Usually, the executive branch handles diplomacy. But sometimes Senators start shooting off their thoughts.
And now Ted Cruz sparked a diplomatic crisis after going head to head with one country.
Cruz Accuses Nigerian Officials of Enabling Christian Persecutions
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has intensified criticism of the Nigerian government, alleging it ignores or facilitates violence against Christians amid reports of widespread k*llings. As chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy, Cruz stated to Fox News Digital that “Nigeria’s federal government and a dozen state governments enforce blasphemy laws in their criminal and sharia codes, and they ignore or facilitate mob violence targeting Christians.”
Cruz referenced data indicating over 50,000 Christians k*lled in Nigeria since 2009, along with the destruction of more than 20,000 churches and Christian schools. He linked these incidents to government policies, saying, “These atrocities are directly linked to the policies of Nigerian federal and state officials. They are the result of decisions made by specific people, in specific places, at specific times – and it says a great deal about who is lashing out now that a light is being shone on these issues.”
On Friday, Cruz posted on X: “Officials in Nigeria are ignoring and even facilitating the mass m*rder of Christians by Islamist jihadists. It’s time to hold those responsible accountable.” He promoted his recently introduced Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act, which aims to impose sanctions on implicated officials.
Nigeria ranks seventh on Open Doors International’s 2025 World Watch List of countries where Christians face extreme persecution, with an estimated 48% of its population identifying as Christian. The report documents 3,100 of the 4,476 Christians k*lled worldwide for their faith during the latest period occurring in Nigeria, accounting for 69% of the global total.
Nigerian Officials Deny Targeting of Christians
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, responded on Saturday to a Lagos newspaper, urging Cruz to “stop these malicious, contrived lies” regarding the m*rders. Onanuga asserted, “Christians are not targeted. We have religious harmony in our country.”
Information Minister Mohammed Idris, in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital on Friday, rejected the allegations outright. “The Nigerian government rejects that. This is certainly not true,” Idris said, calling Cruz’s figures “very misleading.” He questioned the sources, stating, “It’s also false if you say 20,000 churches have been burned. It’s also false if you say 52,000 (Christians k*lled), where did he get those numbers from? I think this is absolutely absurd. It’s not supported by any facts whatsoever.”
Idris emphasized Nigeria’s multi-faith composition, noting, “Nigeria is a multi-faith country, meaning that it’s a country that has multiple religions. We have Christians, we have Muslims, we even have those who don’t believe in any of these two religions. Nigeria is a very tolerant country. The government of Nigeria is committed to ensuring that there is religious freedom in this country, but we do have extremist organizations in this country.”
He added that extremists have victimized both Christians and Muslims, saying, “It’s unfortunate sadly, that some of these extremists have k*lled a number of Christians and a number of Muslims almost everywhere where this violent extremism has support. So it’s (the accusation by Sen. Cruz) not true. We find that to be very unfortunate. It’s despicable, it’s not right. This is absolutely false to say that there is a calculated or a deliberate attempt to k*ll a particular religious group, is not correct and we find that really very, very unfortunate.”
Advocacy Groups Highlight Disparities in Violence
Open Doors senior advocacy member Natalie Blair told Fox News Digital that independent data indicates Christians face heightened risks from groups like Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province. “Boko Haram and ISWAP have explicitly and repeatedly declared Christians as targets,” Blair said. “And many victims have told us that when Fulani militants attack they don’t just shout ‘Allahu Akbar’, (God is Great), they yell, ‘We will destroy all Christians.’”
Blair cited Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa data showing civilians in northern Nigeria who are Christian are 6.5 times more likely to be k*lled by extremists than Muslims. She noted, “Christians can be targeted by radical extremists, and radical extremists can also k*ll Muslims who do not conform to their radical ideology,” but stressed the disproportionate impact on Christians.
Bishop Wilfred Anagbe of Makurdi Diocese, which is predominantly Christian, testified before Congress in March about escalating attacks by Fulani militants. He described “a long-term Islamic agenda (in Nigeria) to homogenize. The population has been implemented over several presidencies through a strategy to reduce and eventually eliminate the Christian identity of half of the population all over Nigeria. These terrorists are going about on a jihad and conquering territories and renaming them accordingly.”
Idris dismissed the bishop’s account as “an extreme one. It’s not true. The Nigerian government has debunked that in the past.”
Blair urged greater accountability, stating, “We must listen to the voices of those who have experienced the violence firsthand. People on the ground do not trust that anyone will pay for these violent crimes. This is because they have seen hundreds of suspects arrested over the years and then most of them released, having never been charged or brought to trial.” She concluded, “The right to life, guaranteed under Section 33 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, is meaningless unless the state acts decisively to punish those who violate it. The ongoing culture of impunity will only result in more bloodshed and continue to erode public trust in the rule of law.”
In response to the exchanges, Cruz told Fox News Digital, “The k*llings ‘are the result of decisions made by specific people, in specific places, at specific times. The United States knows who those people are, and I intend to hold them accountable.”
