United States President Donald Trump posted to Truth Social yesterday that the US had carried out an airstrike against suspected militants from the self-proclaimed Islamic State in north-west Nigeria.
“[They] have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!” he said.
However, Nigerian human rights lawyer and conflict analyst Bulama Bukarti told SBS News that Trump’s justification for the attack is “a fundamental misrepresentation of the situation on the ground”.
“Yes, Christians have been targeted and are being targeted by these groups, but Muslims have equally been targeted and are being targeted,” he said.
“Framing it as just affecting Christians risks oversimplifying a very complex situation and risks creating divisions and distrust on the ground and also feeding terrorist propaganda.”
The Nigerian government has said militant groups targeted both Muslims and Christians, and US claims that Christians were facing persecution did not reflect a complex security situation and ignored efforts to safeguard religious freedom in Nigeria.
