Edited by: ZAINAB ALIYU O.

Following the verdict delivered by the Confederation of African Football in response to the complaint lodged by the Nigeria Football Federation over the recent inhumane treatment meted out to the Super Eagles in Libya, members of the Nigerian community have reported mass arrests and fines in the country.

The Nigerian football team was held at the Al-Abraq Airport in eastern Libya for over 20 hours upon arrival for the second leg of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier between the Super Eagles and Libya’s national team.

The contingent was scheduled to land at the Benghazi Airport and travel for nearly four hours by road to Benina, where the match was to be played.

However, less than an hour before landing, the Tunisian pilot reportedly received a directive from Libyan authorities to divert the flight to the Al-Abraq Airport, located 150 miles away from the destination.

The development sparked widespread outrage, forcing the NFF to withdraw the Super Eagles from the qualifying match and file an official complaint to CAF.

In its ruling on Saturday, October 26, signed by its Chairman, Ousmane Kane, the disciplinary committee of the African football body awarded the Super Eagles of Nigeria three points and three goals for the abandoned 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 (Libya Football Federation) 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.”

Angered by the CAF verdict, the Libyans started mounting pressure on their authorities to go after undocumented Nigerians living in the country and force them to pay a fine.

In a post on its social media page last Sunday, a popular Libyan news blog, Libya News Today 1, said “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.”

In a video that accompanied the post, a Libyan TV presenter can be heard saying, “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.”

At the same time, Libya INF.TV, a news website reported that Libyan stations wanted the government to start arresting Nigerian workers.

Adenaike Emmanuel, a Nigerian living in Tripoli, the Libyan capital, said the arrests began on Sunday after the CAF verdict was publicised in the country.

“They have already started. The news came out on Saturday, and they were saying they couldn’t accept it and that they were not the ones who would pay the money. They have started proving this.

While confirming the development, the President of the Nigerian community in Libya, Peter Omoregbie, said an official report at the Libyan immigration office on Monday.

He disclosed this in a video shared by multiple Libya-based Nigerian blogs during the week.

“The arrests started on Sunday night in some areas in Teodora. They are arresting innocent people. They don’t even care whether you have passports or residence permits. They just don’t care, which doesn’t happen in other countries.”