Nigeria’s Woro massacre in early February 2026 was a large‑scale attack on two mainly Muslim farming communities that left Muslim and Christian civilians dead, including adults and children, community leaders, and people living on the economic margins. Local leaders...
MEA RISK’s SHIELD & ALERT notifications: Access requires installing Shield & Alert mobile application. More info on S&A here or click here to signup and install
Nigeria Adjusts Airstrike Strategy Under Expanded U.S. Security Cooperation
Nigeria is adjusting how it conducts air operations against armed groups as part of an updated security arrangement with the United States. Under the new framework, Nigerian fighter aircraft will increasingly rely on U.S. reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering...
Nigeria: Questions Mount Over U.S. Airstrikes in Northern Nigeria
By Leslie Varenne, MondAfrique: The American strikes carried out in Nigeria on Christmas Day raise serious questions. Beyond the confusion surrounding the objectives of the operation, inconsistencies in official statements, and the unclear nature of the targets, the...
U.S. Immigration Policy and the Changing Landscape of Africa-U.S. Travel
As the United States prepares to implement a new round of immigration and visa policy changes in 2026, the effects are being felt across Africa and parts of the Middle East. What began as a technical overhaul of screening and enforcement procedures has evolved into a...
Nigerian president Tinubu under pressure to avoid war with northern neighbor Niger
By Camille Malpat with Aminu Abubakar in Kano, Nigeria: Political leaders in Nigeria are urging President Bola Tinubu to reconsider a threatened military intervention against junta leaders in neighbouring Niger, ahead of a Sunday deadline to reinstate the country's...
Nigeria grapples with end of fuel subsidy
By Alexandre Martins Lopes: Nigerians are struggling with surging fuel prices after newly elected President Bola Tinubu declared an end to popular subsidies, a move analysts and experts said was long overdue. On his first day in office, Tinubu kept to his campaign...
Nigerian actor arrested for alleged support to IPOB separatist group
Posted On 8 October 2021
Nigerian troops have arrested a well-known Nollywood actor for allegedly inciting support for a banned separatist movement in the country’s restive southeast, the army said. Chiwetalu Agu, a veteran star in scores of movies for Nigeria’s film industry, was detained in Anambra State, according to local media reports. The army said Agu was arrested while inciting “members of the public and soliciting for support for the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB)”, a separatist movement that agitates for a breakaway state for the ethnic Igbo people.
“Dressed in a very well known attire of the proscribed group, Chiwetalu Agu was picked up for questioning while inciting members of the public to join,” the army said in a statement on its Facebook page, referring to the Biafra half-sun symbol. A video widely shared on social media appears to show Agu wearing a green, red and black tunic with a rising sun symbol, telling soldiers he is not inciting violence but only distributing bread.
The incident comes as security forces are tightening controls in Anambra before a local election for the state governor’s office early next month. Separatist tensions have been on the rise in Nigeria this year, especially in the southeast where calls for a breakaway state are especially sensitive. A declaration of independence by Igbo army officers for Biafra in 1967 sparked a three-year civil war that left more than one million people dead from fighting or starvation. The army said Agu had attempted to resist and was taken into custody, but dismissed claims he was assaulted during the arrest. “Individuals or groups who fan the embers of violence are warned to desist or face the consequences of their actions,” it said.
Tensions are running high in parts of the southeast after a surge in attacks this year on police stations and government buildings killed dozens of officers in violence authorities blame on IPOB. The separatist movement denies its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), is involved. IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu is in detention in Abuja facing terrorism and treason charges after he was brought back to Nigeria from overseas in June. His lawyers say he was illegally extradited from Kenya, though Nigerian officials have given no details. An activist for more autonomy for Yoruba people in the southwest was also arrested in July in neighbouring Benin after going on the run from Nigeria.
AFP
Recent News from Nigeria
Nigeria: More than 160 people killed in Muslim communities in Kwara State
More than 160 people were killed in predominantly Muslim farming communities in Kwara State, Nigeria, after villagers reportedly refused to accept an extremist group’s strict religious rule.
Nigeria Adjusts Airstrike Strategy Under Expanded U.S. Security Cooperation
Nigeria is modifying how it conducts air operations against armed groups under a revised security arrangement with the United States. The new framework places greater emphasis on U.S. intelligence and reconnaissance support while shifting operational responsibility to Nigerian forces. The approach reflects Abuja’s effort to balance external assistance with domestic control amid ongoing security challenges in the country’s northwest.
Nigeria: Questions Mount Over U.S. Airstrikes in Northern Nigeria
The U.S. airstrikes carried out in northern Nigeria on Christmas Day have triggered confusion and skepticism across the region. Conflicting statements from Washington and Abuja, uncertainty over the identity of the targeted groups, and reports from strike locations where no militants were found have raised serious questions about the operation’s objectives. In an already fragile security environment, the lack of clarity risks adding instability rather than addressing Nigeria’s complex security challenges.
