Washington, Nov. 22, 2025 – Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Secretary of War, has advised Nigeria to take urgent and enduring actions to stop further violence against Christians in Nigeria.
Hegseth gave the directive during a closed-door meeting with Nigerian delegation, led by Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, its National Security Advisor, at the Pentagon.
According to a press statement issued by Sean Parnell, an Assistant to the Secretary of War for Public Affairs, the U.S. used the closed-door meeting to press Nigeria for tangible, measurable steps to end the persistent wave of killings, abductions, and terror attacks on Christian communities.
The Secretary promised that U.S. was ready to work with Nigeria to see the end of the carnage and degrade the jihadist networks and violent extremist groups destabilising Nigeria and threatening broader U.S. interests.
Hegseth has also confirmed meeting with the Nigerian delegation in a post on Instagram on Friday, a day after he met with the delegation.
He wrote: “Yesterday, I met with Nigeria’s National Security Advisor and his team to discuss the horrific violence against Christians in their country.
“Under @POTUS leadership, DOW is working aggressively with Nigeria to end the persecution of Christians by jihadist terrorists.”
Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump, had ordered the Department of War to prepare for possible fast military action in Nigeria if the government failed to prevent the killing of Christians.
Following the threat, a Nigerian delegation has been engaging with U.S. authorities on ways to stop the planned U.S. military action.
The delegation has also met with Riley Moore, a U.S. lawmaker and a leading figure among lawmakers championing the campaign against alleged Christian genocide in Nigeria.
