Why Trump is threatening to go 'guns a-blazing' into Nigeria

为何特朗普威胁要对尼日利亚发动全面战争

The Global Story

2025-11-10

26 分钟
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President Donald Trump has warned that he will target Nigeria if the government there "continues to allow the killing of Christians". For months, campaigners and politicians in Washington have been alleging that Islamist militants were systematically targeting Christians in Nigeria. But how true are the claims that there is a persecution – or even a genocide – of Christians in the West African country? And how does Nicki Minaj come to thank him for his intervention? We speak to the BBC’s global religion correspondent, Lebo Diseko. Producers: Xandra Ellin and Cat Farnsworth Executive producer: Annie Brown Mix: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins (Photo: People walk along a street flanked by St. Joseph Catholic Church and Kano Road Central Mosque in Kaduna, Nigeria, 4 November, 2025. Credit: Marvellous Durowaiye/Reuters)
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  • The other week, President Trump took to social media to warn about possible U.S.

  • military intervention in Nigeria.

  • He shocked leaders around the world when he wrote, Now,

  • to be clear, the United States is not at war with Nigeria.

  • Nigeria has in fact been one of the United States' most important partners in Africa for decades.

  • But a story has begun circulating on the American right that has inspired the president and his allies.

  • Where are the liberals?

  • Where's everybody?

  • Nobody's talking about the persecution of Christians, the slaughter of Christians in Nigeria.

  • Christians, they say,

  • are being murdered in massive numbers across Nigeria by what they call terrorist organizations.

  • Here's the social media post from President Trump.

  • Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria.

  • You know, since 2009, there's been more than 52,000 Christians who have been murdered.

  • for their faith.

  • The number one persecuted religion in the world.

  • What can you tell us about what's going on in Nigeria and why we've been so slow to respond?

  • From the BBC, I'm Tristan Redman in London.

  • And I'm Asma Khaled in Washington, DC.

  • And today on The Global Story,