The Federal Government has raised alarm over the growing use of new technologies by terrorist groups in Africa, calling for stronger intelligence sharing and better funding to tackle the security threat.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, raised the concern in a statement issued by the ministry on Friday, following her remarks at the opening of the Consultative Forum on Strengthening the Functional Performance of the African Union Peace and Security Architecture in Abuja.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu said armed groups were increasingly using new technologies in their operations and funding their activities through transnational organised crime and illicit financial flows.

She decried the growing wave of terrorism on the African continent, noting that armed groups were adopting new technologies to carry out their operations and using proceeds of transnational organised crime to finance their activities.

She called on African countries to take greater responsibility for addressing the continent’s security challenges amid growing terrorism, regional security threats and weaknesses in existing security frameworks.

Against the backdrop of growing regional security threats and pressures on multilateralism, the minister called for “a stronger, better funded and self-reliant African peace and security architecture” capable of addressing the continent’s evolving security challenges.

The minister urged African states to strengthen intelligence sharing, improve early warning systems and support African-led mediation efforts to prevent conflicts and respond to emerging threats.

She urged African states to strengthen the Continental Early Warning System, African mediatory initiatives and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM).

She also called for greater attention to local grievances, youth unemployment and community resilience, noting the need to address issues that could contribute to insecurity.

The minister underscored the importance of building enduring national peace infrastructures and enhancing intelligence sharing among African states to improve the continent’s response to security threats.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu stressed the importance of rehabilitation and reintegration programmes for people affected by terrorism and encouraged African countries to use the African Union Counter-Terrorism Centre to coordinate counter-terrorism efforts across the continent.

She stressed the need for increased support for rehabilitation and reintegration programmes and encouraged African countries to leverage the African Union Counter-Terrorism Centre (AUTC) for the coordination of continental counter-terrorism efforts.

She further called for predictable funding for African Union-led peace operations, stressing the need to strengthen the AU Peace Fund and complement it with international funding commitments, including support from the United Nations.

Jorge Jesus has responded to the statement Cristiano Ronaldo released on Wednesday.

The Portugal head coach was reacting to Ronaldo’s account of what happened between the pair during the Denmark camp, where a dispute flared up and ended with the Al-Nassr star walking away from the squad.

In that statement, Ronaldo accused Jesus of breaking his promises over the agreed plan for his involvement in the UEFA Nations League matches.

Report quoted Jesus as saying
“I have read the statement,”

“And now, as I do every day, I will head to the federation to work, and to think about the team and the Portuguese national team. I have nothing more to say than that,” he was said to have told the journalists waiting for him outside his home.

Ronaldo’s lengthy statement apologised to the Portuguese people and admitted he deserved to be punished by the Portuguese Football Federation. He also revealed what led up to the dispute, pointing specifically to a short document “that was handed to the coach at his request”. It set out 8 points Jesus was supposed to raise in the press conference before the Denmark match. According to Ronaldo, “nothing that was discussed was carried out in front of the media”.

Jesus had insisted earlier that he hadn’t read the statement, saying he was watching a Portugal under-21 match when it dropped. He did, though, confirm he knew it had been published.

Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has failed to persuade the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and other anti-graft agencies in the country from freezing his bank accounts.

In a ruling by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, the court dismissed a suit filed by the former governor, who has been in detention, seeking an order restraining federal government agencies from moving against his assets.

The court held that the suit not only lacked merit but was speculative, as no reasonable cause of action was disclosed against the agencies the applicant listed as defendants.

Therefore, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) were struck out from the case.

In the suit he filed on February 24, El-Rufai prayed the court for an interim injunction directing the respondents to maintain the status quo ante regarding his assets.

According to him, the order was necessary to prevent him from being placed in a state of helplessness. He insisted that the severance pay he received upon completing his tenure as governor of Kaduna State between 2015 and 2023 could not reasonably be suspected to be proceeds of any unlawful activity.

He urged the court to declare that properties purchased from his severance pay were lawfully acquired.

The banks the applicant prayed the court to protect from the respondents included Zenith Bank Plc, Naira Account Number: 1007158671; Zenith Bank Plc, Domiciliary Account Number: 507 1511327; Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) Plc, Account Number: 0023824978; Access Bank, Dollar Account Number: 1396386493; and Access Bank, Naira Account Number: 1396382103.

El-Rufai also sought a declaration that any attempt by the respondents to apply for, obtain or execute any interim or final forfeiture or freezing order, without first establishing a reasonable suspicion supported by credible evidence as required by relevant law, would amount to a breach of his rights.

He relied on Section 17(1) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006, and the Supreme Court decision in Melrose General Services Ltd v. EFCC (2024) SC/1519/2019, to pray the court to declare that, as a citizen of Nigeria, he is entitled to the presumption of innocence and the protection of his fundamental rights.

He argued that any action by the respondents seeking to circumvent his constitutionally guaranteed rights through ex parte applications that conceal material facts would amount to a breach of Section 36(5) of the Constitution and a violation of the principles of fair hearing.