Thousands greet exiled Indonesian Islamist cleric Rizieq Shihab on return home

"We really miss him because we know he really fights for Islam and the Indonesian nation," one supporter was quoted by Reuters as saying. "I hope Muslims can unite."

Rizieq, an Arab Indonesian of Hadrami heritage, was a key leader in a movement that helped bring down former Jakarta governer Basuki Tjahaja Purnama in 2017. Basuki, also known as Ahok, was accused of insulting Islam during a campaign speech and was jailed for two years in 2017. 

In the same year, Rizieq was accused by police of insulting Indonesia's secular state ideology, as well as breaking pornography laws after an alleged sexting scandal.

Rizieq fled Indonesia for Saudi Arabia, where he remained for over three years.