Controversial Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has alleged that some groups in Nigeria’s Middle Belt are staging fake mass burials by “burying empty coffins” to promote a false narrative of Christian genocide in the country.
Gumi made the claim in a post on his verified Facebook page while reacting to criticism over his ongoing stay in Turkey amid heightened global attention on the alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
The cleric’s remarks follow former U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent comments suggesting that Christians are being killed in Nigeria.
Quoting a message he claimed to have received from a doctor, Gumi wrote: “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 Kaduna-based preacher dismissed claims that he had fled the country to avoid possible U.S. military intervention, insisting his trip to Turkey was planned weeks before Trump’s statement.
“I got my Turkish visa on 16 October 2025, and Trump’s irresponsible tweet lying about ‘Christian genocide’ in Nigeria was on 1 November 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 wrote.
He further described the genocide allegations as a deliberate attempt to discredit Islam and attack the enforcement of Sharia law in northern 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 added.
The cleric also urged President Bola Tinubu to take diplomatic action against Trump, describing the former U.S. president’s statement as a “direct affront” to Nigeria’s sovereignty.
Gumi called on the federal government to summon the U.S. ambassador and demand an official retraction, warning that Nigeria should consider severing ties if the country fails to do so.
“President Tinubu should summon the U.S. ambassador; they either retract their threats or we sever diplomatic ties with this irresponsible regime,” he declared.
He added that Nigeria must diversify its foreign relations, noting that “the world is no longer unipolar” and that the country “has friends elsewhere who respect our sovereignty.”