Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Monday morning

President Bola Tinubu on Sunday departed Nigeria for Europe on a three-week vacation, which forms part of his leave for 2026. The President left Abuja amid official send-off ceremonies involving government officials, and security personnel.

President Bola Tinubu on Sunday, in Angola, formally reported the recurring xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks against Africans and other nationals in South Africa to the African Union, declaring that such attacks undermine the continent’s solidarity, unity and peaceful coexistence. He demanded that African leaders place the matter on the agenda of the next AU Assembly session in January 2027 for collective action.

Bandits have attacked the Ghandi community in Rabah Local Government Area of Sokoto State, killing no fewer than eight farmers and leaving at least five others with gunshot injuries. The attack, which occurred on Sunday afternoon, sent residents into panic as the assailants reportedly stormed the community around 3:00 p.m.

The Kano State Police Command has foiled a kidnapping attempt and rescued the Sarkin Noman Kano, Alhaji Yusif Nadabo, after suspected bandits attacked Garun Mallam town in Garun Mallam Local Government Area of the state. The command disclosed this in a statement issued by its Police Public Relations Officer, SP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, on Sunday.

A fire outbreak on Sunday destroyed shops and goods reportedly worth millions of naira at Eda Plaza, a building materials market located opposite Chida Hotel in Jabi, Abuja. A video from the scene, posted by the Nigerian Television Authority, showed shop owners racing to salvage their goods.

The National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Surajudeen Basiru on Sunday paid a courtesy visit to Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, in Osogbo. A video of the meeting, posted on X by Ayekooto, showed Basiru outlining three key reasons for the visit. He first expressed gratitude to the governor for attending the final rites of his late mother and visiting him during his period of bereavement earlier this year.

The Department of State Services, DSS, has directed its private counsel, Akinolu Kehinde, SAN, to take steps to suspend the alleged cyberbullying case instituted against the African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, until after the 2027 presidential election. The development followed a meeting between the DSS Director-General, Tosin Ajayi, the senior lawyer and top officials of the agency’s Legal Directorate on August 20.

The Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa, said the Federal Government has intensified measures to strengthen Nigeria’s borders against security threats emanating from the volatile Sahel region. Musa spoke in Luanda, Angola, during an engagement with members of the Nigerian community in the country on the sidelines of the 21st Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, AU.

Operatives of the Special Tactical Squad of the Nigeria Police Force have arrested three suspected members of a notorious armed robbery and car-snatching syndicate operating between Kaduna State and the Federal Capital Territory. The suspects were arrested during coordinated, intelligence-led operations conducted between August 14 and 19, 2026, following actionable intelligence on the activities of the syndicate, which was allegedly involved in armed robbery and the snatching of vehicles at gunpoint.

A good Samaritan has rescued an abandoned newborn baby girl alive near Ashar Forest in Wuese community, Konshisha Local Government Area of Benue State. The baby, who was said to have been wrapped in clothes and kept in a carton by an unknown person, was picked up on Saturday, August 29, 2026, by Mrs Mbakasev Yisa. Maggots were allegedly found around the baby, while a foul smell emanated from the carton.