US Signals Tough Stance on Christian Killings in Nigeria With Visa Sanctions

By: Aremu Toyeebaht

The United States has escalated its response to worsening religious violence in Nigeria, unveiling a policy that could impose visa bans on individuals and groups linked to attacks on Christian communities. The move marks Washington’s most forceful stance yet on the crisis, framing the killings as a grave human-rights concern.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US is “taking decisive action” in light of what officials describe as growing assaults by radical Islamic terrorists, Fulani militias, and other violent groups.

“The United States is taking decisive action in response to the mass killings and attacks on Christians carried out by radical Islamic terrorists, Fulani militias, and other violent groups in Nigeria and beyond,” Rubio said in a statement.

According to the State Department, the new enforcement tool is grounded in Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the US Immigration and Nationality Act.
The provision empowers authorities to deny visas to anyone who has directed, authorised, significantly supported, participated in, or carried out violations of religious freedom. Where necessary, these restrictions may also apply to immediate family members.

Rubio stressed that the policy is not limited to Nigeria but could extend to “any other governments or individuals engaged in violations of religious freedom.”

The decision reflects mounting US frustration over what officials say is an escalation of attacks on Christian communities, particularly across Nigeria’s Middle Belt.

The announcement followed a high-level briefing held by US House Republicans, who met behind closed doors on Tuesday to examine the rise in religious violence in Nigeria. The session was convened on the directive of President Donald Trump, who on October 31 instructed the House Appropriations Committee to investigate what he described as the “slaughter of Christians.”

The briefing was chaired by Mario Díaz-Balart, Vice Chair of the House Appropriations Committee and Chairman of its National Security Subcommittee, and included members of both the Appropriations and Foreign Affairs Committees as well as religious-freedom specialists.

Participants included Representatives Robert Aderholt, Riley Moore, Brian Mast, and Chris Smith, alongside USCIRF Chair Vicky Hartzler, Alliance Defending Freedom International’s Sean Nelson, and Dr. Ebenezer Obadare of the Council on Foreign Relations.

As Washington sharpens its stance, President Bola Tinubu has approved Nigeria’s delegation to the newly created US–Nigeria Joint Working Group. The platform will implement security agreements reached during recent engagements in Washington led by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.

The working group is expected to become a central channel for security cooperation, intelligence coordination, and discussions on religious-violence mitigation—placing Nigeria’s internal security challenges firmly under US scrutiny.