ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Islamic militants attacked a town in northeastern Nigeria on Friday, abducting more than 300 people, including women and children, local officials said.
The attack happened in the town of Ngoshe in Borno state, according to Bulama Sawa, an official from the Gwoza area. He told The Associated Press the attack was likely in retaliation for an operation by the military that killed three commanders of the militant Boko Haram group.
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Babagana Zulum, Borno state governor, speaks in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026., to people who have fled from an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People gather in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after fleeing an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People gather for a meeting with the Borno state governor in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after they fled an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People gather for a meeting with the Borno state governor in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after they fled an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People listen to Babagana Zulum, the Borno state governor, in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after they fled an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
No one immediately claimed responsibility for Friday's attack. Nigeria is battling a complex security crisis from different armed groups. The United States has sent troops to the West African nation to help advise its military on the fight against insecurity.
Separate attacks this week also took place in the communities of Konduga, Marte, Jakana, and Mainok between Wednesday and early Friday, according to a military spokesperson.
The spokesperson, Uba Sani, said the troops were able to repel the attacks on the communities of Konduga, Marte, Jakana and Mainok, but “a number of brave soldiers paid the supreme price in the line of duty," along with a senior officer. He did not elaborate on military casualties.
Sani described the assaults as “failed attacks” and said they showed “increasing desperation of terrorist elements under sustained operational pressure" from the military.
Ulf Laessing, with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, said Friday's attack on Ngoshe took advantage of the Nigerian army’s difficulties in controlling large swaths of the country where jihadi groups operate. Militants are also benefiting from increased cross-border cooperation between their groups and the use of drones to scout out their targets before attacking.
“The army is fighting a ghost — fighters descending with motorbikes on villages and disappearing into the bush before the army can respond in time,” said Laessing.
Among the most prominent Islamic militant groups are Boko Haram and its breakaway faction, which is affiliated with the Islamic State group and known as Islamic State West Africa Province. There is also the IS-linked Lakurawa, as well as other “bandit” groups that specialize in kidnapping for ransom and illegal mining.
Recently, the crisis has worsened to include other militants from the neighboring Sahel region, including the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, which claimed its first attack on Nigerian soil last year.
Several thousand people in Nigeria have been killed, according to data from the United Nations. Analysts say not enough is being done by the government to protect its citizens.
McMakin reported from Dakar, Senegal.
Babagana Zulum, Borno state governor, speaks in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026., to people who have fled from an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People gather in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after fleeing an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People gather for a meeting with the Borno state governor in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after they fled an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People gather for a meeting with the Borno state governor in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after they fled an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
People listen to Babagana Zulum, the Borno state governor, in Pulka, Nigeria, Friday, March 6, 2026, after they fled an attack by Islamic militants in Ngoshe. (AP Photo/Jossy Ola)
CHICAGO (AP) — From former presidents to an NBA Hall of Famer to prominent church pastors, stories of the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.’s influence on politics, corporate boardrooms and picket lines loomed large Friday at a celebration honoring the late civil rights leader.
Thousands of people gathered at a church on Chicago's South Side to pay a final public tribute to Jackson.
The celebration — with appearances by Grammy-winning gospel singers and Jennifer Hudson — felt at times like a church service and others like a political rally. Many, from former President Bill Clinton to the Rev. Al Sharpton, a civil rights leader and founder of the National Action Network, likened Jackson’s death to a call to action, from speaking out against justice to voting in the midterms.
Former President Barack Obama said Jackson's presidential runs in the 1980s set the stage for other Black leaders, including his own successful 2009 presidency and re-election.
“The message he sent to a 22-year-old child of a single mother with a funny name, an outsider, was that maybe there wasn’t any place or any room where we didn’t belong,” Obama said. “He paved the road for so many others to follow."
Obama, joined by Clinton and former Democratic president Joe Biden at a celebration of life for Jackson, received the loudest round of applause as the three entered the chamber.
“We are living in a time when it can be hard to hope,” Obama said. “Each day we wake up to some new assault to our democratic institutions. Another setback to the idea of the rule of law, an offense to common decency. Every day you wake up to things you just didn’t think were possible.”
“Each day we are told by folks in high office to fear each other,” said Obama, referring to the current Republican leadership in Washington.
Clinton said Jackson made him a better president. “He knew change came from the inside out," Clinton said.
Former Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris also spoke Friday.
President Donald Trump, who praised Jackson on social media after he died and also shared photos of the two of them together, was not attending the service, according to his public schedule issued by the White House.
The event honors the protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and two-time presidential candidate and follows memorial services that drew large crowds in Chicago and South Carolina, where Jackson was born. Friday’s celebration — at an influential Black church with a 10,000-seat arena — is expected to be the largest.
Crowds of attendees waited in long lines outside the church as television screens played excerpts of some of Jackson’s most famous speeches. Inside, vendors sold pins with his 1984 presidential slogan and hoodies with his “I Am Somebody” mantra.
Along with a slew of Illinois elected leaders, notable attendees included actor and producer Tyler Perry, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and political activist and theologian Cornel West. Detroit Pistons great and Chicago native Isiah Thomas was one of the speakers.
Marketing professional Chelsia Bryan said Friday that she decided to attend the memorial service because it was “a chance to be part of something historic.”
“As a Black woman, knowing that someone pretty much gave their life, dedicated their life to make sure I can do the things that I can do now, he’s worth honoring,” Bryan said.
Jackson died last month at age 84 after battling a rare neurological disorder that affected his mobility and ability to speak. Family members say he continued coming into the office until last year and communicated through hand signals. His final public appearances included the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
"Every single person in here has a Jesse Jackson story,” his eldest son, Jesse Jackson Jr., said Friday. “The time he shook your hand, the time he prayed for you, the time he held you up, the time he prayed the funeral for somebody you know ... and he prayed you to a new course of existence.”
Sitting in the crowd was 90-year-old Mary Lovett. She said Jackson’s advocacy inspired her many times, from when she moved from Mississippi to Chicago in the 1960s, taught elementary school and became a mom. She twice voted for Jackson during both of his presidential runs and appreciated how he always spoke up for underrepresented people. “He’s gone, but I hope his legacy lives,” she said. “I hope we can remember what he tried to teach us.”
Jackson's pursuits were countless, taking him to all corners of the globe: Advocating for the poor and underrepresented on issues including voting rights, health care, job opportunities and education. He scored diplomatic victories with world leaders, and through Rainbow PUSH Coalition, he channeled cries for Black pride and self-determination into corporate boardrooms, pressuring executives to make America a more open and equitable society.
Another son, Yusef Jackson, who runs the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, recalled how his father carried a well-worn Bible but also showed his faith by showing up to picket lines.
“He lived a revolutionary Christian faith rooted in justice, nonviolence and the moral righteousness,” Yusef Jackson said Friday. “He was deeply involved in the political struggles of his time, but his gift was that he could rise above them. It’s not about the left wing or the right wing. It takes two wings to fly. For him, the goal was always the moral center.”
Jackson’s services in Chicago and South Carolina drew civic leaders, school groups and everyday people who said they were touched by Jackson’s work, from scholarship programs to advocating for inmates. Several states flew flags at half-staff in his honor.
Services in Washington, D.C., were tabled after a request to allow Jackson to lie in honor in the United States Capitol rotunda was denied by House Speaker Mike Johnson, who said the space is typically reserved for select officials, including former presidents. Details on a future event have not been made public.
From left, former Vice President Kamala Harris, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President Bill Clinton, former President Barack Obama, former first lady Jill Biden, and former President Joe Biden attend the Public Homegoing Service for Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
Former President Barack Obama speaks during the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
A person stands during the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
From left, Former Vice President Kamala Harris, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President Bill Clinton, former President Barack Obama, Jill Biden, and former President Joe Biden attend the Public Homegoing Service for Reverend Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
People gather before the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
The casket with the Rev. Jesse Jackson arrives for the Public Homegoing Service at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
The casket with the Rev. Jesse Jackson is seen before the Public Homegoing Service at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
Veronica Edmonds waits on line to enter the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026.(AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
People stand on line before the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
Lisa Fields waits on line to enter the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
People stand on line to enter the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026.( (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
People stand on line to enter the Public Homegoing Service for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, Friday, March 6, 2026.((AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
People pay their respects to the Rev. Jesse Jackson inside the South Carolina Statehouse as he lies in state Monday, March 2, 2026, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley, Pool)
Santita Jackson, daughter of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, left, speaks at Brookland Baptist Church during a tribute service honoring her late father Monday, March 2, 2026, in West Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
The casket of the Rev. Jesse Jackson is carried to the South Carolina Statehouse, where he will lie in state, Monday, March 2, 2026, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley, Pool)
Rep. Jonathan Jackson, D-Ill., hugs a mourner at a public visitation for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters Friday, Feb. 27, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
Jacqueline Jackson, the wife of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, attends his public visitation at Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
