Govt Done Nothing About Nigeria Killings, Christian Genocide —Trump

United States President Donald Trump has again expressed serious anger over alleged Christian genocide in Nigeria, accusing the federal government of failing to protect Christians from violence being perpetrated by Islamic extremists in the country.

In his latest reaction monitored on FOX News yesterday, Trump said thousands of Christians were being killed in Nigeria.

Speaking on a radio programme captured by Fox News, Trump, who had earlier designated Nigeria as a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ over the Christian genocide claims, again threatened military action in Nigeria to stop the killings, branding the country “a disgrace”.

He said he may stop all aid to Nigeria, and repeated his threat to take military action against Islamist militants if the government does not “do more” to stop the attacks.

“Nigeria is a disgrace, the whole thing is a disgrace. They’re killing people by the thousands. It’s a genocide, and I’m really angry about it. And we pay, you know, we give a lot of subsidies to Nigeria. We’re going to end up stopping,” the president said.

The renewed outburst came after series of terrorist activities across the country in recent days, including the kidnap of 315 schoolgirls from Government Comprehensive Girls’ Secondary  School, Maga in Kebbi State and the killing of their vice principal, killing of worshippers and kidnap of 38 others from Christ Apostolic Church in Ekuru in Kwara State, the attack by terrorists at St Mary’s Catholic Secondary and Primary School, Papiry in Agwara local government area of Niger State where no fewer than 50 students were abducted, among others elsewhere in the country.

The Nigerian government, in the past few days after Trump’s earlier threat, had sent a delegation led by the National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, to the United States, attempting to counter narratives suggesting religious persecution in the country.

Ribadu had met US Secretary of War, Peter Hegseth, during a strategic session to strengthen Nigeria-US collaboration in combating terrorism and eradicating banditry, members of the US Congress, officials of the State Department and other American stakeholders to provide information about Nigeria’s security challenges.

But the recent ugly developments appear to diminish the impact of such efforts, thereby portraying the government’s lethargy in handling the situation in the direction President Trump described the country, even as many Nigerians are not amused.

Governor Nasir Idris of the North Western state of Kebbi had Friday expressed serious concern over the withdrawal of military personnel from the girls’ school in Maga, shortly before the abduction of the students and called for a probe of the military withdrawal.