Kaduna abductions: US calls on Nigeria govt to intensify efforts in protecting Christians
The United States has called on the Nigerian government to intensify efforts towards the protection of Christians in the country.
The call was made in a high-level US-Nigeria Working Group meeting in Abuja on Thursday by the US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Allison Hooker, who acknowledging some progress made in recent months, stated that the recent attacks warranted more efforts from the Nigerian government in safeguarding Christians.
“Today, we are here to discuss how we can work together to deter violence against Christian communities, prioritising counterterrorism and insecurity, investigating attacks and holding perpetrators accountable, and reducing the number of killings, forced displacements, and abductions of Christians, particularly in the North-Central states,” Hooker noted.
“With respect to the protection of Christians, the Nigerian government recently secured the release of 38 Christians abducted from a church in Kwara State, and another 265 abducted from St. Mary’s Catholic School. This real progress is a direct result of our engagement with the Nigerian government and our partnership.
“We are, however, concerned about recent reports that gunmen kidnapped more than 170 Christians in Kaduna State on January 18. We want to see an end to this type of violence. And we are here to work with the Nigerian government with the goal of protecting Christians and their right to practise their faith freely and safely.
“We call on the government to work with the local authorities to find and secure the release of the innocent victims and to work with NGOs to meet the victims’ families’ needs in the meantime,” she added.
Hooker highlighted the benefits that would result from religious freedom and security in Nigeria, including a deepened US-Nigeria relations in areas such as economic cooperation, health responses, and the fight against terrorism, among others.
“We also hope to identify ways to return internally displaced persons to the communities from which they were expelled in the North-Central states, interdict weapons and funding going to terrorist groups, expand investigations, and ensure the prosecution of individuals and groups committing atrocities,” she added.
In his response, Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, said the government of President Bola Tinubu is deliberate in its efforts to combat insecurity, through intensified joint operations and sustained deployment of security forces to priority locations, among other measures.
“Nigeria is expanding early-warning and rapid-response mechanisms, developing a national database to serve as a single, authoritative source of accurate and verifiable data on deaths and casualties arising from violence.
“This effort will strengthen evidence-based decision-making, accountability, and the effectiveness of security responses,” Ribadu said.
Ribadu stated that investigations and prosecutions surrounding attacks on religious communities had been intensified, as government is meeting violence with force, justice and accountability.
“We also recognise that our partnership with the United States extends well beyond security cooperation. It encompasses democratic resilience, respect for the rule of law, regional stability in West Africa and a shared determination to prevent extremist and malign actors from exploiting governance gaps or social fractures,” he added.
The high-level meeting is taking place in the wake of the abduction of over 170 worshippers in the Kurmin Wali community of Kajuru local government area of Kaduna State.
The police who had initially denied the incident, later confirmed the abductions, which ruffled the feathers of Christian bodies and other stakeholders.
