Former Brazil international Dani Alves  who spent 430 days, behind bars while his trial lasted for alleged sexual assault on a Spanish lady at a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022 had planned an escape.

Faced with the looming possibility of a lengthy prison term, Alves allegedly attempted an audacious prison escape.

According to reports in Spain, the player sought temporary release on bail, intending to flee to his motherland, where he wouldn’t be pursued due to the absence of an extradition treaty between Spain and Brazil.

However, his escape plan was dashed when one of his cell-mates disclosed the scheme to the officials, preventing its execution and all three attempts for temporary release were denied.

Nearly 300 students and staff abducted by gunmen from a school in northern Nigeria this month have been released unharmed, the office of the governor of the state of Kaduna said on Sunday, days before a deadline to pay a $690,000 ransom.

The kidnapping of 287 students on March 7 in Kuriga, a dusty town in northwestern Kaduna state, was the first mass abduction in Africa’s most populous nation since 2021 when more than 150 students were taken from a high school in Kaduna.

A security source said the students were rescued in a forest in neighbouring Zamfara state and were being escorted by the army to the Kaduna capital for medical tests before being reunited with their families.

Abductions at Nigerian schools were first carried out by jihadist group Boko Haram, which seized 276 students from a girls’ school in Chibok in northeastern Borno State a decade ago. Some of the girls have never been released.

Since then the tactic has been widely adopted by criminal gangs without ideological affiliation.

Kaduna governor Uba Sani said the country’s National Security Adviser coordinated the release of the Kuriga schoolchildren. He did not provide further details.

“The Nigerian Army also deserves special commendation for showing that, with courage, determination and commitment, criminal elements can be degraded and security restored in our communities,” Sani said.

The gunmen last week demanded a total of 1 billion naira ($690,000) for release of the missing children and staff.

The government had said it would not pay any ransom. The practice was outlawed in 2022.

But kidnappings by criminal gangs demanding ransoms have become an almost daily occurrence, especially in northern Nigeria, tearing apart families and communities that have to pool savings to pay ransoms, often forcing them to sell land, cattle and grain to secure the release of their loved ones.

-Reuters

The rich history of Moroccan football and their stars are now being encapsulated into a national museum located  on the ground floor of the  Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) in Maâmoura (near Salé) in Rabat.

The football museum, inaugurated last Thursday follows the last year’s opening of the new offices of the FRMF which CAF president, Dr. Patrice Motsepe loftily praised and also hailed the visionary leadership of Fouzi Lekja, the president of FRMF.

The Football Museum has now further raised the bar. It’s construction began in March 2021.

It contains a permanent exhibition space of 1,350 square meters, a temporary exhibition space of 310 square meters, an exhibition hall with 42 seats, a VIP room, a documentation room, and other facilities.

Inside Morocco Football Museum

The Head of Government, Aziz Akhannouch was on hand to open the project. Also in attendance were top government functionaries like  Chakib Benmoussa, Minister of National Education, Preschool and Sport,  Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication,  Abdellatif Miraoui, Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation,  Fouzi Lekjaa, President of the FRMF as well as  Mehdi Qotbi, President of the National Foundation of Museums.

 Expectedly, football stars, past and present were in attendance to grace the project that showcases the best of the bests in Moroccan football history.

The stars across all generations in attendance include  Aziz Bouderbala, a star of the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico.

Others are past winners of the Ballon d’Or for the best players in Africa, namely Mohamed Timoumi in 1985, Badou Ezzaki in 1986, Mustapha Hadji (1998), as well as other former players and current sports officials.

“I think everyone agrees that the objective behind creating this football museum is to preserve the football heritage,” Lekjaa told the press during the inauguration ceremony, stressing that the young generation will be allowed to visit this museum and learn about the history and accomplishments.

Bouderbala who made 57 appearances for Morocco was quoted by the Morocco World News as hailing the objectives of the football museum.

 He remarked that  what drew his attention in the museum are “a number of pictures that take us many years back, several cups that mark the national football , and documentaries beneficial for the rising generation.”

The museum sheds light on the history of national football since 1906, by exhibiting photographs and football trophies in such a way as to allow everyone to learn about the achievements of Moroccan players.