A Yoruba-speaking Islamic cleric, Shafiy Adeba, has sparked outrage after making inflammatory remarks advocating the enslavement and violent suppression of non-Muslims.
Adeba made the comments in a video posted on his TikTok account on Sunday, where he spoke largely in Yoruba and cited Islamic texts while repeatedly referring to non-Muslims as “kafir,” a term commonly translated as unbeliever or infidel.
In the video, the cleric claimed that Muslims had a religious right to fight and enslave non-Muslims, while calling for the imposition of what he described as Islamic laws on them.
“Allah said fight them, enslave them, lock them inside their homes, don’t let them go to market, don’t let them go to farm, don’t let them see the sun,” Adeba said.
“It’s the Muslim who has the right to enslave the kafir, not the other way around. Anywhere you find them hiding, seal them. That’s what Allah said in the Quran. It’s always first attack. War against kafir is rooted in Islam.”
Adeba repeated his claim that Muslims, rather than non-Muslims, had the right to enslave members of other faiths.
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“It’s the Muslim who has the right to enslave the kafir, not the other way around,” he said.
He further warned that Muslims could face retaliation if they failed to impose what he described as Islamic laws on non-Muslims.
“What I am saying is that if you refuse to implement these laws on them, they would reciprocate with theirs on you,” he said.
“Anywhere you find them hiding, seal them. That’s what Allah said in the Quran. It’s always first attack. War against kafir is rooted in Islam.”
The remarks come amid heightened public debate over religion, politics and the use of inflammatory rhetoric by religious figures in Nigeria.
Adeba’s comments were made on the same day SaharaReporters reported remarks by another prominent Islamic cleric, Sheikh Yahya Jingir, who urged Muslims in Kano State to support Muslim-Muslim political tickets and obtain their Permanent Voter Cards ahead of future elections.
Jingir made the remarks at a campaign event for Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf tagged “Abba Go Again,” according to a video seen by SaharaReporters. Yusuf was also present at the event.
Speaking in Hausa, Jingir praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for promoting a Muslim-Muslim ticket and described himself as a strong supporter of the political arrangement.
“Special thanks to my political hero, Bola Tinubu, who raised the flag of this political ideology, describing it as a purely Muslim-Muslim coalition,” Jingir said.
“I am among the staunch advocates of the Muslim-Muslim ticket, and I call on you to come together for Muslim-Muslim ticket.”
Jingir acknowledged opposition to the arrangement from Christians and other religious groups but questioned whether his support for the political strategy constituted wrongdoing.
Adeba’s separate comments, however, went beyond political advocacy, with the cleric explicitly appearing to endorse violence and enslavement against non-Muslims while attributing the position to Islam and the Quran
