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Facebook blocks terminally ill Frenchman from streaming his death
Facebook said Saturday it would block the live stream of a Frenchman suffering from an incurable condition who wanted to broadcast his death on the social media platform.
Earlier, Alain Cocq announced that he was now refusing all food, drink, and medicine after President Emmanuel Macron turned down his request for euthanasia.
Cocq, 57, who suffers from a rare condition that causes the walls of his arteries to stick together, said he believed he had less than a week to live and would broadcast his death from Saturday morning.
“The road to deliverance begins and believe me, I am happy,” he wrote on Facebook shortly after midnight in a post announcing he had “finished his last meal”.
“I know the days ahead are going to be difficult but I have made my decision and I am calm,” he added.
Facebook has been increasingly criticised over the way it polices the content it carries and said Saturday its rules did not allow it to portray suicide.
“Although we respect (Cocq’s) decision to want to draw attention to this complex question, following expert advice we have taken measures to prevent the live broadcast on Alain’s account,” a Facebook spokesman told AFP.
“Our rules do not allow us to show suicide attempts.”
– Calls on supporters –
Cocq had been trying to post another video earlier Saturday when he messaged: “Facebook is blocking my video broadcast until September 8.”
“It is up to you now,” he said in a message to supporters before giving out Facebook’s French address “so you can let them know what you think about their methods of restricting free speech”.
“There will be a back-up within 24 hours” to run the video, he added.
Cocq had written to Macron asking to be given a substance that would allow him to die in peace but the president wrote back to him explaining this was not allowed under French law.
Cocq has used his plight to draw attention to the situation of terminally ill patients in France who are unable to be allowed to die in line with their wishes.
“Because I am not above the law, I am not able to comply with your request,” Macron said in a letter to Cocq, which the patient published on his Facebook page.
“I cannot ask anyone to go beyond our current legal framework… Your wish is to request active assistance in dying which is not currently permitted in our country.”
– ‘With profound respect’ –
In order to show France the “agony” caused by the law in its current state, Cocq planned to broadcast the end of his life — which he believed would come in “four to five days” — on his Facebook page, he told AFP.
Cocq said he hoped his struggle would be remembered and “go down in the long term” as a step towards changing the law.
Macron said in his letter that “with emotion, I respect your action”.
The president added a handwritten postscript: “With all my personal support and profound respect.”
An official from the president’s office told AFP that Macron wanted to hail Cocq’s commitment to the rights of people with disabilities.
Right-to-die cases have long been an emotive issue in France.
Most polarising was the case of Vincent Lambert, who was left in a vegetative state after a traffic accident in 2008 and died in July last year after doctors removed life support following a long legal battle.
The case divided the country as well as Lambert’s own family, with his parents using every legal avenue to keep him alive but his wife and nephew insisting he must be allowed to die.
AFP
The Kano State House of Assembly has initiated impeachment proceedings against Deputy Governor Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo over allegations of gross misconduct, abuse of office, and breach of public trust.
The notice was presented yesterday during plenary by the Majority Leader, Lawan Hussaini Dala, who said the action follows Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Dala said the allegations stem from Abdussalam’s tenure as Commissioner for Local Government (2023–2024) and his current role as deputy governor. He accused the deputy governor of diverting funds meant for the 44 local government councils.
According to the majority leader, Abdussalam allegedly received N1.5 million monthly from each council between June 2023 and January 2024, totaling N462 million. Between February and July 2024, he allegedly collected N3.255 million monthly from each council under the guise of special assignments, amounting to N726 million.
Dala also accused the deputy governor of abuse of office, claiming he facilitated payments of N10 million from each council to NovoMed Pharmaceuticals Limited, totaling N440 million, in violation of state procurement laws.
“The misuse of official capacity to confer undue advantage constitutes abuse of power and undermines public trust,” Dala told lawmakers, adding that the allegations amount to gross misconduct under the Constitution.
The impeachment notice was reportedly endorsed by 38 lawmakers, meeting the constitutional threshold to proceed. The Speaker has acknowledged receipt, and the House is expected to serve the allegations on the deputy governor.
If approved, a panel may be constituted by the state Chief Judge to investigate the claims.
As of filing, Abdussalam had yet to respond publicly to the allegations.
The Senator representing Bayelsa West, Seriake Dickson, on Thursday announced his resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), declaring that he had joined the newly registered Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
Dickson, a former governor of Bayelsa State, made the announcement during a media briefing in Abuja, attributing his decision to what he described as irreconcilable differences within the PDP.
The lawmaker said the emergence of the NDC would strengthen Nigeria’s democratic system by providing a credible opposition platform.
According to him, the party recently received its certificate of registration from the Independent National Electoral Commission.
He said, “Last week INEC issued a certificate of registration and we now have the newest party in Nigeria known as the Nigeria Democratic Congress and our symbol is victory, the victory sign.
“So, my dear Nigerians, you now have a credible alternative opposition party known as the Nigeria Democratic Congress.”
Dickson noted that although the party’s registration took longer than expected, its eventual approval was a welcome development for the country’s democratic landscape.
“Yes, it is coming at this time. We would have wished it started some years or months back. We don’t control INEC and their processes; they delayed. We don’t also control the judiciary, but thank God it has finally arrived,” he said.
The senator also stressed that Nigeria’s democracy must not slide into a one-party system, insisting that political diversity remained vital for national stability.
“This nation cannot be a one-party state. Nigeria cannot be a one-party state. Nigeria is not designed to be a one-party state.
“We are a very diverse nation culturally, religiously and politically and that is the beauty of our country.
“So anyone or any party promoting one-party rule in Nigeria is mistaken. We build political parties and get involved in movements to access power for the good of the people, not for our personal benefit,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission recently announced the registration of two new political parties.
The parties are the Democratic Leadership Alliance and the Nigeria Democratic Congress, bringing the total number of registered political parties in Nigeria to 21.
The announcement was made by the INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, during the commission’s first quarterly consultative meeting with political party stakeholders for 2026.
According to him, the Democratic Leadership Alliance completed the required verification process, while the Nigeria Democratic Congress was registered in compliance with a Federal High Court order.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 58-year-old alleged drug lord, Uzoma Valentine Ilomuanya, who had reportedly been on the agency’s wanted list and that of British authorities for over 15 years.
Ilomuanya was apprehended in Lagos on Monday, February 23, 2026, following what the agency described as a high-level, coordinated operation by officers of its Special Operations Unit.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Director of Media and Advocacy of the agency, Femi Babafemi.
Babafemi said the suspect’s arrest ended a prolonged manhunt linked to his alleged involvement in drug trafficking activities across Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
According to the statement, Ilomuanya was first arrested in February 2003 in the United Kingdom and convicted for drug trafficking.
He was sentenced to nine years imprisonment but was released after serving two years following a successful appeal.
Babafemi added that the suspect was again arrested in the UK in July 2011 over drug-related offences.
He said, “He was granted administrative bail but jumped jurisdiction and fled to Nigeria.
“Typical of a recidivist, Ilomuanya was in November 2018 arrested in Nigeria by NDLEA operatives following the discovery of two clandestine methamphetamine laboratories in his Obinugwu, Orlu Local Government Area country home in Imo State and at his No. 3 Barrister Declan Uzoma Close, Lagos residence where officers recovered 77.960 kilograms of methamphetamine and extensive production equipment.
“He was subsequently charged before a Federal High Court in Lagos, after which he jumped court bail and has been on the run since then.”
Reacting to the development, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), described the arrest as a major breakthrough in the agency’s ongoing war against drug trafficking networks.
Marwa said the operation demonstrated the agency’s resolve to track down criminal elements regardless of how long they evade the law.
He said, “This arrest serves as a stern warning to those who think they can hide behind borders to escape justice.
“Whether you jump bail in London or set up clandestine labs in your village, the long arm of the NDLEA will eventually catch up with those who choose to undermine the health, security, and future of our nation.
“We remain committed to our international collaborations to ensure that Nigeria is not used as a sanctuary for global drug lords.”
Marwa also commended officers of the Special Operations Unit for their professionalism and persistence in tracking down the suspect.
He added that the agency would continue to strengthen intelligence-driven operations and international cooperation to dismantle drug trafficking networks operating within and beyond Nigeria.
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