Is it True That There's Genocide Against Christians in Benue, Plateau, Others? Here's What Data Says
- US Congressman, Senator Ted Cruz, recently introduced a bill seeking to protect Christians in Nigeria from what he described as genocide
- Genocide means “the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that group”
- But a popular international media outlet, Associated Press (AP), has now reported that Nigeria’s conflicts defy simple religious labels
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering public affairs and governance in Nigeria.
FCT, Abuja - Data collected by the US-based Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) programme shows that 20,409 people died from 11,862 attacks against civilians in Nigeria between January 2020 and September 2025.
As reported by AP on Thursday, October 16, data disagrees with a US lawmaker’s claim that there is a ‘Christian mass murder’ occurring in Nigeria.
Source: Twitter
Data does not support Christian genocide claims
Legit.ng recalls that US senator, Ted Cruz, had accused Nigeria’s government of enabling a “massacre” against Christians, citing a rising number of attacks against the community in the country’s troubled regions.
The Republican lawmaker is the most prominent figure among voices from within the Christian political right in the US who are increasingly pushing claims of a Christian genocide in West Africa’s most populous country, where 48 percent of people are Christians.
Nigeria is plagued by security problems as the armed gangs, with Benue and Plateau states heavily impacted.
In addition to the gangs’ threats in Benue and Plateau, the capital, Abuja, is also surrounded by states with high levels of banditry – gunmen who kidnap and kill with no ideological motivation.
Of the 11,862 attacks between 2020 and 2025, 385 attacks were “targeted events against Christians … where Christian identity of the victim was a reported factor,” resulting in 317 deaths, according to the ACLED.
Source: Twitter
In the same period, there were 417 deaths recorded among Muslims in 196 attacks.
Olajumoke Ayandele, an assistant professor at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs, explained that Nigeria’s complex security dynamics do not meet the legal definition of a genocide.
He said:
“If anything, what we are witnessing is mass killings, which are not targeted against a specific group. The drumming-up of genocide might worsen the situation because everyone is going to be on alert.”
Security expert speaks on stemming tide of violence
Meanwhile, a security expert in Nigeria, Timothy Avele, expressed his belief that the unending violence can be defeated by the current government.
Avele, the founder of Agent-X Security Limited, told Legit.ng:
"To begin with, President Bola Tinubu must not allow the politics of winning the 2027 presidential election take away his constitutional responsibility of protecting the lives and property of Nigerians.
"I am of the view that the president, as the chief security officer in the country, should be resolute in liberating Nigerians from the shackles of insecurity, by fish-out the sponsors, no matter how highly placed in the society."
He added:
"Not only that, President Tinubu is also, hereby, called upon to introduce people-friendly policies that would ease the burden placed on the economic lives of Nigerians by his administration. This would help to discourage idle hands from joining terror groups and other violent criminal associations."
Read more on Nigeria’s conflict challenges:
- MURIC speaks on Boko Haram resurgence as Borno governor cries out
- Tension as bandits ambush, kill five policemen, three guards
- Nigerian army neutralises IPOB commander, 26 others
- Jubilation as over 15 terrorists killed in military’s airstrikes in Sambisa, Borno state
Tinubu refutes claims of genocide against Christians in Nigeria
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu dismissed claims that terrorists in Nigeria are carrying out a systematic genocide against Christians, describing the allegations as 'false' and 'malicious'.
The Nigerian leader insisted that no religion is under siege.
Tinubu, in Owerri, Imo state, blasted those peddling allegations of religious genocide in the country.
Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
