Study Confirms Who Is Behind Killings of Christians in Nigeria
A detailed report from the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa highlights the extensive violence against Nigerian Christians, primarily driven by islamic Fulani militias. The study covers killings between October 2019 and September 2025, revealing at least 79,323 confirmed deaths, including civilians, security personnel, and terrorists. Christian civilians constitute the majority of victims,with the Fulani militias responsible for approximately 44% of civilian deaths,surpassing terrorist groups like Boko Haram and ISWAP. The violence involves targeted attacks on villages, often using motorcycles and automatic weapons, primarily affecting NigeriaS Middle Belt region, where religious communities are divided geographically. These assaults result in death, displacement, trauma, and economic devastation, with limited intervention from Nigerian security forces. The report emphasizes that the primary threat to Christian communities stems from Fulani militias, a fact evidenced by recent findings that challenge the perception that organized terror groups are the main perpetrators. The situation calls for increased international attention and action to address the ongoing violence and protect affected communities.
A six-year study into recorded slayings of Nigerian Christians confirmed that Islamic Fulani militias are the driving cause of the persecution.
The review from the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa, for which a fact sheet was released on June 30, revealed that at least 79,323 individuals have been killed between October 2019 and September 2025.
That includes 42,033 civilians who have lost their lives, as well as 37,290 security force personnel and members of terror groups.
There have been 15,434 “attacks with killings” — averaging seven per day.
The Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa tallied 22,835 Christian civilians killed, as well as 10,519 Muslims and 184 traditional African religionists.
In terms of who is responsible for the slayings, the review found that Fulani terror groups were behind 44 percent of civilian deaths.
Boko Haram and ISWAP, two major Islamic terrorist organizations, were meanwhile behind 12 percent of civilian deaths.
International Christian Concern reported that the findings “challenge the commonly held belief that the two organized terror groups kill the larger number of Christians, highlighting the Fulani network’s expanded efforts to target Christians.”
The Fulani terror groups are decentralized networks of militias and bandit gangs coming from the semi-nomadic Fulani ethnic group.
They are known for attacking isolated villages in synchronized fashion — arriving on motorcycles with automatic weapons to kill Christian villagers and destroy property, often fleeing before security forces can arrive.
Much of the violence is concentrated in the middle of Nigeria, since the northern part of the country is predominantly Islamic and the south is largely Christian.
“Behind the numbers are devastating realities for many Nigerians,” the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa noted.
“Community attacks not only caused death and kidnapping but also led to severe trauma and economic devastation through the destruction of properties and the loss of land, incurring ransom debts and forced displacement,” the organization added.
When attacks occurred, Nigerian government forces “largely failed to intervene, focusing their efforts elsewhere while these attacks continued unopposed.”
Judd Saul, founder and president of Equipping the Persecuted, said in a statement quoted by International Christian Concern that their work in Nigeria aligns with the findings of the report.
“While President Trump has rightly condemned terrorism in Nigeria and supported military operations against ISIS-linked terrorists, those actions have not addressed what we believe is now the primary threat facing Christian communities throughout Nigeria’s Middle Belt,” Saul said.
“As of today, the Trump Administration has taken no direct action to stop the Islamist Fulani Ethnic Militia, the group responsible for the overwhelming majority of attacks against Christian communities in Benue, Plateau, and Kaduna states.”
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