Two more child suicide bombers hit Nigeria

2015-01-11 18:57
Damaturu -  Two suspected child suicide bombers blew themselves up in a market in Yobe state on Sunday, witnesses said, killing three people in the second apparent attack in two days using young girls strapped with explosives.

The blasts struck around mid-afternoon at an open market selling mobile handsets in the town of Potiskum in Yobe state, which has frequently been attacked by the Sunni Muslim jihadist group Boko Haram.

A trader at the market, Sani Abdu Potiskum, said the bombers were about 10 years old. "I saw their dead bodies. They are two young girls of about 10 years of age... you only see the plaited hair and part of the upper torso," the trader said.

Another witness who accompanied the ambulances taking casualties to hospital said three people, excluding the bombers, were killed and at least 26 people were wounded.

The town was hit by a suicide bomber in November when at least 48 people, mainly students, were killed during a school assembly. On Saturday, a bomb exploded at a police station in Potiskum.

Sunday's explosions came a day after a bomb strapped to a girl aged around 10 years old exploded in a busy market place in Maiduguri, killing at least 16 people and injuring more than 20, security sources said.

- Reuters

Military confident of reclaiming towns from terrorists

2015-01-12 06:58
Abuja - The Defense Headquarters said troops had embarked on a mopping up operation around Damaturu after successfully foiling and containing terrorists who attempted to occupy parts of the town in Yobe.

This past weekend, terrorists suspected to members of Boko Haram group launched a massive attack on the capital city from different directions of the town.

“The terrorists had launched massive attack from different directions of the town on but troops were promptly mobilized to repel the attack that lasted the night resulting in heavy casualty on the terrorists before the rest of them retreated," the military sid in a statement.

Weapons captured from the terrorists were being compiled while their dead as well as civilian casualties are yet to be determined the statement read.

It added that pursuit of the fleeing terrorists is also ongoing and five soldiers who were seriously wounded in the attack are being treated in the military medical facility.

The statement said normalcy has been restored and the town is being reinforced with more troops.
The Defense Headquarters statement said the situation in Baga in Borno State is still being studied to determine the appropriate action that would restore law, order and normalcy to the community after the attack mounted by hundreds of heavily armed terrorists last weekend.

It was reported 14 soldiers were killed during the attack and over 30 wounded.
The Defense Headquarters also disclosed that several terrorists died in the course of the attack and efforts at repelling the assailants.

The military said it had not given up on Baga and other localities where terrorists activities were now prevalent.

"Appropriate plans, men and resources are presently being mobilized to address the situation."

- CAJ News

AU, SA urged to rein in on Boko Haram

2015-01-12 09:02
Johannesburg - South Africa’s official has condemned the cold-blooded slaughter of civilians, reportedly up to 2 000, in the Baga local municipality of Nigeria by the Boko Haram terrorists.

Democratic Alliance Shadow Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Sandy Kaylan, said the party’s hearts went out to the Nigerian people suffering under the enormous burden of this tragedy.
“As the world witnesses increasing extremist activity, millions of people risk having life and liberty threatened. The violence and brutal deaths we see in the world today diminish us all and can never be the justified in the name of religion,” said Kaylan of the attacks blamed on the militant group.

In April 2014 the same group was responsible for the capture and kidnapping of more than 200 schoolgirls in the Chibok region. Last month, Boko Haram kidnapped hundreds more in the Gumburi region.
Kaylan called on the South African government and the African Union to curb the threats of terror.

“The South African Government and the African Union need to demonstrate leadership in halting the rise of extremism on the continent, as seen in the escalation of Boko Haram’s attacks.”

- CAJ News

APC concerned at escalating Rivers State violence

2015-01-12 10:12 Lagos - The spate of violence the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has resorted to will not save the party from defeat during next month’s general elections, the All Progressives Congress (APC) said.

“We wish to strongly condemn this resort to violence by the drowning PDP, which, despite all our entreaties, has failed to see that politics is not war but a democratic way of allowing the people to voluntarily choose their leaders. It is unfortunate that rather than heed our previous advice to honourably withdraw from the governorship election to avoid being disgraced, PDP leaders prefer to unleash violence on APC faithful,” Rivers State APC Chairman, Dr Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, said.

“We, however, wish to assure them that we shall neither be intimidated nor stoop so low to embrace violence since we cannot take up arms against the very people whose mandate we are seeking through the forthcoming polls.”

Also Read: Rivers PDP crisis deepens as aspirants reject Wike as party’s Guber candidate

Last Tuesday, it was alleged Gunmen believed to be hired by PDP leaders had opened fire on the APC supporters from Asari Toru and Khana local governments, leaving eight of them in critical condition and battling for their dear lives at the intensive care unit of the Kesley Harrison Hospital, Port Harcourt.

The alleged attacks took place at Abalama in Asari Toru local government and Kira in Tai local government, respectively.

Rivers APC sympathised with the victims of the unprovoked violent attack, assuring them that the party would never abandon them but was committed to their quick recovery and discharge from the hospital to enable them rejoin their loved ones.

- CAJ News

4 Jews killed in Paris to be buried in Israel

2015-01-12 10:12 Jerusalem - Four French Jews killed in an Islamist attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris are to be buried in Israel on Tuesday, community sources and the Israeli premier said.

"The four families decided to bury their dead in Israel. The funerals will be held on Tuesday, a Jewish community source told AFP in Paris.

The bodies of the four victims -- Yoav Hattab, Philippe Braham, Yohan Cohen and Francois-Michel Saada -- will be taken from the forensic institute in Paris on Monday and flown to Israel, the source said.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's office confirmed he had agreed to the families' request they be buried in Israel and ordered government officials to help with the burial arrangements.

An Israeli official involved in a Sunday night planning session told AFP the funerals would take place at Jerusalem's Har Hamenuhot cemetery at 11:00 on Tuesday. Earlier, the Jewish community source had given a different location and time.

The four were shot dead on Friday after being taken hostage with a group of other shoppers at a kosher supermarket in eastern Paris by jihadist Amedy Coulibaly, who was later killed during a police raid.

Israeli national carrier El Al announced it would be flying the bodies from Paris.

El Al said the families of the deceased would also be on board the flight from Paris due to land in Israel at 02:05 on Tuesday.

- AFP

Dad throws 5-year-old daughter off bridge

2015-01-12 11:17
A Florida man with a troubled past was charged with murder after throwing his 5-year-old daughter off a bridge into Tampa Bay, just hours after police questioned his bizarre behaviour but found no grounds to detain him.

John Jonchuck, 25, had custody of his daughter despite a lengthy arrest history involving his turbulent relationship with the child's mother.

Police on Thursday gave no motive for the grim episode they said played out just after midnight, when Jonchuck sped past an officer at 100 miles per hour (160 km per hour) and headed toward the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay.

He stopped his car near the top of an approach to the bridge, appearing to wait for the officer, then removed daughter Phoebe Jonchuck from the vehicle, police said.

He threw her over the bridge railing and drove off at a normal speed as the officer began searching for the child in the waters some 60 feet (18 metres) below, St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway said.

Alive or not
While it was not immediately clear if the kindergarten student was alive when thrown, an off-duty officer who witnessed the incident thought he heard her scream, said Holloway.

"You just throw this baby away like it's nothing," the chief said at a news conference.
Phoebe Jonchuck's body was found in the water about an hour and a half later, police said. Her empty pink car seat was sitting in the back of her father's car when authorities stopped him in nearby Manatee County.
On Wednesday, a Tampa attorney representing Jonchuck in a custody case had called police to report concerns about his behaviour.

She said he had called her "God" and asked her to translate a Bible that was written in Swedish, according to a police report.

Multiple arrests
Deputies located Jonchuck at a Tampa church and found him "clean shaven", dressed in pajama bottoms and a long-sleeve black shirt, according to a Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office report.

Jonchuck told them at one point he was taking 37 medications for a health condition that was redacted from the report, but that he no longer was on prescription drugs.

"He doesn't want to hurt himself or anyone else," officers wrote.
Finding no grounds to detain Jonchuck, officers noted that his daughter "appeared happy" walking with her father and waved as they left.

Jonchuck was arrested multiple times in recent years on charges including domestic violence and battery, according to Hillsborough sheriff's deputies and the Tampa Police Department.
He had a troubled history with the girl's mother, Michelle Kerr, police reports show.

Multiple sclerosis
Kerr told local ABC Action News that she has multiple sclerosis and allowed the child to live with Jonchuck, whom she described as a good father.

"Never did I think he'd do this," she said, the television station reported.
Jonchuck, who lived with his parents and had custody of the child, may have mental issues, Holloway said.
Now facing charges of first-degree murder, aggravated fleeing and eluding, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a law enforcement officer, a judge on Thursday ordered Jonchuck to be held without bail.
Asked by the judge if he wanted to be appointed a lawyer, Jonchuck declined.

"I want to leave it in the hands of God," he said.

- Reuters

Has he suddenly gone off sex?

2015-01-12 11:15
What could be wrong? Does he no longer find me attractive? Is he having sex with someone else? Does he no longer love me? Is there something wrong with his health? Is he impotent? Is it my personality? Do I make him feel emasculated?

These are some of the questions that could go through your mind when it looks as if your partner has lost interest in sex.

Suffering in silence
Many women suffer with this problem in silence, whether they have been married for two years or twenty. It is often not the kind of thing they feel they can discuss easily with others, as they feel embarrassed and somehow responsible.

Talking about sex to your husband is often even more difficult than talking about money. Somehow, this one topic is studiously avoided by many married couples, which is fine if things are going well. If however, sexual relations come to a grinding halt, the lines of communication are often not open. Talking about it is about as difficult as undergoing root canal treatment without anaesthetic. And in many cases people would opt for the latter.

Why the sudden loss of interest?
What are the things that cause men to lose interest in sex suddenly?

The reasons could be many. Many men in middle age suffer from temporary impotence. The reasons could be physical, psychological or both.

If the reasons for the impotence are physical, the onset of the condition is gradual. Many habits or medical conditions could contribute to this according to D. Jehu in his book "Sexual dysfunction: a behavioural approach to causation":

• heart disease and disease of blood vessels
• diabetes
• multiple sclerosis
• alcoholism
• smoking
• abdominal surgery
• damage to the spinal cord or nerves
• low levels of certain hormones
• some prescription drugs

If the reasons for the impotence are psychological, the onset of the condition is sudden and could be caused by a wide variety of things:

• job stress
• relationship problems
• financial concerns
• depression or anxiety about poor sexual performance
• psychiatric conditions

While performance enhancers sort out problems on the short term, long-term solutions can only be found with the intervention of professionals: either a doctor or urologist in the case of physical problems or a psychologist or sexologist in the case of emotional causes.

All said and done, most women will know that merely talking about this problem is already difficult. Getting your husband to go for help would be doubly so. The following suggestions might help:

•  Don’t take on an accusatory tone – you need to get your husband on your side
• Choose your time carefully. The middle of a slinging match is not the time to discuss this matter
• Stress the fact that the problem affects both of you and that the only solution is a joint one
• Wait until the time is right – when you are both feeling happy and relaxed
• Don’t turn the whole discussion into a greater emotional issue than it already is
• Men put a high premium on their sexual performance. Don’t denigrate your husband’s masculinity in any way. It won’t get you anywhere
• Use I-messages, such as “It makes me feel unloved and unlovable when you won’t talk to me/have sex with me/share a bedroom with me.”

Also accept the fact that most people’s sex lives are unpredictable. Sometimes couples have sex often and sometimes they don’t, for no particular reason. If, however, a pattern of lesser or no sexual involvement becomes the norm, it is time for you to intervene.
(Susan Erasmus Health24, updated March 2010)
Post a question to our sexologist.

- Health24