As criticisms of the Tinubu-led administration, and claims of Christian genocide in Nigeria get heated up, the United States (US) president, Donald Trump, has reassigned Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).
This is not the first time Nigeria has been placed on that list. In December 2019, the US State Department placed Nigeria on its Special Watch List for “engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom”. In December 2020, it designated the country as a CPC.
The CPC is a designation by the US Secretary of State of a nation engaged in severe violations of religious freedom under under International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998. This could lead to several economic sanctions, including restricting or withdrawing development and security assistance.
Nigeria now joins twelve other countries on this list, including Russia and Iran.
The latest designation comes amid mounting criticism of the Tinubu administration’s handling of deadly attacks, particularly those targeting Christian communities.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) had earlier called on the State Department to return Nigeria to the CPC list following an attack in Yelwata, Benue State, where at least 100 displaced persons sheltering in a Catholic mission were killed.
The massacre drew global attention, including from Pope Leo XIV, who prayed for the victims and urged “security, justice, and peace” in Nigeria, expressing deep concern for Christian communities repeatedly targeted in violent attacks.
Calls for stronger U.S. action grew in October, leading to Trump’s decision. U.S. Senator Ted Cruz accused the Nigerian government of enabling a “massacre against Christians,” claiming that more than 50,000 Christians have been killed since 2009 and over 18,000 churches and 2,000 schools destroyed by what he described as Islamist armed groups.
In response to the genocide claim, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said that many Christian communities in parts of Nigeria, especially in the North, have suffered severe attacks, loss of life, and the destruction of places of worship.
The religious body said that they have worked alongside the wider Christian community to draw national and international attention to the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. Adding that efforts for justice and protection have been met with delay or denial.
Cruz previously sponsored the Nigeria Religious Freedom Act of 2025, seeking to impose sanctions on Nigerian officials responsible for religious persecution and those enforcing blasphemy laws.
Trump has, however, instructed the US Defense Department to prepare for possible military action in Nigeria.
Controversy and Nigeria’s response
Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, in reaction to Trump’s decision, criticised the country’s CPC redesignation. Tinubu said that the characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect the nation’s reality.
He emphasised that it does not take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and belief for all Nigerians. This was also echoed by the Nigerian Foreign Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, who said that religious persecution was “impossible” in Nigeria under the country’s laws and constitution.
“This is what shows that it’s impossible for there to be a religious persecution that can be supported in any way, shape or form by the government of Nigeria at any level — be it federal, regional, or local. It’s impossible,” he said.
Trump’s statement of a possible military action has generated several mixed reactions from Nigerians.
Within Nigeria stumbled on a video on X of a man pleading with Trump to save Nigeria with the U.S. Army, while also citing several security issues in the country. Another X user said that Trump’s statement is a wake-up call for Nigerians.
Also reacting, Peter Obi, former Labour Party presidential candidate, said the latest redesignation of Nigeria on the CPC list is a serious reflection of Nigeria’s worsening security crisis. Obi said that the security situation in the country has worsened due to the government’s failure to act decisively.
“The country is witnessing an unprecedented level of insecurity with attendant carnage and the most shocking loss of lives and property,” he emphasised.
However, politician and activist, Omoyele Sowore, noted that Nigeria does not need a foreign saviour, but an accountable leadership. Sowore explained that Trump does not care about Nigeria.
“Whether you are Christian, Muslim, animist, or non-religious, no one should celebrate such rhetoric. The United States and its allies have a long record of military interventions that leave nations more unstable than before. They failed to secure peace in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, or Syria, and they won’t bring salvation to Nigeria through bombs or boots on the ground,” he said.
As events continue to unfold, China has expressed strong support for Tinubu’s administration while warning against foreign interference from the US in Nigeria’s internal affairs.
The Asian nation maintained that it firmly opposes using religion or human rights as a pretext to meddle in the domestic affairs of sovereign nations.
What does data say?
Insecurity in Nigeria has continued to worsen, and new terror groups continue to emerge. Amnesty International revealed that in the two years since Tinubu took power, at least 10,217 people have been killed in attacks by gunmen in Benue, Edo, Katsina, Kebbi, Plateau, Sokoto, and Zamfara states.
Benue State accounts for the highest death toll of 6,896, followed by Plateau State, where 2,630 people were killed.
According to data by SBM Intelligence, 21 Catholic priests were abducted in Nigeria between July 2022 and June 2023.
SBM data released in August 2023 revealed the increasing trend of kidnapped priests in Nigeria, with dozens of Catholic priests and other clergy members abducted annually across different states, including those in the Middle Belt, over the past few years.
Similarly, official data from the Catholic Church also indicated that about 145 priests were kidnapped over the last 10 years.
ACLED research shows that out of 1,923 attacks on civilians in Nigeria so far this year, the number of those targeting Christians because of their religion stood at 50.
ACLED also reported 20,409 deaths from 11,862 attacks against civilians in Nigeria between January 2020 and September 2025. Some 385 attacks were “targeted events against Christians … where Christian identity of the victim was a reported factor,” resulting in 317 deaths. However, in the same period, there were 417 deaths recorded among Muslims in 196 attacks.