US lawmakers will hold a congressional briefing on Nigeria’s Christian persecution as security cooperation with Abuja intensifies
The United States House Appropriations Committee in Washington on Tuesday announced a joint congressional briefing on Nigeria’s Christian persecution, led by Committee Vice Chair and National Security Subcommittee Chairman Mario Díaz-Balart.
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Congressman Riley Moore confirmed the session in a notice posted on X, stating that lawmakers from the Appropriations, Foreign Affairs, and Financial Services Committees will participate in the closed-door roundtable.
Representatives of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom and other security and human rights experts are expected to present evidence on the escalating violence.
The committee said the session aims to gather material for a comprehensive report ordered by President Donald Trump on the killings of Nigerian Christians and the measures Congress may endorse to protect vulnerable religious groups worldwide.
Officials stressed that the briefing will deliver vital insight into conditions faced by religious minorities and help lawmakers shape an informed response.
They described the move as critical, noting the urgency of documenting targeted attacks and emerging threats.
The briefing coincides with deepening US–Nigeria security cooperation. President Bola Tinubu recently approved Nigeria’s delegation to the new US–Nigeria Joint Working Group created to implement defence and security agreements reached during high-level talks in Washington led by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
The group includes senior ministers and security officials tasked with advancing counterterrorism work, intelligence sharing, border management, and humanitarian coordination.
The initiative follows heightened concern over terrorism, banditry, and rising attacks on Christian communities in parts of Nigeria.
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These trends have intensified US scrutiny and prompted renewed calls for stronger protections for at-risk faith groups.
