Trump threatens military action in Nigeria

TT

Updated 22.35 | Published 20.21

 

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu disagrees with Donald Trump. Archive photo. Photo: Olamikan Gbemiga/AP/TT

US President Donald Trump is threatening to deploy military forces against “Islamist terrorists” in Nigeria. Trump is demanding that the Nigerian government stop what he claims is an ongoing mass killing of Christians.

“Warning: The Nigerian government had better act quickly!” Trump wrote in capital letters on Truth Social.

Trump also stated that he had ordered the Pentagon to prepare for military action.

A possible attack would be “swift and brutal,” according to the president, “just like the terrorist thugs are attacking our beloved Christians.”

The US will also immediately stop all aid to Nigeria and “may very well” enter the country with “guns drawn,” Trump wrote.

Responded to allegations

The threat follows Trump's statement on Friday that Christianity is under threat in Nigeria and that thousands of Christians are being killed.

"Radical Islamists are responsible for the mass murder," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

On Saturday, Nigeria's President Bola Ahmed Tinubu responded to the allegations.

"Religious freedom and tolerance have been a central part of our collective identity and will always remain so," Tinubu wrote on social media.

Nigeria "opposes religious persecution," according to the Nigerian president.

"Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all religions," Tinubu wrote, stating that his government has been actively working with Christian and Muslim leaders since 2023 to protect citizens.

Terror in the North

Trump's statement comes shortly after Republican Senator Ted Cruz accused Nigeria of mass murders of Christians and urged the US Congress to determine that the West African country systematically violates religious freedom.

The northern parts of Nigeria are dominated by Muslims, while most Christians live in the south. Historically, both religiously motivated violence and attacks between different ethnic groups have occurred.

In recent years, the Islamist extremist movement Boko Haram has terrorized the population in the north, with many Muslim victims as a result.