{"id":2570308,"date":"2026-02-16T08:07:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T13:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-propose-new-bill-to-help-persecuted-christians-in-nigeria\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T08:09:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T13:09:03","slug":"house-republicans-propose-new-bill-to-help-persecuted-christians-in-nigeria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-propose-new-bill-to-help-persecuted-christians-in-nigeria\/","title":{"rendered":"House Republicans Propose New Bill to Help Persecuted Christians in Nigeria"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhouse-republicans-propose-new-bill-to-help-persecuted-christians-in-nigeria%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2570308&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Two House Republicans introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability act of 2026,which would require the U.S. State Department to produce a report on American efforts to help persecuted christians in Nigeria and on Nigeria\u2019s cooperation with those efforts.<\/p>\n<p>Key points:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The bill, sponsored by Rep.Riley Moore and Rep. chris Smith, would task the Secretary of State (cited in the article as Marco Rubio) with compiling a report assessing Nigeria\u2019s compliance with the International religious Freedom Act and its actions related to preventing persecution, prosecuting perpetrators, repealing blasphemy laws, protecting vulnerable communities, and facilitating the safe return of internally displaced persons.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The report would name individuals and entities sanctioned in relation to the persecution and would investigate whether the Nigerian government is taking steps to cease enforcement of blasphemy laws and whether non-Muslims, Muslims, and dissenters are subjected to Sharia law or blasphemy charges.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The lawmakers argue that Nigeria has rejected religious persecution, a stance they say has allowed violence against Christians to grow, with church attacks and Christian deaths mentioned as rising concerns.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The legislation comes as the United States has designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern,prompting scrutiny of Nigeria\u2019s handling of religious violence and protection for Christians and non-radical Muslims.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article notes that Islamic extremist groups like Boko haram have displaced Christian communities and carried out attacks, including church destruction and abductions.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It also references a New York Times report stating that roughly 100 U.S. military personnel arrived in Nigeria to support Nigeria\u2019s armed forces, with U.S. personnel not in a combat role and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >nigerian forces retaining command authority<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>the article centers on a proposed U.S. bill to increase accountability and oversight of Nigeria\u2019s treatment of religious minorities,alongside a contemporaneous U.S. military presence described as supporting non-combat roles to bolster protection for Christians.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Two House Republicans introduced new legislation that will require the State Department to create a report detailing American efforts to help persecuted Christians in Nigeria.<\/p>\n<p>Rep. Riley Moore of West Virginia and Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey proposed the &ldquo;Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026,&rdquo; which seeks to assess Nigeria&rsquo;s cooperation with U.S. efforts to safeguard its Christian community.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This legislation makes clear that the United States stands with our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ and seeks to help Nigeria address its many challenges,&rdquo; Moore said in a Feb. 10 <a href=\"https:\/\/rileymoore.house.gov\/media\/press-releases\/smith-moore-introduce-nigeria-religious-freedom-and-accountability-act-2026\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">release<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The report, which would be compiled by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, would include an assessment of Nigeria&rsquo;s compliance with the International Religious Freedom Act.<\/p>\n<p>Such compliance involves &ldquo;specific actions taken, or not taken, by the Government of Nigeria to prevent persecution, prosecute perpetrators, repeal blasphemy laws, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/aoc-blames-climate-change-for-viral-video-of-woman-swimming-in-nyc-subway-sewage\/\" title=\"AOC Blames \u2018Climate Change\u2019 For Viral Video Of Woman Swimming In NYC Subway Sewage\">protect vulnerable communities<\/a>, and facilitate the safe return of internally displaced persons.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); 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 \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>The report would also include names of all individuals and entities sanctioned in relation to the ongoing persecution.<\/p>\n<p>The bill meanwhile calls for &ldquo;an investigation into whether the Nigerian government is taking appropriate steps to cease enforcement of blasphemy laws, and to look into instances of non-Muslims, Muslims, and dissenters being subjected to Sharia law or blasphemy laws.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Smith said in the release that the Nigerian government has denied the &ldquo;religious persecution occurring within its borders,&rdquo; which has &ldquo;only enabled the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/portion-of-catholic-students-kidnapped-in-nigeria-escape\/\" title=\"Portion of Catholic students kidnapped in ... escape\">religious-based violence<\/a> in the country to fester, with Christian deaths and church attacks reaching unprecedented numbers.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The lawmaker noted that President Donald Trump has once more designated Nigeria as a &ldquo;Country of Particular Concern,&rdquo; meaning that the United States must &ldquo;do its due diligence in ensuring that the Nigerian government is taking the proper steps to address and punish the systemic violence against Christians and non-radical Muslims by Islamist extremists.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Islamic military groups like&nbsp;Boko Haram have spent years terrorizing and displacing Christian communities in the northern and central regions of Nigeria.<\/p>\n<p>The terrorism has been marked by the destruction of Christian churches and homes, the abduction of schoolchildren, and the mass murder of Christian villagers.<\/p>\n<p>Days after the legislation was filed, the first installment of U.S. military personnel arrived in Nigeria as part of a broader mission to protect Christians, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/02\/13\/world\/africa\/nigeria-us-military-christian-trump.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> from The New York Times.<\/p>\n<p>That first installment involves about 100 personnel.<\/p>\n<p>The mission will also include intelligence analysts, advisers, and trainers for Nigeria&rsquo;s armed forces.<\/p>\n<p>They will be positioned at three locations across Nigeria, an unnamed War Department official told The New York Times.<\/p>\n<p>Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba, a defense spokesman for Nigeria, told the outlet that the American troops &ldquo;do not serve in a combat capacity and will not assume a direct operational role.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Nigerian forces retain full command authority, make all operational decisions and will lead all missions on Nigerian sovereign territory,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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Riley Moore of West Virginia and Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey, introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026. The bill would require the State Department to prepare a report detailing U.S. efforts to aid persecuted Christians in Nigeria and to evaluate Nigeria\u2019s cooperation with those efforts.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The report, to be compiled by the Secretary of State, would assess Nigeria\u2019s compliance with the International Religious Freedom Act. It would look at actions taken (or not) by the Nigerian government to prevent persecution, prosecute perpetrators, repeal blasphemy laws, protect vulnerable communities, and facilitate the safe return of internally displaced persons.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The legislation would also name individuals and entities sanctioned in connection with the ongoing persecution. It calls for an investigation into whether the Nigerian government is taking steps to end the enforcement of blasphemy laws and whether non-Muslims, Muslims, and dissenters are being subjected to Sharia or blasphemy laws.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Smith said Nigeria has denied religious persecution, which he argues has enabled religious violence to escalate, with Christian deaths and church attacks reaching high levels. He noted that President Trump has designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, meaning the United States should ensure Nigeria takes appropriate steps to address systematic violence against Christians and non-radical Muslims by Islamist extremists.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article references Boko Haram and other groups\u2019 years-long violence against Christian communities in northern and central Nigeria, including attacks on churches and homes, abductions of schoolchildren, and mass killings.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Shortly after the bill was filed, the first group of U.S. military personnel arrived in Nigeria as part of a broader mission to protect Christians. About 100 troops were deployed alongside intelligence analysts, advisers, and trainers for Nigeria\u2019s armed forces, positioned at three sites. Nigerian officials stressed that the American troops are not in a combat role and do not control operations; Nigerian forces retain command authority and lead missions on Nigerian soil<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2570309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-692.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[7072,19990,70028],"class_list":["post-2570308","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-christians","tag-nigeria","tag-us-politics-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-692.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2570308","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2570308"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2570308\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2570312,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2570308\/revisions\/2570312"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2570309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2570308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2570308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2570308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}