It’s not often that a soccer match can be encapsulated in just a single word.

But mention “Istanbul” and every fan in the world will know exactly which game you’re talking about.

On May 25, 2005, Liverpool and AC Milan contested the Champions League final at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium, which also hosts this year’s showpiece between Manchester City and Inter Milan.

That match 18 years ago would go down as one of the most memorable and iconic in sporting history, one which is still referred to by Liverpool fans as the ‘miracle of Istanbul.’

Leading 3-0 at half time thanks to Paolo Maldini’s opening-minute goal and a brace from Hernan Crespo, AC Milan already had one hand on the trophy when the teams returned to the dressing rooms.

What happened in the second half, however, made the 2005 Champions League final the mother of all “I was there” moments.

“It was incredible that we were 3-0 down against an Italian side at half time and we managed to win it at the end in the penalty shootout.”

What makes the events of that night all the more remarkable is that Liverpool’s comeback was completed almost as soon as it had started.

There were just seven minutes between Liverpool captain and talisman Steven Gerrard scoring Liverpool’s first and Xabi Alonso leveling the scores just after the hour mark, a thrilling, chaotic period in which the Reds seemingly did the impossible.

Rafael Benítez’s men emerged for the second half looking like an entirely different team, one full of belief that played with courage and purpose. But what sparked this sudden turnaround?

“I think the most asked question is: ‘What happened at half time?’” Hyypia said. “I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve explained what happened. It was very quiet at first and we heard the crowd singing ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ outside and that’s incredible.

“Your team is 3-0 down and the crowd is singing for the whole of halftime and maybe that gave us a little bit of strength, but then Rafa Benítez was quite calm and he just said: ‘Look, boys, it can’t continue like this. We have to give the fans something to cheer about in the second half, many of them have traveled a long way – even in cars to Istanbul to support us.

“I wouldn’t think that he expected for that to happen, what then happened.”

Even after Gerrard scored the first – a looping header that he celebrated by frantically waving his arms and bellowing in an attempt to gee up his teammates – Hyypia said the team still didn’t quite believe they could mount a comeback.

But when Vladimír Šmicer’s sweet strike made it 3-2 just two minutes later, Hyypia said everything changed.

“I think the second goal was the turning point when we started to have belief that we can come back,” the Finnish defender recalled.

“The third one came quite quickly after that and I think it was a bit of shock for Milan that we came back to 3-3 and then they started to play again and it went a bit more even again.

“They had a great chance that Jerzy [Dudek] saved in extra time, the double save from [Andriy] Shevchenko, which was an incredible double save from Jerzy and of course he was the hero then in the penalty shootout as well.”

Indeed, that truly incredible double save from Liverpool’s Polish goalkeeper was as important as any of the team’s three goals.

Even today, the second of Dudek’s saves to deny Shevchenko in the dying minutes of extra time still seems almost physically impossible – a touch off the glove from point-blank range that somehow diverted the ball over the crossbar.

Without that save, then Dudek’s famous “wobbly legs” that helped to win the penalty shootout and Liverpool’s comeback would forgotten; “Istanbul” would likely never have become part of soccer’s lexicon.

For Hyypia, these moments just made the occasion all the more remarkable.

“Every footballer in the world would like to win the Champions League once and that night I managed to win it and nobody has taken that from me,” Hyypia said. “It’s in the history books and I think that’s the biggest thing you can win in club competitions.

“We managed to win it then and I’m happy for that and I thank all of my teammates and the people who helped us on the way to the final and to win it.”

The night was also an unforgettable one for AC Milan and its fans, but for all the wrong reasons.

At halftime, the supporters in the stadium and back home in Milan would have been forgiven for starting their celebrations early. The 3-0 lead was a deserved one which reflected the gulf in class between the two teams.

Legendary Brazilian goalkeeper Dida played for AC Milan that night and did everything in his power to maintain his team’s lead, saving Xabi Alonso’s penalty in the second half, but he was beaten to the rebound by the Spaniard.

Even 15 years after that night, Dida admitted he still plays that final over in his head and wonders how his team squandered a seemingly unassailable lead.

“So that image, I believe, will remain in everyone’s heads. The cup [we thought] was practically ours, but football is this way, it’s beautiful because until the referee ends the game, anything can happen.”

AC Milan did get its revenge two years later, beating Liverpool 2-1 in the final, a game that Dida said helped to ease the pain of Istanbul.

“Obviously talking about 2007 is much nicer,” he said. “We’re a lot happier, especially because we won.

“It was proof that we could have done the same thing two years before, but time has passed and we must try and forget about the match we lost and focus more on the one we won.”

If Saturday’s contest between Man City and Inter is half as thrilling as the 2005 final, then fans are in for another special occasion.

Together, they conquered tennis. Now, Serena and Venus Williams are turning their talents to golf.

A head-spinning week of revelations in the golf world continued Thursday as the Williams sisters’ Los Angeles Golf Club (LAGC) were announced as the first franchise of the TGL – Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s tech-infused stadium golf competition set to launch in January 2024.

LAGC’s ownership group will be formed of the two sisters and Serena’s husband Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit, a statement from Ohanian and TGL CEO Mike McCarley said.

It will mark the second Los Angeles sports franchise owned by Ohanian, who is the principal owner and founding investor of National Women’s Soccer League franchise Angel City FC.

LAGC is the first of six franchises set to compete in the TGL, a competition formed in partnership with the PGA Tour.

On Twitter, Ohanian announced that his and Williams’ daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., would be a co-owner in LAGC.

With Olympia also among the ownership group for Angel City FC, Ohanian declared the five-year-old to be both “the youngest owner in professional sports” and “now the youngest 2-team owner in professional sports.”

After Williams confirmed she was pregnant with the couple’s second child in May, Ohanian added that Olympia’s future sibling would join her in LAGC ownership.

“To wit, my wife Serena and I are delighted that Olympia has taken a liking to golf, so I’m proud to announce that they’re both owners in this club as well – as is the little one on the way,” he said in a statement.

“This is another piece of the legacy I’m building with my family, and I hope LAGC can become a part of many other families’ lives too.”

The announcement arrives in the wake of the shock reconciliation between the PGA Tour and the Saudi-backed breakaway LIV Golf on Tuesday.

The two warring tours are set to unify with the DP World Tour under a new, yet to be named for-profit company, with all pending litigation mutually ended under the agreement.

What is the TGL?

First announced in August 2022, the TGL will see six teams of three PGA Tour players compete in front of a stadium crowd at a custom-built arena in Palm Beach, Florida.

The competition will follow a 15-game seasonal format, followed by semifinals and a championship match, and will be televised in a primetime slot on Monday nights.

The high-tech concept will see players hit shots on a virtual screen before moving to a “state-of-the-art short game complex” in the center of the stadium, according to a press release.

In a bid to attract a younger audience to golf and make the sport more appealing for spectators, every shot will be played within a two-hour window on the hybrid virtual course.

Twelve PGA Tour players have been confirmed to feature, including Woods, McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, and Collin Morikawa.

“We all know what it’s like to be in a football stadium or a basketball arena where you can watch every play, every minute of action unfold right in front of you,” said 15-time major champion Woods upon the announcement of the competition last year.

“It’s something that inherently isn’t possible in traditional golf – and an aspect of TGL that will set it apart and appeal to a new generation of fans.”

The Florida Panthers won the franchise’s first-ever Stanley Cup Final game, downing the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 in overtime to take Game 3 on Thursday.

In a dramatic comeback, Matthew Tkachuk leveled the score with time running out before Carter Verhaeghe scored an overtime winner to seal a historic day for the Panthers franchise.

The game got off to the best possible start for the Panthers in front of their home fans at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Florida.

Just over four minutes into the first period, Brandon Montour went top shelf on Knights goalie Adin Hill to get the scoring started early.

Panthers star Tkachuk then took a big hit by Vegas forward Keegan Kolesar. The 25-year-old headed to the locker room but was able to return in the second period.

Down 1-0 in the closing minutes of the first period, Knights captain Mark Stone scored on the power play to tie the game at one.

With five minutes to go in the second period, Knights forward Jonathan Marchessault ripped a one-timer past Panthers goalie and two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky. The goal gave Marchessault his 13th of the playoffs, tying Edmonton Oilers star Leon Draisitl for the lead.

Florida pulled Bobrovsky with just over two minutes to play in the game and down one goal. Tkachuk then got the loose puck in front of the Vegas crease and found the back of the net to tie things up and send Game 3 to overtime.

The home crowd came alive as the Panthers found new life heading into the overtime period.

After killing off a power play to start overtime, Panthers’ Verhaeghe completed the comeback and scored the winner to cut the series deficit to 2-1 for Florida.

“I mean, they all counted us out before the Final even started,” a defiant Tkachuk said postgame, per ESPN. “We’re that type of team where we know what the end goal [is]. We don’t know how we’re going to get there, but we’re going to do everything we can to get there.”

The Panthers are now an incredible 7-0 in overtime in the playoffs this year.

Game 4 is scheduled for Saturday in Florida with the Panthers looking to tie the series at home.

This year’s Belmont Stakes is under threat as wildfire smoke originating from Canada continues to spread across the US.

The iconic race is due to be held on Saturday in Elmont, New York but the event has already been impacted by the poor air quality.

The New York Racing Association (NYRA) postponed Thursday’s schedule at Belmont Park and said racing would only be authorised if conditions improved.

“Safety is paramount as we navigate this unprecedented situation,” said NYRA President and CEO David O’Rourke in a statement.

“NYRA will actively monitor all available data and weather information as we work toward the resumption of training and racing.

“Based on current forecast models and consultation with our external weather services, we remain optimistic that we will see an improvement in air quality on Friday.”

Millions across the US and Canada remain at risk of inhaling potentially harmful air as wildfire smoke continues to wreak havoc. Parts of the East Coast are expected to continue to suffer poor air quality until at least the weekend.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) – one of the largest animal rights organizations in the world – called for the race to be postponed earlier this week “due to smoke and the dangerous particulate level.”

“If the air in New York is unsafe for humans, it will be worse for horses running at top speed,” PETA said in a statement.

“The safety of the horses must come before profit and tradition, even if it means postponing the Belmont Stakes.”

Horse safety

New York’s governor Kathy Hochul told reporters that the race could be cancelled if the air quality index exceeds 200.

It was explained that if the air quality index was between 150-200, only horses that have passed a medical examination would be permitted to race.

“People come from all over the country. It’s huge for the local economy. And so we can hopefully can get this going,” Hochul said.

“But there’s no assurance of what the weather’s going to be. So it’s going to be a last-minute decision, I’m sure.”

Should the event go ahead as planned, all eyes will be on Belmont Park for the final leg of the coveted Triple Crown – a series which includes the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

This year’s races have already been marred by multiple horse deaths and questions about animal welfare in the sport but there are still nine horses set to compete for the prestigious prize.

How to watch

The Belmont Stakes will take place on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York.

For the first time, Fox will broadcast all of Saturday’s races instead of its usual home on NBC.

The big race will start at 7.02 p.m. ET.

The lineup and odds

The odds are from the Belmont Stakes official website and are correct as of June 9 at 7 a.m ET

Tapit Shoes: 20-1

Tapit Trice: 3-1

Arcangelo: 8-1

National Treasure: 5-1

Il Miracolo: 30-1

Forte: 5-2

Hit Show: 10-1

Angel of Empire: 7-2

Red Route One: 15-1

Ones to watch

The Belmont will offer an opportunity of redemption for Forte, who was scratched from this year’s Kentucky Derby at the last minute.

The horse was forced to miss the first leg of the Triple Crown by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission state veterinarian due to a bruised right front foot but he heads into the Belmont as the heavy favourite.

His biggest competition will likely come from the likes of Tapit Trice, Angel of Empire and Bob Baffert’s National Treasure – which won the Preakness Stakes last month.

The win made Baffert the winningest trainer in Preakness Stakes history, having now had eight horses win the race.

Air quality conditions over much of the eastern US are forecast to slowly improve this weekend after plumes of harmful air from hundreds of wildfires in Canada traveled south, but schools in some metro areas will undergo remote learning Friday as officials remain on guard about pollution exposure.

While the most severe conditions have passed for most in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, potentially harmful air pollutants over cities including New York, Philadelphia and Washington, DC, are forecast to linger Friday before the areas slowly clear over the next several days.

“Smoke from Canadian wildfires continues to be transported south by winds into the U.S. resulting in moderate to unhealthy air quality across parts of the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Ohio Valley, and Midwest on Friday. Some improvement is expected this weekend,” the National Weather Service said.

The dense clouds of smoke have postponed professional sports games, grounded flights due to poor visibility, shuttered zoos and beaches as well as forced many to mask up when outdoors. Climate experts have warned such events are becoming more frequent due to human-induced climate change.

About 50 million people across several Midwest and East Coast states were under air quality alerts, but that number can change Friday as conditions improve for some.

Here’s what to expect Friday:

The wildfire smoke from more than 400 blazes in Quebec has stopped wafting south after several days of movement, eventually reaching and wrapping parts of the Atlantic seaboard in an orange cloudy haze. In Quebec, smoke from wildfires across the region has been significantly reduced.

Early Friday, New York City’s air quality index was below 150, a designation considered “unhealthy for sensitive groups”, or a level 3 of 6, according to the monitoring website AirNow.

Philadelphia’s air quality index exceeded 150 early Friday, making it “unhealthy.” The city’s air is expected to improve slightly to “unhealthy for sensitive groups” later Friday.

Notably, though, improvements are occurring slowly with only light winds and little change to the current weather pattern, which will keep the smoke trapped closer to the ground until it slowly dissipates.

As of 2 a.m. ET Friday, several metro areas still had “unhealthy” levels of air quality, including Dover, Delaware; Richmond, Virginia; Atlantic City, New Jersey; and Raleigh, North Carolina.

But officials warn that such routine-altering weather events are more likely to continue disrupting daily life as the planet warms, creating the ideal environment for more severe and frequent wildfires. When those flames burn, the smoke can travel thousands of miles, which puts millions more people in harm’s way.

Wildfire smoke is particularly dangerous because it contains tiny particulate matter, or PM2.5 – the tiniest of pollutants. When inhaled, it can move deep into lung tissue and enter the bloodstream. It comes from sources including the combustion of fossil fuels, dust storms and wildfires, and such smoke has been linked to several health complications including asthma, heart disease and other respiratory illnesses.

Due to those possible dangers, US President Joe Biden on Thursday said it’s “very important” that communities experiencing air pollution heed local guidance and check on their neighbors.

Dr. Peter DeCarlo, an associate professor in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, urged people to closely monitor the air quality in their vicinities and limit time outdoors.

“For this week, this is just a situation where we’ve got a few days of pretty poor air quality. … It’s the beginning of summer for many of us who are parents, and maybe we can use it as an opportunity not to run around as much until this poor air quality passes,” DeCarlo said.

For many people, getting the chance to witness some of the world’s most iconic wildlife up close and in their natural environment is high on the bucket list. If you’re lucky, and your hands are steady in the moment, you might even capture the perfect photo and a vacation memory to last a lifetime.

Chris Fallows, world-renowned South African wildlife photographer, knows just how exhilarating this kind of experience can be. He’s lived it over and over.

Fans of “Shark Week” have likely seen Fallows’ work; he was the first to capture a great white shark breaching the waters near Seal Island, off the coast of Cape Town, in 1996. His extensive body of work has since appeared in more than 60 international documentaries and over 500 publications. For Fallows, though, taking a photograph is about more than capturing a great image. It’s about telling a unique story and sharing a passion with the world.

As a dedicated shark conservationist, he and his wife are educating people about this often-misunderstood predator. But his efforts don’t stop there – Fallows fights for all wildlife and hopes that through his lens, he can create awareness and effect change for many animals that Fallows says he’s seen disappearing in what amounts to an “evolutionary blink of an eye.”

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Chris Fallows: I was exposed to wildlife as a very young boy. Through that exposure, I became incredibly passionate about these animals. I was very fortunate to be able to discover some pretty unique behavior at Seal Island and False Bay, and that was of the flying great white shark. I certainly saw a great niche and opportunity for me as a photographer, and I started trying to capture this incredibly athletic great white shark’s behavior, which opened unprecedented doors for me throughout the world.

Fallows: Wildlife photography is an incredibly glamorous, gratifying occupation. However, it also involves a tremendous amount of hard work. The more depth you study your subjects, the more connected you become with them, the more emotionally attached you become.

Each year for the past five years, I have spent wild camping with my wife Monique and members of one of Kenya’s Maasai tribes, where we live with the Maasai embracing their culture and then going out with them to find and photograph the last of the 30 great “tuskers” [African elephants whose tusks grow so long they can touch the ground] left in Africa today. This is just one example of the incredible stories that give an extra dimension to the photographs I capture, using innovative techniques and a lifetime of getting to know the subjects that allow me to get respectfully and intimately close to lions, elephants and great white sharks, to name a few.

And I guess one of the biggest challenges is balancing trying to get photographs and at the same time remaining unemotionally attached. So, while still always in the back of your mind knowing the very importance of what you are doing, you are ultimately exposing these animals for people all around the world to see, appreciate, and hopefully become ambassadors for the future of conservation.

Fallows: My advice to any young person starting out on a photographic career is it’s really most important to follow your passion – whether it’s photographing flowers, insects, snakes or sharks – really focus on that which you’re most passionate about because passion ultimately fuels you every morning and makes you get up, makes you want to be out there.

And then really, follow your heart, follow the course that you’ve chosen, and success will generally come with that. I really believe that as photographers, we, those of us who photograph wildlife, we’ve got a very important duty, and that’s to showcase these animals not only for their beauty but also for the threat they face. It really is our privilege to be out there in the field.

Fallows: Well, it’s been a long journey for me as a wildlife photographer spanning nearly 30 years, from that initial discovery of those flying sharks. The journey has led me to a point where I really want to give back. So, with the proceeds of our fine artwork, my wife and I want to buy large tracts of land in Southern Africa to be rehabilitated and rewilded as our legacy to hopefully leaving this planet in a better way than that which we came into it.

For us, it’s been a journey to a point where hopefully, at the end of the day, our artwork that sits on people’s walls and offices and exhibitions around the world will be, most importantly, a way to give back to the very animals that gave us the privilege to see them in the first place.

High heels no more: Australian airline Qantas has just released new guidelines for its employees regarding grooming and uniform styling.

From now on, staff – including cabin crew members – can have long hair (provided it’s worn in a low bun or ponytail), wear makeup or not wear makeup as they choose, wear glasses instead of contact lenses (provided they have clear lenses) and sport flat shoes.

“The update doesn’t change our uniform but modernizes the way employees wear it in line with employee feedback and evolving customer expectations,” a rep from Qantas said in a statement.

The guidelines also apply to the company’s low-cost airline Jetstar.

Before this, there were separate regulations for male and female employees. Now there is one set of requirements for everyone.

“Our uniforms are a symbol of our iconic brand and our people are very proud to wear them. Fashions change, and so have our style guidelines over the years,” the company said in a statement. “We’re proud of our diversity and as well as bringing our guidelines up to date, these changes will make wearing our uniform more comfortable and practical for all of our people, including those with a wide range of body types and those from diverse cultural backgrounds.”

There are still some things that won’t change, though. Crew members who opt to wear dresses or skirts will be required to wear hosiery. And while it’s okay for crew members to have tattoos, they must cover up their ink while working.

Flying fashion forward

Qantas is one of several airlines that have opted to reconsider their employee dress codes in recent years.

Virgin Atlantic dropped male- and female-specific guidelines last year when debuting gender-neutral uniforms designed by Vivienne Westwood.

The uniforms were intended to let employees “embrace their individuality and be their true selves at work,” according to a statement from Virgin. The airline also introduced an option for crew members to include their pronouns on their name tags.

In 2022, British Airways announced it would allow all cabin crew members to sport makeup, face stubble, piercings, jewelry and nail polish alongside their uniforms.

Think you always get the bad seat when taking a flight? Then spare a thought for Lee Yoon-jun.

The passenger he was seated beside on a recent Asiana Airlines flight allegedly opened the plane’s emergency door – while it was still in the air.

“I just felt the horror of death. I thought, I’m going to die. This is it, this is the end for me,” recalls Lee of his hair-raising experience on what was supposed to be a routine less-than-one-hour flight from Jeju to Daegu in South Korea last month.

“In disaster movies, everyone always seems to die when a door opens in the air. I wondered what I had done wrong in my life. It was just a fleeting moment, but I had so many thoughts,” he adds.

He’d been watching YouTube on his mobile phone when the door opened and an intense wind hit him, blowing away his hat and headphones and making it hard to breathe.

Looking up, he saw clouds where the emergency door should have been. The plane had been coming into land, but it was still 700 feet (213 meters) in the air.

To Lee, impending doom seemed certain.

Glancing across at the man sat next to him, Lee noticed that he “seemed tense” and both men were “trembling with fear.”

“When I looked down, I noticed his feet swaying in the wind,” Lee says.

Yet he did not know at this point that it was his neighbor who would later be held responsible.

Lee says he did not see the man open the door. At first he assumed there was a technical malfunction.

But once the plane’s wheels hit the ground, the man next to him appeared to try to jump from the still fast-moving plane. Lee assumed he was having a panic attack.

“While I was looking at the flight attendant, I heard the sound of someone next to me unlocking his seatbelt, I realized this person was leaning towards the emergency exit.”

Lee says he then subdued the man, helped by other passengers, as the flight attendant called for help.

It was only later that Lee realized what had really been happening.

After the plane arrived at the airport, police arrested a man in his 30s on suspicion of violating aviation security laws.

Police, who described the man as being in a bad mental state, said he told them he had felt suffocated and wanted to get off the plane quickly.

Lee says, looking back, he had actually felt uncomfortable sitting next to him throughout the flight. “From the moment he boarded the plane, he looked pale and gave off a bad vibe. He seemed somewhat dark, constantly fidgeting, looking around at people and acting strangely.”

Of the 200 passengers the plane was carrying, none were seriously injured – though nine suffered from hyperventilation, a relatively benign outcome given the severity of the situation.

Investigations into the incident are continuing, according to Asiana Airlines, not least into how the man was even able to open the door while the plane was still in flight.

Airbus, the manufacturer of the plane, said in a statement at the time, “We are looking into the circumstances of this incident. Aircraft doors can usually only be opened upon touchdown.”

Lee says he hasn’t heard from Asiana Airlines since the incident.

But he feels he has been given a second chance at life.

“It feels like I’ve been born again, I’m just trying to have more fun and live more interestingly. I’m enjoying it,” he says. Lee says he’s also enjoying being thought of as a hero for stopping the passenger jumping from the plane.

“I suddenly became a temporary celebrity. Whenever I’m with my friends, I jokingly refer to myself as a celebrity,” Lee says.

The intelligence unit of the provincial police department said they are still investigating the matter, according to Rahmani, who said he spoke to police directly. So far officials are unclear on the culprit, the motive, and the potential type of poison possibly used against the school children, he added.

The investigation was prompted by accounts of 17 female students in one school on Saturday, and a day later, 60 others, mostly girls, at another school in a nearby village, Rahmani said.

“After reaching school in the morning, the students suddenly started feeling dizzy, headache, and nausea,” Rahmani said. The students were admitted to a local hospital, but 14 whose situation was more critical were transported to a hospital in the provincial capital, according to Rahmani.

The doctor spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing safety concerns.

The education of girls has become a divisive issue in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover of the country in 2021, where the group proceeded to strip away hard won freedoms for women and exclude them from public life.

Some of its most striking restrictions have been around education, with girls barred from returning to secondary schools and universities, depriving an entire generation of academic opportunities.

Following international pressure, the Taliban kept primary schools open for girls until around the age of 12, Reuters reported.

Several poisoning attacks against schoolgirls took place during Afghanistan’s previous foreign-backed government. In 2012, more than 170 women and girls were hospitalized after drinking apparently poisoned well water at a school. Local health officials blamed the acts on extremists opposed to women’s education.

Gunmen in Nigeria have killed dozens of people and kidnapped a number of children in separate attacks in two northern states, police and residents said on Sunday, the latest incidents in a region dogged by armed violence.

Armed gangs on motorbikes frequently take advantage of thinly stretched security forces in the region to kidnap villagers, motorists and students for ransom.

Residents said armed men had attacked Janbako and Sakkida villages in northwestern Zamfara state on Saturday, killing 24 people.

The gunmen also abducted several children who were collecting firewood in a forest in neighboring Gora village.

Hussaini Ahmadu and Abubakar Maradun, local residents in Janbako and Sakkida, told Reuters by phone that the gangs had earlier in the week demanded villagers pay a fee to enable them to farm their fields, but villagers did not do so.

Zamfara police spokesman Yazid Abubakar confirmed the attacks but said only 13 people had been reported killed and nine young boys and girls kidnapped.

In north central Benue state, gunmen killed 25 people and set their houses on fire during an attack on Saturday on the Imande Mbakange community, two residents said. The motive of the attack was not known.

Police did not immediately respond to requests for comment.