How Isis Leader Got Nigeria Visa

Ahmad al-Assir

Wanted radical Muslim cleric, Ahmad al-Assir, got visa to visit Nigeria through the
normal application process, the Special Assistant to the President on Media, Alhaji Garba Shehu, told Journalist on Wednesday.

Al-Assir, who is linked with the terrorist group ISIS has been on the wanted list of many countries.

He was arrested‎ at the Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport early Saturday, August 15, 2015 in Lebanon. He had a fake Palestinian passport with a valid Nigerian Visa.

The Boko Haram claims to have become a part of the global terror group which has been brutally terrorizing Iraq, Syria and Libya in a bid to establish a caliphate, a philosophy espoused by the Nigerian insurgents.

President Muhammadu Buhari is reported to have already ordered ordered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to investigate the circumstances under which the wanted man got a valid Nigerian visa.

Alhaji Garba further revealed that preliminary investigations indicate that that al-Assir got the visa through a normal application.

He said: “Any claim linking the man to the Nigerian government must be regarded as born out of mischief. Our missions attend to all applications. Once an application meets the basic conditions, there is very little that the visa issuing officials can do, especially since he was using a false identity.”

The presidential spokesman added: “The government is awaiting the report of the investigation, but preliminary reports show that the applicant’s manifest documents raised no suspicion. There was nothing extra-ordinary about the application. If he had applied as a tourist or as an investor, there would be little for the visa officials to suspect that the applicant was a terrorist.