Nigeria probes alleged espionage by Turkey

Security agencies are probing alleged espionage on Nigeria by Turkey



Diyanet, Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs, has been implicated in the alleged espionage.

Maarif Foundation, set up by the Turkish government, has been placed under watch.

The probe followed a petition to the National Security Adviser( NSA), Gen. Babagana Monguno.

The Turkish government has been uncomfortable with the refusal of the Federal Government to clampdown on the followers of United States-based Islamic cleric, Fethullah Gulen.

His Hismet Movement established the Nile University and some colleges in the country.

The “espionage” have been targeted at the Movement.

A security source said: “Security agencies have been grappling with the after effects of the internal politics in Turkey. This involves counter-claims on alleged sabotage and the Hismet Movement.

“We are now in receipt of a petition on alleged espionage activities in Nigeria by the Turkish government. We are investigating this allegation which may be true or not.”

But the petitioner asked the Federal Government to take action urgently to avoid any breach of security.

The petition reads: “Turkey has also been undermining Nigeria’s sovereignty by engaging in acts of espionage through Diyanet, the country’s Directorate of Religious Affairs. On the directives of the Turkish government, Diyanet has been engaging in spying activities through some Imams in Nigeria, Germany and 36 other countries.

“Whereas this criminal activity is purportedly aimed at tracking the activities of the followers of US-based Islamic cleric, Fethullah Gulen, chances are that Turkey could well be leveraging on that fact to partake in other acts of espionage that may undermine or threaten our national interest.



“Hurriyet Daily News, a major newspaper that fully supports the policies and actions of Turkish President Erdogan, published this disturbing news on its website: www.hurriyet dailynews.com.

“Though the publication is now almost a month old, the Turkish government has not issued a rebuttal, which means the story is true.

“Germany, being one of the countries spied on, is not taking the matter lightly. It has since commissioned an investigation into the matter.

“Nigeria and other African countries mentioned in the report should waste no time in doing same.”

In the petition, Turkey is also accused of setting up Maarif Foundation for covert religious activities.

The petition said: “ In 2015, the government of Turkey set up the Maarif Foundation with the dubious objective of taking over foreign investments of Turkish nationals that the government of Turkey disagrees with.

“On the surface, Maarif has deliberately been made to look inviting and noble, with the stated intention of granting scholarships to Muslims from poor homes.

“But our investigation has shown that that is only a bait. In a recent partnership Turkey struck with Saudi Arabia, the funding of Maarif Foundation is going to be taken over by the Islamic Development Bank and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in an unholy alliance that is bound to negatively affect the new world order.

“In exchange for the funding it is going to provide, Saudi Arabia is going to latch on the opportunity to introduce to unsuspecting Nigerians, the extreme concepts of Wahabism and Salafism, with all the dire implication of that.

“We wonder how a leader that styles himself as a Caliph will order for the detention of an innocent Nigerian young Muslim woman, Miss Rukayya Usman, in a cell with men, for the ridiculous offence of attending a school belonging to his political opponents.

“This was on September 26, last year at 8am, when Miss Usman, a student of political science and international relations of Malikseh University, arrived at Istanbul Airport as a student.”