The government prevented Deputy President William Ruto from leaving the country with allies such as Ndindi Nyoro, Oscar Sudi, Harun Aydin, and Dr. Erick Ngeno on Friday evening.
The presence of Harun Aydin, according to the Daily Nation, may have cost deputy president William Ruto his Uganda trip.
According to the New York Times, Harun Aydin, 29, was a key member of a terrorist group based in Cologne commanded by Muhammed Metin Kaplan, dubbed “the Caliph of Cologne,” who aimed to unite the Islamic world under a single caliphate based in a liberated Istanbul.
Mr. Aydin was detained on suspicion of “planning major acts of violence as a member of a terrorist organization with an Islamic fundamentalist background,” according to the prosecutor.
He was held by a Frankfurt court for “giving directions for major crimes such as murder and manslaughter.”
Prosecutors said Mr. Aydin’s luggage also contained a CD-ROM containing a training movie for Islamic holy warriors. Investigators reportedly discovered a suicide note to his wife and the last testament in his suitcase, according to the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger.
The New York Times further added that Mr. Harun Aydin’s lawyer, Michael Murat Sertsoz, said his client was flying to Tehran for a book fair and had agreed to take a suitcase for another Turkish passenger with excess luggage.
Harun Aydin was set to board an Iran Air aircraft to Tehran with luggage including camouflage gear, a chemical weapons protective suit, a ski mask, and ingredients to make an explosive detonator, according to the German federal prosecutor.
Mr. Kaplan’s group of 1,300 people, most of them Turkish, is known as the Federation of Islamic Associations and Communities.
It is one of the religious-based organizations that is likely to be banned as soon as a new German law goes into effect that will remove the constitutional protection for hate speech provided to faith-based organizations.
However, Hon. Oscar Sudi said the Turkish National was a big investor in fruit farming and had no interest in terror activities.
“If anyone is in doubt about the details of Mr. Harun then they can visit the Turkish embassy for more information. To the doubting Thomases, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is not a kid to deal with someone of questionable repute, you can use your diplomatic connection and inquire from Ssebo himself the kind of interest that the Businessman has in Uganda. Stop being stupid and minding other people’s business.”
According to David Mugonyi, Ruto’s communication secretary, the second in command was on his way to Uganda when he was stopped at JKIA.
“He was asked to seek clearance from the Head of Public Service and Secretary to Cabinet when he reached the airport. We are surprised because this has never happened in the last nine years that he has been in office,” Mugonyi said.
