Nigeria pushes back on Trump’s claims over Christian killings

Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar says Nigeria’s constitution protects against spiritual persecution aft assertion by US President Donald Trump.

The Nigerian authorities has dismissed claims made by US President Donald Trump astir the persecution of Christians successful the West African nation, insisting that spiritual state is afloat protected nether the country’s constitution.

Responding to a reporter’s question astatine a quality league successful Berlin connected Tuesday, Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar held up a papers whose screen work “Nigeria’s Constitutional Commitment to Religious Freedom and Rule of Law”.

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“All the answers are successful there. This is what guides us,” Tuggar said, speaking alongside Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul. “It’s intolerable for determination to beryllium spiritual persecution that tin beryllium supported successful immoderate way, signifier oregon signifier by the authorities of Nigeria astatine immoderate level.”

Tuggar’s comments travel aft Trump wrote connected societal media connected Saturday that if the Nigerian authorities “continues to let the sidesplitting of Christians”, the US would halt each assistance to the country. Trump added that helium had instructed the alleged Department of War “to hole for imaginable action”.

And connected Sunday, Trump doubled down, saying Washington could deploy troops oregon behaviour aerial strikes. “They are sidesplitting a grounds fig of Christians successful Nigeria,” helium said. “We are not gonna let that to happen.”

The threats came aft the US president had redesignated Nigeria arsenic a Country of Particular Concern – a statement the US authorities gives to countries seen arsenic liable for terrible violations of spiritual freedom.

Trump’s assertions echo claims that person gained traction among right-wing and Christian evangelical circles successful the past months. US Senator Ted Cruz, a Trump ally, blamed Nigerian officials for what helium called “Christian massacres” and introduced successful September the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025, which, helium said, aims to clasp officials who “facilitate Islamic Jihadist unit and the imposition of blasphemy laws” accountable.

While admitting a occupation with information issues, Nigerian officials rebuked Trump’s claims, saying that radical crossed each faiths, not conscionable Christians, are victims of equipped groups’ violence. “The characterization of Nigeria arsenic religiously intolerant does not bespeak our nationalist reality,” said Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, a Muslim from confederate Nigeria who is joined to a Christian pastor.

About 238 cardinal radical unrecorded successful Nigeria, Africa’s astir populous nation. Around 46 percent of the colonisation is Muslim, mostly residing successful the north, and astir 46 percent are Christian, mostly located successful the south, according to the Association of Religion Data Archives.

For much than a decade, Boko Haram and different equipped groups person clashed successful the northeast, forcing millions of radical from their homes. Since Tinubu took powerfulness 2 years ago, pledging stronger security, much than 10,000 radical person been killed there, according to Amnesty International.

In the centre, determination are expanding attacks connected predominantly Christian farming communities by herders from the rival Fulani pastoral taste group, which is predominantly Muslim. The attacks determination are mostly implicit entree to h2o and pasture.