KARACHI: Pakistan’s Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, held high-level meetings with Nigeria’s defense minister and senior military leadership during an official visit to the African nation, with both sides agreeing to strengthen security cooperation, particularly in the field of counterterrorism, the Pakistani military said on Saturday.
Nigeria faces a range of counterterrorism challenges, primarily from Boko Haram and its affiliates, which have waged a years-long insurgency in the country’s northeast, marked by attacks, abductions and mass displacements.
Pakistan, meanwhile, has seen a resurgence in militant violence in its western provinces from groups like Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Baloch Liberation Army, with officials in Islamabad blaming them for cross-border attacks from Afghanistan, a charge Kabul denies.
In a statement, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said Mirza met with Nigeria’s defense minister as well as the chiefs of the army, navy and air force. The meetings focused on “challenges faced by both countries, especially in the domain of counterterrorism,” as well as broader defense cooperation and regional security.
“During the separately-held meetings, both sides engaged in discussions on challenges faced by both countries especially in the domain of Counter Terrorism (CT) and areas of mutual interest, including security, defense cooperation, and the evolving international / regional landscape,” the ISPR said.
“Both sides reaffirmed the resolve to further enhance defense and military collaboration between both militaries,” it added.
Pakistan and Nigeria have maintained bilateral relations since establishing diplomatic ties in 1961. Both countries are members of the Commonwealth of Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, sharing common interests in international forums.
Over the years, more than 2,000 Nigerian military personnel have received training in Pakistan, reflecting the scale of the defense collaboration between the two nations.
In recent years, Pakistan has also intensified its diplomatic and economic engagement with African nations under its “Engage Africa” policy, leading to the opening of new diplomatic missions across the continent to increase trade.
Pakistan and Nigeria discuss enhanced counterterrorism and defense cooperation
https://arab.news/2matw
Pakistan and Nigeria discuss enhanced counterterrorism and defense cooperation
- Both sides reaffirm resolve to boost security ties during General Sahir Shamshad Mirza’s visit
- Pakistan and Nigeria are members of Commonwealth and Organization of Islamic Cooperation
Bangladesh mourns slain activist as tensions rise ahead of elections
- Sharif Osman Hadi, who took part in 2024 uprising against Sheikh Hasina, passed away last week after getting shot
- Hadi’s death has sparked a new diplomatic squabble with India, as police say shooter has probably fled to India
DHAKA, Bangladesh: Hundreds of thousands of people attended the funeral Saturday of a leading Bangladeshi activist who died of gunshot wounds sustained in an attack in Dhaka earlier this month, as political tensions gripped the country ahead of elections.
Sharif Osman Hadi, who took part in last year’s political uprising that ended former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule, died in a hospital in Singapore on Thursday after being shot Dec. 12 in Dhaka.
Police said they had identified suspects and that the shooter had most probably fled to India, where Hasina has been in exile. The development sparked a new diplomatic squabble with India and prompted New Delhi this week to summon Bangladesh’s envoy. Bangladesh also summoned the Indian envoy to Dhaka.
Security was tight in Dhaka on Saturday as the funeral prayers were held outside the nation’s Parliament complex.
Hadi’s body returned on Friday night, and Saturday was declared a national mourning day.
Hadi was a spokesperson for the Inqilab Moncho culture group, which said he would be buried on the Dhaka University campus beside the country’s national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.
Mourners carried Bangladesh flags and chanted slogans, such as “We will be Hadi, we will be fighting decades after decades,” and “We will not let Hadi’s blood go in vain.”
The news of his death on Thursday evening triggered violence, with groups of protesters attacking and torching the offices of two leading national dailies. The country’s interim leader, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, has urged the people to stay calm.
Hadi was a fierce critic of both neighboring India and Hasina, who has been in exile since Aug. 5, 2024, when she fled Bangladesh. Hadi had planned to run as an independent candidate in a major constituency in Dhaka in the next national elections in February.
Bangladesh has been going through a critical transition under Yunus in a bid to return to democracy through the upcoming elections. But the government has been Hasina’s Awami League party, which is one of two major political parties.
Hasina’s archrival, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party is the other key party, which hopes to forms the next government. The Jamaat-e-Islami party, the country’s largest Islamist party with a dark history involving the nation’s independence war in 1971, is leading an alliance to carve out a bigger political space in the absence of Hasina’s party and its allies.
Hasina has been sentenced to death on charges of crimes against humanity, but India’s has not responded to repeated requests by the Yunus-led government for her extradition.
