Emir Of Kano Escapes Assassination, Driver And Guards Dead

Militants driving a smashed SUV and motorbikes threw an improvised explosive device (IED) at the convoy of the The Emir of Kano, Ado Bayero, and then shot at his official vehicle, killing his driver and three of his guards, according to a military source.

The attack took place near the Hockey Field on Zoo Road by Total Gasoline station while the Emir was returning from the launching of an Islamic school at Mussalaci Murtala.

The Emir was unhurt in the attack and has since been moved to an undisclosed location.

Mr. Bayero was reportedly saved by his driver and orderly who formed a protective wall around him and took the bullets fired at him. They are both reportedly dead.

“His driver, called Barde, and orderly were killed instantly, and his first son, the Ciroman Kano is badly injured from bullet wounds,” according to the source.

3,100 Corps Members Redeployed from Violence-Prone States

A total of 3,100 corps members have been redeployed from violence-prone Kano, Gombe and Plateau states as the 2012 Batch ‘B’ orientation camp closing ceremonies took place  across the country on Monday.

One thousand three hundred of the 2,560 corps members posted to Kano sought redeployment while no fewer than 1,000 of the 1,687 deployed in Gombe, and 802 of the 1,750 in Plateau were redeployed to other states.

Speaking in Kano, the state NYSC Coordinator Alhaji Salisu Yakasai, said the corps members insisted on redeployment, despite the heavy security presence in the camp during the three-week orientation programme.

The Coordinator of  the scheme in Plateau, Mr. Maram Mafulul, said in Jos the 802 that sought redeployment included married women, pregnant, nursing mothers and the sick.

Meanwhile, the State governor, Jonah Jang represented by the State Commissioner for Youth Development, Hon. Lohfa Bako assured the corps members that would stay back of government’s preparedness in conjunction with the military Special Task Force (STF) and other security agencies to ensure the safety of their lives and property throughout their service year is not taken for granted.

Press Release: President Jonathan on Kano's Bomb Blasts

 From Sahara Reporters,

President Goodluck Jonathan has expressed his condolences to all victims, including the management and staff of Channels Television, following the multiple bomb blasts and acts of violence which rocked the city of Kano on Friday, in which seven persons were confirmed dead and others wounded.

The President said: 

 “It is with a heart  full of sadness  and pain that I convey my condolences on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria to  the families, friends, associates and relatives of all those who lost their lives in the acts of violence in Kano on Friday. These are honest and patriotic Nigerians who were brutally and recklessly cut down by agents of terror.

Kano Blasts: At Least 162 Dead!

Bomb attacks targeting security forces and gun battles killed at least 162 people in Nigeria’s second-largest city of Kano, with some 80 corpses in a morgue as bodies littered the streets on Saturday.

A 24-hour curfew was also imposed on Kano, the largest city in Nigeria’s mainly Muslim north and which exploded into violence on Friday evening, with eight police and immigration offices or residences targeted.

The main newspaper in the north said that a purported spokesman for Islamist group Boko Haram had claimed responsibility for the violence, saying it was in response to authorities' refusal to release its members from custody. 

Scores of such attacks in Nigeria's north have been blamed on Boko Haram, though Friday's would be among the group's most audacious and well-coordinated assaults.

Photo News: Kano Multiple Bomb Blast

About twenty bombs reportedly exploded in Kano targeting the home of the IGP, Police Zonal headquarters and several homes.