An initiative to withhold aid from Nigeria until it stops violence against Christians has passed in the House of Representatives. The amendment is part of the Fiscal Year 2027 National Security, Department of State and Related Programs Appropriations Act.
Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) celebrated the passage of his amendment. “My amendment to withhold 100% of U.S. aid to Nigeria until its government stops the slaughter of Christians has PASSED,” he wrote on X. “American taxpayers should NEVER bankroll governments that turn a blind eye while Christians are abducted, tortured, and murdered. No more wasteful foreign aid!”
Rep. Riley Moore (R-WV) explained that the legislation “conditions U.S. assistance to Nigeria on tangible progress in protecting Christians, particularly in addressing the threat posed by Fulani terrorists and returning internally displaced people to their ancestral lands.” He said it “also provides funding to support training and increasing accountability for police forces in Nigeria” while holding “foreign governments accountable and ensures American taxpayer dollars advance our national interests.”
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said of the Trump administration’s effort to protect Christians in Nigeria during a May Cabinet meeting, “I just want to note one more thing to give you a sense of how committed this president is. Maybe a year ago, he heard the call of Nigerian Christians who were being targeted and killed by ISIS in Nigeria, and he said, ‘Pete, I want the War Department to focus on ensuring that we do everything we can to protect those Christians.’”
“Partnerships like that can take time behind the scenes, but he never wavered on it,” he stated, adding that the administration “killed ISIS’ number two in Nigeria, who is most responsible for killing Christians and trying to target the U.S. homeland, and have since — because of the intel we gathered — killed hundreds of ISIS members who were targeting and killing Christians in Nigeria, creating a whole new opportunity there.”
