During a clearance operation in the Lokoja Local Government Area, Nigerian Army forces engaged in ongoing anti-kidnapping operations in Kogi State recovered decomposing remains and rescued five kidnapped victims. On Thursday, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) was informed by a reliable military source that, in response to reliable intelligence, troops from the Obajana and Kabba patrol bases projected a fighting patrol to Ankomi village in the Adankolo general area of the Lokoja Local Government Area. According to the source, the patrol found that the village, which had previously been inhabited by bandits, had been burnt and deserted.

On January 14, 2026, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) will launch a nationwide demonstration against the new tax laws. The organization cautions that millions of Nigerians and students may experience increased financial hardship as a result of the measures. Comrade Olushola Oladoja, President of NANS, voiced his displeasure with the Federal Government's implementation of the tax reform laws in a statement released on Wednesday. Oladoja criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's aides for providing what he called "misguided counsel capable of creating unnecessary national tension."

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF), through credible intelligence and a precision air operation, neutralized bandits and destroyed an improvised explosive device (IED) factory in Zamfara State. Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, the Nigerian Air Force's Director of Public Relations and Information, stated in a statement that the NAF, working under the Air Component of Operation Fansan Yamma, Sector 2, achieved a significant operational victory in its persistent campaign against armed banditry.

A credible source has confirmed that operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) on Dec 27, arrested the leader of the gang and another, who kidnapped and murdered a prominent professor of neurology, Ekanem Philip Ephraim in 2023 The gang leader, Patrick Essien Etim aka Pato, 23, and his accomplice, Bassey Antiha Asuquo, 40, were apprehended at a medical facility in Cross River State while planning to kidnap another medical bigwig.

Following the announcement made by the president of the United States (US), Donald Trump, that precision airstrikes were conducted by the US against terrorists in Nigeria, authorities in Nigeria have confirmed this development, noting it targeted terrorist targets in the northwest of Nigeria.

At least five people were killed and 35 others injured when a bomb exploded inside a crowded mosque during evening prayers in Maiduguri, the capital of Nigeria’s north-eastern Borno State, police said. The blast occurred in the Gamboru market area of the city, according to Borno State police spokesperson Nahum Daso, who told local media that the incident is suspected to be a suicide attack. Unverified videos circulating on social media showed dust-filled scenes, and people gathered at the site shortly after the explosion.