International News
White House Fires US Health Agency Head After Refusal To Quit
The Trump administration confirmed Wednesday it had fired the head of the top US public health agency after she refused to step down during a standoff with vaccine skeptic Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The escalating dispute over Kennedy’s sweeping overhaul of US vaccine policy also led to five other senior officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announcing their resignations, according to a union representing some of the agency’s workers.
Susan Monarez, a health scientist and longtime civil servant, had been the CDC’s head for less than a month when Kennedy’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on X that she “is no longer director.”
But Monarez’s lawyers said she would not step down because she had neither resigned nor received notification from the White House regarding her dismissal.
The White House later confirmed that Monarez had been fired.
“As her attorney’s statement makes abundantly clear, Susan Monarez is not aligned with the President’s agenda of Making America Healthy Again,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in an emailed statement to AFP.
“Since Susan Monarez refused to resign despite informing HHS leadership of her intent to do so, the White House has terminated Monarez from her position with the CDC,” he added.
However, her lawyers said she “was notified tonight by a White House staffer in the personnel office that she was fired.”
“As a presidential appointee, senate confirmed officer, only the president himself can fire her,” the lawyers said in a statement sent to AFP.
“For this reason, we reject the notification Dr. Monarez has received as legally deficient and she remains as CDC Director.
In an earlier statement, the lawyers accused Kennedy of “weaponizing public health for political gain and putting millions of American lives at risk.”
The Washington Post, which first reported Monarez’s dismissal, said Kennedy pressured her to resign after she refused to commit to supporting his vaccination policy changes.
‘Enough is enough’
In the aftermath, five high-ranking CDC officials emailed resignations, according to a union representing more than 2,000 CDC workers.
“Many felt forced to walk away from the jobs they loved because politics left them no choice,” the AFGE Local 2883 union said in a statement, adding: “Vaccines save lives.”
“Enough is enough,” said Demetre Daskalakis, who resigned as director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
“I am unable to serve in an environment that treats CDC as a tool to generate policies and materials that do not reflect scientific reality and are designed to hurt rather than to improve the public’s health,” he wrote on X.
The CDC’s chief medical officer Debra Houry and Daniel Jernigan, director of the agency’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, were also among those who resigned, according to US media citing notes sent to staff.
‘Public health under attack’
Since taking office, RFK Jr, as he is known, has overhauled US vaccine policy, dismissing renowned immunization experts, restricting access to Covid-19 shots and slashing funding for the development of new vaccines.
Such measures are predominantly against scientific consensus, and have been criticized by outside experts.
After earning US Senate confirmation for the top CDC job, Monarez was sworn in by Kennedy on July 31.
The departure of Monarez comes amid a crisis at the Atlanta-based CDC, which was the target of an armed attack in early August by a man who reportedly blamed the Covid vaccine for an unspecified illness.
Hundreds of health agency employees and former employees subsequently signed an open letter condemning Kennedy’s actions and accusing the health secretary of putting people at risk by spreading misinformation, particularly about vaccines.
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
-
Health & Wellness12 months agoPresident Tinubu Directs Cut in Dialysis Cost from ₦50,000 to ₦12,000
-
News1 year agoPICTURE: In Lagos Couple Sentenced to 22½ Years for Cannabis Trafficking
-
Trending News1 year agoNELFUND Disburses ₦86bn To 449,000 Beneficiaries
-
Business5 months agoDangote Refinery Reduces Petrol Gantry Price To ₦1,200 Per Litre
-
Business2 years agoHeritage Bank Customers’ Path to Securing ₦5m Insured Funds: A Step-By-Step Guide by NDIC”
-
International News5 months agoIndian Police Arrest Nigerian Over ₦290m Drug Haul
-
Business5 months agoAfter Plea Bargain, Court Discharges Stella Oduah of ₦2.5bn Fraud
-
Business2 years ago
Dangote; We Did Not Fix ₦600/Litre Petrol Price