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Nigeria’s worsening crisis is under renewed international scrutiny after a top African Union official rejected claims of Christian genocide — a statement that drew sharp reaction from Washington.
The dispute comes amid a yearslong wave of killings, abductions and village attacks in northern and central Nigeria that Christian communities say have reached crisis levels.
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At least 51 Christians were killed in another attack in Nigeria's Plateau state. (Reuters)
Asked by a reporter about President Donald Trump's recent threats to Nigeria over the persecution of Christians, the African Union Commission Chairman Mahmoud Ali Youssouf dismissed the genocide allegations, telling reporters at the United Nations that, "Let me say this first — there is no genocide in northern Nigeria," he said from the U.N. headquarters podium. Youssouf continued: "We have issued a communication making clear that what’s going on in the northern part of Nigeria has nothing to do with the kind of atrocities we see in Sudan or in some parts of eastern DRC."
He continued, "The first victims of Boko Haram are Muslims, not Christians, and I’m saying this with documented references." Youssouf said the situation is "extremely complex," warning international actors not to reduce it to a single narrative. "The complexity of the situation in northern Nigeria should not be taken lightly, nor described with overly simple language," he said, stressing again, "There is no genocide in northern Nigeria."
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Funerals for some 27 Christians who were reportedly killed by Islamist Fulani tribesmen in the village of Bindi Ta-hoss, Nigeria. (Courtesy: Christian Solidarity International (CSI))
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., warned about a PR campaign being waged by the Abuja government to fight the accusations.
"Nigerian officials know their policies have created an environment in which Christians are being persecuted and slaughtered, including their enforcement of sharia law and their tolerance of Islamist violence. Instead of reversing these policies, they are waging a media campaign to escape exposure and accountability. I intend to prevent them from doing so."
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, listens during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing March 23, 2021. (Greg Nash/Pool via AP)
The White House also responded in starkly different terms. A senior official told Fox News Digital: "As the president stated, if the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria and may take action to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities." The official added that President Trump has designated Nigeria a "country of particular concern" and ordered the Department of Defense to prepare for possible action.
Women and children who were held captive by islamic extremists, and rescued by the Nigerian army, are seen upon arrival in Maiduguri, Nigeria, Monday, May 20, 2024. Hundreds of hostages mostly children whose mothers were held captive and forcefully married by Islamic extremists in northeastern Nigeria have been rescued from their key forest enclave and handed over to authorities, the West African nation's army said late Monday. (AP Photo/Jossy Olatunji)
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On Capitol Hill, some lawmakers are pressing for even stronger measures. Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., said the United States could take a range of actions — including sanctions and "even kinetic military action" — in response to what he called the "genocide" of Christians in Nigeria. Trump designated Moore, a member of the Appropriations Committee from West Virginia, along with Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., to lead an investigation into the killing of Christians by Islamist militants in the African nation.
On Wednesday, a spokesman for the U.N. secretary-general addressed the issue in response to a question by Fox News Digital at the daily press briefing about persecution of Christians in Nigeria — and whether the secretary-general supports President Trump’s warning that Nigeria must act or face consequences. The spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, said, "We believe that the Nigerian government has been struggling with an insurgency that has been killing people, whether Muslims, Christians or others, and I think whatever assistance is needed should be done with the cooperation of the Nigerian authorities."
Efrat Lachter is an investigative reporter and war correspondent. Her work has taken her to 40 countries, including Ukraine, Russia, Iraq, Syria, Sudan and Afghanistan. She is a recipient of the 2024 Knight-Wallace Fellowship for Journalism. Lachter can be followed on X @efratlachter.
