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The Defence Headquarters has said the reported withdrawal of about 200 United States personnel from Nigeria will not affect the country’s security cooperation with the US, describing the development as a routine adjustment tied to specific operational objectives.

The Director of Defence Information, Maj Gen S. Uba, stated this on Tuesday while addressing journalists at the joint security spokespersons briefing.

Uba said the withdrawal should not be interpreted as a breakdown or termination of the longstanding security partnership between Nigeria and the United States.

“The Armed Forces of Nigeria wishes to clarify that the reported withdrawal of about 200 United States personnel should not be interpreted as a breakdown or termination of the Nigeria-United States security partnership,” he said.

According to him, the relationship between both countries remains “strong, enduring, and mutually beneficial,” noting that the deployment of American personnel was linked to specific operational and counterterrorism objectives.

“The decision to draw down personnel is therefore part of the evolving nature of that engagement. Elements of the United States security partnership, particularly intelligence cooperation, training and information sharing, will continue,” Uba added.

He stressed that the responsibility for defending Nigeria and protecting its citizens remained primarily with Nigerian security forces, while noting that cooperation with the US aimed to strengthen the capabilities of the Nigerian military.

“The Armed Forces of Nigeria has consistently maintained that the responsibility for the defence of Nigeria and the protection of its citizens rests primarily with Nigerian security forces,” the DDI said.

He explained that the bilateral security partnership covered intelligence sharing, training, technical assistance and other forms of professional military cooperation.

“Our cooperation with the United States is designed to strengthen our capabilities through intelligence sharing, training, technical assistance, and other forms of professional military cooperation,” he said.

Uba said that when Nigeria and the US jointly assessed the need for additional interventions, including joint strikes, they carried them out.

“Where it is jointly assessed that additional efforts, including joint strikes, are required, we do that,” he stated.

The defence spokesman said the partnership had continued to yield positive results in the fight against terrorism and other transnational security threats.

“Indeed, the Nigeria-United States partnership has continued to produce valuable outcomes in the fight against terrorism and other transnational security threats,” he said.

Uba urged the media and members of the public not to interpret the adjustment in the presence of foreign military personnel as an indication of weakening security cooperation or Nigeria’s defence capacity.

“We equally call on the media and the Nigerian public to avoid interpreting a routine or mission-specific adjustment in foreign military presence as evidence of a collapse in Nigerian security cooperation or national defence capability,” he said.

He reiterated that the Nigeria-US security relationship remained enduring and that cooperation in areas of mutual interest was expected to continue.

The clarification came after US officials said most of the additional forces deployed for the Lake Chad operation had returned following the completion of their mission, while intelligence sharing and broader security cooperation with Nigeria would continue.

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The Lagos State Parking Authority (LASPA) has commenced enforcement of the 2026 parking permit regulations across its operational zones, warning defaulters of substantial fines and immediate suspension of operations.

LASPA General Manager, Adebisi Adelabu, disclosed this in a statement shared on the state government’s official page on Tuesday, saying the enforcement marked the end of the extended grace period given to customers to regularise their operations and obtain their 2026 parking permits.

Adelabu said the extension was intended to give affected customers sufficient time to meet their obligations and comply with the authority’s requirements.

According to her, the enforcement is aimed at ensuring compliance with approved parking regulations, promoting accountability and strengthening the management of parking activities across Lagos.

She added that the exercise would support compliance with laws governing the transport sector while improving parking management across the state.

The LASPA boss expressed concern that many customers had yet to obtain their 2026 parking permits despite several appeals, direct communications, reminders and the extended grace period.

“The commencement of the enforcement marks the end of the prolonged grace period granted to customers to regularise their activities and obtain their 2026 parking permits,” she said.

Adelabu said LASPA had earlier distributed the 2026 Demand Notices to all registered customers, clearly stating the applicable fees, requirements and procedures for obtaining the permits.

She urged customers who had yet to regularise their operations to do so immediately to avoid sanctions for continued non-compliance.

The general manager stressed that the enforcement exercise was not intended to punish operators but to restore order, accountability and efficiency within the state’s parking system.

“The enforcement exercise is not intended to be punitive, but a necessary measure to restore order, accountability and efficiency within Lagos’ parking ecosystem,” she said.

Adelabu explained that valid parking permits and accurate customer records were essential for LASPA to effectively plan, monitor, regulate and manage parking infrastructure and services across the state.

“Valid parking permits and accurate customer records are essential to enable LASPA to effectively plan, monitor, regulate and manage parking infrastructure and services across the state,” she said.

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The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, has called for an investigation into some civil society organisations, CSOs, allegedly being used as fronts by human traffickers to gain access to vulnerable communities and traffic children.

The agency also disclosed that it had recovered 118 children allegedly trafficked from Nasarawa, Benue and three other states in the North-Central region.

NAPTIP’s Head of Press and Public Relations, Vincent Adekoye, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at a joint briefing by security agencies’ spokespersons.

Adekoye said traffickers were increasingly exploiting communities affected by insecurity, including farmer-herder conflicts, by posing as representatives of non-governmental organisations and offering assistance to vulnerable families.

He said some traffickers approached distressed communities under the guise of providing educational and humanitarian support before taking children away.

“Traffickers also now masquerade under the umbrella of Civil Society Organizations and move to communities that are already distressed; moving to communities where you have farmer-herder crises, and promising parents that, ‘we will take your children back to school,’ under a fake back-to-school project. And from there, they harvest children, move them,” he said.

Adekoye disclosed that NAPTIP recently rescued four children in Onitsha, Anambra State, who were allegedly trafficked from Kajuru in Kaduna State in 2023.

He said some of the children were recovered from a high-rise building, while another was found in the custody of a nurse at a Federal Medical Centre in Onitsha.

According to him, the agency is planning to profile CSOs, particularly community-based and faith-based organisations operating in vulnerable areas, to prevent criminal elements from exploiting their credibility.

“We have continued to ensure that we want to profile the Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria. My DG has asked me to convey to them, the leadership of the CSOs in Nigeria, to do an in-house cleansing,” Adekoye said.

He explained that community-based, faith-based and non-governmental organisations were often familiar to residents and could therefore be exploited by traffickers seeking to gain the trust of vulnerable families.

The NAPTIP spokesman said the agency had so far recovered 118 children allegedly trafficked from Nasarawa, Benue and three other North-Central states.

He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities involving organisations seeking to take children away from their families.

“As at last count, we have recovered 118 of such children from those that were trafficked from Nasarawa and from Benue, and three other states within the North Central. So, we are appealing to Nigerians to be watchful. When you see them, please contact NAPTIP,” he said.

Adekoye recalled that NAPTIP had earlier disclosed the rescue of more than 180 children from trafficking networks allegedly operating under the guise of civil society organisations offering educational support to vulnerable families.

Traffickers exploit social media

The agency also warned of an increasing technology-driven dimension to human trafficking, saying traffickers were using social media platforms to recruit young Nigerians with promises of lucrative jobs and better living conditions abroad.

Adekoye said NAPTIP recently rescued 16 young Nigerian men from Thailand after they were allegedly lured with attractive employment offers.

He explained that the recruitment process was often designed to appear legitimate, with traffickers offering to arrange travel documents, transportation and other logistics for prospective victims.

“From beginning, it looks so real to them that they have no reason at all to doubt. So, the agency has been inundated in recent times with calls from some of them who are stranded.

“Just in July, we rescued about 16 of them from Thailand. When you hear their story, your emotion will corrupt you of what they pass through. Some of them couldn’t survive. Those who survived have a narrow escape from death,” he said.