INTERNATIONAL NEWS SYNDICATE

Niger Republic has reached a deal with Starlink to improve internet coverage BY: ZOUWAIRA ZAKARI, DIFFA AND ADAMU ALIYU NGULDE, MAIDUGURI  Niger’s ruling military junta has struck a deal with US billionaire Elon Musk’s satellite internet provider Starlink to expand coverage in the poorly connected country, state media said on Wednesday. The vast desert nation’s internet penetration rate currently stands at 32 percent, according to the Electronic Communications Regulation and Mail Authority (ARCEP). Starlink will bring broadband coverage to 80 to 100 percent of the territory, Nigerien communication and digital economy minister Sidi Mohamed Raliou said on state television. Starlink’s network of low-Earth orbit satellites can provide internet access to remote locations or areas that normal communications infrastructure do not reach. “Niger will benefit from this cutting-edge, high-speed technology at a very low cost,” Raliou said on television channel Tele Sahel, without d...

After 40 soldiers were killed by jihadists, the government of Chad has promised a harsh response BY: AMINOU ADAMOU AND ADAMU ALIYU NGULDE, MAIDUGURI  Soldiers with the Chadian army (file photo). N'djamena — Three days of national mourning in Chad in memory of the victims of the jihadist attack on a military base near Lake Chad were declared by Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby, who personally traveled to the site of the attack on October 28 and announced the start of a counter-offensive, called "Haskanite", to find the perpetrators of the massacre. On the night of October 27-28, an armed group attacked the Chadian army garrison on the island of Barkaram, on the border with Nigeria. Of the 200 soldiers present, 40 were killed, including their commander.  The attackers occupied the base until dawn and left with a large amount of weapons and ammunition. Chadian authorities claim that the attack was carried out by the Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram, which has long ex...