Indications have just emerged that President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered an investigation into how, Ahmad al-Assir, a wanted terrorist in Lebanon with links to Islamist terrorist group, ISIS was granted a visa to come to Nigeria on a fake Palestinian passport.
The story of Sheikh Assir’s arrest in Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport, early Saturday, August 15, 2015 was first reported in Nigerian media by The Trent.
An official of Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Ministry in Abuja, late Tuesday, August 18, 2015 confirmed that President Buhari has directed the ministry to investigate the circumstances surrounding the issuance of a visa to the wanted terrorist who has been on the wanted list of several governments.
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“The reported arrest of the wanted terrorist is a huge embarrassment to Nigeria and the President has directed that the matter should be investigated,” the ministry official told Vanguard on condition of anonymity. “The embassy in Lebanon has been directed to furnish the ministry with details of how the man got the visa. The National Intelligence Agency Officer has been directed to provide details of what happened”
The radical Muslim cleric, who was travelling with another man, was holding a fake passport in the name of Rami Abdul Rahman Taleb, while his companion was holding a passport in the name of Khaled Sidani. He was trying to flee Lebanon for Nigeria via Egypt with a fake Palestinian passport with a valid Nigerian Visa.
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Two Years A Fugitive
New face of IS linked fugitive cleric, Ahmad al-Assir who was en route Nigeria via Cairo. pic.twitter.com/eT45QGg5es
— Mr. Aye Dee (@MrAyeDee) August 16, 2015
Prior to his arrest, Sheikh Assir has been on the run for two years. He was declared wanted in Lebanon in 2013 when his followers clashed with the Lebanese army killing at least 18 soldiers.
The radical cleric was relatively unknown prior to the outbreak of the Syrian war in 2011. But, he quickly gained notoriety as a “a self-proclaimed defender of Sunni rights” due to his fiery anti-Hezbollah rhetoric. Hezbollah is Lebanon’s Shia movement which backs Syria’s President Assad. He had been recruiting his followers to join the Islamic State terrorist group (ISIS) in Syria fighting against Assad’s government.
Violence broke out in 2013 when one of Assir’s men was caught with unlicensed weapons in his car at a military checkpoint in Sidon, south of Beirut. In reaction, Assir’s followers opened fire on the soldiers manning the checkpoint sparking a two-day battle between his militants and the army.
According to reports, machine guns and rockets were used on the Lebanese troops by Assir’s men in fierce fighting which ended with at least 18 soldiers and 40 militants dead. Heavy weapons and military-style uniforms were discovered in Assir’s compound.
Assir is regarded as media savvy and is known for his publicity stunts.
Implications For Nigeria’s President Buhari
Alexander Mukhtar Dan’Iyan, the editor-in-chief of the 15Past8 Media Group based in New York City, who tweets via @MrAyeDee on Twitter, says that Assir is the ”unofficial de-facto Emir of ISIS in Lebanon”.
Ahmed al-Assir is the unofficial defacto IS Emir for Lebanon. Only reason he's unofficial is because Bay'ah has not been publicly accepted.
— Mr. Aye Dee (@MrAyeDee) August 16, 2015
The Trent raised serious questions for the Nigerian government because of the twin issues of Assir’s fugitive status and his links with ISIS.
How would a radical Muslim cleric, a fugitive linked to ISIS be granted a Nigerian visa on a fake Palestinian passport? What was Assir’s mission in Nigeria? Who are his contacts in Nigeria? Who was he communicating with in Nigeria? Where was he planning to stay in Nigeria? Most importantly, who granted his visa and based on what recommendations?
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The incursion of ISIS into a Boko Haram ravaged Nigeria gives Nigerian authorities more cause to worry as Boko Haram attacks continue to increase since President Muhammadu Buhari assumed office on May 29, 2015.
In March 2015, Richard Grenell, a former spokesman for four United States Ambassadors to the United Nations, raised an alarm about the dangers of a Buhari presidency for Nigeria and the whole of Africa.
In an article titled “Nigeria on the brink” which was published in the Washington Times, a US based publication, Grenell observed that the former military Head of State was working tirelessly to introduce the Sharia law across the country, which according to him would further pose a major challenge to the fight against terrorism in Nigeria and Africa in it’s entirety.
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According to Grenell, “Western foreign policy observers pre-occupied with the rise of ISIS in the Middle East should wake up to the reality unfolding in Nigeria. Opposition candidate General Buhari wants Sharia law throughout Nigeria. In fact, he wants it everywhere.
“Is this an indication that Buhari supports violence because the end goal of the terrorist attacks throughout Nigeria and Africa is an Islamic state? It is a legitimate question that should be asked by leaders of the Obama administration.
“Boko Haram has pledged its allegiance and support to ISIS. The Northern Nigerian based Islamic terrorist group wants Sharia law throughout the country and beyond. They are also actively terrorising Chad, Niger and Cameroon with their goal of an Islamic state.
“Buhari has also spoken sympathetically about members of the terrorist group Boko Haram, has cautioned against a rush to judgement on its members and has personally been selected by the terrorist group to lead its negotiations with the Government of Nigeria.
“Buhari’s election as Nigeria’s head of state would be a disaster for Africa. It would also signal trouble for the West’s fight against ISIS and terrorism throughout the Middle East.”
Additional reports by Yemi Adebowale
