US Congressman Riley M. Moore has formally presented a congressional report to President Donald Trump calling for sweeping measures to address violence against Christian communities in Nigeria, including the repeal of sharia and blasphemy laws in parts of the country.

In a press release issued in Washington, Moore said he joined members of the House Committees on Appropriations and Foreign Affairs at the White House to submit what he described as a “comprehensive report outlining concrete actions to end the persecution of Christians in Nigeria and counter growing extremist violence in the region.”

The submission follows President Trump’s redesignation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) on October 31, 2025, under the US International Religious Freedom Act. Moore said the president tasked him and House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole to lead a congressional investigation into what he termed “the persecution against Christian communities and security challenges plaguing Nigeria.”

According to Moore, the report was the result of “months of investigation, including a bipartisan congressional fact-finding trip to Nigeria, hearings with expert witnesses, consultations with religious leaders, meetings with Internally Displaced Persons, and engagement with senior Nigerian government officials.”

“I travelled on a bipartisan delegation to Nigeria and saw with my own eyes the horrific atrocities Christians face, and the instability the Nigerian government must combat,” Moore said in the statement.

The report outlines several recommendations, including the establishment of a bilateral US–Nigeria security agreement aimed at protecting vulnerable Christian communities and dismantling jihadist networks. It also proposes withholding certain US funds “pending demonstrable action by the Nigerian government to stop violence against Christians”, as well as imposing sanctions and visa restrictions on individuals and groups deemed responsible for religious persecution.

Among its recommendations is a demand for “the repeal of Sharia and blasphemy laws”. Twelve northern Nigerian states operate parallel sharia legal systems alongside secular courts, largely in civil and personal matters for Muslim residents. Human rights organisations have previously criticised aspects of blasphemy legislation and raised concerns about due process in certain cases.

The report further calls for “technical support to the Nigerian government to eliminate violence from armed Fulani militias” and urges coordination with international partners including France, Hungary and the United Kingdom.

Moore said the document “outlines concrete steps to impose accountability measures, counter radical Islamic terrorism, and lays out a plan to work in coordination and cooperation with the Nigerian government to bring security to all the people of Nigeria.”

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“Our brothers and sisters in Christ have suffered in silence for too long. The world is now watching,” he added, urging Nigerian authorities to take the opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations with Washington.

Nigeria has faced overlapping security crises for more than a decade. The Islamist insurgency led by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, has ravaged parts of the north-east. In the north-west and north-central regions, armed bandits and criminal gangs have carried out kidnappings and village raids. Longstanding tensions between herders and farmers in the Middle Belt have also resulted in deadly clashes, often framed along religious lines, though analysts cite land disputes, climate pressures and weak local governance as significant contributing factors.

Successive Nigerian governments have rejected claims of state-sponsored persecution, maintaining that insecurity affects citizens of all faiths and ethnicities. Abuja has consistently stated that it remains committed to protecting religious freedom and prosecuting criminal actors irrespective of religious identity.

The White House has yet to outline specific policy actions following the presentation of the report. However, analysts say any move to condition US assistance or impose sanctions could affect diplomatic ties between the two countries, which cooperate on counter-terrorism, regional security and trade.