The US ambassador to the United Nations, Michael Waltz, has informed the UN Security Council of what he described as the massacre of thousands of Christians in Nigeria.
In a video released Thursday by the U.S. Mission to the U.N. on
The ambassador drew attention to the continued attacks by Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa, noting that the pattern of violence has led to widespread destruction and loss of life.
He also cited the recent abduction of 25 schoolgirls in Kebbi State, where a school official was killed while trying to protect the students.
He said: “The United States is concerned and outraged by the ongoing slaughter of thousands of Christians in Nigeria by various ethnic militias in the Middle Belt, as well as by terrorists such as Boko Haram and ISIS in West Africa in the north. It is tragic and unacceptable. Churches are being burned, villages are being razed, thousands are being killed, clerics are being murdered, simply for carrying a cross, for being a Christian, for daring to say they worship Jesus as Christ.
“Just yesterday, 25 little girls were kidnapped from their school and a school official killed trying to protect them from Maga Girls Secondary School in Kebbi State. Colleagues, this is happening. It is undeniable and unacceptable.
“The United States condemns these attacks in the strongest terms and demands accountability. And as President Trump has made clear, we will not stand by while such atrocities occur in Nigeria. The Nigerian government must take immediate action and do more to increase security, respond to early warnings, end impunity, and address the causes of violence.”
Online tribune reports that US President Donald Trump recently listed Nigeria as “a country of particular concern” over alleged Christian genocide, a claim that Nigerian authorities have consistently dismissed.
READ ALSO TOP STORIES OF Newslodge