Nigerian Christians are sounding the alarm as a relentless wave of violence, abductions, and terror orchestrated by Islamist Fulani militants sweeps across their communities. What many outside observers might dismiss as sporadic criminal activity is, according to victims and experts, a coordinated campaign with the chilling objective of eradicating Christianity from the country. The disturbing reality, as described by survivors, watchdog groups, and analysts, is that a vast and highly organized system of persecution has taken root, threatening the very fabric of religious pluralism in Africa’s most populous nation.
Criminologist Emeka Umeagbalasi, director of the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersocial), minced no words in a recent interview with the Catholic News Agency. "We have documented the coordinated and systematic murder of an entire people; therefore, we are clearly talking about a Christian genocide," he said. Umeagbalasi warned that, "Today in northern Nigeria, it’s almost impossible to live as a Christian, and if the trend continues, within half a century we will no longer be a country with religious pluralism."
The scale of the crisis is staggering. Over 850 Christians have been held captive since December 2024 in camps scattered throughout the Rijana area—an expanse now ominously known as the "Forest of Hostages." According to Truth Nigeria and corroborated by Open Doors, a Christian persecution watchdog, these camps—at least 21 in number—are brutal installations where hostages are starved, beaten, and, if their families cannot pay ransom, executed. Between December 2024 and August 2025, more than 100 prisoners were killed in these camps. Survivors recount being fed nothing but cornmeal, starved for days, and subjected to harrowing physical abuse. Even infants are not spared, with one mother recalling, "Once, when my baby cried, I tried to breastfeed her. One terrorist snatched her from me. Instead of soothing her, he covered her mouth and nose, choking her. I had to wrestle her back."
The violence is not limited to mass abductions. On Monday, September 29, 2025, Alhaji Alhassan Bawa Niworo, former chairman of the Niger State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), was among several people kidnapped when terrorists set up a roadblock to halt their convoy. Some hostages were eventually released after hefty ransoms were paid, but their ordeal was far from over. Freed victims described being shuffled through a network of villages, each one serving as a node in the militants’ sprawling infrastructure of terror.
Christian farming villages near these camps are being abandoned en masse. Militants have occupied homes, blockaded entrances, and forced residents to flee into the wild. Open Doors recently published the harrowing account of a Christian family who dared to return to their village in search of food. They were captured by Fulani militants, and two women from the family were dragged to a camp and subjected to repeated sexual violence. One of the victims explained, "They did this to us because we are Christians. Since I went to that camp, all those who were kidnapped, I didn’t see any Muslims held there." The ordeal ended only when the attackers, fearing bad luck from a local superstition, dumped the abused women at a nearby church after noticing bleeding from one of the victims.
What is perhaps most alarming is the accusation that the Nigerian government is complicit in this campaign of terror. Umeagbalasi told ACI Prensa and The Tablet that "complicity is part of an expansive policy by the Nigerian government to Islamize the country." He pointed out that former President Muhammadu Buhari (2015–2023) hails from the same Fulani Muslim tribes perpetrating many of the attacks, and that his successor, current President Bola Tinubu, though ethnically Yoruba, is also Muslim and was handpicked by Buhari. Despite Buhari’s public promises to rein in extremist groups like Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), both organizations have only grown more powerful and vicious under his rule, according to Umeagbalasi and other observers.
Security forces, meanwhile, have done little to prevent the constant raids on Christian villages. Attacks are often dismissed as "community crimes" or "local disputes." The proximity of some hostage camps to military installations—sometimes just a few kilometers away—raises serious questions. Umeagbalasi asked, "How is it possible that all this is happening just a few kilometers from military installations without anyone taking action?" Intersociety researchers went further, describing the relationship between the Nigerian military and the jihadis as something akin to a "romance."
The situation is compounded by government policies that leave Christians defenseless. The Tinubu administration, like its predecessor, insists on keeping Christian communities disarmed. Dr. Bitrus Pogu, president of the Middle Belt Forum (representing over 45 million Christians), explained to Genocide Watch in August 2025, "If our youths try to defend their communities, the military storms in, arrests them, confiscates their locally made pipe guns, tortures them, and hands them over to the police. The police, in turn, brutalize and detain them without due process." Multiple local officials and villagers echoed these accusations, describing how Christian militias and vigilantes are systematically disarmed while the military does little to pursue known terrorist hideouts.
The international community, for its part, has been widely criticized for its indifference. Umeagbalasi lamented, "No one dares to openly confess their faith. If you do, you risk being killed for ‘blasphemy.’" He added, "The international community has been indifferent to the fate of the victims." With the government accused of turning a blind eye—or worse, actively abetting the perpetrators—many Christians feel abandoned both at home and abroad.
Despite these bleak circumstances, some voices continue to document, protest, and call for action. Groups like Intersocial, Open Doors, and Genocide Watch are working to bring global attention to the crisis. Yet, as the violence escalates and the infrastructure of terror becomes more entrenched, the prospects for Nigeria’s Christians grow ever more precarious.
In a country once celebrated for its religious diversity, the current trajectory points toward an uncertain and troubling future. The stories emerging from the "Forest of Hostages" and countless besieged villages are a stark reminder of the urgent need for international engagement and meaningful reform. Without decisive intervention, the dream of a pluralistic Nigeria may soon become a memory.
