United States President Donald Trump has issued a stern warning over what he calls the mass killing of Christians in Nigeria, declaring that the U.S. military is “ready, willing, and able” to act if the bloodshed continues.
In a new White House broadcast on X, formerly Twitter, Trump said Christians in Nigeria are facing an existential threat; he accused “radical Islamists” of carrying out “mass slaughter” across several states.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands and thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump said.
The U.S. president declared that the scale of violence has reached a breaking point. He said Nigeria will now be classified as a “country of particular concern” under U.S. law — a designation typically reserved for nations where severe religious persecution occurs.
“I am hereby making Nigeria a country of particular concern. That’s a legal definition,” Trump said.
“When Christians or any such group are slaughtered like what’s happening in Nigeria something must be done immediately.”
The video has been shared by the White House handle (@WhiteHouse), and it stirred a global debate as Trump promised that America would not “stand by” while Christians face mass killings in Nigeria.
“The United States cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening in Nigeria and in numerous other countries,” he said. “We stand ready, willing, and able to save our great Christian population around the world.”
Trump cited an alarming set of statistics, saying more than 3,100 Christians had been killed in Nigeria during 2024, out of an estimated 4,476 killed globally for their faith.
He called the figures horrific, adding he was urging the U.S. Congress to take swift action.
“What horrible numbers. Something has to be done,” Trump said. “I am asking Congressman Riley Moore, together with Chairman Tom Cole and the House Appropriations Committee, to immediately look into this matter and report back to me.”
These comments by the former president have attracted renewed international interest in Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, mostly around the Middle Belt and northern parts of the country, where extremist groups like Boko Haram and Fulani militias have been accused of repeated attacks on Christian communities.
Trump has previously clashed with Nigerian authorities over the same issue. Earlier this year, he threatened to suspend U.S. aid to Nigeria if the government failed to halt what he called “religiously motivated slaughter.”
“This is not going to happen. The killing of Christians is not going to happen. The United States will not allow it,” Trump declared.
Human rights groups have called repeatedly for intervention by global powers, accusing successive Nigerian governments of ignoring systemic violence against minority Christians.
The presidency in Nigeria is yet to react officially to Trump’s latest remarks.
However, the move is likely to strain diplomatic relations between Washington and Abuja, especially at a time when Nigeria is under scrutiny for failing to check human rights abuses and religious conflicts.