Saudi Arabia has halted the Kaduna-based Islamic scholar, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, from undertaking the 2025 Hajj, and has deported him back to Nigeria.
Sheikh Gumi confirmed this in a post shared on Monday, 26 May 2025, on his Facebook page.
He mentioned that the Saudi government had granted him a visa to enter the country for Hajj, yet he was not permitted to enter Medina to begin his religious duties.
“Due to various reasons concerning my views on international politics, the Saudi authorities do not want me present at Hajj, even though they issued me a visa,” Sheikh Gumi noted in his Facebook update.
He added, “I appreciate the Nigerian authorities for their promise to engage with the Saudi officials regarding this issue.”
Sources indicate that Sheikh Gumi is part of a group of scholars sponsored by the Nigerian Hajj Commission (NAHCON) to travel to Saudi Arabia for religious services.
Gumi arrived in Medina with other clerics last Saturday at around 10:30pm on an Umza Air flight, but upon landing at the city’s airport, Saudi immigration officials prevented the cleric from entering the country.
Reports suggest that Sheikh Gumi has now returned to Nigeria to continue his everyday activities, especially teaching.
