By Ehis Agbon, Abuja, Nigeria.
Washington, D.C., March 12, 2025
A leading U.S. scholar on religious freedom has urged Congress to designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) due to the ongoing persecution of Christian communities in the country’s Middle Belt region.
Testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Nina Shea, Senior Scholar and Director of the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, highlighted the alarming rise in violent attacks against Christian farming communities by militant Fulani herders. She warned that the Nigerian government’s failure to act against the violence raises serious concerns about state complicity in efforts to Islamize the country.
“Nigeria is the deadliest place in the world for Christians,” Shea told lawmakers. Citing reports from human rights groups, she stated that more Christians have been killed for their faith in Nigeria in recent years than in all other countries combined.
Escalating Violence and Government Inaction
Shea’s testimony detailed how militant Fulani herders have launched relentless assaults on Christian villages in states such as Benue, Plateau, and Kaduna. These attacks have left thousands dead and millions displaced, with survivors forced to flee to overcrowded displacement camps.
“The Middle Belt, Nigeria’s breadbasket, is being emptied of its indigenous Christian farming communities,” she said. “These are systematic attacks that cannot simply be dismissed as farmer-herder clashes.”
Shea accused the Nigerian federal government of turning a blind eye to the crisis. “The government allows Fulani violence to continue with impunity,” she stated, adding that some officials appear to support policies that favor Fulani expansion at the expense of indigenous Christian communities.
The Nigerian Catholic Bishops Conference recently raised concerns over a government order that forced the closure of Christian schools in northern states during Ramadan, which Shea described as further evidence of the administration’s religious bias.
Growing Fears of Land Grabs and Forced Islamization
Shea’s testimony also referenced survivor accounts and independent reports indicating that the attacks are not about grazing rights but rather a deliberate effort to seize land and change the demographic composition of Nigeria’s Middle Belt.
A 2023 study on the herder-farmer conflict in Plateau State found that most indigenous communities believe the violence is driven by land grabs, jihadist motives, and an effort to impose Fulani rule. Some reports suggest that Miyetti Allah, an association representing Fulani herders, is supplying militants with automatic weapons.
A Catholic priest from Benue told reporters: “This is about taking over our lands. The Fulani militants want to seize fertile farmlands and drive away the people.”
Horrific Attacks and Religious Targeting
Shea presented several recent examples of Fulani-led attacks on Christian communities:
- Christmas Eve Massacre (December 24, 2024): Over 200 Christians were killed and 32,000 displaced in coordinated attacks on 21 villages in Plateau State.
- Kaduna Hostage Crisis (February 26, 2025): More than 200 Christian hostages were reportedly being tortured and starved in a terrorist camp near a Nigerian army base.
- Targeting of Clergy: At least seven Catholic priests have been kidnapped in 2025 alone. Among the victims was Father Sylvester Okechukwu, whose body was discovered on March 5 after being abducted from his rectory.
U.S. Policy and the Call for a CPC Designation
Shea criticized the Biden administration for removing Nigeria from the U.S. Country of Particular Concern list, a designation reserved for the world’s worst religious freedom violators. The administration has downplayed the crisis, attributing it to “climate change” rather than religious persecution.
“The State Department refuses to acknowledge the religious dimension of these attacks,” Shea argued. “Survivors repeatedly report that the attackers shout ‘Allahu Akbar’ while killing Christians, yet this is ignored.”
She urged Congress to pass legislation reinstating Nigeria’s CPC status, which could lead to targeted sanctions and increased diplomatic pressure on the Nigerian government to protect religious minorities.
“The U.S. must recognize the scale of this persecution,” Shea concluded. “Failure to act will only embolden the perpetrators and deepen the suffering of Nigeria’s Christian communities.”
Her testimony has reignited calls from religious freedom advocates and human rights organizations for stronger U.S. intervention in Nigeria’s growing crisis.
