Renowned Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has formally denied viral social media claims that he was targeted for assassination by the United States during recent airstrikes against terrorists in Sokoto State, stressing that the reports circulating online are false and misleading.
In a statement posted on his official Facebook page on Sunday, the Kaduna-based cleric clarified that the footage and comments being shared widely online were taken out of context and stemmed from a much older statement referring to a 2012 threat against his life by members of the Boko Haram insurgent group, not any current or recent military operation.
Gumi emphasised that his life is not under threat today, and that he is safe at home with his family. He urged media organisations that published the misleading reports to retract them publicly and issue apologies for spreading misinformation.
“There is fake news going viral now that wrongly claims that I said I was targeted by the US attack on Nigerian soil, or something to that effect,” he wrote. “I never said so, and I also never thought of such a possibility. I am comfortably staying in my home with my family without fear, intimidation, or apprehension.”
According to Gumi, the origin of the misunderstanding was a lecture he once delivered at a mosque in which he recounted a 2012 incident. During that earlier episode, he said, two individuals allegedly sent to eliminate him were themselves killed when an explosive device detonated near his residence, an event he attributed to divine intervention.
“I believe the source of misinterpretation was a lecture I gave in the mosque on how, in August 2012, I was told that Boko Haram had targeted me for elimination,” he explained. “The two people who came to execute the plan were killed instantly when the bomb detonated in their hands near my house.”
Gumi reiterated that the recent claims linking his name to the US-led airstrikes were incorrect, saying clearly that he never suggested that foreign forces were targeting him. He stressed that the viral narrative does not reflect his words or his current reality.
“What I said was not now, what I am seeing online is not what I said. I didn’t say anyone wanted to eliminate me presently. I am a peaceful person and I am living peacefully and my life is not in danger presently, there is no threat to my life.”
The cleric’s statement comes amid heightened social media activity around recent US airstrikes in Sokoto State, where American military involvement in operations against the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has drawn intense public attention. While Gumi has voiced criticism of foreign military interventions in Nigeria in other contexts, his latest clarification was focused squarely on dispelling the specific misinformation about a plot on his life connected to those strikes.
He urged journalists and content creators to verify facts before publishing reports that could mislead the public or stoke unnecessary anxiety, reinforcing that accurate context is crucial in discussions of security and national affairs.
