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Troops of Sector 2, Operation FANSAN YAMMA, have foiled an attempted terror attack and recovered a large herd of rustled cattle in Asarara Kaura community, Kebbe Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

The operation followed credible intelligence indicating that armed terrorists had infiltrated the community, terrorised residents and rustled a significant number of livestock.

Acting swiftly on the intelligence, the troops mobilised to intercept the attackers as they attempted to escape with the stolen cattle. The terrorists were subsequently sighted along the Tambuwal–Gadaichi–Gummi Road axis, where they engaged the troops in a gun battle in an attempt to evade arrest.

The troops, however, overpowered the attackers with superior firepower and tactical manoeuvring, forcing them to flee into the surrounding bushes with varying degrees of gunshot wounds.

The fleeing terrorists abandoned the entire herd of rustled cattle, which was subsequently recovered by the troops.

The development has triggered jubilation among residents of Asarara Kaura and neighbouring communities, who commended the troops for their prompt response and intervention.

The recovery has also provided relief to affected residents, particularly livestock owners whose animals were forcibly taken during the terrorists’ incursion.

The recovered cattle are currently in secure military custody pending their formal handover to the Chairman of the Sokoto State Committee on the Recovery of Rustled Animals.

The committee is expected to verify ownership and coordinate the return of the livestock to the rightful owners in the affected communities.

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The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday fixed October 26, 2026, to rule on the no-case submission filed by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, in his ongoing trial over alleged unlawful interception of a telephone communication.

The ruling date was fixed after counsel for the prosecution and defence adopted their respective positions on the no-case submission.

At the resumed hearing, prosecuting counsel, Oluwole Aladedoye (SAN), told the court that the business of the day was for the defence to adopt El-Rufai’s no-case submission.

Counsel for El-Rufai, Akinyemi Aremu, informed the court that the defence team was led by Paul Erokoro (SAN), who was still on his way to court and had requested that the matter be stood down.

The trial judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, however, declined the request, saying, “I do not do stand downs.”

Aremu subsequently sought the court’s permission for his co-counsel, Ekere, to take over the proceedings.

Ekere then moved an application seeking an extension of time to deem the defendant’s no-case submission properly filed and served.

The judge granted the application and deemed the processes relating to the no-case submission properly filed and served.

Ekere thereafter adopted the no-case submission and urged the court to uphold it and discharge El-Rufai.

He argued that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case requiring the former governor to enter a defence.

Responding, Aladedoye urged the court to dismiss the no-case submission and order El-Rufai to open his defence.

He argued that the defence had failed to address Exhibit B, which he described as the defendant’s confession.

“If they had averred it, they won’t make the no-case submission, so I urge my lord to invite the defendant to open his case,” he said.

Justice Abdulmalik subsequently adjourned the matter until October 26 for ruling on the no-case submission.

The case stems from comments made by El-Rufai during an Arise Television interview on February 13, 2026.

The former governor, during the interview, alleged that someone had intercepted the telephone communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and passed the conversation to him.

He said the intercepted conversation indicated that Ribadu had directed security operatives to arrest him at the airport, on arrival from Cairo, Egypt.

Following the television interview, the DSS filed a three-count charge against El-Rufai at the Federal High Court in Abuja in February.

The prosecution alleged that he admitted that he and others unlawfully intercepted Ribadu’s telephone communications, knew someone involved in the interception and failed to report the person to security agencies.

It also alleged that technical equipment or systems had been used to unlawfully intercept the NSA’s communications.

The charges were brought under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024, and the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003.

El-Rufai was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and later by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and has remained in custody since then.

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Former Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, has said the Court of Appeal’s ruling that Ibrahim Magu’s prolonged tenure as acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was unlawful has vindicated the position taken by the eighth Senate under his leadership.

Saraki stated this in a post on his X handle on Tuesday while reacting to the appellate court’s decision on the legality of Magu’s continued stay as acting chairman of the anti-graft agency.

The former Senate President recalled that the eighth Senate rejected Magu’s nomination as substantive EFCC chairman twice in 2016 and 2017, but the former EFCC boss continued to serve in an acting capacity until July 2020.

Magu’s continued stay in office after the Senate’s rejection subsequently became the subject of a legal challenge, with the dispute centred on whether he could remain acting chairman for an extended period without confirmation by the Senate.

Saraki said the Senate’s action was not politically motivated, as some had alleged at the time, but an exercise of its constitutional responsibility.

“Back in 2016 and 2017, the 8th Senate, under my leadership, rejected Ibrahim Magu’s nomination as substantive EFCC chairman not once but twice.

“Still, he remained in office illegally until July 2020, without confirmation by the Senate,” Saraki stated.

He said the Senate’s decision attracted criticism at the time, with some people attributing it to political considerations.

“At the time, some called our decision political. It wasn’t. We were simply exercising our constitutional duty and standing by what was right.

“My colleagues in the 8th Senate and I, as well as our families and associates, endured what I can only describe as attempts by Magu to terrorise us,” he said.

According to Saraki, maintaining the Senate’s position came at considerable personal and public cost.

Saraki said Monday’s judgment by the Court of Appeal had now reinforced the position taken by the eighth Senate nearly a decade ago.

“Yesterday, the Court of Appeal ruled that Magu’s prolonged tenure as acting EFCC chairman was indeed unlawful. Nearly a decade later, I feel vindicated yet again,” he stated.

Reflecting on the development, Saraki said the experience underscored the importance of remaining committed to one’s convictions while serving in public office, even when such positions attract criticism.

“For those of us who have had the privilege of serving this nation, the deepest lesson in all of this is that time may test one’s conviction, but it always ultimately reveals the value of standing on principle,” he said.

Recall that the Court of Appeal in Abuja ruled that Magu’s prolonged stay as acting EFCC chairman was unlawful, overturning a Federal High Court judgment that upheld his continued retention in office.

A three-member panel of the appellate court delivered the judgment on Monday in an appeal filed by Johnmary Jideobi, a lawyer, who had challenged Magu’s continued stay in office after the Senate twice rejected his nomination as substantive EFCC chairman.

The appeal arose from a judgment delivered by Ijeoma Ojukwu, a judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on December 4, 2019.

Magu served as acting chairman of the EFCC from 2015 until July 2020, when he was suspended from office.

Jideobi had instituted the suit before the FHC in March 2017, arguing that Magu could not remain indefinitely as acting chairman after the Senate had rejected his nomination.

In the 2019 judgment, the judge dismissed the suit challenging Magu’s continued stay as acting chairman.

She held that the EFCC Act, especially section 2(3), did not restrict the powers of the President to retain Magu as acting chairman of the commission.

However, dissatisfied with the decision, Jideobi appealed the lower court’s verdict, where he argued that the chairman of the EFCC has a four-year tenure, renewable once, and that Magu had exceeded the stipulated period without Senate confirmation.

He further argued that Magu’s acting appointment had ended by operation of law after the Senate rejected his nomination.

Jideobi asked the appellate court to set aside the Federal High Court judgment and grant the reliefs sought in his original suit.

The respondents in the appeal were the Senate, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the EFCC and Magu.