German investigators have seized 35.5 tonnes of cocaine with a street value of around 2.6 billion euros ($2.8 billion) in the country’s biggest ever cocaine busts, police and prosecutors said Monday.
Around 24.5 tonnes were seized in Hamburg, a further eight tonnes in the Dutch port of Rotterdam, and three tonnes in Guayaquil in Ecuador, German authorities said.
The drugs were found in nine shipping containers stashed between crates of fruit and other legal goods between April and September last year, the authorities added.
German investigators were alerted to the illegal trade by a tip-off from Colombian authorities.
Working with Europol in an operation known as “OP Plexus”, they identified eight main suspects: two Germans, two Turks, and others from Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Morocco, and Ukraine.
Seven of the suspects were arrested during raids across Germany in late May and early June this year, the investigators said.
Together with other as yet unidentified accomplices thought to be based in Turkey, they are accused of setting up dozens of fake companies to smuggle the cocaine from South America.
Police seized several mobile phones and laptops as well as gold bars, 23,300 euros in cash and a Porsche car worth around 250,000 euros.
Tino Ingelmann, head of the customs investigation authorities in the western city of Duesseldorf, said the amount of cocaine seized in Germany was growing every year.
A total of around 43 tonnes was intercepted in 2023.
German Finance Minister Christian Lindner praised the work of the authorities.
“Every criminal must know that we will defend the security of our citizens and our businesses. We will defend it resolutely and vigorously,” he said.
AFP
German authorities deported at least 137 Nigerian citizens across five chartered flights between February and June 2026, according to migration monitoring reports.
Data from the DERS Team and Refugees4refugees.org shows the deportations occurred in phases, with 27 Nigerians returned in February, 37 in March through a joint European Union operation, 24 in April, 23 in May, and 26 in June.
The February operation departed from Stuttgart and landed at Lagos Cargo Airport, with Baden-Württemberg listed as a primary participant. The March operation represented the largest single return of Nigerians recorded over three years and was executed in collaboration with Spain, Austria, and Belgium.
The reports indicate a growing reliance on multi-national chartered flights by European states to repatriate undocumented or non-resident individuals to Nigeria.
The United States has condemned the killing of members of the family of Plateau-based cleric, Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo, describing the attack as horrific and urging Nigerian authorities to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
In a statement shared on X on Thursday, the US Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs expressed condolences to the victims’ families and called for stronger measures to prevent further attacks on vulnerable communities across Nigeria’s Middle Belt.
“The United States strongly condemns the horrific killing of members of Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo’s family in Plateau State, Nigeria. The continued violence targeting Christian communities and other vulnerable populations in Nigeria’s Middle Belt is deeply alarming,” the bureau said
The US said it had already engaged Nigerian officials on the worsening security situation, stressing that urgent action was needed to curb recurring attacks and hold perpetrators accountable.
“As I discussed last week with Nigerian officials, we must do more to prevent violent acts. The perpetrators must be held accountable, and urgent action is needed to strengthen security and protect Christians and other vulnerable communities,” the statement added.
The bureau reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to working with the Nigerian government to combat terrorism and violent extremism, stressing that Christians and other Nigerians should be able to practise their faith without fear of violence.
The statement followed the July 12 attack on Kum community in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, where nine members of Rev. Dachomo’s extended family, including a two-month-old baby, were killed.
According to the cleric, the attackers, believed to be armed Fulani militias, asked for him by name before opening fire on his relatives.
Dachomo, who serves as Regional Chairman of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area, said his family had repeatedly been targeted because of his outspoken criticism of the violence in Plateau State.
He recalled that his grandmother and an uncle were also killed in previous attacks, adding that days after burying his relatives, he received a written death threat from the same group, warning that he would be their next target.
Saudi Arabia has updated its tourist eVisa programme for 2026, limiting eligibility in Africa to only three countries as part of its list of 66 nations whose citizens can apply through the Kingdom’s online visa platform.
The move leaves most African countries, including Nigeria, outside the simplified entry scheme.
The electronic visa allows eligible travellers to visit Saudi Arabia for tourism, leisure activities, family visits and Umrah, excluding the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Applications are completed online, eliminating the need for embassy visits and lengthy visa processing.
Saudi authorities said the eVisa forms part of ongoing efforts to expand tourism, attract international visitors and simplify travel procedures through a fully digital application system. The visa is available only to citizens of approved countries and territories listed on the Kingdom’s official tourism portal.
Below is the list of African countries eligible for Saudi Arabia’s eVisa.
1. Mauritius
2. Seychelles
3. South Africa
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