US Senators Write President Biden To Relist Nigeria As Violator Of Religious Freedom, Lament Violence, Killing Of Christians.
The letter to the U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, the senators urged President Biden to immediately reinstate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act.
There has been a recent surge in violent attacks and killings of Nigerian Christians by their Muslim counterparts over alleged blasphemy of Prophet Muhammad and other allegations in Nigeria, especially in the Northern regions.
There have been a series of abductions and killings of Christian clerics in the country. There were also recent attacks on Catholic churches in Owo, Ondo State in the Southern region and Kaduna State in the Northern region, where no fewer than 50 worshippers were killed and dozens injured.
The US lawmakers noted that religious violence is still high in Nigeria which had been earlier put on the list of the countries of particular concern with regards to religious violence by President Donald Trump’s administration but was delisted by the current Biden administration.
The letter which was also published on Senator Rubio’s official website reads, “As you are well aware, horrific acts of deadly violence have been committed against Nigerian Christians in recent weeks, including the massacre of churchgoers on Pentecost Sunday and the stoning of a Christian college student. Sadly, such violence has become all too familiar for Christians in Africa’s most populous country.