Abuja: U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that he has directed the Pentagon to begin preparing for potential military action in Nigeria, intensifying his claims that the Nigerian government is failing to stop the persecution of Christians in the country.
“If the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the United States will immediately halt all aid and assistance to Nigeria — and may very well move in, guns blazing, to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists responsible for these horrible atrocities,” Trump wrote on social media on Saturday.
“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and decisive — just like the terrorists attack our cherished Christians!” he added.
When asked by reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday whether his comments implied deploying U.S. troops to Nigeria or launching airstrikes, Trump was evasive. “Could be,” he replied. “They’re killing Christians — and killing them in large numbers. We’re not going to allow that to happen.”
Trump’s remarks followed Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s sharp response on Saturday to Trump’s earlier declaration that he was designating Nigeria as “a country of particular concern” for allegedly failing to curb religious persecution.
In a statement on social media, Tinubu rejected the characterization, saying it misrepresented Nigeria’s reality.
“Religious freedom and tolerance are central to our national identity and will always remain so,” Tinubu said. “Nigeria opposes religious persecution and upholds constitutional guarantees that protect citizens of all faiths.”
Nigeria, with a population of about 220 million, is roughly evenly divided between Christians and Muslims. The country has long battled multiple sources of insecurity, including the extremist group Boko Haram, which seeks to impose its radical version of Islamic law and has targeted both Christians and Muslims it deems impure.
Violence in Nigeria stems from a mix of causes — religious tensions, farmer-herder conflicts driven by scarce resources, communal disputes, secessionist movements, and ethnic rivalries.
While Christians have indeed been targeted in attacks, analysts note that the majority of victims of armed groups are Muslims living in the country’s northern regions, where most violence occurs.
The U.S. first placed Nigeria on its “country of particular concern” list in 2020, citing “systematic violations of religious freedom.” The designation — which did not specifically single out attacks on Christians — was lifted in 2023, a move seen by observers as an effort to strengthen bilateral relations ahead of then–Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit.
