By Ayo Kehinde
Nigeria has been thrust into renewed international focus following a move by some United States lawmakers to propose legislation that would designate Fulani ethnic militias operating in the country as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) and mandate annual reports on religious freedom and alleged persecution.
The proposed legislation, titled “Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026″, was introduced in the US House of Representatives by Republican lawmaker, Riley Moore of West Virginia, and co-sponsored by the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Chris Smith, alongside other Republican legislators.
The bill calls on the US Secretary of State to assess whether Fulani militias meet the legal threshold for designation as a terrorist organisation and to submit annual reports to the US Congress on efforts to address alleged religious persecution in Nigeria. It also urges a review of American security and development assistance to Nigeria to ensure such support does not inadvertently enable religious persecution or systemic violence.
Moore announced the introduction of the measure, listed as HR 7457, in a post on X on Tuesday, describing it as part of broader efforts to promote accountability and religious freedom.
“Today, I am proud to introduce the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026 with Rep. Chris Smith. The U.S. is a Christian nation. As such, we must stand with persecuted Christians around the world.Our legislation will build upon the momentum of President Trump designating Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern and the recent US–Nigeria security framework agreement”, Moore wrote.
According to the bill, the Secretary of State would be required to submit annual reports to the foreign affairs committees of both the House of Representatives and the Senate detailing actions taken to combat what the legislation defines as persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
Explaining the rationale behind the proposal, Smith accused the Nigerian government of failing to adequately confront the violence, arguing that official denial has allowed religiously motivated attacks to persist.
“The Nigerian government’s blatant denial of the religious persecution occurring within its borders has only enabled the religious-based violence in the country to fester, with Christian deaths and church attacks reaching unprecedented numbers”, Smith said.
Last week, the Commander of the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), General Dagvin Anderson, visited Abuja for high-level security talks with President Bola Tinubu and other top government and military officials. Anderson met with the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; Minister of Defence, Gen Christopher Musa; Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede; Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Waidi Shaibu; and other senior officers.
Discussions focused on joint strategies to counter terrorist groups operating across Nigeria’s northern axis and the wider Sahel region, where extremist violence has continued to spread.
Recall that United States has approved the deployment of an additional 200 troops to Nigeria as part of efforts to strengthen intelligence sharing, military training and operational support in Nigeria’s ongoing fight against insurgency and terrorism in the north.
Nigeria continues to grapple with complex security challenges, including insurgency, banditry, farmer-herder clashes and communal violence. The Nigerian government has consistently maintained that many of these conflicts are driven largely by criminality, competition over land and resources, and local grievances rather than religion, while reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding all citizens regardless of faith or ethnicity.
