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Claim: Social media users claim the government of Saudi Arabia banned Islamic cleric, Sheikh Gumi, from entering the country, citing his connection to banditry and security concerns in Nigeria.
Verdict: True. Gumi was denied entry into Saudi Arabia in May 2025 despite holding a valid visa to attend Hajj in the country. Media reports quote anonymous officials who claim the cleric has been banned from entering the country.
Full Text
The security situation in Nigeria has worsened over time. At the centre of the insecurity situation are Nigerians who have called for an end to the issue, while others have offered recommendations on how to manage it.
One of the people who has expressed their views on the situation is the prominent Islamic Cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, who has repeatedly advised the government to negotiate with bandits.
Gumi came to the spotlight in 2021 when he played a mediatory role after bandits kidnapped scores of students in Kaduna state, which eventually led to their release.
Recently, the Islamic cleric condemned the Christmas Day airstrike launched by the United States(US) Government against terrorism in Sokoto State, Nigeria. He advised the Nigerian government to look towards partnerships with China and Turkey rather than the US.
Some Nigerian social media users have accused Gumi of being actively involved in the insecurity challenge in Nigeria and called for the prosecution of the cleric by the Nigerian government.
Amid these conversations, a post surfaced on social media claiming Gumi had been banned from entering the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The posts linked Gumi’s ban to his alleged connections with banditry in Nigeria.
This tweet attracted the attention of many users, who argued for and against the Saudi government’s decision. A user @Jaures_CRT said, “So Saudi thinks they’re the gatekeepers of Islam now? Sheikh Gumi risks his life talking to killers to save Nigerian Muslims, while the royals party in luxury and sell out to the West. Ban him all you want — history will judge who the real defenders of the faith are.”
Another user, @OLukez, argued, “News like this wouldn’t really make headlines, but if it’s the other way round, it would be all over the internet just to tarnish the reputation of the religion. This is commendable by Saudi Arabia, and it clearly shows that Islam doesn’t tolerate any form of terrorism nor represent the religion.”
Solid Believe pondered, “Wow, imagine that… banned from the heart of the Muslim world for ‘security reasons?’ Guess even Saudi Arabia isn’t buying Sheikh Gumi’s ‘hero’ act. Some people really have a way of making enemies everywhere they go…”
DUBAWA, however, observed that some other users doubted the credibility of the claim and asked Grok to confirm or debunk the news about Gumi’s ban.
Due to the sensitivity of the claim and the party involved, DUBAWA conducted a fact-check to put the conversation into perspective.
Verification
A Google search showed that, indeed, the cleric was denied entry to Saudi Arabia in May 2025. Gumi, who had secured a valid visa to Saudi Arabia to attend the 2025 Hajj, was turned back at the Madinah airport.
Reacting to this, the cleric on his Facebook page claimed the move by the Saudi government was politically motivated. “For some obvious reasons, my views about world politics, the Saudi authorities are uncomfortable about my presence in Hajj after giving me the Hajj Visa,” he partly wrote.
Meanwhile, The Guardian quoted an official at the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria who said Gumi had been officially banned from entering the country and was aware of the restriction placed on him.
According to a Premium Times report, the last time Gumi was in Mecca in 2010, he was arrested and detained for over six months over his alleged connection to Farouk Abdulmutaĺlab, a Nigerian arrested in the US for terrorism.
Abdulmutallab, dubbed the ”Christmas Bomber,” was accused of attempting to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear while on board Northwest Airlines Flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan, on Christmas Day 2009.
ICIR reported that the Nigerian government eventually secured Gumi’s release after the cleric spent many months under house arrest in Mecca.
However, this may not necessarily mean that the cleric has been banned from attending Hajj in the country forever. As of the time of this report, information about the time frame of Saudi Arabia’s ban on Gumi is yet to be made public.
Conclusion
The claim that Sheikh Gumi has been banned from entering the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is true. He was denied entry in May 2025, despite holding a valid visa to attend the Hajj.
