The U.S. military has sent MQ-9 Reaper drones to Nigeria, a U.S. defense official reportedly told The Associated Press, as fears are growing of a renewed insurgency by the terrorist group Boko Haram. 

The drones were deployed after 200 U.S. troops arrived in Nigeria last month to provide training and intelligence. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, is battling a complex security crisis, especially in the north of the country. 

A spokesperson for AFRICOM, the U.S. Africa Command, told the AP that U.S. troops “are working alongside their Nigerian counterparts to provide intelligence support, advisory assistance, and targeted training in support of the Nigerian Armed Forces.” 

Among the most prominent Islamic militant groups active in Nigeria are Boko Haram and its breakaway faction, which is affiliated with the Islamic State and is known as Islamic State West Africa Province, or ISWAP.  

NIGERIA SUICIDE BOMBINGS KILL AT LEAST 23 PEOPLE, WOUND MORE THAN 100 

There is also the ISIS-linked Lakurawa, as well as other “bandit” groups that specialize in kidnapping for ransom and illegal mining. 

The U.S. troops and the MQ-9 drones are based at Bauchi Airfield, a newly built airport in the northeast of the country, the spokesperson said to the AP. The number of drones deployed remains unclear. 

The deployment is part of a new security partnership agreed on after President Donald Trump sounded the alarm about Christians being slaughtered in Nigeria’s security crisis. 

The U.S. launched strikes against IS forces on Dec. 26 — the day after Christmas.

Earlier this month, three suspected suicide bombings killed at least 23 people and wounded 108 others in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state in northeastern Nigeria. No group claimed responsibility, but suspicion quickly fell on Boko Haram, which in 2009 launched an insurgency in northeastern Nigeria to enforce Sharia law.

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MQ-9 drones cost around $30 million apiece and have separate models for land and sea. They can also be used to carry out airstrikes, but AFRICOM says they will only be used in Nigeria for intelligence-gathering and training. 

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence says Boko Haram aims to “overthrow the current Nigerian Government and replace it with a regime based on Islamic law.” 

“The U.S. State Department designated Boko Haram a Foreign Terrorist Organization in November 2013,” it added. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

A Connecticut woman accused of holding her stepson as a prisoner in a “house of horrors” for two decades has been slapped with additional charges stemming from the alleged captivity. 

Kimberly Sullivan, 57, is facing two charges of first-degree kidnapping, along with charges of assault, intentional cruelty to persons and unlawful restraint, according to Court TV.

The charges are reportedly identical to those Sullivan initially faced last year, but have been updated to reflect new information surrounding the case. 

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“This wasn’t true then, it isn’t true now,” Sullivan’s attorney, Ionnis Kalodis, reportedly said.

Sullivan is accused of locking her stepson in a storage closet for at least 22 hours a day since he was 11 years old in March 1996, according to court records. The stepson, referred to as “S” in court documents, was 32 years old when Sullivan was arrested. 

A police affidavit revealed S told investigators he was fed only two sandwiches and one water bottle each day, and was provided with a second water bottle “for bathing.”

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In February 2025, S lit Sullivan’s Waterbury house on fire to escape captivity. He was just 68 pounds when firefighters pulled him from the burning building. 

Last year, Sullivan was granted access to her stepson’s new identity, medical records and current address after asking a judge to hand over the information, according to WFSB.

CONNECTICUT HOUSE OF HORRORS ESCAPEE’S BIRTH MOM SLAMS BAIL FOR ACCUSED STEPMOM

“The state’s position, stripped of its appeal to ‘victim’ protection, amounts to this: the accuser may assume a new identity, relocate to an undisclosed address, and the defendant charged with serious felonies arising from their decades-long relationship must be kept in the dark,” Kaloidis reportedly argued in the court filing.

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The move sent shockwaves throughout S’s family, with the victim’s biological mother blasting the request from Sullivan’s defense team.

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“If you look at any domestic violence situation, you’re not going to let the person who is being the evil person around the one who needs to be protected,” Tracy Vallerand told the New York Post. 

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“It’s appalling that they even had the audacity to request that.”

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Vallerand reportedly gave up custody of S decades ago, leaving the child with her ex, who died in 2024, and Sullivan. 

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Sullivan has pleaded guilty to all charges and remains free on $300,000 as she awaits trial.

Sullivan’s attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

Fox News Digital’s Peter D’Abrosca and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report. 

As the Senate weighs the new paths forward to end the 38-day government shutdown Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security is blasting Democrats for “the safety, dependability, and ease of our air travel at risk.”

The first spring travel weekend airport chaos has subsided in the Transportation Security Administration lines at some of the major hubs of Atlanta, House and New Orleans, but acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News that more than 3,200 TSA workers called out from their Monday shifts and more than 450 TSA officers have outright quit their jobs.

“Day 38 of the Democrats’ shutdown: American travelers are facing hours-long waits at airports across the country and more than 450 TSA officers quit and thousands have called out sick from work because they are not able to afford gas, childcare, food, or rent,” Bis said in a statement.

Notably, President Donald Trump’s move to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at the hardest-hit airports has been given credit to alleviating some of the TSA security delays that reached a reported high of nine hours in Atlanta.

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Fox News reporting on site noted security lines were minimal Tuesday at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, widely known as the busiest airport in the world. Also, video on social media hailed ICE agents in Houston passing out water to travelers waiting in still-long lines there.

“While the Democrats continue to put the safety, dependability, and ease of our air travel at risk, President Trump is taking action to deploy hundreds of ICE officers, that are currently funded by Congress, to airports being adversely impacted,” Bis’ statement added.

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“This will help bolster TSA efforts to keep our skies safe and minimize air travel disruptions.”

Some critics note Tuesday’s lighter security lines were due to lighter weekday travel versus the first Sunday of spring, famously a busy travel time due to spring break.

Sunday’s TSA officer callout rate peaked Sunday at its highest rate of the shutdown (11.6% nationwide), according to DHS data shared with Fox News.

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But callout rates are not equal nationwide, with Houston, Atlanta and New Orleans topping the DHS charts among the top 10 major airport callout rates.

The DHS funding remains under the pressure of a Democrat-forced government shutdown, the second in this fiscal year. Democrats have made Trump the most shutdown president of all time.

Trump has sent ICE officers to distressed airports, while negotiating a potential deal to fund DHS — even if it leaves out ICE funding as it is currently being weighed on Capitol Hill.