…Says authorities fail to prosecute killers
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has accused the Nigerian federal and state governments of tolerating religious violence and failing to adequately investigate or prosecute perpetrators responsible for attacks across the country.
In its 2026 annual report, the commission said religious freedom conditions in Nigeria “remained abysmal” throughout 2025, alleging that authorities “continued to tolerate, inadequately respond to or investigate, or otherwise fail to pursue justice for religious violence by non-state actors.”
The report stated that several armed groups continued to target communities while attempting to impose “a singular interpretation of Islam on individuals and communities in their areas of operation, regardless of these individuals’ or communities’ own religion or belief”.
According to USCIRF, the groups included: Jama’tu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), also known as Boko Haram), Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), and Islamic State-Sahel Province (ISSP).
The Commission listed multiple violent incidents recorded during the year. USCIRF also alleged that “Fulani militants who manipulated Islam to justify their use of violence” frequently attacked religious communities during the year, particularly in Nigeria’s Middle-Belt region.
It said the violence “especially impacted Christians”, citing the June attack in Yelwata where “Fulani gunmen killed around 200 displaced persons at a Catholic mission”. The report added that “some protesters accused the government of failing to protect the victims” following the massacre.
The Commission described the kidnappings as part of a prolonged crisis that has “traumatized religious communities in Nigeria since 2009”, alleging that kidnappers had seized “thousands of children for ransom or sexual slavery”. It specifically mentioned Christian schoolgirl Leah Sharibu, stating that she “has been in captivity since 2018.”
The report also documented attacks against Muslim communities, saying that “attackers abducted over 100 individuals, mostly women and children, from a mosque in Zamfara”, while “13 worshipers” were reportedly killed at a mosque in Katsina.
USCIRF additionally criticised Nigeria’s blasphemy laws, stating that the federal government “continued to enforce blasphemy laws that include a penalty of up to two years’ imprisonment for acts ‘persons consider as a public insult on their religion”.
It said some state governments enforced stricter versions of the laws to “prosecute and imprison individuals perceived to have insulted religion, including Christians, Muslims and humanists”.
