The administration of President Bola Tinubu is set to face scrutiny as the United States prepares to examine allegations of Christian killings and religious violence in Nigeria.
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The US House of Representatives has scheduled a hearing for Thursday, November 12, 2026, at 11 am at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. The proceedings will also be streamed live on YouTube.
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The hearing will be chaired by Chris Smith, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa.
Smith’s office announced the hearing on Monday under the title, ‘One Year Later: Assessing Nigeria’s Efforts to Protect Christians and Secure the Middle Belt’.
Lawmakers are expected to examine measures taken by the Nigerian government over the past year to protect Christians, secure the Middle Belt and prosecute those responsible for religiously motivated attacks, including Boko Haram.
Two panels are expected to testify before the lawmakers.
The first panel will feature Frank Garcia, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, and Riley Barnes, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labour.
The second panel will comprise Nina Shea of the Hudson Institute, Ryan Brown, Chief Executive Officer of Open Doors US, and Oge Onubogu of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.
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The lawmakers will also consider possible measures the United States could take to pressure Nigerian authorities to prevent violence against Christians and non-radical Muslim communities.
The hearing comes exactly one year after President Donald Trump redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over religious freedom violations.
Trump first placed Nigeria on the list in 2020, but former President Joe Biden removed the country after assuming office.
However, on October 31, 2025, Trump restored Nigeria’s designation, claiming that Christianity was facing an existential threat in the country and accusing radical Islamist groups of killing thousands of Christians.
The US President also threatened to suspend American aid to Nigeria and warned of possible military intervention if the Tinubu administration failed to address the killings.
In a statement on November 1, 2025, Trump said: “If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the USA will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now-disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.
“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our cherished Christians.”
Nigeria and the United States have since entered into a military partnership targeting terrorist groups operating in the northern region.
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