US lawmaker Riley Moore has accused the Nigerian government of failing to justify the extensive military assistance it received from Washington, citing the alleged ongoing genocide against Christians in Nigeria.
Moore expressed outrage over the years of silence and neglect from both Nigerian authorities and the international community.
He said this in an interview with Dinesh D’Souza programme.
“My brothers and sisters in Christ are murdered for practising their faith and belief in our Lord Jesus Christ,” he stated, expressing outrage over what he described as years of silence and neglect from both Nigerian authorities and the international community.”
He warned that Nigeria’s inability to tackle the killings could have far-reaching consequences, stressing that the United States would eventually be forced to act if the situation deteriorates further.
“If we don’t address this, if we don’t do something about this and some terrorists take hold in Nigeria, I promise you, we would have to address it one way or the other. What I would like to do is address it in a cooperative manner with the Nigerians and hopefully there would be.”
The lawmaker criticised the Nigerian government for failing to prioritise the protection of Christians despite receiving substantial US security support over the years.
“I think there is a potential very quickly to partner and I am hoping they would partner with the US government to address this because we have been providing them billions of billions of dollars worth of security assistance. They have been paying for that but they were also granted security assistance from the United States of America, training and equipment, for them to address this issue and it has gone on unresolved and they are not prioritising the protection of the Christians.”
President Donald Trump has designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” over the alleged large-scale killings of Christians and warned that Washington could cut aid or even take military action if the violence continues.
The Nigerian government has rejected the characterization, pushing back against claims that the violence amounts to targeted genocide.