Former undisputed heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua survives deadly auto accident while traveling in Nigeria

Joshua in wrecked vehicle

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By Eghosa Ogbeifun

Two-time World Heavyweight Champion and boxing icon, Anthony Joshua was involved in a ghastly auto accident in Nigeria that nearly took his life. 

Reports indicate that an SUV transporting Joshua collided with a stationary truck. However, the exact circumstances of the crash are still under investigation, with officials working to determine what led to the incident.

The 36-year-old former heavy weight champion being rescued from the wrecked vehicle, appearing to have suffered injuries.

Authorities in the South-Western state have yet to issue a statement on the matter and details of the injuries to the boxer and the identity of the persons who died are unclear as of now. 

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has confirmed the incident in an official statement signed by Assistant Corps Marshal and Corps Public Education Officer, Olusegun Ogungbemide.

According to the FRSC, the crash involved a Lexus SUV carrying Anthony Joshua and a stationary truck.

“The incident involved two vehicles: a black Lexus Jeep with registration number KRD 850 HN (private) and a stationary red commercial Sinotruck with unknown registration number. A total of five adult males were involved in the crash.

“Two persons sadly lost their lives, one sustained injuries, while two others escaped unhurt. Anthony Joshua was rescued alive and sustained minor injuries.

“The injured victim was evacuated for medical attention, while the remains of the deceased were conveyed to Livewell Morgue, Ajaka, Sagamu,” the statement said.

It noted that the Nigeria Police Motor Traffic Division (MTD) was duly notified for further investigation and necessary documentation.

According to the FRSC, preliminary findings indicate that the Lexus Jeep, which was suspected to be travelling beyond the legally prescribed speed limit on the corridor, lost control during an overtaking manoeuvre and crashed into a stationary truck well packed by the side of the road.

“The primary causes of the crash being excessive speed and wrongful overtaking constitute serious traffic violations and remain among the leading causes of fatal road crashes on Nigerian highways,” FRSC said.

The Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, extended heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased and wish the injured victim, Anthony Joshua a speedy recovery.

FRSC reiterated its warning to motorists to avoid dangerous overtaking, excessive speed, and disregard for traffic regulations, particularly on high-speed corridors such as the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway.

It urged motorists to exercise patience, maintain lane discipline, and prioritize safety over haste, especially during the festive travel period.

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Divide and Conquer - Second scramble for Africa as Israel recognizes Somaliland as sovereign nation

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By Foreign News Desk

Israel’s recognition of the breakaway region of Somaliland is a “threat” to security and stability in the Horn of Africa and encourages secessionist groups, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said Sunday.

Israel announced on Friday it was officially recognizing Somaliland, a first for the self-proclaimed republic that in 1991 declared it had unilaterally separated from Somalia.

Addressing an emergency parliamentary session, Mohamud said the move was “tantamount to a blunt aggression against the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and the unity of the people of the Somali Republic”.

He added that “the violations of (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) and his attempts to divide the Federal Republic of Somalia is (a) threat to the security and stability of the world and the region, and encourage the hardline groups and secessionist movements, which exist or can exist in many regions of the world”.

Somaliland, which has for decades pushed for international recognition, enjoys a strategic position on the Gulf of Aden and has its own money, passport and army.

But it has been diplomatically isolated since its unilateral declaration of independence, even if it has generally experienced greater stability than Somalia, where Al-Shabaab Islamic militants periodically mount attacks in the capital Mogadishu.

Somalia’s government and the African Union reacted angrily after Israel’s announcement.

Mogadishu denounced a “deliberate attack” on its sovereignty, while Egypt, Turkey, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, the Saudi-based Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the African Union all condemned the decision.

The European Union also insisted that Somalia’s sovereignty be respected, with foreign affairs spokesman Anouar El Anouni calling for “meaningful dialogue between Somaliland and the Federal Government of Somalia to resolve long standing differences”.

Regional analysts believe that a rapprochement with Somaliland would provide Israel with better access to the Red Sea, enabling it to hit Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Israel repeatedly hit targets in Yemen after the Gaza war broke out in October 2023, in response to Houthi attacks on Israel that the rebels said were in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The Iran-backed Houthis have halted their attacks since a fragile truce began in Gaza in October.

In addition, press reports a few months ago said Somaliland was among a handful of African territories willing to host Palestinians expelled by Israel.

Neither the Somaliland authorities nor the Israeli government has commented on those reports.

“Somalia will never accept the people of Palestine to be forcibly evicted from their rightful land to a faraway place, let it be Somalia or elsewhere,” Mohamud told parliament.

He also warned Netanyahu “against the transfer of its wars in the Middle East to Somalia. Somalia will not allow military bases that are used to attack other countries; it is ready to take part in the stabilisation of the region and the world in general.”

US, Nigeria differ in details over airstrikes on terrorists

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Foreign Affairs Staff

Following surprise US strikes targeting militants in Nigeria, it remains unclear who or what was actually hit as Washington and Abuja tell slightly different stories.

Complicating matters is the fact that the strikes were delayed by American President Donald Trump, apparently to prioritise the symbolism of launching the attack on Christmas — and allegations that Washington backed out of issuing a joint statement with the Nigerians.

The two countries agree that the strikes hit targets linked to Islamic State, but neither one has provided details on which of Nigeria’s myriad armed groups were targeted.

“Twenty-four hours after the bombing, neither Nigeria nor its so-called ‘international partners’ can provide clear, verifiable information about what was actually struck,” activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore said Saturday.

Nigeria is battling multiple jihadist organisations, including several linked to Islamic State. Neighbouring countries are also fighting IS-linked groups, and there are worries those conflicts are spilling into the country.

Mohammed Idris, the country’s information minister, said late Friday that the strikes “targeted ISIS elements attempting to penetrate Nigeria from the Sahel corridor.”

In an interview with Sky News, Daniel Bwala, adviser to President Bola Tinubu, named Islamic State, a murky armed group named Lakurawa, or “bandits” — non-ideological armed gangs that dominate northwestern Nigeria — as potential targets of the strikes.

But analysts and the opposition People’s Democratic Party slammed the government for allowing “foreign powers” to “break the news of security operations in our country before our government does”.

Taking to social media the night of the strike, Trump was the first to take credit for the overnight Thursday into Friday strikes in northwestern Sokoto state — sparking worries from Nigerians that their sovereignty had been violated.

Trump also told US outlet Politico that the strikes had been scheduled earlier than Thursday, “And I said, ‘nope, let’s give a Christmas present’.”

The following morning, Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar insisted it was a joint operation, with Tinubu ultimately giving the go-ahead and Nigeria supplying intelligence for the strikes.

He later told broadcaster Arise News that, while he was on the phone ahead of the strikes with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the two had agreed on issuing a joint statement, but Washington rushed out its own.

Late Friday, almost 24 hours after the strikes, it was Nigeria that finally provided clarity around what the targets were: “two major Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist enclaves” in Sokoto state’s Tangaza district, according to Idris.

Other villages were hit by what the information minister said were debris from the strikes.

Images from an AFP photographer in Offa, in neighbouring Kwara state, showed crumbled buildings, destroyed by the debris, with roofs caved in and belongings scattered among the wreckage.

Explosions in Sokoto state’s Jabo town, also apparently from the debris, shook the community and “surprised us because this area has never been” a stronghold for armed groups, local resident Haruna Kallah told AFP. No civilian casualties were reported.

The munitions used were unclear. The US military released a video showing a navy ship launching what appeared to be missiles.

Idris said “the strikes were launched from maritime platforms domiciled in the Gulf of Guinea”. He also said “a total of 16 GPS-guided precision munitions were deployed using MQ-9 Reaper” drones.

The choice to strike the northwest has also sowed confusion among analysts, as Nigeria’s jihadists are mainly concentrated in the northeast.

Some researchers have recently linked some members of the armed group known as Lakurawa — the main jihadist group located in Sokoto State — to Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP), but other analysts have disputed those links.

The strikes also come after a diplomatic spat between Washington and Abuja sparked by Trump saying the violence in the country amounted to “persecution” against Christians — a framing long used by the US religious right.

The Nigerian government and independent analysts reject the accusations.

The framing of Nigeria’s violence in religious terms, the lack of clarity around the targets and the fact that the strikes were delayed til Christmas all add to concerns from critics that the attack was bigger on symbolism than substance.

Both countries have said that more strikes are on the table.

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Afenifere chieftain, Opadokun identifies those sponsoring terrorism in Nigeria

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By Correspondent

Former Secretary-General of Afenifere, Ayo Opadokun, has said that those who do not want the current government to succeed are responsible for the lingering insecurity.

He said there was a deliberate plan by destructive elements to tear the country apart, insisting that terrorism, banditry and other forms of criminalities going on across the country, especially in the north, is not by accident.

The chieftain of NADECO stated this on Sunday in Offa, Kwara State shortly after his installation as Grand Patron of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, in the local government chapter.

He claimed that the terrorists have their sponsors from individuals of diverse interests determined to destabilise the country.

“Some Nigerians, including agents who want to destabilise Nigeria and those who do not want this government, took far-reaching decisions long ago,” he said.

“The current situation is not accidental. It is planned,” he stressed.

He said the Federal Government must erase every doubt in its fight against terrorism and intensify efforts to chase the insurgents out of Nigeria’s territory and prosecute their sponsors.

Trump recalls Richard Mills, US ambassador to Nigeria

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United States President Donald Trump has recalled Richard Mills, the US ambassador to Nigeria, as part of a sweeping diplomatic shake-up affecting more than two dozen American missions worldwide, with Africa emerging as the most impacted continent.

Nigeria is among 15 African countries whose envoys have been recalled.

Others affected on the continent include Algeria, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Gabon, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Madagascar, Mauritius, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia and Uganda.

In the Asia-Pacific region, the shake-up affected Fiji, Laos, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Vietnam, while Armenia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovakia were impacted in Europe. Guatemala and Suriname were affected in the western hemisphere.

State Department officials told The Guardian UK that the affected chiefs of mission were informed last week that their tenures would end in January.

Although the diplomats had initially survived an early purge during the first months of Trump’s second term — largely aimed at political appointees — the situation changed on Wednesday when notices of their imminent departures were issued from Washington, DC.

According to Politico, the recall forms part of a broader effort to align US diplomatic representation abroad with President Trump’s “America First” foreign policy priorities. 

A State Department official confirmed that the ambassadors were appointed during the administration of former President Joe Biden and would now conclude their postings as chiefs of mission in January.

Envoys typically serve between three and four years. While their roles as ambassadors will end, the officials said the diplomats are not losing their foreign service jobs and may return to Washington for other assignments if they choose.

Mills, who was confirmed as US ambassador to Nigeria in May, is being recalled at a time of strained US–Nigeria relations, particularly over visa issues and security concerns. 

However, his departure also comes amid ongoing efforts by both countries to strengthen bilateral ties.

Recently, Mills met with Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, to discuss areas of cooperation, following comments by US Congressman Riley Moore that Washington and Abuja were close to finalizing a “strategic security framework” aimed at tackling terrorism in Nigeria.

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Amazon blocks 1,800 North Koreans from applying for jobs with the company

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US tech giant Amazon said it has blocked over 1,800 North Koreans from joining the company, as Pyongyang sends large numbers of IT workers overseas to earn and launder funds.

In a post on LinkedIn, Amazon’s Chief Security Officer Stephen Schmidt said last week that North Korean workers had been “attempting to secure remote IT jobs with companies worldwide, particularly in the US”.

He said the firm had seen nearly a one-third rise in applications by North Koreans in the past year.

The North Koreans typically use “laptop farms” — a computer in the United States operated remotely from outside the country, he said.

He warned the problem wasn’t specific to Amazon and “is likely happening at scale across the industry”.

Tell-tale signs of North Korean workers, Schmidt said, included wrongly formatted phone numbers and dodgy academic credentials.

In July, a woman in Arizona was sentenced to more than eight years in prison for running a laptop farm helping North Korean IT workers secure remote jobs at more than 300 US companies.

The scheme generated more than $17 million in revenue for her and North Korea, officials said.

Last year, Seoul’s intelligence agency warned that North Korean operatives had used LinkedIn to pose as recruiters and approach South Koreans working at defence firms to obtain information on their technologies.

“North Korea is actively training cyber personnel and infiltrating key locations worldwide,” Hong Min, an analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP.

“Given Amazon’s business nature, the motive seems largely economic, with a high likelihood that the operation was planned to steal financial assets,” he added.

North Korea’s cyber-warfare programme dates back to at least the mid-1990s.

It has since grown into a 6,000-strong cyber unit known as Bureau 121, which operates from several countries, according to a 2020 US military report.

In November, Washington announced sanctions on eight individuals accused of being “state-sponsored hackers”, whose illicit operations were conducted “to fund the regime’s nuclear weapons programme” by stealing and laundering money.

The US Department of the Treasury has accused North Korea-affiliated cybercriminals of stealing over $3 billion over the past three years, primarily in cryptocurrency.

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AFCON - South African born CAF President Patrice Motsepe cowers to Infantino and his (Infantino’s) sectional cronies

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By CC™ Sports Desk

Breaking News

The South African born President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe has announced that the African Cup of Nations (AFCON), will now be played every four years after the 2028 edition. 

It was also revealed that there would be two consecutive editions in 2027 and 2028, with the next edition then to be held in 2032. It is obvious that Patrice Motsepe, who has been criticized by many in African football circles for allowing undue interference in African football from FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, is again succumbing to the demands of FIFA. 

The cancellation of the African Nations Championship, a tournament that was instrumental to the development of local African talent, as well the movement of the flagship AFCON tournament, seems to be geared towards placating Infantino, probably the most corrupt FIFA president in history, and the broader agenda of a section of the global football community (the Gulf and so-called Arab States), as it relates to the newly installed FIFA Club World Cup (for which the AFCON was moved this year) and the FIFA Arab Cup, just concluded, merely days before the start of the AFCON.

The creation of an African Nations League, to be implemented on an annual basis from 2028, could prove to be both a financial and logistical conundrum as well. Infantino’s uncomfortably close association with Motsepe continues to cloud any decisions made by the African football governing body under Motsepe’s leadership. 

The AFCON has been a staple of the African continent for generations and unlike his predecessors who resisted any attempts to compromise the integrity and standing of the biennial African football showpiece, Motsepe has consistently done just that, including moving this years AFCON from its June 2025 schedule to accommodate Infantino’s bloated World Club Cup tournament. 

More to follow. 

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Full List of countries stopped by US from applying for green card, citizenship

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By Deji Komolafe - Editor-at-Large

A US government official has disclosed that the Trump administration has directed the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to suspend green card and citizenship applications filed by Nigerians and nationals of other countries newly added to the expanded US “travel ban.”

The official, speaking in a report by CBS News on Thursday, said the move is tied to national security concerns and an ongoing review of immigration vetting processes.

The development follows a proclamation signed by President Donald Trump on Tuesday, which further restricts entry into the United States for nationals from countries deemed high-risk.

The proclamation cited “demonstrated, persistent, and severe deficiencies in screening, vetting, and information-sharing” that it says pose a threat to US national security and public safety.

Among the 15 additional countries newly subjected to partial restrictions under the expanded travel ban is Nigeria.

Trump had previously, on October 31, labelled Nigeria a “country of particular concern” following allegations of Christian genocide in the country.

Below is the full list of countries revealed to be affected by the suspension of green card and citizenship applications:

Burkina Faso

Mali

Niger

South Sudan

Syria

Laos

Sierra Leone

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Benin

Côte d’Ivoire

Dominica

Gabon

Gambia

Malawi

Mauritania

Nigeria

Senegal

Tanzania

Tonga

Zambia

Zimbabwe

Afghanistan

Burundi

Chad

Cuba

Republic of the Congo

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Haiti

Iran

Libya

Myanmar

Somalia

Sudan

Togo

Turkmenistan

Yemen

Venezuela