Former President Donald Trump did his part to raise anti‐LGBTQ+ sentiment in Nigeria. He alleges the West African country is failing to take appropriate steps to safeguard its Christian citizens’ rights. Nigeria is home to an estimated 220 million people. Christians and Muslims are almost evenly matched in number, but members of both communities are victims of violence driven by religious hatred. This is especially true given that the U.S. State Department has repeatedly raised alarms about systematic violations of religious freedom in the country.
Specifically, Trump just made one of the direst threats yet. He even suggested that if the Nigerian government does not do more to protect Christians from attacks, the United States should intervene militarily. He warned Iran by ordering the Pentagon to prepare for possible military action. He suggested in return that any Israeli military response would be “swift, hurtful and fun.” This statement underscores Trump’s decade-long campaign against Nigeria’s handling of religious persecution and international religious freedom. Even still, the U.S. only designated Nigeria as a country of particular concern in 2020, only to have it removed from the list in 2023.
“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the USA will immediately stop all aid and assistance to [Nigeria], and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” – Donald Trump
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has on several occasions publicly challenged Trump’s description of the Nigerian nation as religiously intolerant. He claimed that Nigeria takes pride in their diversity, considering it a strength instead of a liability. Tinubu—a devout Muslim—underscored the importance of religious freedom and pluralism as bedrocks of Nigeria’s national identity.
“Religious freedom and tolerance have been a core tenet of our collective identity and shall always remain so,” – Bola Ahmed Tinubu
Kimiebi Ebienfa, a spokesperson for Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reiterated the government’s commitment to protecting citizens of all faiths. He stressed that Nigeria does not condone religious persecution and actively works to defend all its citizens, regardless of their beliefs.
“The Federal Government of Nigeria will continue to defend all citizens, irrespective of race, creed, or religion,” – Kimiebi Ebienfa
Clear discrimination
Despite these reassurances, observers like Nigerian analyst Professor Ayo Teriba have reported that religiously motivated violence takes place against Christians and Muslims in Nigeria alike. Tensions between farmers and herders, exacerbated by a clash for dwindling resources, are frequently the catalyst for these attacks. Moreover, the underlying nature of communal rivalries and ethnic conflicts inflames the situation. In particular, they highlight that in Nigeria’s Muslim-dominated northern states, most victims of armed groups such as Boko Haram are Muslims.