FILES: Supreme Court of Nigeria. Credit: Sodiq Adelakun/Channels TV The Supreme Court has nullified the National Lottery Act 2005 enacted by the National Assembly. Advertisement In a unanimous judgment of a seven-member of the apex court, read by Justice Mohammed Idris, held that the National Assembly lacked the powers to legislate on issues relating to lottery and games of chance. The court held that such powers only reside with the state Houses of Assembly, which possess exclusive jurisdiction over lottery and games of chance. Justice Idris ordered that the National Lottery Act 2005 should no longer be enforced in all states, except the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), in respect of which the National Assembly is empowered to make laws. READ ALSO: Lottery Regulation: Supreme Court Fixes Date To Hear Lagos, Ekiti Suit Against FG, 34 Other States Advertisement The suit was filed in 2008 by the Attorney General of Lagos State against the Federal Government in respect of who controls and regulates the gaming and lottery sector. Ekiti State was joined as co-plaintiff in the suit following an order of the court made on October 6, 2020. Subsequently, attorneys general of 34 other states were joined as defendants by the Supreme Court on November 15, 2022. The plaintiffs had asked the apex court to declare that the lottery is not one of the 68 items for which the National Assembly has the exclusive vires to make laws under Part 1 of the Second Schedule of the 1999 Constitution as amended. Advertisement They also sought a declaration that the National Assembly lacks the vires to legally and constitutionally make any law to regulate and control the operation of lottery in Nigeria.

The International Criminal Court on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as Hamas’s military chief Mohammed Deif.

The ICC’s move now theoretically limits the movement of Netanyahu as any of the court’s 124 national members would be obliged to arrest him on their territory.

“The Chamber issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest,” the Hague-based ICC said in a statement.

A warrant had also been issued for Deif, it added.

Israel said in early August it had killed Deif in an air strike in southern Gaza in July, although Hamas denies he is dead.

The arrest warrants had been classified as “secret”, to protect witnesses and to safeguard the conduct of the investigations, the court said.

“However, the Chamber decided to release the information below since conduct similar to that addressed in the warrant of arrest appears to be ongoing,” the tribunal said.

“Moreover, the Chamber considers it to be in the interest of victims and their families that they are made aware of the warrants’ existence.”

ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan in May requested the court issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Netanyahu sacked Gallant as defence minister on November 5.

Khan also sought warrants against top Hamas leaders including Mohammed Deif on suspicion of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The prosecutor dropped the application for Ismail Haniyeh, the group’s political leader, on August 2 “because of the changed circumstances caused by Mr Haniyeh’s death” in Tehran on July 31, the ICC earlier said in a statement.

Since Hamas conducted its October 7, 2023 attack, the deadliest in Israeli history, Israel has been fighting a war in Gaza, which the militant group rules.

The war was triggered by the assault on Israel by Hamas militants, a stunning cross-border raid that resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

The Hamas government’s health ministry in the Gaza Strip said Thursday that at least 44,056 people had been killed in more than 13 months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants.

The toll includes 71 deaths in the previous 24 hours, according to the ministry, which said 104,268 people had been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began.

AFP