Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has cleared up false reports that Nigeria apologized to Libya after the Super Eagles were detained in Benghazi. The confusion started when a report from The Libya Observer falsely claimed that Nigeria had apologized for the incident.
In a statement issued by his media aide, Alkasim Abdulkadir, on Wednesday, Tuggar called the report misleading and an attempt to manipulate football officials and fans across Africa. He explained that during a phone call with Libya’s Eastern-based Foreign Minister, Abdelhadi Lahweej, Nigeria expressed displeasure over the situation instead of apologizing.
“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
Tuggar added that Nigeria was unhappy with how the national football team was treated and demanded an immediate solution. The team had been detained for over 20 hours without food or water at the airport in Benghazi after arriving for their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier.
Following this, Tuggar contacted the Eastern-based government in Benghazi directly, leading to negotiations that allowed the team to leave Libya. The minister emphasized that Nigeria did not issue any apology and even rejected a suggestion to release a joint statement with Libya because it did not reflect what really happened.
Tuggar also dismissed claims made by Lahweej about Libyan players being mistreated in Nigeria, calling the allegations false. He clarified that while the Nigerian government corrected the record, it had no reason to apologize for actions that never occurred.
This incident occurred as the Super Eagles prepared to face the Mediterranean Knights in the second leg of their AFCON Group D qualifying match. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has confirmed that it is investigating the situation.
