COVID-19: 14 days lockdown is too much – Nigerian

Seventy-five children who were kidnapped from their school in Nigeria's northwestern state of Zamfara were freed after their abductors came under pressure from a military crackdown, a state official said on Sunday (September 12). Gunmen took the students from the village of Kaya on Sept. 1, the latest in a spate of mass kidnappings from schools across the region. More than 1,100 children have been abducted since December last year. Authorities say heavily armed gangs of bandits, seeking ransom payments, are behind the abductions.

Officials in Nigeria have said the students were freed with the help of several of their captors who had been pressured by a military crackdown to work with authorities.

This nine-year-old Nigerian boy has been declared cancer-free after readers of two UK newspapers raised £216,000 for his treatment. Nathaniel Nabena had gone to the UK from his hometown in Bayelsa, Nigeria, in September 2020 to get a prosthetic eye after his left eye was removed due to cancer.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is in self-isolation after cases of the coronavirus emerged in his inner circle. He will skip a regional summit in Tajikistan that he was scheduled to attend later in the week.

Music, spoken word and theatre are among the many artistic mediums that allow people from different backgrounds to connect. But spaces centering on the experiences of under-represented minorities can often be hard to come by, inspiring a variety of artists and activists hoping to change that. Among them is Irish-Nigerian artist Osaro Azams. She's the founder of the Fried Plantains Collective, which celebrates the voices of the LGBT and African communities in Dublin in a "cozy" and fun way. She joined us for Perspective.

Nigerian security forces have arrested three men accused of taking part in a mass abduction on Bethel Baptist High School in July. Gunmen kidnapped 121 students who were asleep in their dorm rooms. The attack took place just outside the city of Kaduna in the north-west of the country. One hundred teens have since managed to escape or were freed, but twenty-one are still unaccounted for.

The fundamentalist group, which now rules Afghanistan, put the bodies on display to deter others. The move comes after a Taliban founder said executions and amputations will return.

Gunmen have killed dozens of people in two separate attacks in Nigeria. Villagers in Kaduna and security forces in Sokoto state have fallen victim to suspected islamists and criminal gangs. Also on the show: In an industry dominated by men, we bring you a report on the women workers changing the landscape of the Central African Republic. Finally, we take a look at one of Libya's cultural jewels: Leptis Magna. An archeological site shunned by tourists due to the country's insecurity.

On Friday, October 1, Nigeria will be 61 years as an independent nation. But what do Nigerians think about their country?⁣⁣ GuardianTV went to the street to sample opinions about the country at 61.

Nigeria’s economy has not been all rosy for a few years and people’s purchasing power has taken a massive hit as unemployment rates are spiking. The COVID-19 pandemic worsened the situation, plunging the economy into the second recession in less than five years. GuardianTV spoke with these women whose main income comes from driving commercial minibus 'Korope' and tricycle 'Maruwa' through the chaotic road of Lagos, Nigeria to make ends meet.

Here are a few reasons to pick up a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday⁣. Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday.⁣⁣⁣

Heavily armed gangs have been stepping up raids on schools and villages in northwestern Nigeria, often taking hostages for ransom.