TRIPOLI, LIBYA — A young Nigerian migrant from Kano State has suffered severe self-inflicted injuries after cutting off his private part during a severe mental health crisis in Libya.
The victim, identified as Sani from the Tukuntawa area of Kano Municipal Local Government, had traveled to the North African country in search of employment before his mental health deteriorated.
Escalation and Confinement
According to Abba Na-Gaida Fagge, spokesperson for the Northern Nigerian Organization (NNO) in Libya, Sani’s mental condition had been failing for several months.
The situation escalated at his workplace when Sani drove a heavy caterpillar vehicle into a building, causing severe damage. Following the incident, company authorities placed him under confinement.
“Nobody knew exactly what happened next until people suddenly heard him screaming,” Fagge said. “When they checked on him, they found him covered in blood.”
Emergency Medical Intervention
Community members rushed to the scene to find Sani heavily bleeding from the self-mutilation.
“He grabbed my trousers with blood all over him,” Fagge recounted. “When we checked, we saw that he had cut off his private part, and it was almost completely detached from his body.”
Because the organ was not entirely severed, members of the NNO quickly pooled money together and rushed Sani to a nearby hospital. Medical personnel immediately scheduled the young man for emergency surgery in an attempt to salvage it.
Embassy Neglect Alleged
The incident has sparked anger within the local community over a lack of diplomatic support. Fagge stated that the NNO had alerted the Nigerian Embassy in Libya about Sani’s worsening mental health months before the incident, but no action was taken.
The group has now renewed calls for the embassy to step in and arrange for Sani’s immediate repatriation to Kano State for psychiatric care.
The NNO stated that if official channels fail to act, the community will fund his flight back to Nigeria independently so he can receive proper medical and psychological treatment.
