A Nigerian Catholic bishop has called on the United States to intervene militarily to curb escalating attacks on Christians across Nigeria. Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of the Diocese of Makurdi made the appeal on Nov. 20 during a U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa hearing, held just days after gunmen abducted students from a Catholic boarding school in western Nigeria.
Subcommittee chairman Rep. Chris Smith (R–New Jersey) opened the session by warning that “Nigeria is ground zero for religious persecution,” insisting that recent attacks are clearly religiously motivated.
Joining the hearing via Zoom, Bishop Anagbe said the U.S. must act urgently following Nigeria’s redesignation as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) under U.S. religious freedom laws.
“Without quick intervention, Christianity risks elimination in parts of northern and Middle Belt Nigeria,” the bishop warned. He stressed that while the CPC designation brought hope to embattled Christian communities, it is not enough.
“Persecution cannot be stopped by the Church alone. It requires coordinated political, military, and humanitarian intervention,” he said. “The blood of Nigerian Christians cries out to you… We cannot afford to wait any longer.”
The bishop detailed ongoing attacks by extremist groups including Boko Haram and armed Fulani militias, recounting how several of his own relatives were killed in an attack in his home village of Aondona on May 22.
He urged the U.S. to impose targeted sanctions under the Magnitsky Act, expand humanitarian aid, and support displaced families living in camps across the Middle Belt.
Rep. Smith also pushed for strong U.S. action, including conditions on foreign aid, humanitarian support for faith-based organizations, and sanctions such as visa bans and asset freezes for perpetrators of religious violence.
Citing data from Open Doors, Smith noted that more Christians have been killed in Nigeria than anywhere else in the world, with an estimated 52,000 Christians and 34,000 moderate Muslims targeted since 2009.
Rep. Riley Moore (R–West Virginia) called for the disarmament of Fulani militants, while Democratic lawmakers also acknowledged Nigeria’s security failures but urged diplomacy before any military steps.
Ambassador Jonathan Pratt, leading the State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs, condemned the Nigerian government’s “failure to intervene” and said the U.S. is developing a plan to pressure authorities to act.
Credit/CNA
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