The Federal Government has dismissed claims that terrorists in Nigeria are waging a systematic genocide against Christians, describing the allegations as “false, baseless, and divisive.”
In a statement on Sunday, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said portraying the country’s security challenges as a targeted attack on a single religious group amounts to a misrepresentation of reality.
“The federal government strongly condemns and categorically refutes recent allegations by certain international platforms and online influencers suggesting that terrorists operating in Nigeria are engaged in a systematic genocide against Christians. Such claims are false, baseless, despicable, and divisive,” Idris stated.
He explained that extremists have attacked Nigerians of all faiths, stressing that criminals target anyone who rejects their ideology. “Muslims, Christians, and even those who do not identify with any religion have suffered at their hands,” he added.
Highlighting recent gains by security forces, Idris said that between May 2023 and February 2025, troops neutralized 13,543 terrorists and criminals while rescuing nearly 10,000 hostages nationwide. He also recalled the capture of Ansaru’s leadership, an al-Qaeda affiliate in Nigeria, and the prosecution of more than 700 Boko Haram suspects.
The minister dismissed the genocide narrative as a distortion of Nigeria’s multi-religious reality, noting that Christians are neither endangered nor marginalized. He pointed out that the current heads of the armed forces and the police are Christians, reflecting inclusivity in national leadership.
Idris further cited international recognition of Nigeria’s interfaith initiatives, referencing the 2025 Commonwealth Peace Prize awarded to Rev. James Movel Wuye and Imam Muhammad Nurayn Ashafa, co-founders of the Interfaith Mediation Centre.
He urged the international media and foreign commentators to avoid sensationalism and divisive rhetoric, and instead support Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to combat terrorism and insecurity.
