Massad Boulos, Senior Adviser to Donald Trump on Arab and African Affairs, has dismissed claims of religious persecution in Nigeria, saying terrorist groups like Boko Haram and ISIS have killed more Muslims than Christians.
Speaking in a video shared by the Nigerian Television Authority on X on Friday, October 16, Boulos described allegations by some American politicians that Christians were being systematically targeted as “unfortunate and misleading.”
He explained that terrorism in Nigeria cuts across ethnic and religious lines, insisting that insecurity in the country should not be interpreted through a religious lens.
“Any incident, any loss of life is absolutely unfortunate. Those who know the terrain well know that terrorism has no colour, no religion and no tribe.
“People of all religions and all tribes are dying as a result of terrorist acts. We even know that Boko Haram and ISIS are killing more Muslims than Christians,” he said.
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Boulos noted that while conflicts between herders and farmers have occurred in parts of the Middle Belt, they are primarily linked to resource and land disputes rather than religion.
“Most of these farmers happen to be Christian, and some herdsmen are going through, and they have these incidents. But it’s not something that we can say is specifically targeted about this specific group,” he added.
He commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for intensifying security operations in affected regions, saying the efforts were already showing progress.
According to him, “The Nigerian government and the President Tinubu’s administration have recently taken additional measures and put more resources in those areas. We’ve seen some improvements in recent weeks.”
Boulos further praised Nigeria’s record of religious coexistence and urged continued collaboration between Washington and Abuja to combat terrorism and sustain peace.