Month: November 2025

By Ibrahim Yunusa

Chelsea attacking midfielder, Cole Palmer, suffers home injury and fractures his toe four days to meet Barcelona in Champions League.

Palmer who is almost back from a long groin injury has this small issue while his club, Chelsea, is counting on him in their Champions League clash with Spanish club, Barcelona.

With Barca, 11th and Chelsea, 12th in the Champions League table with difference of two goals to Chelsea with the same point, seven, their Tuesday’s clash will determined who will be on the top of the other in being in the top eight of the table.

By Ibrahim Yunusa

An unidentified number of pupils and staff of St. Mary’s School in Papiri community of Agwara Local Government of Niger State were abducted by terrorists in the early hours of today, Friday.

The terrorists raided the school between 2:00 am to 3:00 am and kidnapped a number of pupils that yet to be identified by authorities.

While condemning the attack, the Niger State Government blames the school of not complying with the directives of closure of boarding schools issued by the state government.

Statement issued by the Office of the Secretary of the State Government, Alhaji Abubakar Usman, disclosed that prior intelligence report received by the government alarming an increased threat level in parts of Niger North Senatorial District, the state government in response to the credible security alerts issued a clear directive suspending all construction activities and also ordering the temporary closure of all boarding schools within the affected areas as a precautionary measure.

“Regrettably, St. Mary’s School proceeded to reopen and resume academic activities without notifying or seeking clearance from the State Government, thereby exposing pupils and the staff to avoidable risk.” the statement added.

This incident comes days after 25 students were kidnapped in Maga of Kebbi state resulting a height tension and deteriorating of security of educational institutions across the region.

By Aliyu U. Tilde

International perception of religious conflicts in Nigeria is influenced by a propaganda that is overwhelmingly based on biased naming of their victims and perpetrators. When you search the Internet for the killing of Muslims in Nigeria by Christians, the best result you can get would be very scanty. But when you ask about Christian genocide, killings, etc., the result would be very lengthy. Something is amiss.

It is not that Muslims are not being killed by Christians or fellow Muslims. For twenty years, before Boko Haram and bandits started killing mostly Muslims, wholesale massacres of Muslims have been taking place in Northcentral Nigeria especially. And the mass killings have continued even after 2009 when Boko Haram appeared. However, the Internet turns blind when you search for them. Therefore, international observers hardly remember them and researchers hardly notice them. The reason is in the name.

Same Crime, Different Names

When the victim is a Christian, media reporters, who are predominantly Christians in the country, call them Christians, even in a conflict that may have nothing to do with religion. The headlines will quickly read: Fulani kill Christians, Christian communities attacked, genocide of Christians, etc. The Internet sees only what is posted.

On the flip side, when the victims are Muslim, they are given neutral names: villagers, worshippers, civilians, locals, people, Nigerians, etc. The 25 abducted Kebbi school girls are called “school children”, not “Muslim school children”. Their religious identity is cancelled, deleted or hidden deliberately. So when any scholar or reader searches the Internet on Muslim killings or genocide, he hardly gets much.

Again, if the attackers are Muslim, they are eagerly reported as Islamists, jihadists, Fulani (Muslim) militants, terrorists, etc. The Internet easily apprehends them and hands them over to the researcher who receives them with delight and uses them as the statistics of his own narrative, thus multiplying the spread of the bias.

However, if the perpetrators are Christian-affiliated, they are reported as youths, tribal militias, unknown gunmen, attackers, mob, etc. The Christian identity is deleted, hidden and allowed to escape the policing of the Internet.

Thus, the Internet-dependent world of today, as was the mainstream Christian southern press, is afflicted with the illusion that Christians are always the target, and Muslims always the perpetrators, which is false by history, statistics and morality.

Forgotten Massacres of Muslims

The Internet hardly reflects the following carefully planned and executed war crimes against Muslims by their Christian neighbours:

— Kasuwan Magani (1981) – The first major religious crisis began with the nocturnal attack of innocent Muslims by Christians.

— Kafanchan crises (1987, 1999) – Multiple waves of massacres of Muslims.

— Zangon Kataf (1992) – So horrendous that Christian leaders were convicted and a retired General was sentenced to death.

— Tafawa Balewa recurring pogroms (1991, 1995, 2000, 2001) – Ending in the cleansing of the town of its Muslim founders and majority.

— Plateau crises (2001, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2012) – More than 40 Muslim settlements were wiped out.

— Yelwa massacre (May 2004) – Exceptionally barbaric; the Christian President suspended the Governor and declared a state of emergency.

— Southern Kaduna (2011) – In Matsirga, Zonkwa, Kachia, and many other southern Kaduna towns where over 1,200 Muslims were killed by Christian militias.

— Wukari crises (2013–2014) – Jukun Christian militias carried out mass slaughter of Muslims.

— Taraba/Jalingo/Ardo Kola (2012–2017) – Entire Muslim communities wiped out.

— Mambilla Plateau massacre (June 2017) – 727 Muslim Fulani herders massacred under the supervision and protection of Christian officials of Sardauna LGA and Taraba State Government.

— Numan massacre (November 2017) – Hundreds of Fulani Muslims killed by Bachama Christian militias.

All of the above gruesome Christian-on-Muslim killings are called ethnic clashes, reprisals, intercommunal violence, farmer-herder conflict, youth violence or mob attack. When Muslims attack Christians, often in defence or reprisal, it is called Islamic violence, jihad, Christian genocide or religious persecution. The asymmetry is astonishing and it is not without its reasons and motives.

Reasons

The naming bias exists because Western institutions are Christian, culturally, and so is the Nigerian media predominantly. This tilts their sympathies, metaphors and moral instincts toward Christian victims. A Muslim killed in Kuru is a Nigerian villager; a Christian killed in Jos is a Christian.

The evangelical world and funding structure of NGOs also share a quota of the biased narrative. Organizations like CSW, Genocide Watch, Open Doors, WWW, ICC Evangelicals, name them, are Christian and their reports are the fodder of CNN, US Congress, BBC, and form the basis of Western narrative. Muslims are not blessed with such infrastructure of global lying and propaganda.

Then Christian traders of conflict especially from the Northcentral, IPOB secessionist, and evangelical entrepreneurs feed this inverted narrative for the purpose of gaining NGO sympathy, Western evangelical funding, UN, US and UK political pressure, diplomatic leverage as well as weapons and security alliances. Moreover, foreign governments are easily animated by the mention of religious persecution rather than ethnic conflict.

There is also this strange desperation to prove Christian persecution in Nigeria which, for lack of sufficient data, is compelling many Christian clerics and politicians to claim Muslim victims as Christians. A picture of a Muslim burial is tagged “Muslim murder 25 Christians in latest violence across Nigeria—Pastor killed, churches torched.” In the instance of the kidnapping of 25 girls from a secondary school in Kebbi, even American officials and former Rep. Riley Moore are insinuating that they are Christians. Fortunately, to forestall any false claim, the school has just released the names of the victims: 100% Muslim.

The same thing with the killings in Bama, abductions in Katsina, and so on. We hope they will not claim that General Alkali and Brig. M. Uba are Christians too. Some people sabi lie. A reverend just told the Internet world that he carried out 70 mass burials, some up to 500 people in mass graves—he alone, he claimed. Where are the graves? No answer. Chineke! IPOB have also jumped into the fray. I watched a video showing cattle grazing while a group of masked men, speaking Hausa with a heavy Igbo accent, claimed to be Fulani terrorists ready to kill Christian Igbo.

Finally, let us also not forget the frequency of complaint and the readiness to exaggerate. Muslims hardly complain over and over when they are killed. They shout once, mourn for three days and carry on, “leaving everything to God.” Christians, on the other hand, as a Christian TikTok girl said, see it as an opportunity to complain, at home and abroad, for the reasons I just mentioned. The Internet algorithms will then definitely be in favour of the Christian narrative.

In the end, a false portrait is painted—that Christians are being wiped out everywhere; Muslims are never victims; Christians never kill; and Muslims kill for religion but Christians for “land” and “in clashes.”

Conclusion

A balance even in vocabulary is always important for proper understanding of any situation. Muslims in Nigeria are learning so since President Trump assigned himself the role of Peter the Hermit. They must learn the art of nagging and complain endlessly as their Christian counterparts do. Finally, they must adopt the Nigerian vocabulary of conflict reporting, naming the religious identity of their attackers and victims, whether Christians or Muslims. Only this would open the eyes of the Internet to their suffering, bring their victims to the notice of researchers and catch the attention of the West and global institutions.

With this egalitarian balance of nomenclature, the world would see a better picture of conflicts in Nigeria and assist the country in overcoming its problems. Without it, the narrative will remain one-sided and the Muslims in Nigeria will always be blamed—and punished—for crimes over which they do not have monopoly.

Dr. Aliyu U. Tilde is a political analyst based in Bauchi State Nigeria.

By Uzair Adam

US Congresswoman Sara Jacobs has condemned President Donald Trump’s threat of unilateral military intervention in Nigeria over claims of a Christian genocide, calling the rhetoric “reckless” and potentially harmful to communities already grappling with widespread insecurity.

Jacobs, a Democrat representing California’s 51st Congressional District and a ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Africa, made the remarks on Thursday during a congressional hearing reviewing Nigeria’s redesignation as a Country of Particular Concern.

She argued that framing Nigeria’s complex security challenges solely as a religious conflict misrepresents reality and could inflame tensions.“It is counterproductive to adopt overly simplistic narratives about the multiple, complex, overlapping security challenges across the country,” Jacobs said.

Drawing on her experience with counter-Boko Haram strategies during her tenure at the State Department, she emphasized that both Christian and Muslim communities are affected by insecurity.

She cited recent killings and the church kidnapping in Kwara State, as well as the abduction of 25 schoolgirls in Kebbi State, to illustrate the wide range of victims.

“The violence affecting both Christian and Muslim communities is real, and the Nigerian government can and should do more,” she said, cautioning that Trump’s statements risk deepening divisions.

“We are already receiving reports of increased tensions between Christian and Muslim populations following this rhetoric,” Jacobs added.

She further stressed that Trump’s threat of military action would violate both US law and international norms. “Any unilateral military action in Nigeria would be illegal.

Congress has not authorised the use of force in Nigeria, and any action without Nigeria’s consent violates international law,” she said.

Jacobs concluded that while Nigeria faces serious security challenges, resolving them requires careful analysis, dialogue, and cooperation rather than inflammatory threats.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

Pope Leo XIV has played down claims that Christians alone are the targets of mass killings in Nigeria, stressing that the country’s insecurity threatens people of every faith.

The Catholic leader made the clarification during an interaction with journalists as he departed his Castel Gandolfo residence in The Vatican.

A reporter sought his view on the safety of Nigerian Christians, a topic that has drawn considerable attention in Western political debates.

The pontiff said Nigeria’s violence cannot be separated from terrorism, economic pressures, and fierce disputes over land.

“I think in Nigeria, in certain areas, there is certainly a danger for Christians, but for all people. Christians and Muslims have been slaughtered,” he stated in response to EWTN News.

“There’s a question of terrorism. There’s a question that has to do a lot with economics, if you will, and control of the lands that they have. Unfortunately, many Christians have died, and I think it’s very, it’s important to seek a way for the government, with all peoples, to promote authentic religious freedom.”

His remarks come after former U.S. President Donald Trump designated Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern over alleged religious persecution.

Abuja strongly rejected the designation, arguing that the crisis is not an assault on one religion but a complex conflict involving multiple groups.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, also echoed a similar view last month. At the launch of the 2025 Religious Freedom Report by Aid to the Church in Need, he said the violence in Nigeria fits more into a “social conflict,” often between herders and farmers, rather than a religious confrontation.

In an effort to address the growing narrative in Washington, National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu led a federal delegation to the United States on Wednesday.

The team met with Congressman Riley Moore, whom Trump appointed to review Nigeria’s situation. Moore later said he and the delegation held a “frank, honest, and productive discussion.”

By Muhammad Abubakar

A federal court in Abuja has sentenced Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), to life imprisonment for terrorism-related charges. The judge stated that Kanu’s calls for “sit-at-home” orders incited violence and constituted acts of terrorism.

The court ruled that for several of the charges, the law prescribes either life imprisonment or the death penalty. In delivering the verdict, the judge described Kanu as a “tyrant” capable of violence and said he should no longer remain a part of society.

The prosecution immediately called for the death penalty following the conviction. Kanu has previously been imprisoned, first in 2015 and again in 2021 after a controversial extradition from Kenya.

Supporters of Kanu have staged protests, and opposition politicians have criticised the government, alleging that the trial was politically motivated.

Dear Nicki Minaj,

As the latest spokesperson in America speaking on Nigeria, I must clarify that the script provided to you by internal actors back home in Nigeria and their collaborators in the United States is biased and one-sided. You might not fully understand the complexities of insecurity in my country, and you have been fed false lies about fictitious claims of ongoing Christian genocidal attacks.

Here is the reality:

1. In North West Nigeria, banditry devastates the region, with Muslims frequently killing fellow Muslims.

2. In North East Nigeria, Boko Haram and ISWAP, both Muslim terrorist groups, mainly kill fellow Muslims in Borno and Yobe.

3. In North Central Nigeria—Plateau, Southern Kaduna, Taraba, Benue—farmer-herder conflicts, caused by land disputes, are often wrongly seen as religious wars. These conflicts affect both Christians (farmers) and Muslims (Hausa-Fulani herders).

4. In South East Nigeria—Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia—IPOB terrorists, who are Igbo Christians, are killing fellow Igbo Christians in their bid for secession.

Dear Nicki, insecurity in Nigeria impacts Muslims, Christians, traditionalists, and atheists equally. The narrative you received is incomplete and misleading.

Nicki Minaj, the Muslims being killed in Nigeria, and other heinous crimes being perpetrated against them do not get to the headlines of international media for you and others to see and understand. The Muslims back home in my country bury their loved ones killed in silence, for they do not believe in using dead bodies for propaganda or to attract sympathy or donations from international organisations.

If you care about speaking for Nigerian Christians, I urge you also to speak for Black Americans facing police brutality. Just as you highlighted Nigeria’s challenges, you can bring the reality of racial injustice in the US to global attention.

Just like you are calling for global international attention on what has been tagged as ongoing Christians’ genocidal attacks in Nigeria, kindly also call global attention to the silent, ongoing police brutality against your fellow Black Americans and the racial discrimination they are facing.

If Nigerian Christians’ lives matter to you, then let the lives of your fellow Black Americans matter as well.

Thanks.

Mustapha Gembu is a Nigerian citizen and a proud advocate for peace, unity, and harmonious coexistence among my fellow Nigerians.

By Engr. Abubakar Sulaiman

The Amnesty International Nigeria and some Northern Intellectuals were asleep or in a state of limbo when the Kano state government invited Mallam Lawan Shuaibu Triumph to appear before the Shura Committee and defend what some segments of Muslims considered blasphemous or disrespectful. He appeared, defended his statements, and heaven did not fall. He also made it clear that he was open to further discussion or debate.

Waking up from slumber, Amnesty International found its voice only when the ‘anointed’ Yahaya Masussuka (whom some people laughably expect to bring about a ‘revolution’ in mainstream Islam and its preachings) was invited by the Katsina state government to appear before a committee regarding his preachments. That was when they realised someone was about to be stripped of their freedom. The olive branch that wasn’t extended to Mallam Lawal Shuaibu Triumph.

Is it double standards or hypocrisy from the organisation and the so-called intellectuals? It is both. And it is a clever-by-half and calculated attempt to arm-twist a government procedure. But this is a discussion for another day.

That said, I believe state governments should find a way to disengage from organising religious debates. They should enact laws that regulate religious preaching and require JNI or CAN (or any other faith-based body) to license preachers. Whoever has a disagreement or believes a cleric’s preachment is an affront to overriding public interest should approach the court. Based on the enacted laws, the court should determine what constitutes extremism or actions inimical to social stability and thereby de-license a cleric or even sentence them to time in correctional facilities where appropriate.

I think debates on religious ideologies should be organised by faith-based organisations, or anyone who has an axe to grind with another person on religious issues should extend an invitation to a debate. Two Salafi scholars, Shaykh Isa Ali Pantami and the late Shaykh Idris Abdulaziz, extended such an invitation to the Boko Haram leader, the late Muhammad Yusuf, without any state government spearheading or supervising the engagement. Many people later renounced the Boko Haram ideology after listening to that debate. Additionally, Mallam Al-Qasim Hotoro also approached Mallam AbdulJabbar Nasiru Kabara for a debate, though AbdulJabbar used a ‘tactical manoeuvre’ to decline the engagement. The populace will then be the judge of who can present convincing evidence for their beliefs or ideology from such debates.

State governments risk falling into a quagmire if they continue to entertain complaints and organise religious debates without referring them to government-recognised faith-based organisations or a court of competent jurisdiction. It is difficult to digest, given the fear of censorship from our kind of governments, but regulation is key to taming religious hiccups and extreme tendencies while enhancing social integration.

Abubakar writes from Kaduna and can be reached via abusuleiman06@gmail.com.

By Sabiu Abdullahi

A new wave of public debate has followed the Katsina State Government’s invitation to Yahaya Masussuka to defend his religious preachings before a committee of scholars, with some analysts accusing Amnesty International and northern intellectuals of inconsistency in their reactions to similar cases.

The development comes after the state government released a statement on November 18 acknowledging that it had received complaints alleging that Masussuka’s teachings “contravenes the general principles of Islamic Law.” Authorities also noted that Masussuka himself had reported threats from members of Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’a.

According to the statement, the government escalated the concerns to the Katsina Emirate Council, where the Emir invited Masussuka and other clerics for discussions and cautioned all parties against preaching that could offend other Muslims. Despite that intervention, the government said tensions persisted. It explained that Governor Dikko Umaru Radda subsequently directed Masussuka to appear before a Committee of Ulamas to defend himself, after which standards for preaching would be set and violations addressed.

While the state urged the public to remain calm, the invitation triggered sharp reactions from Amnesty International and some activists who insist Masussuka’s rights must be protected.

Commentators Challenge Amnesty’s Position

Public commentator Abubakar Suleiman questioned why similar advocacy was absent when Kano authorities invited another cleric, Lawan Shuaibu Triumph, to defend statements some groups considered blasphemous. He said:

“The Amnesty International Nigeria and some Northern Intellectuals were asleep or in a state of limbo when Mallam Lawan Shuaibu Triumph was invited by the Kano state government… He appeared, defended his statements, and heaven did not fall.”

Suleiman argued that Amnesty International only found its voice when the Katsina government invited Masussuka, whom he described as “the ‘anointed’ Yahaya Masussuka (whom some people laughably expect to bring about a ‘revolution’ in mainstream Islam and its preachings).”

He accused the organisation and some northern intellectuals of “double standards or hypocrisy,” calling their intervention “a clever-by-half and calculated attempt to arm-twist a government procedure.”

Suleiman also advised state governments to stay away from organizing doctrinal debates, proposing instead that legislative frameworks and faith-based regulatory bodies like JNI or CAN oversee preaching. He noted that disagreements over religious messages should go before the courts, not government panels. He warned that continued direct intervention by state executives could place them “in a quagmire.”

Khaleel: Masussuka’s Teachings Resemble Maitatsine Doctrine

Another analyst, Ibrahim Khaleel, linked Masussuka’s ideology to historical radical movements. He wrote:

“Yahaya Masussuka’s ideology of Qur’anism is what Maitatsine preached in the 1970s. The only difference is that Masussuka has not picked up arms yet.”

Khaleel described Masussuka’s approach as involving “rejection of Hadith, rejection of mainstream Islamic scholarship, personal interpretation of the Qur’an, provocative sermons of puritanism.”

He argued that the government is right to be wary, especially given what he described as troubling advocacy from international NGOs. He said these organisations “are not friends of our fragile country” and referenced past allegations that they assisted hostile groups.

Khaleel insisted the Katsina government acted responsibly by inviting Masussuka only for a scholarly clarification, stating:

“The government hasn’t done anything more than inviting him to come before a scholarly committee to discuss his beliefs, just to ensure that he doesn’t be the next problem the government will spend a lot of money trying to solve.”

He also questioned the defense of Masussuka’s freedom of expression, asking:

“Wasn’t freedom of speech what has landed us in terrorism today?”

Khaleel urged authorities to regulate unconventional religious teachings to prevent potential crises and declared, “Let the panel discussion proceed.”

Katsina Government Pledges Caution

The Katsina Government, in its press release signed by Director of Press Ibrahim Almu Gafai, said the matter is being “judiciously handled.” It said guidelines for preaching will be issued after the committee concludes its review and that decisive action will follow any violations.

The state further appealed to the public to remain patient as the process unfolds.

Masussuka has not publicly responded to the invitation as of the time of this report.

By Hadiza Abdulkadir

A detailed personal account posted by northern Nigerian social media influencer Aisha Falke has drawn significant public attention as debates intensify over insecurity and religious rhetoric in the region.

Falke, founder of the popular online platform Northern Hibiscus, published a two-part account describing how her family narrowly escaped an attack during the 2001 ethno-religious crisis in Jos. In the account, she recalls waking to reports of killings at roadblocks and later watching her mother’s Christian friend—described as a close family companion—allegedly approach their home with a machete as mobs advanced toward their neighbourhood.

According to her narration, the family fled moments before large groups of armed youths descended on the area. She also recounted scenes of panic on the roads as fleeing residents warned of roadblocks where travellers were reportedly attacked and burned.

Falke’s post has generated extensive reactions across northern Nigeria, with many users describing it as a reminder of the human toll of past communal violence.

The renewed attention comes as security agencies continue the search for 25 Muslim schoolgirls abducted from their school in Kebbi State last week. The incident has prompted widespread condemnation, though it has unfolded alongside online claims by some groups alleging “genocide against Christians” in the region—claims many northern residents and government officials dispute, arguing that ongoing attacks by bandits and insurgents have targeted communities irrespective of religion.

Falke did not link her story to the Kebbi abductions, but analysts say the timing has contributed to broader conversations about the dangers of inflammatory narratives and the need for balanced reporting on insecurity.

Authorities have not yet provided updates on the rescue operation, while families of the abducted students continue to appeal for swift action.