A senior adviser to U.S President, Donald Trump, on Arab and African Affairs, Massad Boulos, has dismissed claims that Christians are being specifically targeted in Nigeria, arguing instead that terrorist groups, such as Boko Haram and ISIS, have killed more Muslims than Christians in the country.
In a video shared by the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) on 𝕏 (formerly Twitter) on Friday, Boulos addressed the allegations made by some US politicians about religious persecution in Nigeria, calling them “unfortunate and misleading”.
Boulos stated that terrorism in Nigeria is not rooted in religious conflict but is part of a broader insecurity affecting people from all walks of life.
He said, “Any incident, any loss of life is absolutely unfortunate. Those who know the terrain well know that terrorism has no colour, no religion and no tribe. People of all religions and all tribes are dying as a result of terrorist acts.”
He further elaborated, asserting that Boko Haram and ISIS are responsible for killing more Muslims than Christians, emphasizing that terrorism affects all Nigerians regardless of their faith or background.
Boulos stated, “We even know that Boko Haram and ISIS are killing more Muslims than Christians. So people are suffering from all sorts of backgrounds. This is not specifically targeted about one group or the other.”
He also addressed the clashes between herders and farmers in the Middle Belt of Nigeria, which some have attempted to frame as religious violence. While acknowledging these incidents, he insisted they were not driven by religious motives.
“There are other incidents that happen to be in the Middle Belt, for example, where farmers are located. Most of these farmers happen to be Christian, and some herdsmen are going through, and they have these incidents. But it’s not something that we can say is specifically targeted about this specific group,” he explained.
The US official commended the administration of President Bola Tinubu for increasing security efforts in volatile regions of the country, stating that recent measures had yielded improvements.
Boulos said, “The Nigerian government and President Tinubu’s administration have recently taken additional measures and put more resources in those areas. We’ve seen some improvements in recent weeks. We appreciate those measures, and we definitely look forward to more of those.”
Boulos highlighted Nigeria’s long-standing tradition of religious and ethnic coexistence, noting that the country’s 50-50 Christian and Muslim population has never been a source of serious division.
“Nigeria is a country in which all sorts of religious groups and other groups, ethnic and tribal, are living together in harmony for centuries. The population is split 50-50 between Christians and Muslims, so this has never been a serious religious issue and should not be,” he said.
He also emphasized the importance of continuing the partnership between Nigeria and the United States to combat terrorism and maintain peace across all regions of the country.
Naijaonpoint reports that Boulos’ comments came amid renewed debate in the US following calls by some legislators, including Senator Ted Cruz, for Nigeria to be reclassified as a “Country of Particular Concern” due to allegations of religious persecution.
Senator Cruz accused Nigerian officials of “ignoring and even facilitating the mass murder of Christians by Islamist jihadists.” He further alleged that Nigerian Christians were being targeted for their faith and subjected to sharia and blasphemy laws.
In response, Cruz introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act to the US Senate, which aims to sanction officials deemed responsible for religious violations in Nigeria.
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