US may sanction 12 Nigerian governors, traditional rulers over ‘christian genocide’ claims

A major diplomatic confrontation may be brewing as the United States Congress deliberates on a bill that could impose severe sanctions on twelve northern governors, prominent traditional rulers, and senior members of the Nigerian judiciary.

The move follows allegations of complicity in what American lawmakers describe as a “Christian genocide” and systemic persecution under Nigeria’s sharia and blasphemy laws.

The development comes after former US President Donald Trump designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” and directed the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, to take swift action.

In a post on his Truth Social platform on Friday, Trump expressed deep concern over the rising violence against Christians in Nigeria. He claimed that thousands of believers have been killed and urged Congressman Riley Moore, alongside House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, to urgently investigate the situation and report their findings.

The Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025, sponsored by Republican Senator Ted Cruz, designates Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” for religious persecution.

The bill proposes direct sanctions against public officials and religious authorities accused of promoting or tolerating violence against Christians and other religious minorities.

In December 2020, the US Department of State designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern for the first time ever due to what it termed systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, violent Boko Haram attacks, and frequent ethno-religious conflicts exacerbated by the judiciary system.

Under the bill, introduced on September 9, 2025, the US Secretary of State will, within 90 days of its passage, submit a report to Congress listing Nigerian officials, including governors, judges, and monarchs who have “promoted, enacted, or maintained blasphemy laws” or “tolerated violence by non-state actors invoking religious justification.”

The sanctions, to be implemented under Executive Order 13818, the US government’s Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability framework, could result in visa bans, asset freezes, and financial restrictions for those found culpable.

One of the highlights of the bill is the implementation of Sharia law in northern Nigeria, which it termed the blasphemy law, and believed to be against the Christian population.

Sharia, derived from Islamic jurisprudence, has long existed as a system of personal, moral, and communal regulation among Muslim communities in northern Nigeria.

The major turning point came between 1999 and 2000, shortly after Nigeria’s return to civilian rule, when several northern states, beginning with Zamfara under Governor Ahmad Sani Yerima, expanded Sharia’s jurisdiction to include criminal law and public morality.

Within two years, about 12 northern states had adopted similar Sharia-based penal codes and established parallel Sharia courts alongside existing secular courts.

The affected states include Zamfara, Kano, Sokoto, Katsina, Bauchi, Borno, Jigawa, Kebbi, Yobe, Kaduna, Niger, and Gombe.

However, Kwara, Kogi, Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa, Taraba, and Adamawa, though with significant Muslim populations, still operate under the conventional secular legal system, with Sharia limited only to personal status matters such as marriage, inheritance, and family issues for Muslims, rather than criminal or public law.

Recently, the Sharia Council announced moves to establish its presence in parts of the South, beginning with Oyo and Ogun states.

The development sparked tension as both Christian and Muslim groups clashed over the perceived introduction of Sharia in the two states.

The tension, however, eased after the council clarified that it was not setting up a court of law but rather arbitration panels to mediate Muslim-related disputes and offer non-binding advice.

Cruz, while defending the bill, said Nigeria’s leadership had “institutionalised sharia law and enabled jihadist violence.”

“Religious persecution and violence against Christians and other religious minorities in Nigeria is endemic.

“Since 2009, over 52,000 Christians have been murdered, 20,000 churches and faith institutions destroyed, and dozens of villages wiped out. The federal and state governments have failed to act, and in many cases, they are complicit.”

The bill underscores that since the adoption of sharia law in Zamfara State in 2000, during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, nearly all 19 northern states had adopted blasphemy provisions in their legal codes.

States such as Kano, Bauchi, Sokoto, and Katsina have drawn global outrage for death sentences imposed over alleged blasphemy, while even southern states like Oyo and Ogun, both with Sharia panels, may now come under investigation.

FG defends Sharia

The Federal Government has, however, defended the country’s constitutional and legal framework on religious freedom, insisting that Nigeria neither enforces nationwide blasphemy laws nor persecutes Christians as claimed in the pending US draft legislation.

In an official policy note titled “Nigeria’s Constitutional Commitment to Religious Freedom and Rule of Law,” published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the government maintained that the country’s constitutional and judicial systems fully protected freedom of religion and conscience while subjecting all state and local laws, including Sharia statutes, to constitutional safeguards and secular appellate review.

According to the statement, Nigeria remains a constitutional, multi-religious democracy” whose 1999 Constitution, as amended, forbids adoption of a state religion (Section 10), guarantees freedom of thought, conscience and religion (Section 38), and prohibits discrimination on grounds including religion (Section 42).

“Sharia in Nigeria is not a nationwide, compulsory system,” the document clarified.

“Certain northern states have enacted Sharia-based criminal provisions that apply only to persons who profess Islam; non-Muslims are not subject to those provisions.

“In civil or personal matters, such as marriage or inheritance, recourse to Sharia is elective, just as parties may choose customary or statutory regimes,” it added.

The Federal Government further emphasised that there was no federal offence of blasphemy in Nigerian law.

It added that national criminal statutes only addressed public-order breaches or acts likely to provoke violence, which are “religion-neutral” and apply equally to all faiths.

“The government of Nigeria does not persecute Christians, in law or policy.

“Nigeria’s legal order protects all faiths equally; Christians freely build and register churches, run schools and charities, and hold public office across the Federation,” the statement read.

It reiterated that Sharia’s scope was constitutionally limited and optional.

“In civil matters, Sharia Courts of Appeal at the state and federal levels have jurisdiction only over Islamic personal law, and parties voluntarily elect this system through their marital or contractual choices.

“In criminal matters, only a handful of northern states have adopted Sharia-based codes, and jurisdiction remains confined strictly to Muslims. Non-Muslims cannot be tried under those laws.

“Even where a first-instance Sharia court enters a conviction, constitutional due-process standards, such as fair hearing, legal representation, and proof standards, apply.

“Secular appellate courts have repeatedly set aside or remitted convictions where procedures or rights were deficient. Sharia adjudication is bounded by the constitution, not above it,” the government explained.

The statement dismissed as inaccurate any claim that Nigeria’s laws or policies tolerated religious discrimination.

“Nothing in Nigeria’s Constitution, Criminal Code, or Penal Code authorises persecution of Christians or adherents of any religion,” it said.

The statement added that public-order offences sometimes described abroad as “blasphemy laws” were in fact content-neutral provisions designed to prevent inter-communal violence.

The note also pointed out that Christian denominations and non-governmental organisations operated freely across the country, while Christians served at all levels of government and the judiciary, demonstrating equal civic participation.

Responding to allegations that Nigeria “tolerates” religiously motivated violence by non-state actors, the government underscored its aggressive counter-terrorism stance.

“Boko Haram and ISWAP remain proscribed under the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, with thousands of arrests, prosecutions, and deradicalisation programmes underway,” it added.

The government said many attacks often framed internationally as “religious” were instead rooted in terrorism, organised crime, resource conflict, and climate stress, adding that federal and state authorities deployed joint operations without bias to faith identity.

“Nigerian authorities consistently condemn sectarian violence, open investigations, and prosecute offenders where evidence meets the legal threshold,” the document stressed.

Nigeria reaffirmed its adherence to international human rights obligations, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, domesticated and enforceable in Nigerian courts.

The government emphasised that all domestic laws, federal or state, must conform to these superior guarantees, and Nigerian courts have consistently upheld that principle in their judgments.

The government criticised the US draft legislation proposing a CPC designation for Nigeria, describing it as “legally and factually flawed.”

It argued that the draft “collapses distinct legal regimes —federal, state statutory, and Sharia — into a single, inaccurate frame,” and wrongly equated neutral public-order provisions with theological blasphemy.

Concerns raised

However, the implementation of Shari’a law has raised concerns about human rights and religious freedom following the reported suppression of non-Muslims through restrictions on public worship, construction of churches, and celebration of religious festivals for traditional religionists.

Also, converts from Islam to Christianity and other religions have alleged persecution, harassment, and even violence, while blasphemy laws are often vaguely worded, allowing for arbitrary interpretation and enforcement. This has enabled mobs to take the law into their own hands, resulting in violent and deadly consequences.

There was national outrage in May 2022 after Deborah Samuel, a second-year student of Home Economics at the Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, was killed after being accused of blasphemy against Islam. She was stoned and set ablaze by a mob of her fellow students. The perpetrators were not brought to justice.

Usman Buda, a butcher in Sokoto, was lynched by a mob after being accused of blasphemy, sparking widespread outrage. In 2021, a water seller in Bauchi State was beaten and burned to death for alleged blasphemy.

A similar fate befell Bridget Agbahime, 74, who was beaten to death in Kano in 2016, after she was accused of blasphemy against Prophet Muhammad.

In designating Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern,” Trump cited alleged severe violations of religious freedom, particularly the persecution of Christians. He claimed that Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria, with thousands of Christians being killed by radical Islamists.

Trump warned that the US would take action, including potential military intervention, if Nigeria didn’t address the issue.

The US President also threatened to halt all aid and assistance to Nigeria should the Tinubu administration fail to end the alleged persecution and killing of Christians.

“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the USA will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.

“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians,” he said.

If passed, the Act would compel the US to impose targeted sanctions on officials enforcing Sharia or blasphemy laws; blacklist Nigerian actors complicit in religiously motivated violence, and maintain terror designations for Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa as Entities of Particular Concern.

Echoing Trump’s threat to invade Nigeria, the US Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, signalled readiness to take military action over alleged killings of Christians in the country.

In an X post on Sunday, the top official said the US Department of War is preparing for action if Nigeria fails to protect Christians.

“The killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria — and anywhere — must end immediately. The Department of War is preparing for action. Either the Nigerian Government protects Christians, or we will kill the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” Hegseth wrote.

Under section 3, titled, ‘Designations and amendments related to the International Religious Freedom Act,’ the draft bill says the US Secretary of State shall ‘’Designate, for engaging in or tolerating systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom— (1) the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern; and (2) Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa as Entities of Particular Concern.’’

The designation was based on a report hinged on section 402(b)(1)(A) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 and section 301(a) of the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act of 2016.

(Punch)