Trump's rhetoric risks recasting criminal violence and state failure as a religious war with devastating consequences for civilians. In early November, United States President Donald Trump declared that Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. In a series of posts on his Truth Social platform, he accused radical Islamists of mass slaughter and warned that the US may very well go into that now disgraced country, guns-a-blazing.
Amid reports of gunfire and civilians scampering to safety in the economic capital, Cotonou, Beninese and others across the region waited with bated breath as conflicting intelligence emerged. The small group of putschists, on the one hand, declared victory, but Benin's forces and government officials said the plot had failed. By evening, the situation was clear Benin's government was still standing.
President Tinubu has nominated former military chief Christopher Musa as the new defense minister Musa was sacked as chief of defense staff in October He will replace Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, who resigned as defense minister on Monday The leadership shakeup comes as Nigeria faces a fresh wave of mass kidnappings Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu has nominated the country's former top general, who he forced out in October, as the new minister of defense. Christopher Musa will need to be confirmed by the senate
The early Friday raid on St Mary's co-educational school in Niger state in western Nigeria came after gunmen on Monday stormed a secondary school in neighbouring Kebbi state, abducting 25 girls. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) had earlier reported 227 people seized, but the new number came after a verification exercise that concluded 303 students and 12 teachers were abducted. The number of boys and girls aged between eight and 18 years kidnapped from St Mary's is almost half the school's student population of 629.
A court in Nigeria on Thursday convicted Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of a separatist group, on charges related to terrorism. Kanu founded the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) separatist group that called for independence from Nigeria. "His intention was quite clear as he believed in violence. These threats of violence were nothing but terrorist acts," judge James Omotosho said at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The conviction came after a long-running trial, with the case going back to comments made in 2015.
If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. 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! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!
Nigeria has faced two decades of escalating violence perpetrated by armed groups whether terrorists or criminal gangs resulting in tens of thousands of deaths and more than 3.5 million people displaced from their homes. Between May 2023 and May 2025 alone, over 10,000 people were killed, according to Amnesty International. Victims have included both Christians and Muslims, the Nigerian government says.
According to the presidential spokesperson, Tinubu fired three top security officials on Friday Christopher Musa, chief of defence staff; Emmanuel Ogalla, chief of naval staff, and Hassan Abubakar, chief of air staff. Tinubu appointed Olufemi Oluyede, the former chief of army staff, as the new chief of defence staff. Shaibu, I Abbas and SK Aneke were appointed as the chiefs of army, air force, and naval staff.
The Super Eagles' task is momentous: Benin lead them by three points and by two on goal difference, making the fixture a must-win for the Nigerians if they want to have any chance of qualification, either as the group winners or as the runners-up who could potentially compete in November's interconfederation playoff for a possible 10th African World Cup spot.
From Boko Haram to herderfarmer clashes, Nigeria's crises are complex. Simplistic genocide claims fuel propaganda. In recent days, coordinated attacks on Nigeria's nationhood have swept across social media, blogs and television outlets, alleging a so-called Christian genocide. These attacks, driven by foreign actors, mischaracterise Nigeria's domestic conflicts, ignore its complexities and manipulate longstanding ethnic and resource-based tensions to advance sectarian agendas.
"Acting on multiple intelligence from several sources, the Air Component executed precision strikes in successive passes, engaging the terrorists and neutralising more than 35 fighters at four identified assembly areas," the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) said in a statement. Ground troops in the area later confirmed that the "situation around their location had been stabilized," the statement added. The reports could not be independently verified.
Scores were killed and dozens kidnapped after "bandits" attacked a mosque in the Nigerian town of Unguwar Mantau and set homes ablaze in nearby villages. At least 50 people were killed in a widespread attack on Muslim communities in Nigeria's Katsina state, officials confirmed Wednesday. Initially, the death toll of the Tuesday attacks was reported to be much lower. The crime was said to be perpetrated by so-called "bandits," members of criminal gangs who regularly target communities in the region.
At least 27 worshippers have been killed and several wounded when armed bandits stormed a mosque in northern Nigeria's Katsina state during morning prayers, a village head and a hospital official said.
Chowdeck, a Lagos-based food delivery startup that has stayed profitable in a notoriously tough and low-margin market, has raised $9 million in Series A funding to launch a quick commerce strategy and expand into more cities in Nigeria and Ghana.
Numerous villagers who spoke to DW told of family members being abducted and killed. Their livelihoods, which primarily consist of farming sorghum, millet, and livestock, and then trading their produce in nearby market towns, have been severely disrupted.
The United Nations has described a looming hunger crisis in northern Nigeria as "unprecedented," with analysts estimating that at least 5 million children are already suffering from acute malnutrition. This is despite northern Nigeria traditionally being the nation's agricultural heartland, producing maize, millet, and sorghum.
