Crime
Hamas Health Ministry Puts Gaza War Death Toll At 3,785

At least 3,785 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel began bombarding the coastal enclave, the Hamas-controlled health ministry said Thursday.
Some 1,524 children and 1,000 women are among those killed in the relentless Israeli air strikes, the ministry said, adding another 12,493 people have been injured.
Meanwhile, Palestinians in war-torn Gaza on Thursday eagerly awaited aid trucks promised in a deal struck by US President Joe Biden with Egypt and Israel, as the army struck more Hamas targets.
The war — sparked by the bloody October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that officials said has claimed more than 1,400 lives — has set off fury across the Middle East against Israel and its Western allies.
“The pace of death, of suffering, of destruction… cannot be exaggerated,” UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said about the situation in the crowded territory of 2.4 million people.
There are fears of worse to come if Israel launches an anticipated ground invasion to destroy Hamas and rescue Israeli and foreign hostages, whose known number Israel on Thursday revised up to 203.
Biden, on a flying visit to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet on Wednesday, reiterated strong US support for its long-time ally but also stressed the need to address the plight of Palestinian civilians.
He said he had agreed a deal for an initial 20 trucks carrying relief goods to pass through the shuttered Rafah crossing from Egypt into Gaza, with the first deliveries expected Friday at the earliest.
“We want to get as many of the trucks out as possible,” Biden told reporters on Air Force One as he flew home, while warning that “if Hamas confiscates it or doesn’t let it get through… then it’s going to end”.
Amid the flaring crisis, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres headed to Egypt on Thursday, where President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi also hosted Jordan’s King Abdullah II.
The pair, whose countries were the first Arab states to normalise relations with Israel in 1979 and 1994, condemned the “collective punishment” of Gazans and warned about the conflict spreading.
“If the war does not stop”, it threatens “to plunge the entire region into catastrophe”, a statement from the Jordanian royal court read.
Sisi and Abdullah — seen as key mediators between Israel and the Palestinians — had been due to have four-way talks with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas and Biden.
But Amman cancelled the summit.
Desperate to escape
More than 100 trucks carrying aid goods have been queued for days on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing, the only entry or exit point to Gaza not controlled by Israel.
Cairo has so far kept it closed, pointing to repeated Israeli strikes near the checkpoint and voicing fears that Israel may be hoping to permanently drive Palestinians out and into Egypt’s Sinai desert.
On the Gaza side, scores of people were again waiting, desperate to flee, but careful to keep about 100 metres (300 feet) away in case of new Israeli bombardment.
“We’re ready with our bags,” said one man who only gave his name as Mohammed, 40, and who said he works for a European institution.
He said he had been waiting “for three days with my family, in a house 10 minutes away from the crossing” but had received no information so far.
Majed, 43, who said he works with a German organisation, told AFP: “I came on my own this morning and, in case the crossing opens, I’d get my wife and children — they’re ready.”
Israel united
Biden, who was due to address the nation on Thursday about the Gaza and Ukraine conflicts, announced the aid truck deal after what he called “blunt” talks in Israel and a phone call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Israel consented to the deal while pressing on with its military campaign.
Its army reported Thursday that it had destroyed hundreds more Hamas targets, including missile launch site and tunnels, and that “more than 10 terrorists were eliminated”.
Israel has stressed it must destroy Hamas after the worst attack on its soil which, the army said Thursday, had claimed 1,403 lives since the surprise onslaught on October 7 including at least 306 soldiers killed in battles to reclaim overrun villages and kibbutzim.
Biden, the first US president to visit Israel during war time, strongly backed Israel but warned it not to overreact, cautioning that Washington made mistakes as it sought to avenge 9/11.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday became the latest foreign leader to make a solidarity visit to Israel, meeting Netanyahu and President Isaac Hertzog.
He backed Israeli action but also stressed the need for getting aid into Gaza, before jetting to Saudi Arabia for talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Netanyahu called Israel’s fight-back a “just war”, adding: “I’ve never seen the people of Israel as united — more united — than they are now,” he said.
But intensifying cross-border fire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon is stoking fears of a potential second front.
As tensions mounted, the United States and UK on Thursday advised their citizens to leave Lebanon while flights were still available.
Hospital strike
The Arab world has been united in anger and condemnation of Israel since a deadly strike hit a Gaza hospital compound on Tuesday.
Both sides in the war have traded blame for the bloody carnage, but neither the provenance of the strike nor the death toll could be immediately or independently verified.
The strike left scores of bodies and charred cars at the Ahli Arab hospital compound in northern Gaza, AFP images showed.
Hamas accused Israel of hitting the hospital during its massive bombing campaign and Gaza’s health ministry put the death toll at 471.
Israel blamed a misfired Islamic Jihad rocket, a claim backed by Biden who said the US Defense Department had concluded that “it’s highly unlikely that it was the Israelis. It would have had a different footprint”.
The Israeli military has pointed to the absence of a large impact crater typical of its air strikes and said fuel from the errant rocket had exploded.
A senior European intelligence source told AFP that he believed a maximum of 50 people were killed.
Israeli army spokesman Jonathan Conricus has also disputed Hamas’s figure of 471 dead, asking “where are all the bodies?”
Hamas has dismissed Israel’s position, saying its “outrageous lies do not deceive anyone”.
It also slammed the United States, accusing it of being complicit in the ongoing strikes on Gaza.
AFP
Crime
Lynched Edo travellers: Governors move against reprisals as 16 slain hunters buried

Tears flowed on Saturday in Uromi, Edo State, as the remains of the hunters who were lynched by a mob were interred.
Members of the Hausa community converged on the community cemetery to pay their last respects to the victims, who were burnt to death on Friday after being accused of being kidnappers.
It was earlier reported that the men were travelling in a Dangote Cement truck when they were intercepted around 1.30pm by local security guards.
After the guards searched the truck and found dane guns, they raised the alarm, which triggered the mob attack.
‘19 hunters buried’
A video of the funeral rites posted on X by a security analyst, Zagazola Makama, showed the moment the victims were buried.
The 1 minute 29 seconds clip captured members of the Hausa community in a solemn mood as the wrapped corpses were placed beside large graves.
The man filming the burial, who spoke in Hausa, said, “Assalamualaikum, this time we will pray for the bodies of our brothers who were killed for us—those who were massacred. May God bless them with mercy, forgive them, and accept their martyrdom for the sake of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
“Here is the Muslim community; they have gathered now and will be offering funeral prayers for our brothers who were killed. Now, we will offer the prayer for them.
”An imam subsequently began praying on the bodies, marking the commencement of the rites.
The man behind the filming said the death toll had increased to 19.
“Remember yesterday (Friday): the bodies of three people were brought to us, and we were able to pray for them. But now, 16 more corpses have also been brought, and we will pray for them. May God Almighty forgive them.
“Look at their graves here. Because there are so many of them, it is not possible to dig individual graves for each one. Instead, they will be buried together in one place,” he stated.
The security analyst, Makama, said a mother clutched to the grave’s edge as she lamented the killing of her son.
“My son was not a kidnapper! He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time!” she sobbed.
He also said a father held to the photograph of his slain son.
The Ojuromi of Uromi, Anselm Aidenojie II, who visited the Hausa community alongside Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, during the burial, condemned the killings, noting that security agencies were taking measures to avert reprisals.
Aidenojie stressed that those responsible for the killings would be brought to justice.
“They (the victims) have been buried, and hopefully, this will never happen again in our community or anywhere else,” he added.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Moses Yamu, in a statement, had said 14 suspects were arrested in connection with the incident.
Northern governors move to stop reprisals
Meanwhile, it was gathered that northern governors had started making moves to strengthen peace and forstall reprisals in the region.
The Director-General (Press Affairs) to the NGF Chairman and Governor of Gombe State, Ismaila Misili, said, “Let me unequivocally state that there is no tension in the North over the unfortunate incident in Edo State.
“Recall that northern governors, through their Chairman and Governor of Gombe State, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, had already issued a statement calling for calm and restraint.
“Individual governors in the North have also proactively engaged with relevant stakeholders to ensure peace, especially ahead of the Eid el-Fitr celebrations.
“Religious leaders also continue to promote peaceful coexistence and discourage any actions that might disrupt the harmony we have worked diligently to establish.
”Also, the Nasarawa State Government, while condemning the killings, called on security agencies to prosecute the perpetrators.
The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Abdullahi Sule on Public Affairs, Peter Ahemba, said security agencies had been placed on red alert to safeguard all 13 LGAs in the state.
He urged residents to remain calm and law-abiding, warning that anyone found disturbing the peace would be arrested.
“Governor Abdullahi Sule has said that no matter what, we must maintain peace in Nasarawa State. We have no room for such dastardly acts as seen in Edo.
“Security agencies have been placed on red alert to ensure that nothing untoward happens anywhere in the state regarding any reprisal attacks,” he said.
But the Borno State Government said it was still assessing the situation.
Speaking with newsmen, the Commissioner for Information and Internal Security, Usman Tar, said the state had yet to receive any directive from the Northern Governors’ Forum.
Meanwhile, the Borno State Police Command said it had stepped up security patrols for the Sallah celebration.
The command’s spokesperson, ASP Nahum Daso, said strategic police deployments had been made to maintain order.
“What we currently have on the ground is Sallah preparation. We have deployed personnel in strategic positions. We are also conducting a show of force, which involves patrolling to ensure visibility.
This will help prevent any incidents that could lead to unrest, particularly those with religious undertones,” Daso said.
Politician places bounty on suspects
On social media, there was palpable anger among the Arewa on Saturday as some individuals also took to X, sharing images of some of the suspected attackers and placing N1m bounty on them.
A Social Democratic Party member based in Abuja, Ibrahim Sanusi, was among those spearheading the movement.
While posting on his verified X handle, he wrote, “N1million reward for anyone who can identify these criminals and provide information leading to their arrest. If you have any information, please come forward. #JusticeForUromi16.”
As of the time of filing this report, over 1,500 tweeps had retweeted the post, while it had gathered 3,600 likes and 124 quotes.
However, the Coalition of Northern Groups and the Arewa Youths Consultative Forum condemned the resort to self-help, warning that it could escalate tension across the country.
The CNG National Coordinator, Jamilu Charanchi, acknowledged that while the killing of innocent hunters was reprehensible, law enforcement agencies must be allowed to handle the matter.
“All we demand is for the police to expedite investigations so that the real perpetrators can be identified and brought to justice. This will help reduce tensions in the North,” he stated.
Charanchi further argued that no individual or group had the right to place a bounty on anyone, stressing that the law must take its course.
Similarly, the AYCF President, Yerima Shettima, cautioned against any form of retaliation, stressing that justice must be pursued within the framework of the law.
Northerners petition Tinubu, IGP, othersMeanwhile, Sanusi and over 100 others have launched a petition on Change.org, addressed to President Bola Tinubu and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun; the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and Edo State Governor, Okpebholo.
As of 7pm on Saturday, no fewer than 273 people had signed the petition, demanding justice for the victims.
Crime
UK to ban selling weapons to children
The ninja sword ban is the final part of the so-called Ronan’s law, a raft of anti-knife crime measures introduced in parliament last month as part of the government’s crime and policing bill.

∆ UK PM Keir Starmer
The UK Home Office said on Thursday that from August 1, anyone caught in possession of a ninja sword in private could face six months in prison.
The forthcoming ban is intended to curb what the British government has called a “national” knife crime “crisis”.
The Home Office said most ninja swords had a blade of between 14 and 24 inches (36 and 61 centimetres), with one straight cutting edge and a tanto style — or sharply-angled — tip.
The Home Office said that there is already a penalty of up to four years in prison for carrying any weapon in public.
The ninja sword ban is the final part of the so-called Ronan’s law, a raft of anti-knife crime measures introduced in parliament last month as part of the government’s crime and policing bill.
The measures include making retailers report bulk or suspicious sales to police and a rise in jail terms to two years for selling weapons to children.
The law is named after teenager Ronan Kanda, who was murdered with a ninja sword in 2022 by two other teenagers in a case of mistaken identity.
Crime
JUST IN: Kogi jailbreak: 3 fleeing inmates nabbed as Correctional Service confirms killing of officer

Three of the 12 inmates who escaped during a jail break at Koton Karfe correctional centre in Kogi State have been rearrested.
The Acting Controller General, Nigeria Correctional Service, Sly Nwakuche disclosed this during a press briefing on Monday at the Koton Karfe correctional centre.
He regretted that one of the officers of the correctional service was killed by the escaped prison inmates.
Nwakuche vowed that the remaining escapee will be apprehended.
He called on the general public to provide security agencies with all the needed information that will lead to the arrest of all the prison inmates who escaped from custody.
-
Crime2 days ago
Lynched Edo travellers: Governors move against reprisals as 16 slain hunters buried
-
News2 days ago
I nearly withdrew from 2023 presidential race -Tinubu
-
Sports2 days ago
Nigerian Boxer, Olanrewaju Dies in Boxing Ring
-
Business2 days ago
House Public Accounts Committee Recovers Additional $14 Million from Oil Companies
-
Sports1 day ago
UPDATE: How bankruptcy led Nigerian boxer to death in Ghana – NBBofC
-
Business2 days ago
Dangote, Adenuga, Rabiu, Otedola remain on forbes Africa’s billionaires List
-
News1 day ago
JUST IN: FG to shut Lagos’ Independence Bridge for two months
-
News1 day ago
Lagos communities decry water scarcity, demand govt intervention