…as head of delegation recounts harrowing accounts of victims
United States congressional delegation, led by Congressman Riley Moore has rounded off its fact-finding mission to Nigeria over alleged genocide.
However, the mission is expected to brief President Donald Trump before December runs out.
The delegation comprising five members of Congress, arrived in Nigeria on Sunday and visited Internally Displaced Persons, survivors of terrorist attacks, Christian communities, Christian leaders and traditional rulers, particularly in Benue State.
The US lawmakers also held a meeting with the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN).
Leader of the delegation, Riley Moore, while featuring on a Fox News programme anchored by Harris Faulkner on Thursday, said the team heard harrowing accounts of killings allegedly carried out by Fulani and Islamic extremists.
He described the experience as the most disturbing of his career.
Riley said, “It was really shocking — the stories we heard, the imagery. I have never witnessed anything like that in my life.
“I met one woman who lost her entire family. Five of her children were murdered right in front of her while she was pregnant. She escaped and delivered her baby in an IDP camp. You can see that her soul has literally left her body. There are countless stories like these.”
The US Congressman also recounted another case of a woman who lost her husband, two daughters, and her unborn child during an attack, stressing that the pattern of violence suggested that Christian communities were deliberately targeted.
According to him, the delegation travelled across Benue State in armoured vehicles due to security risks.
He claimed that they met Catholic and Protestant leaders, bishops and community heads from whom he said they obtained “ground truth”.
“This is a fact finding mission. Benue is one of the most dangerous states in Nigeria. This is where the majority of Christians are being murdered for their faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. But I felt we had to go,” Riley said.
He stated that the terrorists did not spare even IDP camps, questioning claims that the violence was driven by climate pressures or land disputes.
He queried, “For those who say this is about climate change or economics, why would you burn down a church? Why would you attack an IDP camp screaming ‘Allahu Akbar’? It is very clear what the answer is.
“They are trying to erase Christians in Benue State and across Nigeria from their ancestral homeland.”
Moore disclosed that President Trump gave him and the House Appropriations Chairman, Tom Cole, the task to compile a full report on their findings.
“We will report back to the President and make recommendations. He has asked myself and Chairman Tom Cole to give him a report, and we are going to do that by the end of this month,” he said.
In October, Trump had designated Nigeria a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ over alleged Christian genocide.
But the Nigerian vehemently kicked against this categorisation, insisting that the insecurity in the country had nothing to do with religion.
