We Are Not Terrorists - Miyetti Allah Rejects US Sanctions Move

We Are Not Terrorists – Miyetti Allah Rejects US Sanctions Move
Ngelzarma urged FG to engage US diplomatically
Group denied terrorism claims and proposed sanctions.

The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria has rejected its inclusion in a proposed United States list of alleged religious freedom violators, describing the claims as unfounded.

United States lawmakers had proposed visa bans and asset freezes against former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore over alleged violations of religious freedoms in Nigeria.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that reacting in an interview with Punch, the National President of Miyetti Allah, Baba Ngelzarma, denied the allegations and insisted that the association is not a terrorist organisation.

“In the past, when this report first came out, we had a series of engagements with the American embassy, with contingents of the Congress, and the rest. So, we have reacted verbally, and we have reacted with documentation and everything. We are not a terrorist group,” he said.

Ngelzarma stated that the Nigerian government is fully aware of the association’s activities and legal status.

“The Nigerian government knows much about the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association. We have never been involved in any form of terrorism. We have never taken responsibility for any form of terrorism,” he said.

He explained that the association, registered 42 years ago, represents cattle breeders across religious and ethnic lines and does not shield criminal elements.

“We represent the peaceful herders who are doing their peaceful and legitimate business. We don’t represent any criminal in the country. So, we are still surprised that this thing, despite all this thing, that this thing is still going on,” he added.

Ngelzarma said the group had engaged international bodies to clarify its position and questioned the basis for proposed sanctions.

He urged the Federal Government to intervene diplomatically, stating that the association operates legally under Nigerian law and deserves protection from what he described as misconceptions surrounding Nigeria’s security crisis.