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Controversial Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has alleged that some groups in Nigeria’s Middle Belt have been “burying empty coffins” to falsely portray mass killings of Christians and promote what he described as a “fake narrative” of genocide.
Gumi made the claim in a post on his verified Facebook page while reacting to criticisms that trailed his ongoing stay in Turkey.
This is amid fears of possible U.S. military intervention in Nigeria following former President Donald Trump’s remarks about alleged persecution of Christians.
He wrote, “A Doctor wrote me: Do you know that some Middle Belt Christian groups are now staging fake mass killings? They are burying empty coffins and recording the process as if real victims were killed, just to push the narrative of a Christian genocide. This is desperation at its peak. A disgrace. Manipulating information just to provoke hatred and international sympathy?”
The cleric, who has continued to grant interviews from Turkey, dismissed suggestions that he fled the country to avoid potential U.S. attacks, saying his trip had been scheduled before Trump’s statement.
“I got my Turkish visa on the 16th October 2025, and Trump’s irresponsible tweet lying about ‘Christian genocide’ in Nigeria was on the 1st Nov. 2025. Yet, because of melancholy, they concoct lies and believe them. Trump has no power over us; it’s just your sick mind bowing down to him in worship,” Gumi stated.
In another post, he described the allegations of “Christian genocide” as a deliberate attempt to malign Islam and the enforcement of Sharia law in Nigeria. “After the fog has cleared. The alleged ‘Christian genocide’ in Nigeria is all about a well-drawn-out plan to attack the Shariah Law and Islamophobia,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, Gumi has also called on President Bola Tinubu to take diplomatic action against Trump for what he termed a “direct affront” to Nigeria’s sovereignty.
“For Trump to threaten a sovereign country with military attack is a profound disrespect to our authority, but we can rise above it,” Gumi said, urging the Federal Government to summon the U.S. ambassador and demand an official retraction.
He added, “President Tinubu should summon the US ambassador; they either retract their threats or we sever diplomatic ties with this irresponsible regime.”
Gumi further emphasised that Nigeria should diversify its international alliances, noting that “the world is no longer unipolar” and that the country “has friends elsewhere who respect our sovereignty.”
