Dozens kidnapped in northwest Nigeria after bandits invite them to talks

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By Reuters and Posted by TOE Armed bandits in northwest Nigeria abducted dozens of villagers whom they invited to a meeting ‌about potential peace negotiations, authorities and residents said on ‌Monday, highlighting the region’s worsening security. Police said 39 people were seized on Sunday ​when they went to a meeting in the forest near Magamin Diddi village in the Maradun municipality of northwest Zamfara State. Some local residents and officials said the number could be as ‌high as 50. According to ⁠a Zamfara State Police Command statement, the victims were meeting relatives of a bandit leader in ⁠an attempt to broker peace and ease restrictions on movement imposed on the community. Zamfara is at the centre of a long-running security ​crisis in ​which armed groups, locally referred ​to as bandits, carry ‌out mass kidnappings, killings and village raids. The violence has disrupted farming and displaced thousands. Security forces have deployed personnel and...
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Two high-speed trains collide in Spain, killing at least 21

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Two high-speed trains collided and then derailed Sunday evening in southern Spain, killing at least 21 people and injuring dozens more, according to officials.

The private Iryo train traveling from Malaga to Madrid with about 300 people on board derailed at about 7:45 p.m. local time in Cordoba province’s Adamuz town, jumping onto adjacent tracks and causing a second train, operated by Renfe and traveling from Madrid to Huelva, to derail as well, Spain’s nationally owned Renfe Operadora said in a statement.

Oscar Puente, the minister of Transport, said the final cars of the Iryo train were those that derailed and collided with the Renfe train traveling in the opposite direction, causing its two front cars to jump the tracks. Antonio Sanz, the Andalusian regional minister for Health, the Presidency and Emergencies, later added that part of the trains fell down a 13-foot embankment.

Some passengers were trapped in the cars.

“The impact was devastating,” Puente said in a statement.

At least 21 people were killed, according to a statement from the Andalucia emergency agency. It said at least 73 people were hospitalized, 23 of whom were in serious condition, including four minors.

“It is a catastrophe. We are heartbroken,” he said on X.

“Rescue efforts continue, and we wish for the swift recovery of the injured.”

Sanz initiated an emergency phase operation Sunday night, according to a provincial government statement. Four Critical Emergency Care Units, six mobile ICUs, two critical patient transport ICUs, two logistcal support vehicles, three conventional ambulances and additional resources were deployed to the scene, he said.

“At this moment, all focus is on on-site medical care,” he said.

All high-speed services between Madrid and Cordba, Sevilla, Malaga, Granada and Huelva have been suspended through Monday, with services between Madrid, Cadiz, Algeciras and Granada also affected, Spain’s state-owned railway infrastructure manager Adif said in a statement.

“Tonight is a night of deep pain for our country due to the tragic railway accident in Adamuz,” President Pedro Sanchez of Spain said in a statement.

“I want to express my most sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims. No words can alleviate such immense suffering, but I want them to know that the entire country stands with them in this extremely difficult moment.”

SOURCE: UPI AND AGENCIES



from The Times Of Earth https://ift.tt/LkaR5CE

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