In The News

On Christmas Eve 2023, an estimated 200 Nigerian Christians were killed by Islamic Jihadists. Sadly, this tragedy is not an isolated occurrence. Reports indicate that in 2022 alone, at least 145 Catholic priests in Nigeria were killed, with 30 others kidnapped, in 39 separate terror attacks.

In response to these heinous acts, in January, I led a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken with House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Subcommittee on Africa Chairman John James (R-MI). We urged the Biden Administration to reevaluate the United States’ decision to not designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for severe violations of religious freedom.

Under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998, the State Department is responsible for reviewing the status of religious freedom worldwide and designating countries that have “engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom” within the year as a CPC. Nigeria originally received this designation in 2020 but was removed from the list in 2021. While the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom recommended Nigeria be re-designated as a CPC in its 2023 annual report, Secretary Blinken did not include Nigeria on the list.

Last week, I had the opportunity to meet with Bishop Chikpa Wilfred Anagbe of the Makurdi Diocese in Nigeria. During the House Foreign Affairs Committee Subcommittee on Africa Hearing, the Bishop and I discussed the horrific violence and indiscriminate killing of Christians in Nigeria as well as the need for the Biden Administration to hold the Government of Nigeria accountable.

Religious liberty is a fundamental principle upon which America was founded. As a nation, we must live up to this principle and do more to ensure people can freely practice their religion in peace. Whether it is the persecution of Christians in Nigeria or attacks on members of the Jewish community here in America, we must come together and stand against the targeting of individuals based on their religious beliefs.

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