Naijagossiper

Three USA green berets killed    in a clash on the Niger-Mali border, where Islamic State fighters have established a presence, officials said Thursday.A joint US-Niger patrol fell into an ambush on Wednesday in the Tillaberi region in the country's southwest, requiring French Mirage 2000 fighter jets to be air support.  Another person from an unnamed country was also killed, according to the Pentagon statement.Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou said there were many casualties in the battle, and US Africa Command said two more Special Forces troops were wounded. The fatal "ambush" also wounded eight Nigerien troops, a statement from Niger's defence ministry said. "Our country has just been attacked once more by terrorist groups, an assault which sadly has resulted in a large number of casualties," Issoufou said in the capital Niamey. A French military spokesman said French helicopters had evacuated wounded from the scene and added that the fig...

The Akwa Ibom State government has warned its citizens against handshakes and hugging to stay safe from monkeypox. A statement signed by the Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Mr. Charles Udoh, in Uyo  on Saturday  confirmed one case of monkeypox in the state. He added that two other cases were being investigated. “Akwa Ibom State has recorded one confirmed case of monkeypox while two other cases are still under investigation. “Monkeypox currently has no treatment and no vaccine. It looks like Smallpox but the rashes are larger while the disease is milder. “The era of avoiding excessive handshake, regular hand washing and abstinence from bushmeat is here again,” he said. The commissioner assured that the state government will provide more information to citizens subsequently. Some individuals in the state have called on the state government to engage in an aggressive awareness campaign to enlighten members of the public on how to stay safe fro...

The woman who claims Nelly  raped her says she had been partying with him before he forced her to have sex without a condom, but Nelly's lawyer says he will expose her for what she is ... a liar. We've learned the 21-year-old Seattle resident claims she met Nelly at a club in Washington, where she and her friends drank at his table and got "tipsy." She says she was invited to an after-party and drove off with Nelly's people. The woman says she was taken to Nelly's tour bus.   She says she was in Nelly's room with him when he tried to have sex with her and she said no. She claims Nelly told her to "shut up" and said he wanted to have sex with her without protection, which she says he did over her objections.   The woman says, afterward, Nelly offered her money, but she declined, and then a woman came up and said, "You gotta go." She kicked her off the bus and threw $100 at her. Nelly's lawyer,  Scott Rosenblum , tells TMZ, "It...

Saudi King Salman’s Palace in Jeddah has been hit by a gunman, who  shot dead two guards and wounded three others. The attack took place at the gate of the palace  on Saturday, the interior ministry said. Royal guards killed the gunman, identified by the ministry as a 28-year-old Saudi national armed with a Kalashnikov and three grenades. “An outpost of the royal guard came under fire by a person who got out of a Hyundai car,” the ministry said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency. “He was immediately dealt with and his cowardly act also resulted in the martyrdom” of two royal guards, it added. The US embassy in Saudi Arabia had earlier cautioned its citizens over reports of the attack. “Due to the possibility of ongoing police activity, American citizens are advised to exercise caution when travelling through the area,” the embassy said in a brief statement. The warning comes after the Saudi police raided hideouts of a “terror” cell...

As part of effort to ensure a credible governorship election in Anambra State on Nov. 18, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), will on Wednesday commence training for different categories of officers that will participate in the poll. The acting Director-General of The Electoral Institute (TEI), Dr Sa’ad Umar Idris, saidin a statement on Friday the training would commence on Oct.11 and end on Nov. 15, in Awka, the state capital. He said the training of Electoral Officers/ Assistant Electoral Officers (Operations) would hold from Oct 11 to Oct. 13 while that of Assistant Electoral Officers (AEOs) Admin and Cluster would take place from Oct. 16 to Oct. 20. Idris added that training of the officers would be done in collaboration with the International Foundation for Electoral systems (IFES). “The purpose is to enable Electoral Officers and Assistant Electoral Officers (Ops) plan effectively for elections. “It is also for Electoral Officers to identify activ...

  A rsenal midfielder, Alex Iwobi proved himself a super substitute for Nigeria on Saturday when he scored the decisive goal needed to take the African football giant to the Russian World Cup. Nigeria needed a victory, no matter the margin, against visitors  Chipolopolo of  Zambia and Iwobi made the 1-0 victory possible. Iwobi came in the 67th minute and seven minutes after, he utilised a cross by a team mate after a pass by Victor Moses to score for Nigeria’s Super Eagles, thus dashing Zambia’s hopes of upsetting the Eagles. The Arsenal player also scored in the first Group B game between the sides Nigeria now have 13 points in Group B, followed by Zambia with 7 points. Cameroon have six points. Nigeria’s final match in November against Algeria will now be a mere formality as Iwobi’s goal has booked a place for the Super Eagles next year in Russia. Nigeria have now become the first African side to book their place at 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. It would be...

A  former United States Ambassador to Nigeria , John Campbell , has described former President Goodluck Jonathan ’s wife , Patience, as being arrogant and flamboyant when she was Nigeria ’s first lady . In a piece he wrote on Friday , ‘Nigerian President Buhari ’s Sisyphean Efforts ’, and posted on Council on Foreign Relations ’ website , Campbell also wondered how Jonathan ’ s wife became wealthy having spent most of her life as a civil servant. The ex- US envoy stated , “Patience Jonathan as the first lady was flamboyant, arrogant , and widely disliked . She has yet to be convicted of a crime . However , it is curious how a person who spent most of her career in public service could accumulate an acknowledged $ 35 million in a poor country .” The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is currently investigating Jonathan ’s wife and has frozen four bank accounts belonging to her , while some property belonging to her have been seized . Among other actions taken by the EFCC...

The untimely death of a young man , Tagbo Umeike , early in the week has continued to generate ripples through the Internet and the physical world . Tagbo, who was popstar, Davido’s friend , is alleged to have died after drinking several shots of tequila during a night out with friends in Lagos . However , Tagbo’ s friend and actress , Caroline Hutchings, accused Davido and his team of dumping Tagbo’s body at a general hospital in Lagos Island and fled . In the wake of several conflicting reports on the incident , Sunday Scoop spoke exclusively with Tagbo ’s immediate elder sister , Equi Arakada , who is based in the United Kingdom . She was badly shaken and it was clear to see that the sad incident was causing her great grief. “I am a year older than he was , and October 3 was supposed to be his 35 th birthday . They ’re trying to portray him as a drunk or useless person, and that’ s not true. There ’s more to social media than what we see on the screen. He was not married and he d...

The super Eagles of Nigeria took out the Zambians today on a 1-0 defeat to secure a place in the coming 2018 World Cup    that is going to take place in Russia. In preparation for the coming big games, here is what the super eagles has to say ; 1. This is the hardest match we’ve played in the WCQ and it showed how we would react to a decent opposition. A lot of work needs to be done on this team as we’re going to the tournament next year. 2. Our defense is average. Ezenwa is raw and not very good. He goofed in our 4-0 defeat at the WAFU final 2 weeks ago. We need a better keeper. Echejile is old and worn out, he doesn’t have the legs any more. We need a veritable replacement. Leo and his CB partner looked ragged today against an average attack. I’m picturing how they would fare if they’re faced with Harry Kane or Alvaro Morata. 3. Moses is NOT a no 10. Conte knows better. Asking him to play towards the centre was counterproductive. He did better against Cameroon b...