United States President Donald Trump has declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern,” alleging widespread killings of Christians in the country.
In a statement posted on his Truth Social platform on Friday, Trump claimed that Christianity was facing “an existential threat” in Nigeria, describing the situation as a “mass slaughter” allegedly carried out by “radical Islamists.”
“Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump wrote, adding that the United States “cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening.”
He said he had directed Congressman Riley Moore and House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole to investigate the alleged attacks and report back to him.
“I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘country of particular concern.’ But that is the least of it. When Christians, or any such group, are slaughtered like is happening in Nigeria, something must be done,” Trump said.
However, the Federal Government swiftly rejected Trump’s claims, describing them as “false, baseless, and divisive.”
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said portraying Nigeria’s security challenges as a religious war was misleading and harmful.
“Portraying Nigeria’s security challenges as a targeted campaign against a single religious group is inaccurate and harmful. Extremists have attacked citizens of all faiths — Muslims, Christians, and even non-religious Nigerians,” Idris said.
He noted that security forces had killed more than 13,500 terrorists and rescued nearly 10,000 hostages between May 2023 and February 2025, stressing that Nigeria was making significant progress in the fight against terrorism.
Earlier in October, Senior Adviser to President Trump on Arab and African Affairs, Massad Boulos, during a visit to President Bola Tinubu in Abuja, also dismissed claims of a targeted genocide, saying “terrorism has no colour, no religion, and no tribe.”
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Senate has set up a 12-member ad-hoc committee to examine international reports alleging persecution of Christians and to provide a fact-based response to guide Nigeria’s diplomatic engagements.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has, however, urged the government to do more to protect Christian communities that have suffered repeated attacks, insisting that “the pain of Christian families torn apart by violence must never be treated as mere statistics.”
Minister Idris reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to human rights and religious freedom, urging international observers to avoid sensationalism and support the country’s efforts to end terrorism and insecurity.
