By Imam Murtadha Gusau
Wednesday, October 28, 2026
In the name of Allah, Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all creation, and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad, his family and all his Companions.
Dear brothers and sisters! Following the tragic assassination of the Katsina-based scholar Yahaya Ibrahim Masussuka on Monday, October 26, 2026, severe public tension erupted. Accusations emerged from Usman Dangungu and their followers, pointing fingers at Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah, specifically the Salafiyyah and Izalah, due to past religious disputes. However, the Al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group Ansaru officially claimed responsibility for the killing, directly disproving claims linking Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah to the attack.
Respected brothers and sisters! Yahaya Ibrahim Masussuka was a controversial figure in Northern Nigeria due to his Qur’an-centered teachings, which frequently involved a strict rejection of Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). This ideology brought him into deep theological conflicts with standard Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah Islamic scholars.
In November 2025, the Katsina State Government summoned Yahaya Ibrahim Masussuka following local complaints. At that time, Masussuka formally complained to the government that members of Jama’atu Izalatul Bidia Wa Iqamatus Sunnah known as Izalah were insulting him and threatening him.
Because of these well-known prior disputes, many of his followers and social media users immediately suspected and accused Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah elements of orchestrating the assassination when he was gunned down outside his residence in Dutsin-Ma.
The claims blaming domestic Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah clerical groups were directly refuted when Ansaru issued an official audio release.
The Ansaru terrorist group explicitly claimed responsibility for executing Masussuka and his associate, Adamu Abubakar.
Ansaru declared Masussuka a disbeliever or a kafir. They cited his outspoken advocacy for interfaith dialogue, peaceful coexistence between Muslims and Christians, his condemnation and rejection of Prophetic Hadiths, and his condemnation of violent extremism as their primary grievances against him.
The Katsina State Police Command, alongside regional authorities, launched an active manhunt to apprehend the operational cells linked to the motorcycle-riding gunmen. Prominent figures, including Katsina State Governor Dikko Umaru Radda, have strongly urged the public to remain calm, avoid reprisal actions, and allow formal law enforcement channels to conclude their investigations.
Respected brothers and sisters! The sanctity of innocent blood and the gravity of false accusation are among the most severe warnings in Islamic theology. Standing before Allah with the blood of an innocent person on one’s tongue is a ruinous spiritual bankruptcy. And to falsely accuse Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah or any innocent group of killing or assassination of Yahaya Ibrahim Masussuka without absolute, undeniable judicial proof is a crime that shakes the spiritual foundations of the individual and the community.
The path of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah is entirely rooted in sacred knowledge, clarity, and mercy, standing as the absolute antithesis of terrorism, chaos, and vigilantism. True adherence to the Prophetic way does not tear down societies through blind rage; it rebuilds hearts through the light of revelation.
Dear servants of Allah! Know that the true inheritance of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was not weapons of destruction, nor was it the sowing of fear in the hearts of the innocent. His inheritance was knowledge.
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala says in the Noble Qur’an:
“Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in a way that is best.” [Qur’an, 16:125]
The Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah—has never been a movement of shadows, masks, and explosives. Those who hijack the faith to spill blood without justice are not defending the Sunnah; they are destroying its presentation to the world. They act out of emotional volatility and profound ignorance.
The true warriors of the Sunnah are the Islamic scholars, the educators, and the everyday Muslim believers who fight the darkest evil on earth—ignorance—by spreading the light of true Islamic jurisprudence, patience, and compassion. When you weaponise knowledge, you heal minds. When you weaponise ignorance, you terrorise humanity.
Consider the legacy of the great Imams of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah. When the early deviant sects, like the Khawarij rose, murdering innocent Muslims and non-Muslims alike under the guise of “holy rage,” how did the companions of the Prophet respond?
Abdullahi Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) did not pick up a sword to fight their ideology blindly. He traveled to their camp armed with nothing but deep Qur’anic understanding and Prophetic logic.
Through a single afternoon of intellectual discourse, dismantling their misinterpretations with razor-sharp knowledge, over two thousand of them repented and returned to the truth.
Radicalism feeds on isolation and shallow understanding. Knowledge breaks the chains of radicalisation. The pen of the Islamic scholar preserves what the sword of the ignorant attempts to shatter.
True strength in Islam is inner mastery, not outward aggression. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said:
“The strong man is not the one who can wrestle, but the one who controls himself when angry.”
Terrorism is an outburst of uncontrolled ego masked as religious zeal. Asceticism is the erasure of ego to allow the divine truth to shine.
If you want to fight the evils of the world, begin by conquering the evils within your own soul. Dedicate your night prayers to seeking guidance, and dedicate your days to seeking authentic knowledge. A single hour spent studying the authentic Hadiths of the Prophet with a sincere heart is more terrifying to Shaitan than a thousand misguided acts of violence.
Do not let the actions of the ignorant dictate the narrative of your faith. Be an ambassador of the true Sunnah. When the world looks at you, let them see a person who combats evil with excellence, answers harshness with wisdom, and defeats falsehood with unshakeable, verified knowledge.
Islam is a sanctuary of life, mercy, and peace; terrorism is a betrayal of its foundational creed.
Allah has decreed a cosmic law of empathy, etched into the very fabric of creation. He says:
“Whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption done in the land—it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one—it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.” [Qur’an, 5:32]
Consider the staggering weight of this divine math. To take a single innocent life is not a localised crime; it is an assault on the entire human collective. To extinguish one breath unlawfully is to tear down the house of Allah—the human being—which He built with His own hands.
To those lured by the siren song of extremism: You have been deceived by spiritual vanity. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) warned of a group who would emerge—zealots who would recite the Qur’an, yet it would not pass past their throats. They look like giants of worship on the outside, but inside, they are hollowed out by arrogance.
Terrorism is not courage; it is a psychological pathology masked as piety. It is the cowardice of a weak mind that cannot handle the complexities of a diverse world, choosing instead the lazy path of destruction. True jihad is not the shedding of innocent blood; it is the ferocious warfare against your own ego, your own anger, and your own darkness.
Look to the life of Master of Mercy, our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). When he marched into Makkah as a triumphant conqueror—facing the very people who had tortured his companions, assassinated his family, and exiled his community—he did not unleash a campaign of terror.
He looked at them, trembling in fear, and asked:
“What do you think I am going to do to you?” They replied: “You are a noble brother.” He proclaimed: “Go, for you are free.”
If the Messenger of Allah chose radical forgiveness at the peak of his geopolitical power, by what theology do modern killers justify their carnage? They invoke his name but spit upon his legacy. When the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) sent armies, his standing orders were clear, revolutionary rules of engagement:
● Do not harm a woman.
● Do not touch a child.
● Do not kill an elderly person.
● Do not destroy a church or synagogue.
● Do not even chop down a fruit-bearing tree.
If a tree is protected by Islamic law in times of conflict, how can the blood of a human being—created in the best of molds—be made permissible?
Dear servants of Allah! The heart cannot hold both the light of the Qur’an and the darkness of malice. Terrorism is the ultimate spiritual bankruptcy. On the Day of Judgment, the very first matters to be settled between humans will be the shedding of blood.
Imagine standing before the Almighty Allah, and a soul you murdered drags you by your forelock, blood dripping, crying out:
“O Lord! Ask this person why they killed me!”
What will your political grievance, your twisted ideology, or your internet echo-chamber say to defend you before the King of Kings, Allah?
This is a call to action. We must fiercely guard our youth, our pulpits, our mosques and our digital spaces from the infection of extremism.
The world is not divided into those we kill and those we tolerate. It is divided into those who know the mercy of Islam and those who are still waiting to see it through our character.
Let your neighbour, your coworker, and the stranger on the street feel completely safe from your tongue and your hand.
Turn your anger into activism, your frustration into charity, and your zeal into building institutions of healing. Cleanse your hearts of malice, for a heart full of hate cannot see the path to Paradise.
Fellow brothers and sisters! Know that, peace is not a modern compromise; it is the foundational theological anchor of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah. In a world fractured by chaos, extremism, terrorism, radicalism, and internal strife, the Prophetic methodology stands firm as a sanctuary of stability. True adherence to the Sunnah is measured by how much safety a person provides to the hearts, blood, and honour of others.
When the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) migrated to Madinah, he did not establish his society with a decree of war or an ultimatum of power. The very first words he uttered to a diverse, anxious, and divided community were recorded by Abdullah Ibn Salam (RA):
“O people! Spread peace, feed the hungry, maintain family ties, and pray at night while people are asleep—you will enter Paradise in peace.” [Tirmidhi]
This is the ultimate clarion call. Before the codification of laws, before the establishment of states, there was the mandate of Salam. Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah understand that faith cannot flourish in a theater of constant chaos. Peace is the fertile soil required for the seed of Tawhid to grow.
Look inward. The modern disease of the soul is a restless agitation that mistakes aggression for strength and hostility for religious zeal.
The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said:
“The Muslim is the one from whose tongue and hand the people are safe.” [An-Nasa’i]
If your tongue tears down honours or your hands cause harm, you have compromised the very definition of your Islam.
The foundational chain of Prophetic Hadith that Islamic scholars pass down to their students as a first lesson is:
“The Merciful One shows mercy to those who are merciful. Be merciful to those on the earth, and the One in the heavens will have mercy upon you.”
True asceticism is empty of malice. It is a heart so anchored in the Next World that it refuses to burn down this world for fleeting emotions.
Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah are not agitators; they are healers. They do not seek Fitnah; they extinguish it.
Refuse to participate in online lynch mobs, character assassinations, and sectarian hatred. Hold fast to the main body of Muslim believers and the guidance of deeply rooted, classical Islamic scholars who call for patience, education, and purification, the Tasfiyyah and Tarbiyyah. Let your presence in your family, your community, and your workplace be a source of psychological safety and spiritual comfort.
The ultimate victory is not conquering others; it is conquering the self to bring peace to Nigeria and to the world.
The true strength of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah lies not in the severity of our rejection of others, but in the vastness of our mercy toward mankind.
When the clouds of confusion thicken and sectarian storms rage, the standard of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) is not a sword raised in blind anger. It is a sanctuary of truth wrapped in unmatched forbearance. To hold the Sunnah is to hold a glowing ember; to practice its tolerance is to ensure that ember warms hearts rather than burning them to ashes.
The foundation of the Sunnah is built upon two pillars that can never be separated: absolute commitment to the Truth, and absolute mercy toward the Creation of Allah.
The great Islamic scholar of Sunnah, Shaikhul Islam Ibn Taimiyyah, summarised this beautifully. He said:
“The Imams of Ahlus-Sunnah are the most knowledgeable of the truth, and they are the most merciful of all people toward the creation.” [Minhaj as-Sunnah]
If your knowledge of the Sunnah makes you arrogant, unyielding, or quick to cast others out of the fold of Islam, you have mistaken the rigidness of your own ego for the firmness of the creed. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was sent as a mercy to the worlds. He did not come to track the faults of the broken; he came to mend them.
The Sunnah recognises that people are products of their environments, blindness, and confusion. When a desert bedouin urinated in the pristine, sacred quarters of the Prophet’s Mosque, the Companions rushed to strike him down in anger. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) halted them. “Leave him alone,” he commanded, “and pour a bucket of water over his urine. You have been sent to make things easy, not to make things difficult.” [Sahih al-Bukhari]
● The Lesson here: Clean the mess; do not destroy the person who made it.
Ahlus-Sunnah distinguishes between a fundamental rejection of the faith and a mistake made in trying to find it. We do not expel a Muslim believer from the shade of Islam for a slip of the tongue, an error in judgment, or a sin born of human weakness.
Consider Hatib Ibn Abi Balta’ah, who committed an act of high treason by leaking military secrets to the enemies of Islam in Makkah. When Umar wanted to take his head, the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) looked at Hatib’s past sincerity, his tears, and his status as a veteran of Badr, and forgave him.
● The Lesson here: A lifetime of faith is not erased by a single hour of weakness.
The true test of tolerance is how you treat those who despise you. When the Khawarij, the extremists revolted against Ali Ibn Abi Talib, calling him a disbeliever and shedding innocent blood, Ali’s response was a masterclass in the tolerance of the Sunnah. He said:
“We do not initiate fighting against you. We do not deny you access to the Mosques of Allah. And we do not deny you your share of the state treasury as long as your hands are with us in battle.”
● The Lesson here: Justice is an absolute right, even for those who oppose the Sunnah.
There is a subtle, toxic disease that creeps into the hearts of those trying to adhere to the Sunnah: the delusion of salvage. It is the feeling that because you follow the correct path, you are personally superior to those who are lost.
● Look inward: When you see a Muslim believer struggling with innovation, bid’ah or sin, what happens in your chest? Is it a rush of prideful disdain, or is it a deep, painful ache of concern?
● The Prophetic Heart: A true follower of the Sunnah looks at the sinner and the misguided with the eyes of a doctor looking at a critically ill patient—with urgency, tenderness, and an overwhelming desire to heal.
O revivers of the Sunnah! The world is starved for the gentleness of Islam. Do not let the harshness of online debates, sectarian tribalism, and the shouting matches of social media define the creed and aqidah of the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him). Your adherence to the Sunnah is entirely incomplete if it lacks the character and akhlaq that drew the hearts of the fierce Quraish to bow before Allah.
● Speak the truth with clarity, but wrap it in the silk of wisdom.
● Correct the mistake without crushing the dignity of the one who erred.
● Keep your heart clean from the rancour of hatred, for a heart filled with malice cannot guide a wandering soul.
Let us return to the vast, encompassing spirit of the Jama’ah. Let us be a people who build bridges of guidance rather than walls of exclusion.
May Allah guide our hearts, guard our tongues, protect the blood of all innocent people, and unite the hearts of the Muslim believers upon truth and justice. Ameen.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. May the peace, blessings and salutations of Allah be upon our noble Messenger, Muhammad, and upon his family, his Companions and his true followers.
Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah and the late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene’s Mosques, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He can be reached via: gusauimam@gmail.com or +2348038289761 or +2348024192217.
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