U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee Urges Trump to Impose Sanctions on Nigeria Over Christian Killings

The United States House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa has authorized President Donald Trump to enforce strict sanctions on Nigeria in response to the widespread killings of Christians in the country.

This decision followed a congressional hearing on Wednesday, where lawmakers condemned the Nigerian government for failing to protect Christian communities from escalating violence.

The subcommittee referenced a 2024 report by the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa, which found that Nigerians account for 90% of all Christians killed worldwide each year. The report documented that between October 2019 and September 2023, a staggering 55,910 people were killed, while 21,000 others were abducted by terrorist groups operating in the region.

During the hearing, Committee Chairman Chris Smith underscored the severity of the crisis, citing testimony from Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of the Diocese of Makurdi, Nigeria.

“One of our distinguished witnesses today—Bishop Wilfred Anagbe—traveled a long distance to be with us, and his testimony is both compelling and disturbing,” Smith stated.

He further condemned militant Fulani herdsmen, describing them as terrorists who “steal and vandalize, kill and boast about it, kidnap and rape, and operate with total impunity from elected officials. None of them have been arrested or brought to justice.”

The report emphasized that these attacks are religiously motivated. “Denying this reality contradicts the overwhelming evidence we have seen with our own eyes. This ‘religious cleansing’ must stop, and those responsible must be held accountable,” the report stated.

The congressional panel strongly criticized the Nigerian government for failing to address religiously motivated violence despite constitutional protections for religious freedom.

Lawmakers expressed concern that Nigeria’s judicial system had been weaponized to suppress Christian communities, citing cases where blasphemy laws were used to target religious minorities.

“The Nigerian government has made little progress in addressing the persecution of Christians, despite religious freedom being enshrined in its Constitution,” the subcommittee’s report stated. “While Nigeria’s legal framework ostensibly supports religious pluralism, contradictions persist—especially in laws that criminalize blasphemy, some of which carry the death penalty.”

Chairman Smith blamed the previous administration of President Joe Biden for weakening U.S. pressure on Nigeria by removing the country from the “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) list. He noted that the designation was initially applied during Trump’s first term but was later removed, despite four consecutive years (2021–2024) of recommendations from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom to reinstate it.

“Under President Biden, Nigeria was removed from the CPC list, despite overwhelming evidence that religious persecution had worsened. This decision ignored repeated recommendations from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom,” Smith stated.

He urged President Trump to take decisive action, including restoring Nigeria’s CPC designation and directly engaging with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to ensure greater protection for Christian communities.

“I fully expect President Trump to redesignate Nigeria as a CPC and take additional steps to support the persecuted church. Last night, I reintroduced a resolution on this issue, and I hope we will have a robust discussion that leads to real action,” he added.

Smith also called on the Trump administration and the U.S. Senate to be ready to impose sanctions on Nigeria if the violence against Christians persists.

“This hearing should serve as a catalyst for action—not just within Congress but also within the Executive Branch,” he emphasized. “The new president has a responsibility to act, and I believe he will. If necessary, sanctions must be imposed. When they have been used in the past, they have brought change. Where there are no consequences, the killing fields remain.”