Nigeria suicide bombings killed at least 23 people and wounded more than 100 others in Maiduguri, officials said Tuesday, as a Christian nonprofit leader warned the violence highlights ongoing religious persecution.

The Associated Press reported that one of the deadliest attacks on Maiduguri in recent history involved explosions in crowded areas on Monday night, including a major market in the capital of Borno state and the entrance to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.

Borno police spokesperson Nahum Kenneth Daso said in a statement that the wounded “sustained varying degrees of injuries,” blaming the attacks on suspected suicide bombers.

President Bola Tinubu, who departed Nigeria on Tuesday for a two-day state visit to the United Kingdom, offered condolences to the victims and instructed security chiefs to “take charge of the situation” in Maiduguri.

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“The Monday attacks were desperate acts of the evil-minded terrorist groups,” Tinubu said. “Our gallant military and civilian task forces will curtail and put them down.”

While no group has claimed responsibility, the AP reported suspicion has fallen on the Boko Haram jihadi group, which launched an insurgency in northeastern Nigeria in 2009 to enforce its radical interpretation of Shariah law.

Since launching its insurgency, Boko Haram has grown stronger, with thousands of fighters and multiple factions, some aligned with the Islamic State group.

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The explosions on Monday night began at about 7:30 p.m. at the entrance of the teaching hospital. A few minutes later, a second and third blast followed at the Monday Market and a nearby post office hub, both about 2.5 miles from the hospital.

Caleb Jonah, who survived the explosion at the hospital entrance, told the AP he suffered injuries to his legs and hands.

“I was coming to the hospital to check (in on) a patient when I saw two men struggling with the security men at the gate,” Jonah said. “Before I could process what was going on I heard the deafening blast and I passed out.”

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Brad Brandon, CEO and founder of Across Nigeria, said the attack was personal. His organization is committed to transforming Nigeria and the surrounding regions by sharing the love of God through Jesus Christ, according to the group’s website.

“As the CEO and founder of Across Nigeria, these recent attacks in Maiduguri are personal and a stark reminder that the devastating violence continues in northern Nigeria,” he said in a statement. “This is the result of radical Islamic groups that are allowed to operate unchecked. The only question is, how many more must be killed, before the world wakes up to the genocide that slaughters thousands of Christians every year.”

“We condemn these violent acts and the perpetrators who commit them,” he added. “We also call on the U.S. Government to intervene and the media to embrace their role in bringing light to the hidden things of darkness.”

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While Maiduguri has been at the center of deadly violence in Nigeria, it has experienced relative peace in recent years, even as extremists batter the countryside.

Monday’s attack took place less than 24 hours after the Nigerian military repelled attacks by militants outside Maiduguri.

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By Tuesday morning, heavy security had been deployed to the affected locations and along major roads.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Lainey Wilson opened up about the early days of her relationship, revealing she was so strapped for cash when she met her fiancé she had to ask her sister for help.

Wilson reflected on how far she’s come in a clip from her upcoming Netflix documentary, “Lainey Wilson: Keepin’ Country Cool.” The “Reminders of Him” star recalled being “so broke” when she first met her fiancé in 2021 that she turned to her sister for financial support.

After showing off a photo of herself and Devlin “Duck” Hodges on the night they met, Wilson said, “I was broke. I was so broke when we met.

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“And he thought I was doing a little bit better than I was,” she added. “But a few weeks after we met, my sister had to Venmo me a couple hundred bucks.”

Wilson’s temporary financial setback didn’t seem to deter Hodges, who saw breakthrough success that same year. Wilson and Hodges began dating after meeting and kept things private before making their debut as a couple at the 2023 ACM Awards. Hodges eventually proposed to Wilson in February 2025. The country music star later revealed she was surprised by the former NFL quarterback’s proposal.

“So, I had talked myself into thinking he was going to do it that day,” Wilson said, captured on video by News Channel 5 Nashville. “And then I called my sister. I said, ‘He’s going to propose to me today.’ And she was like, ‘I gotta go.’

“And then I talked myself out of it because I thought, ‘Man, I sure would be upset if I talked myself into this and that don’t happen.'”

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Hodges and Wilson had been planning to visit the George Jones estate, which had been listed by one of Hodges’ friends, a real estate agent. The two made a plan to stop by during the week after this year’s Super Bowl.

“And then, as we [pulled] up, I realized that there were different plans,” Wilson explained. “So, he had it all set up. He had the candles and the picture frames, and it could not have been more perfect.”

Months before their proposal, the “Heart Like a Truck” singer joked she might have to get down on one knee after Bunnie Xo said she hoped Wilson and Hodges get engaged in 2025.

“No pressure, brother! No pressure,” Wilson told Bunnie, who was interviewing the “Watermelon Moonshine” singer for CMT. “I might have to propose to him. We waiting!”

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Wilson seemingly always knew Hodges was the one for her and revealed she actually sent him engagement ring choices four years ago.

“Honestly, as a joke, right when we first started dating, because we knew pretty much immediately, we were like, ‘OK, we’re gonna be in each other’s lives.’ It just felt that natural. And as a joke, I had texted him some big rings, being like this is what I like. He was like, ‘Oh, Lord, I better start saving now,'” she recalled in the video captured by News Channel 5 Nashville.

“We’ve been together for four years. What he did is he went in and designed it and kind of put some of those rings together that I sent him. So, I’d have said yes if it was a tiny little thing. But he messed up.”

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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back Tuesday on “false claims” in the resignation letter of the nation’s top counterterrorism official, saying President Donald Trump had “strong and compelling evidence” that Iran was going to attack the United States first. 

Joe Kent wrote on X earlier this morning that, “After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.” Kent said he could not in “good conscience” support the ongoing war with Iran, claiming that “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.” 

“There are many false claims in this letter but let me address one specifically: that ‘Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation,” Leavitt responded. “This is the same false claim that Democrats and some in the liberal media have been repeating over and over.” 

“As President Trump has clearly and explicitly stated, he had strong and compelling evidence that Iran was going to attack the United States first,” she added.

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Leavitt said, “This evidence was compiled from many sources and factors,” and, “President Trump would never make the decision to deploy military assets against a foreign adversary in a vacuum.” 

The press secretary said Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism – a sentiment that House lawmakers agreed with earlier this month when they passed a resolution containing the same language. 

“The Iranian regime is evil. It proudly killed Americans, waged war against our country, and openly threatened us all the way up to the launch of Operation Epic Fury,” Leavitt continued. 

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“Iran was aggressively expanding their short-range ballistic missiles to combine with their naval assets to give themselves immunity – meaning they would have a degree of a capabilities that would give them immunity to hold us and the rest of the world hostage,” she added. “The regime aimed to use those ballistic missiles as a shield to continue achieving their ultimate goal – nuclear weapons.” 

Leavitt said the president “ultimately made the determination that a joint attack with Israel would greatly reduce the risk to American lives that would come from a first strike by the terrorist Iranian regime and address this imminent threat to America’s national security interests.” 

She also slammed the “absurd allegation that President Trump made this decision based on the influence of others, even foreign countries,” calling Kent’s claim “insulting and laughable.” 

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“President Trump has been remarkably consistent and has said for DECADES that Iran can NEVER possess a nuclear weapon,” Leavitt said. “As someone who actually witnesses President Trump’s decision-making process on a daily basis, I can attest to the fact that he is always looking to do what’s in the best interest of the United States of America — period. America First.” 

Council Secretary Bhagwati Singh has said that all necessary arrangements have been ensured to maintain fairness and transparency of evaluation. Evaluation will be conducted at 250 centers in the state from March 18 to April 1.

Answer sheets from 75 collection centers have been sent to the evaluation centres. Training has also been conducted for the teachers and employees appointed on Tuesday. 75 Chief Controllers and 250 Deputy Controllers have been appointed to conduct the evaluation work.

About 4300 auditors, 8550 sub-principal examiners and 83,800 examiners have been appointed to evaluate high school answer sheets. At the intermediate level, about 2590 auditors, 5300 sub-principal examiners and 48,990 examiners have been deployed.

The 2026–27 NFL season will reportedly begin on a Wednesday this year, with the usual Thursday game played in Melbourne, Australia.

Unlike the past two seasons, the league cannot schedule a game on the opening Friday of the season because it falls in the second week of September (not the first). The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 prohibits the NFL from broadcasting games from the second Friday in September until the second Saturday in December, protecting both high school and college football from professional competition. 

The Wednesday game will air on NBC, according to Joe Flint of The Wall Street Journal, featuring the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks. The Melbourne game will likely be part of a new four-game package the NFL is shopping to a streamer as a result of the league’s equity deal with ESPN.

The package is also expected to include an annual Wednesday game on the night before Thanksgiving. YouTube is believed to be the frontrunner for the new slate.

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But while Americans are reluctant to concede there is such a thing as – wait for it — too much football, we maintain that the NFL is diluting its product by further stretching out its national schedule.

The added windows have undermined the NFL’s tradition of a robust Sunday slate. Opening weekend is, put simply, not as strong when four teams have already played by Sunday morning. What’s more, 10 teams will have already played by the first Sunday after Thanksgiving.

With games on Wednesday and Thursday, there is simply less excitement for Sunday’s early, afternoon, and prime-time windows. By Monday, Americans will have already spent three to four days, including Saturday for college football, watching the sport.

Scarcity helped elevate football to America’s new pastime. The NFL is taking that away.

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As the Christmas Day slate last year proved, there are not enough compelling teams to expand the national schedule much further. Adding games on Wednesdays and Fridays only increases the likelihood of sloppy play, uneven rest between opponents, and injuries – all of which hurt the product last season.

International games also tend to be lower quality, as long travel and added obligations interfere with normal practice time. Consider how flat the Kansas City Chiefs looked opening weekend last year in Brazil against the Chargers. That was not a strong showcase for the league. 

Traveling back across the ocean also hinders preparation for the following week.

In theory, the NFL would schedule teams that open on Wednesday against teams that open on Thursday. But the league will likely prioritize scheduling the juiciest matchups instead, creating scenarios in which a team on 11 days of rest faces one on just seven.

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We understand these complaints fall on deaf ears. The NFL is the biggest brand in entertainment in the United States and sees growth potential in expanding internationally and adding more streaming partners. Still, the league ought to consider the toll that pursuing every available form of monetization has on the game itself.

The NFL is not as good as it used to be. There are too many games, windows, and networks involved. The product is undeniably diluted. And yet, the league plans to dilute it even further by adding Wednesday games to the schedule.

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