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Sad! Somalia Cafe Att3ck K!lls Nine During Euro Final

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Images posted online showed a huge fireball and plumes of smoke billowing into the night sky as the explosion ripped through the cafe.

The death toll from a car bombing at a cafe in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu that was packed with football fans watching the the Euro 2024 final has risen to nine, security sources said Monday.

Witnesses described scenes of panic and chaos after the powerful blast late Sunday, with people scrambling for safety and the main entrance to the cafe destroyed by the blaze.

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Mohamed Yusuf, an official from the national security agency, said nine civilians were killed and 20 others wounded in the explosion, raising the official toll of five given by police late Sunday.

The popular Top Coffee restaurant, which is located near the presidential palace in the centre of the city, was thronged with young men watching the final that Spain won 2-1 against England.

“There were many people inside the restaurant, most of them youth who were watching the football match… but thanks to God, most of them made their way out safely after using ladders to climb up and jump over the backside perimeter wall,” Yusuf said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing, but the state-run Somali National News Agency said Sunday it was carried out by Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab jihadists.

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Images posted online showed a huge fireball and plumes of smoke billowing into the night sky as the explosion ripped through the cafe.

‘Bleeding and Screaming’
“I was inside the restaurant watching the football match when I heard a huge explosion, there was smoke, dust and fire at the front side of the restaurant and we panicked,” Said Muktar told AFP.

“I and several other people rushed towards the main entrance, but it was completely inaccessible,” he said, adding that he saw people “bleeding and screaming”.

“The whole situation was chaos.”

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Images of the aftermath of the bombing on Monday showed piles of rubble where the restaurant once stood and several burnt-out vehicles, as local residents inspected the scene.

Police officer Mohamed Salad told AFP he rushed to the site a few minutes after the blast.

“Five people died outside the building and on the main road including drivers of vehicles that were passing by the area,” he said.

“Four people died inside the restaurant, some of them removed from under the debris.”

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Al-Shabaab has been waging a bloody insurgency against Somalia’s fragile federal government for more than 17 years and has carried out numerous bombings in Mogadishu and elsewhere in the country.

There had been a relative lull in attacks in recent months as the government presses on with an offensive against the Islamist militants.

But on Saturday, five inmates said to be Al-Shabaab fighters were killed in a shootout with guards in an attempted jail break from the main prison in Mogadishu.

Three guards were also killed and 18 others wounded, prison officials said, after the inmates managed to get hold of weapons.

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Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has vowed “all-out” war against the jihadists and government troops have joined forces with local clan militias in a military campaign supported by an African Union force and US air strikes.

But the offensive has suffered setbacks, with Al-Shabaab earlier this year claiming it had taken multiple locations in central Somalia.

Although driven out of Mogadishu by AU forces in 2011, Al-Shabaab still has a strong presence in rural Somalia.

Somalia last month called for the African Union to slow the planned withdrawal of its forces from the troubled country.

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UN resolutions called for troop numbers in the AU peacekeeping mission, known as ATMIS, to be reduced to zero by December 31 with security handed over to the Somali army and police.

The third and penultimate phase was to see the departure of 4,000 soldiers out of a total 13,500 ATMIS troops by the end of June.

But Somalia’s government said it wanted to see only 2,000 troops leave in June and the remaining 2,000 in September.

AFP

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Just in: Plateau Govt Approves N70k Minimum Wage for Civil Servants

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By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

In line with discussions reached after consultation with relevant stakeholders, the Plateau State Government has approved immediate implementation of the N70, 000 minimum wage for the workforce in Plateau State.

The cheering news is contained in a Press Statement signed by the Head of Civil Service in the State, Stephen Pam Gadong.

Full text of the statement reads in part:

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Following the Agreement of the Committee on Consequential Adjustment on Salaries on 13th, November, 2024, the Executive Governor of Plateau State, His Excellency Barr. Caleb Mutfwang, has approved the immediate implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage for workers in the state.

The Implementation is a demonstration of the Governor’s commitment to prioritizing the wellbeing of the workforce in acknowledgement of their invaluableble role in driving the State’s developmental goals.

As the new wage policy is administered, Civil Servants are encouraged to embrace this gesture by recommitting to their duties with renewed dedication and zeal in order to foster a culture of productivity and excellence in service in the State.

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Before final liquidation, NDIC set to auction Heritage bank properties

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In a bid to ensure timely declaration of liquidation dividends to uninsured depositors of the failed Heritage Bank (In-Liquidation), the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has commenced the process of auctioning the landed properties and chattels of the defunct bank.

According to the Corporation, this exercise is in line with its statutory powers as the Liquidator of failed banks under section 62 (1)(d) of the NDIC Act, 2023, noting that; “This is another follow-up action sequel to the disposal of physical assets and chattels belonging to the defunct bank at its leased locations nationwide”.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Director, Communication and Public Affairs Department, Bashir A.

Therefore, the auction of the landed assets shall be by competitive bidding in sealed bids scheduled to take place at the six (6) selected locations of the Corporation across the country, for the affected 36 branches of the failed bank beginning from Wednesday 4th December 2024.
“Buyers who wish to participate in the auction are expected to follow laid down guidelines purposely aimed at ensuring transparency, fair competition, equity, and accountability to enable recovery of commensurate values from the exercise. This is critical for the payment of liquidation dividends to eligible claimants.

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The Corporation shall give preference to financial institutions who are willing to buy at the highest auctioned value to allow for the continuation of provision of banking services to the Nigerian public at the designated locations”, adding; “This is desirable towards bolstering financial inclusion as envisaged by the financial system regulatory authorities.

“However, Corporate bodies and Private individuals willing to compete are equally eligible to compete in the process without prejudice, the auction shall be open and competitive to all bidders.

Furthermore, bidders will be allowed to inspect the properties and chattels across all locations one week before the date of disposal.”

Importantly too, the statement said; “All interested parties are to make available 10% bid security of the value of their sealed bids to be dropped in the bid box provided at the specific centre out of the six locations of the Corporation as contained in the published advertisements.

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“All interested bidders are advised to submit their bids only at the designated NDIC offices covering their choices amongst Abuja, Lagos, Bauchi, Kano, Enugu, and Port Harcourt.”

Meanwhile, the Corporation has vowed that there would be no hiding place for debtors of the defunct Heritage Bank whose financial obligation portfolio is in the region of over N700 billion.

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Naira slumps in parallel market

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The Naira experienced a slight depreciation yesterday, slipping to N1,740 per dollar in the parallel market compared to its previous rate of N1,735 per dollar on Tuesday.

According to data from FMDQ, the indicative exchange rate for the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) strengthened, rising to N1,645.4 per dollar from Tuesday’s rate of N1,689.88 per dollar. This marks an appreciation of N44.48 for the Naira.

The market also saw a significant increase in dollar trading activity, with turnover climbing by 122.5 percent to reach $236.84 million, up from $106.44 million the previous day.

As a result, the gap between the parallel market and the NAFEM exchange rate widened, now standing at N94.6 per dollar, up from N45.12 per dollar recorded on Tuesday.

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