Trump Warns Nigeria It May Face US Military Action Over Attacks

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump threatened possible US military action in Nigeria, saying its government “continues to allow the killing of Christians” by Islamic militants.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he’s instructing the Pentagon “to prepare for possible action” and threatened an immediate cutoff in aid to Nigeria, an OPEC member that is Africa’s most populous country.

Trump said Friday he’s designating Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern due to worries about the safety of Christians in the country. Republican Senator Ted Cruz has also been advocating for Congress to designate Nigeria as a violator of religious freedom.

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu rejected Trump’s characterization of the country as religiously intolerant in a post on X and said the US president was disregarding “the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians.” 

Tinubu has come under pressure this year from an increasing Islamist insurgency in northeastern Nigeria, including attacks of dozens of fortified army bases.

Nigeria’s population of about 230 million is roughly split between Christians and Muslims, and attacks have targeted both groups. In April, Tinubu said at least 40 people were killed when Muslim gunmen attacked a Christian farming community. 

“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” Trump said on Saturday. 

Any US attack would be “fast, vicious, and sweet,” he said.

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