Nigeria Rejects Foreign Troops, Claims Trump’s Narrative Fuels More Violence

The federal government strongly opposed yesterday what it described as the “dangerous and inaccurate” Christian genocide narrative spearheaded by US President Donald Trump, claiming that Nigeria does not require foreign troops on its soil but rather targeted support from its partners and allies

“The Nigerian Armed Forces are highly capable, experienced and professional. Nigeria does not require foreign troops,” said Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator George Akume in a statement.

He warned that such claims were already emboldening opportunistic violent groups and aggravating insecurity across parts of the country.

According to him, “no credible international organisation has ever classified Nigeria’s security crisis as a genocide against Christians or any group.”

Akume said President Bola Tinubu’s administration considered the proliferation of the genocide narrative not only false but also “deeply harmful to national security,” stressing that it was now “fueling more violence, sharpening sectarian suspicion, and giving opportunistic extremist actors a propaganda lifeline they had long lost.”

He said Nigeria’s complex security challenge had evolved across two separate fronts over the past two decades – the ideological insurgency of Boko Haram and ISWAP in the North-East, and the economically-driven banditry ravaging the North-West.

“Across Nigeria, Christians and Muslims have been equally victimised. Boko Haram and ISWAP attack both churches and mosques, killing Muslims and Christians alike. Bandits target communities without any religious distinction,” he declared.

The SGF emphasised that while Boko Haram originated as a radical ideological sect that later drew influence from Al-Qaeda and ISIS, North-West banditry was “overwhelmingly economic deterministic,” rooted in illegal mining, cattle rustling, kidnapping-for-ransom and control of natural resources. These pressures, not religion, explain the persistence of violence in the North-West.’’

Akume also offered a historical account of how weapons proliferation from the collapse of Libya in 2011 and instability in Egypt strengthened terrorist networks across the Sahel, feeding both Boko Haram and ISWAP.

He said: “Weapons flowing through AQIM-controlled smuggling routes entered West Africa and Nigeria, strengthening Boko Haram, ISWAP and later banditry networks.’’

On claims being circulated internationally that Christians were being systematically exterminated, the SGF rejected such framing.

“Nigeria rejects any characterization of the conflict as a genocide against Christians or any group. Verified evidence shows that insurgents and criminal networks attack both churches and mosques, killing Muslims and Christians alike,’’ he said.

He warned that the amplification of false narratives abroad, particularly in the United States, had had real consequences on the ground.

“Recent pronouncements from the United States have inadvertently emboldened opportunistic violent groups seeking to exploit international narratives and make bold statements by attacking soft targets.