From Dan Amasingha, Minna

The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) in Niger State has placed all custodial centres across the state on red alert following intelligence reports of possible attacks by suspected armed groups.

The Controller of Corrections in the state, Ogunleye Seyi Oladipupo, ordered the heightened security measures in response to warnings reportedly circulated among security agencies last week.

 The alerts indicated that bandits were planning coordinated assaults on selected correctional facilities nationwide, including some in Niger State.

As part of proactive steps to avert any security breach, custodial facilities in Minna, Kontagora, New Bussa, Bida, Kagara, Lapai and Agaie have been reinforced with joint security personnel.

Sources said unidentified gunmen had threatened attacks on custodial centres in several vulnerable states, warning that jailbreaks would occur within weeks.

Reacting swiftly, the state Controller directed heads of all correctional facilities to strengthen internal security and remain vigilant against any unforeseen incident.

Ogunleye Seyi Oladipupo, who assumed office on April 15, 2026, as the 28th Controller of Corrections in the state, also embarked on an inspection and familiarisation tour of facilities across Niger State.

 During visits to the two custodial centres in Minna, he charged officers to remain alert and professional in safeguarding the facilities.

Confirming the development, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Rabi’u Shu’aibu Mohammed, said the service was fully aware of the threats and had activated precautionary measures.

“We are aware of the threat to our custodial facilities in the state.

 The Controller has placed all heads of facilities on red alert,” he said.

He added that security had been intensified across all centres, with support from sister security agencies.

“We are not taking any chances. Necessary steps have been taken to ensure the safety of our facilities and maintain peace in the state,” he stated.

Nigeria’s D’Tigress will face France, Hungary, and Korea in Group B at the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup.

The draw set up the D’Tigress for early battles with some of the world’s strongest sides.

France, who are ranked number two in the world are clear favourites to top the group.

D’Tigress are ranked eighth globally, but are still chasing consistency at elite level.

South Korea (15th) and Hungary (19th) add depth and unpredictability.

Rena Wakama’s team booked their place in the tournament by claiming the FIBA Women’s AfroBasket title for a record fifth straight time last year.

Hosts Germany will take on Japan, Spain, and Mali in Group A.

Group C comprises Belgium, Australia, Puerto Rico, and Turkey.

Defending champions United States of America are in Group D with China, Czech Republic, and Italy.

The 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup will be held in Berlin, Germany from September 4 to 13, 2026.

Pope Leo on Wednesday spoke out against wealth inequality in Africa urging believers to work to bridge the gap between rich and poor as he traversed oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.

The pope, ‌who has attracted the ire of U.S. President Donald Trump after becoming more outspoken against war and despotism, was also due to visit a high-security prison that human rights groups say holds political prisoners in abusive conditions.

Leo, the first U.S. pope, started the day by flying about 325 km (202 miles) from Malabo, located on Bioko Island in the Gulf of Guinea, to Mongomo, on the eastern border with Gabon on the edge of the Congo Basin rainforest.

At a Mass in the largest religious structure in Central Africa, the pontiff urged Equatorial Guineans “to serve the common good rather than private ⁠interests, bridging the gap between the privileged and the disadvantaged.”

The pope, who debuted a forceful new speaking style during the Africa tour, also decried poor treatment of “prisoners who are often forced to live in troubling hygienic and sanitary conditions”.

The Vatican said roughly 100,000 people had gathered inside and outside the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception to see Leo on Wednesday, pressing in around a colonnade modelled after St. Peter’s Square in Rome.

They danced and screamed as his white popemobile arrived. Organizers released gold, white, green and red smoke in the air, nodding to the colours of the Vatican and Equatorial Guinean flags.

Mairano Nve, 70, said he was excited to see Leo. “It is a huge joy to have the pope visiting us. He just wants to see us and give us a blessing in the name of Jesus.”

Leo’s trip to Mongomo was the first of three flights to three ‌cities on ⁠a day of whirlwind travel that will also take him to Bata, on the western coast.

Equatorial Guinea, run since 1979 by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, the world’s longest-serving president, has been widely criticised as one of the most repressive countries in the region.

Obiang, who oversaw a now-declining oil boom that began in the 1990s, denies allegations of human rights abuses and corruption.

He was present with Leo in Mongomo, appearing with the pope to greet crowds, as was his son, Vice President ⁠Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue.

More than 70 per cent of Equatorial Guinea’s population of 1.8 million identify as Catholic.

Leo, who is the first pope to visit since 1982, is at the end of one of the most complicated overseas tours ever arranged for a pontiff.

He has traversed nearly 18,000 km (11,185 miles) across 18 flights to 11 cities in four ⁠countries.

Later on Wednesday, the pope was scheduled to visit a high-security detention centre in Bata. Amnesty International says it is one of three facilities in the country where detainees are regularly held for years without access to lawyers.

The government dismisses criticism of its justice system and says it has an open ⁠democracy.

The pope is expected to hear testimonies from prisoners before offering remarks.

Leo is also expected to pray in Bata at the site of a series of explosions in 2021 at a military barracks that killed more than 100 people, which the government blamed on poor storage of ordnance.

Human rights activists have called for an independent investigation into the incident, so far in vain.