United States Congressman Alex Riley of West Virginia has vowed to champion the cause of persecuted Christians in Nigeria and other regions facing religious violence. Speaking before Congress, Rep. Riley described the situation as a “raging urgent crisis” and called on the U.S. government to take a definitive stand against the escalating brutality targeting Christians across Africa and the Middle East.
Citing grim statistics, the Congressman noted that Nigeria remains the most dangerous country in the world for Christians. He revealed that more than 50,000 Christians have been killed since 2009, and over five million people have been displaced as a result of jihadist attacks, armed banditry, and religiously motivated violence. In that same period, over 18,000 churches and 2,000 schools have been destroyed in northern Nigeria, a region severely affected by the Boko Haram insurgency and other extremist groups.
The recent massacre of 54 Christians on Palm Sunday in Plateau State and the Ash Wednesday abduction and brutal murder of a priest in north-central Nigeria were cited as harrowing examples of an unrelenting wave of violence. Rep. Riley also referenced the killing of 13 priests and seminarians in 2024 alone, and the staggering death of nearly 200 seminarians over the past decade, making it clear that these attacks are systematic and far from isolated incidents.
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Expanding beyond Nigeria, Rep. Riley expressed deep concern over the diminishing Christian population in war-torn Syria, which plummeted from 1.5 million to just 300,000 by 2022 due to the civil war and ISIS-led atrocities. He described how ancient churches have been bombed and religious artifacts defaced in a calculated effort to erase Christian heritage in the region.
In Iraq, Riley said, the persecution of Christians intensified in the wake of the U.S. invasion, leading to a dramatic exodus of Christian communities from their ancestral homes. He condemned the global silence in the face of these atrocities, urging Congress not to stand idle while innocent people are slaughtered for their faith.
The Congressman announced his intention to introduce a resolution condemning the persecution of Christians worldwide and called on his colleagues to pass it with overwhelming bipartisan support. He stressed that the international community, especially a democracy like the United States, has a moral duty to speak out and defend religious freedom across borders.
His impassioned speech has already stirred reactions from religious freedom advocates, faith-based organizations, and human rights defenders, who see it as a long-overdue call to action.