Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has denied reports claiming that the country apologized to Libya following the recent detention of the Super Eagles in Benghazi.
This clarification comes in response to a report by The Libya Observer, which on Tuesday falsely alleged that Nigeria had issued an apology for the incident.
In a statement on Wednesday by Tuggar’s Special Assistant on Media and Communication Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, the minister called the report a deliberate attempt to gain political advantage and mislead football authorities and fans across Africa.
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Tuggar clarified that the publication misrepresented a phone conversation between him and Libya’s Eastern-based Foreign Minister, Abdelhadi Lahweej.
Instead of apologizing, the Nigerian government expressed its displeasure over the treatment of its national team and demanded an immediate resolution to the situation.
“The fact of the matter was that the CDA of the Government of National Unity was summoned to the Ministry to seek an immediate end to the unfortunate incident.
“However, not much diplomatic headway was made during the meeting with the Acting Charge of Affairs, Imad Mohammed Matooq Aboud, as they insisted that it was not under the jurisdiction of Tripoli, which they represented, but that of the Eastern Government in Benghazi.
“This prompted the Minister to take immediate action by contacting the Foreign Minister of the Eastern Government, Abdelhadi Lahweej, to intervene and ensure that the detention ended,” the statement read
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Tuggar explained that he then reached out to the Eastern-based government in Benghazi for assistance. After negotiations, the required permits were secured, enabling the Super Eagles to depart from Libya and resolving the situation.
It added, “After that, the aircraft was given the necessary permits to fly, and aviation fuel was accessed. Both Ministers agreed that the matter should be de-escalated immediately. Even when Lahweej insisted on rehashing the untruth about the treatment of Libyan players in Nigeria, Amb Tuggar once again corrected the misinformation about the mistreatment of Libyan players during the Nigerian encounter.”
The minister dismissed the false accusations made by Lahweej regarding the alleged mistreatment of Libyan players in Nigeria, clarifying the situation but standing firm on not issuing an apology, as the claims were unfounded.
He further disclosed that although Lahweej proposed a joint statement on the issue, Nigeria declined, as it did not accurately reflect the facts of the incident.
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