General news

• Oyo Assembly cancels 3rd anniversary celebrations over security concerns

  18-06-2026 14:08 via vanguardngr.com
  The Oyo State House of Assembly has cancelled the elaborate activities lined up to mark its third anniversary, citing prevailing security concerns particularly in the Oke-Ogun and Ogbomoso axis as reasons.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that instead, the legislature reflected on its performance over the last three legislative years as a critical arm of government.NAN reports that the 10th Assembly was inaugurated on June 14, 2023.The speaker of the House, Mr Adebo Ogundoyin, at plenary
  
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• Security tightened at Niger airport after attack

  19-06-2026 17:31 via vanguardngr.com
  Flights resumed amid tight security Friday at the international airport in Niger’s capital, Niamey, a day after a deadly attack on the sensitive site claimed by jihadists linked to Al-Qaeda.Gunmen opened fire near the airport entrance’s security checkpoint early Thursday, triggering a long battle with security forces that spilled into the surrounding area and left at least 11 soldiers and two civilians dead, as well as 22 attackers, according to the defence ministry.The Group for th
  
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• My anti-corruption fight upset cabals in oil sector — Alison-Madueke

  19-06-2026 17:26 via vanguardngr.com
  By Adegboyega AdeleyeFormer Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has suggested that her efforts to tackle corruption in Nigeria’s oil industry and the powerful interests affected by those reforms contributed to the legal and political battles that followed her tenure in office.Speaking in an interview with the BBC days after a London court acquitted her of all bribery charges, Alison-Madueke said the UK’s National Crime Agency, NCA, failed to properly understand
  
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• University of Ibadan confirms abduction of female student

  19-06-2026 17:15 via vanguardngr.com
  The Students’ Union Government (SUG) of the University of Ibadan (UI) has confirmed the abduction of a 300-level female law student while returning from a religious conference in Imo.The SUG President, Mr Temidayo Adeboye, disclosed in a statement issued in Ibadan on Friday that the victim, simply identified as Tomisin, was abducted alongside seven others.According to the president, Tomisin was travelling with the National General Director of the Scripture Union Student Fellowship, Mr Uwe
  
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• Meet three Norway stars whose fathers played at USA 1994 World Cup

  19-06-2026 17:04 via vanguardngr.com
  Norway’s 2026 World Cup squad has produced a unique football story, with three players following in the footsteps of their fathers, who also represented the Scandinavian nation on football’s biggest stage.Forwards Erling Haaland and Alexander Sørloth, with midfielder Kristian Thorstvedt, are all sons of former Norway internationals who featured at the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, making them the first known trio of second-generation players to appear together for
  
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• Trump mocks Meloni over photo op; ‘Neither I nor Italy beg,’ PM fires back

  19-06-2026 17:01 via vanguardngr.com
  Italy reacted angrily on Friday after reported comments by US President Donald Trump mocking Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with the foreign minister cancelling a planned US visit.Meloni said she was “frankly stunned” by Trump’s comments to Italian channel La7.According to a written transcript of the phone interview provided to AFP by the network, he said Meloni “begged me for a picture” at the G7 summit this week and he agreed only because he “felt sorry for
  
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• Insecurity: Oshiomhole advocates review of NSCDC Act

  19-06-2026 16:42 via vanguardngr.com
  By Omeiza AjayiChairman, Senate Committee on Interior, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, has advocated a review of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps NSCDC Establishment Act, arguing that the word “civil” in the agency’s name no longer reflects the realities of the threats its operatives confront.He made the call at the National Defence College NDC on Friday in Abuja while delivering remarks at the launch of a book titled “Nigeria’s Security Dilemma: Rivalries an
  
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• Terrorism: Bandit kingpin’s mum, sister bag 40-year jail terms

  19-06-2026 16:36 via vanguardngr.com
  By Ikechukwu NnochiriThe Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday convicted and sentenced the mother and sister of late bandit kingpin Kachallah Ibrahim Battujo to forty years in prison each.The convicts, Safiya Salihu and Halima Abdullahi, were found to have passed information through telephone conversations to Battujo in aid of his terrorist acts, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 26 of the Terrorism (Prevention) (Prohibition) Act, 2022.The court, in
  
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• Ebola spreading ‘fast’ in DR Congo, warns WHO

  19-06-2026 16:27 via vanguardngr.com
  The fatal Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is spreading rapidly, the World Health Organization warned Friday, despite accelerating efforts to tackle the virus.The WHO said it was still racing to catch up with the worsening situation gripping the northeastern DRC.“The outbreak remains serious” and is “evolving so fast”, said Marie-Roseline Belizaire, the WHO Africa emergencies chief.“However, I have seen a response that is growing stronger every da
  
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• PETROAN urges refiners, importers to reflect downward price adjustment as crude falls

  19-06-2026 16:06 via vanguardngr.com
  The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) has urged refiners, depot owners and fuel importers to reflect the recent drop in global crude oil prices in ex-depot and pump prices of petroleum products.The National President of PETROAN, Mr Billy Gillis-Harry, made the call in a statement on Friday in Abuja.Gillis-Harry said the recent drop in global crude oil prices offered an opportunity for stakeholders in the downstream sector to pass the savings on lower crud
  
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• Israel, Hezbollah agree ceasefire – US official

  19-06-2026 16:06 via vanguardngr.com
  Israel and Hezbollah agreed a ceasefire on Friday, a US official said, after deadly exchanges between the two sides in Lebanon put a deal to end the Middle East war under strain less than two days after it was signed.Talks that were scheduled for Friday between the US and Iran in Switzerland to take the deal to the next stage were postponed amid the fighting, with no new date announced.Tehran’s top negotiator warned it would not bend on its red lines and that its finger was still “o
  
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• NSCDC arrests 2 for allegedly buying diesel stolen from telecom facilities

  19-06-2026 16:00 via vanguardngr.com
  The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Edo Command, has arrested two suspects for alleged purchased of diesel siphoned from telecommunication towers in the state.Mr Saidi Akintayo, state Commandant of the corps disclosed this on Friday during a press briefing in Benin.Akintayo said that the arrest was part of efforts to dismantle networks fueling economic sabotage in the state.He said that the suspects aged 21, and 29 respectively, were apprehended on Thursday during an intellige
  
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• I’d be unemployed without music — Ayra Starr

  19-06-2026 15:51 via vanguardngr.com
  By Adegboyega AdeleyeAfrobeats star Ayra Starr has revealed that she would likely be unemployed if she had not found success in the entertainment industry, crediting her music career with changing the direction of her life.Speaking in a recent chat with EE72, the singer reflected on her rise to fame, her journey with Mavin Records, and the realities of life in the spotlight.“If I were not doing music, I would literally be unemployed. I do not even think I would be a content creator. That
  
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• Nigeria must unite against insecurity – Abdulsalami Abubakar

  19-06-2026 15:41 via vanguardngr.com
  Former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd.), has said every Nigerian has a stake in the fight against insecurity, saying that defeating terrorism and other criminal activities requires citizens to join hands with security agencies and government at all levels.In a statement released on the occasion of his 84th birthday, where he reflected on the state of the nation and expressed concern over the worsening security situation across the country, he noted that the recent death of Ma
  
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• ‘I’ve never stopped anybody from seeing his children’ – Yul Edochie reacts to claims

  19-06-2026 15:33 via vanguardngr.com
  Actor and filmmaker Yul Edochie has reacted to social media calls urging him to intervene in a dispute involving his wife, Judy Austin’s ex-husband, Emmanuel Obasi, and issues concerning their children.Edochie, in a post shared on his social media page, clarified that he has never prevented anyone from seeing their children, stressing that he has no involvement in the matter.According to him, any arrangement regarding access to the children should be handled directly between Obasi and Jud
  
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• Ex-Senegal striker Demba Ba named sporting director at French club

  19-06-2026 15:31 via vanguardngr.com
  Former Senegal striker Demba Ba was named on Friday as the new sporting director of French Ligue 1 club Le Havre.The 41-year-old, whose playing career included stints in the Premier League with West Ham, Newcastle and Chelsea, arrives from Ligue 2 side Dunkerque where he served for the past three years as deputy president.Under his watch, Dunkerque finished fourth in 2025, reaching the Ligue 2 playoffs, while also making it to the semi-finals of the French Cup, where they lost to Paris Saint-Ge
  
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• Russia’s deputy foreign minister receives Nigeria’s new ambassador

  19-06-2026 15:14 via vanguardngr.com
  Russia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Borisenko Evgenievich, on Thursday received in audience Nigeria’s newly appointed Ambassador to Russia, Joseph Iji, in Moscow.Ms. Daria Senyushina, Communications Officer at the Russian Embassy in Nigeria, disclosed this in a statement issued on Friday in Abuja.Senyushina said Evgenievich received Iji, who presented copies of his credentials.According to her, during the meeting both parties discussed topical issues related to the developm
  
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• Anxiety at UI as SUG confirms abduction of 300-level law student

  19-06-2026 15:10 via vanguardngr.com
  By Adeola BadruThe Students’ Union Government (SUG) of the University of Ibadan (UI), has confirmed the abduction of a 300-level female law student, identified simply as Tomisin, and has called for calm as efforts intensified to secure her safe return.In an official statement issued by the union’s President, Comrade Temidayo Adeboye, Tomisin was reported to have travelled on a religious retreat alongside the National General Director of the Scripture Union Student Fellowship, Engr.
  
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• Retired military officers warn against ethnicising insecurity

  19-06-2026 15:03 via vanguardngr.com
  By Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo Retired military officers and associates of the late Major General Rabe Abubakar have cautioned Nigerians against blaming the North for the country’s worsening insecurity, insisting that terrorism, banditry and kidnapping have evolved into a nationwide threat affecting all regions.The group made the call on Thursday during a press briefing in Kaduna held in honour of the late general, who died in bandits’ captivity after being abducted alongside his wife
  
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• World Cup: ‘A viewing centre, not a stadium’ – Actor Chinedu Ikedieze reacts to $30 fee

  19-06-2026 15:00 via vanguardngr.com
  Nollywood actor Chinedu Ikedieze has sparked reactions online after questioning the high cost of watching a football match at a fan festival in the United States of America.According to the actor, the experience reminded him of business opportunities in Lagos.In the video, which surfaced online recently, Ikedieze was seen attending a football fan festival where supporters could watch a live match on giant screens outside the stadium.“We have come to watch match oh. Not even in the stadium
  
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• Ekiti Poll: Police warn against unofficial results, situation room flags flashpoints

  19-06-2026 14:49 via vanguardngr.com
  By Dayo Johnson & Rotimi Ojomoyela — Ado EkitiWith less than 24 hours to the Ekiti State gubernatorial election, the State Police Command has warned individuals and groups against announcing unofficial results, declaring that anyone caught spreading fake or unauthorized outcomes will face the full weight of the law.The police said only the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is constitutionally empowered to announce election results, stressing that security agencies will
  
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• Ebola spreading ‘fast’ in DR Congo, WHO warns

  19-06-2026 14:49 via vanguardngr.com
  The fatal Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is spreading rapidly, the World Health Organization warned Friday, despite accelerating efforts to tackle the virus.The WHO said it was still racing to catch up with the worsening situation gripping northeastern DRC.“The outbreak remains serious” and is “evolving so fast”, said Marie-Roseline Belizaire, the WHO Africa emergencies chief.“However, I have seen a response that is growing stronger every day,&r
  
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• 24 ships discharge petroleum products, others in Lagos ports

  19-06-2026 14:42 via vanguardngr.com
  A total of 24 ships are discharging petroleum products and other commodities at Apapa, Lekki and Tin-Can Island ports in Lagos, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said on Friday.NPA explained that the ships were discharging bulk wheat, bulk salt, general cargoes, fresh fish, containers, bulk sugar, petrol, bulk gas, diesel, bulk urea and containers.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 46 other ships laden with petroleum products, food items and other goods are also expected to arrive t
  
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• Your son’s NDC ticket may affect APC’s 2027 fortunes – Stakeholders caution Ekpo

  19-06-2026 14:36 via vanguardngr.com
  no Minister’s son is contesting, says AideBy Uko Etim UYO—Political stakeholders in Abak/Etim Ekpo/Ika federal constituency of Akwa Ibom state have expressed concerns over the political aspiration of Marshall Ekpo, son of the minister of Petroleum Resources(Gas), Mr. Ekperikpe Ekpo.The Minister’s son recently won the ticket of the Nigerian Democratic Congress(NDC) to contest the Abak/Etim Ekpo/Ika federal constituency seat in the party’s primary election.Some member
  
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• TV host quits after she falsely reported Messi’s father died during World Cup

  19-06-2026 14:09 via vanguardngr.com
  By Mary AgbabiakaArgentine television host Florencia Peña has resigned from her role at Luzu TV after falsely reporting that Lionel Messi’s father, Jorge Messi, had died, sparking widespread outrage and criticism over the dissemination of unverified information about the football star’s family.The incident occurred on Thursday during a live broadcast of Luzu TV’s El Show del Verano, just two days after Messi inspired Argentina to a 3-0 victory over Algeria in their open
  
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• How economic policy shifts are influencing Forex activity in Nigeria

  19-06-2026 14:07 via vanguardngr.com
  Nigeria’s economy has undergone major change over the past few years, with policy reforms reshaping everything from business confidence to consumer spending habits.Among the areas most affected has been the foreign exchange market, where traders are paying closer attention to currency movements than ever before.As policymakers attempt to address long-standing economic challenges, including infrastructure constraints such as unreliable power supply, changes in monetary and fiscal policy ar
  
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• Insecurity: FG considers plan to let journalists join troops during military operations

  19-06-2026 14:05 via vanguardngr.com
  The Federal Government is considering a new initiative that would allow journalists to accompany military personnel during selected operations as part of efforts to improve security reporting and strengthen public understanding of the country’s security challenges.The Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa, disclosed the proposal on Thursday at the National Security Summit organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Abuja.Represented by his Special Adviser, Rear Admiral Olu
  
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• OPHK Troops inflict heavy casualties on Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists in Borno

  19-06-2026 14:03 via vanguardngr.com
  By Ndahi Marama, Maiduguri The troops of Joint Task Force (North East) Operation HADIN KAI has on Friday 19th June, 2026 inflicted heavy casualties on Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists in a failed infiltration attempt targeting one of its locations at Dutsen Kura and Chara road in Buratai, Biu Local Government Area of Borno State. Recalled that the Dutsen Kura and Chara road in Buratai town, is a troops’ strategic location considering the nature of the road linking Biu-Buni Yadi- Dama
  
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• Shettima visits NIPSS for on-the-spot Assessment after gunmen attack

  19-06-2026 13:55 via vanguardngr.com
  By Golok NanmwaJOS — Vice President Kashim Shettima on Friday visited the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) for an on-the-spot assessment of the institution’s operations, facilities and ongoing strategic programmes following the recent attack by gunmen.The Vice President, accompanied by Caleb Mutfwang and other senior government officials, was received by the Director-General of NIPSS, Professor Ayo Omotayo, alongside members of the institute’s manage
  
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• Lagos police arrest 26 foreigners over false kidnap claim

  19-06-2026 13:45 via vanguardngr.com
  The Police Command in Lagos State has apprehended 26 foreign nationals following investigations into a reported kidnapping case that was later found to be false.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that those apprehended comprised 19 Chadians and seven Cameroonians.A 22-year-old Cameroonian woman had reported to the police that she was kidnapped after travelling to Nigeria to meet a 39-year-old Chadian man she had been dating online.However, investigations revealed that the report was fals
  
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