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...
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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...
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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...
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Nigeria: Bandits raid six villages in north, kill 30 civilians
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Nigeria seizes pangolin scales bound for Vietnam
Posted On 28 January 2021
Nigeria has seized pangolin scales and tusks and bones from endangered species allegedly bound for export to Vietnam, a
senior customs official said Wednesday. Pangolin scales are traditionally used in China for a range of ailments, including treating blood clots, although there is no scientific evidence they have medicinal value. Studies have also suggested the pangolin may have been the intermediate host that transmitted the coronavirus to humans when it first emerged at a wet market in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019.
The Nigerian items concealed in a container as furniture materials were intercepted by customs operatives at Apapa port in Lagos on January 21, the area controller, Mohammed Abba-Kura told AFP. “Immediately the container was opened, logs were seen in front, and upon 100 percent physical examination of the container, elephant tusk and the pangolin scales were seen concealed by the logs,” he said.
“The items, falsely declared as furniture, comprised 162 sacks of pangolin scales… and 57 sacks of mixed endangered species of various sizes such as ivory/animal horns, lion bones and others,” he said. The total haul weighed 8,800 kilogrammes (19,400 pounds), he said. Abba-Kura said the items were valued at 952 million naira ($2.5 million, 2.07 million euros) on the black market. He said the consignment was heading to Haiphong, Vietnam before it was intercepted, adding that a suspect had been arrested over the shipment.
Nigeria is major hub for traffickers sending the scales of African pangolins to Asia. Pangolins are believed to be the world’s most trafficked mammals accounting for as much as 20 percent of all illegal wildlife trade. Nigeria has made huge seizures of illegal animal parts in recent years in line with the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
AFP
Recent News from Nigeria
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.
Nigeria’s Conflict Goes Global With Washington Entering the Fight
U.S. airstrikes in northwestern Nigeria mark a rare moment in which a long-running domestic security crisis crossed into direct American military involvement. While Nigerian forces have relied on aerial bombardment for years against insurgents and armed groups, the decision to authorize U.S. strikes introduces new political signaling, diplomatic pressure, and strategic implications. This analysis examines why the intervention occurred now, how it differs from Nigeria’s own military operations, and what it reveals about the growing internationalization of conflict in West Africa.
