The United States House Appropriations Committee will on Tuesday hold a joint congressional briefing to examine what it describes as growing violence and alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
The session, announced on X by Congressman Riley Moore, will be chaired by Appropriations Committee Vice Chair and National Security Subcommittee Chair, Mario Díaz-Balart. Lawmakers from the House Appropriations, Foreign Affairs, and Financial Services Committees are expected to attend.
The briefing will feature presentations from the US Commission on International Religious Freedom and other experts. According to the notice, the meeting aims to “spotlight the escalating violence and targeted persecution of Christians in Nigeria.”
It will also gather testimonies for a comprehensive report ordered by former US President Donald Trump on the killings of Christians in Nigeria and outline possible steps Congress may take to support US efforts to protect vulnerable religious groups globally.
In a post on X, Moore said the briefing forms part of an ongoing investigation into persecution claims in Nigeria.
The congressional move comes as Washington and Abuja intensify security cooperation following renewed terrorist attacks across Nigeria. President Bola Tinubu recently approved Nigeria’s delegation to the US–Nigeria Joint Working Group, a bilateral platform designed to strengthen collaboration on counterterrorism and emerging threats.
National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu will lead the Nigerian delegation, which includes senior officials from key government agencies. The working group was established during a recent high-level engagement between both countries in Washington.
International interest in Nigeria’s security challenges has grown since former President Trump alleged that Christians in Nigeria were facing “genocide.” The Nigerian government has strongly refuted the claim, insisting that both Muslims and Christians are affected by the country’s security crisis.
