The African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, has dismissed claims by United States President Donald Trump that Christians are being killed in “very large numbers” by jihadists in Nigeria, describing the allegations as misleading and exaggerated.
Speaking at a press conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Wednesday, Youssouf urged caution and accuracy when commenting on Nigeria’s complex security challenges, stressing that the violence in the country’s north cannot be equated with 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.”
He further explained that the primary victims of Boko Haram and other extremist groups in the region have been Muslims, not Christians.
“The first victims of Boko Haram are Muslims, not Christians,” he reiterated.
His comments came in response to Trump’s recent statements accusing the Nigerian government of failing to protect Christians from what he called “radical Islamist attacks.” Earlier this month, the U.S. president threatened to intervene militarily if Nigeria failed to “stem the killings,” claiming that Christianity was facing an “existential threat” in the West African nation.
Trump said he had asked the U.S. Department of Defense to prepare for possible “fast, vicious, and sweet” military action against terrorist groups in Nigeria, though he did not provide evidence to support his claims. He also threatened to halt all U.S. aid to Nigeria, describing the country as “disgraced” for allowing such violence to persist.
Youssouf, however, rejected the premise of Trump’s remarks, stressing that the situation in northern Nigeria differs significantly from genocidal crises witnessed elsewhere on the continent.
“What’s going on in the northern part of Nigeria has nothing to do with the kind of atrocities we see in Sudan or in some parts of eastern DRC,” he said, referring to Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Reacting to Trump’s comments, Nigeria’s Foreign Ministry reaffirmed the government’s commitment to combating violent extremism and protecting all citizens, regardless of faith or ethnicity.
“The country will continue to defend all citizens, irrespective of race, creed, or religion,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that Nigeria values its partnership with the United States in maintaining regional peace and security.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country with about 230 million people, is almost evenly divided between a predominantly Christian south and a Muslim-majority north.
The Boko Haram insurgency, which began in 2009, has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced over two million, according to United Nations figures.
The country continues to battle multiple security challenges, including long-running jihadist insurgencies and intercommunal conflicts that affect both Christians and Muslims alike.
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