summer and I have another already making me really happy. "It's how I think now after last year, that things can always be worse. Today I already have more than I wanted three months ago. "Everything else is a bonus, but every player would love to go to the World Cup. "If things seem right for me and, most importantly, I am made to feel like I could help the team, then why not? We will see."

Dangote Declares N190 Billion Profit in 2013

Leading cement manufacturer Dangote Cement Plc has declared its 2013 financials recording an upsurge in its Nigeria sales volume to the tune of 13.3 million tonnes leading to a 40.6 per cent increase in profit before tax over the previous year. The company declared a profit before tax of N190.8 billion for the year. A statement from the company yesterday said its audited results announced in Lagos indicated that the pre-tax profit is 40.6 per cent higher than that of the previous year while consolidated revenue grew up toN386.2bn, representing an increase of 29.4 per cent. While the results celebrated the increase in the company's sales volume, it showed further that total Nigerian cement market grows by 15.6% to nearly 21.2 million tonnes. Dangote Cement attributed the increased sales volume to its direct-to-customer delivery strategy and described it as proving highly successful and accounting for more than 50 per cent of sales, with its Obajana plant sales volumes up 37.2% and Ibese up by 40.4 per cent. Consequently, the company recommended a dividend increase of N7.0 per ordinary share as against N3 paid out in 2012, an increase of 133 per cent. Dangote Cement's Group Chief Executive Devakumar Edwin expressed satisfaction at the performance of the company, saying the impressive run was as a result of strategies deployed of sound management of the prevailing economic situation. "Our financial strength has allowed us to increase our dividend by 133% to N7.0 per share and the coming year will see our new factories opening across Africa as we begin to deliver on our promise to become Africa's leading cement producer, generating strong and sustainable returns for our shareholders." Dangote Cement, which is Africa's leading cement producer, is a fully integrated quarry-to-customer producer with production capacity of 20.25 million tonnes in Nigeria with three in the country and plans to expand in 13 other African countries with new operations beginning to come on stream across the rest of sub-Saharan Africa. The Group plans to have around 60 million tonnes of production, grinding and import capacity in sub-Saharan Africa by 2016. Dangote Cement's Obajana plant in Kogi State, Nigeria, is the largest in Africa with 10.25mta capacity across three lines and a further 3mta capacity currently being built.