US President Donald Trump has opened a new rift with Nigeria, declaring that the African country is "under scrutiny" due to repeated reports of massacres of Christians by Muslim extremists.
In a post on his Social Truth platform, Trump wrote that “Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria” and that “thousands of Christians are being killed by Islamic radicals.” He declared Nigeria a “country of particular concern” and warned that if the situation worsens, the United States “will intervene.”
The Nigerian government has denied allegations of massacres of Christians in the past, but critics warn that Trump's classification could pave the way for future sanctions against the African country. However, with the latest statements, Trump is not talking about sanctions, but about a much stronger response.
Analysts say the president has bypassed the usual procedure for such matters. The 1998 U.S. International Religious Freedom Act stipulates that a country can be declared “of particular concern” only after a recommendation from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and State Department experts — a step that, according to sources, Trump has not followed.
