By Nkiruka Nnorom
A member of the US Congress, Rep. Riley Moore, has insisted that the United States must not remove Nigeria from its Country of Particular Concern, CPC, designation list over alleged persecution of Christians, citing continued violence in the Middle Belt.
Moore made the position known yesterday in a post on his official X handle, while responding to a statement by the US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs.
The lawmaker backed the State Department’s call for the Federal Government to protect Christian communities after Plateau attack, saying it was a commitment Abuja made.
“We absolutely CANNOT remove the CPC designation from Nigeria while radical Islamic terrorists continue this horrific violence against Christians,” the Congressman wrote.
“@AsstSecStateAF is right. The Nigerian government must meet its commitments to protect innocent Christian communities,” Moore declared.
Moore was reacting to a post by the US Bureau of African Affairs which condemned the latest attack in Plateau State where over 24 locals were reportedly killed and many missing.
Locals in the affected Plateau communities had said the attackers stormed the villages late at night and opened fire on residents sleeping in their homes, leaving many families displaced and mourning. Community leaders described the assault as “barbaric and senseless,” and appealed to both the state and federal governments to deploy more security personnel to protect rural communities that they say have been repeatedly targeted.
“The United States is horrified by yet another murderous attack in the Middle Belt of Nigeria, killing dozens of people asleep in their homes in Plateau State.
“This is especially troubling coming on the heels of the recent CPC Working Group meeting. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those missing and killed, and we strongly urge the Nigerian government to meet their commitments to protect Christian communities and to hold perpetrators of violence accountable,” the Bureau said.
The latest comments by Moore and the Bureau signaled renewed pressure from US lawmakers for the Trump’s administration not to reconsider Nigeria’s status amid persistent attacks in Plateau, Benue and other parts of the Middle Belt.
The Nigerian government has repeatedly denied any religious targeting in the conflicts, describing them largely as clashes over land, resources and criminality.
The US designated Nigeria as a CPC in 2020 under the International Religious Freedom Act, a tag given to countries deemed to have engaged in or tolerated systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom.
Nigeria was removed from the list in 2021, but has remained under close monitoring by the US State Department.
The Trump administration returned Nigeria to the list last year and since then the US-Nigeria Joint Working Group meeting referenced by the Bureau has met twice to review progress made since the designation and to determine the effectiveness of actions being taken by Abuja to address concerns raised by Washington.
The CPC designation is reviewed annually by the State Department and is scheduled for review in November.
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