Jihadi Violence in Nigeria

The House debated violence against Christians in Nigeria. Rep. John James said tens of thousands of Christians have been killed since 2019 by extremist groups such as Boko Haram, and that the Nigerian government has ignored or enabled the violence. He said the Nigerian government unfairly convicted Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, who spoke out about the violence, and urged the House to pass his resolution calling on Nigeria to give Kanu proceedings consistent with its constitutional obligations and international human rights commitments, or release him. He also questioned sending US money to a country where these attacks occur.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

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1 statement

John James, MI

Republican
“Nigeria is letting violent groups kill tens of thousands of Christians. The Nigerian government also unfairly convicted Mazi Nnamdi Kanu for speaking out against this. I want the House to pass my resolution calling on Nigeria to give him a fair trial or release him immediately. We should not send money to a country that allows these attacks.”
Official Congressional Record

Nigeria is the deadliest place on Earth to be a Christian today. Since 2019, tens of thousands of Christians in Nigeria have been slaughtered as part of a sustained pattern of religiously motivated violence by jihadis, ignored or enabled by the Nigerian Government. Extremist groups like Boko Haram are allowed to operate without any meaningful response from authorities. A courageous leader named Mazi Nnamdi Kanu was convicted in a farce show trial for speaking out about what is happening. He is currently serving a life sentence in prison, convicted on false terrorism charges. I implore my colleagues to support my resolution, H. Res. 1321 calling on the Nigerian Government to conduct another trial in accordance with its own Constitution based on: evidence, with access to legal counsel, medical care and international law pertaining to humane conditions of detention, or, better yet, release Mazi Nnamdi Kanu immediately and unconditionally. America gives billions to Nigeria. We will not continue to fund a Christian genocide. We have the moral obligation to stand up so our Christian brothers and sisters can worship the Lord, our God, in peace.

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