At least 17 Christians were killed in Nigeria hours after President Donald Trump designated the nation as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for ongoing attacks by radical Islamists, with local media reporting “fresh attacks by gunmen across communities in Plateau and Kaduna states.”
A Friday evening attack in Kaduna claimed the lives of seven people and injured one more, with Nigerian outlet Punch reporting that the assailants “invaded” the Damakasuwa community in Chawai Chiefdom around 8:00 pm and began “shooting sporadically and forcing residents to flee into nearby bushes for safety.”
The chief of Chawai, Alhaji Yahaya Muhammad, told the newspaper that five of the fatalities died at the scene while the other two later succumbed to their injuries.
“The incident heightened tension in the area, but normalcy has since been restored due to the presence of military personnel in the community,” the chief said. “We have urged our people to remain calm and allow the security agencies to carry out their duties diligently to ensure the perpetrators are apprehended.”
In Plateau State, 10 more people were reportedly killed in separate attacks on Friday and Saturday, Punch reported.
Seven of the victims were killed in the Kwi community while three others were killed in the Pushit community, with Kwi community leader Rwang Tengwon telling the outlet that the attacks were carried about by “suspected Fulani militia.” The Fulani are a predominantly Muslim ethnic group in West Africa that have bands of radicalized gunmen who primarily target Christian non-Fulani farmers.
Washington, DC-based nonprofit International Christian Concern (ICC) confirmed that Friday’s attacks were against Christians, reporting that both sites “sit along a volatile corridor that has witnessed repeated communal violence over the past decade.”
Local community leaders reportedly said that many of the victims were women and children who had gathered for an evening vigil ahead of church the next morning.
“It started suddenly; there was no argument, no warning,” said Nanzing Dalyop, a local farmer who survived the shootings. “We heard gunshots and people screaming. They were shouting in another language as they shot at anyone they saw.”
Rahila Bako, whose husband was killed in Kwi, said “I don’t know what to say anymore.”
“Every time we bury our dead, we expect someone to speak for us, but nobody comes. We are tired of promises,” she told the ICC.
Earlier on Friday, Trump re-declared Nigeria as a CPC after former President Joe Biden removed the country from the list in 2021, Breitbart News reported.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, directing the House Appropriations Committee “to immediately look into this matter” and stating that the United States “cannot stand by” while the slaughters occur.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu condemned Trump’s statements acknowledging the ongoing genocide of Christians in his country on Saturday, claiming they did not reflect “reality,” while a top adviser told local media Tinubu planned to meet Trump “in the coming days.”
Olivia Rondeau is a politics reporter for Breitbart News based in Washington, DC. Find her on X/Twitter and Instagram.
