A United States lawmaker, Riley Moore, has reacted to the abduction of schoolgirls from Government Secondary School, Maga, in the Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State.
In a post shared on X on Tuesday, Moore condemned the attack and urged prayers for the victims.
“Please join me in praying for the 25 girls who have been kidnapped and for the repose of the soul of their vice principal, who was killed,” he wrote.
Commenting further, he added:
“While we don’t have all the details on this horrific attack, we know that the attack occurred in a Christian enclave in Northern Nigeria.”
He also called on Nigerian authorities to act decisively, saying,
“The Nigerian government must do more to end the rampant violence.”
The incident happened early Monday when heavily armed bandits invaded the school, killed the vice principal, injured staff members, and abducted 25 students.
However, Moore’s description of the area as a Christian enclave sparked swift backlash online.
Bashir Ahmad, a former presidential aide under Muhammadu Buhari, publicly corrected the lawmaker.
“While appreciating your concern and praying for our sisters, it is important to correct a crucial detail here, the attack did not occur in a Christian enclave,” he wrote in response.
“It happened within a Muslim community, and the victims themselves were Muslims… even you, Americans, either do not understand the complexity of Nigeria’s insecurity challenges, or you are deliberately pushing unholy narratives that risk worsening our already fragile unity.”
The exchange revived ongoing tensions between some Nigerian officials and US political figures over foreign characterisations of Nigeria’s security crisis, particularly claims of “Christian genocide,” which Nigerian authorities have repeatedly rejected.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to securing the release of the abducted students, expressing concern over the attack and assuring citizens that it “shares in the pain of the victims” as efforts to rescue the girls intensify.
