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...
Fuel truck blast kills five in Lagos
Posted On 12 October 2020
A gas-laden truck exploded and caught fire early Thursday in Nigeria’s commercial capital Lagos, leaving five dead and three others seriously injured and destroying dozens of homes and shops, the emergency services said. The incident — the latest in a string of fuel accidents in Nigeria — occurred at around 6am as the truck was offloading gas at a depot in the district of Baruwa-Ipaja, Ibrahim Farinloye of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) told AFP. He said rescue workers promptly deployed to the scene. “We have recovered five charred bodies and rescued three others — a woman and her children — from the scene,” he said.
Farinloye said those injured were receiving treatment “for severe burns” at a nearby hospital, while efforts were being stepped up to put out the flames. He said over 40 houses, 89 shops and many vehicles were burnt in the inferno. He said a running generator inside the gas depot was suspected of causing a spark that triggered the blast.
Fuel accidents are common in Nigeria, often entailing pipelines or trucks transporting oil or petrol (gasoline), rather than gas. Most people live in poverty even though the country is the biggest oil producer on the continent, with around two million barrels per day. Some incidents happen when residents try to siphon off oil or petrol from pipelines or when tanker drivers crash on ill-maintained roads. Last month, a petrol-carrying truck overturned on a road in lokoja, the capital of central Kogi state, killing 23, including students and burning several buildings and vehicles. Also in the same month, a gas exploded inside a plant at Iju-Ishaga area of Lagos, leaving dozens critically injured and buildings and vehicles burnt. In March, a gas explosion in the city killed at least 20 people, injured many more and destroyed around 50 buildings.
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.
