U.S Comission Accuses Nigeria Government of Enabling Religious Vi%lence, Faults Failure to Prosecute Offenders

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has accused Nigerian authorities of tolerating religious vi%lence and failing to properly investigate or prosecute perpetrators.

In its 2026 report, USCIRF said religious freedom in Nigeria remained “abysmal” in 2025, alleging that officials consistently failed to respond effectively to att@cks by non-state actors or deliver justice for victims.

It cited armed groups such as Boko Haram (JAS), ISWAP, and ISSP, saying they continued targeting communities and trying to impose a strict religious ideology. 

Reported incidents included the b¥rning of a church and ki+lings in January, att@cks in Kwara in April, the k+lling of 15 Muslims in Sokoto in July, and over 60 d+aths in Borno in September. It also said insurgents seized Kirawa in October, forcing about 5,000 people to flee to Cameroon.

The report further blamed Fulani militants for repeated vi%lence, including a June att@ck in Yelwata where about 200 displaced persons were ki+led at a Catholic mission. It also referenced kidn@ppings and church att@cks in Kaduna and Niger, including the abd¥ction of over 300 schoolchildren from a Catholic boarding school, alongside other mosque att@cks and ki+lings in Zamfara and Katsina.

USCIRF said these abuses form part of a long-running crisis since 2009, noting that thousands of children have been abd¥cted for ransom or s+xual expl%itation, with Leah Sharibu still in captivity since 2018.

It also criticized Nigeria’s blasphemy laws, saying they are used to jail individuals across religious lines, and noted school closures during Ramadan in some northern states. The commission further estimated that about 1.3 million people have been displaced in the Middle Belt due to ongoing vi%lence.