FRC Releases New Publication Showing Extent of Christian Persecution in Nigeria

News provided by

Jul 15, 2020, 17:58 ET

WASHINGTON, July 15, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Family Research Council released a new report today titled "The Crisis of Christian Persecution in Nigeria." It describes one of the worst human rights situations of our day—one which the mainstream media rarely discusses—a possible genocide of Christians emerging in Nigeria. Nigeria is Africa's economic frontrunner and most populous country. The country's population is about 53 percent Muslim and about 47 percent Christian. Just today, we learned that 1,202 Nigerian Christians were killed in the first six months of 2020.

Our new publication describes how multiple groups violently target Christians, including Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen, how Nigeria's government either fails to protect Christians or is complicit in their slaughter, and how the international community has failed to respond adequately to the crisis.

As our publication states:

"All too well we remember Rwanda, where we failed to stop a genocide in which one million were slaughtered. Not too long ago, we finally recognized that a genocide took place in Iraq—several years too late. May this not happen again. May our international Christian communities continue to work together to inspire and cajole our governments to bring this terrible carnage to an end—once and for all. And may our prayers—as well as demands—continue for immediate international action to stop the bloodshed."

Lela Gilbert, Senior Fellow for International Religious Freedom at Family Research Council, who authored the publication, stated:

"The current bloodshed in Nigeria is simply unimaginable for most of us here in the United States. Even in our worst cities, we don't face the types of fears and threats Nigerian Christians face every day. For the sake of Nigeria, and the sake of humanity, we must urgently address this issue."

To read the full publication, visit: https://www.frc.org/nigeria.

SOURCE Family Research Council