The Federal Government has faulted a recent report by some United States officials alleging mass killings of Christians in Nigeria, describing the claim as exaggerated, misleading, and unfair.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, stated this in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, while reacting to comments made by U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. Marco Rubio.
Onanuga said the country’s security challenges were not religiously motivated but rooted in criminality, banditry, and terrorism that have affected both Christians and Muslims.
“There is no ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians in Nigeria. This is a gross exaggeration,” he said.
According to him, what Nigeria is witnessing are sporadic attacks by terrorists and bandits on villages across the country, adding that such attacks are not targeted at any particular religion.
“Christians, Muslims, churches, and mosques are attacked randomly. These criminals have no religious considerations,” he stressed.
Rubio had earlier alleged that radical Islamists and Fulani militias were responsible for what he called the “ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians” in Nigeria, following the White House’s decision to designate the country as a “Nation of Particular Concern” over alleged violations of religious freedom.
Onanuga, however, dismissed the claim and urged the U.S. government to assist Nigeria in combating terrorism rather than stigmatizing the country.
“What our country requires from America is military support to fight these violent extremists, not designation as a nation of particular concern. Secretary Rubio, Muslim lives matter too,” he said.
In a similar vein, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also faulted the U.S. decision, describing it as “misleading and unfair.”
The ministry maintained that the insecurity ravaging parts of the country was driven by criminality and not religious persecution, stressing that both Christian and Muslim communities have been victims of violent attacks.
The U.S. designation comes amid remarks by former President Donald Trump, who recently described the situation in Nigeria as “a genocide against believers.”
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, continues to grapple with security challenges ranging from insurgency and banditry to farmer-herder clashes across several states.