After spending 2 years on the run, Ahmad al-Assir, was arrested in Beirut despite 70s-style disguise. Now Pres. Buhari wants a full investigation into how he was granted Nigerian Visa in Lebanon. Ahmad al-Assir, wanted over
deadly clashes with the army, had shaved off his bushy beard, swapped his wire-rimmed spectacles for thick, plastic frames, and grown his hair into an unflattering combover. .
He was trying to fly to Nigeria via Cairo, on a fake Palestinian travel document that had a valid visa on Saturday. He rose to prominence in 2011 with the outbreak of Syria’s civil war. He urged his supporters to join Sunni militias operating in Syria and became an outspoken critic of the Shia Hezbollah movement. .
Clashes between his supporters and the army escalated in 2013, with an attack on a military checkpoint. The fighting, around Sidon, wounded dozens of civilians and paralyzed much of the coastal city. When the fighting was over, weapons including rocket launchers were found in Assir’s headquarters complex, which included a mosque, several office buildings and apartment blocks.
His arrest is a huge embarrassment to Nigeria. The embassy in Lebanon has been directed to furnish the ministry of foreign affairs with details of how he got the visa….. Ahmad said he was only coming to 9ja to link up n drink up wt Shekau n nothing more…..
