The United States Department of State on Wednesday announced new measures aimed at addressing what it described as widespread attacks and killings targeting Christian communities in Nigeria.
The development signals that Washington is considering visa bans on individuals and groups believed to be involved in religiously motivated violence.
“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,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
Under the policy — activated through Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the US Immigration and Nationality Act — the State Department may impose visa restrictions on anyone found to have “directed, authorised, significantly supported, participated in, or carried out violations of religious freedom.” Where applicable, the sanctions may also extend to immediate family members.
Rubio noted that these measures could apply not only to individuals in Nigeria but also to any government or group implicated in religious-freedom violations, reflecting Washington’s growing concern over rising attacks on vulnerable faith communities.
The announcement followed a Tuesday briefing by US House Republicans focused on escalating religious violence in Nigeria. The session was convened at the direction of President Donald Trump, who on October 31 instructed the House Appropriations Committee to investigate what he described as large-scale attacks on Christians in the country.
The briefing was led by House Appropriations Vice Chair and National Security Subcommittee Chair Mario Díaz-Balart, and included members of the House Appropriations and Foreign Affairs Committees, along with religious-freedom advocates. Participants included Representatives Robert Aderholt, Riley Moore, Brian Mast, Chris Smith, US Commission on International Religious Freedom Chair Vicky Hartzler, ADF International’s Sean Nelson, and Dr. Ebenezer Obadare of the Council on Foreign Relations.
The development comes as Nigeria and the US expand security cooperation. President Bola Tinubu recently approved Nigeria’s delegation to a new US–Nigeria Joint Working Group, established to implement security commitments reached during high-level meetings in Washington led by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
Mounting concerns over terrorism, banditry, and targeted attacks on Christian communities have drawn increased scrutiny from Washington. On October 31, 2025, President Trump returned Nigeria to the US list of “Countries of Particular Concern” (CPC) over alleged religious-freedom violations — a status he first applied in 2020 before it was reversed under President Joe Biden.
Following the redesignation, Trump said on November 3 that his administration would consider potential military options to protect Nigeria’s vulnerable Christian communities.
On November 20, the US House Subcommittee on Africa held a public hearing to examine the implications of placing Nigeria back on the CPC list, a move that could open the door to sanctions against Nigerian officials found to be complicit in religious persecution.
