The United States has officially designated Nigeria as a country of particular concern following President Donald Trump’s statement expressing alarm over what he described as widespread persecution and killings of Christians in the West African nation.
In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, Trump said that Christianity in Nigeria is facing “an existential threat,” accusing radical Islamist groups of orchestrating large-scale attacks against Christian communities.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter. I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘COUNTRY OF PARTICULAR CONCERN’ , but that is the least of it,” Trump wrote.
The U.S President added that the international community must not ignore the crisis, citing statistics that suggest thousands of Christians have been murdered in Nigeria compared to global figures.
“When Christians, or any such group, are slaughtered as they are in Nigeria, 3,100 versus 4,476 worldwide, something must be done,” he said.
Trump said he had directed Congressman Riley Moore, along with Chairman Tom Cole and the House Appropriations Committee, to “immediately look into this matter,” stressing that the United States would not remain silent in the face of such atrocities.
“We cannot stand by while these killings continue in Nigeria and elsewhere. We stand ready, willing, and able to protect our great Christian population around the world,” he declared.
