“Protect Christian Communities” – US Tells Nigeria After Kaduna Church Abductions

The United States has urged the Nigerian government to step up efforts to protect Christian communities across the country.

Allison Hooker, the US Under Secretary for Political Affairs, made the call during a high-level US–Nigeria working group meeting in Abuja on Thursday.

Hooker said the meeting focused on ways both countries can work together to prevent attacks on Christians, strengthen counterterrorism efforts, investigate incidents, hold perpetrators accountable, and reduce killings, abductions, and forced displacements, especially in north-central Nigeria.

While acknowledging some progress in recent months, she said recent attacks show more must be done to ensure the safety of Christians and their right to freely practice their faith.

“On the protection of Christians, the Nigerian government recently secured the release of 38 Christians abducted from a church in Kwara state, and another 265 abducted from St. Mary’s Catholic School.

“This real progress is a direct result of our engagement with the Nigerian government,” Punch quoted Hooker as saying.

“However, we are concerned about recent reports that gunmen kidnapped more than 170 Christians in Kaduna State on January 18.

“The Government of Nigeria must do more to protect Christians and their right to practise their faith freely and safely.”

Hooker added that improving religious freedom and security would strengthen US–Nigeria relations in areas such as trade, economic cooperation, health, and counterterrorism.

She also said the US supports efforts to return internally displaced persons (IDPs) to their communities.

“Advancing religious freedom and security will help the United States and Nigeria enhance the reciprocal benefits of our relationship: solidifying trade and economic deals, degrading terrorist groups that threaten our interests, and strengthening health responses, among many other areas,” she said.

“We hope to identify ways to return internally displaced persons to the communities from which they were expelled in the north-central states, interdict weapons and funding going to terrorist groups, expand investigations, and ensure the prosecution of individuals and groups committing atrocities.”

Responding, National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu acknowledged the seriousness of the security challenges and said the government is intensifying military and law enforcement operations in affected areas.

He stressed that attacks along religious lines are unacceptable and will be met with both force and justice.

“Nigeria is a deeply plural society, and the protection of all citizens—Christians, Muslims and those of other beliefs—is non-negotiable. Violence framed along religious lines is treated as an attack on the Nigerian state itself,” Ribadu said.

“Our response, therefore, integrates security operations, the rule of law, humanitarian safeguards and strategic communication, ensuring that operational successes translate into public confidence and strengthened social cohesion.

“At the national level, and under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Nigeria has taken deliberate and decisive steps to confront insecurity.

”The President has formally declared national security emergencies in vulnerable and high-risk areas, authorised intensified joint operations, and directed the sustained deployment of security forces to priority locations, particularly communities experiencing recurrent attacks on civilians and religious groups.

“These directives have been matched with concrete action. Nigeria is expanding early-warning and rapid-response mechanisms and developing a national database to serve as a single, authoritative source of accurate and verifiable data on deaths and casualties arising from violence.

“This effort will strengthen evidence-based decision-making, accountability and the effectiveness of security responses. In parallel, investigations and prosecutions related to attacks on religious communities have been intensified to ensure that violence is met not only with force, but with justice and accountability.”

KanyiDaily recalls that the police recently confirmed that 177 worshippers were kidnapped from Kaduna Churches, just a day after initially denying reports of the incident.