AU Chief Refutes Trump’s Claim of ‘Genocide Against Christians’ in Northern Nigeria

The Chair of the African Union Commission, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, has dismissed claims by U.S. President Donald Trump that Christians in northern Nigeria are facing genocide at the hands of jihadists.

Trump had earlier this month warned of a possible armed intervention in Nigeria, alleging that “radical Islamists” were killing Christians “in very large numbers” and that Christianity was facing an “existential threat” in the country.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday in New York, Youssouf rejected the claim, insisting that the situation in northern Nigeria, while serious, does not amount to genocide.

“There is no genocide in northern Nigeria,” Youssouf said.
“The complexity of the situation in northern Nigeria should push us to think twice before making such statements. The first victims of Boko Haram are Muslims, not Christians.”

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation with about 230 million people, is almost evenly split between a predominantly Christian south and a Muslim-majority north.

The country has faced years of insurgency from the Boko Haram militant group and its offshoot, ISWAP, both of which have carried out deadly attacks affecting communities of all faiths.

According to United Nations estimates, more than 40,000 people have been killed and over two million displaced since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009.

Youssouf emphasized that the AU continues to support Nigeria’s efforts to tackle terrorism and promote peace, urging restraint and factual accuracy in international discourse on the crisis.