The Nigerian army reportedly stopped 278 Muslim pilgrims, who were headed for the Umrah pilgrimage, from boarding a plane that was scheduled to take off from Maiduguri. The pilgrims as well as a senator Mohammed Ali Ndume were held back at the international airport, which happens to be used to airlift pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. As they were detained, two chartered aircrafts were made to take off unoccupied.

The military said in a statement signed by Chris Olukolade, Director of Defence and Information, that the airport was merely ensuring the facility is used for military purposes in light of ongoing operations in the region.

“The sensitivity of the situation in the country calls for due caution and a conscious effort to avoid yielding to the pressure from those who are apparently sympathetic to those working frantically to undermine the nation’s security. The public is therefore requested to ignore all insinuations inferring religious or political connotations from the security measures put in place in Maiduguri airport. The intention has never been to jeopardize the airlifting of pilgrims as has been wrongly portrayed,” the statement read.

The sudden restriction led to speculations that the military was purposely refusing Nigerian Muslims their religious right. Olukolade clarified that alternative arrangements were made by responsible authorities in Borno State to ease passage for pilgrims, reiterating that the restrictions were not political or religious in nature. Maiduguri is the capital of Borno State, which serves as the base for Islamist militancy outfit Boko Haram that has killed more than 12,000 people since 2009.