A Nigerian mission leader said President Donald Trump’s attempt to end violence against Christians in his country is an “answered prayer.”
“We have called on the international community to force our government to do the right thing. This is the only time America is turning its attention to this violence in Nigeria. So as a Christian, I am excited,” he said.
“I am glad that Trump is focusing on ensuring that this violence stops. Anyone who does not support Trump’s intervention clearly knows that that person does not understand the reality and severity of the violence that has occurred in northern Nigeria over the past decade.”
Catholics gather for Mass at the Church of the Assumption in Lagos on April 21, 2025, as tensions rise following US President Donald Trump’s renewed threat of military action in Nigeria over the killing of Christians. (Olympia De Maismont/AFP via Getty Images)
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Trump threatened in a November Truth Social post to send U.S. troops “at gunpoint” into Africa’s most populous country to “completely eradicate the Islamic terrorists committing these terrible atrocities.” The president also threatened to cut off all aid and assistance if the violence continued.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu responded to Trump’s threats, writing on social media that his administration has worked with Christian and Muslim leaders to address security challenges facing citizens across all faiths and regions.
“The characterization of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality nor does it take into account the government’s consistent and sincere efforts to ensure freedom of religion and belief for all Nigerians,” he wrote on X.
“Religious freedom and tolerance have been and always will be a core tenet of our collective identity. Nigeria neither opposes nor encourages religious persecution.”
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu speaks with his aide during the 64th Ordinary Session of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government in Abuja on December 10, 2023. (Kola Sulaimon/AFP via Getty Images)
Open Doors, an international Christian organization that supports persecuted believers, says attacks are most common in Nigeria’s northern Muslim-majority states but are beginning to spread to the Middle Belt and further south.
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The organization explained that Christians are at risk of targeted attacks from Islamic militants, including Fulani fighters and Boko Haram. Women are often murdered and subjected to sexual violence.
‘We have had victims. We had to bury our missionaries. Our missionaries must move immediately. In fact, I can tell you that today we have hundreds of widows whose husbands were killed in their fields as missionaries,” he said.
Catholics gather for Mass at the Church of the Assumption in Lagos on April 21, 2025. (Olympia De Maismont/AFP via Getty Images)
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“It is not easy to be a Christian in Nigeria, and unfortunately our government does not seem to be interested in holding people accountable for all the killings, the mass murders that are happening in this country,” Gwaivangmin added.
The leader of the largest global mission agency for the Nigerian Christian church said he would welcome US military involvement to help end the violence. He believes it is not realistic to have American troops on the ground, but hopes the United States can provide logistical support and equipment to strengthen Nigeria’s armed forces.
