Another batch of over 100 Nigerians stranded in South Africa following the renewed xenophobic attacks has departed the country aboard a special flight arranged by the Federal Government.The departure is in continuation of the evacuation exercise conducted by the Federal Government.

The latest batch of returnees, comprising adult men and women, children and minors, departed South Africa yesterday around 3:45 pm (South African time) and arrived Nigeria later in the night (Wednesday) around 9pm, where government officials received them.

The returnees who departed from the O. R. Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

Before departure, the passports and phones of the returnees were collected from them, but a consular officer from the Nigerian High Commission in South Africa, who addressed the returnees, promised that their telephones would be returned to them immediately the aircraft was airborne.

According to him, the phones were collected from them to prevent disruption of the special flight.

The evacuation was facilitated through a special South African Airways (SAA) Airbus A330-300 chartered flight by the Federal Government to bring the willing Nigerians home safely.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Hon. Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, will on Thursday, June 25, swear in Hon. Justice Joseph Olubunmi Kayode Oyewole as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled to take place at Courtroom Two of the Supreme Court complex, Abuja, by 2:00pm.

Justice Oyewole, who was elevated from the Court of Appeal, served as a Justice of the appellate court and was the Presiding Justice of the Enugu Division before his appointment to the apex court.

The Supreme Court, in a statement signed by its Director of Information and Public Relations, Dr. Festus Akande, said the appointment reflects the judiciary’s commitment to strengthening the bench with experienced and dedicated jurists.

• IGP Tunji Disu

The Nigeria Police Force has dismissed as false and misleading claims circulating on social media that a viral video from Katsina State showed a police officer interacting with armed bandits.

The Force clarified that the individuals seen in the footage are recognised members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) and registered hunters working alongside security agencies in ongoing operations across Musawa and Matazu Local Government Areas of the state.

In a statement signed by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Anietie Iniedu, the Police explained that the video captured a routine interaction between a police officer and community security volunteers on their way to a designated operational area.

The Force stressed that any attempt to portray the individuals as bandits is entirely false and intended to mislead the public.

According to the statement, the volunteers featured in the video are actively supporting security operations aimed at combating criminality and improving public safety in the affected communities.

The Nigeria Police Force also condemned what it described as the deliberate distortion of facts and the spread of misinformation capable of creating public anxiety, undermining confidence in security institutions, and hampering ongoing security operations.