A sharp divide emerged in Washington on Thursday as US lawmakers debated Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, with Republican Congressman Bill Huizenga accusing President Bola Tinubu’s administration of “sitting back” while violence escalates.

However, Democratic Congresswoman Sara Jacobs condemning President Donald Trump’s threat of military intervention as “reckless”.

Both legislators spoke during a hearing of the US House Subcommittee on Africa, convened to review Nigeria’s redesignation as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for alleged religious persecution.

Mr. Huizenga, testifying before the committee, alleged that the Nigerian Government was failing to address the crisis and had attempted to “downplay” the severity of violence during engagements in Washington.

“It ought to be outrageous that it is Christians, moderate Muslims, and anyone being terrorised by these radicalised Islamists in Nigeria, and we have the Tinubu government sitting back and not doing enough,” he said. “I was recently interviewed by Nigerian television, and they asked if the Tinubu government was doing enough. I had to answer, ‘No, they are not.’

“I do not understand how a delegation can come here to the United States and downplay and come up with all of these excuses as to why this is allowed to happen. It should be rejected and called out for what it is.”

Mr. Huizenga also criticised sections of the media and some of his congressional colleagues for allegedly “denying” or “de-emphasising” the scale of the killings.

“We have neighbours who have been missionaries in Nigeria, who know this is going on. Yet we have not just the mass media, but people within Congress denying that this is happening, or certainly de-emphasising it,” he said.

The congressman cited the 2023 Christmas Eve attack, in which about 200 people were killed, as evidence that conditions have not improved. Questioning the religious dimension of the violence, he asked: “Do we see Christians killing Muslims the way radicalised Islamists kill Christians in Muslim areas?”

Thursday’s hearing came shortly after President Trump reinstated Nigeria on the CPC list on 31 October 2025, alleging systematic persecution of Christians and confirming that military options were under review.

However, Democratic Congresswoman Sara Jacobs pushed back strongly against Mr. Trump’s comments, warning that any military action by the United States in Nigeria would be illegal.

“President Trump’s threat is reckless, and any unilateral military action in Nigeria is illegal. Congress has not authorised force in Nigeria to protect Christians,” she said.

Ms. Jacobs, who represents California’s 51st Congressional District and serves as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Africa, argued that reducing Nigeria’s violence to a solely religious conflict ignores its complexity.

She said the insecurity affects both Christians and Muslims and urged the Nigerian Government to strengthen protections for all citizens.

The Nigerian Government has rejected the assertion that Christians face systemic persecution. President Tinubu responded to the CPC redesignation by saying:
“Nigeria stands firmly as a democracy governed by constitutional guarantees of religious liberty. The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our reality.”

Nigeria was first placed on the CPC list in 2020 under Mr. Trump. Former President Joe Biden removed the country shortly after taking office, before its reinstatement this year.

The subcommittee is expected to hear further testimony from senior US State Department officials and Nigerian religious leaders as deliberations continue.