NIGERIA: Over 7,000 Christians Killed in 2025

According to a report from a civil society organization released in October 2025, Islamic extremists and radicalized herder militias have killed over 7,000 Christians within the first 220 days of 2025 in Nigeria. The Christian Post reported the estimate as human rights advocates continue criticizing the Nigerian government's failure to protect Christian communities.

The violence occurs primarily in Nigeria's Middle Belt and northeastern regions, where Boko Haram, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), and radicalized Fulani herdsmen target predominantly Christian farming communities. Attacks typically involve armed militants raiding villages at night, shooting residents, burning churches and homes, and kidnapping women and children.

The 7,000 death toll represents only the first 220 days of 2025, suggesting the annual total could exceed 10,000 Christian deaths. This continues escalating violence against Nigerian Christians that has killed tens of thousands over the past decade. International Christian Concern and other monitoring organizations document systematic targeting of Christian communities.

Fulani herder militias, traditionally Muslim and nomadic, increasingly employ terrorist tactics against Christian farmers in land disputes that have taken on clear religious dimensions. Survivors report attackers shouting "Allahu Akbar" and specifically targeting churches, pastors, and Christian symbols during raids.

The Nigerian government, led by Muslim President Bola Tinubu, faces consistent criticism for inadequate response to anti-Christian violence. Security forces often arrive after attacks conclude, and prosecution of perpetrators remains rare. Some analysts suggest government complicity or at minimum willful negligence in protecting Christian citizens.

International response has been limited despite the scale of violence. The United States designated Nigeria a "Country of Particular Concern" for religious freedom violations, but concrete actions remain minimal. European nations and international bodies have largely ignored the crisis despite death tolls exceeding many recognized genocides.

Christian communities report forced displacement, with hundreds of thousands fleeing ancestral lands to escape violence. Many displaced persons live in camps lacking basic services, while their abandoned properties are occupied by Fulani herdsmen, creating facts on the ground that prevent return.

THE CRUSADERS OPINION

Seven thousand Christians murdered in 220 days.

Let that number sink in.

That's over 30 Christians killed daily by Islamic extremists and radicalized Muslim militias.

This isn't random violence or tribal conflict; it's religious genocide, deliberate, systematic extermination of Christians for their faith. And the world's response? Virtual silence.

Call this what it is: Islamic jihad against Nigerian Christians. Boko Haram, ISWAP, and Fulani militants aren't criminals or protesters; they're murderers operating from explicit Islamic ideology that views Christians as legitimate targets. When attackers shout "Allahu Akbar" while burning churches, shooting pastors, and kidnapping Christian girls, their motivation is crystal clear. This is religious hatred actualized through mass murder.

These Islamic terrorists deserve the harshest earthly justice: arrest, prosecution, imprisonment, and where appropriate, execution for mass murder. Their acts constitute crimes against humanity warranting international intervention. Instead, Nigeria's Muslim-led government provides effective immunity, security forces arrive after massacres conclude, and perpetrators face no consequences. This isn't incompetence; it's complicity.

The spiritual reality is equally clear: these murderers face eternal judgment. Christ warns that those who shed innocent blood will answer to God. Islamic ideology promising paradise for killing Christians is demonic deception leading adherents straight to hell. There is no martyrdom in murdering Christians; there is only the lake of fire awaiting unrepentant murderers who reject Christ.

Consider the obscene double standard. If Christians killed 7,000 Muslims in 220 days anywhere on earth, the response would be immediate and overwhelming: military intervention, international sanctions, media saturation, and universal condemnation. But when Muslims systematically slaughter Christians, Western governments offer tepid concern while media largely ignores it. The asymmetry reveals deep-seated anti-Christian bias in international institutions.

Imagine if Nigerian Christians organized armed militias, raided Muslim villages, burned mosques, and murdered 7,000 Muslims.

Would Nigeria's government respond with police arriving late and prosecutors declining charges?

Would international community shrug? Of course not. Christians would face swift, brutal retaliation and global condemnation. But Muslims murdering Christians apparently doesn't warrant serious response.

Now imagine if Christians had a Private Military Company (something my team and I are working towards) that defended Christians accross the world.

Western Christians bear responsibility for this silence. We should be demanding action, organizing protests, lobbying governments, and raising funds for persecuted Nigerian believers. Instead, we argue about worship styles and political alignments while our brothers and sisters are systematically murdered. Our indifference makes us complicit.

For Christian unity, Nigeria's persecution demands unified response across all denominations. These murdered believers include Catholics, Anglicans, Pentecostals, and evangelicals. Their denominational differences are irrelevant; they died for confessing Christ. Every Christian tradition must speak with one voice: this genocide must stop, perpetrators must face justice, and the international community must act.

Practically, Western nations should impose severe sanctions on Nigeria until it protects Christians. Cut foreign aid. Restrict trade. Ban Nigerian officials from Western nations. Make clear that tolerating Christian genocide has consequences. Economic pressure works; we simply lack will to apply it because dead African Christians apparently don't matter to Western elites.

The Church worldwide should also support Nigerian believers concretely: fund security for vulnerable communities, provide humanitarian aid for displaced persons, facilitate refugee resettlement for those who can escape, and amplify their voices internationally. Real solidarity requires resources and action, not just prayers and social media posts.

Nigeria's crisis also reveals Islam's fundamental character. Where Muslims gain demographic and political dominance, non-Muslims face persecution. This pattern repeats across contexts: Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, Southeast Asia. Islamic theology's division of the world into Dar al-Islam (house of Islam) and Dar al-Harb (house of war) creates framework justifying violence against non-Muslims. Western Christians must stop pretending all religions are equivalent and recognize Islam's incompatibility with genuine religious pluralism.

The murdered Nigerian Christians join the great cloud of witnesses who died for their faith. Their blood cries out for justice, and justice will come. If earthly authorities fail to punish murderers, divine judgment remains certain. Every life taken will be accounted for, every drop of innocent blood avenged, every perpetrator judged. God will not be mocked, and He will not ignore His children's suffering.