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94 dead, 250 Missing As Migrant Boat Sinks Off Italy
At least 94 people died and 250 were missing after a boat packed with African migrants sank off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa yesterday, the coastguard said.
Bodies fished from the water were laid out along the quayside as the death toll rose in what looked like one of the worst disasters to hit the perilous route for migrants seeking to reach Europe from Africa.
“It’s horrific, like a cemetery, they are still bringing them out,’’ Lampedusa Mayor Giusi Nicolini told reporters.
The coastguard said 151 survivors had been rescued after the 20-metre boat caught fire and sank about one kilometre off the island.
The UN refugee agency UNHCR said around 500 passengers, all Eritreans, had boarded the boat in Libya.
The disaster came four days ago after 13 migrants drowned off eastern Sicily, and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano said action was needed by the EU to stem “a succession of massacres of innocent people’’.
Last year, almost 500 people were reported dead or missing making the crossing from Tunisia to Italy, the UNHCR says. Numbers have been boosted by thousands of refugees from the civil war in Syria.
“I commend the swift action taken by the Italian coastguard to save lives. At the same time, I am dismayed at the rising global phenomenon of migrants and people fleeing conflict or persecution and perishing at sea,’’ UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said.
Migrants frequently land on Lampedusa, just 113 km from the coast of Tunisia, often picked up at sea in dangerously overcrowded boats by the Italian coastguard.
Pope Francis, who visited the island in July on his first papal trip outside Rome, said he felt “great pain’’ for the “many victims of the latest tragic shipwreck today off Lampedusa’’.
“The word that comes to mind is ‘shame’,’’ Francis said in subscripted remarks after a speech in the Vatican.
“Let us unite our strengths so that such tragedies never happened again.’’
The stream of migrants is a humanitarian and political problem for the Italian government.
About 15,000 reached Italy and Malta – 13,200 and 1,800 respectively – by sea last year, the UNHCR says.
Calling the deaths of migrants “an endless tragedy,’’ Foreign Minister Emma Bonino said: “The rescue operation began immediately but it is getting more difficult because now the weather is getting colder, they don’t know how to swim, they don’t know where to go.’’
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano cancelled a news conference in Rome to fly to Lampedusa.
A fishing boat raised the alarm at around 7:20 a.m. and began pulling people out of the water before coastguard vessels arrived on the scene.
Transport Minister Maurizio Lupi said more needed to be done to combat people traffickers who coordinate the transport of migrants in crowded and unsafe vessels.
“It is a task which we have to take on and which the international community and the European community have to take on as well,’’ he said.
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The Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has directed his lawyers to withdraw all ongoing defamation lawsuits against several individuals, saying he was moved by counsel during a New Year Mass.
Speaking at the Sacred Heart Parish in Uyo, yesterday, Akpabio said he had filed nearly nine lawsuits against individuals he accused of defaming him.
He said, “I had almost nine cases in court against some individuals who defamed me, who lied against me, who slandered my name.
“But I listened to the priest and suddenly realised he was talking to me, so I hereby direct my solicitor to withdraw all lawsuits against them.”
In 2025, Akpabio had filed several high-profile defamation lawsuits, including one against colleague Senator Natasha Akpoti?Uduaghan.
In late 2025, Akpabio filed a N200 billion defamation lawsuit against her over allegations of sexual harassment, which he denied and urged her to substantiate in court.
Earlier in the year, Akpabio’s wife also filed defamation suits against Akpoti?Uduaghan over claims she said had harmed her family’s reputation.
Relations between the two lawmakers soured after Akpoti?Uduaghan accused Akpabio of influencing her suspension from the Senate in March 2025, following her public allegations of misconduct.
The Senator had previously challenged actions taken against her in court, including a N100 billion defamation suit she filed against Akpabio and other defendants over alleged remarks that she said damaged her reputation.
With yesterday’s announcement, Akpabio has formally ended all pending legal disputes arising from defamation claims, signalling closure to the publicised litigations as the year begins.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has declared that the best form of gratitude Rivers people owe President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for protecting the interest of the State is to galvanize massive support for the President in 2027.
Fubara disclosed this last Monday during the commissioning of Permanent Secretaries Quarters built by his administration at Elimgbu in Obio Akpor Local Government Area of the State.
He said that the State has what it takes to deliver the President during the 2027 general elections.
“We’ve taken a decision,our decision is for the good of Rivers State, our decision is to say thank you for the protection we have from Mr President, our decision is to prove that we have what it takes to deliver Mr President.”
Fubara expressed delight over the completion of the project, stating that the initiative was to provide accommodation, a basic need of life for public servants in the state to improve their productivity.
He explained that lack of effective social welfare was at the root of some incriminating actions that undermine the purpose of governance, noting that the commissioning of the newly built Permanent Secretaries Quarters marks a significant milestone in civil service welfare and institutional development.
“Insecurity begins when individuals are uncertain of what the next hour holds. This situation is especially challenging for family men and women, affecting confidence and decision-making,” he observed.
Fubara emphasized the need for proper maintenance of the facility and urged the beneficiaries to protect the project like a personal property, while directing the State Head of Service to appoint a facility manager to ensure long-term maintenance.
In her remarks, the Special Guest of Honour and Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, who unveiled the project, expressed appreciation to the governor and Rivers State for inviting her to commission the project.
She commended Fubara for prioritizing the welfare of Permanent Secretaries who are senior public servants and accounting officers, noting that the project reflects purposeful and visionary leadership, and urged other states to borrow a cue from the Rivers State Governor.
Walson-Jack described the initiative as a strategic investment in staff welfare and institutional continuity which she noted is in line with Renewed Hope Initiative on provision of mass housing and social stability.
“The commissioning of these houses reflect a deliberate commitment to the dignity, welfare, and productivity of senior public servants responsible for policy coordination and service delivery,” she said.
In his goodwill message, the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Ajibode Bashiru, who led a high powered delegation on a visit to the governor, congratulated Rivers people for aligning with the Pan Nigerian political party, assuring that the interest of Rivers State will be duly protected in the APC.
He described President Bola Tinubu as a detribalised Nigerian who anchors his leadership on equity, fairness and justice, adding that the APC will provide a level playing ground for all.
The APC chief scribe also commended Fubara for providing good accommodation for public servants, stating that it will address issues of sabotage, compromise and disloyalty on the part of public servants.
Giving the project description, Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Works, Dr. Austin Ezekiel-Hart, said the estate comprises 29 units, including nine standalone duplexes and 20 terrace buildings.
Facilities feature a water treatment plant, synchronized power generators, CCTV and alarm systems, a gym, recreational areas, and green spaces—designed to enhance comfort, performance, and productivity.
Earlier, the Head of the Rivers State Civil Service, Dr Mrs Inyingi Brown, had thanked the governor for his visionary initiative and unwavering commitment to the welfare of Rivers State Civil Servants, and restated the commitment of the State civil servants to the success of Fubara’s administration.
By: Taneh Beemene