Hard Numbers: Nigerian troops killed by gangs, Americans set to leave Niger and Chad, Russia arrests journalists, Zelensky appeals for aid

April 28, 2024

Members of civilian joint task force patrol in Maiduguri May 22, 2014. Civilian joint task force are government-sponsored civilian self-defence and community-policing groups within Borno state that some locals said have brought security to Maiduguri, according to local government officials.

REUTERS/Joe Penney

23: At least 23 members of Nigeria's civilian joint task force were killed Saturday in attacks by militants and an armed kidnapping gang in the northern part of the country. Suspected Islamic State West Africa Province fighters targeted a vehicle with an improvised explosive device in Borno state, killing nine, and another 14 members were ambushed and killed in Sokoto state by gunmen.

1,000: The United States plans to withdraw most of its 1,000 troops from Niger and 100 from Chad amid deteriorating relations with both governments, which are questioning Washington’s counterterrorism role in the region. Earlier this month, Russian trainers arrived in Niger to work with its air force, another sign of the pivot away from the US.

2: Russia has arrested journalists who work with international news outlets. Sergei Karelin, a Russian-Israeli citizen, and Konstantin Gabov, were charged with "extremism" for allegedly aiding opposition leader Alexei Navalny's banned organization. If convicted, they face a minimum of two years in prison.

21: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskymade yet another appeal for more defensive aid, specifically Patriot missile systems, and urged faster delivery following Russian missile strikes on Saturday that targeted energy facilities affecting EU gas supplies. The attacks, which disrupted water supply in Zelenskiy’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih, saw Ukrainian air defenses successfully intercept 21 out of 34 missiles.

China’s “dangerous” helicopter maneuver escalates tensions with US and Philippines

A Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy Harbin Z-9 helicopter sits on CNS Yulin during a display of warships ahead of an exhibition at Changi Naval Base in Singapore on May 18, 2015.

REUTERS/Edgar Su

A Chinese naval helicopter flew nearly 10 feet from a Philippine patrol plane on Tuesday over a contested reef in the South China Sea, escalating tensions with Manila and Washington in the airspace over international waterways Beijing claims as its own.

Hard Numbers: Nigerian troops killed by gangs, Americans set to leave Niger and Chad, Russia arrests journalists, Zelensky appeals for aid

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Hard Numbers: Nigerian troops killed by gangs, Americans set to leave Niger and Chad, Russia arrests journalists, Zelensky appeals for aid

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“There is a sort of doubt about freedom of expression here or protection of free speech in Europe,” says Roberta Metsola, president of the European Parliament.

The war of words between US President Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky has hit a new low, with Trump labeling the Ukrainian president a “dictator” who “has done a terrible job.”

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Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

A Chinese naval helicopter flew nearly 10 feet from a Philippine patrol plane on Tuesday over a contested reef in the South China Sea, escalating tensions with Manila and Washington in the airspace over international waterways Beijing claims as its own.