Backed by the House Appropriations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the report praised Trump for redesignating Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) and recommended stronger measures to hold perpetrators accountable.
The United States Congress has called for broad sanctions, security reforms, and diplomatic pressure on Nigeria in a new report titled “Ending the Persecution of Christians in Nigeria,” urging President Donald Trump to take decisive action against escalating violence targeting Christian communities.
Backed by the House Appropriations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the report praised Trump for redesignating Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) and recommended stronger measures to hold perpetrators accountable.
According to the congressional document, shared on X by the House Foreign Affairs Committee Majority on Tuesday, “after decades of persecution, Nigeria is the deadliest place in the world to be a Christian.”
The report alleges that well-armed Fulani militias and terrorist groups have carried out sustained attacks, killing tens of thousands of Christians, including pastors and priests.
It further states that thousands of churches and schools have been destroyed, while kidnappings and blasphemy laws in northern states are used to suppress speech, target Christians and minorities, and justify convictions without due process.
The report described Trump’s CPC redesignation as “a once-in-a-generation opportunity for real change” to address the decades-long crisis. It notes that the President tasked Congressman Riley Moore, Chairman Tom Cole, and the House Appropriations Committee with investigating the persecution and killings of Nigerian Christians.
Appropriations Vice Chair Mario Díaz-Balart reportedly hosted an investigative roundtable, while House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast and Africa Subcommittee Chairman Chris Smith led hearings to gather evidence from government and civil society witnesses.
This collaboration resulted in a set of recommendations for both Washington and Abuja.
Key proposals include a bilateral agreement between the U.S. and Nigeria to protect vulnerable Christian communities, combat jihadist terror, and ensure Nigeria co-funds humanitarian assistance, prioritizes internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the predominantly Christian Middle Belt, deploys effective security forces, and removes armed Fulani militias from seized farmlands.
The report also urges Nigerian authorities to guarantee the safe return of displaced communities and rebuild critical infrastructure.
The report recommends publicly invoking CPC Presidential Directives to “name and shame” perpetrators of violence, imposing sanctions on groups or individuals who commit or tolerate attacks against Christians, continuing visa restrictions on offenders, and reviewing whether certain Fulani militias should be designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
It also calls for the repeal of Sharia codes and anti-blasphemy laws, citing their use in suppressing minorities and dissent.
The document suggests leveraging trade measures, such as reviewing beef and cattle exports to countries including Ivory Coast, Ghana, South Africa, and Senegal, to pressure armed groups to disarm.
Security cooperation between the U.S. and Nigeria is highlighted as critical, including diverting Russian military equipment purchases toward American defense systems, enhancing counterterrorism collaboration, streamlining Foreign Military Sales, and improving intelligence assessments on sectarian violence.
The report further recommends increasing accountability before providing additional U.S. aid, commissioning a Government Accountability Office (GAO) audit on the effectiveness of aid to Nigeria, and monitoring Nigeria’s financial system to disrupt terrorist financing.
It raises concerns over Chinese illegal mining operations allegedly destabilizing communities through protection payments to armed groups.
Congress urged the U.S. administration to ensure adequately staffed diplomatic posts in Nigeria and to work with international partners including France, Hungary, and the United Kingdom to address the crisis.
The report frames the situation as both a humanitarian emergency and a U.S. national security issue, warning that sectarian violence and terrorist expansion in Nigeria threaten regional stability and American interests.
“The United States and Nigeria should take this moment to redefine a new strategic partnership to make America and Nigeria safer, stronger, and more prosperous,” the report concluded.
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