A mother is reunited with a Bethel Baptist High School pupil released by gunmen in Damishi, Nigeria, on Sunday. AP
A mother is reunited with a Bethel Baptist High School pupil released by gunmen in Damishi, Nigeria, on Sunday. AP
A mother is reunited with a Bethel Baptist High School pupil released by gunmen in Damishi, Nigeria, on Sunday. AP
A mother is reunited with a Bethel Baptist High School pupil released by gunmen in Damishi, Nigeria, on Sunday. AP

Twenty-eight abducted school pupils freed in Nigeria


Soraya Ebrahimi
  • English
  • Arabic

Armed kidnappers in Nigeria have released 28 of more than 120 pupils who were abducted at the start of July from the Bethel Baptist High School in the northern town of Damishi.

Church officials handed the children over to their parents at the school on Sunday.

But the Rev Israel Akanji, president of the Baptist Convention, said more than 80 other children were still being held by the gunmen.

So far 34, children kidnapped from the school on July 5 have been released or have escaped from the gunmen.

It is unclear when the other children will be released. The gunmen have reportedly demanded 500,000 naira ($1,215) for each pupil.

Mr Akanji said the church did not pay any ransom because it would not give money to criminals.

But he said the church was unable to stop families from taking any action they deemed fit to secure their children's release.

A spokesman for the Nigerian Police, Mohammed Jalige, said security troops and civilian defence forces were on a routine rescue patrol on July 12, around the forests near the village of Tsohon Gaya, when they found three exhausted children roaming in the bush.

Two other pupils escaped on July 20 when they were ordered to fetch firewood from a nearby forest. Mr Jalige said they were undergoing medical examinations.

Gunman have carried out mass abductions from schools in northern Nigeria this year, mainly seeking ransoms.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, who won an election on hopes that he would tackle Nigeria’s security challenges, has not been able to do much about growing cases of mass abductions from schools.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:

- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools

- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say

- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance

- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs

- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills

- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month

- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues

Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate 

'The worst thing you can eat'

Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.

Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines: 

Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.

Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.

Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.

Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.

Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

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match info

Union Berlin 0

Bayern Munich 1 (Lewandowski 40' pen, Pavard 80')

Man of the Match: Benjamin Pavard (Bayern Munich)

SPECS

Toyota land Cruiser 2020 5.7L VXR

Engine: 5.7-litre V8

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 362hp

Torque: 530Nm

Price: Dh329,000 (base model 4.0L EXR Dh215,900)

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

Pari

Produced by: Clean Slate Films (Anushka Sharma, Karnesh Sharma) & KriArj Entertainment

Director: Prosit Roy

Starring: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Ritabhari Chakraborty, Rajat Kapoor, Mansi Multani

Three stars

MANDOOB
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Updated: July 25, 2021, 8:02 PM