Trump threatens to go into Nigeria ‘guns-a-blazing’ over attacks on Christians | Donald Trump
Donald Trump said Saturday he had ordered the Pentagon to begin planning for possible military action in Nigeria, while stepping up his criticism that the government was failing to curb the persecution of Christians in the West African country.
“If the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the United States will immediately cease all aid and assistance to Nigeria and may very well go to that now disgraced country, ‘with guns blazing,’ to completely eliminate the Islamist terrorists who are committing these horrific atrocities,” Trump said on social media. “I hereby order our War Department to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be swift, vicious and gentle, just as terrorist thugs attack our Christian Christians!”
The warning of possible military action came after Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu earlier Saturday pushed back on Trump’s announcement the day before that he was designating the West African country “a country of particular concern” for its alleged failure to rein in the persecution of Christians.
In a statement posted on social media on Saturday, Tinubu said the characterization of Nigeria as a religiously intolerant country does not reflect the national reality.
“Religious freedom and tolerance have been a fundamental principle of our collective identity and will always remain so,” Tinubu said. “Nigeria opposes and does not encourage religious persecution. Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all faiths.”
Trump said Friday that “Christianity faces an existential threat in Nigeria” and that “radical Islamists are responsible for this mass killing.”
Trump’s comment comes weeks after US Senator Ted Cruz urged Congress to designate Africa’s most populous country as a violator of religious freedom, accusing it of “massacre of Christians”.
Nigeria’s population of 220 million is almost evenly split between Christians and Muslims. The country has long faced insecurity on several fronts, including the extremist group Boko Haram, which seeks to establish its radical interpretation of Islamic law and has also targeted Muslims it deems not Muslim enough.
The attacks in Nigeria have diverse motivations. There are religiously motivated attacks targeting both Christians and Muslims, clashes between farmers and herders over dwindling resources, community rivalries, breakaway groups and ethnic clashes.
Although Christians are among those targeted, analysts say the majority of victims of armed groups are Muslims in Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north, where most attacks occur.
Kimiebi Ebienfa, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to protecting citizens of all religions.
“The Federal Government of Nigeria will continue to defend all citizens, regardless of race, creed or religion,” Ebienfa said in a statement on Saturday. “Like America, Nigeria has no choice but to celebrate the diversity that is our greatest strength. »
Nigeria was placed on the United States’ list of countries of particular concern for the first time in 2020 due to what the State Department called “systematic violations of religious freedom.” The designation, which did not target attacks on Christians, was lifted in 2023 in what observers saw as a way to improve ties between the countries ahead of then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit.
