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In light of the ruling by the Confederation of African Football addressing the Nigeria Football Federation’s claims about the mistreatment of the Super Eagles in Libya, reports have surfaced from the Nigerian community detailing an alarming increase in mass arrests and fines within the country.
Upon their arrival at Al-Abraq Airport in eastern Libya for the crucial second leg of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Libya’s national team, the Nigerian football squad was detained for more than 20 hours, causing significant delays in their preparations.
The Nigerian football squad had arranged to land at Benghazi Airport and subsequently travel almost four hours by road to Benina, the host city for their qualifying match against Libya.
Shortly before landing, specifically less than an hour out, the Tunisian pilot was instructed by Libyan authorities to alter the flight path to Al-Abraq Airport, which lies 150 miles away from their intended arrival point.
The developments triggered widespread indignation, leading the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to remove the Super Eagles from the qualifying match and submit an official complaint to the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
The disciplinary committee of the African football governing body, in a ruling signed by Chairman Ousmane Kane on Saturday, October 26, awarded the Super Eagles of Nigeria three points and three goals following the abandonment of their match.
The disciplinary board ruled that the Libyan Football Federation breached Article 31 of the Africa Cup of Nations Regulations and Articles 82 and 151 of the CAF Disciplinary Code.
The panel also ordered the LFF to pay a fine of $50,000 within 60 days of the notification of the decision.
Displeased with the verdict, the LFF President Nasser Al-Suwai’I described it as “unjust and malicious,” alleging that the NFF’s influence within CAF played a major role in the outcome.
A report on Monday by a Libyan outlet, Libyan Observer, quoted Al-Suwai’I saying the LFF would file an official appeal within hours and that if the appeal was denied, the body would resort to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to ensure “their legitimate rights are secured.”
Following the CAF ruling, a popular Libyan news blog, Libya News Today 1, posted on Sunday, stating, “All Libyan TV channels are urging the government to arrest the Nigerian workers who are working here in Libya without legal papers. They have to pay $500 plus taxes.
“The fine that Libya is accused of will be paid by Nigerian citizens who live in Libya. We have been subjected to injustice. We have no borders with Nigeria. What benefit are they to us? They’re a burden on the Libyan people. They have to go back home.”
Read also: Super Eagles: Apologise To Nigeria – Senate Tasks Libyan Govt
The blog boasts an impressive social media presence, with more than 188,000 followers on Facebook and accumulating 57,000 likes from its dedicated readers.
The post was accompanied by a video of a Libyan TV presenter, who said, “Anyone who is living in Libya and working without paying tax is eating haram, which means sinful money. The government should make every effort to arrest all Nigerians who are working in Libya so that they can pay a tax of $500 and regulate their stay in the country by obtaining residence permits.”
Another Libyan site, Libya INF.TV, reported that Libyan stations wanted the government to start arresting Nigerian workers.
“Those who don’t have Libyan papers will have to pay a fine of $500 for taxes. If you refuse deportation, no mercy. The Libyan government will pay the Nigerian government from their citizens’ money,” the post said.
Speaking to reporters, Adenaike Emmanuel, a Nigerian residing in Tripoli, disclosed that the arrests began on Sunday, shortly after the CAF statement was disseminated in the country.
“They have already started. The news came out on Saturday, and they were saying they can’t accept it and that they are not the ones who will pay the money. They have started proving this.
“Someone called me and said they had already begun arresting people in his area. The same thing is happening here in Tripoli. In some places, people were arrested on Sunday morning and afternoon. As I mentioned before, Libyans don’t hide their feelings. They believe that by doing this, they are getting their revenge,” Adenaike stated.
