By Lizzy Chirkpi
A member of the United States House of Representatives, Rep. Riley Moore, has called for U.S. assistance to Nigeria to be tied to the country’s efforts to protect Christians from attacks, citing what he described as the “horrific persecution” of Christians by radical Fulani terrorists.
Moore, a Republican representing West Virginia, made the remarks in a video posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday, where he disclosed that the U.S. Congress was considering a provision in the annual State Department appropriations bill that would make certain U.S. assistance to Nigeria conditional on improvements in the protection of Christians.
According to the lawmaker, the provision was included in the funding bill at his instance.
He said:
“Today, Congress will take a strong stand against the horrific persecution of Christians in Nigeria.”
Moore added:
“The annual State Department funding bill includes my language conditioning U.S. aid to Nigeria to defend Christians and stop radical Fulani Islamic terrorists.”
Expressing confidence in the proposal’s prospects, he concluded:
“Let’s get it done.”
If ultimately approved by both chambers of Congress and signed into law by the U.S. President, the provision would require Nigeria to demonstrate measurable efforts to protect Christian communities before specified categories of U.S. assistance could be provided.
Moore’s comments come amid continuing international concern over insecurity in several parts of Nigeria, particularly in the North Central and North West regions, where communities have suffered repeated attacks by armed groups.
While some foreign lawmakers, advocacy organisations and religious freedom groups have characterised many of the attacks as religious persecution targeting Christians, the Nigerian government has consistently maintained that the violence is driven by a complex combination of terrorism, banditry, farmer-herder conflicts, criminality and competition over land and natural resources, rather than religion alone.
The proposed condition on U.S. assistance is expected to form part of congressional deliberations on the annual State Department funding legislation, which outlines U.S. foreign assistance priorities and appropriations.