The United States Department of State on Wednesday announced new measures aimed at addressing violence against Christians in Nigeria and other countries.
According to a statement from the department, the policy targets radical Islamic terrorists, Fulani ethnic militias, and other actors responsible for killings and attacks on religious communities.
“The United States is taking decisive action in response to the mass killings and attacks on Christians carried out by radical Islamic terrorists, Fulani militias, and other violent groups in Nigeria and beyond,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The statement explained that, under a new policy implemented through Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the State Department can restrict visas for individuals who have “directed, authorized, significantly supported, participated in, or carried out violations of religious freedom,” and, when appropriate, extend those restrictions to their immediate family members.
Rubio emphasized that, as President Donald Trump has stated, the “United States cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening in Nigeria and numerous other countries.” He added that the visa restrictions could be applied “to Nigeria and any other governments or individuals engaged in violations of religious freedom.”
The announcement followed a briefing by US House Republicans on Tuesday that highlighted rising religious violence in Nigeria. The session, convened at President Trump’s direction, tasked the House Appropriations Committee with investigating what he described as the slaughter of Christians in the country.
The briefing was led by House Appropriations Vice Chair and National Security Subcommittee Chairman Mario Díaz-Balart and included members of the House Appropriations and House Foreign Affairs Committees, as well as religious freedom experts. Participants included Representatives Robert Aderholt, Riley Moore, Brian Mast, Chris Smith, US Commission on International Religious Freedom Chair Vicky Hartzler, Alliance Defending Freedom International’s Sean Nelson, and Dr. Ebenezer Obadare of the Council on Foreign Relations.
In a related development, President Bola Tinubu recently approved Nigeria’s delegation to the new US–Nigeria Joint Working Group, established to implement security agreements from high-level talks in Washington led by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
The move comes amid growing concerns over terrorism, banditry, and targeted attacks on Christians in Nigeria, prompting increased US scrutiny and warnings about the protection of vulnerable faith communities.
On November 20, the US House Subcommittee on Africa held a public hearing to review Trump’s redesignation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, placing the country under heightened scrutiny for alleged violations of religious freedom. Lawmakers examined the potential consequences of the designation, which could pave the way for sanctions against Nigerian officials found complicit in religious persecution.
