The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arrested 40 suspected internet fraudsters in Niger State following an operation by operatives of its Kaduna Zonal Directorate. The agency disclosed the arrest in a post shared via its official handle on X, on Wednesday. Items recovered from the suspects include 60 Android phones, three vehicles, 10 motorcycles, eight laptop computers, four Bluetooth speakers, eight power generating sets, one Hisense air conditioner, and two power stabilisers. Also recovered were several fetish items allegedly used for spiritual fortification. “Among the items recovered were three calabashes adorned with feathers, traditionally made soap and sponge, a bottle of alcoholic drink, 20 cowries, a waist bead, and four ladies’ underwear,” the statement added. The commission indicated that the suspects were apprehended in separate raids across Bida and Minna Local Government Areas. “The operation was based on credible intelligence linking the suspects to a syndicate engaged in cybercrime activities,” the EFCC stated. The commission said investigations were ongoing and the suspects would be charged in court upon conclusion. “The suspects will be arraigned in court as soon as investigations are concluded,” the EFCC said.

African countries can break aid dependency by simply capturing the full value of their mineral resources. The decision of US President Donald Trump’s administration to suspend foreign aid and shut down the USAID agency has sent shockwaves across the development industry. In 2024, nearly a third of the $41bn in US foreign aid went to Africa, helping support various sectors from healthcare to education and sanitation. But as aid organisations sound alarm bells and government officials wring their hands over suspended programmes, we are missing the bigger picture: Africa’s continued dependence on foreign aid is a choice, not a necessity. Our continent sits atop some of the world’s largest reserves of the very minerals that will power the future, yet we remain trapped in cycles of aid dependency. It is time to change that. Let us be clear about what is at stake. The Democratic Republic of the Congo supplies 70 percent of the world’s cobalt – the essential ingredient in electric vehicle batteries. South Africa produces 75 percent of the world’s platinum and 50 percent of palladium. Mozambique and Madagascar possess some of the largest graphite deposits globally. Zimbabwe has the largest deposits of caesium, a critical metal used in GPS and 5G systems. More than just rocks and metals, these are the keys to the global clean energy transition. Every electric vehicle, solar panel, and wind turbine depends on minerals that Africa has in abundance. Yet here we are, still exporting raw materials like colonial-era vassals while begging for aid from the same countries that profit from our resources. The math is infuriating: We sell raw cobalt for $26-30 per kg (2.2lb), while battery-grade processed materials fetch $150-200. We’re giving away more than 80 percent of the value chain to foreign processors and manufacturers. This isn’t just bad business – it’s economic malpractice. The global battery market alone will reach $250bn by 2030. The renewable energy sector is growing at breakneck speed, with solar installations increasing 26 percent annually. Clearly, Africa’s mineral riches represent the greatest economic opportunity of our generation. But instead of positioning ourselves to capture this value, we are debating how to patch the holes left by suspended aid programmes. Critics will say we lack the infrastructure, expertise, and capital to process these minerals ourselves. They are right – for now. But this is precisely where we should be investing our resources and focusing our political will. The Chinese understood this decades ago, which is why they have poured nearly $58bn into securing control of critical mineral supply chains across Africa. They saw the future while we were busy filling out aid application forms. The solution is not complicated, though it is challenging. We need to build processing facilities, not just extraction sites. We need to establish special economic zones focused on mineral beneficiation, not merely export terminals. We need to invest in research and development facilities that can adapt and improve processing technologies. Most importantly, we need to think and act regionally. Imagine a Southern African Development Community Battery Materials Initiative, where countries pool resources and expertise to build integrated value chains. Picture an East African Rare Earth Elements Cooperation Framework that turns our mineral wealth into high-tech manufacturing capabilities. These are not pipe dreams – they are missed opportunities every day we continue business as usual. The environmental critics will say mining is dirty and destructive. They’re not wrong about the risks, but they’re wrong about the solution. The answer isn’t to leave our minerals in the ground; it’s to set our own high standards for sustainable extraction and processing. We can build a mining and processing industry that protects our environment and benefits our communities. We must, because the alternative is watching foreign companies do it their way while we deal with the consequences. The aid suspension has created human suffering that cannot be ignored. HIV treatment programmes, educational initiatives, and food security projects are all at risk. But if these programmes are essential – and many of them are – why should we depend on the political whims of foreign governments to fund them? Our minerals would pay for these programmes many times over once we capture their full value. What we need now is political courage and unity of purpose. We need leaders who can look beyond the next election cycle and envision an Africa that finances its own development. We need business leaders who can build processing facilities instead of export terminals. We need educational institutions that train chemical engineers and metallurgists instead of aid programme administrators. The current crisis must serve as our catalyst for transformation. Every suspended aid dollar should drive us to capture tenfold value from our minerals, and every diplomatic slight should strengthen our resolve to build African solutions. The choice is clear: We can spend the coming decades haggling over aid budgets, or we can finally take control of our destiny through the strategic development of our mineral wealth. It’s time for Africa to transform from the world’s raw materials store into its manufacturing powerhouse. By turning our mineral wealth into lasting prosperity, we can make foreign aid what it should have been all along: unnecessary. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance. 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Calls for a ceasefire grow as US and Israeli leaders discuss a potential truce amid escalating violence in Gaza. Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip have killed dozens of Palestinians, including people seeking food at aid distribution hubs, as the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in the besieged enclave deteriorates by the day. Medical sources told Al Jazeera on Sunday that at least 72 people were killed since dawn in Israeli strikes targeting multiple locations across Gaza, including at least 47 in Gaza City and the north of the territory. Al Jazeera’s Moath al-Kahlout, reporting from Gaza City, described “catastrophic” scenes at the al-Ahli Hospital in the northern city as dozens of wounded civilians sought help following Israeli strikes on the Zeitoun and Sabra neighbourhoods, as well as al-Zawiya market. “There are too many wounded civilians here, including children. Many are lying on the ground because there are not enough beds or medical supplies to treat them. This facility is struggling to cope due to severe shortages,” he said. “The Israeli military has dropped leaflets in eastern Gaza City, ordering civilians to move south. These leaflets are often followed by intense and repeated attacks, resulting in the large number of casualties we are witnessing now.” The victims on Sunday also included at least five Palestinian aid seekers killed near food distribution centres run by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) north of Rafah, according to medics. Since the United States- and Israel-backed GHF took over limited aid deliveries in Gaza in late May amid a punishing Israeli blockade, Israeli soldiers have regularly shot at Palestinians near distribution centres, killing more than 580 people, and wounding more than 4,000, according to the Gaza Government Media Office. A recent report by Israel’s Haaretz newspaper quoted unnamed Israeli soldiers as saying they had received orders to fire at crowds of unarmed aid seekers to disperse them. Geoffrey Nice, a human rights lawyer, told Al Jazeera that the killings going on around the GHF are “inexplicable”. “What is absolutely astonishing to outsiders is that it is in the business of apparently providing aid where it is desperately needed, and those providing aid with you end up shooting dead hundreds of people,” said Nice, who also took part in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in the Strip is worsening, with babies and toddlers dying due to a lack of nutrients. Christy Black, an Australian nurse volunteering in Gaza City, said the hospital she’s based in is short of medical supplies, including formula for pregnant women who require nasogastric feeding. That leaves many without the nutrients needed to lactate – as well as baby formula, she said. “Our most vulnerable are dying,” Black told Al Jazeera. “We’ve seen a couple of babies die over the last couple of days in Gaza City. It’s really desperate here.” Malnourishment also makes it difficult to heal from wounds, she said, adding that there is a significant uptick in respiratory illnesses due to the number of bombs being dropped on Gaza. “We’re seeing children going through the rubbish trying to find something to eat … Children who might be nine or 10 years old that look like two-year-olds,” she added. With Israeli bombardment of the besieged enclave relentless, there are indications of a fresh impetus to end the war in the wake of the US and Israeli bombings of Iran’s nuclear facilities and the ensuing ceasefire between Israel and Iran. On Sunday, US President Donald Trump seemed determined to seal a truce. “MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!” he said in a Social Truth post. His comments came after he said he believed a ceasefire could be reached within a week. “I think it’s close. I just spoke to some of the people involved,” Trump said on Saturday. While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not comment on the push for a truce, he said in the past week that behind-the-scenes talks have been taking place to try and secure a 60-day pause in fighting. Negotiations revolve around a proposal put forward by the US back in March to extend phase one of a ceasefire that Israel violated by resuming its bombing of Gaza. Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut, reporting from Amman, Jordan, said, “Netanyahu is under a lot of pressure as Trump has been quite outspoken for some time that he wants to see a ceasefire in Gaza.” “And prior to Israel’s attacks on Iran, just about two weeks ago, there was a lot of pressure from European allies because of the Israeli military’s conduct in the Gaza Strip,” she said. In the meantime, the Jerusalem District Court cancelled this week’s hearings in Netanyahu’s long-running corruption trial, accepting a request that the Israeli leader made, citing classified diplomatic and security grounds. It was unclear whether a social media post by Trump – one suggesting the trial could interfere with Netanyahu’s ability to join negotiations with Hamas and Iran – influenced the court’s decision. The ruling, seen by Reuters, said that new reasons provided by Netanyahu, the head of Israel’s spy agency Mossad and the military intelligence chief justified cancelling the hearings. Netanyahu was indicted in 2019 on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust – all of which he denies. He has cast the trial against him as an orchestrated left-wing witch-hunt meant to topple a democratically elected right-wing leader. On Friday, the court rejected a request by Netanyahu to delay his testimony for the next two weeks because of diplomatic and security matters following the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, which ended last Tuesday. He was due to take the stand on Monday for cross-examination. “It is INSANITY doing what the out-of-control prosecutors are doing to Bibi Netanyahu,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. He said Washington, having given billions of dollars worth of aid to Israel, was not going to “stand for this”. A spokesperson for the Israeli prosecution declined to comment on Trump’s post. Netanyahu reposted Trump’s comments on X and added: “Thank you again, @realDonaldTrump. Together, we will make the Middle East Great Again!” Trump said Netanyahu was “right now” negotiating a deal with Hamas, though neither leader provided details, and though officials from both sides have voiced scepticism over prospects for a ceasefire soon. Follow Al Jazeera English:...

Security: Lagos requests local governments to release 500 candidates for military registration.