Some civil society groups in the United States have petitioned US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken to designate Nigeria as Country Particular Concern, CPC, due to the killings of Christians in the country.
A catholic advocacy group, Intersociety, recently claimed that Islamic militants have brutally murdered at least 52,250 Christians in the last 14 years.
The petition also came two weeks after the US government removed Nigeria and India from the list against advise from various human rights bodies within and outside the country.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, USCIRF, described the action as “extreme disappointment.”
The 24 US organisations accused President Joe Biden-led government of failing to act over the mass killing of Christians in Nigeria.
The human rights bodies include, Advancing American Freedom, Alliance Defending Freedom, the Hudson Institute, former Ambassador Sam Brownback and former defence and national security officials.
The organizations which said the US must uphold the freedom of worship across the world, said over 52,000 Christians have been murdered in the country in the last 14 years.
According to them, “Less than two weeks ago, almost 200 Nigerian Christians became martyrs while celebrating Christmas. According to one account, these Christians were ‘killed for sport.’ Just weeks earlier, the Christian Association of Nigeria received a letter threatening them against celebrating Christmas.
“The international religious freedom community stands outraged at your refusal to hold these acts of evil to account.
“The eyes of the world look to the United States as a beacon of hope and freedom. Religious freedom is grounded in the American founding, enshrined in the Bill of Rights, and quintessential to what it means to be an American. When the United States stands silent as evil runs amok, the world takes notice.”
Meanwhile, analyst have opined that the terrorists who are on the rampage in the country kill religious adherents from both Christianity and Islam, the two dominant religions in the country.
