Over 50,000 Christians in Nigeria have been massacred: U.S. Knows Masterminds of Nigeria’s Christian Killings, Senator Cruz Vows Action.
In a forceful declaration that has escalated the U.S. political discourse on Nigeria, Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has stated that the United States government is aware of the identities of the individuals orchestrating what he terms a “genocide” against Christians in the West African nation.
The senator vowed that these unnamed perpetrators would be held to account for their actions.
The strong comments were made in a post on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday. “The United States knows who those people are, and I intend to hold them accountable,” Cruz stated, without providing specific names or evidence publicly.
Senator Cruz framed the sustained violence, which he claims has been ongoing since 2009, as a systematic campaign. He further alleged that the same actors responsible for the bloodshed are now targeting him for bringing international attention to the crisis.
“Since 2009, over 50,000 Christians in Nigeria have been massacred, and over 18,000 churches and 2,000 Christian schools have been destroyed,” he wrote, citing figures that are fiercely debated among policy experts and human rights groups.
He continued, “It is 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.”
This public accusation aligns with a recent legislative push by the senator. Just days before his social media post, Cruz introduced a bill in the U.S. Senate specifically aimed at combating the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. The proposed legislation seeks to mandate greater U.S. engagement in defending religious freedom abroad, with a clear focus on the Nigerian situation.
This is not the first time Senator Cruz, now serving his third term, has taken a firm stance on Nigeria’s security and religious freedom landscape. He has emerged as a vocal critic in recent years, often highlighting the deteriorating conditions.
His efforts have involved collaboration with other Republican senators. In September, Cruz joined forces with Senators Ted Budd, Pete Ricketts, Josh Hawley, and James Lankford to dispatch a formal letter to the U.S. Secretary of State. In it, they urgently called for the Biden administration to redesignate Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act.
The senators argued in their letter that the escalating terrorism and systematic attacks on religious minorities, particularly Christian communities, necessitate stronger diplomatic pressure on the Nigerian government to take decisive and effective action.
While the Nigerian government has consistently rejected claims of a genocidal campaign, attributing the violence to widespread banditry and terrorist insurgencies that affect citizens of all faiths, Cruz’s latest statements signal a determined effort to keep the issue at the forefront of U.S. foreign policy discussions. The move is likely to draw both support and criticism, further polarizing the international narrative surrounding Nigeria’s complex security crisis.
