The administration of President Bola Tinubu is facing renewed scrutiny in the United States as the US House of Representatives prepares to hold a hearing on Nigeria’s efforts to protect Christians and address insecurity in the country’s Middle Belt.
The hearing is scheduled for Thursday, November 12, 2026, at 11 a.m. at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. It will be chaired by Chris Smith, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa.
Announcing the hearing on Monday, Smith’s office said it would be held under the theme, ‘One Year Later: Assessing Nigeria’s Efforts to Protect Christians and Secure the Middle Belt’.
Lawmakers are expected to examine Nigeria’s progress over the past year in protecting Christian communities, securing the Middle Belt and bringing perpetrators of religiously motivated violence, including Boko Haram, to justice.
Two panels of witnesses are expected to testify. The first will feature Frank Garcia, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, and Riley Barnes, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labour.
The second panel will include Nina Shea of the Hudson Institute, Ryan Brown, Chief Executive Officer of Open Doors US, and Oge Onubogu of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.
The lawmakers will also consider possible measures Washington could take to pressure the Nigerian government to prevent attacks against Christians and moderate Muslim communities.
The hearing comes one year after US President Donald Trump redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over alleged religious persecution. Trump had previously placed Nigeria on the list in 2020, but former President Joe Biden removed the country after taking office.
On October 31, 2025, Trump restored Nigeria to the list, claiming that Christianity faced an existential threat in the country and accusing extremist groups of killing thousands of Christians.
He subsequently threatened to withdraw US assistance to Nigeria and warned of possible military intervention if the Tinubu administration failed to address the killings.
In a statement on November 1, 2025, Trump directed the US Department of War to prepare for possible military action against terrorist groups operating in Nigeria.
Since then, Nigeria and the United States have strengthened their military cooperation, particularly in efforts to combat terrorist groups operating in the country’s northern region.
