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Transition: Michelle Obama’s mother, Marian Robinson, dies at 86

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Marian Robinson, the mother of former US First Lady Michelle Obama, has died at 86, her family has announced.

In a statement, the Obamas said that Robinson had died “peacefully” on Friday morning.

Robinson was a well-known fixture at the White House during the eight years of Barack Obama’s administration between 2009 and 2017.

She spent much of that time taking care of her two granddaughters, Michelle and Barack Obama’s daughters Malia and Sasha.

In a statement posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Mrs Obama called Robinson her “rock, always there for whatever I needed”.

“She was the same steady backstop for our entire family, and we are heartbroken to share she passed away today,” she wrote.

In a separate tweet, Mr Obama said that “there was and will be only one Marian Robinson”.

“In our sadness, we are lifted up by the extraordinary gift of her life,” he added. “And we will spend the rest of ours trying to live up to her example.”

No further details were given about the cause of death.

Born in 1937, Robinson grew up one of seven children in Chicago, the city where she spent much of her life before agreeing to come to Washington DC after Mr Obama’s electoral victory.

Early in her life, she studied to become a teacher before working as a secretary. She raised Michelle and her other child, Craig, together with her husband Frasier Robinson on Chicago’s South Side.

“At every step, as our families went down paths none of us could have predicted, she remained our refuge from the storm,” the Obama statement said.

“On Election Night in 2008, when the news broke that Barack would soon shoulder the weight of the world, she was there, holding his hand.”

An image taken on the night in 2008 when her son-in-law made history as the nation’s first African-American president showed Robinson sitting on a sofa with him, watching the results come in.

The statement added that Robinson had agreed to move to the White House after a “healthy nudge” from Barack and Michelle Obama, who, along with their daughters, “needed her”.

It was said that she insisted on doing her own laundry there.

In a later interview with CBS, the BBC’s US partner, Robinson said she felt compelled to move to Washington because she felt “like this was going to be a very hard life” for her daughter and son-in-law.

“And I was worried about their safety,” she added. “I was worried about my grandkids. That’s what got me to move to DC.”

Robinson – whom Mr Obama once called “the least pretentious person” he knew – said that it was a “huge adjustment” to have her needs met by White House staff.

“Rather than hobnobbing with Oscar winners or Nobel laureates, she preferred spending her time upstairs with a TV tray, in the room outside her bedroom with big windows that looked out at the Washington Monument,” the family statement said.

“The only guest she made a point of asking to meet was the Pope,” it added.

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Kidnappers Took Loan With My Phone – Victim Recounts Ordeal

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A woman has shared a disturbing account of her abduction in Abuja, detailing how kidnappers allegedly exploited her personal information during captivity.

According to her, she was kidnapped while going home in a bus and kept blindfolded for two days as her captors demanded a ransom of ₦5 million from her family and friends.

She further alleged that while she was still in captivity, the abductors accessed her phone and used it to download a loan application.

With her ATM card and identification documents in her possession at the time, they reportedly secured a loan of ₦148,000 without her knowledge.

The victim said she remained unaware of the transaction throughout her ordeal, as she was blindfolded and focused on pleading for her life.

She revealed that when she later found out and wrote to the loan app, they insisted she must pay off the loan.

“I was kidnapped in a bus in Abuja. They blindfolded my eyes for two days. Even after asking for ransom of 5 million from my family and friends, they took a loan. They downloaded a loan app on my phone, and I always carry my ATM card and my ID cards in my bag, so they used it to up the loan app and took a loan of 148 thousand Naira. I didn’t even know about the loan all the time I was there cause I was blindfolded and just begging for my life….” she partly said.

 

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Man Ends His Marriage After Finding Photographs Of His Wife With Another Man While Browsing Google Maps

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A husband was left shocked and reportedly had to end his marriage after discovering photos of his wife with another man while using Google Maps.

The man was using Google Maps to plan a route before setting off on a journey when he noticed an image of his wife sitting on a bench, stroking the hair of another man whose head rested in her lap.

Captured by a Google camera vehicle in Lima, the Peruvian capital, the stunned husband said the photograph grabbed his attention because the woman pictured seemed to be wearing identical clothing to pieces his wife owned.

Although the photo dated back to 2013, the furious husband challenged his wife with proof of her previous betrayal.

The pair, whose identities remain anonymous, subsequently divorced after the woman confessed to having an affair.

In a twist of fate, she was photographed with her lover on a bench near the city’s Puente de los Suspiros de Barranco (Bridge of Sighs of the Ravine).

 

The husband recently posted the photographs on Facebook where they sparked considerable reaction amongst users.

One social media commenter, San Pateste, said: “What a small world it is… It would have been enough if she said to her husband that she did not love him any more.”

Guillermo Sanchez added: “Out of 100 women, 90 per cent are not loyal, the rest are loyal and only have one eye (hahaha) or are immortal (hahaha).”

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Explosion injures soldier, NSCDC personnel in Imo

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An Improvised Explosive Device, IED, explosion injured a soldier and a personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, NSCDC, in Orsu Local Government Area of Imo State.

A counter-insurgency and security expert in the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, made this disclosure on X.

Makama disclosed that the incident occurred at about 8:35am on March 18 during a joint operation by troops of 34 Artillery Brigade in the Orsu general area.

According to the source, the personnel were operating around a suspected hideout of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network, ESN, when they stepped on a concealed pressure-activated IED.

It noted that the device detonated, leaving both operatives injured.

“They were immediately administered first aid and subsequently evacuated to a medical facility for further treatment.

“Operations are ongoing in the area to dismantle criminal hideouts and enhance safety,” the source said.

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