Nigeria Claims Discovery of Hizbullah Cell
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Nigeria's security services said Thursday they had discovered a home in the northern city of Kano where Lebanese nationals had stored weapons intended to attack Israeli and Western targets in Nigeria.
The Kano state director for Nigeria's main intelligence branch, the Department of State Security (DSS), told journalists the compound's owner had ties to Hizbullah and that the home had harbored a Hizbullah "cell".
But the official, Bassey Etang, offered no evidence to support this claim.
Journalists were brought to the home in the upmarket Bompai neighborhood of Kano and taken to a bunker dug beneath a bedroom where weapons had allegedly been stored.
The stash included some 30 grenades, Kalashnikov assault rifles, ammunition and various explosive materials.
Etang, the director of the DSS in Kano, said three Lebanese nationals had been arrested in connection with the illegal arms cache, while a fourth suspect was at large.
"This is the handiwork of Hizbullah. What has just been discovered is the cell of Hizbullah and what you have seen here is a Hizbullah armory," Etang told reporters.
"These weapons are meant to be used to target Israeli and Western interests in Nigeria."
Nigeria is confronting an insurgency waged by radical Islamist group Boko Haram that has left thousands dead since 2009.
"Investigations are still ongoing to determine" if the Lebanese nationals "are really connected to Boko Haram," the intelligence chief said.
Analysts see Boko Haram primarily as a domestic group that has possibly sought closer ties to al-Qaida's west Africa franchise.
The military statement said that one suspect, Mustafa Fawaz, was arrested on May 16, and his "confession unveiled other members of the foreign terrorists network."
A second suspect, Abdullah Tahini, was arrested several days later while trying to board a flight to Beirut from the Kano airport, according to the military.
The third detained Lebanese national, Talal Roda, was arrested at the Kano home on May 26 while Fauzi Fawad was identified as the suspect who is at-large.
Mustafa Fawaz, reportedly owns a leading supermarket as well as an amusement park in the capital Abuja called Wonderland.
An employee who answered a call to a number listed for Wonderland told AFP that Fawaz had not been in the office this week.
Nigeria is home to a sizeable Lebanese population, including in the mainly Muslim north.
In February, the DSS said it had discovered a militant cell receiving instructions from Iranian agents that had sought to attack Israeli and Western targets in Nigeria.
DSS National spokesman Marilyn Ogar said at the time the group also planned to assassinate Nigeria's former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida.
Reacting to the latest claims, a security official in Israel said Nigeria was a "destination state for Shiite terror and global Jihad groups, which are boosting their efforts in Africa as part of international terror efforts."
"The cell exposed and arrested is part of a Shiite terror campaign against Western and Israeli targets around the world which has been taking place for a number of years," the official said.
"The possibility that members of the cell acted under Hizbullah's orders in other African states, such as Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Benin and Ghana is also being examined," he added on condition of anonymity.
30 May 2013, 18:56
49
Excellent!
!
now Nigeria?
hizbushaitan is just one terrorist organization.
30 May 2013, 19:06
410
Very soon, Lebanese will be despised and unwanted everywhere. Good job!
30 May 2013, 20:54
17
Josh for god sake it is not about Shia or Sunni it is about organization that foster terrorism what ever the sect. All form of terrorism should be condemned whether it comes from Sunni extremist organizational Shia such as Hizbullah etc...
30 May 2013, 21:06
11
it is either this nigerian official is an idiot who feels like talking nonsense out of his ignorance,as even high ranking officials in nigeria are semi-literate and uninformed,or he has been bribed by the israeli mossad which uses nigeria as a free playing field for weapons and conspiracies, to make the claims he is blabbing to the media.
30 May 2013, 21:07
10
and for those who do not know,since hezbollah is a political party in lebanon representing the lebanese people in parliament and government,i do not think its a crime to have links with it.moreover i am not aware that Nigeria consider hezbollah as a "terrorist organization".furthermore,lebanon's minister for agriculture,hussein hajj hassan,is a member of hezbollah and representing hezbollah in the lebanese governernment.hussein hajj hassan was one of the ministers who accompanied president michel sleiman in his official visit to nigeria.
30 May 2013, 21:07
10
the lebanese people do have good ties with all the nigerian people of different tribes and religions.i hope the higher authorities in nigeria would call this rogue officer to order and immediate withdraws his silly and wreckless remarks which he uttered without any evidence.where is the evidence that the lebanese even if found with weapons are linked to hezbollah? silly man!
30 May 2013, 22:53
23
Why worry? If it is Hizbullah, then it is all good. I am certain that God approved their application to party of Godhood and gave them the authorization to act in the name of God. Nothing to worry about. Everybody go to your homes. Yalla rouho!
30 May 2013, 23:29
16
why do you always deny that hezbis have cells abroad? are you this naive or i bet more idiot than naive poor FT....
31 May 2013, 02:24
24
Hizb what? they are nothing but terrorist militia that has no reason to have arms. Any Shiite that speaks against them is an Israeli spy, and if it was a politician they assassinate him or her. And now under the orders of Iran they are massacring Syrians.
31 May 2013, 04:45
14
Do you remember when your general went to the USA to ask for their help to hold Syria accountable? He must have thought they were doing SOMETHING right :)
31 May 2013, 11:12
00
but funny how each time someone reminds you of what aoun used to say about USA and hezb you always deflect the question out of embarassement it seems ! LOL...
so i guess he was a drone too to say what lots are still saying now.... poor FT....
31 May 2013, 06:41
22
The funny part is that every time the Glorious Hizbullah militia is caught doing their usual good deeds for the ayatollah, their cheerleaders insist it is all a plot.
31 May 2013, 10:02
10
this is so stupid even though in this same article it says "But the official, Bassey Etang, offered no evidence to support this claim" so he has no evidance just circumstantial evidance nigeria is considered on of the most corrupt countries in the world with second class police work and even worse humane rights violations there are also sseveral nigerian miltias there but automatically they target lebanese people then claim hizbullah simply because the weapons were found there ..wow this may be the dumbest bunch of police i have ever seen no wonder nigerai is going down in flames why dosent that country fix the high levels of corrupt officials, the high rates of human violations, and the extreme lack of transcparency in there govermant..and i love how some people just accept it without thinking first ..there is nothing more ridiculous than blindly hating something
31 May 2013, 11:17
02
Adding to what you said fero, these arms are rusted and probably won't fire if you pull the trigger.... At least they are targeting their listeners, as you can see, M14 believe anything they read as long as its against HA, as usual, lack of brains... Can't judge em, money has powers that reason would never replace. fools
31 May 2013, 15:26
00
please where did you got your statistics of Nigeria's wealth distribution?
