Tension gripped Sokoto on Friday after Islamic cleric Malam Musa Lukwa was stabbed twice in the neck immediately after leading the Juma’at prayer at his mosque in the Mabera area of the city. The suspected attacker was subsequently beaten to death by enraged worshippers at the scene.
According to sources, the suspect, identified as Mai Barewa, had been seated among the congregation before launching the attack on the cleric as worshippers dispersed after the prayer. Mosque attendees overpowered him immediately and fatally beat him before security forces could intervene.
Sokoto State Police Command spokesman DSP Ahmad Rufa’i confirmed the stabbing. Further saying Malam Lukwa was receiving treatment at the Specialist Hospital in Sokoto. He confirmed the suspected attacker had been killed by the cleric’s followers and said no arrests had been made in connection with the mob violence. The police have deployed measures to prevent further escalation and opened an investigation into the full circumstances of the attack.
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The incident had a documented history. The dispute reportedly stemmed from a sermon the cleric had delivered. One in which he cited a Hadith that some Islamic scholars, particularly those associated with the Tariqa order, considered offensive to the parents of Prophet Muhammad.
Following the controversy, Mai Barewa allegedly threatened to kill Malam Lukwa and his senior student, Malam Murtala Assada. The cleric and his followers reported the threat to police, leading to Mai Barewa’s arrest and arraignment. That, alongside a court order remanding him to a correctional facility while the case remained pending.
Four days before Friday’s attack, the clerics had visited the Sokoto State Government House and formally submitted a written complaint. The stabbing, however, occurred despite those measures being in place.
