The United States Congress will on Thursday hold a fresh hearing on alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria, putting the Federal Government’s efforts to address insecurity under renewed international scrutiny.
The hearing, scheduled for Nov. 12, will be chaired by Chris Smith, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa.
Titled “One Year Later: Assessing Nigeria’s Efforts to Protect Christians and Secure the Middle Belt,” the session will examine attacks on Christian communities, government responses and efforts to bring those responsible to justice.
According to a statement from Smith’s office, the hearing will assess “the current state of religious violence perpetrated by radical Islamists, such as Boko Haram and Fulani terrorists, against Christians in Nigeria.”
It will also examine “the Nigerian government’s efforts to curb the persecution and punish those responsible for committing atrocities against Christian and non-radical Muslim communities.”
The lawmakers will also consider steps the United States could take to ensure Nigerian authorities prevent further violence against Christians and non-radical Muslim communities.
Two panels of witnesses are expected to appear.
The first will feature Frank Garcia, assistant secretary of state for African affairs, and Riley Barnes, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labour.
The second panel will include Nina Shea of the Hudson Institute, Ryan Brown, chief executive officer of Open Doors US, and Oge Onubogu of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.
The hearing will begin at 11 a.m. at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C., and will be streamed live on YouTube.
The development comes one year after U.S. President Donald Trump redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over alleged violations of religious freedom.
Trump had accused the Nigerian government of failing to protect Christians from attacks and threatened to cut U.S. assistance if the killings continued.
However, the Nigerian government has rejected the description of the country's security crisis as primarily religious persecution, maintaining that violence affects both Christians and Muslims.
Attacks across the country have been linked to terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and farmer-herder conflicts, among other security challenges.
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