Jammeh May Be Forced To Step Down If He Doesn’t Hand Over Jan. 19

West Africa's regional bloc has put standby forces on alert in case Gambian president Yahya Jammeh does not step down when his mandate ends on Jan. 19, ECOWAS commission president Marcel de Souza said.

Jammeh has vowed to stay in power despite losing a Dec. 1 election to rival Adama Barrow, raising the possibility that regional powers may intervene to oust him if diplomacy does not succeed in persuading him to leave.

"We have put standby forces on alert if he does not (step down) on Jan. 19 when his mandate ends," De Souza said on Malian state television on Thursday evening. "No one has the right to oppose the will of the people."

Libyan Plane Hijack Ends Peacefully In Malta, Hijackers Surrender (Photos)

The hijacking of a Libyan plane has ended peacefully after the men who seized control surrendered in Malta.

The domestic flight with 118 people on board was hijacked after taking off from Sabha, bound for the Libyan capital Tripoli.

Instead, the Afriqiyah Airways Airbus A320 was diverted to Malta International Airport. It appears the two hijackers are supporters of Libya's late deposed leader, Muammar Gaddafi.

Pictures of them kneeling on the tarmac with their hands up appear to show the moment they were arrested by the Maltese authorities.

Photos: One Die, Many Injured As Pepsi Truck Runs Into Traders

One person has died and several people have been left injured when a Pepsi truck diverted from the road and ran into roadside traders. It happened around noon today at Lanre Bus stop in Igando. More photos after the cut.

Photos: Ayiri Emami, Others Celebrate James Ibori’s Release

Remember James Ibori was released yesterday from a UK prison? Well shortly after his release, Billionaire Ayiri Emami and other Deltans came together to celebrate his release. More photos after the cut.

Katsina Health Workers Protest Suspended Salary Structure

The Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, Katsina State council on Wednesday called on the state government to restore the suspended Consolidated Health Salary Structure for its members in the state, maintaining that its suspension had exposed its members to hunger and hardship.

The union also demanded an urgent implementation of the government white paper on the verification exercise on the beneficiaries of CONHESS in the state.

The state government had in May this year suspended the usage of the salary structure for the MHWUN members in the state, following a verification to determine genuine health workers in the 34 local government areas of the state.

Woman Beats 10-Year Old To Death In Lagos

The police in Lagos State have arrested a middle-aged woman, Linda Alapa, for allegedly beating her 10-year-old housemaid, Joy Mbafan, to death.

Mbafan lived with the suspect on Bolanle Oduniyi Street, Okegbegun, in the Ikorodu area of the state.

Punch Metro learnt that Alapa was flogging the girl for a misdemeanor around 3am last Monday when she passed out and died afterwards.

At the Ikorodu General Hospital morgue where she had gone to deposit Mbafan’s corpse, a doctor on duty was said to have noticed marks of violence on the body and alerted the police at the Sagamu Road Division.

Photos/videos: Chief of Army staff sends cows to troops in Sambisa to celebrate Christmas

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, has sent two cows to the troops in Sambisa forest to celebrate the Christmas holiday. In this video shared online, the soldiers are seen cutting the cows and according to them, their morale is very high and are ready to destroy Boko Haram. Another video showing the soldiers cooking Jollof rice was also shared. Watch the videos after the cut...