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Finland charges Simon Ekpa with inciting terrorism

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Finnish prosecutors on Friday said they had charged a man with inciting terrorism online who a media report identified as Nigerian separatist leader Simon Ekpa.

Finland’s National Prosecution Authority said in a statement that it had charged “a Finnish individual in a case involving suspected public incitement to commit crimes with terrorist intent and participation in the activities of a terrorist group.”

It added that the alleged crimes had been committed in the city of Lahti between 2021 and 2024 and were related to the suspect’s efforts to establish Nigeria’s Biafra region as an independent state.

The prosecution authority did not name the accused but Finnish public broadcaster YLE identified him as separatist leader Simon Ekpa.

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Ekpa — who claims to lead the Biafra Republic’s government in exile — was detained in November.

According to the prosecution authority, the accused remained in custody and denied the charges.

Ekpa is known as a self-proclaimed leader of a faction of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), which is pushing for the independence of Nigeria’s southeast, where a bloody civil war was fought in the late 1960s.

The dual Finnish-Nigerian national has also been a local representative for Finland’s conservative National Coalition Party in the city of Lahti, north of Helsinki, where he has served on a public transport committee.

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When Ekpa was arrested, Finnish authorities also requested that four other people be remanded in custody on suspicion of financing Ekpa’s activities.

On Friday, the prosecution authority said the prosecutor had decided to drop charges against four others in the case due to a lack of evidence.

Ekpa has been the subject of several of AFP’s fact checks in recent years over false claims and disinformation he has made in independence campaigning.

AFP

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Army arrests suspected kidnapper linked to Kaduna abduction

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Troops of Operation ENDURING PEACE, OPEP, in collaboration with the Civilian Joint Task Force, CJTF, have arrested a suspected kidnapper linked to the abduction of a resident in Kauru Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

This was contained in a statement posted on X by the Nigerian Army.

The post identified the suspect as Buba Ali, 30, adding that he was arrested at about 12:45 pm on Sunday, August 9, at Binawa village in Kauru Local Government Area.

According to post, the suspect was arrested during a joint operation conducted by troops of Sector 7 OPEP and members of the CJTF.

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It said the suspect was reportedly linked to the kidnapping of Alhaji Tasi, who was abducted in the village.

“Following his arrest, Ali was taken into custody and is currently being interrogated by security personnel.

“The ongoing investigation is focused on obtaining information that could lead to the identification and arrest of other members of the suspected kidnapping gang,” the Army said.

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FFK fumes as Islamic scholar says those against Muslim-Muslim ticket should leave Nigeria

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Nigerian ambassador to South Africa, Femi Fani-Kayode, has rejected claims by an Islamic scholar, Sheikh Yahaya Jingir, that Nigeria is a Muslim country.

In a viral video, Sheikh Jingir, who was preaching to Muslims at an event, said “if you don’t want to accept a Muslim-Muslim ticket, you should leave Nigeria because it belongs to us”.

The comment has continued to generate backlash online as Christians rejected the claim.

Reacting, Fani-kayode in a statement posted on his official X handle on Sunday night, said the cleric’s remark is unhelpful and untrue.

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“Worse of all is the fact that it is highly provocative,” the former aviation minister said.

“Kindly take note that it is a very slippery and dangerous slope to take and is best avoided. Nigeria is NOT a Muslim country and neither is she a Christian country.

“She is a SECULAR and MULTI-RELIGIOUS state comprising BOTH Christians and Muslims in equal numbers and that is our strength,” FFK added.

He further stated that President Bola Tinubu’s Muslim/Muslim ticket for 2027 is gaining acceptance “only because of the calibre, ability, sincerity of purpose, character, utility and electoral strength of our Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates and their ability to deliver and not because they are Muslims”.

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“One day we may have a Christian/Christian ticket too because with God all things are possible,” he added.

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Osun Commissioner released on bail after Ilesa APC rally shooting

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The Osun State Police Command has confirmed the release of the state Commissioner for Environment and Sanitation, Moyowa Adejoorin, who was arrested in connection with a shooting incident at an All Progressives Congress, APC, rally in Ilesa.

The incident occurred on Saturday and reportedly left four people injured, including a teenager identified as Tobi Ilesanmi.

The command’s spokesperson, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, said Adejoorin was taken into custody after police officers arrived at the scene, secured the area and began collecting evidence.

According to Ojelabi, the commissioner’s vehicle was stopped at the location, where an Amotekun operative allegedly linked to the shooting was also found.

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“Immediately the incident was reported, our personnel moved to the scene and cordoned off the area before some exhibits were recovered, which included expended cartridges and Amotekun personnel caps.

“Also, Mr Adejoorin was arrested at the scene and taken to the command for questioning as part of the investigation process,” Ojelabi said.

The development came amid heightened attention to the incident after a video circulated on social media on Sunday showing Adejoorin leaving the police command.

Confirming the development, Ojelabi told Vanguard that the commissioner had been released on bail but said he was still awaiting clarification on the status of the Amotekun operative who was arrested alongside him.

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“It is true that the commissioner has been released on bail today, but I am yet to clear the situation with the Amotekun personnel arrested with him,” he said.

Police investigations into the circumstances surrounding the shooting are ongoing.

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