(LifeSiteNews) — Christians in Nigeria have faced sporadic persecution since the 1950s, but the past 25 years have seen a wave of violence that is swiftly becoming a slow-motion genocide. Despite that, the international community has for the most part turned a deliberate blind eye on the weekly killings; when pressed for comment, everything from conflicts over grazing land to climate change have been cited as the real reasons behind the ongoing persecution. 

Persecution of Christians in Nigeria began to spike after 1999, when 12 northern states adopted Sharia law; the rise of the terrorist group Boko Haram in 2009 marked a dramatic escalation. Famously, Boko Haram kidnapped hundreds of schoolgirls in 2014. Christian girls were targeted for forced conversion and marriage to Muslim fighters; 87 of the girls are still cited as “missing” 11 years later. 

In addition to Boko Haram, attacks on Christians are carried out by the Islamic State West Africa Province and radicalized Fulani herdsman. According to one Nigerian NGO, over 50,000 Christians have been killed since 2009 alone – and not because of “climate change.” 

READ: UN warns France’s euthanasia plan undermines ‘right to life of persons with disabilities’ 

“It is true that worsening drought and shrinking grazing lands are pushing Fulani herders further south – encroaching on the farms of Christian communities – and that resource pressure may amplify rural tensions,” Anja Hoffman, executive director of the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination Against Christians in Europe told me, adding: 

However, while these environmental stresses help explain population movements, they do not account for the intent and brutality of the violence against Christians. The carnage – church burnings, kidnappings, mass killings – goes far beyond ordinary drift over pasture. Far from accidental consequences of migration, victims are often explicitly identified as Christians by assailants who spare neither the elderly nor the children.

Indeed, Hoffman noted that the ongoing situation in Nigeria is perilous. “While Nigeria generally affords more religious freedom than many countries, violence in specific regions has led to a shocking number of Christian deaths, with more faithful killed here than in all other countries combined,” she said.  

“According to the latest Open Doors World Watch List, 3,100 Christians were killed and 2,830 Christians were kidnapped in Nigeria in 2024, far more than other countries in the same year. Attacks continue to spread southward from the Muslim-majority north, displacing families, destroying homes, burning churches and schools, and creating a humanitarian crisis. Many survivors now live in camps for internally displaced persons.” 

The truth about the persecution of Christians in Nigeria is that it is coming from Muslims and Muslim groups. “According to Christian relief organisations in the country, the violence stems primarily from Islamic militant groups, such as Boko Haram and ISWAP (Islamic State West Africa Province), who seek to wipe out the Christian presence in the region,” Hoffman explained. “Radicalized Fulani herdsmen militias also participate, and have recently carried out horrific attacks including burning Christians alive in their homes. Christians living in northern states governed by Sharia law also endure legal discrimination and social marginalization, often treated as second-class citizens.” 

READ: Catholic revival in Iraq? 1,000 children have celebrated First Communion this year 

The reason that this persecution is ongoing is because the government often allows it to happen. “A key factor in this ongoing crisis is impunity,” Hoffman told me. “Government and security services frequently fail to respond. Although President Bola Tinubu’s 2023 election raised hopes for stronger protection, meaningful change has not materialised. Security forces remain under-resourced, prosecutions are rare, and many local authorities deny a religious motive, making justice elusive.” 

These atrocities, Hoffman says, “demand global Christian solidarity,” including: 

• Raise awareness: Correct inaccurate narratives – emphasizing that the violence is not merely ethnic or environmental but driven by explicit religious targeting. 

• Call out bias in secular media: When reports (such as the recent ZDF story) reduce the violence to “climate activism” or land disputes, Christians should gently challenge these simplifications and direct others to credible sources that highlight the religious dimension. 

• Support advocacy efforts: Back petitions, letters, and campaigns demanding international pressure for protection, displacement relief, and justice.  

• Persist in prayer: Finally, the most important task for any Christian in relation to our persecuted brothers and sisters is to remember them in our prayers.  

The campaign to “Bring Back Our Girls” may have ended years ago – but not all of the girls are home, and the persecution against Nigerian Christians has only increased. Solidarity is surely the least that we can do.